Thursday 29 November 2007

Activity of the week - Find out the five mistakes and correct them

Tomorrow is the last day of Novembre. In Saturday we enter in the most expected month for childrens: December, the month to buy, ofer and recieve presents. But the most important is to be with the family and friends.

Common Errors - Specially and Especially

Especially and specially are two adverbs often misused by English learners. Here are some examples that might help you to understand their differences:

Wrong: A woman who works sometimes neglects her family, specially the children.
Right: A woman who works sometimes neglects her family, especially the children.

Specially is an adverb used when we want to describe a single special purpose:
e.g. The course has been specially prepared for young beginners
e.g. I came here specially to see you.”

Especially means “particularly”:
e.g. You need extra heating in the house especially during the winter months

in Heaton & Turton (1987) Longman Dictionary of Common Errors (abridged and adapted)

Thursday 22 November 2007

Have a nice weekend!


Riddle of the week!

Which word doesn't belong to this group? hat, that, chat, what, mat, cat, sat, pat, or bat?

Thursday 15 November 2007

Riddle of the Week

Which is correct to say:
a) The yolk of the egg are white?
b) The yolk of the egg is white?

Friday 9 November 2007

Riddle of the week!

What goes around the world but stays in a corner?

Tuesday 6 November 2007

Writer of the Month - David Leavitt


David Leavitt teaches English at the University of Florida. His novels and short-stories are widely known and can be found translated into Portuguese.
To learn more:
http://web.english.ufl.edu/faculty/dleavitt/


"Well, I kept writing stories. I thought about despair, and I thought about getting drafted. I tried to understand what made me love the stories I loved. The process was halting, usually exhuberant, sometimes graceful. I don't think I ever wrote a single opening line that ended up being the opening line of the story for which it was intended."

David Leavitt (2003) Collected Stories, Bloomsbury, Introduction xi