RUBBISH !

COMMENT 8

Nowadays we waste too much food when we are cooking or when we eat and all of this waste isn´t good for the planet. There is rubbish everywhere , at school , at street and especially at sea .

On the one hand , the rubbish we generate usually comes from food and if we don´t recycle it, it can get to the sea and when this happens, it can be a big problem because animals like fish and turtles can suffer form indisgestion if they eat it . Furthermore , plastic waste is the most common kind of rubbish that we can find in the ocean and it can cause the death of many sea animals .

On the other hand,we have all the organic trash which is produced by restaurants. It is not only the waste from food that people eat but also the gases that are produced when chefs cook . In fact , in Paris the food waste that comes from restaurants is mixed with pieces of wood and is transformed in plants fertilicer .

From my point of view , it is so important to recycle and we all should do it to save the planet and to avoid generating rubbish .

WHO TAUGHT YOU THE MOST THINGS ?

COMMENT 6

My mother is one of the most important people in my life and also my dad, but she is probably the person who taught me all the things that I needed to know about life.

If you ask me , do you take your mom´s advice ? I will answer you that not all the time , and probably your answer will be the same as me. Once a time , when I was a child , my mother told me to pick up my toys but that time I didn´t do it . Now, if she asks me something , I will surely do it because now I know that my mum is right.

Obviously , not all the time mothers are right, but most of the times. Sometimes they are wrong too but you know she is right when you also think the same as her and you agree with her. My mother says that no metter how we look on the outside , the important thing is our actions and behaviours and this is what defines us .

I think you should follow your mother´s advice because she knows what is good or what is bad for you.

PERMAFROST : ANOTHER VICTIM OF CLIMATE CHANGE

COMMENT 5

Climate change is nowadays one of the most serious problems that are happening on Earth. If you don´t give any importance to it , our planet will change. So, an only action from you can destroy the Earth.

Do you know what the permafrost is ? Well, it is the layer of the Earth which is permanently frozen by natural causes, not because of an accident. It is found in very cold areas like Canada , Alaska or Siberia. This layer contains full of toxic gases like methane and carbon dioxide which are being released because of the thawing of this part of the earth. This is because of global warming.

In addition, on top of this layer, there is life ,so if it is thawing, this life can be destroyed and disappear and it can also affect the forests, the ecosystem and the environment. Although the thaw can take lots of years , we should do everything possible to save the planet.

I think we can contribute and stop this by recycling , using less plastic , using public transport...

TEENAGE GAMBLING

COMMENT 4

  Today , children under the age of 18 like gambling , but they play games that are not appropriate for them and the problem is that they don´t realize the risks that this can produce .

Playing fruit machines is the most popular form of gambling , followed by playing cards with friends and that´s only because they want to get money. Scratchcards are also bought or used to gamble. Studies say that in the last 12 months , 39% of teenagers about 11-16 have spent their own money by playing and 6% have gambled online using a parent account.

Nowadays, there are so many games like "fortnite", which are addictive ,in fact, this is one of the most common risks of playing video games. Some people have been diagnosted with this problem of addiction. They spend money as they need it and this becomes a big problem . They get a lot of money , however, they have to pay more than they win .

In conclusion, children shoudn´t play games if their parents don´t want , but if they do it , they should be careful .

"NO SMOKING : DRIVE ME HOME , DADDY! "

COMMENT 2

Today, many people are smokers and even 16 or 17- year- old children smoke . Tabacco is a very bad substance for our health because it contains nicotine , which is addictive . For that reason when a person smokes , he or she doen´t stop and they need it to feel good .

In the United Kingdom there is a new law which bans smoking in cars when there are children passengers. The new rules apply to any driver in any enclosed car when a child under the age of 18 is on board. If the driver smokes in the car , he has to pay a fine of 50 pounds .

You know that tabacco smoke can stay in the air for more than two hours ? Even with a window open . Smoke contains more than 4,000 chemicals and it can produce many different illnesses like cancer , bronchitis.

I think that today people shouldn´t smoke because they know the risks perfectly and I can´t understand why the markets sell this .

