This is a blog whose aim is to learn, exchange ideas, communicate or simply relax using the English language. I want to do this with each and everyone who loves English as much as I do. Welcome everybody!
New Year's Eve or Old Year's Night is observed on December 31, the final day of the Gregorian year, the day before New Year's Day. New Year's Eve is a separate observance from the observance of New Year's Day.
New Year's Eve is celebrated universally December 31 according to the year numbering of the CE (Common Era), or AD (Anno Domini) convention, even in non-Christian nations. Traditional and religious celebrations for e.g. the Muslim and Jewish new year, which occur on different dates, are still celebrated separately in the cultures that observe them, on the appropriate dates each year.
In modern practice, fireworks, music, alcoholic beverages and other forms of noise making is part of the New Year's Eve celebration. New Year's Eve is celebrated with parties and social gatherings spanning the transition of the year at midnight.
In spite of being on Christmas holidays, I'd like to share some ideas with you all about New Year's Resolutions.
At the end of each year we all tend to formulate some New Year's resolutions we intend to follow. The top ten resolutions use to be:
1- spend more time with the family and friends; 2- get fit and practise more exercice; 3- loose weight and get into shape; 4- quit smoking; 5- enjoy life more; 6- quit drinking; 7- get out of debt; 8- learn something new; 9- help others; 10- get organized.
From this list, women find resolution number 3 the most difficult one. Here is a funny video explaining why. Enjoy yourself!
The following letter was sent to the editor of'The New York Sun'and was written by an8 year old Virginia O'Hanlon. It was first printed in 1897.The correspondence has now become part of Santa Claus folklore. I've included only excerpts of the response, which is somehow long.
“Yes Virginia, There Is a Santa Claus!“
We take pleasure in answering the communication below, expressing at the same time our great gratification that its faithful author is numbered among the friends of The Sun:
Dear Editor
I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, "If you see it in The Sun, it's so." Please tell me the truth, is there a Santa Claus?
And the response:
Virginia O'Hanlon
Virginia, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except in what they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. (...)
Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! How dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus! (...)
Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies. You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if you did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. (...)
Ah, Virginia, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding. No Santa Claus! Thank God! He lives and lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay 10 times 10,000 years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood."
Wishing you and all your family a very happy Christmas with this inspiring letter!
P.S.: A very Happy and Loving Christmas is what your English teacher desires to you all and your families.
today I'm going to post some ads which were built by my pupils from 12th grade, professional course of Clinical Analysis. We were discussing and analysing the theme The Young People and the Consumer World and I suggested that they should built they own personal ads, integrating the items that they had learnt in classes. Their ads should contain a brand, trademark, logo, slogan, a small text and a suggestive picture. Here are the results. Enjoy the final product as much as they had enjoyed it in the process of their making.
Friendship is very important and essential in my life.
A good friend has to be someone I can confide in, I can tell my secrets to, and there are no lies between us. They help us to solve our problems.
My friends are very important in my life, some more than others. The most important of all are my best friends, Mickael Simões and Catarina Leite.
Catherine is very funny, friendly, reliable and I enjoy when we are together doing silly things. We spend our breaks and lunch hours together and for me they are the best moments of my life.
Mickael is a great and nice guy. I spent my childhood with him. We have been together for fifteen years.
They are everything to me: they are quite important.
Despite everything, I do not have a specific best friend, but I really have great friends! There’s only one that I love the most.
His name is Luis Filipe Moreira Pereira de Moura. He is such a funny and sweet guy, he’s honest, handsome, and he has a great energy, great smile, a very pretty face… He always makes me laugh and smile. I have a real confidence with him, I tell him everything, and also, I feel more comfortable if I tell him everything, about my problems, my happiness and some stuff between us.
He is that kind a friend who supports me, no matter what the occasion is. I remember the day when we met, he thought that I was like a “child” without maturity, but then when we start to talk more, he quickly changed his opinion, and definitely saw that I was the opposite of what he had thought before.
