Weekly Links 2º BACH #96

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Weekly essay: "How has your life changed with the use of mobile phones. "

Remember, this is an opinion essay.

To help you with some ideas, in this video, they asked the people of Redwood City, California, how the cell phone has changed their lives.

Happy Book Day. Enjoy.

Weekly Links 2º BACH #95

Weekly essay: "Do you think young people eat too much junk food nowadays? Explain."

This is an opinion essay, so remember:

Plan four or five paragraphs: - an introduction (saying what the situation is...) - two or three paragraphs in support of the argument / giving a contrasting or different view (with reasons) - a conclusion (a summary of your opinion or interpretation of the facts)

To help you, in this video, The Good The Bad and The Ugly Eating Habits, teens from Burbank, Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States, talk about their eating habits.

Enjoy

Weekly Links 2º BACH #94

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Weekly essay: "How important are social media sites to you?"

Here the important words are "to you". So this is an opinion essay where you give your reasons to say if social media are important or not to you.

To help you, watch this video with pros and cons of social media but remember that you have to stand for just one side of the topic.

Enjoy

Weekly Links 2º BACH #93

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Weekly essay: "Would you like to be famous? Give reasons."

Bear in mind that this is an opinion essay, not an argumentative one. So, there are no pros or cons, nor advantages and disadvantages.

Remember:

Opinion essay
Point of view: Because the writer is predominantly concerned with stating his opinion, first-person (i.e., I) is always used.
Attitude: Opinion has a single-minded goal—Tell the reader what you think.
Perspectives presented: Opinion pieces rely solely on opinion and feelings.

Argumentative essay
Point of view: formal writing addresses the multiple sides of an issue using the more objective third-person point of view.
Attitude: writers maintain a tone of fairness and reasonableness. Their attitude is respectful, tactful, and formal.
Perspectives presented: Argumentative writing acknowledges opposing views within a pro/con piece. This demonstrates the writer as a fair-minded person and gives him the opportunity to counter these perspectives with more logic, reasoning, and proof. (source)

Here is a presentation (in argumentative style, watch out!) to give you some ideas.

Enjoy

Weekly Links 2º BACH #92

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Weekly essay: "Which are your favourite TV programmes? Describe them and explain why you like them."

It is a descriptive essay so in your introduction, you might be permitted to make general, abstract statements (tell about) your subject or supply background information, as long as you demonstrate these points concretely later in the body of your essay.
Use vivid nouns, verbs, and adjectives, and appropriate metaphors, similes, comparisons, and contrasts. Avoid clichés.
Like the introduction, the conclusion is another place you can get away with reflecting about your subject, summing up your feelings about it.

In these video interviews around Britain, some British young people talk about their favourite TV shows.

Enjoy

Weekly Links 2º BACH #91

Weekly essay: "Should teenagers decide about their own future alone or guided by their parents? Explain."

All children think about their future. To know what it is that they think about, a social experiment was conducted asking children to send a message to their future selves. And while they spoke to their future selves, their parents watched.

Enjoy

Weekly Links 2º BACH #90

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Weekly essay: "Describe how you would like your life to be in 10 or 20 years from now."

 To help you here is a video with a similar topic: "10 People, 1 Question: Where do you see yourself in 10 years?"

Have a nice weekend.

Weekly Links 2º BACH #89

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Weekly essay: "Do you think women and men have the same opportunities in life?"

Here are some facts to support your argument. Breaking down barriers to gender equality in education, employment and entrepreneurship would create new sources of economic growth.

Have a nice weekend.

Weekly Links 2º BACH #88

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Happy New Year to all of you.
 
Back to our weekly essay, and this week's topic is: "Would you like to take part in the Erasmus Programme in the future? Give reasons."

To help you with some ideas, here is a video telling you about young people's experiences on Erasmus Programme at the University of Greenwich (UK).

Have a nice weekend.

Weekly Links 2º BACH #87

Weekly essay: "What is the best city in the world, in your opinion? Give your reasons."

This argumentative essay or opinion essay involves stating your own point of view immediately, and trying to convince the reader by reasoned argument that you are right with facts, definitions and details.
In the introduction Introduce the topic briefly in general terms, and then state your own opinion.
In the body of the essay, give a couple of arguments to support your opinion.
In the conclusion do not repeat your point of view again: end your essay with something memorable, for example a quotation or a direct question.

