L'hora dels adeus

Tomorrow is the last day of this course. We will meet some of you the next September, but some other students have finished their studies here with us and they will start a new way in a new School. This post is especially dedicated to them.

Here, in Catalonia, we use to say goodbye with a traditional Irish song that we call L'hora dels adeus. The original is called Auld Lang Syne, and it is used to be sung during Christmas season. 

I would wish to sing this song in a day like this to wave goodbye our students of 4th ESO. 


Good luck, boys and girls!

Another Vision of Australia

Umair decided to work all alone. Here you have his Australian Vision:

New Zealand

Naveed, Umair and Sani have travelled to the other part of our planet: New Zealand. Let's discover everything about this country:

Australia, the Antipodes

Nayab, Aroosa and Shakira have studied different aspects about Australia, this so far, far country:

Jamaica, a Caribbean Country

Wuxiao, Diego and Carlos have worked hard to show us their particular vision of Jamaica, the homeland of reggae:

About South Africa

Mohsan and Fahad's work about South Africa:

 

Canada: Our Northern Neighbour

Nathy, Imane and Jianpeng have prepared a slide presentation and a video about Canada too. Let's go learning more about this beautiful country:

All About Canada

This is the video-presentation about Canada made by Saba and Fatima. Enjoy it!

2.011: International Year of Forests

The year has been declared the International Year of Forests by the United Nations to raise awareness and strengthen the sustainable forest management, conservation and sustainable development of all types of forests for the benefit of current and future generations.

Take a look at this video to try to understand the logo that is designed to convey the theme of “Forests for People” celebrating the central role of people in the sustainable management, conservation and sustainable development of our world’s forests. 

Forests provide shelter to people and habitat to biodiversity; are a source of food, medicine and clean water. All of these elements taken together say us that forests are vital to the survival and well being of people everywhere, all 7 billion of us.

Discover all of these elements in this other video:

The song that you are going to listen and see now is called Earth Song, and was written in 1995 by Michael Jackson. Unfortunately, the lyrics show many of the problems that our planet is still suffering nowadays. You can get the lyrics of this song at this link.

Self-Steem

This presentation shows how to deal with self-steem. take a look at it. It is worth it!

English Speaking Countries Project (Outlines)

This project is devoted to extend the knowledge of the English speaking countries to the students of 4^th ESO, in all the possible aspects: culture, geography, history, art, etc.

Outline:

ð  Geographic description: Situation, regions, rivers, mountains, land area, etc.

ð  History

ð  Fast facts: official name, government, population, monetary unit, official languages.

ð  Capital city and other important cities

ð  The flag and Emblem: description and symbolism

ð  Art and culture: Painters, writers, Architecture, music and dance, etc.

ð  Sports

ð  Sightseeing (Main monuments, views, landscapes...)

Useful links with information about countries:

ð  Yahoo! Kids: http://kids.yahoo.com/reference/world-factbook/flags

ð  National Geographics: http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/places/find/

ð  Fact Monster: http://www.factmonster.com/countries.html

ð  Infoplease: http://www.infoplease.com/countries.html

ð  CIA: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/

ð  Atlapedia: http://www.atlapedia.com/index.html

English Speaking Countries Project (Windows Live Movie Maker Tutorials)

Here you have three tutorials on how to use the Windows Live Movie maker program. The first two, which are the preferables, are English spoken. The third is in Spanish:

Food Vocabulary (Students' Presentations) 3rd Part

This is the last part of the presentations that the students of 1rst ESO have prepared about food.

This is Carmen F. presentation:

The second one is a coproduction between Saba and Bingjie:

Ismael's work:

And now, the one by Khair-un-Nisa:

And last, but not least: another coproduction by Mohammad and Gabi:

Dialogues from Unit 6 (2nd ESO)

These are the dialogues from Unit 6 of the textbook that the students of 2nd ESO have played:

Group 1: José, Meehmona, Saba, Umair.

Group 2: Abdul, Layla, Loli, Usman.

Group 3: Ali, Kike, Nadia, Raiqa.

Group 4: Ana, María, Ya.

Group 5: Ceci, Gero, Shazia.

Group 6: Alfonso, Shoaib, Gustavo, Umar.

