Be gritty

Angela Lee Duckworth explains her theory of "grit" as a predictor of success. 


Send your favourite expressions from the talk to the survey below

Ages and Stages

 
How much contact do you have with people of different generations in your family or neighbourhood?


Watch Jane Fonda's Ted Talk and find out what she means by Life's Third Act.

What other positive words does she use to refer to that stage in life, and in what way is that an inspiring influence for young people?

The hard sell

What's your attitude to advertising? Survey your classmates on the questions in the presentation, then look at the results of a survey conducted with a large number or people. 

Advertising from iccic

Advertising from iccic

Down with plastic bottles

Your college needs to cut down the amount of plastic water bottles thrown away by students in order to meet stricter government regulations. You have been asked for your suggestions on how the college can achieve this. 

How many expressions can you find in the cloud below to express how you think the use of plastic bottles can be reduced, the advantages of your idea and ways to make sure students co-operate?

Follow this link to see some suggestions.

Melati and Isabel Wijsen are on a mission to stop plastic bags from suffocating their beautiful island home of Bali. Their efforts — including petitions, beach cleanups, even a hunger strike — paid off when they convinced their governor to commit to a plastic bag-free Bali by 2018. 



 


What else, apart from plastic bottles and bags would you ban in order to contribute to a cleaner, healthier environment?

Source: Gold Advanced CB p. 106 TB p. 86 & Ted Talks

Drawing on humour for change

Use the presentation below to survey your classmates about different kinds of change.

Change from iccic

Liza Donnelly's Ted Talk 
 
Sources: Straightforward Advanced TB & Ted Talks

Living with the past

Why are these 32 symbols found in ancient caves all over Europe?

Speaking words of wisdom

What are the nouns for these adjectives?

intelligent optimistic sociable kind generous decent wise

Which of them is most important to lead a happy life?

You are going to watch a short video in which well-known people from a wide range of fields talk about what wisdom means to them. 

Write down any words or expressions the people use to describe wisdom.



What are the key words that each person associates with wisdom?

Read the quotes below and decide which one is most meaningful for you and why.
What is wisdom to you?

Wisdom Quotes

Source: Film English, by Kieran Donaghy. Recommended by Jo

Newspic

Choose a picture taken between 1914 and 2013. It can be an iconic picture in the news, a picture you have taken or a photograph from your family album.
Use thinglink to add:

•  current affairs context
•  location
•  who the characters in it are

Create a narrative around it. Make your presentation.



source: Alex, Guillem and Albert, ADV 1 13-14

Falling Walls

Which are the next walls to fall?

Falling Walls is an International Conference on Future Breakthroughs in Science and Society happening on 8th and 9th November 2013.

Visit the video gallery and choose a topic that is appealing to you. Watch it and select five items of vocabulary and five expressions to organise your speech and present a summary to your class.

There is an example below.


Jean-Luc Lehners - Breaking the Wall of the Beginning of Time @Falling Walls 2011 from Falling Walls on Vimeo.

During the twentieth century, scientists discovered that the expansion of the universe led to the Big Bang, which meant that it had been smaller, hotter and denser before, quite like a thick soup. Later, when it cooled, it became light and transparent. This light is still flying around in the form of cosmic background radiation, which can be measured, and which has proved that there was evolution before the Big Bang. 

According to the Theory of Cosmic Inflation, a very small region expanded in a short time. This way, it made the universe very smooth and regular, which could then trigger the Big Bang over large regions simultaneously. Another idea claims that the universe goes through cycles of evolution, contracting  and expanding alternatively, thus giving way to the Big Bang.

The String Theory states that both inflationary and cyclic universes are possible, as well as many other types, in fact there is not a universe, but multiverses, one inside another, of different kinds.

Mind the gap

In the presentation below, find out which word is missing on each slide. The same one must work in all three sentences.

Next get into groups and create your own sentences. Add some clues for your classmates to guess more easily.

501gappedsents from iccic

Personal qualities

Write definitions for three adjectives in the box. Read them to your classmates, they should guess the words.
 

Use some of the words to describe someone you know. Which three qualities would make an ideal friend?

Think of a job and pick up three qualities from the box that would be useful for it.

Watch The Power of Introverts.

What personal qualities are mentioned?
What do the following words mean in her talk?

• open plan
• wilderness
• suitcase 

Get ready to tell your classmates a short story about someone you know like the one Susan Cain tells about her grandfather.

Finally, what are you like? Take the test to find out.

 

What if money were no object?

Ask yourself. What would you do with your life if money was no object? Watch this video from a lecture by Alan Watts. Next, get into pairs and discuss to what extent you agree with him. 

 

Sculpture by Jasmine Kay Uy

Why I was late for school today

As I was waiting for the 11.30 train this morning, a funny thing happened...

Fran:  Hi?  That you Karen?
Karen:  Hi Fran.  Yes it’s me but I can't hear well.
Fran:  What’s going on?  What’s all that music?  Where are you?

Get into pairs and go on with the conversation.



Now, write your narrative composition “Why I was late for school today” . 

source: Ben Wetz, recommended by Clodagh http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQ3d3KigPQM

Advanced Speaking Test Parts 1 and 2

Get into pairs and speak about two of the pictures in each set for about a minute, using them as prompts to answer the questions. Don't interrupt your partner, as you will be asked a short questions at the end.

Cae prac parts1+2 from iccic

Compare and contrast

Use the book below to practise for the Speaking Paper Part 2.

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