English Without End

Can you name the European Cities by their name in phonetic alphabet form? Quiz I say tomato , you say tomeito From the film Shall We Dance  (1937)

Past tense pronunciation post As you all know, connected speech is a very important feature of the English language. I have happened to come across this wonderful song with clear examples such as: Picture perfect memories scatter ed a ll around the floor. It's a quater after one, I' m a ll alone and I need you now. I said I wouldn't call but I los t a ll control. It's quarter after one, I' m a little drunk and I need you now . Now, listen carefully and then sing along. I'm sure you can do it! More songs sharing this feature:  Does it ring any bells? Ally McBeal And then I saw her face Now I' m a believ er Not a trace Of doubt in my mind I' m in love I' m a believ er I couldn't lea ve her If I tried (lyrics)

MOOC  /mu:k/ stands for Massive Open Online Course . They are distance-learning courses run online by many universities worldwide. Usually, they are open to anyone who registers. One single course may admit even thousands of students. It is possible to study almost any subject through this method, and dozens of famous universities worldwide are now offering MOOCs. They can be treated as A standalone study for individuals interested in a particular subject matter, or consolidation study for a course you are already following. Massive open online courses ( BBC news video ) A course you might be interesting in taking: Reading Tools: prepara tu examen de comprensión de lectura en inglés Websites with the best courses: Coursera edX Open University MOOC.es Yale Open Courses Open Education Consortium Open Culture and many more. If you want to know the MOOC your teacher is doing right now, click here . I'm loving it! BBC Culture: Las Meninas , the wo...

The importance of attitude : How changing your attitude will change your life. The importance of your attitude on learning Attitude problem?: Victor Kuppers at TEDxAndorralaVella " Life is like a game of cards. The hand you are dealt is determinism; the way you play is free will." Even though in Spanish, I really wanted you to listen to what he has to say:  Never ever will we be able to change the hand we are dealt but we can ALWAYS choose our attitude , our ultimate freedom. So true! Ordinary Day  song by Great Big Sea (a group from Newfoundland, "Terranova" ) I'm free to be whatever I, whatever I choose song by Oasis Unwritten song by Natasha Bedingfield "That's the attitude!" , Ellen says to Michael J. Fox who talks about staying positive through Parkinson's, a disease he has been suffering from for 20 years but which hasn't prevented him from appearing on tv shows. One of them is The Good Wife in which he plays th...

Leonard Cohen, Epic and Enigmatic Songwriter, Is Dead at 82 . 'No other artist’s music felt or sounded like his': tributes pour in to Leonard Cohen . Leonard Cohen managed that rare thing: to talk with clarity about death . Why does Leonard Cohen owe it all to Spain? Acceptance speech for the 2011 Prince of Asturias Award for Arts & Letters.  From minute 5:34 onwards he tells  the story of how he got his song and why he owes it all to Spain. A must-see! Leonard Cohen on Federico García Lorca: The lyrics of the song  " Take This Waltz"  derive from  Pequeño Vals Vienés    (“Little Viennese Waltz”) , a poem written in Spanish by Lorca.  Compare:        Take This Waltz   lyrics        Pequeño vals vienés   poem Your teacher's choice: Readers' Poll: The 10 Best Leonard CohenSongs

Podcasts for English learners Podcasts in English Professional Podcasts Audio and Video on the go BBC Radio Podcasts 10 Best Podcast Apps New York Public Radio

Random acts of kindness A walk down memory lane: Pay It Forward (2000):  "Call it generosity between two strangers"

The episode's writer said that the fictional Trump presidency was a warning to America: "It was consistent with the vision of America going insane". Read the article here . A prediction yet to come is Hillary Clinton presidency after Trump: Ten times The Simpsons predicted the future (from the ebola outbreak to 9/11). 5 Simpsons predictions yet to come true. Don't move to Canada just yet (Late Show with Stephen Colbert)

Toys 'R' UsFaces Backlash After Announcing Thanksgiving Opening Hours Please, do notice the collocations:      growing number     announce a release     opening time     to spark a backlash     alleviate the stress     large retailers     

Cambridge Dictionary: READ What I like about it:    - Level is specified  - Idioms and phrasal verbs related to the word Oxford Dictionary: READ What I like about it:    - More examples available   - Synonyms Longman Dictionary: READ What I like about it:    - Top spoken and written words code   - Examples with pronunciation   - Grammar patterns   - Thesaurus Macmillan Dictionary: READ What I like about it:    - Activator-like   - Explore Thesaurus available   - Synomyms and related words   - Phrases and phrasal verbs   - Red words and stars for frequency of use:    http://www.macmillandictionary.com/ Lots and lots of games and resources

Bonfire Night 2016: Who was Guy Fawkes and why do we celebrate with firework displays? The Gunpowder Plot on Horrible Histories (2009) To find out more: Bonfire night webquest Play the Gunpowder plot game Guy Fawkes Day:  Remembering The Fifth Of November With  V For Vendetta . For older posts about Bonfire Night, click here .