Labor Walk of Fame 2.3

And again, these are the best students during the 3rd term of this school year 2013/2014. Enjoy your holidays!

ESO 1A - Unai Rial Rodríguez (9.5)

ESO 1B - Raquel Cordeiro Canosa (9.5)

ESO 2A - Álvaro de Prado Saborido (9.25)

ESO 2B - Marta Rivas Ramallo (8.3)

33 ways to speak better English

(Reblogged from British English Coach)

If you’re reading this, I imagine you want to communicate with confidence and competence in English.

When we communicate effectively we are able to express our ideas and opinions, share experiences, and build relationships with others. When we struggle to express ourselves, we feel unvalued and insecure. As human beings, we want to participate in group discussions and have an impact on the society around us.

In the modern world, we communicate across borders. English is the closest thing we have to an international language.

By speaking better English, people all over the world can hear our voice. But, to speak better English, you need a teacher, don’t you? You need to take English classes, right?

Solar Roadways

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non-commercial purposes only.

How Many Words Do You Need?

What does it mean to know a language? Knowing it perfectly as a native, being capable of having a standard conversation or just knowing a few words or phrases to make yourself understood?

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non commercial purposes.

This Sentence Has Five Words

"This sentence has five words. Here are five more words. Five-word sentences are fine. But several together become monotonous. Listen to what is happening. The writing is getting boring. The sound of it drones. It’s like a stuck record. The ear demands some variety. Now listen. I vary the sentence length, and I create music. Music. The writing sings. It has a pleasant rhythm, a lilt, a harmony. I use short sentences. And I use sentences of medium length. And sometimes, when I am certain the reader is rested, I will engage him with a sentence of considerable length, a sentence that burns with energy and builds with all the impetus of a crescendo, the roll of the drums, the crash of the cymbals—sounds that say listen to this, it is important.” - Gary Provost

A Tense Situation

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The End of Juan Carlos' Reign

Labor Students,

We are witnessing a historic moment. Some time or another in the future you will be asked where you were, what you were doing and what you remember about June 2nd 2014, the day King Juan Carlos announced his abdication:

We give you now an edited translation of his full speech as broadcast on television reblogged from El País in English:

“When I was proclaimed king, nearly four decades ago, I took on a firm commitment to serve Spain’s general interest, moved by the desire to make citizens the agents of their own destinies and for our nation to become a modern democracy, one that was fully integrated into Europe.

“I proposed leading the exciting national task of allowing citizens to choose their legitimate representatives and to carry out the great, positive transformation that we all needed so much.

“Today, when I look back, I cannot help feeling proud and grateful to you.

“Proud because of the many good things we have achieved together throughout the years.

“And grateful for your support, which has made my reign – which I began as a young man at a time of great uncertainty and difficulty – a long period of peace, freedom, stability and progress.

“Loyal to the political wishes of my father, from whom I inherited the historical legacy of the Spanish monarchy, I have always wanted to be a king for all Spaniards. I identified with your aspirations, felt joy at your successes and suffered when pain or suffering overwhelmed you.”

In a speech that made a point of expressing hope in the future, Juan Carlos nevertheless made a reference to the crisis and its effects.

“The long, deep economic recession we are enduring has left serious scars in the social fabric, but it is also pointing out a future path that is filled with hope.

“These difficult years have enabled us to do some critical stocktaking to analyze our mistakes and limitations as a society.

“On the other hand, they have also reactivated the proud awareness of what we have been and continue to be: a great nation. All of this has awakened within us a desire for renewal, for self-improvement, for correcting our mistakes and for paving the way to a decidedly better future.

“A new generation is legitimately demanding a central role in the forging of this future. A younger generation with new energy has the determination to undertake the transformation and reforms demanded by the current situation.

“My sole ambition has always been, and always will be, to help attain progress and wellbeing for all Spaniards in a climate of freedom.

“I want the best for Spain, to which I have dedicated my entire life and at whose service I have placed all my ability, my enthusiasm and my work.

“My son Felipe, Prince of Asturias and heir to the Crown, embodies the stability that is a defining feature of our monarchy.

“When I turned 76 last January, I felt that the time had come to prepare the handover to make way for someone who is in the best possible conditions to maintain that stability.

“The Prince of Asturias has the maturity, training and sense of responsibility that are necessary to fully guarantee his position as head of state and begin a new period of hope that combines acquired experience with the thrust of a new generation.

“I am sure he will always be able to count on the support of Princess Letizia.

