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Blog criado por Bruno Coriolano de Almeida Costa, professor de Língua Inglesa desde 2002. Esse espaço surgiu em 2007 com o objetivo de unir alguns estudiosos e professores desse idioma. Abordamos, de forma rápida e simples, vários aspectos da Língua Inglesa e suas culturas. Agradeço a sua visita.

"Se tivesse perguntado ao cliente o que ele queria, ele teria dito: 'Um cavalo mais rápido!"

segunda-feira, 25 de setembro de 2017

Video Lesson: Mr. Bean

This great idea comes from:

This is a video lesson based around the video “Mr. Bean packs his suitcase” thanks to British Council for bringing it to my attention in their lesson plan on making predictions but I’ve adapted it for use in different ways with different levels.




Kids and lower levels
The aim of this lesson plan is to practice holiday vocabulary (clothes and items that go in a suitcase) and some basic grammar structure.
Project a picture of a suitcase on to the board (or draw one) and ask “What do you put in your suitcase when you go on holiday?”  Brainstorm things that you pack on the board. Make sure students know:
  • toothbrush
  • toothpaste
  • swimming shorts/trunks
  • towel
  • underpants
  • can of baked beans
  • cloth/flannel
  • soap
  • book
  • suitcase
  • trousers
  • shorts
  • shoes
  • teddy bear
  • scissors
You could also use this quizlet set to go over clothes vocabulary.
If children are old enough to write, put them in pairs and hand out post-it-notes and a pencil to each pair. Tell them they are going to watch a video of a silly man packing his suitcase, they have to write 5 things on the post-it that they think he will put in his suitcase. Have them copy the following:
Mr. Bean will put
  1. _________
  2. _________
  3. _________
  4. _________
  5. _________
in his suitcase.
Then stick all the post-its on the board and show the video. The team that guesses the most objects correctly wins. Have them read out their original post-it using past simple affirmative and negative forms: “Mr.Bean put a shirt in his suitcase. He didn’t put a mobile phone in his suitcase.”
Higher levels – video dictations
Ask students: What do you have to do before you go on holiday?
Buy your ticket, pack your suitcase, find your passport etc.
Pre-teach the following vocabulary:
Objects:
  • toothbrush
  • toothpaste
  • swimming shorts/trunks
  • towel
  • underpants
  • can of baked beans
  • cloth/flannel
  • soap
  • book
  • suitcase
  • trousers
  • shorts
  • shoes
  • teddy bear
  • scissors
Verbs:
  • to fit (the chair doesn’t in my bag)
  • to take out (I took a pen out of my bag)
  • to pack a suitcase
  • to swap (I swapped the shirt for a t-shirt)
  • pick up (I picked up the pen)
  • throw away (I threw away the coke can)
  • to choose (I chose the red shirt)
  • to do eeny-meany-miney-mo
  • to realise (I realised I had forgotten my passport)
  • to squeeze (I squeezed the toothpaste)
  • to snap in half (He snapped the pencil in half)
Put students in pairs and arrange them so that 1 is facing the screen and one has their back to the screen. Tell them that the one facing the screen is going to watch 20 seconds of the video then describe it to their partner, their partner will then repeat back what they’ve heard to make sure they have understood. Students then change positions and repeat until minute 3:14. Then let all students watch the end together. Alternatively students could come up with predictions for how the video will end.
I recommend pausing the video quite frequently so that students can concentrate on describing 2 or three actions accurately rather than trying to describe a big chunk of the video.
Then replay the whole video from the start so that everyone can watch it together, ask students if they think their partner described the action well.
PORTAL DA LÍNGUA INGLESA has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-partly internet websites referred to in this post, and does not guarantee that any context on such websites are, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.
In some instances, I have been unable to trace the owners of the pictures used here; therefore, I would appreciate any information that would enable me to do so. Thank you very much.
Is something important missing? Report an error or suggest an improvement. Please, I strive for accuracy and fairness. If you see something that doesn't look right, contact me!
Your feedback is welcome. Please direct comments and questions to me at bruno_coriolano@hotmail.com
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sábado, 23 de setembro de 2017

Prime Minister Trudeau delivers remarks at the St. Matthew’s Day banquet in Hamburg, Germany



Good evening, everyone. Thank you all for the warm welcome.