Do not write about advantages or disadvantages or points for or against.
Do not use emotive vocabulary and do not give personal examples.

This video 10 Best Places to Live and Work in The World in 2015, may bring you some ideas.

Have a nice weekend.

Weekly Links 2º BACH #86

Weekly essay: "What kind of music do you like? Describe it and explain why you like it."

The descriptive essay describes a person, place, or thing in such vivid detail that the reader can easily form a precise mental picture of what is being written about. It uses formal language (no contractions, no informal expressions), it is consistent with tenses (only use present or past) and it also uses precise adjectives, avoid general words (such as good, nice, bad, or beautiful.)

This video podcast can be useful.

Have a nice weekend.

Weekly Links 2º BACH #85

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Weekly essay: "More time should be given to Art in Secondary Education. Discuss."

Essentially this is a written debate where you are using your skill at reasoning, backed up by carefully selected evidence to make a case for and against an argument, or point out the advantages and disadvantages of a given context. Remember to arrive at a conclusion.  (University of Leicester)

This video may be helpful: What is art for?

Have a nice weekend.

Weekly Links 2º BACH #84

Weekly essay: "the story of someone (real or fictional) who suffered cyberbullying at school and how it all ended."

This is a narrative essay so: it tells a story that happened to you or you have read about so use the 1st person, include feelings and dialogues, use connectors of sequence (First, then...) and past tense.

Have a nice weekend.

Weekly Links 2º BACH #83

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Weekly essay: "'The importance of music for adults’. Discuss."
This is an argumentative essay, where you are using your skill at reasoning, backed up by carefully selected evidence to point out the advantages and disadvantages of a given context. Remember to arrive at a conclusion. It is a formal piece of writing, so use formal language: no contractions, no informal expressions. Use facts, evidence and reasons.  
Do not give your personal opinion in your arguments. So do not use I believe, I think... If you want to state your opinion, do this in the conclusion.

This video may be helpful: it gives us some reasons why music is important.

Have a nice weekend.

Weekly Links 2º BACH #82

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Weekly essay: "Are Spanish eating habits healthy? Give your opinion."
An opinion essay, obviously, so remember that it is a formal essay -no contractions- and you have to give a clear view of your personal point of view with facts, definitions and details.
Be careful of not writing about advantages or disadvantages or points for or against. In addition, bear in mind that you can't use emotive vocabulary nor give personal examples.
By the way, what do we mean by "healthy eating habits"? Let's watch this video to find it out.

Happy Halloween.
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Weekly Links 2º BACH #81

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Weekly essay: "Making museums more attractive to young people."
In this video a New York City group called Museum Hack aims to attract millennials by offering unconventional tours.

Have a nice weekend.

Weekly Links 2º BACH #80

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Our weekly essay: "Apart from getting enough sleep, what else can you do to improve your health?"
This is a narrative essay where you develop a strong point and prove it in the end.
The thesis statement needs to be in the introduction as it will give a special meaning to the examples you are going to give in the body.
Finally, in the conclusion you express your opinion supporting the thesis.

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Have a nice long El Pilar weekend.

Weekly Links 2º BACH #79

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Our first essay: "Everybody can contribute to the protection of the environment. Discuss."
Remember that "Discuss" means that essentially this is a written debate where you are using your skill at reasoning, backed up by carefully selected evidence to point out the advantages and disadvantages of a given context. Remember to arrive at a conclusion, too.

Have a nice weekend.

Weekly Links 2º BACH #78

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This week we talked about collocations so here are two videos on how to use some of the most common ones, especially if you intend to study for a FCE (First Certificate in English) —B2 level in the  Common European Framework of Reference for Languages, the level you are supposed to reach at the end of this year.

Have a nice weekend.

Weekly Links 2º BACH —77

"What kind of books do you think young people should read as part of their education?"
The topic of your essay this week. After a few hours (literally, two and a half hours) I haven't found any video that may contribute some ideas, but I think that this one with John Green telling us "How and Why We Read" can be useful.

Enjoy.