To be honest, I will never forget that boy in my all life, and what he did for me, that was making me happy, and I hope he never forgets who I am!
I'm glad to be able to share another initiative from the European Club. This time it was a very interesting conference entitled "20 years of the German Reunification". It took place at the library of Escola Secundária Fernando Namora, on 10th November, at 10h 30 min. Our honourable guest was Doutora Mº Fátima Gil, Vice-President of the Faculty of Languages from the University of Coimbra.
Previously, the members of the European Club prepared a temporary exhibition at the pupils leisure site and at the library of our school, in an attempt to prepare the conference. This exhibition was made up of Portuguese and German books and magazines, coloured cardboards and magnified photographs of some important events that took place between 1949 and 1990.
One class of the 9th grade and another of the 12th grade participated in this conference as they are studying the themes of the Second World War and its social, economic and political consequences. They had the chance to learn with an expert on this matter, who knew how to present facts in an interesting and motivating way. There were moments of deep silence and even some laughs when they heard about the grotesque and eventful lives of the German people during these years. From the dramatic escapes to the "unexpected holidays in Hungary! Final destination: West Germany. And finally the day of the celebration and get together.
Here you have the photo reportage made by Alexandra Santos (12ºC) that I used to put this slide show together. Enjoy it!
this year, due to the amount of endless meetings and extra curricular work, mainly burocratic stuff (boo!), the Hallowe'en was jointly celebrated at school with the ATL. The pupils of the seventh grade went for a session of terror and humour, in which they visited a cemitery, made a disgusting soup, answered a quizz and took some photos near spoky decoration.
Due to a spell, our camera stopped working and we managed to take only a few photographs. Here they are: have fun in recalling our Hallowe'en day!
You may continue having fun with the following pumpkin faces:
Rooted in Celtic and Christian ritual, Halloween has evolved from ethnic celebration to a mixture of street festival, fright night, and vast commercial enterprise.
Halloween emergedfrom the Celtic festival of Samhain (summer's end), picked up elements of the Christian Hallowtide (All Saint's Day and All Soul's Day), arrived in North America as an Irish and Scottish festival, and evolved into an unofficial but large-scale holiday by the early 20th century.
Halloween is the definitive history of the most bewitching day of the year, illuminating the intricate history and shifting cultural forces behind this enduring trick-or-treat holiday.
What about trying some online games or quizzes, learning how to make costumes, recipes or party decorations? Imagination is the limit. http://holidays.kaboose.com/halloween/
Last eighteenth October was the International Day against the Trafficking of Human Beings.
Did you know?
An estimated 700,000 to 4 million people around the world are being trafficked for labor and sexual exploitation each year. Human trafficking is the fastest-growing source of profit for organized crime.
Friends will always be an important part of our lives. Whether they came from childhood, we met them at school or work or they bumped into us later on in life, they are usually our best confidents and loyal companions.
Sometimes they live quite close, others in our very own street, and in some cases, they are on the other side of the planet. They can be pen pals or keypals – buddies that talk and write to us from the other side of the computer.
Throughout our life experience we have neighbours, relatives, colleagues, co-workers, roommates, boyfriends and girlfriends, but nothing compares to that special person we call friend. To him/her we tell our darkest secrets, we aren’t afraid of showing our weaknesses and failures and we learn the meaning of words such as trust, respect and help.
Nevertheless, a friend isn’t only a person who spends time with us and with whom we go out and have fun. He/she is the one who praises our successes but also the one who calls our attention to the stupid mistakes and sometimes the dangerous situations we get into. He/she points the finger at us because he/she worries! Above all, we know that we can count on him/her when we are in need.
Having friends is much better than finding precious stones: they are as shining but they have a heart!
Your English teacher
Ana Paula Amaro
Here is an example of an essay about friendship
FRIENDSHIP
Friendship is for me a feeling between people who help each other and spend time together.
I think a good friend is somebody in who you can trust and tell secrets, and never lies to you.
