Hi everyone!! A quick hello to all my fellow CPE colleagues and our dear teacher :)) Have a nice weekend!!

Interviewing our very own celebrity!

Meet Ana Beatriz (Bia), Dec. 2010's Grade B CPE holder, and winner of The Angela Dias Trophy. Angela Dias herself kindly agreed to come to Madureira Branch and hand Bia this remarkable award!


Bia was also awarded a special prize both for her dedication to this Blog and her outstanding score on the CPE exam.




Diogo Kubrusly (current contributor to this Blog) also took part in the event and called for a photo op with Angela.

Learn a little more about Bia, who agreed to answer a couple of questions in an exclusive interview for this Blog.

Q1. How does it feel to be a grade B CPE holder?

First of all, there’s a sense of relief – a weight off my shoulders. I still find it hard to believe, though. I didn't expect such a high grade.

Q2. Could you mention the key factors which led you to make such an accomplishment?

Well, I told myself ‘not passing’ was not an option. I wasn’t willing to spend those $560.00 again. Besides that, past papers, past papers and past papers..... I believe they're essential. It's important to know well the test and you can also learn so much from them. Also, Flo-Joe and Splendid speaking website everyday. The writing tasks from Flo-Joe were extremely helpful. I used to write a composition every week and that’s probably why my best performance was in the Writing Paper. The challenges from the blog helped me learn a lot, especially idioms, and they were really motivating.

Q3. Let us know how busy you were while preparing for the CPE and how you managed to find time to work as a full time teacher, take a prep. course, and excell as a BLOG contributor.

I was extremely busy. Free time is something I don't usually have, so I decided that I had to take every little opportunity to study. On Tuesdays and Thursdays I had long breaks between classes, then a colleague and I would always do a past paper or some other type of exercise. I used to carry a book or some printed exercises all the time. So whenever I managed to have a little break, I would have something to study.

Q4. Any hints & tips to the CPE candidates who follow this BLOG as well as to its contributors?

Well, I believe there’s no miracle. You have to study hard. So, do lots of exercises, attend the prep course and try to answer the challenges on the blog, of course. Be careful not to neglect any part of the test when you’re studying. At first I used to skip the reading paper because I found it too boring and time-consuming. And it was the Paper I found it to be more difficult on the D-day (my lowest grade as well). Don’t forget the speaking paper. I used to get together with two other colleagues and we would practice as if it were a real test – saying all the script.

Q5. Anything else you'd like to say?

Pay attention to how much time you spend doing the papers. Although I don’t usually have this kind of problem, I know lots of people who do. I would also recommend using the Objective Proficiency Workbook.

Q6. Thank you very much for your time, Bia!

You’re welcome! And thank you for everything!

Medals + Medals

A true league of legends!!

Key word transformations - Part 2 - 6 medals to the first to get all the correct answers!

1. They think that Helen's brother stole the money.
suspected
Helen's brother ....................................... the money.

2. I feel completely exhausted when I've listened to Marion for half-an-hour.
leaves
Half-an-hour ........................................ completely exhausted.

3. Karen's schoolwork definitely seems to be improving this term..
signs
Karen's schoolwork ........................................ this term.

4. The old railway station is now a museum.
turned
The old railway station ........................................ a museum.

Two Valiant Dames!

Key word transformations - Two medals each

1. The mistake in the accounts was not noticed until the figures were re-checked.
light
The mistake in the accounts only ........................................ the figures were re-checked.
2. I had no problems at all during my trip to France.
plan
Everything ........................................ during my trip to France.

3. The heavy downpour brought their picnic to an abrupt end.
cut
They had to ........................................ because of the heavy downpour.
4. The reforms will not succeed unless they are carefully planned.
crucial
Careful ........................................ of the reforms.

Meet Laurel Potter

This is Laurel Potter Huerta. She will be a great help to all of us blog contributors as our language consultant.

Laurel graduated  from the University of Berkeley, CA with a degree in English and Spanish and Portuguese.

Laurel and I once worked together at a language school in Rio de Janeiro. She is now living in California and is currently married and has a little daughter.

Use the comments to this post either to interview her or to ask her any questions about the English language.

Urban Dictionary

Well, I don't know if I'm doing this right. I've never had a blog or even posted on anyone.

So, as a naïve newfag that I am, I implore for pardon , in case of doing something wrong (misspelling, preposition mistakes and tenses screwing included =P).

Er... Here it goes:

http://www.urbandictionary.com/

This is some kind of collaborative(?) dictionary of slangs, idioms and internet shit, pretty cool, might I say.

I hope you guys like it too. It's funny and useful (or kinda).

True Champions!

Recession Talk

Hello people!
This text that I'm posting is a very interesting one from Speak Up (Issue 266).
It's a good one, once it's about new words and expressions that have just been created. So let's keep our eyes on them.

