NEWS- B2-C1: ELECTIONS IN SPAIN: QUESTIONS, QUIZZES, HUMOUR, AND MORE.

FOR TEACHERS: RUN AN ELECTION DEBATE.
MATERIALS:
ELECTION TOOLKIT
BALLOT PAPERS, POLICY CARDS

• QUESTIONS AND TRIVIA
• INTRODUCTORY QUESTIONS ON POLITICS.
• FUN TRIVIA.

• READING FOR INFORMATION:
• EL PAIS: THE FUTURE OF SPAIN: 5 PARTIES, 2 MODELS

UK POLITICAL PARTIES MANIFESTOS, POLICIES.

• POLITICAL PARTIES MANIFESTOS ( = PROGRAMA ELECTORAL) AT A GLANCE.
• UK POLITICAL PARTIES POLICIES. WHO ARE THEY? WHAT ARE THEY DOING?

WHAT IS THE HOUSE OF COMMONS






UK ELECTION 2017 EXPLAINED

• HUMOUR:
• TRUMP SPEECHES ARE HELPING PEOPLE LEARN ENGLISH. REALLY. ................REALLY??? BUT HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE? CLICK ON THE LINK AND KEEP ON READING.

• EL PAIS NEWS:NATIONAL PARTIES have referenced the hit series "Game of Thrones" in campaign ads in a bid to win votes.

POLITICIANS AND METAPHORICAL CAMPAIGN.  

WIKIPEDIA: A GAME OF THRONES ( or as it is called:  GOT)

A Game of Thrones is the first novel in A Song of Ice and Fire, a series of fantasy novels by the American author George R. R. Martin. It was first published on August 1, 1996.  READ MORE HERE...

GAME OF THRONES OPENING CREDITS

SELECTED READINGS: HAPPY WORLD BOOK'S DAY!!

• A panel of critics tell us what belongs on a list of the 100 BEST BOOKS OF THE 21ST CENTURY.
• 
  
• HERE ARE OTHER TITLES:
• All the light we cannot see.
•  1984. George Orwell.
• Watership Down. 
• The Hobbit.
• The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time.
• How to get filthy rich in Asia.
• The Great Gatsby.
• The Picture of Dorian Gray
• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.

A LIST OF BOOKS FOR YOUNGER GENERATIONS.

B2.1: EARTH DAY CAMPAIGNS

EARTH DAY NETWORK CAMPAIGNS.
Environment. Vocabulary in context. 

TASK : Read your campaign and create a card with this information:

Name of campaign: ( leave this space empty).
Goal of the campaign: a summary of your own words.
Campaign initiatives: How can we achieve positive results with the campaign.

Remember to print a copy and bring it with you.

Vocabulary and questions: 

Intelligent trashing ( from Agrega Mogea Junta de Andalucía).

You have learned how important it is to recycle in National Parks. Think of the following questions: ·         How important is it to recycle in your daily life? ·         Do you recycle? ·         What do you recycle? ·         Does your town or city provide citizens with an easy recycling program?   ·         Do schools in your country teach students how to care for the environment? ·         How aware are people of the importance of recycling?

Carrier bags and twist ties. Carrier bags can be reused in the shops or as bin bags around the house. Paper bags make useful wrapping paper and twist ties can be used to secure loose items together, such as computer wires.

Envelopes. By sticking labels over the address you can reuse envelopes. Alternatively, old envelopes can be used as scrap paper to make notes on.

Jars and pots. By cleaning glass jars and small pots, you can use them as small containers to store odds and ends.

Newspaper, cardboard and bubble wrap. Make useful packing material when moving house or to store items.

Old clothes can be made into other textile items such as cushion covers or teapot cosies.

Packaging. Such as foil and egg cartons can be donated to schools and nurseries, where they can be use in art and craft projects.

Scrap paper. Can be used to make notes and sketches. Don't forget to recycle it when you no longer need it.

Tyres. Old tyres can be given to your local petrol station where they will be recycled. Or you could make a tyre-swing by tying a strong rope around a tyre and attaching it to a tree.

Used wood. Can be used in woodcrafts for making objects such as a spice rack or a bird table. Alternatively it could be used as firewood.

UK SOCIETY AND ROYALTY: THE QUEEN'S 90TH BIRTHDAY

DAILY TELEGRAPH VIDEOS: The Queen lights the first beacon to commemorate her 90th birthday.

12-15 MAY 2016 HOME PARK PRIVATE WINDSOR CASTLE.

