Epals: How my students described Portugal ...

Now, I'm going to tell you some things about Portugal. Portugal is known as a country with great food and excellent wines. It is also known because of soccer stars, such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Deco, Pepe and Mourinho. It has many beautiful monuments and it is very famous because of our past of glory. We also have amazing writers like Luís de Camões.

André C.


In my English Class we were talking about different cultures so I'm going to tell you some things about the Portuguese culture. Here in Portugal we have very good food. In the South,in a region called the Algarve, we have wonderful beaches. Portuguese people are very kind and nice to foreigners, so they usually like to spend holidays here. We have a genre of music called Fado and Amalia Rodrigues is the most iconic singer of the genre. The landscapes are really beautiful and different from a city to another. The most important sport here is football that in America you call soccer. You have probably heard of José Mourinho or Cristiano Ronaldo. We also have an amazing comedian, Herman José. We have a lot of awesome monuments related to the fact that we were involved in the Great Discoveries. I think that Portugal is a very good place to live and has a lot of great things.

Inês

Portugal is a small country in Western Europe, the nearest one from America. We are known by the hospitality we receive the foreigners, by good food and wines, and by the landscapes near our rivers and coast. In Portugal, our major sport is "Football"( American: soccer) as in the rest of Europe. Our language is the Portuguese, very similar to the Spanish, but it shows much of our history and our pride for this country.
Pedro

I like our culture and I'm really proud of our history. Did you know that we were the most important country of the world in the 1500's? I like the people too; we're relaxed and easy going.

Duarte

In my country we have a lot of good food, such as, “francesinha" and "rojões à moda do Porto".
We have a music genre called "Fado", which is well known worldwide.
We're one of the oldest countries in Europe; Portugal was "born" in 1143.
We're also a very welcoming people.

André P.

I haven't forgotten you ...

Lately I have been very busy with the evaluation process. I had to prepare the written tests, the listening tests and the oral calls.

At the moment I am correcting all these tests and preparing lessons, so it's very difficult for me to get computer time.


Lessons will finish very soon; consequently I have to hurry up.

My students are going to have national exams in June. These exams are very important because they will determine students' entrance in university.

So it's now or never ...

Epals- a testimonial ...

Our Epals students' exchange has already finished. My students have enjoyed it a lot and learned so many different things.

Here is a testimonial of one of my students. It was written totally by her, so what you read is her own prespective of the project. I haven't changed anything.

"When we were told that we were going to talk with American students we didn’t really know what we were getting into, but we were hoping we could learn more about their culture and the interests of people of our age that live so far away.
We were very excited when we got the first e-mails and we talked about it at school a lot. I think that the project was very interesting and enriching. We already knew things about the American culture by what we saw in the movies or read in books but it’s completely different when we are talking about it with people that live there and can tell us their perspective of it.
I think that most of the students here really enjoyed this exchange of cultures and experiences because we are very communicative and we love to learn more and more so it was a great way to motivate us to speak English more often.
In my point of view, this was a great experience because the USA is the country that fascinates me the most and I love to speak English so I try to speak it whenever I get the chance.
To sum up, this project was great for all of us because it not only made us talk to some nice people but it also helped to improve our English. We really hope we can visit America soon and we are sad the project is over because we were having a great time".

Inês

Grammar...

This term we have been revising grammar topics such as: relatives, passive voice and reported speech. There was a topic we saw which was completely new to my students, the impersonal passive.
Whenever I have to teach or revise a grammar topic, I hear some students saying: Gammar? No, please!

As far as grammar is concerned, I have three different types of students:

- Those you have facility in reading, writing and speaking but who have never studied grammar. They choose the words that sound better to them in that particular situation. These students don't normally like doing grammar exercises and may fail because they don't know the grammar rules.

- Those who like grammar lessons and grammar exercises but who have many difficulties in reading, writing and speaking. They tend to do the grammar exercises correctly, however they fail in the other areas.

- Those who are good at writing and speaking and who find English grammar very easy to learn and study. These students know that by knowing grammar, they will improve their written and spoken English.

Try to find a balance! The best way to learn grammar is by reading and listening to English.
There are many games online, you can use to practise English grammar.

Relatives- a quiz

Passive voice: a quiz

Reported Speech: a quiz
Here are three examples, but you can find many more.

Volunteering

Doing volunteer work will give you the opportunity to do something useful and worthwhile. You will be helping others, and at the same time you will be helping yourself.

Now have a look at a text I've found on the web. If you want to listen to this text try the link below.

" Volunteering gives you an opportunity to change lives, including your own. If you're feeling frustrated or overwhelmed by the news of a disaster, volunteering to help can be a great way to cope. If you'd like to support a cause but can't afford to donate money, you can donate your time instead.

Helping others in need is such an important part of the American way of life that many high schools require their students to spend a certain number of hours volunteering in order to graduate.

So how do you go about it?

