Exercise: A visit to the fortune-teller

The fortune-teller told me...

Reported speech practice

El sábado pasado, Sally fue a ver a Madame Future, una adivina, para que le leyese la mano. Madame future le contó a Sally cosas sobre su pasado, presente y futuro. Esto es lo que dijo la adivina:

‘The crystal ball tells me you are a very intelligent person, Sally. I see that you work very hard and have a good sense of humour. In fact, you are a very sociable person, you love being with other people. When you were little, you were a rebellious child. In fact, you were always getting into trouble! When you were 4, you had a serious illness and you nearly died. Concerning your future, I see a very happy life. You are going to be rich one day. You will marry a handsome man and you’ll have three children. You will be lucky in your life.’

Ahora Sally le está contando a su amigo Peter lo que la adivina le dijo. Lee la conversación y completa los verbos que faltan en el tiempo correspondiente. ¡Recuerda que ahora todos los verbos tienen que ir en reported speech!

Peter: So, how did it go? What did the fortune-teller say?

Sally: Well, it was interesting. She started talking about me. She said THAT I WAS a very intellingent person. She told me that I ...................................very hard and ................... a good sense of humour. She said that I ........ sociable and that I ............................ with other people.

Peter: Well, that’s not much. That’s what everyone wants to hear!

Sally: That’s what I thought. But then she told me about my childhood. She told me that I ....................... rebellious when I was a kid and that I .................................................... into trouble.

Peter: Really?

Sally: And then she said that when I .................... 4, I ............................... a serious illness and ............. nearly ................

Peter: Oh my god, she’s really good! You had pneumonia when you were little, that’s true!!

Sally: I was amazed! I couldn’t believe it!

Peter: What else did she say?

Sally: She talked then about my future. She said she ................ a happy life and that I ............................... rich one day!

Peter: Well, that’s good news!

Sally: She also told me that I ................................a rich man and we ............................ three kids. She was convinced that I ............................... lucky in my life.

Peter: Definitely, I have to go see that fortune-teller. I hope my future is as good as yours!!

One pumpkin and six suspects

Halloween night. There is a costumes party at Mr. Green’s house.
Noche de Halloween. Hay una fiesta de disfraces en la casa del señor Green.

He has decorated all the house with bats, spiders and mummies. He has spent a whole month looking for a beautiful pumpkin, which would be a surprise for his girlfriend, Mrs Peacock.

Ha decorado toda la casa con murciélagos, arañas y momias. Ha pasado todo el mes buscando una preciosa calabaza, que sería una sorpresa para su novia, la señorita Peacock.

At midnight, he takes all the guests to the living room and he opens the curtains that hide the pumpkin…

A medianoche, lleva a los invitados al salón y abre la cortina que esconde la calabaza....

However, the pumpkin isn’t behind the curtains. What they see there is…

Sin embargo, la calabaza no está detrás de ellas. Lo que allí ven es...

A delicious pumpkin pie! Mr Green is horrified. Who can have done this?

¡Una deliciosa calabaza! El señor Green está horrorizado. ¿Quién puede haber hecho eso?


He looks around at his guests: Miss Scarlet, Colonel Mustard, Mrs Peacock, Professor Plum and his maid, Mrs White.

Echa un vistazo a sus invitados: la señorita Scarlet, el coronel Mustard, la señorita Peacock, el profesor Plum y la criada, la señorita White.


After tasting the pie, he phones the police. A tall policeman goes to the house and asks questions to the suspects.

Tras probar la tarta, llama a la policía. Un policía alto va a la casa y hace unas preguntas a los sospechosos.


¿Quién hizo una tarta con la calabaza?


Escribe el informe policial sobre lo que dijeron los sospechosos y deja un comentario diciendo quién crees que es el culpable.






I arrived at Mr Green’s house at midnight. He opened the curtains at the same time I entered the house. I never saw the pumpkin.



I don’t like pumpkins. I don’t like cooking. I did not carved the pumpkin.


I spent all the day at Mr Green’s house helping him but I did not see the pumpkin.



I drank a lot. I went to the toilet upstairs. I never saw the pumpkin.



I cleaned the house in the afternoon. I saw the pumpkin behind the curtains. I didn’t touch it. I cooked some pumpkin pies but not with this pumpkin.




Aquí tienes el informe de uno de los sospechosos para que te sirva de ejemplo:

Colonel Mustard said that he didn’t like pumpkins, that he didn’t like cooking and that he had not carved the pumpkin.

