A different way of studying English

Martin Moreno

Nicolas Perez

Felipe Camacho

Project

Roxanna Daza de Lacouture

San Tarsicio School

English

Bogota

2010
CONTENT
INTRODUCTION

In the San Tarsicio School only a small average of students are bilingual, the rest
of them can be split up in two big groups. The first group are the ones who actually
have a very good level of English, this pupils are able to speak with foreign people
and also they are able to read and write with a very good using of vocabulary and
grammar. For this reason, this students in the moment of understanding new skills
of grammar or learning vocabulary they don`t have any kind of problems. The other
group which in our opinion is the highest percentage of the Santarsicio`s English
pupils, find very difficult to communicate with other people in the English language,
the knowledge of vocabulary and grammar aspects of this students is really small.
There for, when they are in English lessons the find very hard to understand how
grammar and vocabulary works.

As a result of this problematic, looking for easiest ways for these students to
understand better this two silks of grammar and vocabulary, which are essential for
a good develop of any type of language, was totally necessary. A investigation was
developed about new techniques of understanding English and what was found,
was that the most thrilled and effective way for the students to understand this two
aspects are the animation skills ( games, videos, presentations), because the
student would be able to understand better a presentation where there are
pictures, movement and ideas than if they read what is past perfect in a book
(example)also, is not going to be that boring for the student to go and revise in the
afternoon. Consequently, was decided to design a program or space that could
be published in the school website were all of the students could log in and revise
what they didn’t understand in class. Posting all of this presentations, games and
videos.

A different way of studying English

 Grammar and Vocabulary

First of all ,what and which are the main verb tenses, for what are they used and
the different types of the most common vocabulary is going to be explained,
because this would be the content of the web Space
The verb tenses are tools that English speakers use to express time in their
language. Things can happen now, in the future or in the past, this tenses show the
time of a verb`s action. The verb ending is changed I mean is conjugated to show
what time is the verb referring to.
Time can be split in three sections Present (What you are doing now), Past (what
you did) and the future (what you are going to do).
We can find that many of the English tenses do not have any translation in our
languages. There fore we can not use our language`s tenses as a base because
we can not translate them.

The Present:
As I said before the present is used to express what we are doing at the time of
speaking or when we are talking about habits and routines. We can split present in
the following parts:
• Present Simple: It is used for express routines, habbits, and general truths,
laws of nature, actions taking place one after another and facts. When you
are using present simple you conjugate the verb depending of the person
who is speaking I mean if it is 3rd person you conjugate the verbs with an
apostrophise and an S after the verb. We have a certain list of time
expressions that help us to identify in which time we are talking in this case
the routines expressions such as usually, often, always, every
day/week/month/year, in the morning etc. Ex

She usually wake`s up at 9:30 in the morning

I play football all the evenings at 3pm after school

• Present Continuous: It is used for actions that take place at the time of
speaking, for temporary situations, for fixed arrangements near the future
and for currently changing and developing situations. When we are using
present continuous we put the verb to be plus an –ing at the end , For
Example:

I`m thinking about how to improve my School marks

She is Revising for the exams

• Present Perfect: we use this time tense in actions that happened at an

unstated time in the past. The time in which the action occurred is unknown,
and action that started in the past and continuous up to the present, it is also
used for finished action that has an influence on the present and an action
 that has taken place once, never or several times before the moment of
speaking.
For the expressing of Present perfect we use have plus past participle.

• Present perfect Continuous: we use this one to put emphasis on the

duration of an action which started in the past and continuous up to the
present, also referring to finished actions that influenced the present and
actions that recently stopped or are still going on, when we are using
present perfect continuous we use have plus plus been plus verb –ing.

The past:
We use the past when we are expressing things that happened before of the time
of speaking, the most common ones are:

• Past simple: used for actions that occurred at a definite time in the past, for
actions that happened immediately after one another in the past and for
actions taking place in the middle of another action. Depending of which
type of verb is the word that we are using if it is irregular or regular you put
the verb plus an –ed or if it is irregular you put the verb in past.
He spoke.
He did not speak

• Past Continuous: this tense is used for Actions which were in progress when
another action interrupted them. Also for actions taking place at the same
time and for an action which was in progress at a started time in the past,
we don`t mention when the action started or finished. You use was or were
plus the verb-ing For example :

The sun was shining

The birds were singing

• Past Perfect: we use had plus past participle; it is used for actions which
happened before another past actions or before a started time in the past.
Or for a general situation in the past.

Everything had seemed normal at first

Lucy had finished her homework by six o clock.

