MAY is used to express POSSIBILITY; SHOULD is used for SUGGESTIONS and recommendations. Both can be used to refer to the present/future and to the past, although the form changes a little.

• For Present and/or Future, the form is very easy – MAY or SHOULD + VERB (Do NOT use “to!”)
He MAY GO to the movies this afternoon.
That man MAY BE sick; he looks very pale.

You SHOULD FINISH the report before you go to bed.
They SHOULDN’T BOTHER him while he’s working.

• For Past Tense, use MAY HAVE or SHOULD HAVE + PARTICIPLE
I’m not sure where Dan was yesterday. He MAY HAVE GONE to the beach.
I don’t know why she hasn’t called me. She MAY HAVE FORGOTTEN MY NUMBER.

Look how tired you are! You SHOULDN’T HAVE GONE to bed so late last night!
They SHOULD HAVE LISTENED to your advice; now they’re in a lot of trouble.

A. Change these sentences to the Past Tense:

1. You shouldn’t let the children do that!
2. Ilse may be too tired to go shopping.
3. Should she play tennis with that bad knee?
4. They shouldn’t drive the car without checking the oil.
5. I may be wrong.

B. Make a suggestion (More than one answer may be possible but be careful of the tense!)

Example: John stayed up till 2:00 A.M. He shouldn’t have stayed up so late OR He should have gone to bed earlier.

1. I ate too much pizza.
2. He wants to get a good grade on this report.
3. My brother bought a used car without taking it to a mechanic first.
4. You try to pet every strange dog you see on the street.

C. Give a possible explanation for these situations. (Again, more than one answer is possible, but watch the tense!)

Example: My daughter isn’t happy in her school. She may not like her teacher.

1. Mary didn’t come to work yesterday. __________________________________

2. No one likes that restaurant. ________________________________________

3. The dog started barking at 3:00 this morning.____________________________

4. He won’t return my calls! ___________________________________________

5. Look at all the water in the street! _____________________________________

VOCABULARY: ACCIDENTS CAN HAPPEN!

1. slip (V&N) Lose your balance, because of ice, snow, water, or anything slippery (like a banana peel!) on the street or floor. Mikey stepped in the water on the bathroom floor, slipped, and almost fell down.
2. trip (V) To step on something on the floor and almost lose your balance. I tripped over the cat in the dark.
3. stumble (V&N) The same as TRIP. While hiking, I stumbled over a rock and twisted my ankle.
4. walk/run/dance etc. into (V) To bump (or crash!) something by accident. They got too excited and danced right into the wall! .
5. Drop (V) When you are holding something, and you let it fall by accident. Oops! He dropped the Stradivarius violin out of the 10th floor window.

********************

TOP THREE MOVIES IN U.S. THIS WEEK (Reviews Compiled by Rottentomatoes.com):

AVATAR
Avatar is nearly a visual masterpiece.
It revels in the archetypal broadness of its story, hoping to become a pre-existing classic, even as it unfolds for the first time. For the most part, it works. Some of the dialog is dull and the attempts at humor are frequently embarrassing…but this is overwhelmed by the film’s emotional impact (the Na’Vi are as expressive as anything put on the screen since the original King Kong rampaged through New York). Avatar is a fine, if flawed, film, one that will remain in memory for its artistic and technical achievements.
PRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME
Combine Stephen Sommers’ The Mummy (1999) with Disney’s Aladdin and you have the story, the plot and the action. A sacred object, the Dagger of Time, must be returned to its rightful place or the world will fall to ruin. This is a special dagger which has the ability to rewind time, conveniently enough for only one minute. Does it rewind time everywhere? Never mind. This isn’t the sort of film to inspire even shallow thoughts.
This is a forgettable entertainment that might be worth a matinee if you can’t think of anything else to do… laundry, for example.
ALICE IN WONDERLAND
It’s by some distance director Tim Burton’s most disappointing outing since Planet Of The Apes.
Alice In Wonderland may look fantastic – even if the 3D comes across as disappointingly flat after Avatar’s immersive depth – but there’s little else going for it. A complete lack of story and the lack of key characters and moments from Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland provide little sustenance for heart or brain– it’s emotionally cold, utterly predictable and there’s never any sense of peril.

ANSWERS:

A.
1. You shouldn’t have let the children do that!
2. Ilse may have been too tired to go shopping.
3. Should she have played tennis with that bad knee?
4. They shouldn’t have driven the car without checking the oil.
5. I may have been wrong.

