Thursday, December 3, 2015

HAPPY CHRISTMAS by JOHN LENNON

HAPPY CHRISTMAS (WAR IS OVER) by John Lennon 

So this is Christmas
And what have you done
Another year over
A new one just begun
And so this is Christmas
I hope you have fun
The near and the dear ones
The old and the young

A very merry Christmas
And a happy New Year
Let's hope it's a good one
Without any fear

And so this is Christmas (War is Over, if you want it, war is over now)repeat with verse
For weak and for strong
The rich and the poor ones
The road is so long
So happy Christmas
For black and for white
For yellow and red ones
Let's stop all the fight

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

THANKSGIVING


THANKSGIVING DAY is the 4th Thursday of November. This is the most important CELEBRATION in the US.It's even more important than CHRISTMAS since this is a Christian celebration and not everybody in the country are Christians. On THANKSGIVING DAY, People in the US have a long weekend and travel to meet their families. They eat ROAST TURKEY.
This celebration started a long time ago when the PILGRIMS who had come from England collected the 1st HARVEST and decided to gather together and invite the Indians who had helped them to survive to have a meal together.
Here are a couple of PILGRIM SQUIRRELS, which I bought in Williamstown in 1993. They are SALT & PEPPER SHAKERS.  You can buy anything related to THANKSGIVING in all the shops in the country these days.




If you want to have more information about this celebration, check the Wikipedia:


This website is very interesting to know more about the PILGRIMS:


And the following video explains very clearly this celebration: 


Thursday, November 5, 2015

GUY FAWKES NIGHT

Today is GUY FAWKES NIGHT. It's a festival celebrated in Britain. It's also called BONFIRE NIGHT, CRACKER NIGHT AND FIREWORKS NIGHT. As you can imagine, there are bonfires and fireworks in many places. This festival commemorates the failure of the GUNPOWDER PLOT. In 1605 a group of Catholics tried to blow up Westminster Palace and kill King James I. Guy Fawkes was of of those men. Nowadays people make cloth "Guys" and burn them in the bonfires. Children also carry "Guys" with them and go out asking for "a penny for the Guy". They also say this rhyme:
"Remember remember the 5th of November
Gunpowder Treason &Plot
I see no reason why Gunpowder Treason
Should ever be forgot"

Thursday, October 29, 2015

HALLOWEEN ACTIVITIES FOR CHILDREN

Activity for Sergio & his friends: Tomorrow is Halloween. Have you made a Jack O'Lantern this year?. Here are some links you can click to do activities related to Halloween.
Enjoy them:
http://www.dltk-holidays.com/halloween/

http://bogglesworldesl.com/halloween_worksheets.htm

http://www.activityvillage.co.uk/halloween.htm

A BLOG TO RECOMMEND: HALLOWEEN RECIPES

Some Mums at my children' school have done a fantastic blog called "Estudiando con ellos". which is helping me to work with my son at home. Today I've seen a great post with recipes for Halloween written by Marivi. Have a look at it. It's worthwhile:

http://estudiandoconellos2013.blogspot.com.es/search/label/Halloween

Happy Halloween!!!


HALLOWEEN

HALLOWEEN is an important CELEBRATION in English speaking countries. It's celebrated on the night of October the 31st. It has a Celtic origin.The Celts used to celebrate the end of the Summer on a festival called Samhain. The word Halloween  comes from the expression All Hallows Eve, which means the day before the dead. Then it was associated to the Christian celebration of All Saints' Day, which is on November the 1st.
The Irish and Scottish immigrants took the celebration to the United States, where it became so popular and now with the globalization it is EVEN celebrated in Spain. People only want to have fun so it is a great excuse for that.
How do people celebrate Halloween? Well, children are the protagonists. They wear HORROR COSTUMES related to the dead and witchcraft: GHOSTS, SKELETONS, WITCHES, VAMPIRES. In the evening they go out in groups and play TRICK OR TREAT. People give them sweets otherwise the children will play a trick on them!
People decorate their houses with a JACK O'LANTERN, which is an empty PUMPKIN with a candle inside. In fact there are Jack O'Lanterns and other decorations everywhere. Not only in homes but in shops & the streets. You can see BLACK CATS, BATS and orange PUMPKINS all around.
Adults also go to parties at night and they wear costumes too.
Children eat CANDY APPLES. People also make PUMPKIN PIES and PUMPKIN BREAD, which are delicious.
Happy Halloween!!!!!!!!!!

