Video material and discussion - Khan Academy - Level: B2+ Khan Academy – Education in the future Link to that site: http://www.khanacademy.org/ Link to news story: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4dk6woz4Do Vocabulary: To cheer - to give a loud shout of approval or encouragement brainchild - a clever and original idea, plan or invention (feel sth) in your gut - to know something by feeling or intuition To tutor sb - to teach or instruct, often on a one-to-one level To coach - teach or help, often used in sports. Pre med - a common short form for pre-medical studies at university At a (fast/slow) pace - the speed at which someone or something moves, or with which something happens or changes To go viral (video) - when something, often a youtube video, becomes very popular very quickly, not through marketing, but from people telling their friends, who tell their friends To pour in - to come or enter very quickly eg 'business is good. They money is pouring in.' Envious - Jealous. Wishing you had what another person has The cutting edge - very modern and with all the newest features esp. about technology What is said about: 1. Salmon Khan’s education 2. Kids reaction to math in Palo Alto 3. 2004 4. First posting the videos on youtube 5. By Bill Gates 6. Money Discussion questions: 1. Is this a good or better method for lectures than traditional ones? 2. Which levels and subjects would this method be best for? 3. Can you think of any classes you’ve taken or taught where this might be useful? 4. What do you think of online courses? Have you had any experience with them? 5. What other technologies are being, or should be, implemented in the education process?

Концы прилагательных Я не понимаю, какая есть разница между такими формами Интересен и интересный – Я вижу много слов в этих формах, но я не знаю, когда использовать. Я знаю, что обе мужское, но кроме того… Также я видел что-то, как то - Вы очень похожи. Почему не похожие? Это наречие в этим предложенным? Спасибо

Video/listening exercise - Comedy of Julia Sweeny - 5 minutes - Level B2+ Most TED talks are on serious academic issues. However, this one is some light-hearted comedy on the challenges of parenting. The video has English subtitles available for lower level students. http://www.ted.com/talks/julia_sweeney_has_the_talk.html Vocabulary: to mate - When animals mate, they have sex in order to produce babies. to fertilize - to cause an egg to start to develop into a young animal or baby by combining it with a male cell: tadpole - a small, animal that lives in water and will become a frog (= green jumping animal) amusement park - a large park where you can ride on exciting machines, like roller coasters sewage treatment plant - a place where waste water (like from toilets) is processed so it can be used safely for some other purpose to do the splits - the action of sitting on the floor with your legs straight out and flat along the floor in opposite directions

English-English dictionary The best one to start with, in my opinion, is the Cambridge Learner's Dictionary. It provides audio pronunciation, both British and American, includes inflected forms and usually has several example sentences. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/learner-english/ If you can't find a word there, or need a comparison, I would next check Merriam Webster. It will have more of the less common definitions included and has some information on etymology. http://www.merriam-webster.com/ Speaking of etymology, this site is a lot of fun. It will be most useful for linguist and advanced students. However, sometimes it can help people learning to not just understand the word or phrase, but also where it comes from. http://www.etymonline.com/ It can be useful in answering questions like one word can have two completely different meanings, for example: Incense - noun - material burned to produce a pleasant smell, like in church Incense - verb - to make angry

Resources for learning English grammar Since I taught English as a foreign language for so many years and quite a few people have started following me, I thought it might be good to share some of the resources I've found and even some of the lessons I've created. For grammar explanations and exercises: http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/index.htm It is quite extensive with lots of practice if you need it. It's especially good for practicing tenses and conditionals, two of the more difficult things to master in English. More grammar plus listening at lower levels: http://www.agendaweb.org/