It's raining, it's pouring

Unit 2. Natural disasters

To see the activity click here

Thank you, Emilia, for this activity.

Letters to baby 7 billion

"Dear kid, welcome to our mess." Read some of the best letters the Guardian readers wrote to baby 7 billion. Click here. and send your own letter.

HERO by Enrique Iglesias

Before watching the lyrics try to fill in the gaps in this exercise. Click here

Now watch the video and check your answers.

THE HEROES OF FUKUSHIMA

Would you risk your life for other people? Well, some people do. They are real heroes. The heroes at Fukushima have just been awarded the Prince of Asturias.
Read about them and enter comments with your opinion.


The 2011 Prince of Asturias Award for Concord has been bestowed on the “heroes of Fukushima”. The Jury for the Award announced its decision in Oviedo.

This group of people represent the highest values of the human condition by trying to prevent, through their sacrifice, the nuclear disaster caused by the tsunami that struck Japan from multiplying its devastating effects, disregarding the grave consequences that this decision would have on their lives. Their courageous and exemplary behaviour has earned them the international epithet “heroes of Fukushima”.

Following the massive earthquake and tsunami that occurred in north-eastern Japan on March 11, 2011 and which caused around 28,000 deaths and displaced some 350,000 people, Fukushima nuclear power plant suffered significant damage resulting in hydrogen explosions and fusion of nuclear fuel. The International Atomic Energy Agency and the Japanese government initially placed the alert levels between 5 and 6 on a scale of 7, and finally at 7, as after the Chernobyl accident.

Despite major uncertainty regarding the development of the nuclear emergency, the different groups that worked for weeks in Fukushima did so under extreme conditions (high radiation, continuously rotating shifts and only a few hours of rest, and limited supplies of food and drinking water). Despite these grave consequences, they continued to participate in the efforts to regain control of the nuclear plant, aware of how essential their work was to prevent a catastrophe of even greater magnitude.

The work was carried out by different groups of people: employees of the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), the plant’s operator; of its 130 workers, 50 volunteered, as did some workers who had already retired or were nearing retirement, and, after increasing the number of rotating shifts and the needs for personnel, additional staff was hired (by May 3, 1,312 workers had intervened in Fukushima); fire fighters from various prefectures, especially from Tokyo, who participated in the work of cooling the reactors, a key task to restore control of the plant; and the police forces and Self-Defence Forces of Japan, whose work cooling the reactors by launching water from helicopters, inspecting the damage from the air, cordoning off the exclusion area and evacuating people when the reactors emitted very high doses of radiation was very important.

The behaviour of these people has also embodied the values most deeply rooted in Japanese society, such as the sense of duty, personal and family sacrifice for the greater good and dignity in the face of adversity, humility, generosity and courage.

http://www.fpa.es/en/press/news/the-heroes-of-fukushima-2011-prince-of-asturias-award-for-concord/

Unit 1. Verb tenses

In Unit 1 we have studied present simple, present continuous, past simple and past continuous. Here you have two links to practise them. After the explanations, you have different activities.
Present simple / present continuous
Past simple / past continuous

ECONOMY DOMINATES POLITICS

Have a look at Chris Riddle's cartoon. Yes, the Prime Minister is the pet.

STEVE JOBS DIES AT 56

Steve Jobs, "Apple" founder, considered one of the greatest innovators of our time, dies at 56. Read about him in BBC website.
The New York Times offers details about His life.
Watch part of his famous Stanford speech (2005) in The Guardian.
Add your comments.

Is David de Gea a shoplifter?

Well, it seems he was caught shoplifting at Tesco supermarket. Read more about this embarrasing situation in te sensationalist tabloid The Sun . Add your comments.

THE DUCHESS OF ALBA WEDDING

The Telegraph offers information about the Duchess of Alba Wedding.
You can also read and watch this on the BBC website.

A DESCRIPTION OF A PLACE

Autumn in the Valley of Jerte





In order to help you write unit 1 composition (a description of a place), have a look at some works done by other ESL students. These examples can inspire your writing. Click here

EXCHANGE WITH STOCKHOLM

Here you have more details about the school exchange we intend to organize with a school in Stockholm:
-Dates for us to go to Stockholm: March 23rd/24th to March 30th/31st 2012
-Dates for them to come to Cáceres: April 16th to April 22nd 2012
-Provisional budget: 500 euros.


To see the school, visit its website and watch some videos in you tube. Video 1 Video 2
And here you have details about the school exchange sent by the organizer in Stockholm. The activites are provisional but you can image what the general idea is.

INTERCAMBIO ENTRE LAS INSTITUCIONES NORBA CAESARINA Y
SÖDRA LATIN

DATOS DEL CENTRO CON EL QUE SE REALIZARÁ EL INTERCAMBIO

Nombre del centro: ..............Södra Latins Gymnasium.........................….
Dirección: ..............Skaraborgsgatan 14 .....................
Localidad:............ 118 93 Stockholm.............Provincia/Departamento…Estocolmo…
País:.......Suecia............ Teléfono: .....+46-8-508 408 00...........

DATOS DEL INTERCAMBIO

Fecha prevista para el intercambio: Del .16...de…abril.....al …23.. de ...abril......... de 2012…
Duración total del intercambio (incluyendo viaje y estancia): ....8....días.
Distancia entre los centros (ida y vuelta):..........................................kilómetros.
¿Ha solicitado ayuda económica para este intercambio a otro organismo? SÍ NO
En caso afirmativo indique a cuál: ..........NO........................