It is an honour to be here. It’s truly a privilege just to be invited to the St. Matthew’s Day Banquet, and an even greater privilege to be one of your keynotes this evening.

I’d like to start by thanking Mayor Scholz for his gracious invitation. And to speak after Foreign Minister Gabriel is no small feat, but I’ll do my modest, Canadian best.

You know, when my office received the mayor’s invitation to this historic dinner, there was no question that I would attend.

Of course, this banquet’s repution precedes itself, as much for the great meal as for the mangnificent room. And I knew I had to be here because of the friendship between our two countries.

We have long been partners on the world stage.

Canadians and Germans value democracy and the rule of law. We understand the importance of international cooperation and partnership. And we share a progressive vision of the world, realizing the immense potential that comes with embracing change.

I talk a lot about how our goal as a government is to help the middle class and those working hard to join it. That, ultimately, was the vision for change that elected us. Regular Canadians were worried about their future, and we made a promise to support them through these uncertain times.

But that worry – that anxiety – isn’t unique to Canada. It’s everywhere.

Too many people around the world are anxious about what the future may hold.
And who could blame them?

With the pace of globalization and technological change, there is a very real fear out there that our kids will be worse off than we are. That they won’t have the same kind of opportunities that we have, despite being generally much more educated, and infinitely more tech-savvy.

Citizens across the political spectrum are looking for guidance. They’re looking for leadership. They’re looking for a voice.

And so far, they’re feeling a little let down.

When companies post record profits on the backs of workers consistently refused full-time work – and the job security that comes with it – people get defeated.
And when governments serve special interests instead of the citizens interests who elected them – people lose faith.

Increasing inequality has made citizens distrust their governments. Distrust their employers.
It turns into “Us” vs. “Them”.
And we’re watching that anxiety transform into anger on an almost daily basis.

It follows that people’s natural defence mechanism is to hunker down and recoil inward. To give into cynicism. To retreat from one another.

But it’s time for us, as leaders in politics and business, to step up. It’s time to get real about the challenges facing the middle class, and those working hard to join it.

Whether your goal is to build a successful company, or lead a respected and effective government, it’s time to realize that the old approaches don’t work anymore.
We can’t go about things the same way and expect to succeed in this new world.

People are looking for leadership. It’s up to each of us to determine what kind of leadership they find.

People don’t need leaders to tell them they have problems.

People need leaders to help them build solutions together.

I want to use this speech to challenge us. To highlight that the challenges we’re facing require real action and real leadership. And I’m choosing to do it here in Germany because I know you get that. On values, on approach, on inclusive success you’re on the right track and inspiring others to follow.

But we all need to do more.

For business leaders, it’s about thinking beyond your short term responsibility to your shareholders. You have an equally important responsibility to your workers, their families, and the communities that support you.
It’s time to pay a living wage. To pay your taxes. And give your workers the benefits – and peace of mind – that come with stable, full-time contracts.

You can’t build loyalty into corporate culture when people feel overworked and undervalued. You must give your workers avenues to update and modernize their skills for a changing world.

You must be part of the communities where you operate, realizing that these towns and cities support you, and you must, in turn, support them.

And when you hear that an employee is expecting a child, congratulate her, don’t make her question whether or not she’ll have a job to come back to.
And you must ensure your workplace, and especially your boardrooms, reflect the full diversity of society.

It’s time to take a broader view of employee-employer relationships. One that treats workers as partners in success.
Now, I fully appreciate the irony of preaching about the struggles of the middle class to a sea of tuxedoes and ball gowns, while wearing a bow-tie myself.

But this discussion needs to happen. We need to realize our collective responsibility – to the people who elected us. To the people who put their faith and trust in us.