• Past perfect continuous: used to put emphasis on the duration of an action

which started and finished in the past before another action or started time
in the past, usually with for or since. You express it with had plus been plus
the verb-ing
I had been walking for almost an hour when I realized I was completely lost.
The Future: it is used to express thingS that occur after the present. In the future
I’m going to explain just the ones that I have learned so far in my English courses
which are will and going to:

• Will: decisions made at the moment of speaking, predictions about the

future based on what we think, believe or imagine also for Promises,
threats, warnings requests or hopes, etc. when you are using will you put
will plus bare infinitive.

It`s hot here I will open a window

He will probably call you later

• Going to: this one is used for plans or intentions for the future also for
predictions based on what we can see or what we know, especially when
there is evidence that something will happen.

The sky is very clear, It’s going to be a cold tonight.

The vocabulary is going to be split up in groups with pictures like this:

• Animals
• At the airport
• Bathroom
• Birds
• Body actions
• Cinema
• In the classroom
• Clothes
• Dairy products
• Daily activities
• Describing people
• Drinks
• Education
• Environment
• The Family
• Fish, crustaceans and molluscs
• Flowers
 • Football
• Free time activities
• Fruit and vegetables
• Halloween
• Health and illness
• At the hotel
• Kitchen utensils
• Means of transport (illustrated)
• Money
• Musical instruments
• Nationalities
• Office items
• Olympic Games
• Sports
• Parts of the house
• On a picnic
The pedagogy supports
“Some pedagogy experts”1 said that one of the most effective ways of learning
things is watching pictures, videos or animations slides because they can convey
information and knowledge which are difficult to articulate through text, the video
for example carry hidden or semi hidden messages such as narrative, emotion,
authority and symbolism which can be equally important, it also provides an
integration with other learning activities such as quizzes, discussion tasks and
assignments. For example viewing a video the students gain a better
understanding of the subject matter being presented, the student can also develop
critical analysis skills.
“Children learn best and most when they enjoy what they are
doing. Using animation as a tool to encourage and develop
children’s learning is not only fun but effective! By using animation
children develop skills and competencies in:
• Visual communication
• Cognition, emotional and ethic aspects
• Observation and sensitive aspects
• Concentration

1 University of Leeds
• Problem-solving and innovative aspects”2
If the students don’t understand a type of skill there is a very low possibility that
they will go to their house and try to understand it because actually it is very boring
and it is proved that the pupils only start to get seriously and concern about the
class , that they actually realized that they need to learn things for success in the
life, only when they get to pre university school which are 10 th an 11th grates. If this
space in the website actually excites them they will go to their house to log in in the
web and have fun and learn at the same time.

The Results

Here are some of examples of posts that the space will have:

2 http://www.cvumidtvest.dk/english/pdf/349_animationslinien_spring_09_web.pdf
This text was taken from a international semester work based in animation as a learning tool the
VIA University College, Education and Social Studies, Viborg
Past simple

In the site you are able to click in each of the blue bottoms that we can see they
change the time year but the sentence that appears still saying “goes around the
sun “ it doesn’t change because it Is something that we can not change

Past perfect

Then you click the squares

3 http://www.englishtenseswithcartoons.com/

4 http://www.englishtenseswithcartoons.com/
 5

Past Continuous:

A rhinoceros was swatting flies with his tail when suddenly a fly bit him

(for the moment we would just put one exercises per type of tense, and also it is
important to say that here in the project we wont put all of the exercises that wil
appear in the webpage)

Vocabulary

5 http://www.englishtenseswithcartoons.com/

6 http://www.englishtenseswithcartoons.com/
For vocabulary a video and some pictures of the most common English words
would be posted and then 25 exercise will be posted to practice the new
vocabulary

– Exercise 1

Family

a) Complete the family tree.

Father - daughter - brother – sister- son

__ ___Mother__

(Man) __ __ __ __ (Women)

He said that she is the ________ of him. She said that he is the _______ of her.

b) Put the word with the correct idiom

ENGLISH SPANISH
nephew
abuela
tio
aunt
mother
 – Exercise 2

Sports

A) B)

C) D) E)

a) Put the letter in the correct sport.

1. Scuba Diving ____________

2. Cyclist _____________
3. Tennis _____________
4. Football _____________
5. Skiing _____________
 a) Fill in the gaps with the correct word from the list.

Racket- Cylinder- Helmet- Ball- Skis

– The tennis player uses a ________ to play.

– For any accident the cyclist use a __________to protect the head.
– In this World Cup, FIFA create a spectacular ___________ that represent
Africa.
– The scientists use a big ___________ to do the investigations.
– In the winter people use____________ to play in the snow.

– Exercise 3

Animals

a) Choose you’re favorite animal, and then with the words in the list
describe this animal, with five characteristics that have a relation with
the animal that you choose.
 Lion Dog
Parrot

Horse Cat

You’re animal here__________

List

Fur Horsesho Snout

e

Beak Tail Fang

Mane Feather Spots

Hoof Claw Whisk

er

Put the five characteristics.

1. _________
2. _________
3. _________
4. _________
5. _________