B.
1. You should have eaten less pizza.
2. He should do more research.
3. He should have taken it to a good mechanic.
4. You shouldn’t go near strange dogs!

C.
1. She may have been sick.
2. The service may be bad.
3. The dog may have heard strange noises.
4. He may be angry at you.
5. A pipe may have broken.

The CISL Lesson of the Month is written by Pam Mondragon.

“Scorpio:  You shouldn’t waste your time worrying – today is a new day!  Some new financial opportunities should come your way this week, so you must get organized.  You ought not to make any big new purchases unless you have to.  And you had better pay attention to a friend’s advice!”

“Why do so many people believe in horoscopes and the zodiac?  Can horoscopes really tell us what we should do with our lives? Psychologists say that reading our horoscopes can be fun, but we ought not to use them to try to predict the future.  They say that the language used in most horoscopes is so general that it could fit anyone’s life.  One man was close to buying his dream house but missed his chance because his horoscope said, ‘You had better wait till the full moon passes before you make any big purchases!’  By the time the full moon had passed, it was too late.  Someone else had bought the house.”

Part 1:  GRAMMAR – EXPRESSING NECESSITY and ADVICE

As you can see from the words highlighted in the above reading, we use modal verbs to talk about NECESSITY and ADVICE: should, ought to, have to, must and had better are the most common. You can say something is necessary or advisable in a very soft way by using should or ought to. Have to, must and had better are all much stronger.

• You should check with your doctor before you try that exercise program.
• He ought to* look for another job.
• We have to* finish this report by Friday.
• They must be here by 3:00 or the plane will leave without them!
• You had better clean up that mess right now!

*Note that these two modals need TO.  The others do not.

Note also the negatives: should not, ought not to, must not, had better not. The only one that is different is have to. The negative is don’t / doesn’t /didn’t have to.

• You should not worry so much.
• They ought not to take so much luggage with them.
• You don’t have to go to work if you feel really sick.
• He must not do that again or he’ll lose his job.
• You had better not try to pet that strange dog!

The questions are easy, except that have to is different again:

• Should she try the driving test again?
• Ought he to eat so much?
• Must I pay the traffic ticket this week?
• Had you better keep your passport in a safe place?
• Do you have to leave so soon?

Exercise 1: Use the best modal verb in the following sentences.

1. You probably _________________get 8 hours of sleep each night.
2. She ______________pay that speeding ticket or she could lose her license!
3. I can’t go out tonight; I __________________study for an exam.
4. They ______________not swim during this thunderstorm; they could be struck by lightning!
5. Do you think I _______________try that new restaurant?

Part 2:  VOCABULARY

Exercise 2:  Look in the Astrology and Psychology reading selection and find synonyms for the following words or phrases:

1. perfect, ideal ___________________
2. suggestions ____________________
3. anything you buy________________
4. chance________________________
5. describe something that you believe will happen in the future________________

ANSWERS:

Exercise 1:  1. should, ought to  2. must, had better  3. have to, must  4. had better, must  5. should, ought to

Exercise 2:  1. dream  2. advice  3. purchase  4. opportunity  5. predict

You probably remember that a gerund is a verb+ING.  It’s usually used in the continuous tenses, such as:

She is living in Detroit now.

They were hiking when the storm hit.

I’ve been working since 8:00 this morning.

But there are other uses for gerunds:

• They can act like nouns, which means they can be the subject or the object of a sentence.  Read the following examples:

Swimming in the river was a lot of fun.  (Subject)

Becoming a doctor takes many years of study. (Subject)

My sister loves watching old movies. (Object)

He’s responsible for answering those letters.  (Preposition+Object)

EXERCISE A:  Using an appropriate gerund, please complete the following sentences.

1. I used to be afraid of ____________________.
2. _________________in the mountains is wonderful exercise but it’s also tiring.
3. Who’s responsible for ______________________the dog?
4. One of the best ways you can spend your time is ___________________.
5. ______________________in the ocean during a thunderstorm is not recommended.

1. • They can be used as adjectives, instead of a clause:

Falling leaves make quite a mess on your lawn. (Leaves that fall make quite a mess…)

Barking dogs are a nuisance.  (Dogs that bark are a nuisance.)

The running man dropped his keys.  (The man who was running dropped his keys.)

