Day 1 - 2

A. Basic Greetings

What will I learn from the basic English lesson on basic greetings

During this lesson you will learn the basics in greeting someone on English. The first part of the lesson explains why you greet someone and the last part is a list of greetings.

Why you need to greet someone?

There are many ways that you can say hello in English. You can just say a quick hello as you are passing somebody. This type of greeting can sometime lead to a conversation. Friends and family members will greet each other in a lot more  casual way. 

A list of basic greetings

Hello, David

Hi, David

Good morning

Good afternoon

Good evening.

Good to see you again

Nice to see you again.

I’m glad to see you.

I’m happy to see you.

I’m  pleased to see you.

Greeting someone	How to answer them
How are you?                   How have you been?                 How are things?                 How is your girlfriend?	Fine, thanks. And you? Very well. And you? Not too bad, thanks. She’s fine.

 

Different ways to say "Goodbye" in English

English speakers like a lot of variety in their everyday language. We have lots of different expressions for saying simple things.  These are some of the different ways to farewell someone in English:

Formal

• Goodbye.
  "Goodbye" itself is actually one of the most formal ways to say goodbye to someone and it may mean goodbye FOREVER.  

• Have a good day.
  Say "Have a good day" (or "Have a nice day," "Have a good evening," or "Have a good night") to someone that you're not very close with, like a coworker that you don't know well, an employee, a customer, or a friend of a friend.
   
• Take care.
  This phrase is still a little bit formal, but not quite as formal as "Have a good day." Use this when you're not going to see someone again for at least a week.
   

Casual goodbyes

Most of the time, we use one of these casual phrases when saying goodbye to someone in English.

• 'Bye!
  "'Bye" is the most common way to say goodbye in English. You can say "'Bye" to anyone you know, from friends to coworkers to clients. It's common to say "'Bye" at the very end of a conversation, even after you've said some of the other phrases in this list. 

• Bye bye!
  Little children say "Bye bye" but a lot of adults use it as well.
   
• Later!
  "Later!" is a cool, casual way to say goodbye. Adults that know each other well often use "Later!" when speaking with each other. 
• See you later. / Talk to you later.
  "See you later is not quite as casual as "Later!". You can use it with almost anyone. You say "See you later" when you're saying goodbye to someone in person. When you're talking to someone on the phone, you can say "Talk to you later" instead.
   
• Have a good one.
  "Have a good one" means "Have a good day" or "Have a good week." You sound relaxed and friendly when you use it. However, there are people who get annoyed by it because they think that "Have a good day" is better.
   
• So long.
  "So long" isn't very common for actually saying "goodbye" to someone, but you may find it sometimes in news headlines and other places.
   

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B. The numbers

This is an English lesson which teaches you all about numbers, including: ordinal numbers, fractions, decimals, dates,big numbers, and even the numbers that appear in the names of Kings and Queens. 

Ordinal Numbers 

Ordinal numbers are numbers used to indicate order, for example: 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd.

Most of them are formed by adding ‘th’ to the end of regular numbers, for example: fourth (four-th), sixth (six-th), seventh (seven-th). However, there are a few irregular ones: first (1^st), second (2^nd), third (3^rd), fifth (5^th), ninth (9^th) and twelfth (12^th). Here is a list of the ordinal numbers from 1^st to 19^th.

• 1st – first*
• 2nd – second*
• 3rd – third*
• 4th – fourth
• 5th – fifth*
• 6th – sixth
• 7th – seventh
• 8th – eighth
• 9th – ninth*
• 10th – tenth
• 11th – eleventh
• 12th – twelfth*
• 13th – thirteenth
• 14th – fourteenth
• 15th – fifteenth
• 16th – sixteenth
• 17th – seventeenth
• 18th – eighteenth
• 19th – nineteenth

For multiples of ten, the ‘y’ at end of the word changes to ‘i’ and the suffix ‘eth’ is added.  For example, ‘twenty’ becomes ‘twentieth’. Here is a list of the multiples of ten from 20 to 90:

• 20^th  – twentieth
• 30^th – thirtieth
• 40^th – fortieth
• 50^th – fiftieth
• 60^th – sixtieth
• 70^th – seventieth
• 80^th – eightieth
• 90^th – ninetieth

Note: You say 100^th as ‘one hundredth’.

