The UEFA Women’s Euro 2017 is currently playing in the Netherlands, giving us the perfect excuse to move on from tennis after the excitement of Wimbledon and into some fresh football vocabulary! The Euros group stage began on 16th July and the final will take place on 16th August. Join us for a soccer-themed language and culture lesson as we dive into the latest footy action with the Women’s Euros 2017! Continue reading
Salvador Sabral’s victory for Portugal in the Eurovision Song Contest this year is the first time that a non-English Eurovision song has won the coveted crown since 2007. Salvador performed Amar Pelos Dois (Love For Both) at the Grand Final in Kiev to an enraptured crowd. One of the most interesting elements of the singer’s performance was that the bossa nova was entirely in Portuguese, written and composed by his sister. Continue reading
You never forget your first language – even if you have never spoken it, scientists have discovered. Babies develop knowledge of the language they hear in their first few months of life and will always retain that knowledge on an abstract level. It has been discovered that your brain retains the hidden ability to recall forgotten first languages decades on. The findings indicate not only that you never truly forget your birth language but also that language acquisition as a baby is abstract in nature and not dependent on experience. Continue reading
Scientists have discovered that baboons can produce five distinct vowel sounds, which are strikingly similar to our own human vowel sounds. This discovery suggests that language skills actually evolved tens of millions of years earlier than previously thought. It is now thought that our pre-human ancestors could have been using meaningful language over 25 million years ago. Continue reading
Each Christmas is the anniversary of the death of pop star and esteemed singer-songwriter George Michael, who passed away on Christmas Day 2016. As a tribute to his song-writing talent and philanthropic work we have taken one of his most famous tracks as inspiration for language learners.
Careless Whisper contains many interesting phrases that are useful to English language students, so let’s consider this classic song and use George’s clever and evocative lyrics to help EFL learners get to grips with some new vocabulary and expressions. Continue reading
Remembrance Day, also called Armistice Day, is an important day in British culture. November 11th is the day everyone remembers the sacrifices made by the service men and women during the world wars. Traditionally there is a two-minute silence on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month – the moment in 1918 when the armistice became effective in Britain.
The main ceremony of remembrance takes place on the nearest Sunday and this day is called Remembrance Sunday. People wear red paper poppies at this time of year to show their support. Read on to learn more about this important day in British culture and explore new vocabulary in our Remembrance Day EFL lesson through two famous war poems.
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The English language has spread around the world so dramatically since the Second World War that there are now more non-native English speakers than native English speakers. The number of English speakers has risen from 400 million to 1.5 billion over the past 70 years. English dominates many conversations between speakers of other languages, simply because it is the only language many people have in common. But will the dominance of English fade after Brexit? Continue reading
Hundreds of Uber drivers risk losing their jobs after London’s transport authority declared all private hire drivers will face new English language tests. From October, all private hire drivers applying for a new license or renewing their existing license will need to have passed a B1 English language writing, reading, listening and speaking test. Some people have welcomed the news, but others are disappointed and angry. Should Uber drivers need to pass a comprehensive English language test? Continue reading
In a startling result, the UK has voted for a ‘Brexit’. This means the wheels have been set in motion for the UK to leave the European Union. Some people are thrilled, while others are worried about the future of the UK and the EU. The possibility of a No-Deal Brexit has raised even more concerns.
Apart from the concern over economic stability, international trade, European travel, residency rights for expats and much more, there is also a growing concern about the role of the English language in Europe and the future of language learning in the UK.
Will the English language become less important internationally? Will British people stop learning foreign languages altogether? We explore the consequences of Brexit for English and how Brexit could affect language learning… Continue reading
If you have ever dreamed about a handy real-time translation device as futuristically cool as the Babel Fish in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy then look no further. The Pilot Earpiece by Waverly Labs is set to be released this autumn and promises to translate your conversations in real time. Two people speaking different languages will be able to communicate easily with each other using this nifty little device that sits snugly in the ear. Sounds too good to be true? Let’s investigate… Continue reading