Crying children are a problem on airplanes.  (Children who cry are a problem…)

EXERCISE B:  Replace the clauses in these sentences with gerunds:

1. The faucet that dripped kept me awake all night.
2. The holiday that’s coming should be a lot of fun.
3. The crowd that was screaming tried to get into the stadium.
4. He jumped out of the way of the car that was speeding.
5. I saw the house that was burning on TV news.

*********

PART TWO:  There are 10 errors in the following paragraph.  Find them and correct them.

When we thinking about our familiarest domestic animals, it’s easy to see differences in  its  social behavior.  Dogs are pack animals, and they are conditioned to recognize emotions in other dogs and in his owners as well.  For example, a dog who sees that its owner is angry will change its own expression to one of sorrow or guilty.

On the other hand, cats (except for lions) are not pack animals.  They tend to be emotional independent and not particular interested in the feelings of the group.  Like dogs, cats often shows affection to their owners, but they are much lesser affected by their owners’ emotions. Dogs seem to want to please us also.  Cats please themselves.

(By the way, you can see from this paragraph that the word for a group of dogs (or wolves) is  a pack.  There are many special words for different groups  of animals.  A group of horses, cows or other plant-eating animals is a herd; a lot of birds is a flock and a group of lions is called a pride. )

*******

ANSWERS:

EXERCISE A: There are many different correct answers.  Some examples are:  1. driving

2. walking    3.  feeding    4.  volunteering for the Red Cross    5. Swimming

EXERCISE B:    1. The dripping faucet    2.  The coming holiday    3.  The screaming crowd    4.  the speeding car    5. the burning house

FIND THE ERRORS:

Line 1: When we think, most familiar and differences in their…

Line 3: in their owners

Line 4: guilt

Line 6: emotionally, particularly

Line 7: show, less

Line 8: Dogs also seem…or Also, dogs seem…

PART ONE:  VOCABULARY

MOVIE REVIEW: AVATAR

Read this movie review – without using your dictionary – and see if you can match the underlined words with their synonyms that follow the review:

Synopsis: Avatar is the story of an ex-Marine who finds himself thrust into hostilities on an alien planet filled with exotic life forms. As an Avatar, a human mind in an alien body, he finds himself torn… “Avatar is the story of an ex-Marine who finds himself thrust into hostilities on an alien planet filled with exotic life forms. As an Avatar, a human mind in an alien body, he finds himself torn between two worlds, in a desperate fight for his own survival and that of the indigenous people. More than ten years in the making, Avatar marks Cameron’s return to feature directing since helming 1997′s Titanic, the highest grossing film of all time and winner of eleven Oscars® including Best Picture. WETA Digital, renowned for its work in The Lord of the Rings Trilogy and King Kong, will incorporate new intuitive CGI technologies to transform the environments and characters into photorealistic 3D imagery that will transport the audience into the alien world rich with imaginative vistas, creatures and characters. –© 20th Century Fox.”

1. leading or directing____________
2. famous________________
3. making money______________
4. view or landscape_______________
5. native___________________
6. unusual__________________
7. summary_________________

1. war or fight _______________

1. unable to decide_____________

10.  pushed or forced_______________

Director: James Cameron
Screenwriter: James Cameron
Producer: James Cameron, Jon Landau
Studio: 20th Century Fox

PART TWO:  GRAMMAR

Some, any, no and ever are special in that they happily pair up with other words.  Remember that words using some are affirmative, no- words are negative and words using any are negative and/or interrogative.

somewhere/anywhere/nowhere

He lives somewhere in San Diego; I don’t know exactly where.

Did you go anywhere on your vacation?

No, we went nowhere.

something/anything/nothing

I want to get something to eat; is there a good restaurant near here?

He didn’t want anything to drink.

She got nothing for her birthday.  She’d said she didn’t want anything.

someone/ anyone/ no one (or none)

Maria said she’d met someone interesting at the party last night.

I didn’t see anybody interesting there myself.

No one I know liked that movie.

somebody/anybody/ nobody

Somebody telephoned for you.

Did you see anybody in the kitchen?

Nobody from the office went to the Superbowl; it was too expensive.

-Ever words have the same meaning as any- but they attach to the ends of their companion words:

whatever = anything

Please order whatever you like.

however  = in any way

You can finish the story however you prefer.

whoever (or whomever) = any person

I’m giving the ticket to whomever arrives first.

whenever = any time

You can leave whenever you like.

wherever = any place

Wherever she goes, she enjoys herself.

no+ever = never = at no time

My brother has never gone to Florida.