Who said that?

Join these quotes with the person who said them. Use the Internet to find the information. Then, use Reported Speech as in the example:

George Bernard Shaw said that first love was only a little foolisness and a lot of curiosity.

Be careful with the tense changes!

QUOTES
- Big girls need big diamonds.
- A day without a laughter is a day wasted.
- All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover them.
- Hair has always been important.
- Hollywood is a place where they'll pay you a thousand dollars for a kiss and fifty cents for your soul.
- I don't know anything about music. In my line you don't have to.
- I dream for a living.
- I only hope that we don't lose sight of one thing: that it was all started by a mouse.
- I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.
- My life is my message.
- The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it.

CHARACTERS
- Walt Disney
- Charlie Chaplin
- Diana Ross
- Galileo Galilei
- Elizabeth Taylor
- Mahatma Gandhi
- Albert Einstein
- Michelangelo
- Elvis Presley
- Marilyn Monroe
- Steven Spielberg

Beckham said that...

Reported speech practice: we have asked David Beckham about the most typical dish of Britain. This is what he said.

“Fish and chips”

Interviewer: Hello David! I know you love fish and chips, but I would like you to tell us a bit more about this typical English food.
David: You are right, I love it!! Well, "Fish and chips" is deep-fried fish in batter with deep-fried potatoes, and a popular take-away food
Interviewer: Is it originally from the United Kingdom?
David: Yes, Fish and chips is originally from the United Kingdom, but also very popular in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa and some coastal towns of the Netherlands and Norway; and also increasingly so in the United States and elsewhere. For decades it was the dominant (if not the only) take-away food in the United Kingdom.
Interviewer: Is it called “fish and chips” everywhere?
David: The fried potatoes are called chips in British and international usage; and while American English calls them french fries, the combination is still called "fish and chips". (Potato chips, an American innovation, are a different potato-derived food, and are known as crisps in the United Kingdom.)

Interviewer: Is it a new dish, or on the contrary is it a very old one?
David: Fish and chips have separately been eaten for many years – though the potato was not introduced to Europe until the 17th century. The originally Sephardi dish Pescado frito, or deep-fried fish, came to Netherlands and England with the Spanish and Portuguese Jews in the 17th and 18th centuries.
Interviewer: Then, when did it become popular in the United Kingdom?
David: The dish became popular in more widespread circles in London and the south-east in the middle of the 19th century (Charles Dickens mentions a "fried fish warehouse" in Oliver Twist) whilst in the north of England a trade in deep-fried "chipped" potatoes developed.
Interviewer: Do you know when was the first “fish and chips” shop opened?
David: It is unclear when and where these two trades were merged to become the fish and chip shop industry we know today. The first combined fish and chip shop was probably the one opened in London by Joseph Malin in 1860. During World War II, fish and chips were one of the few foods that were not rationed in the UK.



Interviewer: Thank you very much David. Enjoy your fish and chips!




Exercise:
Report, using Reported Speech, what David said.

Example: David said that the interviewer was right and that he loved it. He said that fish and chips was deep-fried fish in batter with deep-fried potatoes, and a popular take-away food.

Listening: Easter Eggs

After listening to the text as many times as you need, try to answer these questions. Don't forget to send us an e-mail to breakingwithtraditions@hotmail.com with your answers. We will send you back the right answer. Good luck and enjoy it!

1. Did Easter Eggs appear after Christianity?
2. Is boiling chicken eggs and paint them an old tradition or a modern one?
3. Why were Easter Eggs painted with bright colours?
4. The Egg Rolling is an old game that some still play nowadays, what does it consist of?
5. What are Easter Eggs made of nowadays? What do they have inside? Why?
6. Which is the name of an important Easter Egg confectionery advertised nowadays on TV?

Reading comprehension & vocabulary: Shopping

Read the following text:

SHOPPING IN LONDON

John tells us about his favourite places for shopping in London

When I visit London one of my favourite things to do is shopping! I really enjoy searching for a bargain in the sales, and buying something new to wear on a Saturday night. I also like doing window-shopping. It’s nice and it doesn't cost a penny! Sometimes I spend hours just walking around a market and having a chat with my friends.

There are lots of different places to go shopping in London. One of the most famous places is Oxford Street, but be careful, it gets too busy sometimes. If you want a more relaxing shopping experience, go to Covent Garden. There you can have a cappuccino, and watch some street theatre at the same time.