STARS ANNOUNCED FOR THURSDAY, FRIDAY AND SATURDAY CELEBRATIONS

ABOUT WINDSOR CASTLE

Article: spring forward - fall back

WHAT IS DST?
SPRING FORWARD- FALL BACK
CONVERSATION QUESTIONS ' TIME'

Why do the British say 'sorry' so much?

Read here.

HAPPY NEW YEAR! NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS

GRAMMAR 

WISHES FOR THE FUTURE AND PRESENT.

VIDEO AND READING ACTIVITIES.

NEW YORK TIMES (VIDEO AND ARTICLE)APPS FOR KEEPING NEW YEAR'S .ESOLUTIONS

10 TIPS TO MAKE YOUR NEW YEAR'S  RESOLUTIONS A SUCCESS.

READING. NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS: THE HEALTH INDUSTRY .

News: World Climate Summit in Paris 2015

On November 27th 1995 the King of Pop Michael Jackson released the single and video " EARTH SONG".  "Earth Song" music video featuring Michael Jackson walking through a burnt down forest singing. Includes footage depicting pollution and suffering of people around the world.
20 years later the situation is still an urgent global challenge.This issue is getting worse and worse.

30 November 2015: UN climate summit opened in Paris this morning.
I think it's about time to do something for Planet Earth.
Please watch this video and read the articles below on climate change today.




What is climate change?
Why do two degrees matter?
NASA: Climate Change evidence
NASA: Climate Change: How do we know?

Michael Jackson's poem : Planet Earth "Earth Song"
  READ PLANET EARTH POEM HERE

BBC video: Black Friday in 60 seconds

But why is it called 'Black Friday'? The BBC explains in this video.

'Growing awareness of Black Friday in UK

B2( Keys to reading FCE): In their natural habitat, Changing Lives with a Stranger

Part 2- IN THEIR NATURAL HABITAT

9 H  10A  11C  12F   13B  14D   15G

Part 3- Changing Lives with a Stranger

16B   17A  18C  19D  20E   21A   22E   23D   24E  25D   26B   27F   28C   29E   30A

B2( FYI) : Matilda ISBN

ISBN 978-0-224-06453-8

 

                          

B2 ( Reading): Readers advanced 2 (2014-2015).

B2 ( Reading): BBC- Capital- The joy of living with less

The joy of living with less.
f you’ve ever fantasised about selling everything you own and paring down your possessions to the bare essentials, you’re probably familiar with minimalism.

B2 (BBC Reading + Vocabulary): Prison bank

Read and learn new words and expressions related to crime.
Exercise 

B2 ( Readers): A list to choose from

Here are some suggestions for the 3rd term:

• Twelve years a Slave by Solomon Northup, 256 pages. This is for those who have seen or would like to see the film, are interested in the topic, enjoy biographies, etc.
• 
  Hateship,Friendship, Courtship, .... by Alice Munro, 336 pages. A collection of short stories by a Nobel Prize winner, for those who'd like something more profound.
• 
  The Silent Wife by A.S.A. Harrison, 384 pages, for thriller fans.
• 
  The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, by James Thurber, 128 pages, for comedy lovers.

Below are some pictures of film adaptations.

LEARN BY READING, ENJOY READING!!

B2 ( This is a joke) : the one with the power outage

Here goes a joke on technology ( LOL= Laughing Out Loud)

We had a power outage at our place this morning and my PC, laptop, TV, DVD, Samsung Tablet and new surround sound music system were all shut down. Then I discovered that my Galaxy Smart phone battery was flat and, to top it off, it was raining outside, so I couldn't cut the grass. I went into the kitchen to make coffee and then I remembered that this also needs power, so I talked to my wife for a few hours. She seems like a real nice person! Questions: Can you think of a synonym for 'power outage'? What does 'the battery is flat' mean? What does 'to top it off' mean? How can we interpret the meaning of this joke?

B2 ( Reading): an appetizer for C2: The ways of right thinking by Emilio Alzueta

To learn more about this topic visit Emilio Alzueta's blog: http://c1morethings.wordpress.com/2013/11/24/the-ways-of-right-thinking/

VOCABULARY REVISION:BOOKS AND READING

FYI: WORLD BOOK DAY-What's your favourite read?