Find What's Right for You

Unlike school, with volunteering you get to pick what really interests you and who (or what) is most deserving of your time. Need some ideas to get you started? Here are just a few:

Help kids learn and grow. Become a Big Brother or Big Sister, camp counselor, or volunteer for an after-school sports program. Special Olympics games and events are great ways to get to know special-needs kids.

Give back over the holidays. Serve Thanksgiving dinner to the homeless, volunteer at your local food bank, or distribute toys to kids. Your church, temple, mosque, or other place of worship also may be able to use your help.

Play with pets at a local animal shelter. Most shelters depend on volunteers to keep the cats and dogs happy and well exercised. (And when you're walking rescued dogs, you get a workout too.)

Volunteer for a political campaign. If you're interested in politics, it's a great way to find out how things work on the inside. Even if you can't vote, you can still work to get your candidate elected — whether it's the president of the United States or your town mayor.

Help the environment. Join a conservation group and help out with river preservation. Take part in a local park cleanup day. You don't have to be an outdoorsy type — if you can't picture yourself hauling trees up a hill, you could help out in a park office or education center.

Support a health-related cause. Lots of us are close to people who have a medical problem (like cancer, HIV, or diabetes, for example). It can feel good to donate your time to an organization that raises money for research, delivers meals, or offers other help to people with an illness.

Volunteering is a great way to learn new skills — from working as part of a team to setting and reaching goals. It gives you a chance to discover what kinds of things you're best at and enjoy the most. A volunteer job that you love can even help shape your ideas about your career goals.
Volunteering also can provide you with a sense of responsibility because people really depend on you. And it can help you develop a new understanding of people who are different from you — people with disabilities, people in financial distress, sick kids, or the elderly.

Donating your time is a great way to feel like you have the power to change things for the better. When people depend on you, it can change the way you look at yourself. You can feel proud of the goals that you've achieved for an organization — whether it's helping to organize a 10K to raise money for breast cancer or running the race itself.
Volunteering is also a great way to get a perspective on your own life. Sometimes it's easy to get consumed by worries about your grades or the fight you had with your friend or parent. And although these things are very important in their own way, sometimes it can be helpful to get some distance and think about other things. Volunteering allows you to do this. It lets you focus on others and see that your involvement in the world can be meaningful.
Finally, volunteering can help save you from being bored — it gives you a place to be where you can have a good time and keep busy.
If it's a good fit — meaning you like the organization, they like you, and you like the work — volunteering can be an incredible experience."
Reviewed by: Kate M. Cronan, MD
Date reviewed: November 2009
http://kidshealth.org/teen/school_jobs/jobs/volunteering.html

Working students ... The gap year ...

Why take a gap year?

If you are considering taking a gap year you should be clear about your
reasons for making this decision.

Reasons students have for taking a gap year include:• Thinking that they can’t combine applying for jobs with getting a good
degree
• Wanting to travel and experience living & working in another country
• Knowing what they want to do next, but wanting a break
• Wanting to gain further skills to enhance employment prospects
• Needing to gain relevant experience necessary for being accepted for
postgraduate study such as social work, librarianship, museum and
archive courses.

Advantages
• It can give you time to clarify your ideas and plan for the future
• You may be able to earn money to fund future plans e.g. further study
• Relevant work experience can help you get into competitive careers
e.g. broadcasting
• A gap year may heighten your enthusiasm for further study and work
• You may gain new, or develop existing skills valued by employers e.g.
team working, organisational, problem-solving
• You will meet new people, learn more about yourself and benefit from
increased confidence.
• It can help you to ‘build’ your CV

Disadvantages
• You may find it hard to get back into the routine of work and study
• You may end your year in debt rather than profit
• You may find it difficult to apply for jobs whilst abroad, or be unable to
attend interviews if you are working - you must plan ahead
• You may be a year behind your contemporaries in terms of salary and
promotion prospects
• Not every employer will see the benefit of a gap year – you will need to
convince them

Source: http://www.careers.dur.ac.uk/info/leaflets/2004/gap_year.pdf

The changing world of work ...

Changes in the world of work

A. Fill in the gaps with the correct words (below).

1. Time ……………………………….;
2. …………………………… flexibility;
3. Need for ……………………………. qualifications;
4. Use of ………………………………… and sophisticated technology;
5. Greater …………………………… of jobs;
6. Working ………………………..;
7. Technostress and multitasking …………………………….;
8. ………………………….. of unemployment;
9. No lifetime …………………………..;
10. ……………………………. work;
11. Need for ……………………… regulations;

Variety, higher, madness, career, safety, abroad, fear, flexibility, temporary, complex, geographical

Changes in the nature of work

B. Match together!

unpredictable, challenging, changing, risky, uncertain, demanding, skillful, temporary, creative, innovative, cooperative, stressful, competitive

Which adjectives have a positive connotation?



Which adjectives have a negative connotation?