Some people like shopping in department stores. The most famous one in London is 'Harrods' in Knightsbridge, but for me, it's not modern enough, and it’s too expensive. The best of all the big department stores is 'Selfridges' in Oxford Street. It's a shoppers' paradise, nice clothes, and the prices? Well, at least I can look, can't I?

If you go to London, you can’t miss Camden street markets. It's busy, exciting, trendy, and there are lots of bargains! You can buy cheap jeans and cool second-hand clothes in the morning and then get a tattoo and a body piercing later on! And when you get tired of shopping, you can get some Chinese food for £2 or £3, sit by the canal and drink a coke. What could be better?

ACTIVITIES

CHOOSE THE CORRECT ANSWER: (easy)

According to the text...

1) Window-shopping is free/very expensive
2) One of the most famous places to go shopping in London is Hyde Park/Oxford Street
3) Harrods is too expensive/not very expensive
4) In Candem Town you can buy new clothes/used clothes

FIND EXPRESSIONS OR WORDS IN THE TEXT THAT MEAN: (intermediate)

1) Something very cheap ……………………

2) It is free ……………………

3) Talk …………………..

4) Quiet ………………..

5) Used, not new …………………….

CHOOSE THE CORRECT ANSWER: (intermediate)

When you go window-shopping, you...

a) look at the windows of the shops but don’t buy anything.

b) go to buy windows

c) spend a lot of money

What is the problem with shopping in Oxford street?

a) It’s too expensive

b) It’s crowded with people and you might get stressed.

c) It’s not modern enough

What is the most famous department store in London?

a) Selfridges

b) Covent Garden

c) Harrods

Which of the following places has the cheapest prices?

a) Candem

b) Selfridges

c) Oxford Street

USEFUL VOCABULARY ABOUT SHOPPING

Look up this words in the dictionary to find out what they mean. You can use this free online dictionary

Department store

Bargain

Window-shopping (to go)

Shopaholic

Receipt

Discount

Sales

FILL IN THE BLANKS WITH THE WORDS BELOW: (easy-intermediate)

1) Reasonable, cheap, expensive

2) cash, cheque, credit card

3) discount, tip

(1) The price:

If something costs a lot of money then it is ____________. But if it’s on sale then it is usually ____________. A ____________ price is the price that you would normally pay for something.

(2) Payment:

When you pay for something, if you have enough money in your pocket you can pay with ___________. If you don’t, you can use a _____________ or write a _____________.

(3) The Bill:

When you go to a restaurant, it is nice to get a ____________. It’s also nice to get good service. But if the service isn’t good, then you don’t have to leave a ___________.

SOME EXTRA PRACTICE (Intermediate-advanced level)

Si quieres practicar un poco más, haz clic en los siguientes enlaces: shopping london bbc. Ahí encontrarás un listening en el que alguien va a comprarse unos deportivos. En Buying a pair of jeans una chica va de compras en busca de unos vaqueros. Tienes que escuchar las conversaciones y colocar las frases en orden (haz clic en la frase y arrástrala hasta el lugar correcto).

Inténtalo si te apetece, pero no te preocupes si no entiendes bien lo que dicen. Son muy corto, ¡pero algo difíciles!

Different types of shops

A department store is a big shop that sells many different items in different departments.

Supermarket: a large shop that sells mainly food and household items. A

A grocer's is a shop that sells food products.

A greengrocer's is a shop that sells fresh fruit and vegetables.

At the Baker's you can buy fresh bread and cakes.

In a petshop you can find pets and pet food.

A petrol station is a place where fuel is sold for vehicles, often with a small shop and public toilets.

Butcher's: a shop where you can buy meat.

Chemist's: a shop where you can buy medicines, make-up and products used for washing yourself

Flea market: a group of stalls selling old furniture or clothes.

Fill in the gaps with the name of the correct shop:

1. Harrods is the most famous ................................... in England.

2. There's no dog food. Can you go to the ............................. and get some, please?

3. We're running out of petrol. I hope we can find a ................................. near here.

4. I went to the .......................... and bought chicken breast and sausages.

5. If you happen to pass by the .........................., can you buy a loaf of bread for me, please?

6. 'I have a terrible headache' 'Don't worry, I'll go to the ........................... and get aspirin!

7. There is a .............................. round the corner which sells exotic fruits.