Big Numbers 

We do not make hundreds, thousands and millions plural when the number in front is more than 1. For example:

100 – one hundred

200 – two hundred

1000 – one thousand

4000 – four thousand

1,000 000 – one million

5,000 000 – five million

The word ‘and’ is used between the hundreds and the tens in a number. For example:

420 – four hundred and twenty

2, 765 – two thousand, seven hundred and sixty-five

Dates

To pronounce the date within a month, we use ordinal numbers and the word ‘of’. For example:

15^th March – fifteenth of March or March the fifteenth

12^th September – twelfth of September or Setember the 12th

To pronounce a year before 2000 we usually pronounce it in two parts. For example:

1922 – 19/22 – nineteen twenty-two

1814 – 18/14 – eighteen fourteen

If there is a 0 in the ten position, we usually pronounce it ‘oh’. For example:

1908 – nineteen oh eight

1409 – fourteen oh nine

Compare to:

1980 – nineteen eighty

1490 – fourteen ninety

For years after 2000, we usually pronounce the whole number:

2002 – two thousand and two

2010 – two thousand and ten (a more informal way is to say twenty ten)  

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C. The days of the week

The chart below shows the "days of the week" in English together with their normal abbreviations.

		Day of the Week	Abbreviation
days of the week (7 days)	weekdays (5 days)	Monday	Mon.	Mo.
		Tuesday	Tue.	Tu.
		Wednesday	Wed.	We.
		Thursday	Thu.	Th.
		Friday	Fri.	Fr.
	weekend (2 days)	Saturday	Sat.	Sa.
		Sunday	Sun.	Su.

Notice that days of the week and weekdays and are NOT the same:

• "Days of the week" are all 7 days from Monday to Sunday.
• "Weekdays" are only the 5 days from Monday to Friday.
• The "weekend" is Saturday and Sunday.

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D. The months of the year

Questions:

1. What month is it today?
2. What is the FIRST month of the year?
3. What i the LAST month of the year?
4. What is the TWELFTH month of the year?
5. What is the THIRD month of the year?

Fill in the blanks with the appropriate month:

     * Halloween takes place in OctoberNovemberDecember.

     * JanuaryFebruaryMarch comes after February.

     * The month between August and October is SeptemberOctoberNovember

     * Christmas and Hannukah are celebrated in OctoberNovemberDecember

     * Saint Patrick's day is in FebruaryMarchApril

     * Thanksgiving takes place in SeptemberOctoberNovember

     * JanuaryFebruaryMarch has 28 days.

     * The 6th month of the year is MayJuneJuly

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E. Building a profile

The rules are very easy for this exercise and they are as follows:

1. You have to go up to the board and write down the answers to all of you questions. Make sure to categorize them
2. You have 30 minutes to ask questions.  Any question that you would typically ask someone to learn more about them.  They can be professional or personal in nature
3. Be creative when asking questions.
4. Let me know when you have finished asking question by saying something like: That's all the questions that I have for now.  This helps me know you a little bit better.

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F. Verbs Review

A. Simple Present

Form: [VERB] + s/es in third person

Examples:

• You speak English.
• Do you speak English?
• You do not speak English.

USE 1 Repeated Actions

Use the Simple Present to express the idea that an action is repeated or usual. The action can be a habit, a hobby, a daily event, a scheduled event or something that often happens. It can also be something a person often forgets or usually does not do.

Examples:

• I play tennis.
• She does not play tennis.
• Does he play tennis?
• The train leaves every morning at 8 AM.
• The train does not leave at 9 AM.
• When does the train usually leave?
• She always forgets her purse.
• He never forgets his wallet.
• Every twelve months, the Earth circles the Sun.
• Does the Sun circle the Earth?

