Mark Wills was born in Cambridgeshire, England, but has spent most of his life on a voyage of discovery, mainly through France, Mexico, Spain and, most recently, Poland, speaking to as many people as possible on the way. He is a passionate linguist and a lover of music, world football and the local cuisine of wherever he happens to be. He has taught language through culture in secondary schools, university degree and masters courses, and various other learning contexts, and translates academic articles for publication in international journals. 'Never stop feeding the body, the mind and the soul …’
Ireland – a shining light
Event type: Workshop
Facilitator: Mark Wills
Age: 11-18
Level: Elementary / Pre-intermediate / Intermediate/ Advanced
Time: 60 min.
* On demand contents, level and timing can be tailored to groups’ needs.
Wales: a box of surprises for lovers of cinema, music, nature, conversation and sport
Event type: Workshop
Facilitator: Mark Wills
Age: 11-18
Level: Elementary / Pre-intermediate / Intermediate/ Advanced
Time: 60 min.
* On demand contents, level and timing can be tailored to groups’ needs.
King Charles III of Barbuda, Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands
Event type: Workshop
Facilitator: Mark Wills
Age: 11-18
Level: Elementary / Pre-intermediate / Intermediate/ Advanced
Time: 60 min.
* On demand contents, level and timing can be tailored to groups’ needs.
Wales: a box of surprises for lovers of cinema, music, nature, conversation and sport
Event type: Workshop
Facilitator: Mark Wills
Age: 11-18
Level: Elementary / Pre-intermediate / Intermediate/ Advanced
Time: 60 min.
* On demand contents, level and timing can be tailored to groups? needs.
Celts and Romans, Prince Charles and Princess Diana, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Gareth Bale … What role have these people played in the history of this fascinating but largely unknown country? Why do the Welsh speak a language so different to any other language we know and how is it related to The Lord of the Rings? How exactly do you pronounce the longest place name in EuropeLlanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch?!! In this workshop we’ll discover the answers to these questions and more, while actually learning how to say some essential words and phrases in Welsh ourselves. Croeso! Welcome to a nation at the same time close to and distant from the other countries of the British Isles …
A Musical Journey Across the USA
Event type: Workshop
Facilitator: Mark Wills
Age: 11-18
Level: Elementary / Pre-intermediate / Intermediate/ Advanced
Time: 60 min.
* On demand contents, level and timing can be tailored to groups? needs.
* I’m a star in New York, I’m a star in LA * Where do your favourite bands, singers and rappers come from and how does this shape the music they perform? New York, Los Angeles, Memphis, Detroit, and Seattle are all important destinations in this wild road trip across an often unpredictable but electrifying nation. The music artists featuring in this workshop are, in chronological order: Elvis Presley, The Beach Boys, The Jackson 5, The Ramones, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Madonna, Nirvana, Courtney Love, Mariah Carey and Nandi Bushel. When we return to New York at the end of our winter journey, the only thing we can possibly do is celebrate in Central Park with New Yorker Mariah Carey’s 'All I Want For Christmas Is You’. Make sure that you wrap up warm for the chilly weather!!
Making and Breaking British Stereotypes
Event type: Workshop
Facilitator: Mark Wills
Age: 11-18
Level: Elementary / Pre-intermediate / Intermediate/ Advanced
Time: 60 min.
* On demand contents, level and timing can be tailored to groups? needs.
England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland… What unites and what divides these four very distinct and distinctive nations of the British Isles? Do sport, music, food, the royal family and David Beckham unite or divide or both? If you were dropped in the middle of one of these nations, how long would it take you to realise where you are? Accents, attitudes and artists all provide important clues… In this Christmas edition, we’ll look at different festive traditions across the British Isles and sing Slade’s 'Merry Christmas Everybody!’ at the top of our voices so they can hear us in County Galway in the west of Ireland!!
Materials:
Quiz
British Culture Through Pop Music
Event type: Workshop
Facilitator: Mark Wills
Age: 12-18
Level: Elementary / Pre-intermediate / Intermediate/ Advanced
Time: 60 min.
* On demand contents, level and timing can be tailored to groups? needs.
We will take a musical ride from Liverpool to London, stopping off at exotic (and not so exotic) locations along the way, singing, rapping and dancing as we go. We will discover where The Beatles, Oasis and Amy Winehouse, among others, came from and how they changed popular music forever, each with their own very local and very particular way of using language to express their thoughts and feelings about the world that they lived in. We will end our December journey by joining Wham! to sing about our special memories with their classic song 'Last Christmas’ and create some Christmas magic…
Materials:
British Culture Through Pop Music pre or post workshop questions
Britishness: James Bond, a reflection of changes in the British society
Event type: Workshop
Facilitator: Mark Wills
Age: 12-18
Level: Elementary / Pre-intermediate / Intermediate/ Advanced
Time: 60 min.
* On demand contents, level and timing can be tailored to groups? needs.
What exactly does 'British’ mean? In this journey through time and space, we’ll visit curry and Bollywood in India, cricket and Usain Bolt in Jamaica, and discover who James Bond really is. James Bond represents what most people think of as British. But who is James Bond? And what about the women in his life? Queen Elizabeth II and the enigmatic Miss Moneypenny, for example …
Materials:
Quizlet Vocabulary: Britishness: James Bond, a reflection of changes in the British society
Britishness The British Empire post workshop debate
Britishness James Bond reading and writing
Britishness James Bond reading and writing
Britishness James Bond pre or post workshop questions
Britishness James Bond pre or post workshop questions
Britishness James Bond Commonwealth listening and reading
Britishness James Bond Commonwealth listening and reading
British Culture Through Pop Music
Event type: Workshop
Facilitator: Mark Wills
Age: 12-18
Level: Elementary / Pre-intermediate / Intermediate/ Advanced
Time: 60 min.
* On demand contents, level and timing can be tailored to groups? needs.
We will take a musical ride from Liverpool to London, stopping off at exotic (and not so exotic …) locations on the way, singing, rapping and dancing as we go. We will discover where The Beatles, Oasis and David Bowie, among others, came from and how they changed popular music forever, each with their own very local and very particular way of using language to express their thoughts and feelings about the world that they lived in.
Materials:
British Culture Through Pop Music pre or post workshop questions
British Culture Through Pop Music pre or post workshop questions
Weird & wonderful festivals
Event type: Workshop
Facilitator: Mark Wills
Age: 10-18
Level: Elementary / Pre-intermediate / Intermediate/ Advanced
Time: 60 min.
* On demand contents, level and timing can be tailored to groups? needs.
When is chocolate the undoubted star of the show? Where might you find people with frozen hair? And which dance gets you facing north, then east, south and west? We’ll look at popular and peculiar celebrations from around the world, and end with some colourful Christmas traditions in Europe, flying over some of the lesser-known countries, such as Estonia and, of course, Finland …
Christmas in Great Britain vocabulary