Idioms - Thanks

Thanking

God bless you
I’m much obliged to you
Many thanks
Thank goodness
You shouldn’t have
Thanks for having me

Acknowledging thanks

You’re welcome!
It’s a pleasure!
Any time!
Don’t mention it!
Forget it!
It was nothing
It’s all right!
Not at all!
That’s all right!
Think nothing of it!
It’s what we are here for!
It’s all part of the service.

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GrammaTube - learn everything about countable and uncountable nouns

How many money do you have? / How much money do you have? Do you know which of the previous questions is wrong? Which one sounds “strange”? The key is to understand how to use countable and uncountable nouns in English.

In this new post we introduce several videos chosen from YouTube that will allow you to understand and properly use countable and uncountable nouns.

Grammar can be one of the most difficult skills to develop in English but it is without doubt the key to progress throughout your learning. A good grammar base will help you to write properly and speak in English, hence improving communication with other people.

Good video that explains countable and uncountable nouns in English



Link to the video on YouTube

Excellent grammar explanation about countable and uncountable nouns



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Video that contains questions and exercises to practice countable and uncountable nouns



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Very good subtitled video that explains the topic of countable and uncountable nouns



Link to the video on YouTube

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Informal letters - General Training IELTS

When writing an informal letter:

Use informal vocabulary
Use short forms (I’m, He’s, She isn’t etc)

Opening/closing

Opening: Dear (name) → Closing: All the best,/Love,/Best wishes,

Starting your letter
Thank you for your letter. It was great hearing from you.
Sorry I haven’t written for so long.
I’m writing to tell you about…

Ending your letter
Give my love to your parents/family.
I can’t wait to see you.
Write back and tell me all your news.
That’s all my news for now.

Making suggestions
Why don’t you/we…?
I think…
How about…? / Let’s…

Asking for information
I’d like some more information about…
I’d love it if…
I’d appreciate it if…

Giving advice
I’m sure you could…
You should…
Why don’t you…?

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Formal letters - General Training IELTS

When writing a formal letter:

Use formal vocabulary
Use long forms (I am, He is, She is not, They are not etc)

Opening/Closing
Opening: Dear Mr/Mrs/Ms (name) →Closing: Yours sincerely,

Opening: Dear Sir/Madam, → Closing: Yours faithfully,

Starting your letter
I am writing in connection with/regarding…
I am interested in…

Ending your letter
I hope you will be able to…
I would appreciate/be grateful if you could…
I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Making suggestions
In my opinion…
I think…
You/We should…

Asking for information
I would like further information about…
I would also like to ask if/whether…
Could you please inform me…
I would appreciate it/be grateful if…
Is it possible for you…

Giving advice
If I were you, I would…
You should…
It would be a good idea to…
I am certain that you could…

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General Training Model Answer – IELTS (Task 2)

Many people say that cooking and eating at home is better for the individual and the family than eating out in restaurants or canteens.

Do you agree or disagree?

Following our change in lifestyle, people are faced with many choices when it comes to eating. Some prefer to eat home-cooked meals while others who are pushed for time might eat out in restaurants, canteens or fast food outlets.

Eating at home has many benefits for a person and their family. Firstly, the food is freshly prepared with ingredients that are known to the person who is cooking thus providing a healthy alternative to eating out. Secondly, in terms of cost, it is much cheaper to purchase products from the market and prepare meals at home. Most importantly, eating is a social function. It gives a family a chance to spend time together in comfortable surroundings and catch up on what is happening in each member’s life. An individual is also able to relax from their busy schedule and enjoy their meal.

It is not always practical to cook at home or sometimes a family might choose to go out for a meal as a form of entertainment. Restaurants and canteens are a good alternative in this case. A family gets to relax as they do not have to waste time preparing a meal, setting the table and cleaning up afterwards. They also have an opportunity to socialize with others in a public area and see new faces. There are many eateries that provide healthy food opinions, so eating out doesn’t necessarily mean an unhealthy choice.

If cooking and eating a meal is a creative activity that involves all members of a family and is a time for relaxation and bonding, I believe it is a good idea to spend time in the kitchen. On the other hand, eating at a restaurant or canteen with the family is just as beneficial.

Question from Official IELTS Practice Materials p.51

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Useful Verbs "To Give More Information" About Something

We all know the feeling of trying to find the right word sometimes. OK, maybe you have a word that ‘sort of fits’, but you know there’s probably a better word out there that more accurately means what you want to say.

Imagine you’re doing a presentation in English. You have a pie chart () on the screen. You’re using the pie chart to give more information about something, for example, different departments in your company.

'This pie chart says that...', you begin to say. But you realize that 'Says that...' isn’t really correct (pie charts don’t speak!). What other verb could you use instead of 'says that'?

Depict is a useful verb. This means 'to show or represent something, usually with pictures / images'.

'This pie chart depicts the profit areas for each department in our company.' = 'This pie chart shows the profit areas for each department in our company'

Check out the following video for some other useful verbs ‘to give more information’ about something in English.

At the end of the video, you’ll find a short quiz to test your knowledge of the new verbs.



Link to the video on YouTube

Guest post from Rob who is co-founder and co-director of Story & Birch English Language Vacations Ltd. based in Nova Scotia, Canada. Story & Birch is a family-run company which specializes in short-term homestay English training holidays. Rob is an experienced teacher having taught in Slovakia and Germany for seven years before returning to Canada. You can also find Story & Birch on Facebook.

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Common spelling errors in Ielts (Writing)

accommodation, advertisement, always, benefit, beginning, business, commercial, country, different, environment, government, necessary, nowadays, occurred, passenger, restaurant, teacher, their (belonging to them), thought, too (as well), which

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VocaTube - Vocabulary about ways of Transport on YouTube

Do you know how to name different ways of transport in English? Do you know the meaning of car, bicycle, airplane, boat or tricycle?

In this new post about the VocaTube series, we present you a list of high quality educational videos that we have selected from YouTube. These videos will show you the most relevant vocabulary about ways of transport.

Remember that vocabulary can only be improved with practice and listening through repetition. It’s difficult for everyone to understand from the beginning but you’ll notice that the more you listen, the better your understanding.

Video that explains the main ways of transport – elementary English



Link to the video on YouTube

Good video that includes a small exercise at the end to practice – elementary English



Link to the video on YouTube

Excellent video with dozens of ways of transport, it includes phonetics – intermediate English



Link to the video on YouTube

Funny song to learn the ways of transport in English – intermediate English



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Good video that names and describes several ways of transport – intermediate English



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Funny video that includes songs and recordings to describe the ways of transport – advanced English



Link to the video on YouTube

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"to conclude" (synomyms)

to come to an end, to complete, to draw to a close, to finish, to round off, to wind up, to infer, to sum up, to determine, to settle, to work out.

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Expressteach in Harbin, China

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