EXERCISE A:  Please use a some-,any- or no- word in these sentences

1. I left a sandwich on the counter and now it’s gone.  I guess ________________ ate it.
2. Last weekend we didn’t go ________________; I’m tired of staying home all the time.
3. Is there ________________interesting on TV tonight?
4. Our trip was very boring;  _______________happened.

EXERCISE B:  Please use an –ever word to complete these sentences:

1. I’ll get you ____________you want for your birthday.
2. Of course they’ll be mad if you’re always late!  You can’t just arrive ______________you like.
3. _________________wins American Idol immediately becomes famous.
4. _____________you go, you should always carry your passport.

ANSWERS:

Vocabulary:  1.  helming    2. hostilities    3. renowned   4.torn between two worlds   5. grossing    6. vistas    7. indigenous    8. exotic    9.  synopsis    10. thrust

Grammar, Exercise A:   1. someone/somebody    2. anywhere    3. anything    4. nothing

Grammar, Exercise B:   1., whatever    2. whenever    3. whoever    4. Wherever

- You are walking through a forest; describe it.
- Through this forest is a path; describe it.
- Along the path you come upon a key; what does it look like; what condition is it in? Do you pick it up?
- Farther along the path you find a cup; what does it look like; what is it made of; what condition is it in? Do you pick it up?
- As you continue walking, you come to an obstacle; describe it.
- What do you do? If you go around it or past it, then how?
- Next you happen upon a body of water; describe it. Do you get in it? How fast is it flowing?
- As you walk along, you come to a shelter of some sort; what does it look like? Do you spend the night?
- Finally, you’re walking along when you reach a fence; what does this fence look like; what is it made of; what condition is it in?
- Beyond the fence is a field; describe that. Do you go over the fence into the field?

Here are some of their answers. What do you think that their interpretations say about their personalities?

“It’s dark and the moon is lighting up the forest. There are tall trees everywhere, on which I can see a lot of different animals, from birds to monkeys. The forest is pretty silent, and I can hear the sound of a snake coming towards me!

In front of me I can see a small lake. I would like to wash my toes in it. I’m entering the lake when I suddenly see a big crocodil swimming in my direction ready to eat me!

I’m running as far as I can from the lake when I accidentally see something shining on a stone: it is a key! On it can read: ‘Follow the path and you will reach a cavern.’ I’m running fast and silently as I’m entering the cavern. In front of me there is a locked box: should I open it?

I’m too scared to open it, so I decide to look for the way out of the forest. However, a huge wall prevents me from escaping! I’m trying to climb it, and when I reach the top, I’m able to see the sea. Where am I?

I’m jumping off the wall when I finally wake up: it was just a dream.”

“I’m walking through a forest. I see many trees. They’re everywhere. It’s very humid and cold. I see a river. There’s a bear trying to catch a fish for his lunch. It’s near midday. I have walked all morning, and I have no food. I have no water. I was with my friends, but I got lots when I tried to take a picture of a beautiful lanscape. I’m thirsty. I need water. The bear is gone, so I go the river to drink. It seems clean… I don’t know… but I need it. What is that near the water? It’s bright. Let me check it out… a key? Here? Hey wait! Maybe there is a house near here and I can find clean water. How am I going to find it? I have been walking since morning and I haven’t seen anything. What is that near that giant tree? It looks like a good that does to somwhere underground. The key! It works! SHall I go in? I have no food, no water. What can be worse than this? I’m going in.

It looks like a long and dark corridor. I just see one light at the end of it. I’m walking for 5 minutes, and here I am. A barrier? Maybe if I cross it then I can find someone to help me. It’s difficult to cross and it’s so high. Wait! There’s a hole here. Maybe I can pass through it. Yes! Wow! It looks like paradise. It’s a resort! I see my friends now. Everything is ok.”

“It’s a warm summer day. The bright sun flahsed through the tops of the trees. I’m walking on a path of pebbles. The birds are singing and a soft breeze blows on my face. I hear the soft sounds of a little stream. I pass over a little bridge: the stream is surrounded by thousands of beautiful little white flowers.

Suddenly, I come to a shrine that holds a golden key. An old fashioned one with teeth, about 4 inches long. I was wondering to which door this key might belong. I took it in my hand and it felt very light, though it looked rather heavy.