The answers are not in this room. They’re out there. We all need to leave this place, and truly listen to people who are anxious about their futures.

Hear first-hand about their concerns, work with them to develop solutions, and actually implement them.

The hard work of change begins with each and every one of us – around our boardrooms, our water coolers, and our Parliaments.

As for Parliaments, let me tell you a little bit about what we’ve done in ours, in Canada.

We know that we are far from perfect, but what success we’ve had didn’t happen by accident and won’t continue without effort. So what I’ve done over the past years is listen to people talk about their worries. About the fact that the rising tide no longer seems to lift all boats.

In Canada, we’ve taken some steps to help allay that anxiety. To help people deal with the uncertainty of a changing world.

For example, we raised taxes on the wealthiest one per cent, so we could cut taxes for the middle class.

We improved child benefit payments into one single, monthly, tax free Canada Child Benefit. This initiative has given 9 out of 10 families more money to help with the high costs of raising their kids. Because of that, we’re on track to reduce child poverty by around 40 per cent in our country.

We’re increasing the amount of assistance Canadian students can get, helping to make post-secondary education more affordable.

And we’re investing in a range of training and employment programs for unemployed and underemployed Canadian workers, allowing them to upgrade their skills so they’re ready for the modern workforce.

These are just a handful of the things we’ve done to help people adapt to and absorb the changes we’re all feeling.

We could not have done this without listening to Canadians.
In fact, I’ve spent the last month and a half back at home on a cross-Canada tour. Over the past few weeks, I’ve done about a dozen town halls, filling arenas and community centres, and took questions for hours. On anything and everything. Nothing scripted, nothing staged. Just heard directly from middle class Canadians about the things they were worried about. And, more importantly, I heard what they needed from my government to help.

Now, for the politicians in the room, it probably sounds like a high risk proposition to answer a host of questions for hours on end. It was unpredictable and, at times, very intense. But it’s only in having those tough conversations that we can get at the heart of what matters.

To everyone here, I leave you with this. Better is always possible. But we have to make better happen.
We’re not going to get it right everyday.

But Canadians and Germans need to continue to lead by example.

Whether you’re a business or a government, it’s time to realize that this anger and anxiety we see washing over the world is coming from a very real place. And it’s not going away.

We can no longer brush aside the concerns of our workers and our citizens. We have to address the root cause of their worries, and get real about how the changing economy is impacting peoples’ lives.

Ladies and gentlemen, we can all play a role in making the transition to the new economy a smooth one.

And it starts with listening.
Let’s be better, because we know we can do better.
For our citizens, for our workers, and for the entire world.


Thank you.

Bring up & educate


sexta-feira, 8 de setembro de 2017

12 Reasons Everyone Should Learn Another Language by BENNY LEWIS



“I’d love to speak another language, but…”

Over the years, I’ve heard more reasons not to learn a language than I ever would have imagined. I even used to make excuses for myself, before I learned my first new language, Spanish.

I’ve yet to hear (or come up with) a single good reason for not learning a language.

That’s right. Nada.

What about good reasons to start learning a new language? I know hundreds, and hear new ones every day! Every language learner I’ve met so far has their own personal reason for wanting to speak another language.

Why learn another language?

