Mayflower

College

FACTS OF THE WEEK

A solar eclipse helped end a six-year war in 585 BC. When the sky darkened during a battle between the Lydians and the Medes, soldiers took it as a sign to cease fighting. Over half the world's population lives within a 5000-mile-wide circle in East Asia. A cat’s ability to see well at night is due to its tapetum lucidum, a structure that reflects visible light back through the cat’s retina. In parts of Europe, people believe that if you light a cigarette from a candle, a sailor will die.

GOOD WEEK FOR:

Rats with backpacks, who are being trained to go into disaster zones with specialist equipment to aid rescue teams. 170 rats are equipped with small backpacks and microphones in order for people to communicate with rescue workers.

12 June 2022 This week we have been busy preparing for the Junior summer school which starts in a couple of weeks. We are looking forward to welcoming juniors aged 13-17 years to study on our English courses, take part in afternoon activities and Saturday excursions – for the first summer since the pandemic! As usual, we have been looking through the British media this week and here are some of the stranger stories we found:

News and homework:

12 June 2022

VIDEO OF THE WEEK

A clip of the Queen’s cameo appearance with

Paddington bear went viral this week, as she

celebrated her Platinum Jubilee and proved she

still has a sense of humour - here.

QUOTATION OF THE WEEK

“If I had asked people what they wanted, they would

have said faster horses.” ~ Henry Ford.

This week's homework is called "Being Positive": PART A: Add these words top complete the idiomatic expressions. LIFE, WORLD, WIN, LIGHT, BRIGHT, FISH, BETTER, ANOTHER 1. Look on the ????? side. 2. There's plenty more ????? in the sea. 3. It's not the end of the ?????. 4. Tomorrow's ????? day. 5. You can't ????? them all. 6. Things can only get ?????. 7. There's ????? at the end of the tunnel. 8. That's ????? ! PART B: Complete the following dialogues using: Third time lucky! No news is good news! Fingers crossed! You never know! It'll be all right on the night! Paul: Amanda has failed her driving test again. That's twice now. Jill: Oh well. ?????. Paul: We still haven't heard anything from the hospital. Jill: Oh well. I suppose ?????. Paul: I bet we don't get a pay rise again this year. Jill: ????? Paul: I'm so nervous about speaking at the meeting tomorrow. I wish I had done more preparation. Jill: Don't worry, Paul. Paul: I hope they get home safely. That old car doesn't look as if it is very reliable. Jill: Well, ?????. PART C: Re-arrange these words to form common expressions: 1. YOU SOME LOSE WIN YOU SOME. 2. YOU'VE LOSE NOTHING GOT TO. 3. WHERE A WAY WILL A THERE'S THERE'S. 4. HIS IS BITE BARK WORSE THAN HIS. Now put the above expressions in the following dialogues. Paul: I'm thing of applying for the manager's position with British Airways. Jill: Yes, good idea. ????? Paul: I haven't met Mr Kramer yet. People tell me he's got a hot temper. Jill: Oh, he's not so bad. ????? Paul: I bought a shirt last month for $40 and now it's in the sale for only $10. Jill: Oh well. ?????. Paul: I don't know how many jobs I've applied for since I left university. Jill: I'm sure you'll find something soon. ?????. Have a great week

A cow, which was arrested for the murder of a 12-year-old boy. The cow and its owner have been detained by police in South Sudan.

BAD WEEK FOR:

Too much screen time. A new study looked into how light exposure can impact life expectancy. Staring at computer and phone screens, and being exposed to light pollution well into the night, have been linked with shorter life expectancy.

An American woman, who collected a free sofa offered online and made a surprising discovery in one of the cushions - more than $36,000 of cash stuffed inside! The lady contacted the seller, who kindly gave her a $2,200 cash reward for her honesty!

MEANING: To be completely soaked. USE: 'It was raining so hard on the way home from work that I looked like a drowned rat when I got home.'

TO LOOK LIKE A DROWNED RAT

Paul Stevens - Director (based in San Diego, USA) Jill Tyler - General Manager (based in Plymouth, UK)

1. Look on the BRIGHT side. 2. There's plenty more FISH in the sea. 3. It's not the end of the WORLD. 4. Tomorrow's ANOTHER day. 5. You can't WIN them all. 6. Things can only get BETTER. 7. There's LIGHT at the end of the tunnel. 8. That's LIFE !

Paul: I'm thing of applying for the manager's position with British Airways. Jill: Yes, good idea. YOU'VE GOT NOTHING TO LOSE. Paul: I haven't met Mr Kramer yet. People tell me he's got a hot temper. Jill: Oh, he's not so bad. HIS BARK IS WORSE THAN HIS BITE. Paul: I bought a shirt last month for $40 and now it's in the sale for only $10. Jill: Oh well. YOU WIN SOME YOU LOSE SOME. Paul: I don't know how many jobs I've applied for since I left university. Jill: I'm sure you'll find something soon. WHERE THERE'S A WILL THERE'S A WAY.

Paul: Amanda has failed her driving test again. That's twice now. Jill: Oh well. Third time lucky! Paul: We still haven't heard anything from the hospital. Jill: Oh well. I suppose No news is good news! Paul: I bet we don't get a pay rise again this year. Jill: You never know! Paul: I'm so nervous about speaking at the meeting tomorrow. I wish I had done more preparation. Jill: Don't worry, Paul. It'll be all right on the night! Paul: I hope they get home safely. That old car doesn't look as if it is very reliable. Jill: Well, fingers crossed.