ENGLISH TODAY

A blog about the English language, English learning tips, life and events in London and Link School.
Join us, stay in touch after school and practise your English in a more relaxed way!
Everyone is welcome, not only our students.

Events and Learning English through Socialising.

English Jokes Explained

Posted on 25 July 2019 in British Culture

3 types of English Jokes

How to understand the English humour

We wrote before about about English jokes in our short article ‘British Humour‘. We have been writing lately about English exams preparation and other topics related to English language learning. That’s why we thought it’s time to take a more light-hearted approach to our blog again. So, what do we find funny?

Mr Bean… Monty Python… Charlie Chaplin… Shakespeare… British humour is well known across the world, but what are the most common types of English jokes? And why are they funny? Let’s have a look at 3 popular types of English jokes.

1) ‘Knock-knock’ jokes

A – Knock knock
B – Who’s there?
A – Claire
B – Claire who?
A – Claire the way, I’m coming through.

Knock-knock jokes take place at a front door. It always begins ‘Knock knock’ with the reply ‘Who’s there?’ The next part uses a pun. A pun is a joke using a word that sounds like another word or it may be a word with different meanings.

‘Claire’ sounds like ‘clear’, so in the joke above it sounds like ‘clear the way, I’m coming through’.
Here is another example:

A – Knock knock
B – Who’s there?
A – Harry
B – Harry who?
A – Harry up, it’s cold out here. (Harry up sounds like ‘hurry up’)
Read more


Academic English Skills for University

Posted on 21 May 2019 in English language tips, Learn English Advice

How to improve academic English skills for university study

3 tips on improving English for university

Going to university will likely be the most challenging test of your academic English skills. You will probably need to pass an English language exam such as Academic IELTS or another English exam. However, even after obtaining the required certificate you may still want to build up your English speaking confidence and continue improving your English. Whether you have started or are soon to start your degree, the following tips will help you make the most of your time at university.

How to improve academic English skills. Female university student writing.

How to improve academic English skills

Engage

Try to meet English speakers who are doing your degree. If you are passionate about your subject, this could be one of the most effective ways of honing your academic English skills. It has the potential to be a crash course in subject-specific vocabulary as well as a way of improving your speaking and listening skills. If you want to make friends in the UK, you may be more motivated to learn this way than with self-study.
Read more


Weekend IELTS Workshop

Posted on 18 April 2019 in About IELTS exams, English exams preparation, Learn English Advice, London for free

IELTS Workshop in London
Saturday 1st June 2019

IELTS Tips and Exam Preparation Advice

Free IELTS Event in London

Please note, we work on first come first served basis. The number of places in limited – arrive early to secure your place.

Our weekend IELTS workshop is for those who are planning to take the IELTS exam and want to find out what more about the test requirements and how to prepare for IELTS. During this IELTS session we will give you an overview of IELTS task types in reading, writing and speaking modules. Apart from that, you will be able to try and complete some IELTS task on your own and ask questions to an experienced IELTS teacher.

Student writing during weekend IELTS workshop

IELTS workshop

Read more


General English vs Conversation Classes

Posted on 29 December 2018 in English Courses at Link School, Learn English Advice

What is the difference between general English and conversation classes?

Find our which one is better for you: general English or conversational English course.

General English vs conversation classes the difference explained. Chess horses black and white.

General English vs conversation classes

One of the most common questions asked by our students registering for English courses is the one about the difference between general English courses and English conversation classes.

The short answer is: general English classes cover reading, writing, listening and speaking as well as grammar and vocabulary. Conversation classes focus on speaking and listening skills in everyday communication.

General English vs English conversation classes

In addition to general English and exam preparation courses, Link School of English offers regular English conversation classes. All of our courses help students improve their speaking through a range of communicative activities. However, conversation classes place the most emphasis on speaking and offer a unique experience for learners of English. They are usually built around a specific theme or topic which students discuss in pairs or as a group. This may sound like something you have done at an English class before. What are the main differences?

Read more


How to make the most of your part time English course

Posted on 5 September 2018 in English Courses at Link School, English language tips, Learn English Advice

Tips from a teacher on how to make the most of your part time English course

Have you signed up for an evening or weekend English course and want to know how to maximase your learning?

When you’ve made a commitment you certainly want to make ensure you make maximum progress in English. Here are some tips from an English language teacher on how to make the most of a part time English course.

