IELTS Official YouTube Channel

Have you checked out the IELTS official YouTube channel yet? If not, you need to go to

http://www.youtube.com/IELTSOfficial

right away! Don't forget to save the link in your Favourites list!

Need to get your brain in top gear to attack some important task? Check this article from PSYBLOG for six very helpful tips.

"Here are six tips based on psychological research that can improve your state of mind and help you do what needs to be done..."

http://www.spring.org.uk/2013/08/6-quick-tips-to-get-your-brain-in-high-gear-fast.php

Which tip do you think is most useful?

Online Literature Sites (from The British Council)

If you're a Facebook user, I strongly recommend following all The British Council's excellent pages.

Today, their "LearnEnglish" page at https://www.facebook.com/LearnEnglish.BritishCouncil posted a list of links to online literature in English.

Reading literature is a fabulous way to enrich your English language and understanding of English-speaking cultures.

Enjoy!

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LearnEnglish – British Council:

"I had a request today for a link to free literature so I thought now would be a good time to remind you of some of the online literature sites we've shared before!

1) Lit2Go - a fantastic project by the University of Southern Florida with a free online collection of novels, stories and poems which you can listen to and read online or download and print. http://etc.usf.edu/lit2go/authors/

2) Booktrust - more than 40 free short stories from award-winning contemporary authors. http://www.booktrust.org.uk/books-and-reading/short-stories/stories/

3) Classic Reader - thousands of free books by authors such as Dickens, Austen, Shakespeare and many more. http://www.classicreader.com/

4) Short Stories - this is an interesting site which mixes classic authors with unpublished writers and even has teaching resources and interactive stories! http://www.short-stories.co.uk/

5) Project Gutenberg Australia - Lots of modern classics from Fitzgerald, Orwell, Woolf and more http://gutenberg.net.au/

6) Library of American Short Stories - a great mix of classic and modern short stories http://storyoftheweek.loa.org/p/stories-sorted-by-author.html

7) And of course, let's not forget our own fantastic Stories & Poems sections on LearnEnglish and Learn English Teens! http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/stories-poems
http://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/english-skills-practice/short-stories-poems

8 ) ...and our Read at Your Level section on LearnEnglish Teens. http://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/english-skills-practice/read-your-level"

7 Reasons You Aren't As Smart As You Think You Are

Read the seven reasons you aren't as smart as you may think at

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-mcraney/7-reasons-you-are-now-les_b_3721172.html?

List the reasons in short sentences using your own words. Add one example from your own experience.

1.

Example:

2.

Example:

3.

Example:

4.

Example:

5.

Example:

6.

Example:

7.

Example:

Can you add any more reasons?

Messy desk or tidy desk?

"If a cluttered desk is a sign of a cluttered mind, of what, then, is an empty desk a sign?" —Albert Einstein

How does your desk look -- crowded or bare?

Read more about the psychology behind your desk at http://www.spring.org.uk/2013/08/tidy-or-messy-desk-which-is-best-for-the-mind.php

How are messy desks useful?
How can a tidy desk help us?
What are the main conclusions of the reasearch?

What do children learn from playing?

All children enjoy playing. Play isn't just fun, though; it serves an important purpose in preparing children for adult life.

Read the article explaining five important lessons children learn from play: http://www.examiner.com/article/5-ways-that-child-s-play-teaches-very-grown-up-lessons

Can you think of any more lessons we learn through play?

How Eye Contact Works

Most of us know that use of eye contact can be important, and that the "rules" are different from culture to culture.

"Eye contact can signal love, hate, intelligence, creepiness, persuasion, sarcasm—and sometimes lies."

So, how does eye contact work?

Read more at: http://www.spring.org.uk/2013/07/how-eye-contact-works.php

Culture: How to Shake Hands Correctly in the American Business World

In many cultures, people shake hands when meeting and greeting. However, the way people shake hands varies enormously not only from one culture to another but also within cultures.

Here's an excellent article about how to shake hands in the business world in the USA:

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/spycatcher/201307/the-art-handshaking?tr=HdrQuote

Do you shake hands in your culture? Is the way you shake hands different to the US business style?



With thanks to SalFalko (http://www.flickr.com/photos/safari_vacation/) for the image.

Awesomely Untranslatable Words From Around The World

It's interesting to consider the relationship between language and culture. This article lists twenty words for which there is no equivalent in English. Do you know of any untranslatable words or concepts in your first language?

20 awesomely untranslatable words from around the world (via Matador Network)

Photo: laogooli There are at least 250,000 words in the English language. However, to think that English – or any language – could hold enough expression to convey the entirety of the human experience is as arrogant of an assumption as it is naive…

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Seven Secrets of Success

:)

Learning a foreign language: five most common mistakes

Do you think that only highly intelligent and talented people can succeed in learning foreign languages? Wrong!

You simply need to know how to learn in the right way. Read this extremely helpful article to get yourself on the right track.

"Here are the five most common mistakes language learners make – and how to correct them..."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationadvice/9750895/Learning-a-foreign-language-five-most-common-mistakes.html

Are you making some of these mistakes?

Spend five to ten minutes writing about how you plan to change!

Which are the best online dictionaries for learners of English?

Here's a link to another blog which you may find helpful if you're not sure which online dictionaries to use:

http://shar.es/AHM3h

I would add that I like http://dictionary.reference.com/ because the definitions are clear and easy to understand, you can click to hear the pronunciation of the words and because examples of the usage of the words are given, including use in idioms.

As always, feel free to ask questions or add comments here!

Which topics do you think are most difficult to talk about?

Do you find it easy to talk about computers? How about clothes? Or pets?

Everyone has different interests so we may not find all topics equally easy to talk about. That's one reason why IELTS candidates need to expose themselves to a wide range of material by a variety of different people when reading and listening. A few times per week, when listening and reading in English, you should deliberately choose topics outside your usual range of interests and speakers/writers with whom you might not agree or even find appealing!

Then again, some topics - such as "love" - might be considered difficult by most people. Here are some interesting definitions of love to reflect on:

What Is Love? Famous Definitions from 200 Years of Literary History

by Maria Popova

“Love has nothing to do with what you are expecting to get — only with what you are expecting to give — which is everything.”

See more definitions here:

http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2013/01/01/what-is-love/

Which definition do you like most?

What is your own definition of love?