"As you know, the world is in a major economic recession. this is bad, but there are some positive aspects. For example, the English language is becoming richer. New words are invented every day. Here are some examples:

STAYCATION
In a recession people have less money. Many families can't afford to go on a holiday or to go on a vocation. So they stay at home. They don't go on vocation, they go on "staycation". This is a combination of "stay at home" and "vocation". It's an example of a "portmanteau" word; a new word composed of two existing words. Staycation was coined - or invented -by a Canandian comedian, Brent Butt.

RECESSIONISTA
If holidays are a problem in a recession, then so is fashion. It isn't easy to buy new clothes when you have no money, but some people can dress well with no money, if they have a good sense of fashion. A person (usually a woman) who dresses well is called a "fashionista": a person (usually a woman) who dresses well in a recession is called a "recessionista." This is another portmanteau word: it's a combination of "fashionista" and "recession."

ZOMBIE BANK
One of the principal causes of the recession is the banking system. Today everybody hates banks and bankers. There's now a new expression: a "zombie bank." This is a bank that's like a zombie: it is half-dead and healf-alive. A zombie bank is dead, but it is still alive because of government intervention.

THE GREAT RECESSION
Recession is, of course, not a new word, but the "Great Recession" is a new phrase. "The Great Recession" started in December 2007. It's called "The Great Recession" because it's similar to the "Great Depression" of the 1930s. It will probably last a long time. Life will be difficult, but there will be lots of new words!"

From Speak Up 266 - October 2009.

I really hope you have enjoyed these new words and expressions, which seem to be here to stay.

Real Champs!

Nice tip!

Here's a link to an interesting text which will help you build reading skills: Smart Reading

One Knight + Two Dames!!

Here's one more challenge!

Think of one word which can be used appropriately in each pair of sentences.

---

1 Both teams have an excellent reputation so their chances of winning the football tournament are fairly ........
The mouse on your computer won’t function properly unless you operate it on a/an ......... surface.

2 Although it happened a year ago, the car accident is still very ........ in the driver’s mind and he keeps having nightmares about it.
Doctors say we should eat more ........ fruit and vegetables instead of frozen or tinned ones.

3 When we arrived at the concert the auditorium was already ........ and we couldn’t get a seat.
No, please don’t give me a second helping. I’m really ........ .

4 The smoke alarm is so sensitive that it will detect even the ........ amount of smoke.
I haven’t got the ........ idea what you’re going on about!

5 The area through the trees next to the stream is a real ........ spot which attracts lots of tourists.
The ........ of the plan is that we will get rich without investing any of our own money!

6 She has never been very interested in ........ possessions - she’s always been content with whatever she had.
Madonna had a hit record early on in her career, in which she sang about the joys of living in a ........ world and having lots of money.

7 David’s been unemployed for months now but he seems to be making only a/an ........ effort to look for work.
The organisation had a very poor record on equal opportunities. It had one ........ black employee.

8 People keep asking Danielle when she’s going to have a baby but she just hasn’t got a ......... instinct.
My father’s mother died a long time ago but my ........ grandmother is still very much alive.

Medalists on Parade!

Word Formation = Medals + Medals!!

Fill in the blanks with the word, deriving from the the one in parentheses, which best completes the sentence:

1.(AUTHOR)
After many years as a solo researcher, Marion decided to ........ her next article with a colleague in the same field.

2.(CURRICULUM)
The school that Peter goes to has a number of ........ actvities that take place at the end of the school day.

3.(PREPARE)
Unless you do a lot of revision before your exams you’re bound to feel ........ .

4.(WIT)
Many children’s tales rely on a dominant character being ........ by an apparently weaker one.

5.(STANDARD)
The service in the restaurant was so ......... that I refused to pay for my meal.

6.(PRIVILEGE)
Many charities are working to support the needs of ......... children in poorer countries.

7.(THINK)
Our marketing strategy seems to be failing - this demands a ........ at our next board meeting.

8.(KILL)
The security checks at the airport were so stringent that staff were accused of ......... .

Gapped Sentences

Think of one word only which can be used appropriately in all three sentences:

I)

1- We stayed in a fancy hotel in the ______________ of the city.

2- Phillip has learnt all the important dates by ____________ and is very confident about his History test.

3- Paul didn't have the ___________ to tell his children the party had been called off.

II)

1- I can lend you the money on ______________ that I get paid back at the end of the week.

2- The first __________________ in the contract is to work one Saturday every month.

3- The house was in superb ______________ and it was worth a great deal of money.

All hail the very first medalist!!

First challenge of the semester!

Which one word can be used to complete all of the following three sentences?
First one to come up with the right answer gets a medal!!

1. We need to bring some new ........ into the company in order to
generate new ideas.

2. The man shot the policeman in cold ........

3. There's a lot of bad ........ between the two men since one of
them gained promotion over the other.