C1/C2 English - Wednesday 9:45

This class is for advanced and proficient students (level C1 to C2) and is offered online. Here are the topics we will discuss.

August to December 2025

22 October - Destination page 216. Back to art this week (and AI). Can you read this article about a painting and the artist who painted it. In the class you can tell me which picture you preferred and why. You can also tell me about the art that you like.

1 October - Destination page 215. Can you also read this article about how to change people's minds. I wonder whether you will agree with the conclusions drawn by the author. The article contains some great vocabulary, including one of my favourite words 'albeit', and some interesting grammar points to discuss.

24 September - Destination page 214. Let's talk about art. Can you watch this video from The National Gallery about Vincent Van Gogh. It's 30 minutes long so there is no need for you to watch it all. In class we'll talk about the art we like (or don't like) and what we know about famous artists.

17 September - Destination page 213. You asked me for some advice on inclusive language. Can you please read these guidelines before the lesson from the UK government and the UN. If you have time, you could also read this article from The Guardian about pronouns for non-binary people. Perhaps you can also find guidelines from your employer on inclusive language, which you can share in class.

10 September - Destination page 212. We'll continue talking about a good life based on last week's podcast.

3 September - Destination page 211. This week (and next) we'll talk about a good life. I'd like you to think about five tips you would share to encourage someone to enjoy a good life. After doing that, listen to this podcast, where Dr Michael Mosley interviews psychologist, Professor Paul Bloom, to see if you came up with some similar ideas. My first tip would be to have hobbies.

27 August - Destination skim read pages 208 - 209 and do the questions on page 210. This week I'd like to talk about what we did in the summer holidays. If you have time, I'd like you to either write a travel diary to share with the class or prepare a short presentation. Can you also think about topics you would be interested in discussing this semester.

May to July 2025

9 July - Destination - page 206 - 207. Following on from last week's conversation, I'd like you to read this entertaining article about someone who talks too much and their attempts to stop. The article is packed with advanced vocabulary and, appropriately for someone who talks too much, is fairly lengthy. No worries if you don't quite manage to get to the end of it.

2 July - Destination - page 204 - 205 (I think we've already looked at 204 in class) and quite a short article this week with a few interesting words. It's about dealing with unwanted comments. You can read it here.

25 June - Something to listen to this week. One of the long reads from The Guardian about the magic of kitchen objects. You can listen to it here or read it here.

18 June - We'll continue talking about the power of silence article and do some revision on what we have learned this term.

11 June - Destination page 202 - 203 - please read about reported speech. We'll do a bit of practice in the lesson. Can you also read this article about the power of silence. As it's quite a long article, we'll talk about it over two weeks.

4 June - Destination page 201. I discovered a great video about Dua Lipa doing interviews with authors after reading an article in The Guardian. Can you skim read the article and watch the video (if you don't have time for the whole video, the first five minutes will do).

28 May - We'll talk about our trip to Seleger Moor and our upcoming plans.

21 May - Destination page 200. Trip to Seleger Moor.

14 May - Destination page 199. Can you read this article about osteoporosis. It's quite long so don't worry if you don't manage to read it all. We'll talk about the risk factors of this condition and what people can do to reduce the risk.

7 May - Destination page 198. As we're planning on having a day trip to Seleger Moor, we'll keep the homework short. Let's talk about some controversial topics - oranges on pizza and women drivers. Read one or both of the two short articles.

Jan to April 2025

16 April - Destination page 198. This week it's a long article about what happens when land is abandoned. If you don't have time to read it all, focus on the end of the article rather than the start.

9 April - Destination page 197 and this humorous article about kitchen rules. Please read the article and the comments.

2 April - Destination page 196 and this TED Talk about introverts.

26 March - Destination page 196 and this article about how clean Switzerland's rivers are.

19 March - Destination page 195 and read this article about women and finance.

12 March - this week it is a long article so we won't do anything in Destination. Don't worry if you don't read the full article but do try to read the sections about gambling.

5 March - Destination page 194 and please read this short article about fostering at the age of 75.

No lesson on 12 and 19 February

5 February - Destination p.191 and the anxiety article. If you have time, start listening to the Rest is Politics podcast.

29 January - More practice with 'ing forms and a general update.

22 January - we're going to talk about careers.

15 January - can you read this interesting article about anxiety. I'm not sure whether I agree with it all but I think there are some points that are worth talking about. Destination - page 190.

Do you want to practice your grammar. Check out some of my grammar posts here.