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The Primavera English Blog

What Is the TOEFL, and When Should I Take It?

Shana Goodwin, February 19, 2022

If you’re planning to study or live abroad, you may need to consider preparing for and taking the TOEFL iBT test. This test is the most widely used English language proficiency test in the world, and is known to be extremely rigorous. It is important to give yourself plenty of time to prepare for this test: it’s not easy!

Word of the Month: Fresh (fresco)

Shana Goodwin, February 8, 2022

When I sat down to write this post, I thought of the word “fresh” immediately: the weather has been so wonderfully refreshing and cool this week after several weeks of super hot and humid weather!

A Letter Journey

Michelle Cavanna, January 24, 2022

Besides sending us on imaginary adventures, this fun activity provided good descriptive writing practice and taught Val the basics of letter writing (an ancient but useful – and classy! – skill). We hope you enjoy reading our letter journeys!

“Be” or “Have”?

Shana Goodwin, January 17, 2022

Which one is correct: “I have twenty-four years” or “I am twenty-four”? Native Spanish speakers who are learning English often confuse the verbs “be” and “have” when talking about age. This is because in Spanish, the verb “tener” (to have) is used (“tengo veinticuatro años”), so it’s natural to simply translate this into “I have twenty-four years.” Unfortunately, however, this is incorrect. In English, the verb “be” (ser/estar) is used when talking about age: “I am twenty-four.”

A Cycling Adventure

Hanna Cavanna, January 4, 2022

Today I want to tell you about a project I am very excited about. Yesterday my son Denton and husband, Reuben, set off with another father-son duo on a bike expedition from Asunción, Paraguay, to the Atlantic coast at Curitiba, Brazil, a journey of one thousand kilometers. Besides being an amazing adventure, the trip is a fundraiser for the PROED-SERVOME school in Bella Vista, Asuncion...

Word of the Month: Habit (hábito)

Shana Goodwin, January 1, 2022

Happy New Year! We’re expecting great things to happen in 2022, and we’re especially excited about all that our students will achieve this year. One word we talk a lot about at the end of the year and the beginning of the new year is “resolution.” What is a resolution? Basically, it’s the decision to stop a bad habit and replace it with a good one...

Pizza at Primavera!

Emily Thomson, December 13, 2021

Who doesn’t love pizza? Last Friday evening, we invited our teen students to join us for a pizza party. But what made the event fun was that each student made their own pizza (or pizzas) themselves! This was a great way to practice food and cooking vocabulary, and learn some new culinary skills in the process...

Word of the Month: Christmas Vocab!

Shana Goodwin, December 1, 2021

As I mentioned in a previous post, I love Christmas, so I couldn’t decide on just one word for December. As a bonus this month, enjoy learning (or refreshing your memory with) the following list of Christmas vocab words!

The Difference between “For” and “To”

Shana Goodwin, November 18, 2021

The simplest explanation for knowing when to use “to” or “for” when talking about a reason or function is that “for” is followed by a noun or gerund, and “to” is followed by a verb. Examples: The ciclovía is a great place for walking and biking. The ciclovía is a great place to walk and bike...

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