“And so, guided by the firm belief that I am doing the best service to Spaniards, and now that I have recovered physically and gone back to my institutional activities, I have decided to bring my reign to an end and abdicate the Spanish crown.

“I wish to express my gratitude to the Spanish people, to all the individuals who have embodied the state’s powers and agencies during my reign, and everyone who has generously and loyally helped me perform my duties.

“My gratitude also goes out to Queen Sofia, whose cooperation and generous support have never failed me.

“Spain will always be in my heart.”

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non-commercial purposes only.

Passive Voice

(Reblogged from Grammar.net)

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non-commercial purposes only.

English: A Stress-Timed Language - American Pronunciation

(Reblogged from Rachel's English)

English is a Stress-Timed language. That means you need contrast between stressed and unstressed syllables—unstressed words may reduce, and will be low in pitch and flatter in shape. In other words, you DON'T pronounce every word fully and clearly!!

VIDEO TRANSCRIPTION:

In this American English pronunciation video, we're going to go over why some words sound different when they're said on their own than they do when they're said as part of a sentence, like 'for', 'fer'. 

A lot of people think, when they're studying a language and they're new to it, that they need to pronounce each word fully and clearly in order to be well-understood. But in English that's actually not the case. English is a stress-timed language. That means some syllables will be longer, and some will be shorter. Many languages, however, are syllable-timed, which means each syllable has the same length. Examples of syllable-timed languages: French, Spanish, Cantonese. So, when an American hears a sentence of English, with each syllable having the same length, it takes just a little bit longer to get the meaning. This is because we are used to stressed syllables, syllables that will pop out of the line because they're longer and they have more shape. Our ears, our brains, go straight to those words. Those are the content words. When all syllables are the same length, then there's no way for the ear to know which words are the most important.

Speaking Exchange

A group of young Brazilian students were keen on learning to speak English fluently. At the same time, lots of elderly people living in residential homes in the USA were longing to talk to someone. The idea was to connect them via Internet.

Would you like to experience this type of  “exchange”?

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non commercial purposes.

Look Up

"Look up from your phone, shut down that display. Stop watching this video, live life the real way".

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non commercial purposes

Interviews for World's Toughest Job

Millions of people saw a job posting by a Boston agency for a "director of operations" position, but only 24 people applied.

In today's tough job market, why did so few people show an interest? It could be because of the requirements of the job.

The website rehtom.net posted the job and paid for ads, hoping to get the right applicant. So what is required from the right applicant? Here's a partial list:

• Must be able to work 135 or more hours a week
• Ability to work overnights
• Willingness to forgo breaks
• Work mostly standing up and/or bending
• Must be able to lift up to 75 lbs. on a regular basis
• Crisis management skills a must
• Ability to manage a minimum of 10-15 projects at one time
• Ability to coordinate multiple, often conflicting, schedules
• Ability to work with associates with minimal ability
• Demonstrated knowledge and experience in negotiating, counseling and culinary arts
• Understanding of finance
• Understanding of medicine
• Positive disposition at all times

So who would hire for a such a job? Only one way to find out. Watch this video to see the interviews and real-time reactions. Believe us, it's worth it to watch to the end.

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non-commercial purposes only.

The Benefits of Reading Books

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non-commercial purposes only.

THX1138

THX1138 Director's cut: The Future Trailer

Set in the 25th century, the story centers around a man and a woman who rebel against their rigidly controlled society...

In an overpopulated futuristic Earth, a New York police detective finds himself marked for murder by government agents when he gets too close to a bizarre state secret involving the origins of a revolutionary and needed new foodstuff.

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non-commercial purposes only.

The Power of Ideas

“The Power of Ideas” is a new contest launched by Cambridge University Press Iberia addressed to Primary School teachers and students.

They believe in the power of ideas and imagination to change reality, to create new things and to improve the world around us.

The idea is to invent one or several powers that people could possess and explain how they could use it to change things. You can participate individually, in small or big teams but an English teacher must take part in the project’s conception.

You must upload your ideas to http://www.quickminds.es/the-power-of-ideas/participa/1 in several formats: video, audio, picture or pdf. Each project must include a description of maximum 50 words in English.

The prizes are as follows:

1^st - 4,000 euros

2^{nd -} 3,000 euros

3^{rd -} 2,500 euros

4th - 2,000 euros

5th - 1,500 euros

And a special prize for the school which submits more projects (3,000 euros)

If you are keen on participating, remember that the deadline is 20^th October 2014.

