New Year's Resolutions

Merry Christmas and 

Happy New Year!!

We are happy to announce that after the Christmas break we will resume our activities on Mon, Jan 13th for the afternoon group (16:30-18:00) and on Thur, Jan 8th for the new group that we are starting in the morning (12:15-13:45). There are still some places available in both groups. If interested, please contact Asociación de Estudiantes.
The beginning of a new year may be a perfect time to introduce positive changes in our lifestyle. That was probably the origin of the New Year's Resolutions. 

Every year thousands, millions of people worldwide make new resolutions at this time of the year in the hope that they will stick to them and that will help to change their lives for the best. Sometimes our resolutions are serious and most time are probably quite superficial, but it's part of the tradition and why not, it gives you something to chat about this time of the year.  Helpful vocabulary and questions for discussion. Here's an example of the resolutions some students have made. 

This document can help you to express your intention when talking about the future. If you want to find detail information about how to use the future tense click here.

Here are the 10 Top Resolutions in the US, which I found interesting  Why not share with us today the resolutions you have made for this year that now begins? 
Time also to make a balance of our Christmas holidays (See what other people have done)

A trip I will never forget

Hello, again. This coming Monday, Nov 24th I invite you to talk about the best and worst travelling experiences we have had. We all remember that one trip that meant a big change in our lives, something we'll never forget. 
Different people, different experiences. Here is how some people described the best trip they've ever had. 
It's also true that at different times and at different ages too, we travel in a different way. Have you heard about CouchSurfing? Read a bit more about it; it's the sort of experience that won't leave you indifferent. Do you think you would have a go at it? 
And if you think you are already the best traveller... forget it! Here you will find some tips on traveling that will surprise you.

See you on Monday. Get something ready, we are looking forward to hearing about your experiences. 

Happy New Year 2010

A New Year is knocking at the door. Let's let it in. Every new year comes full of blessings if we only open our hearts to appreciate them. 

Singing the Auld Lang Syne at the stroke of midnight has become a tradition in English-speaking countries and others. If you want to learn more about this tradition, read here.

Hogmanay is the name given to the celebrations of the New Year in Scotland. It is a very exciting celebration especially in Edinburgh. Read more about it. 

Advent Calendar

Talking about calendars, have you ever heard of Advent Calendars? An Advent Calendar is a special calendar which is used to count or celebrate the days of Advent in anticipation of Christmas. Some calendars are strictly religious whereas others are secular in content.

Today most advent calendars are made for children. Many take the form of a large rectangular card with many "windows", one of which is opened every day during Advent. In less elaborate calendars, each window opens to reveal an image, a poem, or part of a story such as the Nativity story itself. More elaborate calendars have a small gift concealed in each window, such as a toy or a chocolate item. (Wikipedia)

Would you like to read about the history of the Advent Calendar?

Well, here is a little challenge for you. Visit this very interesting Advent Calendar from Woodlans Junior School and see if you can answer the questions they ask you about how Christmas is celebrated in different countries. Remember you can only answer one question each day. No cheating!!

Nov 26. Thanksgiving Day

The Wikipedia defines Thanksgiving Day as a harvest festival, a time to give thanks for the harvest and express gratitude in general.

Thanksgiving is celebrated mainly in the USA and Canada, where it stands out as one of the most important celebrations in the calendar. Students come home from university and the family gather together around a table full of delicious food, where the real protagonist is the turkey, roast turkey, in fact.

Find out a bit more about the origin of this celebration, when and how it is celebrated nowadays.

I found this video telling the story of the First Thanksgiving. It has been recorded at a slow pace and using a very accessible language. You should have no problem understanding it. Have a go! Happy Thanksgiving Day!

And perhaps the most important question of all: "What do turkeys think about this celebration?" Well, find out in these two videos:

• I will survive...
• Thanks for...

Nov 25. International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women

Long live butterflies!!

November 25th has been chosen as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. In the following article you will find information about the origin of this celebration and why it is celebrated on this date.

I was really touched when I first read this beautiful poem by Carol Geneya Kaplan called "Another woman".

In 1988, Tracy Chapman wrote an impressive song about gender violence called "Behind the wall". Unfortunately you can see that 21 years later it still sounds terribly familiar. Watch the video clip, it has subtitles.

Have you ever heard of "The 16 Days Campaign"? Read a bit more and see if you would like to back up this initiative somehow. What 16 days do they talk about? What do we celebrate on Dec 10th?

Friday the 13th

Every year has at least one Friday the 13th, and a maximum of three, like 2009 for example (February, March and November). But why is Friday the 13th an unlucky day? It has always been an unlucky day in Britain, but when I was a little boy the "unlucky day" in Spain was Tuesday the 13th, not Friday. Probably after the great influence of the film Friday the 13th, in 1980, this date became more popular also in our country.

This Friday 13th November is also very special because it is our colleague Alex's birthday... Happy Birthday, Alex!!

Some more curiosities about Frinday the 13th on the Wikipedia.

By the way... can you count to 13? Time for revision... watch the video.

Why don't you post a comment sharing with us any "strange" experience that you might have had on a Friday 13th. Are you superstitious? Do you believe in this sort of things? We are looking forward to reading your comments and opinions. Come on!

Remembrance Day. Poppy Day.

Once again, like every year since 1918 Britain celebrates Remembrance Day. The eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month marks the signing of the Armistice, on 11th November 1918, to signal the end of World War One. This is what we know as Remembrance Day.

Remembrance Day is celebrated in many other countries whose young soldiers died in World Wars I and II. Read about the celebration in Canada.

You can listen to The Last Post, a bugle call used at Commonwealth military funerals and ceremonies commemorating those who have fallen in war. Many people wrote poetry about their friends fallen in war. Probably one the most famous poems is "In Flanders Fields", by John MacCrae.

Remembrance Day is best known as Poppy Day. Find out here why a poppy and why people wear a poppy on this day.

Watch this video on Remembrance Day in Canada.

Money, Money, Money

The next few days we will be talking about money in class. How exciting! To get in the mood, here's a video clip of unforgettable Liza Minelli singing "Money, money, money" in the film Cabaret. The film won 8 Oscars in 1973, including one to the best actress in the leading role, Liza Minelli. If you want to read a bit more about the film Cabaret click here.

Talking about money: "A mark, a yen, a buck, a pound". What is a buck? Do you know the slang word for a pound? What does the edge inscription read on a one-pound coin? It's very interesting to learn a bit more about the British one pound coin.

Hallowe'en 2009

Well, once again, Hallowe'en is just round the corner. Let's have a quick look to a nice presentation to have an idea of the origin of this celebration. Some more ideas can be found in this lesson plan; there's some reading comprehension, vocabulary and idioms that you can work on your own; the rest of the activities are better to be done in class. Visit this website to find extra information about how Hallowe'en is celebrated in England.

Here's the clip "This is Hallowe'en", from Tim Burton's "The Nightmare Before Christmas". Enjoy it.

Hallowe'en has a lot to do with superstition. Are you superstitious? What strange or special habits do you have that you consider superstitious?

For information on the Hallowe'en celebration in our Language School, click here.

The Family

One of my favourite quotes says: "Friends are God's way of apologizing to us for our families". Don't know what you might think of it but it's certainly a very clever quote.

The next few days in class we're going to talk about the family. If you need to check the vocabulary of the members of the family you can do it here. Move the cursor over the figures and you'll see the spelling and hear the pronunciation.

You are invited to read a little more about family structure and family life in Britain today.