31st December: New Year's Eve

As you all know, in Spain we eat twelve grapes at midnight. The actual countdown is primarily followed from the clock on top of  the Correos building in Puerta del Sol square, Madrid. It is traditional to eat twelve grapes, on on each chime of the clock. This tradition has its origins in 1909, when grape growers in Alicante thought of it as a way to cut down on the large production surplus they had had that year. Nowadays the tradition is followed by almost every Spaniard, and the twelve grapes have become synonimous with the New Year. After the clock has finished striking twelve, people greet each other and toast with sparkling wine (such as champagane or cider).

26th December: Boxing Day

Today is Boxing Day. No, it has nothing to do with the sport of fighting with the fists. This is the reason for the name:

A box, usually of earthenware, in which contributions of money were collected at Christmas, by apprentices, etc.; the box being broken when full, and the contents shared.

So, the name Boxing Day derives from the tradition of giving seasonal gifts, on the day after Christmas, to less wealthy people and social inferiors, which was later extended to various workpeople such as labourers and servants.

Music: Christmas Lights, by Coldplay

"Christmas Lights" is a song by British alternative rock band Coldplay released on Wednesday December 1, 2010, at 8PM GMT as a digital download. Described by the band as "a mid-tempo number" that is in the key of G major. The cover art is by Yu Matsuoka Pol.

Christmas' Eve Dinner

In Britain, turkey is the traditional dish for Christmas' Eve dinner. Enjoy it!

No copyright infringement intended. For educational purposes only.

7 O´Clock News / Silent Night

Recorded on August 22nd, 1966, "7 O'Clock News/Silent Night" is the twelfth and final track on "Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme", a 1966 album by Simon and Garfunkel. The track consists of an overdubbing of two contrasting recordings: a simple arrangement of the Christmas carol "Silent Night", and a simulated "7 O'Clock News" bulletin of the actual events of 3 August 1966.

Merry Christmas!

Labor English Zone wishes you the 

Season's Greetings

At Labor English Zone we know what present we want for Christmas!

Christmas Carols & Songs

A carol is a song of praise or joy, especially for Christmas. But it is also an old round dance often accompanied by singing.  The word was probably from Old French, derived from Latin choraula, which means "choral song".

Enjoy a selection of traditional Christmas carols and songs in English. Lyrics are included, so you can learn how to sing them!

8 Facts about Spain's 'El Gordo' Lottery

The following article was published by PR Newswire on7th December 2010.

Best Students - 1st Term 2011-12

Our best students of English during the 1st Term have been:

1 ESO A - Andrea Cobo Arena (9.30)

1 ESO B - Irene Sánchez Sanz (9.77) --Best overall ESO student of English in the 1st Term!

2 ESO A - Diego Anido Pereiro (9.35)

2 ESO B - Mario Quinteiro Sotelo (8.41)

3 ESO A - Rodrigo Rodríguez González (7.80)

3 ESO B - Candela Rodríguez Bernárdez (8.57)

4 ESO A - Miguel Romero Zapatero (9.16)

4 ESO B - Jessica Davila Prado (7.61)

Very often the students who get the highest grades are not the most talented ones, but those who try harder, show a positive attitude and have a praiseworthy work ethics.

Congratulations!

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

Superb Job

Labor Students,

We would like to post ESO 1 unit 3 outline by ESO 1 B student, Andrea Aguado. Andrea has done it voluntarily as a preparation for her unit 3 test. We thought it was not only a brilliant idea, but a superb job, and that is why we would like to share it with you all. We would also like to suggest to you to do similar lesson outlines and summaries for your exams. If you do this we are sure your test results will improve dramatically.

Congratulations, Andrea!!

Labor English Zone 2nd Anniversary

Labor English Zone started on 6th December 2009. Since then we have published 500+ posts and have received over 17,500 visitors who have viewed more than 26,000 pages. Our busiest day was 11th May 2010, when our hits peaked at 122 visitors (we guess the following day there was a pbl deadline or some kind of exam!!).  And if you google us you will obtain 2,700,000+ results. Posted on February 27th 2010, this entry about school jokes, with over 580 visitors, has been the most popular one during first two years.

We want to thank you all for being there and for your visits. We would like to encourage you to send us comments and messages with your ideas and suggestions for new posts. We are interested in hearing what interests you.

