SOME HELP TO WRITE YOUR POSTS

Here you have some important information that will help you organize your posts and improve your writing skills:

HOW TO WRITE A COMPOSITION

Different Parts of a Composition:
Whatever you choose to write for a composition, you usually follow the same basic structure: Introduction/Opening + Body + Conclusion/Closing

1. Opening (1 paragraph)
-It consists of a presentation of the topic (use an "attention grabber": something to capture the reader’s attention).
-It contains the ideas you are going to deal with (a quick overview of what’s coming)

2. Body (2-3 paragraphs)
-The body is a group of paragraphs that develop on the main idea as introduced in the opening.
-Each paragraph argues, describes, explains, discusses, defines, clarifies, illustrates or whatever on the opening statement.
-One idea is discussed in each paragraph.

3. Closing (1 paragraph)
-It can be a summing up, reviewing or restating the main idea in different words or briefly stating your opinion, feelings or suggesting a solution, or some “food for thought” or a wish…

Ensure the concluding paragraph is not too long; three or four sentences will be enough.
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

How can you write an attention grabber?

By...
-Making an unexpected statement
-Using Humor
-Using a relevant quotation
-Posing a Rhetorical question designed to arouse curiosity without requiring an answer
-Shocking the Audience with an unexpected fact or statistic

Examples:
A good attention grabber: "The death penalty is the most premeditated of murders"; “Elvis is not dead...”; “Who said that the countryside is boring?”; “Seagulls are just rats with wings”; “Hating seagulls is like being racist or homophobic”

A bad attention grabber: “Today I have to write about...”; “the topic of this post is...”

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< 

PUTTING YOUR IDEAS TOGETHER

Here is a “helping word” to students in trouble, I mean, several words that will help you when you find it hard to write something  because your ideas are not connected.

These expressions are used to introduce a new topic:

-as for, in regards to, concerning (en cuanto a, en relación a)
-in reference to, with regards to (tocante a , concerniente a )
-about, concerning (acerca de)

You can use these words (Connectors) to link your ideas.

RESULT – SUMMARY
So – Therefore, – as a result – thus – Consequently, – in this way – in short – in brief
CONCESSION
However, – Nevertheless, – despite – in spite of – yet – although – though – still …
CONTRAST
Instead – in comparison – but – on ( the ) one hand – on the other hand – by contrast – whereas – otherwise
ADDITION
Also – and – Furthermore, – Moreover, – in addition ( to ) – besides – above all…
REASON
Because – since – as - because of , due to – thanks to - that’s why – that’s the reason why -
EMPHASIS
As a matter of fact, – in particular – Of course, – In fact, – indeed – in any event…
ILLUSTRATION
For instance – for example …
REPETITION
Similarly – likewise – in the same way…
SEQUENCE
First – next – then – finally – at last – eventually – in the end…In conclusion,
Firstly – Secondly- thirdly…

And here are some useful phrases for opinions:

- Many people claim that…
- It is true that….
- This is not an exaggeration … even though…
- I tend to dis/agree with …
- In my view…
-As far as I'm concerned,
- In conclusion, – To conclude,
- I can understand… However, …
- As we have seen/will see, there are ( at least ) two sides to this issue.
- I am convinced that we can / deal with this situation /improve this situation / solve this problem…
- This is an issue that / can be solved / must be faced …
- Another aspect of the issue is…
- In my opinion, the advantages of… far outweigh the disadvantages…
- We can argue that… but…
- Personally I am in favor of…..

On these websites you will find some exercises on connectors.

http://www.monash.edu.au/lls/llonline/grammar/engineering/transitions/2.xml

http://www.englishdaily626.com/sentence_connectors.php?005

http://sana.tkk.fi/awe/cohesion/signposts/contrast/exercises/1r.html

POST 5: A PHOTOGRAPH THAT YOU LIKE.

Say Cheeeeeeese!

Taking photographs is one of my hobbies and I’m pretty good at it, or so they say. I started to take photos when I was in my twenties with an old analog Zenit camera that someone lent me, so by now I have around ten albums with old prints, plus the photos I have taken with my digital camera. I couldn’t afford a good camera when I was young because they were very expensive, but nowadays they are a lot cheaper. I have had five cameras so far, and the latest is a digital one which allows me to take as many pictures as I want to, so I’m very pleased with it.
Do you enjoy taking photos? Do you have a camera? Do you collect printed photos? Are you a photolog freak?
This week you are expected to write about a photograph that you like. Make sure to include the following in your post:

Say:

Who took it
What it shows
When it was taken
Why you like it

Upload it too.

