SESSION 1:
MIXED CONDITIONALS
You have already seen the four different major types of Conditional Sentences:
Type 0:
NATURAL LAWS: present-present
"If I heat water, it boils"
Type 1:
REAL: present-future
"If I study hard, I will pass the exam"
Type 2:
HYPOTHETICAL: past simple-conditional simple
"If I were you, I would tell her the truth"
Type 3:
IMPOSSIBLE: past perfect-conditional perfect
"If he had been on time, he would not have lost the job"
But sometimes they behave randomly and mix up tenses...
1. Listen to this AUDIO (2.21 Citizen Z B2 Cambridge) and complete the sentences in exercise 1 page 91.
2. Then match sentences in exercise 1 with the rules below:
Download this worksheet to learn more about Mixed Conditionals and do the exercises:
SESSION 2:
WHAT IF...
Today we will listen to our assistants talking about what they would be doing if they were not working as language assistants in Spain.
1. Guess what type of conditional sentence they will use to talk about hypothetical situations: ............................................Then, listen to it and check out the use of verbs they do to describe them.
2. Listen again and do the following quiz:
What was the first conditional question asked?
What subject was Jimmy interested in teaching in the United States?
If Jimmy had not got a job in the United States, would he have still come to Spain?
How long has Diego been in Madrid for?
What city would Diego be looking for a job in if he hadn’t come to Cortes de Cádiz?
What company did Diego have an opportunity to work for?
As well as working, what else would Diego be interested in doing if he wasn’t in Europe?
Why is this question particularly relevant to Maddie?
What does Maddie study and how is that related to why she is in Spain?
Where would Maddie be if she hadn’t come to Madrid?
Where has Jimmy always wanted to live and why?
With unlimited money what does Maddie really want to do?
What are the three places Maddie specifically says she’d love to visit?
What are the four cities Diego says he’d love to get an apartment in?
SESSION 3:
ALTERNATIVES TO IF
Alternatives to if are the conjunctions that can be used in a conditional sentence instead of if. And there are so many! But these are the most widely used.
Please, read carefully...
Unless
We sometimes use unless instead of if... not in the sense of except if, especially if we are talking about present circumstances and conditions. The second sentence you have quoted, Eveline, is a very good example ofunlessused correctly:
The poor man won’t be able to buy a new car unless he wins the lottery. He won’t be able to pay all the tax he owes unless he robs a bank.
Unless is well used here because it highlights an exception to what is generally true. It works very well in the following examples too when the focus is on exceptions to the general rule. Compare the following:
I’ll be back by the weekend, unless there’s a train strike. I’ll be back by the weekend, if the train drivers aren’t on strike. We’ll play tennis on the outdoor courts on Friday, unless it rains in which case we’ll play indoors. We’ll play tennis on the outdoor courts on Friday, if it doesn’t rain. If it does rain, we’ll play indoors.
If we use unless in the above examples, we think it unlikely that there will be a train strike and unlikely that it will rain. Using if…not suggests that there may be a rail strike or that it may rain.
Compare the following and note the contrastive differences in meaning between if and unless:
Don’t phone me if you get into trouble! Don’t phone me unless you get into trouble.
In the first, I am saying that I want nothing more to do with you, that I am disowning you. Don’t phone me under any circumstances. In the second, I am saying that you can phone me if you want to, but only if you get into trouble.
As long as / provided / on condition that / only if
We can use these alternatives to if if we want to emphasize the conditions surrounding the action, i.e. one thing will happen only if another thing happens. We can also use so long as and providing (that) as alternatives to as long as and provided (that).On condition that is formally very explicit.Provided / providing are more formal than as long as / so long as. Compare the following:
We will lend you the money on condition that it is repaid within 12 months. We will lend you the money provided (that) you can repay it within 12 months. I don’t mind talking to the press, but only if my identity is protected. You can have the day off today providing you agree to work a double shift tomorrow. You can borrow my DVD player as long as you return it on Monday.
Whether
In indirect speech, we can useiforwhetherto introduce reported yes/no questions:
Can you feed the cat for me while I’m away? - She wanted to know whether I could feed the cat for her while she was away. Do you have any free time on Sunday? - I’m not sure if I’ll have any free time on Sunday.
When there is a choice oftwo possibilities, particularly in a two-part question with or, we normally usewhether:
Let me know whether you can come or not. I asked him whether he wanted to stay in a hotel or a B&B. Whether (or not) he’ll be fully fit when the new football season kicks off, we don’t yet know.
Compare the following conditional use with whether:
I’ll come with you to the hospital, if you want me to. I’m coming with you to the hospital, whether you want me to or not.
In the first, where your friend is talking, there are a number of possibilities: you can go alone, go with a friend, go with your mother, etc, so if is used. In the second, where your mother is talking, there are only two possibilities: you either want her with you or not, so whether is used.
1. CHECK YOUR UNDERSTANDING: Go to page 93 VOCABULARY, do exercises 1-3.
SESSION 4:
FCE VOCABULARY EXERCISES
Having a good knowledge of English vocabulary is important. The more you know, the better.
But you don't need to know all the words, not even natives do. You only need to know the topics that normally appear in the exam:
The environment (the weather, climate change, pollution, recycling, animals, plants, different types of habitats (deserts, sea, urban (e.g. towns and cities) etc...)
Work (types of jobs and places of work, applying for a job, what people do in work etc...)
Technology (the internet, social networks, using computers etc...)
Entertainment (films/movies, books, music, concerts etc...)
Travel (ways of travelling, going on holiday, problems connected to travelling etc...)
Social activities and hobbies (sports, hobbies, restaurants, shopping etc...)
Education (studying at school and university)
Family and relationships (family, friends and other types of relationships)
Apart from common topics there are certain types of vocabulary:
Feelings (how people feel physically and emotionally)
Opinions (vocabulary used to express your own point of view)
Probability (vocabulary used by people to express different probabilities on things happening or not)
Linkers (words and phrases to connect sentences.
Common phrasal verbs (commonly used phrasal verbs: find out, set up, break down)
The following exercises have been taken from English Revealed a very useful site to practice FCE test. You can use wordreference for help:
1. Put the adjectives in the correct column according to the type of mood it describes:
2. Label the pictures with different types of sounds. Use the words in the box.
3. COLLOCATIONS MAKE/DO. Choose the best option:
4. STRONG OR EXTREME ADJECTIVES. Example: good-superb
5. Match the adjectives to their opposites:
6. Find the synonyms:
When you finish, write down the new words in your glossaries.
Remember to write a sentence next to it for context.
SESSION 5:
WE WERE LIARS
1. READ CHAPTERS 41-45 FROM WE WERE LIARS AND SUMMARIZE. LISTEN TO OUR ASSISTANT MADDIE WHILE READING.
2. Check the pronunciation of new words, write at least 10 new words in your glossaries with their pronunciation, you can find it in wordreference. Can you see it under the word between slashes /..../? These symbols are called phonetic transcription.
Alright...this is it. Enjoy!
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