To celebrate we are 2 years old, we publish again our first post, "The Italian Man Who Went to Malta":

6th December 2009

Let's begin with some humour. Italian and Spanish are arguably the hardest accents to get rid of. Practise pronunciation drills and try to polish your accent in case you go to Malta too!!

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

Half As Long

I have made this letter longer than usual, only because I have not had time to make it shorter. 
Blaise Pascal (1623-1662)

Labor Students,

If there is a piece of advice that we would like to give you when writing your compositions and essays  is to keep them SHORT and SIMPLE:

• Shorter is better
• Use short words: never use a long word where a short one will do.
• If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.
• Try to make it half as long...

And now, please watch this clip from the beautiful 1992 film 'A River Runs Through It' (from minute 5.43 to 7.16; transcription to follow). You will find the secret: HALF AS LONG.

...So it was with my formal education as well. Each weekday, while my father worked on his Sunday sermon I attended the school of the Reverend Maclean. He taught nothing but reading and writing. And being a Scot.... believed that the art of writing lay in thrift.
--Half as long.
So while my friends spent their days at Missoula Elementary I stayed home and learnt to write the American language.
--Again. Half as long.
--Good. Now throw it away.


(You can find the full transcription of this videoclip and of the complete film here)

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

Television is a Drug

Television is a drug. from Beth Fulton on Vimeo.

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

Thanksgiving - 4th Thursday of November

Thanksgiving Day is a harvest festival celebrated primarily in the United States and Canada. Traditionally, it has been a time to give thanks for a bountiful harvest. While it may have been religious in origin, Thanksgiving is now primarily identified as a secular holiday. It is sometimes casually referred to as Turkey Day.

In Canada, Thanksgiving Day is celebrated on the second Monday in October, which is Columbus Day in the United States. In the United States, it falls on the fourth Thursday of November. Since being fixed at the fourth Thursday in November by law in 1941, the holiday in the United States can occur on any date from November 22 to November 28. When it falls on November 22 or 23, it is not the last Thursday, but the penultimate Thursday in November. As it is a Federal holiday, all United States government offices are closed and employees are paid for that day. It is also a holiday for the New York Stock Exchange and most other financial markets and financial services companies.

Are you Addicted to your Mobile Phone?

Clic here to enlarge image.

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

4th 2011-12 Quiz

Labor Students,

Here is the 4th quiz for this schoolyear (by the way, as of today you have not solved this one yet... There is 10 points to give away too...)

So, 10 points, as usual, to the first student to email the correct, complete answer to this question:

What is this?

WARNING: THIS QUIZ IS INTENDED FOR OUR STUDENTS, NOT FOR THEIR PARENTS

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

Dolce & Gabbana: 'The One' (uncut version)

Directed by Jean-Baptiste Mondino and starring Scarlett Johansson, Dolce & Gabbana presents its latest TV commercial. Please notice her pronunciation (if you focus on the actress' mouth you will understand her more easily.)

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

Saturday 12th: Remembrance Day

Remembrance Day – also known as Poppy Day or Armistice Day (the event it commemorates) or Veterans Day – is a Commonwealth holiday (observed in all Commonwealth countries except Mozambique) to commemorate the sacrifices of members of the armed forces and of civilians in times of war, specifically since the First World War. 

Los Septiembre

Los Septiembre is an indie pop band from Vigo. 2 of its members, brothers Marcos and Albert Lois, studied at Labor over 10 years ago. Marcos plays the drums and Albert is the bassist. The singer is Pablo Álvarez, and Celso Alonso is the guitarist. Their goal is to give a 1960's style and sound to their music.

Balaídos Stadium

ESO Students,

Last November 2nd, "Estadios de Fútbol en España", a blog about football stadiums in Spain, published a report on Balaídos stadium. As it is written in English we thought you might find it interesting. We hope you  will like it and maybe you can learn some of our recent history at the same time!

Balaídos Stadium - Vigo

If you were ever searching for concrete proof of Spain's diverse cultural mix, then travel to Vigo on its north-western Atlantic seaboard. More working class than the A Coruña or Santiago de Compostela, this tough industrial city is home to Europe's largest fishing port and lies just 20 miles north of Portugal. It is also home to the country's most westerly senior team whose name reflects Galicia's ancient and beloved Celtic links. This is RC Celta Vigo territory.

Real Vigo Sporting Club + Real Fortuna FC = Real Club Celta