Summer practice - Reading: www.tmz.com

If you are into celebrity gossip, you can't miss TMZ's website.

As you can imagine, the main subject covered during the last few days has been Michael Jackson's death, and the circumstances of his death and surrounding events are constantly being updated as more facts become known.

Listening practice: Ninemsn Video

Hi all,

Here's a useful link for you to improve your listening skills:

ninemsn video

Try to focus on those news reports that are about 3-5 minutes long and that are not too specialized, and allow a maximum of three times per recording. I'd strongly recommend that you listened to, at least, a couple of them each day.

Also, if you roll your mouse over the NEWS menu, you'll see that there are many other sources to choose from (e.g. 60 minutes, A Current Affair, etc.). Choose the one that best suits your needs and interests.

Hope this is useful.

Summer practice: BBC Learning English - Pronunciation

Hi all,

Here's some useful links for you to improve your pronunciation. They've been taken from the BBC Learning English Pronunciation section. I strongly recommend that you go through each of the different sections, including the following:

The sounds of English
There is a system of symbols for writing the sounds of English. We have a guide to these symbols and also videos to show how to pronounce each of the sounds.

There are also activities to practise identifying the difference between certain sounds which may sound similar.

Features of English
Information about different elements of English pronunciation.

There are also interactive and downloadable exercises to help you build your understanding of these areas.

Quizzes
Interactive quizzes to test your knowledge of and help you learn about English pronunciation.

Programmes
Three radio programmes from 2005 on the topic of pronunciation. You can download the full programmes along with the script and audio examples.