Patty's Computer Language Lab

Benchmark 4 and 5

ASKING QUESTIONS

It can be difficult to properly ask questions in English.

Below you will find some links to useful websites to help you practice question formation 

Question Formation

Mistakes in English Questions #1, #2

Using Question words #1, #2

You are given the answer, find the questions

Here you will find lots of information about different types of questions.  You can listen while you read.

Making Requests and Asking Premission

Click here to see a good explaination

Adjectives: -ed vs -ing ending 

Here are some fun videos used to explain the difference between -ed and -ing ending for adjectives.  There is also a game where you can test your knowledge

Adverbs of Frequency

Here's a fun quiz to test yourself on Adverbs of Frequency 

You can see the video we watched in class about a morning routine

This video helps to explain how and why we use adverbs of frequency.

Question Tags

Click here to find out everything about question tags and negative questions.

 Canadian Weather

Do you know how to talk about the weather in Canada?

Click here to find a list of useful weather vocabulary and to listen to some weather forecasts.

This man speaks about the seasons in his town, he lives in the USA.  Try to do the quiz while you are listening.

Click here to see many activities about different occupations #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8

Here are some conversations you might have at your job.  Read them and answer the questions.

This Newcomer talks about her job, it's a good job and she's happy with it, it's her dream job.

At this link you can find 2 good videos which demonstrate how to make a good impression during your interview

Would you like some advice on Preparing for An Interview?  Watch this good video from Alberta Learning Information Service

Click on these listening files to hear a discussion panel speak about the idea of ideal jobs

part #1  #2  #3  #4  #5  #6

Watch this fine example video of 2 non-native English speakers during an interview for a cashier position

Here is a video on how to make a good first impression at your interview

Here are some more tips for making a good impression during an interview (this is an English accent)

This is a useful video in which an man from England uses compound adjectives to describe himself in a job interview.  Remember to try the quiz on your left to see how much you understand

This is a video in which a woman describes 3 things that you should NOT say in an interview

Now listen to an actual interview for a position as a Purchasing Officer

This is a listening activity of someone who has had a job interview.

This interactive activity is designed for children, but is also informative for adults.  Follow a dog named Paws around Jobland.

Try this activity in which you listen to job descriptions for work available on a university campus.

The Learning Edge is an interactive newspaper.  In this issue, you can find some useful information to help with your job search in Canada.

Here is a good site with video interviews of former employees of many leading American companies.  These videos are good because they are natural, and there are many types of jobs described in different accents for you to listen to.  (see Company Reviews From Former Employees) 

Test your workplace vocabulary with a crossword puzzle.  

TELEPHONING

Click here for LINC 4 listening files from our lab.  These files will only be on-line for about a week.

#2     #3     #4

Here are some of our Powerpoint notes from the past few lessons in class:

 Celebrating Thanksgiving Day

Here, in Canada Monday the 14th of October was Thanksgiving Day.  Every year the date changes, but it's always the second Monday in October.  This is the time of year when we celebrate the summer's harvest and a time of sharing food.  We are thankful on this day for food and the chance to share our food with family and friends.

Watch this video which explains the Thanksgiving Day concept in the USA., it is a very similar idea here in Canada.

I hope you all had a happy Thanksgiving Day and were able to share some good food with your family or friends!

ASKING FOR AND GIVING DIRECTIONS

In the following videos and audio clips you will learn and practice vocabulary for getting around a city and inside a building.

BUT first...some fun flash cards to remind you of prepositions of place and prepositions of movement.  Remember to look through all of them!

This teacher does a good job of helping you to understand prepositions of location and movement:

Part 1, prepositions of location AT    IN    ON   (general)

Part 2, more detailed prepositions of location

Part 3, prepositions of direction

Try this vocabulary quiz which will help you with prepositions.

This is a basic map quiz which will test your listening and understanding skills for directions.

Here are some different dialogues for when taking a taxi.

Finally, this is an excellent audio piece from the BBC for asking for and giving directions.  Please listen to it a few times to really comprehend it.

                                                                                    TRAVEL

Listen to this podcast of 2 woman talking about commuting to work in Canada.  You can try to download this file onto your phone and listen to it while you are commuting to school.

Here is a listening activity in which a group of people are having problems with their carpooling system.  Pay close attention to the idioms they use and try to understand what they mean.

We did not have time in class last week, so try to fill in the gaps in this activity about Alternative Transportation.  You might be able to open the listening file as well, use your headphones!

Try these flashcards about travel and tourism

Here's a short quiz on some useful phrasal verbs for travel.

Click here for the "Greener Transportation" page on the Mother Earth News website.  There's lots of interesting information here to read.

Although it is more common to book a flight on-line now-a-days some people still prefer to talk to a travel agent to make sure that their booking is secure and properly organized.  Here is a video of a telephone conversation of a woman booking a flight.  It is the 6th video, at the bottom of the page.  Be sure to look at the worksheet below to quiz yourself on your understanding of the video.

This is a funny video about the increasing costs of air travel.  As you watch choose the correct answers for the questions at the side of the video.

Try to build 3 conversations about travel.  The phrases are mixed up.  Try to write 3 different conversations; one at the hotel, one at the airport and one about asking for directions. 

This is an interactive activity of someone's trip to Ontario and Quebec.  Press the play button and read the description of what they visited and look at their photos as they travel through the provinces.  Try the hangman quiz at the bottom of the page.

This podcast is about Listening to a Traffic Report on the radio.  It is a long listening file with a good description of traffic vocabulary.  A good idea would be to download this podcast and listen to it on an mp3 player or your phone while you are travelling on the bus or C-train.

After you become familiar with traffic vocabulary you can try this quiz based on a fictional traffic report.  This is a very high level listening exercise!  Do not be frustrated if you do not understand it completely!

TRANSPORTATION IN CANADA

This is an interesting and amusing video from the National Film Board of Canada.  It is from over 60 years ago and depicts the history of transportation in Canada.  Take note of the complicated vocabulary, use a dictionary and I will try to ask you about some new words in future classes.

This is a famous Canada song written about the construction of the Canadian Railway. It really was an incredible project covering our entire country from East to West.  Enjoy the song and do the quiz under the video.

Here's a fun link Canadian Geographic for kids.  You can find lots of information about the geography of Canada

 Can you find the hazards in school?

Basic Health and Safety Interactive lessons from Work Safe Alberta

Hazard Assessment and Control

Being Safe at Work in Manitoba

Here are 2 videos which may be difficult to watch, they clearly show us the importance of being safe at work

These videos (11) are from Australia, some of them are very powerful and show how easily an accident can happen at work if you are not careful.