Here are a few of the best I’ve come across. Speaking a second language will…

1.    Open Up a World of Job Opportunities
Learning a second language opens up a ton of career opportunities. I’m not just talking about freelancing or working location-independently either, though these are excellent ideas which I’ve personally used. There are lots of other ways that speaking two or more languages can improve your employment prospects.
The world is changing fast. More companies than ever are doing business in several – often dozens of – countries around the world, but they can’t do it without hiring globally-minded people who can speak at least one foreign language. Ever wanted to be like those people you see in the airport travelling to foreign countries “on business” all the time? That can be you.
Even in small, local companies, chances are that the ability to speak a second language will set you apart from other applicants.
2. Give Your Brain a Boost
Speaking a second language each day really can keep the doctor away! Study after studyhas demonstrated the cognitive benefits of learning another language, no matter how old you are. Memory improvement, longer attention span, and a reduced risk of age-related cognitive decline, are just a few of the known positive effects of speaking two or more languages.
3. Establish Deep Connections and Cross-Cultural Friendships
I’d bet that at least once in your life, you’ve felt a pang of regret during an encounter with someone from a different culture, when you realised how the experience could be enriched by knowing that person’s language.
Has this ever happened to you? You visit a food stall at a local market while on holiday (or even in your own city), where the employees are chatting away together in their native language. You order something, in English, interrupting their fun conversation.
Another local comes by while you’re waiting, orders some food in the local language, and starts talking cheerfully with the cook about…something. A minute later, the cook stops talking and hands you your plate with a simple “Thank you, bye!”
You just missed out on an authentic cultural experience because you couldn’t join in.
Or what about this? You have a friend from another country who you enjoy hanging out with, but you only speak to each other in English. You feel a connection with that person, and think they’re a great friend. And then they mention one day about this other group of friends, who speak their native language, that they meet up with all the time. But you’ve never been invited, because you wouldn’t understand what anyone is saying.
Ok, so you can’t learn every language in the world and have an intimate knowledge of every single culture out there. But if there’s even one culture that you’d like to understand better, or even one person in your life you’d like to know better, then one of the best ways you can start is by learning to speak their language.
4. Get an Outsider’s Perspective about Your Own Culture
Trying to understand your own culture exclusively from within it is like trying to understand what a bus is like if you’ve only ever ridden inside it. You can’t see the bus’s wheels, the exterior colour, or the engine that drives it.
Want the bigger picture? You need to get off that bus and examine it from the outside.
I strongly believe that language and culture are intimately linked. Learn another language and you’ll have insight into another culture. You’ll get to “ride on a different bus” and not only see what it’s like inside and even get comfy in there, but get a clear view of your own for the first time.
Too many people go their entire lives never questioning the universal “truths” they take for granted in their own culture. But step outside this narrow scope, and it’s like stepping out of the Matrix; once your eyes are truly opened to that new perspective, you can never go back.
5. Become More Interesting and Meet More Interesting People
If your first language is English, the second most common language in the world, and yet you’ve made the effort to learn another language rather than expecting the world to accommodate your monolingualism, then you’re a rare breed indeed. This makes you interesting. People will approach you. They’ll want to talk to you. They’ll want to know what motivated you to “bother” learning another language.
Believe me, if you’re a native English speaker who speaks two or more languages, you’ll have many more lively, engaging conversations about a variety of topics than you ever would have had otherwise.
Sure, you could spend your life getting by in English everywhere you go, but that’s boring. Be fun! Be interesting! Be multilingual!
6. Stay Smart in Touristed Areas
There’s always a danger of obvious tourists being targets, or getting hassled by touts, which can ruin your experience of a place where people are actually warm and genuine. The “obvious tourist” tends to be whoever is speaking English, or some other distant tongue.
But everything changes when you use the local language.
I had heard countless stories of how a visit to the Pyramids of Giza is nothing but a frustrating chain of shooing away one tout after another, but by dressing/acting like a local and replying in (my albeit broken) Arabic the entire time, I actually didn’t feel hassled by a single person all the way there. It was actually an experience I’ll never forget!
In over a dozen years travelling the world, I’ve managed to stay sane and stay safe by attempting to blend in as best as I can, as well as responding confidently enough in the local language that potential scammers will believe you’ve been there a while, and they’ll think twice before trying to pull a fast one on you.