USE 2 Facts or Generalizations

The Simple Present can also indicate the speaker believes that a fact was true before, is true now, and will be true in the future. It is not important if the speaker is correct about the fact. It is also used to make generalizations about people or things.

Examples:

• Cats like milk.
• Birds do not like milk.
• Do pigs like milk?
• California is in America.
• California is not in the United Kingdom.
• Windows are made of glass.
• Windows are not made of wood.
• New York is a small city. It is not important that this fact is untrue.

USE 3 Scheduled Events in the Near Future

Speakers occasionally use Simple Present to talk about scheduled events in the near future. This is most commonly done when talking about public transportation, but it can be used with other scheduled events as well.

Examples:

• The train leaves tonight at 6 PM.
• The bus does not arrive at 11 AM, it arrives at 11 PM.
• When do we board the plane?
• The party starts at 8 o'clock.
• When does class begin tomorrow?

B. Present Progressive

FORM: [am/is/are + present participle]

Examples:

• You are watching TV.
• Are you watching TV?
• You are not watching TV.

USE 1 Now

Use the Present Continuous with Normal Verbs to express the idea that something is happening now, at this very moment. It can also be used to show that something is not happening now.

Examples:

• You are learning English now.
• You are not swimming now.
• Are you sleeping?
• I am sitting.
• I am not standing.
• Is he sitting or standing?
• They are reading their books.
• They are not watching television.
• What are you doing?
• Why aren't you doing your homework?

USE 2 Longer Actions in Progress Now

In English, "now" can mean: this second, today, this month, this year, this century, and so on. Sometimes, we use the Present Continuous to say that we are in the process of doing a longer action which is in progress; however, we might not be doing it at this exact second.

• I am studying to become a doctor.
• I am not studying to become a dentist.
• I am reading the book Tom Sawyer.
• I am not reading any books right now.
• Are you working on any special projects at work?
• Aren't you teaching at the university now?

USE 3 Near Future

Sometimes, speakers use the Present Continuous to indicate that something will or will not happen in the near future.

Examples:

• I am meeting some friends after work.
• I am not going to the party tonight.
• Is he visiting his parents next weekend?
• Isn't he coming with us tonight?

USE 4 Repetition and Irritation with "Always"

The Present Continuous with words such as "always" or "constantly" expresses the idea that something irritating or shocking often happens. Notice that the meaning is like Simple Present, but with negative emotion. Remember to put the words "always" or "constantly" between "be" and "verb+ing."

Examples:

• She is always coming to class late.
• He is constantly talking. I wish he would shut up.
• I don't like them because they are always complaining.

C. Simple Past

FORM: [VERB+ed] or irregular verbs

Examples:

• You called Debbie.
• Did you call Debbie?
• You did not call Debbie.

Complete List of Simple Past Forms

USE 1 Completed Action in the Past

Use the Simple Past to express the idea that an action started and finished at a specific time in the past. Sometimes, the speaker may not actually mention the specific time, but they do have one specific time in mind.

Examples:

• I saw a movie yesterday.
• I didn't see a play yesterday.
• Last year, I traveled to Japan.
• Last year, I didn't travel to Korea.
• Did you have dinner last night?
• She washed her car.
• He didn't wash his car.

USE 2 Duration in Past

The Simple Past can be used with a duration which starts and stops in the past. A duration is a longer action often indicated by expressions such as: for two years, for five minutes, all day, all year, etc.

Examples:

• I lived in Brazil for two years.
• Shauna studied Japanese for five years.
• They sat at the beach all day.
• They did not stay at the party the entire time.
• We talked on the phone for thirty minutes.
• A: How long did you wait for them?
  B: We waited for one hour.

USE 3 Habits in the Past

The Simple Past can also be used to describe a habit which stopped in the past. It can have the same meaning as "used to." To make it clear that we are talking about a habit, we often add expressions such as: always, often, usually, never, when I was a child, when I was younger, etc.

Examples:

• I studied French when I was a child.
• He played the violin.
• He didn't play the piano.
• Did you play a musical instrument when you were a kid?
• She worked at the movie theater after school.
• They never went to school, they always skipped class.

