Rhyming dictionaries

There are several online rhyming dictionaries that can be helpful for practising pronunciation or creating short poems in the classroom.

These are three examples:

Rhymes.net

WriteExpress Online Rhyming Dictionary

Poetry.com Rhyming Dictionary

help us find

English phonemic chart

Sounds Right is the British Council's first pronunciation chart for learners and teachers of English. Each phonetic symbol is supplemented with examples and audio.

Measuring oral production

The Centre international d'études pédagogiques website includes short clips with language learners' oral productions in several languages which illustrate the different competency levels established by the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.

Turtle, tortoise, or terrapin?

From Wikipedia:

"Although the word turtle is widely used to describe all members of the order Testudines, it is also common to see certain members described as terrapins, tortoises or sea turtles as well. Precisely how these alternative names are used, if at all, depends on the type of English being used.

• British English normally describes these reptiles as turtles if they live in the sea; terrapins if they live in fresh or brackish water; or tortoises if they live on land. However, there are exceptions to this where American or Australian common names are in wide use, as with the Fly River turtle.
• American English tends to use the word turtle for all freshwater species, as well as for certain land-dwelling species (e.g. box turtles). Oceanic species are usually referred to as sea turtles, and tortoise is restricted to members of the true tortoise family, Testudinidae. The name terrapin is typically reserved only for the brackish water diamondback terrapin, Malaclemys terrapin; the word terrapin being derived from the Algonquian word for this animal.^[11]
• Australian English uses turtle for both the marine and freshwater species but tortoise for the terrestrial species."

How to say "coger aúpas"

"Pick me up"

Source of the image: http://www.claudiampublications.com/TheCards/CardPickMeUp.shtml

How to say 'espinillera' in English

Spanish: espinillera
Basque: zango-babes, berna-babes
English: Shin guard

How to say 'velcro' in English?

Wikipedia provides a quite complete explanation on hook-and-loop fasteners , an everyday object that we usually refer to by its brand name.

This song presents an instance of use for 'velcro fastener'.

What is a 'literary text'?

A brief description of different senses of the term literature can be found in this Wikipedia entry (Spanish). A list of literary genres can be also accessed in the English version of Wikipedia.

Classroom language

You can access several documents on classroom language recently included by Anglès 365 in their website.

How to say 'mantala' in English?

It seems that 'smock' or 'school smock' could be appropriate terms for referring to the overalls used in many classrooms.

Smock: n. A loose coatlike outer garment, often worn to protect the clothes while working. (Answers.com)

Information on the history of school smocks




Little girl with school smock and carrying backpack with books.
Village: Volce.
Date: 1978 June

from http://www.library.umass.edu/spcoll/galleries/halpern78f.htm