The Christmas Truce

The Christmas Truce is a very famous event in WWI. A truce is when enemies at war stop fighting for a short period before it starts again.

Watch this TV commercial and explain what happened.



Here is a longer video explaining the real story behind the commercial:
The Chistmas Truce, by Extra Credits.

What other Christmas commercials do you remember? Do you think they really embrace the Christmas spirit? Why? Why not?

"Caleb"

I have a new short film for you! This time it is the story of a clever child whose parents are very, very busy. Then he decides to do something about it.

Stop at minute 13:40. What do you think will happen in the end?

 

The Devil's Dictionary

Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914) was a famous journalist from the 19th and 20th centuries. He is better known for his work, The Devil's Dictionary, where he compiled funny definitions of thousands of terms.

Here are a few of the most celebrated. Which one is your favourite?

You can try to come up with your own Devil´s Dictionary. If you are out of ideas, you can try an online list like https://www.randomlists.com/things and see how many things can you define... badly (it also works with people and places!).

Also, Bierce's original dictionary is available, like many other classics, from http://www.gutenberg.org

'Murderous' Worlds Exposed in NASA's 'Galaxy of Horrors' Video

This is a video that NASA created to describe some of the exoplanet that have recently been discovered. Do you find them terrifying?









You can also look at these posters created by NASA about some of the places we could explore one day.



 





 Here's the link where you can download them if you are interested.



https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/visions-of-the-future/

as...as, too..., enough

Here's a presentation about other ways of comparing things.

You can also look at this story from the BBC. Do you recognize the characters? What are their names in your language?

 

Guardians of the Galaxy.

Here's a great blog entry discussing the language of Guardians of the Galaxy. As you will see, this is a film that uses a lot of slang and colloquial language. https://languagearts.institute/2016/10/learn-english-language-through-guardians-of-the-galaxy/

Another thing that I enjoy is the many references to other films within the movie. These are often referred as Easter eggs in English (in videogames, Easter eggs usually refer to hidden messages that may lead to extra points  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Easter_egg_(media) ).

Another fun fact is that one of the main characters in the film, Dax, is interpreted by David Bautista, who was a professional wrestler before becoming an actor and a favourite of many of my students. Here's how he became an actor in the film: 

Who's your favourite character in Guardians? You can take this test to find out who is more similar to you. 

The Road

This year we are going to participate in an Erasmus + exchange programme with a few schools from different countries. As a part of the experience, you need to think about these questions. Choose which one applies to your experience and write a short text about it.

A) I HAVE STUDIED IN ANOTHER EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM.

· How did you feel when you started studying in Spain?

· What were your expectations about the country and the school when you came to Spain?

· Did you find that people were very different to the people of your country?

· What were your relationships with the people in your new schools like?

B) I HAVEN’T STUDIED IN ANOTHER EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM, BUT MY PARENTS COME FROM A DIFFERENT COUNTRY.

· Do you find that life in school and in Spain is different if your parents are of a different country? Why? Why not?

· Do you think that people treat you differently because your parents come from a different country? Why? Why not?

C) I HAVEN’T STUDIED IN ANOTHER EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM AND MY PARENTS ARE ORIGINALLY FROM SPAIN.

· How do you think people feel when they go to a different country to study or work?

· What do you think are the biggest challenges?

You can watch this video about the experience of one man who came to the US when he was 14 to get some ideas.


 

Countable and uncountable nouns (repost)

Countable and uncountable nouns are a bit problematic in English. Here's a summary of which ones are countable and which ones are not.
 

Countable and uncountable nouns from Elena (IES San Cristóbal)


Look also at this British Council Learning Teens section on countable nouns for examples in video.

You can even watch a contest at the BBC

Experiences

Here are some experiences from 2º ESO students. What are yours? Are they different or similar?
 

Short films in English

Here's a way to practice your English that is less stressful than watching a long film.

In this twenty-minute story, two young astronauts fall in love. Stop at minute 8. What do you think will happen in the end?



In T.I.M., a social service robot is assigned to a problematic young man. Do you think they'll get along? How do you think the robot will help him become a better person?

 

Reported Speech (update)

A Brief History of the Oscars

It's Oscar time again!

Watch the video and answer this question:

Who created the Oscars? Why?









Test your memory. Do you remember:



1) When were the Oscars created? Why is that date important?

    1919 ♦ 1925 ♦  1929

2) How many guests attended the first ceremony?

    517 ♦ 217 ♦ 270

3) How many awards were given on the first ceremony?

    15 ♦ 19 ♦ 5

4) What is represented on the pedestal of the Oscar statuette?

    The 5 branches of filmaking ♦ The 5 Masters of Film ♦ The 5 continents

5) Who has the record for most Oscar wins?

         

6) When was the first TV ceremony aired?

    1963 ♦ 1953 ♦ 1948

7) How many times has Bob Hope host the Oscars?

    9 ♦ 19 ♦ 15

8) How many people watched the ceremony in 1998?

    55 million ♦ 1.6 billion ♦ 105 million


Watch the video again and check if you were right!



Who were the Oscar winners this year? Which was your favourite?