English lessons built from my stories in Germany and beyond
Getting Through It
Learn the phrasal verbs and idioms we use to talk about hard times, heartbreak and moving on, then upgrade your English to B2 level. Taken from my ink studies post, Sad Old Me.
The Guy Fawkes Story
Who was Guy Fawkes, and why do the British light bonfires on 5 November? Read the story and practise the past simple.
Bonfire Feast
Learn cooking verbs, the imperative and sequencers with my Bonfire Night recipes. Then write your own recipe for a warming winter dish. Level: B1, with a B2 challenge.
Fire, Fireworks and Changing Traditions
Should traditions change when the world changes? Explore torchlit processions, burning effigies and the fireworks debate, and learn vocabulary for traditions and ceremonies. Level: B2+.
Bonfire Night
Bonfires, sparklers and a failed plot from 1605. Find out what Bonfire Night is, learn vocabulary for fire and fireworks, and practise talking about celebrations. Level: A2–B1.
Weathering the Storm
A little bird, a storm and the trees that stayed green. Learn vocabulary and idioms about weather and support, and finally fix the classic “I live here since…” mistake.
Level: B1–B2.
Storm Warnings
Storm on the way? Learn the words for extreme weather, how to give a warning, and how to use the first conditional to say what will happen.
Level: B1.
It’s a bit Marmite
Love it or hate it? Learn the very British idiom “it’s a bit Marmite”, useful words from my Deutsche Bahn story, and how to use relative clauses with who, which, whose and where.
Level: B1–B2.
Gentrification and the DFLs
Who are the DFLs, and why do some people on the Kent coast welcome them while others don’t? Learn vocabulary for a changing town and the very British art of hedging.
Level: B2.