 

By celebrating this Day throughout the world, UNESCO seeks to promote reading, publishing and the protection of intellectual property through copyright.
23 April is a symbolic date for world literature, since 23 April 1616 was the date of death of Cervantes, Shakespeare and Inca Garcilaso de la Vega. 23 April is also the date of birth or death of other prominent authors such as Maurice Druon, K.Laxness, Vladimir Nabokov, Josep Pla and Manuel Mejía Vallejo.

Read more....

Exercise:

Read this BBC article and the readers' opinions and submit your answers on the highlighted questions in red:

World Book Day: What's your favourite read?

Are you a bookworm?

 

British libraries pull in more visitors than football matches, with 405 million books borrowed every year. World Book Day is being celebrated on 6 March and is opened online with Nigella Lawson's announcement that Britain reads more books than any other European country.
American Bill Bryson is the winning writer who best captures the zeitgeist of modern England in the festival's poll, beating Jeremy Paxman and Zadie Smith.
Welsh readers chose Work, Sex And Rugby by Lewis Davies, Scottish readers picked Me And Ma Girl by Des Dillon while Northern Ireland voted for Desire Lines by Annie McCartney.
What makes the British such bookworms? What do you like about your favourite book?  Have your reading tastes changed?

 

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This debate is now closed. Read your comments below.
Your reaction:

It totally immerses you in medieval culture and politics Ann, USA

I simply adore Eco's The Name of the Rose! It totally immerses you in medieval culture and politics, while still asking some rather wonderful questions about education, what is appropriate content, and how far ought one to go both to guard your heart as well as protect those over whom you have authority. It's wonderfully deep and delightfully simple all at the same time. Definitely a thinking book, but it reads like a thriller nonetheless!
Ann, USA I have just read 1984 for the first time and it has blown me away. Possibly one of England's finest thinkers.
Ben Franklin, UK
Difficult choice. I can't decide between Bronte's "Wuthering Heights" or Huxley's "Brave New World". Very different I know but they both had a lasting impact on me.
Paul, England
Any book that you were supposed to read for school and actually enjoyed reading is a sign of a good book. For me, it was To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Fred Fenster, Uk

The most accomplished observer of human behaviour Linda, UK

Jane Austen, every time - Pride and Prejudice or Emma. The most accomplished observer of human behaviour. Also enjoy Shakespeare; can't bear Dickens; struggled through Lord of the Rings, not likely to try again; can't read Bill Bryson in public because he makes me laugh out loud! (Yes, I was that manic woman on the train!)
Linda, UK All Quiet on the Western Front by Eric Maria Remarque. At this time of indecision about the rights and wrongs of war, this is a must read for anyone not convinced of the human cost of battle, both physical and psychological.
Myles Donnelly, USA, originally from Ireland
"Winters Tale" by Mark Helprin, sadly out of print in the UK. This is really a book that takes you away into a completely different world.
Peter Galbavy, UK

"Master and Margarita" - intelligent, surreal and very funny Caroline, UK

My all time favourite has to be Mikhail Bulghakov's "Master and Margarita" - intelligent, surreal and very funny. And nothing beats Terry Pratchett's Discworlds novels for a bit of light relief!
Caroline, UK My favourite of all time has to be series written by David Eddings, The Belgariad and the Mallorean along with the two prequels Belgarath the Sorcerer & Polgara the Sorceress. If you liked Harry Potter (can't wait for the 5th book!)you'll enjoy these.
Ned O'Brien, UK
Years ago I read a book of the true letters from a downed Second World War aviator. He knows he is dying from his burns and sees his life in brutal honesty. He knows he has been a liar and cheat all his life and doesn't hide it. He was also a man of great intelligence. It affected me greatly - so much so I joined the forces as well. The book is now out of print but was called The Pitcher and the Well by J D McDonald. It makes you reflect on the kind of human being you really are.
R, UK
I enjoyed all Bill Bryson's books very much, but as another reader remarked, the ones in which he makes fun of Americans are much the funniest, so my favourite is Notes from a Big Country. However, Notes from a Small Island did capture something very truthful about our weird and wonderful country, especially the descriptions of the careless destruction of our heritage by pulling down or defacing beautiful old buildings. We have so much history that we have grown careless with it.
To choose a favourite book generally, is impossible, but I am currently enjoying the Lord of the Rings trilogy and feel that this also represents something about England. Middle earth, especially the Shire, seems to be Tolkien's image of a perfect rural England, maybe a England that never really existed, but one that is definitely part of our national consciousness.
Lisa, UK

What about you? What's your best read?

BBC: 24 hours news in pictures

Day in pictures 1 March.