DIRECT SPEECH	REPORTED SPEECH	DIRECT SPEECH	REPORTED SPEECH
Now	Then	Three days ago	Three days before
This	That	Next Friday	The next Friday
These	Those	Tonight	That night
Here	There	Last week	The previous week, the week before
Yesterday	The day before, the previous day	tomorrow	The next day, the day after
Today	That day

 COMPARATIVES AND SUPERLATIVES

1. We use more.... for adverbs that end in -ly: more slowly, more quietly
2. You can use -er or more... with some two-syllable adjectives, especially: quiet, clever, narrow, shallow, simple
3. IRREGULAR COMPARATIVES:  good/well  >  better, bad/badly > worse, far > further/farther
4. FURTHER & FURTHEST meaning 'more' or 'additional': Let me know if you hear any further news
5. Before comparatives you can use QUANTIFIERS such as: much, a lot, far, a bit, a little, slightly (He's much / slightly taller than his sister).
6. You can use any, no + adjective in the comparative form. Ex. I'm not waiting any longer.
7. Two comparatives of superiority connected by and meaning 'CADA VEZ MÁS'. Ex. The situation is becoming harder and harder.
8. COMPARATIVE OF EQUALITY: so, as....as....    Fernando Alsonso is as fast as the wind.
9. COMPARATIVE OF INFERIORITY: less....than...    My cousin is less intelligent than my sister.
10. Difference between LESS & FEWER.   Examples: I've got less money than you. A bicycle has got fewer wheels than a bus.
11. Some interesting collocations: the same as, different from, similar to   
12. After superlatives we use in with places (the longest river in the world) and of for a period of time (the happiest day of my life)
13. ABSOLUTE SUPERLATIVE meaning 'very'. The book you lent me was most interesting.

EXCLAMATIVE SENTENCES + SO / SUCH

• WHAT is used in exclamative sentences when it is followed by a NOUN or a NOUN PHRASE. It works exactly the same as SUCH.

Examples: What a (big) house he has bought!     >>>   He has bought such a (big) house.

                    What an (easy) exam we had at the Official Language School in Motril!   >>>  We had such an (easy) exam....

                    What (good) basketball players we have in Spain!    >>>   We have such (good) basketball players in Spain.

                    What (good) wine they make in Itrabo!    >>>  They make such (good) wine in Itrabo.

• HOW is used in exclamative sentences when it is followed by an ADJECTIVE or an ADVERB. It works exactly the same as SO.

Examples: How expensive it is the car you bought!    >>>  The car you bought is so expensive.

                    How carefully Fernando Alonso drives when it rains!    >>>>   Fernando Alonso drives so carefully when it rains.

• Remember you can also use SO with NOUNS when talking about quantity. In that case you will need MUCH & MANY depending on the noun.

LISTEN TO NATURE !

COMMENT 1

We live in a world where we don´t give any importance to things that really have it and we don´t appreciate what surrounds us . We´ve never been so disconnected from nature as we are right now .

Nature has been alive for thousands of years and it has evolved thanks to humans and the human action. Nature evolve with humans but it doesn´t need us , we need it to survive . We have to think that what we do, influences what we have , so ,if you do something bad , if your action is wrong , this is going to affect you and the rest of the people because nature belongs to everyone.

Sometimes we even spend our time on things that are not important instead of going to outdoor places and enjoy those moments with our family , friends or even alone . There are a lot of different beautiful places where you can go or just to breathe the fresh air .

In my opinion ,we must take care of nature because without it we are nobody , without it we could die.

THE NEW SCHOOL YEAR IS HERE ! I start 1ºbachillerato .

WHO ARE HEALTHIER , ADULTS OR TEENAGERS ?

FIFTH QUALITY COMMENT

Is doing sport for adults ? or also for young people ? . The answer is so simple : Both adults and children should do exercise or practise some sport . This is so important especially among young people .

More children under the age of ten do sport less than ten minutes a month , and it is for that reason that the health of these children is affected by obesity . But not only obesity is a health problem in children who do not practise exercise , there are more illnesses like cardiovascular or heart related problems .

There are also benefits of doing sport . The people aged 60 and 70 who do exercise , have fewer risks of having alzheimer . Children have a good and long life if they practise sport since they are young . 

From my point of view , doing sport is so important both for adults and children to be healthy and to take a long and peaceful life .

BILINGUALISM

FOURTH QUALITY COMMENT

Nowadays , most people in the world speak more than one language and there are many schools which are bilingual . It is so important to speak several languages ? , this means that the human brain has evolved greatly?

Around the world , more than half of the people speak at least two languages and many countries have more than one official national language . For example , South Africa has 11 . So , people have to learn all these languages at school . Moreover , multilingualism has been shown to have many social , psychological and lifestyle advantages and experts have found health benefits too .