7. Become a Better Learner
Every time I learn a new language, I find it easier than the one before. The reasoning is simple: with every new language I study, I figure out ways to learn more efficiently. In other words, I develop language hacks.
Because of my extensive experience with this sort of trial and error, I’ve already identified many common hindrances that I can help you avoid right from the get-go, as well as language hacks that can help you learn faster.
As you spend time learning your first foreign language, you’ll identify your own inefficiencies and eliminate them. You’ll start gaining momentum in your chosen language and learn more and more quickly. Then you’ll be able to hit the ground running with the next language. You’ll be on your way to polyglotism before you know it.
8. Conquer Your Fear of “Looking Stupid”
If a foreigner walked up to you to ask for help with something like directions, and they struggled to find the right English words, and made many mistakes but were obviously trying hard, would you feel like laughing at their effort? I doubt it. You’d more likely be impressed with their courage to walk up to a stranger and speak a language imperfectly. That’s a person who has conquered their fear of making mistakes in front of others, and has managed to communicate with you and gotten help with what they need.
Can’t imagine having that sort of courage yourself? Well, if you decide to learn a language, and you start by speaking from day 1, then you’ll get over your fear very quickly. Not only will you be able to communicate effectively (note that I didn’t say “perfectly”) in a new language, but your confidence will get a huge boost, and you’ll never be held back from trying any new skill. Ever wanted to try dancing? Creative writing? Public speaking? How great would it be to shed your inhibitions and just go for it!
9. Bring Out Your Inner Mr Spock
This may sound surprising, but studies have shown that when you make a decision in your second language, you’re more likely to think logically and avoid basing your decision on emotion. In other words, you’ll become more like Star Trek’s Mr Spock.
There’s no way around it. Humans are emotional creatures. Everyone is guilty of making decisions too hastily and too emotionally. But if you learn to speak another language, you’ll learn to think in that language. And when you think about your decisions in a foreign language, that emotional bias tends to go away and you end up choosing the more logical outcome.
10. Enjoy Works of Art in their Original Language
Bollywood films, manga, telenovelas, Swah rap – the world is full of non-English works of creative art. Don’t you wish you could appreciate some of them in their original language rather than relying on badly-translated subtitles or English dubs, which lose much of the charm that made the original product popular to begin with?
You may find translations, but you'd be surprised what is lost in translation.
If you’re a fan of any type of foreign media – or you’d like to be, but aren’t interested in experiencing it in English because of all nuances lost in translation – then this is an excellent reason to start learning that new language. You’ll already have a very clear goal in mind, so you’ll know what type of vocabulary will be most useful to learn, and you can use those materials as a study aid as you progress in your new language.
11. No More Paying the Sticker Price
Tired of overpaying for gifts and souvenirs at markets when you go on holiday? It’s common knowledge that at many of these places, there are two prices: one for locals and one for tourists.
Even if you bring your best haggling game to the table, if you try to haggle exclusively in English instead of the local language, you might not get very close to that coveted “local price”. But if you make the effort to learn the local language, then you’ll start the game off with a better hand, and end up saving quite a bit more money than you would have otherwise. And the best part is that you’ll also be participating in an authentic cultural experience in the country you’re visiting.
12. Discover You Can Do It!
As I mentioned earlier, I’ve heard pretty much every excuse that people give for failing to learn a second language. Too old, not enough time, wrong genes. None of them hold water.
Whatever doubts you have, you really can learn another language. You could even hold your first conversation just seven days from now.
So What are You Waiting For?
Everyone has their own unique reasons for wanting to learn another language. But while the reasons may be different, they can all be put into action in the same way: by committing to stop making excuses, and to start speaking the language you’ve always wanted to learn.
Once you’ve held your very first conversation in a foreign language, trust me: you’ll never look back.

PORTAL DA LÍNGUA INGLESA has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-partly internet websites referred to in this post, and does not guarantee that any context on such websites are, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.
In some instances, I have been unable to trace the owners of the pictures used here; therefore, I would appreciate any information that would enable me to do so. Thank you very much.
Is something important missing? Report an error or suggest an improvement. Please, I strive for accuracy and fairness. If you see something that doesn't look right, contact me!
Your feedback is welcome. Please direct comments and questions to me at bruno_coriolano@hotmail.com
Did you spot a typo?
Do you have any tips or examples to improve this page?
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