As I walked on I came to a huge white gate. It was built out of white bricks and had a wide arrow on it. The bars of the gate were golden and the lock looked like my key would fit in it. I tried the key in the lock and as I turned it, the gate opened itself. I looked at this quiet, peaceful place and realized that this must be paradise… I must be dead. Deep in the back of my mind I found that memory, two headlights of a train rushing toward me…”

What do these stories tell about the student’s personalities? Here are the interpretations of the different parts of the story, and what these parts represent:

- The forest represents your outlook on life; how you feel (overall) about life.

- The path represents your plan in life, and is generally more current; i.e. how your life is being lived, or how you see it going.

- The key represents knowledge. If you pick it up, then education is important to you.

- The cup represents your view of love. Was it broken or fragile? Was it solid and complete, pretty, clean or covered with dirt?

- The obstacle represents the challenges in your life; how you normally handle them or deal with them.

- The water represents your sensual side. If you get in it, this means that you basically feel good about it. If not, perhaps you avoid it, or it’s not particularly important to you, or enjoyable.

- The shelter is your view of home life. Again, if you spend the night, it’s likely you feel comfortable about your present home situation.

- The fence represents religion. Does it have hard lines, or broken ones? Is it imposing, or easy to jump over?

- The field represents your view of heaven. Is it pleasant, or threatening? Do you go over the fence and into the field? If so, you’re probably not afraid of death.

This is a great activity to do with friends or with your classmates. Thanks to Denise and her students for sharing!

Last month we said that one of the most interesting ways to learn vocabulary is by DOMAIN- a group of different words that are associated with the same concept.  The words last month were all in the WALK domain.  This month, we have a few examples of the big SPEAK domain.  See how many of these verbs you already know: 

1.   YELL:  To speak or shout very loudly because you are angry or you are trying to speak to     someone at a distance. His father yelled at him because he broke the window.

2.   WHISPER:  Speak very softly because you don’t want other people to hear you. “Close the door quietly,” Mark whispered, “so we don’t wake the baby.”

1. WHINE:  This is the high-pitched, sing-song and very annoying way that children talk when they are complaining about something.  Sometimes adults do it too, and then it’s even more annoying.  “Why do I always have to watch my baby brother?”  the little girl whined.
2. SOB:  Talk and cry at the same time.  After the car accident, Julia sobbed out her story to the police officer.
3. SCREAM: To shout, but in a very high voice, usually because you are very frightened.  When I saw the mouse run across the room, I screamed for help.
4. BABBLE:  To talk nonsense.  Small children babble before they learn to speak properly.  Sometimes adults babble if they are confused or very excited. I know you’re upset, but you need to stop babbling, calm down, and tell me exactly what happened!
5. GRUMBLE:  Complain, usually in a low voice.  Some people grumble about the weather here in June – it’s usually very cloudy.
6. YAK: To talk a lot, too much, and about things that are of little importance.  My children spend hours yakking on the telephone.

LESSON OF THE MONTH

June 2009

VOCABULARY:  Several months ago, we learned some idiomatic expressions that involved animals, such as TO HORSE AROUND (to play roughly) and IT’S RAINING CATS AND DOGS! (It’s raining very hard!)  This proved to be a very popular section.  This month we have some more animals used as ADJECTIVES – ways to describe people or things.  Sometimes it’s easy to see why this particular animal has come to have this particular meaning, but sometimes it’s impossible to explain (see numbers 3 and 5 for example)!   

1.  MOUSY:  This describes a person whose appearance and personality are very quiet and not very interesting or exciting.   His uncle was such a mousy little man that no one even noticed when he got up and left the house!

2.  DOGGED: Stubborn, persistent.  John surprised the teacher by his dogged repetition of the same question, again and again.

3.    FISHY:  Suspicious, wrong, possibly dangerous.  I got a phone call offering me a free vacation in Las Vegas, but I think it sounds fishy – it’s much too good to be true!

4.    BATTY: crazy.  Will you stop playing that music so loud?  It’s making me batty!

5.   CHICKEN:  Cowardly, afraid.  (Children use this word a lot!)  I saw someone on “Survivor” eat a rat!  I could never do that; I’m too chicken to even touch one!

6.   RATTY:  In bad condition, broken down, dirty.  My son has a closet full of clothes but he always insists on wearing that same ratty old T-shirt.