In Spain , most schools have English as a second language but some schools also have French or German . Have you thought what would happen if people spoke in only one language ? . There would probably be little communication between us and we couldn´t travel to other places . 

I think languages are so important to have a good future and also to interact with other people .

POLITE OFFERS AND REQUESTS

WR 17

* Hello Adan , how are you ?
- Hello Martha , I´m fine , thank you .
* Well , I´m thinking about doing a party for my mum´s birthday . Would you go to the supermarket for me ?
- Ok , no problem . What do you need ?
* I need to buy some pizzas , bottles of water , crips ... But I don´t have money  now , could you go to the bank ? There is one near my house .
- Of course . Shall I help you in anything else ?
* Yes , Will you cook a cake for me ? I´m sorry but I can´t cook .
- Ok . I will be there as soon as possible .
* Thank you so much . See you soon .

DESCRIBING A CELEBRATION

WR 16

There´s a festival in my village every 23rd June in Salobreña and it´s called " San Juan ". Lots of people come to the beach where there is a big bonfire and it´s impressive and crowded when the fireworks start .

At night , people start to go to the beach and they dress up for the ocasion . Some people like wearing formal clothes to go for a walk with friends and other people like wearing beach informal clothes to stay on the sand around the bonfire .

The beach is full od people and it´s really atmospheric . On this celebration some people have a habit of making a picnic on the sand of the beach and lighting their own fires , eating and having a good time with friends and family .

When the clock shows 12 o´clock , the big bonfire is switched on and lots od people stay around it to see it . It´s typical that people throw notes with their wishes .  Later on , it´s time to set off fireworks , the sky is so beautiful and bright . The party is great and exiting .

BUYING A GADGET

WR 15

* Hello , good morning . I´m looking for a tablet .
- Hello. Yes of course , here are all the tablets we have.
* Thank you . Can you tell me about this one ?
- Yes  . What would you like to know ?
* Well , is it a good tablet ? How much memory has it got ?
- It´s 16 GB od memory .
* Has it got a front-facing camera ?
- Yes , It´s 7 megapixels camera .
* And what about the sound ?
- Oh , this tablet has an excellent sound and wi-fi .
*Is it aesy to use ?
- Yes , very easy and it´s quiet and fast too .
* Do you have it only in this colour ?
- No . It´s available in black , white and grey .
* And what about the cost ?
- It´s not too expensive . It costs about 150 $ .
* Perfect . I´II take it . Thank you !

DIGITAL ADDICTION

THIRD QUALITY COMMENT

Tell me how many times you have got on a bus and you haven´t seen people looking at a digital screen . Surely never . Is technology an addiction ? Should we worry about ?

Of course , technology is nowadays everything that surrounds us , mobiles , televisions … On the one hand there are positive things about using technologies , and it is so important that children use them to adapt to our society today . If children didn´t use them , they probably wouldn´t have a good future bacause technologies are today our work . 

On the other hand if these technologies are not used correctly , they can cause a big problem of addiction specially in children who use them a lot . In America mobiles are given by parents at the age of only ten years ! That is too soon . And for that reason children spend a lot of time in front of a digital screen instead of being concerned about their studies .

But not only children have an addiction to this , also parents and young people who are in front of a screen as their children . 

From my point of view , technologies are necessary but always we have to be careful not only how long we use them but also how we use them .

HOW TO BEAT THE ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT BUFFET

SECOND QUALITY COMMENT .

Buffet is a meal on a large table where you can serve your own food , but is the buffet the best way of eating well and cheap ? . What do you think ? .

In Spain it is not very typical to find this type of restaurant but it is in the United States . There people choose this option many times . 

Eating in a buffet could be a good option if you don´t want to spend a lot of money because they are usually very cheap compared to a normal restaurant . In addition , some of them offer you a great variety of food that you can select and also you can choose the quantity you want to keep your stomach full . 

On the other hand , the food of a buffet is not of much quality . Often they choose to offer junk food like pizza or hamburguer or simple dishes like pasta , rice or salad . The food is not healthier than in a restaurant . Moreover they usually offer you a big variety of desserts to children like the typical chocolate fountain . 

In my opinion I like eating in a buffet to choose all that I want but I don´t think it´s the healthiest option because there are cheap restaurants where you can eat very well too.

WE SHOULD ALL BE REALLY HAPPY

My first quality comment !!