USE 4 Past Facts or Generalizations

The Simple Past can also be used to describe past facts or generalizations which are no longer true. As in USE 3 above, this use of the Simple Past is quite similar to the expression "used to."

Examples:

• She was shy as a child, but now she is very outgoing.
• He didn't like tomatoes before but now he loves them.

D. Past Continuous

FORM: [was/were + present participle]

Examples:

• You were studying when she called.
• Were you studying when she called?
• You were not studying when she called.

USE 1 Interrupted Action in the Past

Use the Past Continuous to indicate that a longer action in the past was interrupted. The interruption is usually a shorter action in the Simple Past. Remember this can be a real interruption or just an interruption in time.

Examples:

• I was watching TV when she called.
• When the phone rang, she was writing a letter.
• While we were having the picnic, it started to rain.
• What were you doing when the earthquake started?
• I was listening to my iPod, so I didn't hear the fire alarm.
• You were not listening to me when I told you to turn the oven off.
• While John was sleeping last night, someone stole his car.
• Sammy was waiting for us when we got off the plane.
• While I was writing the email, the computer suddenly went off.
• A: What were you doing when you broke your leg?
  B: I was snowboarding.

USE 2 Specific Time as an Interruption

In USE 1, described above, the Past Continuous is interrupted by a shorter action in the Simple Past. However, you can also use a specific time as an interruption.

Examples:

• Last night at 6 PM, I was eating dinner.
• At midnight, we were still driving through the desert.
• Yesterday at this time, I was sitting at my desk at work.

IMPORTANT

In the Simple Past, a specific time is used to show when an action began or finished. In the Past Continuous, a specific time only interrupts the action.

Examples:

• Last night at 6 PM, I ate dinner.
  I started eating at 6 PM.
• Last night at 6 PM, I was eating dinner.
  I started earlier; and at 6 PM, I was in the process of eating dinner.

USE 3 Parallel Actions

When you use the Past Continuous with two actions in the same sentence, it expresses the idea that both actions were happening at the same time. The actions are parallel.

Examples:

• I was studying while he was making dinner.
• While Ellen was reading, Tim was watching television.
• Were you listening while he was talking?
• I wasn't paying attention while I was writing the letter, so I made several mistakes.
• What were you doing while you were waiting?
• Thomas wasn't working, and I wasn't working either.
• They were eating dinner, discussing their plans, and having a good time.

Exercise on Simple Present - Present Progressive

Complete the sentences. Use Simple Present and Present Progressive.

1. James (live)  in a little village.
2. He (be)  in his last year at school.
3. After school, James (want)  to become a banker.
4. So this week, he (do)  a practical course in a bank.
5. There (be)  a bank in a nearby town, but James (have)  to take the bus to get there.
6. The bus (leave)  at 5.30 in the morning and (return)  at 8.15 in the evening.
7. James (not / like)  to spend so much time in town before and after work, waiting for the bus.
8. Therefore, this week he (stay)  with his aunt, who (live)  in town.
9. James usually (wear)  jeans and t-shirts, but while he (work)  for the bank now, he (wear)  a suit and a tie.
10. Today (be)  Betty's birthday.
11. Betty (love)  birthdays.
12. She (be)  always very excited and (wake up)  very early.
13. At six o'clock in the morning, Betty (hear)  a noise.
14. She (get up)  and (go)  into the sitting room.
15. What (go on) ?
16. Look! Betty's cat Carlos (sit)  on the table and he (play)  with Betty's present.

Simple Present / Present Continuous

Using the words in parentheses, complete the text below with the appropriate tenses

A Trekking Journal

November 12, 1997

Today (be)  the second day of my trek around Mount Annapurna. I am exhausted and my legs (shake)  ; I just hope I am able to complete the trek. My feet (kill, really)  me and my toes (bleed) , but I (want, still)  to continue.

Nepal is a fascinating country, but I have a great deal to learn. Everything (be)  so different, and I (try)  to adapt to the new way of life here. I (learn)  a little bit of the language to make communication easier; unfortunately, I (learn, not)  foreign languages quickly. Although I (understand, not)  much yet, I believe that I (improve, gradually) .

