OUR LAND

I am going to show you the political and physical map of Spain. Spain is a country that is at a high altitude and it is bordered to the north by France to the west by Portugal and to the south by Africa.

First the political:

The physical:

GEOGRAPHY

Unit 1

Geographical features: uneven terrain

Relief: set of geographic features

Coast: seashore

Erode: surface wear produced by friction

Flat: horizontal level

Continent: each of the large areas of land separated by oceans

Tributary: secondary river that flows into another principal

Delta: geographical feature produced by the deposition of sediments at the mouth of a river

Lagoons: natural reservoir of water smaller than a lake

Marsh: deep ground where water collects, with the bottom covered by mud

DIFFERENT TYPES OF RELIEF

Inlet: a thin channel of water that leads inland from the sea. Inlets created by glaciation are called fjords and are usually found on mountainous coastlines.

Headland/cape: a small area of land that projects out into the sea.

Peninsula: a large scale headland surrounded by water on three sides. A peninsula can be connected to the land by a thin stretch of land called isthmus.

Island: a piece of land completely surrounded by water.

Gulf: an area of sea surrounded by land on three sides. A bay is similar but smaller.

Oceanic ridge: an underwater mountain range that generally covers a large area and reaches high altitudes.

Oceanic trench: a long depression on the ocean floor that can be thousands of meters deep.

Abyssal plain: a flat area of the ocean floor. They are found at depths of between 3000 and 7000 meters.

Continental shelf: the undersea extension of a continent that descends gradually to depths of around 400m. The shelf might extend for only a few kilometers under the sea, or it may extend for many.

Continental slope: a steep underwater area that links the continental shelf with the ocean floor.

Mountain: a large landform that is higher than thee surrounding land. A mountain range is a continuous chain of mountains.

Basin: an area of land that is drained by a river or a lake and that is lower than the surrounding area.

Valley: is a linear depression in the land.

Plateau: a flat area of land which sits at a certain altitude above sea level.

Plain: a large, open, flat or slightly undulating are of land.

Cliff: a high, steep, or overhanging face of rock.

Massif: a geologically distinct mass of rock or a series of connected masses forming the peaks of a mountain range.

GLOSSARY

Unit 2

EXPRESSIONS

If you blow your own trumpet: you are boasting about your achievements and abilities

If you have a bee in your bonnet about something: you are obsessed with something and you can't stop thinking in it

It's in someone's genes: when that person has the same personality traits as theirs parents, or does a similar job

You scratch my back and I'll scratch yours: if you do something for me I'll do something for you, especially if it is something you wouldn't have been able to do for yourself

If you say someone does not have a hair out of place: their appearance is very tidy or is perfect.

Lost for words: you are sock of something and you don't know what to say

To have a flash of inspiration: you get a sudden idea that helps you to create or achieve what you were hoping to do 

A big fish in a small pond: if we describe someone with this expression, it means that he/she is very important or have a lot of influence but only in a small area or group

Cold fish: if someone is described with this expression it means that he/she is unfriendly and doesn't show her/his feelings or emotions

Packed like sardines: to describe people in a very crowded space. In a place enclosed

Chock a block: to describe people in a very crowded situation. In the street

Like a duck to water: it means that you discover when you start doing a new activity that you are very good at it

VOCABULARY

Pollution: contamination

Soil: sand

Rubbish: trash

Lid: object used to cover the bottles

Coal: mineral that is extract from the mines and we use it to combustion

Cattle station: is where the cattle reside

Nature: environment

Per capita: per person

Cans: tins

Smog: is a mix of the words smoke and fog

Methane: a gas that produce the greenhouse

Pass a law: is when the government creates a law and this is approved

THE ORIGIN OF THE COOKIES

It appears in 1930 in United Estates. It was in that year when Ruth Wakefield bought a house and took care of a humble* business. Soon her homemade recipes and their delicious desserts began attracting customers.