Sometimes people are very happy with their lives , but what is really happiness ? Is happiness linked to a longer life ? Is there a gene that makes you happy ? What is the truth of all this ? .

Happiness is a state of mind that the people have when they enjoy doing something good or when they fell well to have all that they want . However , sometimes people feel sad although they have all that they want and that´ because to be completely happy you must first feel well about yourself .

Experts say that being happy doesn´t just improve the quality of your life , it may increase the quantity of your life as well . Chinese scientists say that there is a " happy gene " that may increase romantic relationships . They discovered if you had two copies of this gene , you had more possibilities to have a romantic partner . 

In my opinion happiness is in yourself and you have the power to decide if you want to be happy or not .

TREKKING IN YOUR HOMETOWN

WR 13

- What is trekking ?
It´s a sport walking in a natural environment , while you look and know other landscapes , and you are also doing sport.
- About trekking ...
You can practise it in a mountain , in a forest , in a jungle ... You can do it in less than an hour or it can take you one day .
- What are the benefits ?
There are a lot of benefits like burning calories , losing weight , muscle toning , you can be in good shape and relax .
- Could I hurt myself ?
It isn´t dangerous because it is a quiet and relaxing sport , so you can enjoy it a lot .
- What clothes do you need ?
The most important thing is being comfortable to enjoy the walking . You must wear sport pants , a comfortable t- shirt and a trainers . You also need a bag with some food , drinks , solar cream ...
-How do I singn up ?
You can get information in the tourist iinformation office in your own town or in the website  www.trekking.com . For more information you call also us .

SCIENCE WEEK : DESCRIBING AN EXPERIMENT

Here there are some of the experiments that we did .

ZUMBA

ANY BROKEN-DOWN OR WORN-OUT ITEMS ?

COMMENT 20

Nowadays English is one of the most important language in the world . For this reason it is important that children learn to speak it and understand it since they are young . There are some bilingual schools and some pros and cons of studying there . 

On the one hand if you study in a bilingual school , you will learn faster the language . In the future you will have more chances to find a good job and work in the field you like . Moreover , you will have more chances to travel a lot too . 

On the other hand in a school class there are children with different levels , so this causes that there is an academic difference and some students have difficulties to learn in this kind of schools.
Moreover , almost all bilingual schools are so expensive and sometimes students don´t have enough money to pay them .

In conclusion I think that learning English and other languages is so important to get a good job in the future .

WHAT REALYY MATTERS IN LIFE .

COMMENT 19

Hundreds of thousands of elderly people are lonely in life and cut off from society in this country , specially people over the age of 75 . 

A lot of people say that they stay without speaking to a friend , neighbour or family member for a long time . They can feel isolated for several reasons like getting older , leaving the workplace or deaths of friends . This can cause them depression or health problems .

But not only old people can feel this , also the young people . They can feel isolated because they don´t have friends , they change school or places several times ... Loneliness can affect anyone , of any age . There are ways for older people to feel themselves useful like smiling or inviting friends for a tea .

In my opinion , we should pay more attention to old people , so they don´t feel lonely .

ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE

COMMENT 18

Nowadays , I think that in Spain people don´t use many alternative therapies , but some people use them to treat mild illnesses .

On the one hand , alternative therapies are good because you can use them to treat a mild illness instead of using traditional medicines . In fact , apitherapy is a remedy that has been used in many other countries for centuries which consists of using the power of bee sting to treat serious illnesses. 

On the other hand , not all the therapies are good . Sometimes they don´t give you a good result in your health . They can become dangerous too . If you are allergic to any of the things that are used in this type of therapies , you will die .

In my opinion alternative therapies can be good but you need to be sure before carrying them out because they can become dangerous too .

DIALOGUE

WRO11

º Hi Mary ! I want to tell you something .
- Yes , what´s up ?
º I´m going to enter a cycling race in June and I would like that we do it together , what do you think?
- Me ? I don´t know . You know that I have to do a lot of things this year for school and I don´t have much time .
º The race is 100 kilometres long , you need to train at the weekend . Go on ! .
- Well , I will think about it . I suppose it would do me good to  get some exercise .
- Ok . Why not ? So , what is the cost ? .
º It costs $8 to enter the race , and you sing up at the cycling club .
- Ok . Great ! Shall we go tomorrow to sign up ? .
º Tomorrow ? No , I don´t have time . How about going now ? .
- Well , it´s okay .
º See you soon .