You can read all the information in Spanish by clicking here: http://www.quickminds.es/the-power-of-ideas

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non commercial purposes.

Hurricane Carter

Rubin "Hurricane" Carter (born 6th May 1937, died 20th April 2014) was an American middleweight boxer.

In 1966, police arrested Carter for a triple homicide in the Lafayette Bar and Grill in Paterson, New Jersey. Police stopped Carter's car and brought him and another occupant, John Artis, to the scene of the crime. There was little physical evidence. Police took no fingerprints at the crime scene and lacked the facilities to conduct a paraffin test for gunshot residue. None of the eyewitnesses identified Carter or Artis as the shooters. Carter and Artis were tried and convicted twice (1967 and 1976) for the murders, but after the second conviction was overturned in 1985, prosecutors chose not to try the case for a third time.

Carter's story inspired the 1975 Bob Dylan song Hurricane and 1999 Norman Jewison's film starring Denzel Washington. From 1993 to 2005, Carter served as executive director of the Association in Defence of the Wrongly Convicted. 

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non-commercial purposes only.

3 Things I Learned While My Plane Crashed

Ric Elias had a front-row seat on Flight 1549, the plane that crash-landed in the Hudson River in New York in January 2009. What went through his mind as the doomed plane went down? At TED, he tells his story publicly for the first time.

Original TED Talk with English subtitles at: https://www.ted.com/talks/ric_elias

Labor Walk of Fame 2.1

The following are our best students for the second term:

ESO 1A: Unai Rial, Xacobe Piñeiro and Gonzalo Torres - 9.2

ESO 1B: Raquel Cordeiro - 8.8

ESO 2A: Álvaro de Prado - 9.5

ESO 2B: Rodrigo Otero - 7.96

ESO 3A: Andrea Cobo - 8.55

ESO 3B: Irene Sánchez -9.57

ESO 4A: Asta Rohde -7.78

ESO 4B: Paula Suárez - 5,74


Congratulations!

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non commercial purposes.

Graduation Speech: ESO 4 2013-14 3rd Term PBL Assignment

ESO 4 Students,

This is your PBL assignment for the 3rd term. All of you have to WRITE and DELIVER your GRADUATION SPEECH.  You have to imagine you are going to stand in the school Assembly Hall before your teachers, classmates, parents and guests at your ESO graduation ceremony (to be held on June 20th) and deliver your speech, which must be at least 350 WORDS LONG.

The best student will be offered the chance to deliver his or her speech at your graduation ceremony... in English!! Of course, he or she will get extra points in the final mark for that effort.

ESO 2 & ESO 3 3rd Term PBL

ESO 2 & ESO 3 Students,

This is your PBL assignment for the 2013-14 3rd term. You have a double task concerning 20 inspiring children books quotations:

• You have to find what book each quotation belongs to and the author of each of those books.
• You have to translate the quotations into the language of your choice, Galician or Spanish.

And these are the quotations:

1. If things start happening, don't worry, don't stew. Just go right along and you'll start happening too.
2. The greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places.
3. True friends never ask for anything.
4. Be who you are and say how you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind.
5. It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.
6. Anything can happen, child. Anything can be.
7. You have been my friend. That in itself is a tremendous thing.
8. There is no place like home.
9. We all can dance when we find music that we love.
10. Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, when one only remembers to turn on the light.
11. I'll love you forever, I'll like you for always, as long as I'm living my baby you'll be.
12. I love you right up to the moon — and back.
13. If you have good thoughts... they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely.
14. It is when we are most lost that we sometimes find our truest friends.
15. The moment where you doubt you can fly, you cease for ever being able to do it.
16. ...The more he gave away, the more delighted he became.
17. No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.
18. I think I can. I think I can. I think I can. I know I can.
19. Where you tend a rose, my lad, a thistle cannot grow.
20. Dreams do come true, if only we wish hard enough. You can have anything in life if you will sacrifice everything else for it.

Every group must email their answers BEFORE Sunday 18th May at precisely 23:59:59. No mails will be admitted after the deadline, so please do not wait until the very last minute and get down to work as soon as possible.

You must fill in the "subject" section of your mail messages with YOUR GROUP IDENTIFICATION and the word 'PBL'. You must also include the names of each and every group member and the percentage of work that every member has carried out.

Points will be deducted for every instruction you do not follow.

NB:

ESO 3 students must print this post and bring it to class next Tuesday 22nd April.

ESO 2 students must print this post and bring it to class next Wednesday 23rd April.

No copyright infringement intended. For educational, non-commercial purposes only.