One day Ruth ran out of* the chocolate usually used for cookies and she had to use a bar that had given Andrew Nestlé. She cut into pieces the bar and added them to the dough*, thinking it would melt* and the result would be the same as usual but the chocolate chips maintained their shape* and became creamy. And this is the curious origin of the cookies

DIFFICULT VOCABULARY 

*Humble: modest/poor

*Run out of: be left without something

*Dough: batter/ bread
*Melt: thaw/dissolve

*Shape: form

                  GLOSSARY
  Unit 1

To take the bull by the horns: to deal with a different situation in a brave and firm way

Two heads are better than one: that two people working together are more likely to solve a problem than one person doing it alone

To keep your head above water: you are just managing to survive despite not having much money/time/things

PIE

It is as easy as pie: if something is very easy

Pie-eyed: if someone is very drunk

To have a finger in many pies: you are involved in lots of different activities

EGG

A bad egg: someone who behaves in a bad or dishonest way

Don’t pull all your eggs in one basket: you should never rely on only one plan in case it goes wrong

He got egg on his face: to be embarrassed by something that I do wrong

BEAN

Full of beans: full of energy

I haven’t got a bean: you don’t have money at all

Spill the beans: to say a secret

It’s a hot potato: if there is a delicate issue and people can't agree

They are like two peas in a pod: they are very similar

TEA

It’s not my cup of tea: if there is something we don’t like much

I wouldn’t do it for all the tea in china: if there is something we would never do it

It’s as good as a chocolate teapot: if something is completely useless

FRUIT

He’s gone bananas: to go mildly crazy

It’s a case of sour grapes: if someone pretends not to be impressed by something because he feels jealous

A second bite of the cherry: another opportunity to do something

OTHER EXPRESSIONS

There are plenty more fish in the sea: there are other choices in a situation. It’s often said to someone who had a romantic break up

The icing on the cake: something that makes a good situation even better                    

Its just not cricket: something is unfair or dishonest

To toy with: not to take someone’s feelings seriously

A toyboy: is the younger boyfriend of an older person

Like a ton of bricks: to express something that is very heavy

To fly the nest: to leave your parents' home for the first time in order to live somewhere else.

A nest egg: an amount of money you have saved for the future

I wasn’t born yesterday: if someone is telling you a very obvious lie

To have a whale of a time: to have a fun time

Size of a whale: an impolite way of say they are large or overweight

To be in a good mood: be in a good frame of mind

A little bird told me: if you have some information but you don't want to reveal who told you

To be or to have a big mouth: it means you talk too much specially about things which should be kept in secret or avoided

FIRE

If you are playing with fire: you are doing something which could be dangerous 

If you add fuel to the fire: it means you make a bad situation even worse

RAINBOW

All the colours of the rainbow: it is very colourful

Chasing rainbows: refers to someone who is always looking for something more exciting or rewarding but it is unlikely to find it

CHEESE

The big cheese: is the most important or powerful person in a group or organization

Chalk and cheese: two people who are very different to each other 

EATING DISORDERS

Breaking point: The point at which physical, mental, or emotional strength gives way under stress.

Dropped: lose weight

Purging: to vomit

Compulsively: doing something every time without thinking

Term effects: the effects that happen after you do something

Follow in your footsteps: be like her/him

DEBATE

Chairperson: a person who presides a debate

Adjudicator: the person who decide the winner of the debate

Timekeeper: the person who controls the time

Speaker: the person who is talking in one moment

FOOD VOCABULARY

Baking powder: any mass which leavens the body with which it is mixed

Whisk up: stir something to dissolve

Sprinkle: dampen something on some food

Raw: that it is not well cooked or ripe

Cocoa: powder obteined by milling this seed

Teaspoon: is a portion smaller than a tablespoon

Tablespoon: portion that fits in a spoon

GE: genetically engineered

GM: genetically modified

GMO: genetically modified organism

OTHER VOCABULARY

Factual: real

Fortune tellers: a person who makes predictions about the future


Tarots readers: the person who adivines your future with a card game

Banned: not allow

Crop: the produce of cultivated plants

Plot of land: a small area of land covered by specific vegetation

Horoscopes: a prediction of someone's future based on the relative positions of the planets

Welcome to my blog¡¡¡

Hi. How are you?

Here I introduce you my portfolio blog, where I can write down my vocabulary and new expressions that I learn from now on in class.

I'm looking forward to using it because I see a great future with this proposal of our virtual portfolio.

I hope you all like it and if you have to tell me something or ask me something don´t forget to comment because I will be open to the world.

BFN