Tuesday, October 27, 2015

JAVIER REVERTE'S SHORT BIOGRAPHY



Javier Reverte is a Spanish journalist and writer. He loves travelling and his travel books have given him fame and good reviews but he also writes novels, poems, scripts for TV and short essays.
He was born in Madrid in 1944. He studied journalism and philosophy. He has worked as a journalist and newspaper correspondent for over 20 years.
He considers himself as a writer who travels. He loves travelling as a passion and he has travelled widely and deeply all over the world. In his books  he describes his experiences as a traveller together with a careful analysis of the history of the places he visits. He also gives the readers information about the lives of unforgettable travellers and explorers. His narrative is fresh and vivid. The reader can feel the heat of Africa, the cold of the North Pole, the sound of the sea from a ship. Among his travel books we can  highlight Trilogía de Africa (El sueño de Africa, Vagabundo en Africa and Los caminos perdidos de Africa), El corazón de Ulises ( a trip to Greece, Turkey and Egypt), La Aventura de viajar, El río de la desolación (a trip on the Amazon river), El río de la luz ( a trip in Alaska and Canada rafting the Yukon river), En mares salvajes ( a trip to the Artic Ocean crossing the Northwest Passage). Colinas que arden, lagos de fuego (Africa, again), which I have enjoyed too.
His last travel book that has been published is Canta Irlanda, which is a book that reflects the personality and the poetry of Ireland wonderfully. I think that we both have in common the love for Ireland.
He has also written novels such as the Trilogía de Centroamérica, Muerte a destiempo, La noche detenida, Todos los sueños del mundo, Venga a nosotros tu reino, Barrio Cero (superb!), La canción de Mbama (magical). He has been awarded with several literature prizes.
If I had another life, I'd like to be a travel writer like him with his skill for getting the reader in the place and make us travel with our imagination, which is an interesting way of travelling, too.





ENRIQUE URQUIJO'S SHORT BIOGRAPHY

Activity for all my students: the use of Simple Past Tense

Enrique Urquijo  has always been one of my favourite musicians. I still listen to his songs very often and they bring me good memories. His voice, his lyrics, his deep eyes, his sadness, his shy smile, his life are somewhere in my heart and will always be there.
Enrique Urquijo was born in Madrid on the 15th February 1960. He started loving & playing music at school. He started a band with his brothers Javier and Alvaro as well as his friend Canito, who played the drums. They founded the band Tos in 1978. On the night of New Year's Eve 1979 Canito died in a car accident. Later a concert as a homage to him called: "Concierto Homenaje a Canito" in February 1980 was considered the beginning of La Movida madrileña. Then the band changed their name as well as some members and were called Los Secretos. They published 15 records. They had a successful career. Enrique was a composer, singer, bass player and guitar player. He wrote songs which are essential in the history the Spanish pop music such as  Déjame, Sobre un vidrio mojado, No me imagino, Volver a ser un niño, Quiero beber hasta perder el control, Buena chica, Ojos de gata, Y no amanece, Por la calle del olvido, Adios tristeza, Agárrate fuerte a mí María, A tu lado.
He started an alternative band to experiment with versions of songs of La Movida and include rancheras, fados and other types of music. This band was called Los Problemas and they published two lovely records in 1993 and 1998.
Enrique was a very sensitive man. He suffered from depression and took drugs. He died dramatically in Madrid on the 17th November 1999. All his fans were absolutely shocked and terribly sad.
I saw him in lots of concerts from the 80s to almost his death. He played in big concerts halls with Los Secretos and in small pubs with Los Problemas. I met him once in a pub in Moncloa. There were very few people in the pub. I was with my cousins and a friend. He was alone. Los Secretos had launched their LP Continuará. We were talking  for a while about his new record and music. He was so polite and down to earth. He signed an autograph for me with a drawing that I lost later!!! "It is only a piece of paper" as Santiago Auserón told me in another occasion. I won't ever forget that night where I could talk to my idol as a nornal person. Maybe that's the reason why he wrote "Pero cómo explicar que me vuelvo vulgar al bajarme de cada escenario". He was not vulgar at all. He was a normal guy, not a star, although he was a genius.
Once he was playing in a pub and there was a drunk woman spoiling his concert a little. He was respectful and patient with her. He was a gentleman. I wish he would have lived longer. There were still so many beautiful songs to write. Sixteen years after his death many people still miss him...
The Bands Tos Secret & Emision Zero will make a tribute concert on the 21st Nov. in Madrid