Attend all lessons

My top tip for making the most of your part-time English course is simple: Attend all the lessons. It may be tempting to skip a lesson if you’re tired or if you have a lot on, but keep in mind that your course may only last for two or three months, while resting and socialising will always be possible later. It may also be tempting to miss a lesson if you are already familiar with the grammar or topic vocabulary that is coming up. But this is not a good reason to skip, because grammar and vocabulary are only part of what learning a language involves. The rest is skill-building. That is, most of what you do on an English course will involve improving your skills in speaking, listening, reading and writing.

How to make the most of your part time English course. Do more computer screen display.

Make friends with your class mates

Another good reason to turn up is that doing so makes it more likely that you will to get to know your classmates – which is another very effective way to get the most out of your course. Striking up an acquaintance with fellow learners may allow you to create a support system for learning English, not only helping each other to complete the course but also continuing to practice your English outside the classroom.

Read more


English Language Learning in 3 Easy Ways

Posted on 10 March 2018 in Improve English speaking, Learn English Advice, Real English practice

3 easy ways of English language learning

Here are three easy ways to learn English and make your English language learning pleasant and effortless

Unless you aspire to be the world’s best polyglot and do the activity merely for the enjoyment of it, English language learning can sometimes be a daunting task. Most English learners will attend group or private English classes, some may self-study. No matter the way of study, all of them will want to practise English speaking in a real life context. If you would like to find out how to do this, keep on reading.

1. Learning English with Love

The reasons for learning English are varied. Many movies have added storylines centred on this and language learning. If you are a fan of seventies comedy and language learning then it is quite possible you’ve encountered Mind your Language. A show, which helped bring credibility to language learning.
Read more


How to Read in English more Quickly

Posted on 28 October 2016 in Learn English Advice, Link School of English

How to read in English Easily

Find out how to read in English quickly and about benefits of reading in English

Student reading in English at language school in London. Find out how to read in English more quickly.

Read in English easily

All of us read something every day, whether it’s for work or study, finding information for your everyday life or just reading for pleasure. At our English language school we very often hear from students that they would like to start reading books in English but they find it challenging. Here are some tips on how to get started with reading in English, make it easy and enjoyable. But let’s start from the benefits of reading in English, some of them you may find surprising.
Read more


How to Use the Present Perfect

Posted on 21 September 2016 in English language tips, Improve English grammar, Learn English Advice, Link School of English

All you need to know about the Present Perfect

Do you find the Present Perfect confusing? Still making mistakes? Read this article.

This article is for English language learners who want to understand the Present Perfect and improve their English grammar.

When to use the Present Perfect tense in English?

The Present Perfect is a tense linking the past and the present. We use it to talk about an action which happened in the past and we have the result of that action now, while talking about it.

Light bulb. Light bulb moment when you find out how use the Present Perfect English tense. All you need to know about Present Perfect. English Courses in London with Link School.

Learn about English Present Perfect Tense

The Present Perfect Tense is one of the most confusing English grammar subjects for many learners. That’s because in many other languages there is no equivalents of this tense. Here are a couple of tips how to use the Present Perfect:

Read more


British Sense of Humour

Posted on 27 July 2016 in British Culture, Real English practice

British Sense of Humour Explained

Article by Link School of English in London

Perhaps you are an English learner trying to understand English jokes and sense of humour? Do you find British humour odd or not funny at all?

I recently saw British humour described as an oxymoron… I beg to differ; just because something doesn’t fit the norm, is different, unique, or has a culture of it’s own doesn’t mean it isn’t valid or isn’t funny. However, to an ‘out-sider’ I can see why some might think this.

Understanding British sense of humour and jokes in conversation with the English

British Humour

Read more


How to Make Fewer Mistakes in Spoken English

Posted on 17 June 2016 in English learning materials, Improve English speaking, Learn English Advice

Looking for Ways to Improve Spoken English and Make Less Mistakes?

How to Make Fewer Mistakes in Spoken English

Here is some advice from one of Link School of English teachers, a simple 3-step exercise which you can do on your own to speak better English.

Learning advice to improve English speaking skills

How to make less mistakes in spoken English

Making mistakes is inevitable when you are learning English. Moreover, it should be encouraged. I know it sounds like a strange thing to say, but it is true. If we don’t make mistakes, it is impossible to learn! But the issue is, unless you have an English teacher or a fluent English speaking friend with you at all times, it is almost impossible to realise that you’re making mistakes in English.

Read more


1 2 3 4   Next »