Include any other information you'd like to mention.
Write at least 150 words.

Add comments to at least 3 of your classmates’ blogs.

Please, have a look at my sample post below.

Snap shooting around London.


I took this photo on my last trip to London, in July 2011, when I went to Camdem Town Market Place, which is a large market where you can find lots of things, such as handcraft, clothes, ethnic food, paintings, jewelry, rugs, antichs, -you name it-, therefore there are lots of things worth a click.
This photo shows a very eclectic shop there, where, as you can see, they sell vintage clothes and old pieces of furniture, along with some typical English pastries and beverages, and I took it while I was having a nice cup of tea.
I know that this is a rather simple photo, but I like it since it reminds me of the good time that I spent in that city and in that cafe, which is a very special place with a very pleasant atmosphere where they play music from the 50s to the 70s, and where sometimes one of the owners plays beautiful tunes in the piano.

CA 1. WEB QUEST. LONDON

Continuous Assessment 2 is the first of two webquests we’ll have this term.


Instructions:
You are going to spend a week in London evaluating tourist locations for an end of year study trip.
Here is a list of things you want to do while you are there. Follow the links and fill in the table.


Half Day Outings:
London Eye
http://www.londoneye.com/
The British Museum
http://www.britishmuseum.org/
The Tower of London
http://www.hrp.org.uk/TowerOfLondon/ (including Crown Jewels)
Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum
http://www.madametussauds.com/london/
The Natural History Museum
http://www.nhm.ac.uk/
The Tate Modern Art Gallery
http://www.tate.org.uk/

Full day:
Kew Gardens
http://www.kew.org/
Camden Market
http://www.camden-market.org/

London Tube Map:
http://www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloads/standard-tube-map.pdf



For each location say:
What day you will visit,
How much you will have to pay to get in,
Which Tube station you will travel to (nearest to location).


What will you do on the other days? (2 full days / 4 half days / 1 full day / 2 half days)
Search the web for other things to do in London.
What is the total cost?

Post 4: MUSIC

Thank you for the music

Music means to my ears what colours mean to my eyes. Ever since I was born I've been sorrounded by music. I learned to sing before I was able to speak and some very simple moments of my life were turned into special memories just because of the music that was playing at the time.
I like all sorts of music, but especially pop, romantic, tango, Celtic, Brazilian, Mexican, Spanish from Spain mainly,... the list is too long. The only exception is anything related to Hip Hop, Rap (they are so monotonous and boring -not music, actually!), and Reggaeton. I can't stand them, really.
I have a long collection of CDs that I've bought or downloaded from internet (before the S.O.P.A affair) and I prefer listening to music in my room rather that going to concerts.
My earliest memory of singing a song in English is when I used to sing "It´s never too late", by Brenda Lee, and I think if I were a song I would probably be "Pandolpho", an old English Elizabethan lyric song.
I love singing, but, unfortunately for me and my patient neighbours, I don't sing very well. But I can play some songs with my guitar, though lately I've been singing lots of karaoke, instead.
I guess this world without music would be just half as beautiful.
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< o >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

This week's topic is music, so here you have some bullet questions that will help you write your post. You don't have to answer all the questions, just choose one or two to develop each paragraph according to the main ideas you are expected to develop.

Introduction: (Choose 1 question)
How important is music in your life?
How does music make you feel?

Body:
-(likes and dislikes) (Choose 1 or 2 questions)What kind of music do you like?
Is there any kind of music that you particularly dislike?
Who is your favourite group or singer? Why do you like him/her/them?

-(music resources) (Choose 1 or 2 questions)Do you ever go to concerts?
Do you listen to the radio or your or your own music collection, primarily?
Do you ever download music files from the internet?
Do you ever buy CDs?
Have you ever bought pirated CDs?

-(songs with a special meaning) (Choose 1 or 2 questions)
What is your first memory of learning a song?
If you were a song, what song would you be and why?

-(my musical skills) (Choose 1 or 2 questions)
Can you play a musical instrument or read music?
How well do you sing?
Do you like singing karaoke or while in the shower?

Closing paragraph or conclusion: (Choose 1 question)
What do you think the world would be like without music?
Why is music so important to people and culture?

Make sure to leave a comment on 3 of your classmates’ posts and to write 140 words.
I hope you get a lot done!!!!