Democracy in Action?

Our general election results

These results give the Conservative party the majority, but do these results reflect the way people voted in the election?

What percentage of the overall votes did the Conservative party get?

Click HERE to find the answer

Consider the position of UKIP.  What % share of the votes did they get and how did that translate into number of seats in Parliament?

Watch this video about our "first past the post" electoral system.
http://bbc.in/VoJ1b1

Is this system fair?  Does it represent the will of the people?
What voting system would be fairer and more representative?

Task
Write your answers to these questions in the Comments section below.  Use examples from the BBC News page to strengthen your arguments.  Write approx 200 words.

Making comparisons

Comparatives and Superlatives

In this video you'll see lots of examples of comparative and superlative forms.  

Practise using comparatives and superlatives.

Exercise 1

Exercise 2

Exercise 3

Individual writing task

Write a comparative description within the context of something that is of particular interest to you.  This could be a comparison of two sports teams, cars, pieces of technology, countries you've visited, famous people....the choice is endless!  Add any images or links to videos to make your description more lively.  Check your use of comparative and superlative structures before you email your text.

Procedure

Draft your description in Word, save it and then add it to the Padlet "pinboard" below by double clicking anywhere on the board.  You can upload images or videos to support your comparative description.
Writing check-list

Answering the question: - What is my primary purpose: to inform? To persuade? Or both?

Content – have I written enough?

Is all the information relevant to the topic?

Are main ideas supported by specific examples or evidence?

Are there gaps in the information or too much information in places?

Stucture -is there a clear introduction and conclusion? -is the sequence of my ideas logical?

Paragraphs -Are there clear paragraph divisions? -Is each paragraph built around one main idea?

Cohesion -Are the connections between the ideas clear? -Have I used connecting words appropriately? -Do connecting words give the reader a sense of flow?

Introduction -does the opening paragraph make the reader want to read on?

Vocabulary -Is specialist, technical and general vocabulary used? -Have I avoided repetition?

Grammar -Are verb tenses correctly formed and used? -Do subjects and verbs agree? -Have I correctly used prepositions, articles, adjectives? -Have I used the target language (comparatives and superlatives) correctly?

Punctuation -Have I used capital letters where they are needed? -Does each sentence end with an appropriate mark?

Evaluaton - Am I proud of what I have written?

Created with Padlet

Class Survey

Here's a copy of our class survey:



Click here to see a summary of the results

Task
Write a paragraph to summarise the findings of our class survey.

Class Introductions

1. Assignment:  Writing

Introduce yourself, and tell us something about your life in your home country.  You might include details about your home, family and friends, what you like doing in your free time, why you have come to this college.

Language Focus:  Use of tenses; present simple and continuous 

Process

Click on the word "comments"  below and write your paragraph where it says "enter your comment".  When you are happy with what you have written, click on the blue "Publish" icon.

Introductions

Suzanne

Hello!  I'm your class teacher and I'm really delighted to be working with you all this term.  

I'm not going to give you any information about myself here, but you are welcome to ask any appropriate* questions in the comments section at the bottom of this post (you might want to ask me about my family, my home, work, hobbies and interests).  

Task 1

I have a question for you, which you can answer in the comments section:

* appropriate - what does this mean here?

to leave a comment, just click on the pencil icon below, write your comment and click "post"

Task 2

Ask me 2 questions about my life. 

If you have asked an appropriate question and used a correct question form, I will be happy to answer it.  If you have not formed the question correctly, I will ask your fellow students to suggest the correct form.