ENTORNO
Nuestro centro de estudios Södra Latins Gynmasium está ubicado en Södermalm, un barrio que se encuentra en la parte central de la ciudad de Estocolmo. A los alrededores de este Instituto tenemos dos estaciones de metro, tiendas comerciales, viviendas, oficinas y todo tipo de transporte público.

PERFIL DEL INSTITUTO
En general los estudiantes suecos tienen nueve años de estudios primarios y secundarios. Al final de estos existen 17 programas nacionales llevados a cabo por los institutos distribuidos por todo el país. Estos programas son de 3 años, los cuales permite a nuestros estudiantes continuar estudios a nivel universitario o en instituciones similares.
El instituto Södra Latin ofrece 3 de estos programas; ciencias naturales, ciencias sociales y el programa de artes. En este último se ofrece; música, drama, baile, artes plásticas y diseño. Vale recalcar que algunos de los actuales cantantes de renombre de Suecia han estudiado en nuestro centro. Debido a esto Södra Latin tiene una gran reputación, especialmente, en el mundo profesional de la música.

En todos nuestros programas los estudiantes estudian asignaturas como historia, arte cultural e idiomas extranjeros como el inglés, el español, el francés, el alemán, el italiano, el chino, el ruso y los idiomas clásicos como el griego y el latín, de donde deriva su nombre “Södra Latin”. Antiguamente en el año 1654 (año en que se funda en instituto) se enseñaba, por una congregación cristiana, el latín y el sueco.
En la actualidad el departamento de idiomas ofrece al alumnado algunos intercambios con distintos institutos a nivel europeo. El número del profesorado es mayor de cien profesores de los cuales trece somos los profesores de idiomas extranjeros no incluyendo al inglés ya que a éste se le considera como una asignatura fundamental en la enseñanza sueca tanto así como las matemáticas o el sueco.
ACTIVIDADES PREVISTAS
Las actividades que se presentarían, serían, a priori, las siguientes. Vale aclarar que este intercambio se realizará en inglés y que todas las actividades previstas serán llevadas a cabo en el mismo idioma.
Primer día
• Recibimiento en el aeropuerto de Arlanda, Estocolmo
• Una pequeña fiesta de recibimiento en nuestro centro por parte de los alumnos suecos. Motivo: para que puedan conocerse unos a otros
• Cena con sus respectivas familias suecas
Segundo día
• Lecciones en nuestro centro. Aquí los estudiantes españoles participan en distintas lecciones cosa que así obtienen idea de cómo son las clases en nuestro instituto
• Almuerzo en el instituto
• Visita en la ciudad ( Södermalm, centro, tiendas, etc)
• Actividades en grupos pequeños
• Cena con las familias respectivas
Tercer día
• Visita a Uppsala (la cuidad más próxima y una de las más antiguas den país)
• Almuerzo (pick-Nick)
• Regreso a Estocolmo
• Tiempo libre
• Cena con sus familias
Cuarto día
• Visita a Vaxholm viaje en barco hacia una de las islas del archipiélago de la ciudad de Estocolmo
• Almuerzo (pick-Nick)
• Regreso a Estocolmo
• Tiempo libre
• Cena con sus familias
Quinto día
• Lecciones en Södra Latin
• Fiesta en la escuela (reunión de los estudiantes que se realiza cada viernes)
• Visita al Museo de VASA
• Visita a Skansen (museo a abre libre)
• Cena con sus familias
Sexto día
• Visita al ayuntamiento
• Visita histórica en la cuidad antigua (Gamla stan)
• Tiempo libre
• Cena con sus familias
Séptimo día
• Día libre
• Actividades otras
• Actividades con las familias
Octavo y último día
• Preparación del viaje
• Almuerzo en Södra Latin
• Despedida
• Viaje al aeropuerto

FIND SOMEONE WHO...

It's important to break the ice and know details about new classmates. This is the aim of the activity "Find someone who..."
We discovered, for instance, that some people came from Madrid and Toledo. Some students had read interesting books during the summer. Some others had visited interesting places.
Here you have some of the 25 questions.



To see the whole exercise click here and open or download the document "Find someone who" in our site for Bachillerato.

What did you find out about your classmates? Share with us introducing your comments.

OUR STARS

We use STARS to introduce ourselves.
These are the instructions:
-Draw two six point stars.
-Write personal information in each point.
-Your classmates will ask you questions to discover your personal information.

GO SAILING WITH ROD STEWARD

So, we start sailing this 1 Bachillerato year. Sure we'll be flying like birds across the sky, passing high clouds and sometimes sailing stormy waters. But I'm sure we'll make it.
Here you have a modern version of "Sailing" by Rod Steward, with his raspy voice.





You can also watch this older version of the song with a very different Rod Steward.




Have a look at Rod's photos in Google images. You'll enjoy his look, really fashionable in the seventies. Typical Glam Rock look, with his distinctive spiky rooster hairstyle, short in the front and top, long in the back.












Don't miss his trendy spandex clothes, a "must" for disco addicts at that time. Tired of your appearance? Thinking about changing your hairstyle now you are in Bachillerato? Comments with your opinions are welcome.

THE STORY BEHIND YOUR NAME

Do you know the reason why your name is your name? Is there a story behind it? Did your parents almost name you something else? Do you know where your name comes from? What does you name mean in that language? Please, add a comment and share all this information with your classmates.