Los Secretos: Quiero beber hasta perder el control


Enrique Urquijo y Los Problemas: Desde que no nos vemos

WILL or GOING TO

ACTIVITY FOR MY STUDENTS OF 4º ESO and Bachillerato:
In these links you can do exercises to practice the use of THE FUTURE with WILL or GOING TO.
Remember

  • We use WILL for long term predictions and sudden decisions
  • We use GOING TO for plans and scientific predictions.
http://www.usingenglish.com/quizzes/339.html


http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises/tenses/will_going_to_future.htm

Sunday, October 25, 2015

PRESENT PERFECT SIMPLE & CONTINUOUS

Activity for my students of Bachillerato:
We have been dealing with these tenses. As I have told you there is little difference between them. The Present Perfect Simple has more uses than the Present Perfect Continuous. This tense emphasizes that the action has been happening for some time or has been repeated, like the other continuous tenses.
There is an interesting link here with a brief explanations and exercises:

http://www.englishgrammarsecrets.com/presentperfectsimpleorcontinuous/menu.php

PAST SIMPLE & PRESENT PERFECT

Activity for my studentsof Bachillerato:

IT'S IS DIFFICULT TO FIND CLEAR EXERCISES TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THESE TENSES BUT THERE IS A LINK HERE THAT I LIKE.

http://www.clafoti.com/imagenes12/pres_past.htm

Remember that the PAST SIMPLE is used to express FINISHED ACTIONS AT A CONCRETE MOMENT whereas the PRESENT PERFECT SIMPLE  is used to express (RECENT ACTIONS, ACTIONS THAT STARTED IN THE PAST & CONTINUE IN THE PRESENT) & FINISHED ACTION WITHOUT SPECIFYING WHEN.

PAST SIMPLE & PAST CONTINUOUS

Activity for my  students of 4º ESO & Bachillerato:.
We have been dealing with the differences between Past Simple & Past Continuous in English:
  • Past Simple is used to express actions finished at a concrete moment.
  • Past Continuous is used to emphasize that an action has been happening for some time or has been repeated.
Here are some links you can have a look to practice the difference between both tenses:

http://a4esl.org/q/h/vm/pastpastcont.html

http://www.englishpage.com/verbpage/verbs3.htm

http://www.englishexercises.org/makeagame/viewgame.asp?id=734

Saturday, October 24, 2015

PRESENT SIMPLE & PRESENT CONTINUOUS

Activity for my students OF 4º ESO and Bachillerato:
We have dealt with both present Simple and Continuous tenses. I have done a chart for you to download at this link:
https://app.box.com/s/pgwp63uk1w4b7z6shn9p

You can also do several interactive activities in these links:
http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises/tenses/simple_present_progressive2.htm
http://www.ego4u.com/en/cram-up/grammar/simpre-prepro
http://www.englishpage.com/verbpage/verbs1.htm
Here there is a text where you have to write the verbs in the correct tense:
http://www.tolearnenglish.com/exercises/exercise-english-2/exercise-english-12052.php
 And this is a fantastic blog I have found called My English Desk:
http://myenglishdesk.blogspot.com.es/2012/06/present-simple-vs-present-continuous.html

Enough, I think.