Food Vocabulary (Students' Presentations) 2nd Part

In this post you can find the presentations of some other students of 1rst ESO who have worked on the food vocabulary:

This is Juan's Power Point:

This is the presentation that Carmen F. & Miguela have prepared:

Finally, Carmen a. has prepared this one:

Food Vocabulary (Students' Presentations)

In this post you can find the first presentations of some students of 1rst ESO who have worked on the food vocabulary:

This is Daud's Power Point:

This is Muneeb's work:

Now here you have Hamza's presentation:

Marina's work:

This is Samuel's Presentation:

And finally, Chari's work:

Daily Routines

A presentation to show you some daily routines, taken from mes-english.com:

Dialogues from Unit 6 (4th ESO)

Here you have the dialogues from unit 6 played by some students.

Group A: Sani, Nathy, Nayab, Saba & Diego.

Group B: Fahad, Imane, Carlos, Naveed & Mohsan.

What are you sinking about?

A different and funny way to encourage you to learn a foreign language. Take care of the German accent, it could be dangerous...

Happy Easter

Easter

WHAT IS EASTER?

Easter is the celebration of Jesus Christ's rising from the dead after His crucifixion which took place on what we now say Good Friday.

Easter is usually celebrated on the first Sunday after the full moon following the Vernal or Spring Equinox on March 21st. This can be any Sunday between March 22nd and April 25th. It is the most sacred of all the Christian holidays or celebrations.

Christ's return (or rising) from death is called the Resurrection. According to the Scriptures, Christ's tomb was empty three days after His death, which is commemorated on Good Friday. His followers saw Him and talked to Him after this. Christians therefore believe that they have the hope of a new life (an everlasting life in Heaven) after their earthly death.

EASTER IN THE ANCIENT DAYS

Although of course Easter is a Christian festival, it has many pre-Christian. Eastre was the Anglo-Saxon name of a Teutonic goddess of spring and fertility. A month was dedicated to her, corresponding to our month of April. Her festival was celebrated on the day of the vernal equinox and traditions associated with the festival live on in the modern day Easter rabbit, a symbol of fertility, and in coloured Easter eggs. These were originally painted with brilliant colours to represent the warmth and sunlight of spring, and used in Easter-egg rolling contests or given as gifts.

THE HOLY WEEK

The Holy week is the last week of Lent. Lent is the forty days special season prior to Easter Sunday.

The Holy Week begins with the observance of Palm Sunday, the Sunday before Easter Sunday. The name, Palm Sunday originated from Jesus’ entry in Jerusalem. The crowd laid carpets of palms on the street for Him. The Last Supper is commemorated on Holy Thursday of special week (often called Maundy Thursday) and Friday is the anniversary of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ on the cross. The Lenten season and Holy week end with Easter Sunday (the Resurrection of Jesus Christ).

THE NAME EASTER

Easter was called Pesach by early Christians. It is the Hebrew name for Passover. Today, the names for Easter in many cultures in Europe are similar to the word Pesah. The English name Easter is much newer. When the early English Christians wanted others to accept Christianity, they decided to use the name Easter for this holiday so that it would match the name of the old spring celebration in honour of Eastre, goddess of spring and fertility. This made it more comfortable for other people to accept Christianity.

SYMBOLS OF EASTER

• Easter eggs & baby chicks: Eggs and chicks symbolize new life. Eggs have been a symbol of spring since ancient times. An egg also is a symbol of the rock tomb out of which Christ emerged when he arose again. The chick, hatching out of the egg, symbolizes new life or re-birth.

• Easter bunny: The rabbit, or hare, was a symbol of abundant new life in ancient times, and reminds us of spring and new life.

• Easter lilies: Easter lilies symbolize the purity of Jesus. They also symbolize new life and the resurrection of Christ.

