"BAD" marketing!

You know how I'm always complaining that people shouldn't use words like "good" or "bad" to describe things? Here's another example: this isn't bad marketing - it's sloppy and careless.

This ad was taken from this morning's edition of EL PAÍS. It's an ad for women's intimate care products. My Webster's Dictionary defines "chilly" as: "unpleasantly affected by cold" and "lacking warmth and feeling."

Not to be rude, but I really wouldn't want something lacking warmth and feeling in my, er, girly bits.

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What's wrong with THAT ad?

All right, I know, it's not fair to criticize the Comunidad de Madrid's advertisement without analyzing it and explaining why it sounds stupid to an English speaker. I could try...but there's an article in EL PAÍS that explains it better than I could: http://tinyurl.com/y2m66jn.

And this gives me an idea for my next entry: the difference between transitive and intransitive verbs. Yes, this IS important -- especially when you have to learn phrasal verbs.

In the meantime, if you'd like to file a complaint about the advertisement, you can contact the Media Planning Group's office in Madrid at (91) 456-9000, or send a fax to the Comunidad de Madrid's Consejeria de Educación at (91) 720-1302.

Get up! Stand up!
Stand up for your rights!!
(Bob Marley)

WELCOME TO STOP SPANGLISH

Hello, everyone!


Most of my students will tell you that I'm a patient person... most of the time. I don't typically yell. I try to remember to take a deep breath when I get frustrated. But the advertisement put me over the edge.... YES, WE WANT.

What?

There it was...or, better said, there they were: two advertisements in the Gregorio Marañón metro station. Two pictures of smiling children with their hands up, and the words: "YES WE WANT" in big letters, in the upper left-hand corner.

Oh, no. The Comunidad de Madrid just spent nearly two million Euros on an ad campaign that is extremely, surprisingly....INCORRECT.

Oh, no.

And that is how I got the idea to start this blog.

My name is Patricia. I'm Canadian, and have been working as an English teacher since 1999 (and I've been in Madrid since 2001.) I'm not a trained linguist. I work for myself; I'm not an academy or a company (well, not yet, anyway.) I don't have a university degree in Education. But I do teach English, I do hear the mistakes that students make.

Most of all, I see how students behave and I see the things they do, and I get really frustrated because I know that there are a lot of people who could be great English speakers, but who have problems. Maybe they use too much translation when they speak in English. Maybe they don't practice enough outside of class. That's a shame, because doing things like that prevents people from really being able to communicate effectively in English.

So that's the reason why I started this blog. I wanted to create a free, easy, comprehensive resources that students can use to imporve their English and their study skills. Every day, or as frequently as I can, I promise to....

• include information that will help you understand why English and Spanish are different.
• give you examples of Spanglish that I hear, and an explanation of why it's technically incorrect;
• make a list of free resources and events where you can practice your English;
• provide you with links to articles and online videos that are a fun way of practising English
• help you with any questions you may have about exams like TOEFL, First Certficate and the Escuela Oficial de Idiomas.

Thanks for reading! And if you have any questions, doubts or comments, feel free to add a comment at the end of the blog.

Talk to you soon!!!

Patricia

TODAY'S VOCABULARY
to take a deep breath: to take a long inhalation, especially when you need a moment to think about something.

a shame: a fact or circumstance bringing disgrace or regret: The bankruptcy of the business was a shame. It was a shame you couldn't come with us.