PRESENT SIMPLE

Activity for my students of 4º ESO & Bachillerato:
We have worked the Simple Present Tense
Remember that we use this tense to express HABITUAL ACTIONS.
The AFFIRMATIVE FORM is: I work.... he works....
The NEGATIVE FORM is: I don't work...he doesn't work....
The INTERROGATIVE FORM is: Do you work?...Does he work?...
The SHORT ANSWER is: Yes, I do/ No, I don't...Yes, he does/No, he doesn't
TIME EXPRESSIONS which go with this tense are: Every day, once a month, on Mondays, at the weekend and the FREQUENCY ADVERBS: always, usually, often, sometimes, never.
You can practice if you click these links:
http://www.isabelperez.com/happy/tenses/present_simple.htm
http://www.ego4u.com/en/cram-up/tests/simple-present-1
http://www.really-learn-english.com/simple-present-exercises.html
http://www.englishexercises.org/makeagame/viewgame.asp?id=714
http://www.englishexercises.org/makeagame/viewgame.asp?id=2975

Monday, October 19, 2015

BREAST CANCER INTERNATIONAL DAY


Today is the 6th birthday of somebody I love very much but it is also the International Day against breast cancer. Two of my best friends have suffered from this illness before being 40 and are recovered now. They both are ADMIRABLE SURVIVORS. They have been so brave and so positive about it that all the people who love them feel VERY PROUD OF THEM. They are my HEROINES. They have given a lesson to everybody around them that  we will never ever forget. Girls, this song is for you. This is the only song in Spanish in this blog but Luz also deserves to be in this post. This song also brings me good memories. I used it to teach my students the subjunctive in Spanish when I was a T.A. in Williams College, Massachusetts.

Thursday, October 15, 2015

LEARNING PRESENT CONTINUOUS THROUGH MOVIES

Activity for 4ºD  ESO
Francesca, our Teaching Assistant found this interesting seletion of movie scenes in Youtube where the Present Continuous Tense is used. Let's watch it again


Thursday, October 8, 2015

A NEW STAGE

"All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players"
 William Shakespeare

I love this quote. It's so true. I know it has been long since the last time I wrote here. The end of the academic year is always hard but last year it was even harder. It was my last year at the CEPA Joaquín Sorolla, where I had been the Head Teacher for four years and where I left almost all my energy. Then I was obliged to be a member of the board in the competitive exams for English teachers and then I tried to enjoy my unforgettable  Summer in Ireland with my family and my Irish friends for more than twenty years.
My professional life has changed lately. The destiny has brought me back to the high school where I studied a long time. I am a teacher this time an I take part in the bilingual programme for Secondary education, which sound so exciting. I need aims to give some sense to my life, I need to follow a lighthouse. Teaching Literature and working in this project is an interesting goal that makes me feel alive.
This is a new stage in my life. I am ready for that but the memories of those four years there and in other schools since I started teaching in 1996 will be with me forever giving me strength and wisdom.

Hook lighthouse, Ireland

Tuesday, May 12, 2015

ELVIRA'S CHOCOLATE CAKE

This is neither the first nor  the second time I write about my friend Elvira in this blog. Her cakes and cupcakes are absolutely perfect. She is the responsible of my lately bakery addition although I'm still far from her mastery.
This is the  CHOCOLATE CAKE she makes. I have also made it several times and it is delicious.
Enjoy the video. This lady is a great cook and she explains the whole recipe in a very clear and enthusiastic way:

http://www.joyofbaking.com/cakes/SimpleChocolateCake.html



Monday, May 4, 2015

ACCESO EXAMS CAM

Activity for my ACCESO STUDENTS.(By the way, Here are all the exams we have done during the course in case you want to keep on practicing. Come on. Don't give up. You can do it! Good luck!

http://sauce.pntic.mec.es/mbenit4/fprofesional.htm


FALSE FRIENDS

Activity for my ACCESO STUDENTS
In linguistics we call false friends to words that are similar in English and Spanish but don't mean the same. Be careful with them. There is a long list of false friends in your text book and there are also lists on web pages like these ones:
http://www.saberingles.com.ar/curious/falsefriends.html
http://menuaingles.blogspot.com.es/2010/11/lista-de-false-friendsamigos-falsos.html

LINK WORDS

Activity for my ACCESO STUDENTS
These are some links where you can find activities with link words:
http://www.tolearnenglish.com/cgi2/myexam/liaison.php?liaison=_connecteur_
http://www.michellehenry.fr/link.htm
http://www.englishexercises.org/makeagame/viewgame.asp?id=1954
http://www.englishexercises.org/makeagame/viewgame.asp?id=2163
http://www.ecenglish.com/learnenglish/lessons/linking-words