DESCRIBING A LOCAL DISH

WRO10

I live in Andalucía , Spain and we have lots of delicious local food , but the most popular dish is the Spanish potato omelette , which you can find in all Spanish restaurants .

The potato is originally from South America and then was known by the Spanish people . The potato omelette is a simple dish to cook , which consists of potatoes and alive oil virgin extra . To cook this dish you only need eggs , salt , olive oil , potatoes and if you want , you can add onion .
The only thing you have to do is fry the potatoes in oil and mix them with the eggs and the onion .

You can eat it cold or hot , with or without onion and very or little cooked . People like eating it in bread too . If you want to eat it , you will find it in the supermarket , but if  I could , I would make it myself because the taste and the texture is different when you make it yourself .
You can eat potato omelette in other countries , but unless they are made in Spain , they will not be so delicious , so if you want to try the authentic potato omelette , come to Spain !! .

AN OPINION ESSAY

WRO09

Nowadays when students finish their studies at school they go to university , but could they do three months ´ work experience ?

On the one hand , it could be a good idea because almost all students don´t know what their works will be like about they have already study . Moreover this experience can favor students giving them more knowledge and therefore be more prepared .

On the other hand , although that can be a good idea , students would lose three months of their careers years , so will be more long .

In conclusion I agree with this because I think that students would be more prepared to the work experience .

BE WATER , MY FRIEND !!

COMMENT 15

Water is essential in our life and we need it to survive , but not only us , the animals and the plants need it too . For that reason is important that we take care of our environment to reduce the plastic bottles and plastic in general .

It is probably difficult to get rid of plastic bottles because we all use them all the time , but if you want you will do it . More and more people drink in water bottles and then they throw them away , so this is for what we are contributing to create trash on the street and in the environment .

On the other hand , plastic can be dangerous to humans and animals because plastic fibres found in tap water around the world and tests show that billions of people are drinking water contaminated by plastic particles . And if animals eat plastic they will die .

I think if people don´t care about that , we could not have any possibility to change the world , and save it !! .

GOOD HANDWRITING MAY BE THE CLUE TO SUCCESS !!!

COMMENT 14

Technologies are very present in our life because a lot of people have them and use them to work , but is handwriting better than keyboard ? .

In United States students take notes with a keyboard and they think that it is better for them because it is easier and faster to learn to write .

On the other hand writing with a pen is still important for students because they can develop their skills and with piece of paper you can write anywhere . When you write by hand you can make mistakes that sometimes are more difficult to happend than when you write with a keyboard , when you only need to press a key .

In my opinion it´s okay that you can write with keyboard but we should´t forget the pen.

GIVING ADVICE

WRO08

Me : Mum ! I´m going to go out with my friends .
Mum : Stop ! Today is Monday , so you have to do your homework first .
Me: Don´t worry ! . I can do it later .
Mum: When ? It would be better if you did the homework now because later it´s too late . Don´t you think ? .
Me : Ok , but I have already met my friends . I promise you that I will do it later .
Mum : It´s okay ...
Me : Until what time can I go out with them ?
Mum : You must be here by eigtht o´clock , ok ?
Me : Yes mum .
Mum : If I were in your shoes , I would take the jacket because it´s cold out .
Me : Okay .

SCREEN OVERUSE , POSSIBLE CAUSE OF DIGITAL EYE STRAIN

Comment  13

Every day lots of people use technologies like mobiles phones or computers because almost all of us have them , but computers can damage our eyes , because they have blue light that can affect it .
Moreover when you spend a lot of time watching a screen , your eyes blink less than normal and looking at a computer for a long time can also give you health problems . 
On the other hand , computers are used usually for work or having a good time and I think that sometimes it´s difficult to have a break .

NO MEAT ON MONDAYS!!!", CLAIM ACTIVIST IN FRANCE

Comment 12

In France more and more people want to change the way of eating . They want to be flexitarian , cutting their animal intake for health , animal welfare and reducing the impact on the planet . 

Flexitarianism is like being vegetarian , but flexible , so they don´t eat either meat or fish but sometimes they eat some steak when they feel the urge .

For that a lot of French butchers ask for police protection because they could lose their jobs. Moreover the shops have been sprinkled with fake blood and covered with graffiti.

In my opinion , it could be a good idea to protect the environment but on the other hand the butchers and fishmongers could lose their jobs .