Easter Online Games

If you want to enjoy Easter, try these online games from different web pages:

• Kaboose: http://funschool.kaboose.com/fun-blaster/easter/

• The Kidz Page: http://www.thekidzpage.com/easter_games/index.html

• DLTK’s: http://www.dltk-holidays.com/easter/games.html

• Black dog: http://blackdog4kids.com/holiday/easter/

• Free Easter Games: http://freeeastergames.com/

Calvin & Hobbes

To answer the questions of "Còmics a la red" from your Treball de Síntesi, you should follow these two links:

• http://www.homines.com/comic/comic_01/index.htm

• http://www.blogdecomics.com/?p=107#more-107

Furthermore, you will need this comic strip of Calvin & Hobbes, by Bill Watterson:

The Fonix 2.011: Official Photographs

The official photographs for the Fonix 2.011 have already been published. Just click on the link to see the gallery:

As a curiosity, in the last pic you can see Mariyam and I on the left bottom corner:

History of Ancient Olympic Games

The Olympic Games begun at Olympia in Greece in 776 BC. The Greek calendar was based on the Olympiad, the four-year period between games. The games were staged in the wooded valley of Olympia in Elis. Here the Greeks erected statues and built temples in a grove dedicated to Zeus, supreme among the gods. The greatest shrine was an ivory and gold statue of Zeus. Created by the sculptor Phidias, it was considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Scholars have speculated that the games in 776 BC were not the first games, but rather the first games held after they were organized into festivals held every four years as a result of a peace agreement between the city-states of Elis and Pisa. The Eleans traced the founding of the Olympic games to their King Iphitos, who was told by the Delphi Oracle to plant the olive tree from which the victors' wreaths were made.

According to Hippias of Elis, who compiled a list of Olympic victors c.400 BC, at first the only Olympic event was a 200-yard dash, called a stadium. This was the only event until 724 BC, when a two-stadia race was added. Two years later the 24-stadia event began, and in 708 the pentathlon was added and wrestling became part of the games. This pentathlon, a five-event match consisted of running, wrestling, leaping, throwing the discus, and hurling the javelin. In time boxing, a chariot race, and other events were included.

The victors of these early games were crowned with wreaths from a sacred olive tree that grew behind the temple of Zeus. According to tradition this tree was planted by Hercules (Heracles), founder of the games. The winners marched around the grove to the accompaniment of a flute while admirers chanted songs written by a prominent poet.

The Olympic Games were held without interruptions in ancient Greece. The games were even held in 480 BC during the Persian Wars, and coincided with the Battle of Thermopylae. Although the Olympic games were never suspended, the games of 364 BC were not considered Olympic since the Arkadians had captured the sanctuary and reorganized the games.

After the Battle of Chaironeia in 338 BC, Philip of Makedon and his son Alexander gained control over the Greek city-states. They erected the Philippeion (a family memorial) in the sanctuary, and held political meetings at Olympia during each Olympiad. In 146 BC, the Romans gained control of Greece and, therefore, of the Olympic games. In 85 BC, the Roman general Sulla plundered the sanctuary to finance his campaign against Mithridates. Sulla also moved the 175th Olympiad (80 BC) to Rome.

The games were held every four years from 776 BC to 393 AD, when they were abolished by the Christian Byzantine Emperor Theodosius I. The ancient Olympic Games lasted for 1170 years.

The successful campaign to revive the Olympics was started in France by Baron Pierre de Coubertin late in the 19th century. The first of the modern Summer Games opened on Sunday, March 24, 1896, in Athens, Greece. The first race was won by an American college student named James Connolly.

The Olympic Games

Here you have two videos to know the history of Ancient Olympic Games while working on the simple past:

April Fool's Day

Originally, New Year's Day was April 1. Later, when the Church changed the calendar, they also changed the date for January 1. However, some people continued using April 1 as the date of the New Year. These people were referred to as "April Fools".

In the early Roman calendar, April 1 was the first day of spring, the spring equinox, and before 154 B.C. it was New Years Day. Many celebrations of many cultures observed this day as the coming of the renewal of the earth and life. There would be sacrifices and gifts given to the gods. When the Christians came into power in the Roman Empire, they created a celebration we call Easter that replaced the spring rituals.

Although the most common belief is that the observance of April Fool's Day began in France,there really wasn't a "first April Fool's Day" that can be pinpointed on the calendar. Some believe it sort of evolved simultaneously in several cultures at the same time, from celebrations involving the first day of spring.

