Chapter 8 : The Two Men

Fry Words 175 – 200 : try   kind    hand  picture    again    change    off    play    spell     air    away    animal    house    point    page    letter    mother    answer    found    study    still    learn    should    America    world

The place looked like an animal house. Bill wished he could wave his hand and cast a magic spell to change everything back the way it was.

On the floor in his study among the broken glass and destroyed circuit boards, Bill found a three page letter from his mother that he'd forgotten to answer. He held in his shaking hand a picture of his father that his mother had sent with the letter. His father was in his thirties, before Bill had been born, and was outside the house, standing still looking away off into the distance. The letter said that his mother thought Bill should stay at home on Earth and study and learn about farming in America – not go off to another world. But he had been too stubborn to change.

Bill folded up the letter, put it with the photo in his back pocket and stood with his hands on his hips looking round at his laboratory. He didn't know what to do.

Maybe his mother had been right.

Suddenly, with a hiss a hot laser blast streaked past him and hit the wall above his head. He jerked round in shock to see two men outside the door coming towards him through the smoke with their blasters raised. With a cry Bill dived behind a counter and crawled on hands and knees to the other end of the lab as more laser blasts caused broken glass and sparks to rain down on his back and shoulders, burning his neck, and cutting his hands.

Who are these men? He thought. What are they looking for? Why are they trying to kill me?

Too many questions and not enough answers.

Copyright © Chris Young 2018

Photo Credit : https://www.pexels.com/photo/black-and-white-man-young-lonely-48566/

1st & 2nd Conditionals

Here's a video I made recently to help students practice 1st and 2nd Conditionals with If. 

EG. 1st Conditional : "If it rains tomorrow, I will buy an umbrella."

2nd Conditional : "If I were rich, I would buy a new house."

The more you practice making sentences in your head or speaking them out loud, or writing them down, the better your English will become :)

After watching the video, try to make some conditional sentences and write them in the comments below. If I, or maybe if other students/teachers, have time I / we'll check them for you :)

Sports Discussion

You don't always need a teacher in the room to practice speaking English. Get a few friends together of about the same level and discuss the below questions. Help each other with vocabulary and try to keep the discussion going as long as possible. Try to use a wide range of grammar and vocabulary. If any of your friends/classmates makes a mistake, tell them.

Comparing and contrasting photos is a common exercise used in many speaking exams, especially Cambridge English : First. When talking about how photos are different, try to use the word 'whereas', EG, "In the first picture they are playing inside, whereas in the second picture they are playing outdoors."

1. Do you know the names of all the above sports in English?
2. Talk about a sport that you do/ used to do.
3. Ask each other questions about their sport.
4. Why is it important / beneficial to do a sport these days?
5. Do you think people do more or less sport than before these days? Why?
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
6. What do you think about international sport, eg the World Cup, The Olympics, etc.?
7. Which do you prefer, to do sport or to watch sport? Why?
8. What do you think are the mental / psychological benefits of regular sport?
9. Can technology help us / encourage us to do sport?
10. Whats the difference between sport and exercise?
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
11. Whats the difference between team sports and individual sports?
12. What do you think about blood sports? (Boxing, Cage fighting etc)
13. What are your opinions on betting on the outcome of matches/competitions?
14. Is there much corruption in sport?
15. What do you know about doping in sports?
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
16. Do you think professional sports people get paid enough? Too much? Why?
17. Have you heard any sports news recently?
18. Why is it important to encourage sports on young people?
19. What sports are unique to your country?
20. Choose two photos on this page and compare and contrast them, saying which sport you would prefer to do and why.

If you'd like to practice writing, all you need to do is sit down and write out your answers to the above questions :) Microsoft Word will help you know if you've made a grammar spelling mistake. Feel free to write some answers in the comments and if I or maybe if someone else has time I or we can give you some feedback.

Photo credits  : 

wikinews sports  - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Acagastya

Beach volleyball : http://maxpixel.freegreatpicture.com/Team-Sport-Volley-Ball-Sports-Sport-Volleyball-2639700 

Rugby : https://health.mil/News/Articles/2016/09/28/Do-the-benefits-of-sports-participation-outweigh-the-risks

Soccer : https://blog.wikimedia.org/2016/01/06/sports-vandalism-on-wikipedia/

Parachuting : https://pixnio.com/sport/extreme-sports/parachute-lake-mountain-extreme-sport-reflection

The Story of Bill : Chapter 1 : The English Scientists

This is the first chapter of a story I wrote recently to help a 12 year old Polish boy at school in P7 here in Scotland improve his literacy skills. It's designed to help children read the page 5 words from a file called Fry Frequently Used Word List 1-600. Using key words to write sentences or even a story is a great way to help students or anyone with reading, writing and vocabulary. I've started at the back and come forwards so it should get easier as we go.

The story doesn't make much sense yet, but the point isn't about how good the story is, it's about reading the words and getting used to them in context, even if it's a weird one.

Chapter One : The English Scientists

Bill suddenly felt it can't matter too much. Perhaps the object built in the town square was made of a special, heavy material that included power in its six dark, round objects.

Am I able to rule among the thousands of people? He thought in his own language. Will I be full, filled with the power that comes from these round shapes? He stood at the base of the building and looked up. The heat from the six circles made them glow in the night. He reached out and touched one. It was dry and warm and his hand went deep inside the material, like a sponge.

But he felt no different.

I don't understand, he thought. These common people need a strong government system, not one made by English scientists.

He ran quickly around the island's streets, looking out at the deep, green sea and feeling the hot stars as if inches from his face. Suddenly he saw a boat-plane come in to land on the surface of the ocean, but he decided to stay and rest behind a building. As he watched, a person came out of the flying machine – the third he had seen in a week. Ten days ago, the English scientists had come in their machines with wheels, but even though they tried to explain - why did they bring their large, square boxes of magic? Their equations were not yet clear.

The fact was, in minutes he would be inches deep in the street, which was made of the same dark material as the orbs, so he finally decided to run to them, down the road and through the waves, taking nothing, and when he reached the boat-plane, climbed carefully inside.

The heat-filled engine of the flying machine sounded strong and powerful.

“Did you bring it?” a voice asked in English.

Bill looked behind him and saw a tall person with a fine beard. “Oh,” he said quickly, but could not finish the sentence. How can he explain? How can he make them understand? Will this boat-plane not finally fly? he thought.

But the person said, “I am a scientist. It cannot matter,” and looked out the window at the deep green waves of the ocean.

Bill looked at the streets and the roads and the building in the square with its six large black balls where he had stood minutes ago. He could have shown him them. He wanted to stay. He decided if he wanted the power of the thousands to make a new government he would have to wait.

The engine made a strong noise and the boat plane moved quickly along the surface of the ocean, before slowly rising into the air and turning left towards the full, heavy moon...

Questions

1) Who do you think Bill is?
2) What do you think the six balls in the square do?
3) Who are the English Scientists?
4) What does Bill want to do?


Read Chapter 2 : Song Of War
Read Chapter 3 : The Plan



Read Chapter 4 : Bill's Ship Sails
Read Chapter 5 : Talk To Animals.

Story © Chris Young 2018

Image credit : http://maxpixel.freegreatpicture.com/Luna-Reflection-Sea-Superluna-Night-Super-Water-1826849