I (travel, currently)  with Liam, a student from Leeds University in England. He (be)  a nice guy, but impatient. He (walk, always)  ahead of me and (complain)  that I am too slow. I (do)  my best to keep up with him, but he is younger and stronger than I am. Maybe, I am just feeling sorry for myself because I am getting old.

Right now, Liam (sit)  with the owner of the inn. They (discuss)  the differences between life in England and life in Nepal. I (know, not) the real name of the owner, but everybody (call, just)  him Tam. Tam (speak)  English very well and he (try)  to teach Liam some words in Nepali. Every time Tam (say)  a new word, Liam (try)  to repeat it. Unfortunately, Liam (seem, also)  to have difficulty learning foreign languages. I just hope we don't get lost and have to ask for directions.

Simple Past or Past Progressive

Put the verbs into the correct tense (simple past or past progressive).

1. When I (do)  the washing-up, I (break)  a plate.
2. While Tom (play)  the piano, his mother (do)  the washing-up.
3. He (drink)  some juice and then he (eat)  a few chips.
4. I (have)  dinner when I suddenly (hear)  a loud bang.
5. When my father (work)  in the garden, an old friend (pass)  by to see him.
6. She (go)  to school, (take)  out her textbook and (begin)  to learn.
7. When it (start)  to rain, our dog (want)  to come inside.
8. When Jane (do)  a language course in Ireland, she (visit)  Blarney Castle.
9. When I (be)  on my way home, I (see)  an accident.
10. I (not / understand)  what they (talk)  about.
11. When I (get)  up yesterday, the sun (shine) .
12. It (is)  a beautiful morning.
13. So I (decide)  to cycle around a little.
14. I (go)  to the shed and (take)  out my bike.
15. While I (cycle)  past some villages, I (see)  some people in their gardens.
16. One man (mow)  the grass while his wife (pick)  strawberries.
17. After one hour of cycling in sunshine, a big fat raincloud suddenly (appear)  and it (start)  to rain.
18. Luckily, a farmer (notice)  me and (tell)  me to come in.
19. While it (rain)  outside, I (sit)  in the farmer's house.
20. After a while, the sun (come)  out again.
21. I (thank)  the farmer for his hospitality and (move)  on.

Simple Past / Past Continuous

Using the words in parentheses, complete the text below with the appropriate tenses

Last night, while I was doing my homework, Angela (call) . She said she (call)  me on her cell phone from her biology classroom at UCLA. I asked her if she (wait)  for class, but she said that the professor was at the front of the hall lecturing while she (talk)  to me. I couldn't believe she (make)  a phone call during the lecture. I asked what was going on.

She said her biology professor was so boring that several of the students (sleep, actually)  in class. Some of the students (talk)  about their plans for the weekend and the student next to her (draw)  a picture of a horse. When Angela (tell)  me she was not satisfied with the class, I (mention)  that my biology professor was quite good and (suggest)  that she switch to my class.

While we were talking, I (hear)  her professor yell, "Miss, are you making a phone call?" Suddenly, the line went dead. I (hang)  up the phone and went to the kitchen to make dinner. As I (cut)  vegetables for a salad, the phone rang once again. It (be)  Angela, but this time she wasn't sitting in class.

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G. Trophic cascade: how animals change nature

Look at the picture illustrating the process of trophic cascade and explain in your own words what it is and how it works.

How wolfes have changed Yellow Stone's rivers

This may be one of the most important conservation concepts to come out of natural science in the last half century. The thing about this case study about wolfes in Yellowstone is that the same can be applied to apex predators around the world: lions in Africa, tigers in Asia. Sharks, bears, and wild dogs are all species sitting at the top of their respective food chains, creating stability amongst the species they prey on and maintaining the health of plants and animals right down the trophic ladder.

Watch the following video and answer the questions below

1. What was the sequence of events described in the video?
2. Do you believe that this is true? Why or why not
3. Do you believe that this could happen here in France after the reintroduction of wolves? What about bears?