French children fool their friends by taping a paper fish to their friends' backs. When the "young fool" discovers this trick, the prankster yells "Poisson d’Avril!" In England, tricks can be played only in the morning. If a trick is played on you, you are a "noodle". In Scotland you are called an "April Gowk" or cuckoo bird. It lasts for two days there. The second day in Scotland is called Taily Day and is dedicated to pranks involving the buttocks. The Scotts can be given credit for the "Kick Me." Americans play small tricks on friends and strangers alike on the first of April. One common trick on April Fool's Day is pointing down to a friend's shoe and saying, "Your shoelace is untied." If victim falls for the joke the prankster yells, "April Fool!"

Some popular pranks

• Replacing salt in the sugar bowl at breakfast.
• Attaching a small piece of tape to the mouseball so it does not work.
• Setting the alarm clock ahead one hour and allowing the victim to think they have slept in.

Check out this SlideShare Presentation:

BBC Penguins Prank

An awesome BBC prank: film maker and writer Terry Jones discovers a colony of penguins, which are unlike any other penguins in the world: they can fly!!!

And if you wish more, here you have a behind the scenes look at how the BBC created the BBC iPlayer trail for April Fools' Day, featuring a colony of flying penguins:

April Fool's Jokes

One Day at Nick's

Nicholas James Vujicic, best known as Nick Vujicic (born 4 December 1982) was born with tetra-amelia, a rare disorder characterized by the absence of all four limbs. He struggled as a child, eventually came to terms with his disability and started his own non-profit organization Life Without Limbs – at age seventeen. He is widely known as a motivational speaker, giving talks wordwide on life with a disability, hope, and finding meaning in life.

Look at this video that shows one day in the life of this incredible man.

More information at Life Without Limbs Organization

Parts of the Body

Look at this presentation to learn the parts of the body:

parts of the body

More PowerPoint presentations from ana apulabutarello

Here you can listen to this same presentation:

And now is time to practise what you have learned:

• Would you like to make your own monster? Make a monster with this game while you learn the main body parts.

• Wioth this online game you are going to match and listening the parts of the body with their picture.

• Two hangman about the parts of the body: puzzle 1 and puzzle 2.

• In this link you will find a complete list of body parts and three exercises on head, face and the whole body.

• An online exercise with that works a complete vocabulary.

• 115 exercises of different types to work on body parts.

The Fonix 2.011: The Die is Cast

That is! What is done is done; and the Fonix exam has already been done. We can only wait for the results next April the 26th.

In the meantime, you can see some pics taken before and after the exam:

The Past Simple

The Past Simple expresses an action in the past taking place once, never, several times. It can also be used for actions taking place one after another or in the middle of another action.

Most Verbs

Most verbs conjugate by adding -ed like the verb "wait" below.

Positive	Negative	Question
I waited. You waited. He waited. She waited. It waited. We waited. They waited.	I did not wait. You did not wait. He did not wait. She did not wait. It did not wait. We did not wait. They did not wait.	Did I wait? Did you wait? Did he wait? Did she wait? Did it wait? Did we wait? Did they wait?

Exceptions in spelling when adding -ed
after a final -e only add -d	love – loved
final consonant after a -l or short, stressed vowel as final consonant after a vowel is doubled	admit – admitted travel – travelled
final -y after a consonant becomes -i	hurry – hurried

Irregular Verbs

Many verbs, such as "have," take irregular forms in the Past Simple. Notice that you only use the irregular verbs in statements. In negative forms and questions, did indicates Past Simple.

Positive	Negative	Question
I had. You had. We had. They had. He had. She had. It had.	I did not have. You did not have. He did not have. She did not have. It did not have. We did not have. They did not have.	Did I have? Did you have? Did he have? Did she have? Did it have? Did we have? Did they have?

To Be

The verb "be" is also irregular in the Past Simple. Unlike other irregular verbs, there are two Past Simple forms: "was" and "were." It also has different question forms and negative forms. Always remember that you DO NOT use did with the verb to be in the Past Simple .

Positive	Negative	Question
I was. You were. We were. They were. He was. She was. It was.	I was not. You were not. We were not. They were not. He was not. She was not. It was not.	Was I? Were you? Were we? Were they? Was he? Was she? Was it?