SPEAKING: Communication phrases and expressions

Learn and review some useful expressions for oral exams (you can listen to them).

1. Thinking time: Conversation Time Fillers
2. Agreeing and Disagreeing.
3. Taking turns: interrupting and turn-taking.
4. Interrupting politely.
5. Paraphrasing expressions: repeating things in a different way.

Drabble competition winners

Click here to read the two prizewinning stories in the Intermediate Level.

How to write a book review

How to write a short book review

May listening handout

I. Keep your laptop safe and functional(1’47”)
http://video.about.com/mobileoffice/Keep-Your-Laptop-Safe.htm

II. Underwater cameras (2’41”)
http://video.nytimes.com/video/playlist/technology/david-pogue/1194811622273/index.html#1247467678580

III. What would you do if you won a lot of money in the lottery?

http://www.elliesenglish.com/audioplay.php?folder=wendy&file=wendylife05&title=talking+about+life+...&image=bannerwendy&itype=png&return=wendyselect.php

IV. Sustainable energy projects in Africa (2’49”)
http://www.esolcourses.com/content/topics6june/environmentday.html

Internet Freedom

Watch this video of Hillay Clinton talking about Internet Freedom.

Battle for Internet Freedom

After a long dispute, Google is saying goodbye to the world's biggest Internet population: China. As Terry McCarthy reports, many U.S. firms are rethinking their online business with the communist nation.

Watch this video and answer the questions (answers in "comments").

1. What has Google decided to do?
2. Where have the 384 million users been moved?
3. Why did the Chinese government ban Google from operating inside the country?
4. When did the dispute begin? Why?
5. What was Beijing's reaction?
6. What does the blogger say?
7. What happened to sites like Twitter, Facebook and YouTube last year?
8. Why did Google decide it didn't have a choice?
9. What does James Lewis say?
10. What did Hillary Clinton demand?

Wireless Networks Are Soft Virus Targets

Listen to the podcast and take notes. Then you can listen and read the transcript.