CONDITIONAL CLAUSES

Activity for my ACCESO students.
We dealt with Conditional Clauses at last! As you could see, they are not so difficult: Using the 1st, 2nd or 3rd Conditional depends on the POSSIBITITY of the fulfilment of the condition. You just have to use the VERBS correctly:
- 1st Conditional: If  Clause + Present Simple, Main Clause + Future.
- 2nd Conditional:  If  Clause + Past Simple, Main Clause + Conditional.
- 3rd Conditional:  If  Clause + Past Perfect, Main Clause + Perfect Conditional.
Be careful since the sentences can also start with the Main Clause and remember that there are other LINKS: whether, unless, in case...
You can do more exercises if you click this link:

http://www.ego4u.com/en/cram-up/grammar/conditional-sentences






RELATIVE CLAUSES

Activity for my ACCESO students.
We are working hard with compound sencences lately.
Remember that Relative Clauses have the same function in the Compound Sentence as an adjective in a Simple Sentence, that's why they get just beside the NOUN they describe. Rememeber that
- DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES give essential information to describe the noun, they don't have comas and the main links are: WHO (for people), WHICH (for things) & THAT (for both).
- NON-DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSES give extra information, go between comas and the main links are: WHO (for people) & WHICH (for things).
I have found some links with interactive activities you can do. Good luck:
http://www.agendaweb.org/grammar/relative_pronouns_clauses-exercises.html

Remember that we did inverse crosswords in class. I have found a wonderful blog with crosswords which definitions are Relative Clauses. You can see how useful Relative Clauses are to DESCRIBE THINGS AND PEOPLE:
http://bogglesworldesl.com/RelativeClauseCrosswords.htm


THE PASSIVE VOICE

Activity for my ACCESO students
We have been dealing with the Passive Voice in English this week. Remember that the difference between active and passive sentences is THE CHANGE OF THE POINT OF VIEW. We emphasize the DEED rather than the AGENT. We need a transitive sentence to change it to the passive voice. The OBJECT becomes the PASSIVE SUBJECT and the SUBJECT becomes the BY AGENT, which can be ommited if it is unnecessary or unknown.
There is a good explanation and lots of exercises in these links:

REVISION OF VERB TENSES

Activity for my ACCESO students. I have found a link with lots of interactive activities related to verb tenses. Do them!!!:
http://theenglishcafe.blogspot.com.es/2009/11/exercise-mixed-tenses.html


Wednesday, February 11, 2015

A GREAT WEBSITE TO LEARN VOCABULARY

Activity for my ACCESO STUDENTS.
You know I always tell you to read a lot in order to learn vocabulary. You know that I love surfing on the Internet to find links that can be useful for you and I came across with this web page where you can work vocabulary of different topics in context, through reading, listening and doing useful activities. I recommend you to explore it widely:
http://www.dailyesl.com/index.htm

Saturday, February 7, 2015

SNOW BY JULIA ALVAREZ

It snowed a little last Friday. Whenever I see the snow I can't help thinking about the snowy winter I spent in New England at Williams College in Williamstown. Apart from living among the snow for months I had the opportunity to read lots of books in my studies of ethnic literature of the minorities in the US.
Thanks to Judith, I came across the first book by Julia Alvarez: How the García Girls Lost their Accents, which was a pleasure to read. Especially that chapter entitled Snow, when Yolanda, the youngest sister discovers the snow in class while the Cold War and the fear of a third World War is in the air.
This is the link from the Internet:

http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/romance/spanish/219/13eeuu/alvarez.html

I hope you like it as much as I do.

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

SCIENCE UNIT 4: VITAL FUNCTIONS IN ANIMALS & PLANTS

Activity for Sergio and his friends in 4th Grade Primary:

THE NUTRITION FUNCTION IN ANIMALS is how they feed, breathe, distribute and use substances and expel waste.
- Animals feed: They obtain nutrients by eating other living things (plants, animals or both) and drinking water. They DIGEST their food because they have a DIGESTIVE SYSTEM.
- Animals breathe. they take oxygen and expel carbon dioxide. They have a RESPIRATORY SYSTEM.
- Animals distribute nutrients and oxygen to their bodies. Animals transport substances using their CIRCULATORY SYSTEM.
- Animals expel waste using their EXCRETORY SYSTEM.
Just like humans!!!!!!!

THE NUTRITION FUNCTION IN PLANTS is how they make nutrients, respire, distribute and use substances and expel waste.
Plants make nutrients by absorbing water, mineral salts (through their roots) and carbon dioxide (through their leaves) and carrying out PHOTOSYNTHESIS (changing xylem sap and carbon dioxide into phloem sap)
Plants take oxygen from the air and expel carbon dioxide, just the opposite of humans!!!!!

ANIMAL REPRODUCTION
It is SEXUAL: a male produces spermatozoa and a female produces ova. Animals have a REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM with 3 stages:
- FERTILISATION (an spermatozoa and an ovum join together and make a zygote which becomes an embryo later).
- DEVELOPMENT OF THE EMBRYO ( In OVIPAROUS ANIMALS embryos develop inside an egg. This is the incubation period. In VIVIPAROUS ANIMALS the embryo develops inside its mother. This is thE gestation period).
- BIRTH (In OVIPAROUS ANIMALS they come out of the eggs. This is HATCHING. Some animals like frogs have a transformation called METAMORPHOSIS. In VIVIPAROUS ANIMALS they come out of their mothers. This is called BIRTH or DELIVERY).
Humans are viviparous animals!!!!!!

PLANTS REPRODUCTION
The majority of plants have a SEXUAL reproduction through flowers. A FLOWER has: stamens (the male part), pistil (the female part), the corolla (petals surrounding the stamens ans pistil) and the calyx (green leaves called sepals protecting the flower).

THE STAGES OF REPRODUCTION IN PLANTS
- POLLINATION: pollen moves from the stamen of one flower to the pistil of another.
- FERTILISATION: the pollen grain and the ovule join together.
- SEED AND FRUIT FORMATION: the ovule forms an embryo, that develops into a SEED. The pistil develops into a FRUIT.
- GERMINATION: In MOIST SOIL seeds germinate, the embryo develops into a new plant.

INTERACTION IN ANIMALS AND PLANTS
- Animals have sense organs (eyes, ears, taste and smell and touch organs), a nervous system (brain and nerves) and a locomotore system (bones and muscles)
- Plants have no sense organs, no nervous system and no locomotor system but they can REACT to changes in the environment.

Now YOU CAN INTERACT with animals and plants when you finish studying.


Our fish, Lolo

A rose in my father in law's garden

Flowers in Dad's garden

Lucía interacting with a tortoise in England 4 years ago

Sergio's  favourite place to interact with animals:









Tuesday, January 27, 2015

ENGLISH PROVERBS & SAYINGS



We are doing an English workshop in the Cultural Week at CEPA Joaquín Sorolla next Friday. It is called English Proverbs & Sayings. We'll play games and learn lots of proverbs and sayings in English.
Here are some links we can check to learn some more:



http://www.learn-english-today.com/proverbs/proverbs.html
http://cogweb.ucla.edu/Discourse/Proverbs/English-Spanish.html
http://www.lingolex.com/refranes.htm
http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/proverbs.html
http://www.citehr.com/32222-1000-english-proverbs-sayings-love-blind.html
http://www.phrasemix.com/collections/the-50-most-important-english-proverbs

https://www.englishclub.com/ref/Sayings/

 Finally, we'll have a look at the wonderful book: The Lemony Pear where we can find useful tips to communicate in real English and have fun at the same time:


Interesting work by SUPERBRITÁNICO. I'll give you the link to their website:

http://www.superbritanico.com/





Tuesday, January 20, 2015

CULTURAL WEEK CEPA JOAQUÍN SOROLLA

It's all ready for our 4th Cultural Week. I am really happy for all the interesting workshops that we will have and for the help and participation of the teachers at the CEPA.
Please join us and enjoy this exciting week!
This year we will have an English workshop: "English proverbs & sayings". It will take place on Friday the 30th at 6 p.m. We will be waiting for you : )