My best friend’s name is Ricardo. He is very popular, understanding and nice. Together we ride horses, dance and ride a bike. I tell him secrets. I like his kindness. We are friends since the seventh grade from school.
Never betray a trust. Trust, when broken, can ruin even the best friendship.
Friendship is something that is very important for me. I don’t know what I would do without my friends.
João Malo, 2008/2009
Friendship Quotes: Proverbs
"Books and friends should be few but good."
"A friend in need is a friend indeed."
- Latin Proverb
"A good friend is my nearest relation."
"A hedge between keeps friendship green."
"God defend me from my friends; from my enemies I can defend myself."
"Love is blind; friendship closes its eyes."
"Love is blind. Friendship tries not to notice."
-Sent in by Angela Kendrick
"The best of friends must part."
"Do not use a hatchet to remove a fly from your friend's forehead."
- Chinese Proverb, (sent by Julio Fung)
"To have a friend, be a friend."
(sent by Julio Fung)
"The death of a friend is equivalent to the loss of a limb."
- German Proverb
"Life without a friend is like death without a witness."
- Spanish Proverb
"The best mirror is an old friend."
"May there always be work for your hands to do, may your purse always hold a coin or two. May the sun always shine on your windowpane, may a rainbow be certain to follow each rain. May the hand of a friend always be near you, may God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you."
- Irish Blessing
"A cheerful friend is like asunny day spreading brightness all around."
- John Lubcock ( English Astronomer )
"THERE ARE MANY TYPES OF SHIPS. THERE ARE WOODEN SHIPS ,PLASTIC SHIPS, AND METAL SHIPS. BUT THE BEST AND MOST IMPORTAINT TYPES OF SHIPS ARE FRIENDSHIPS."
- OLD IRISH QUOTE (SENT BY -ROBERT J. BADAR JR.)
"The only unsinkable ship is FRIENDSHIP."
-Sent in by Jeff Sczpanski
" A friend is one to whom one may pour out all the contents of one's heart, chaff and grain together, knowing that the gentlest of hands will take and sift it, keep what is worth keeping and with a breath of kindness blow the rest away."
- Arabian Proverb
"It is better to be in chains with friends , than to be in a garden with strangers."
Rainforests can be found in South America, Africa and Asia.
There live tribes of indigenous people in wooden huts. They eat vegetables, meat, fish and fruit such as manioc, bananas, sweet potatoes, pineapples, mangoes, beans and pigs.
In the rainforest also live jaguars, alligators, frogs, snakes, parrots, baby birds, toucans and sloths.
To spend time, the tribes hunt, fish, build houses or boats, plant the food and protect the houses from the animals.
We need to protect the rainforests because they are a part of our world and they help us to breathe. The rainforests are extremely important because they also provide most of our medicines from some rainforest plants.
Speaking about countries, cities and nationalities is one of the recurrent themes of the 7th grade programme. Speaking about the English speaking countries is another theme that can, and should, be connected with the first one.
The song Empire State of Mind by Alicia Keys and Jay-Z is a good example of lyrics that can be explored in cultural terms instead of the usual gap-filling related to the grammar, a technique the syllabus usually uses to explore songs.
As I used this song in the 7th grade, a simple strategy was used: to highlight the references to the American culture, especially to the city of New York.
Of course this song is richer than this and much can be done with its lyrics. We have to have in mind that the rhythm is almost frantic and some of the lyrics content is too 'heavy' for the the 7th graders. So, I got what I needed for my classes' purpose. Others can use countless strategies and techniques. The bottom line is to bind the classroom necessities with the real world together and have some fun.
[Jay-Z:]
Yeah,
Yeah, I'm ma up at Brooklyn,
Now I'm down in Tribeca,
Right next to DeNiro,
But I'll be hood forever,
I'm the new Sinatra,
And since I made it here,
I can make it anywhere,
Yeah they love me everywhere,
I used to cop in Harlem,
All of my Dominicans
Right there up on Broadway,
Brought me back to that McDonald's,
Took it to my stash spot,
5-60 State street,
Catch me in the kitchen like a Simmons whipping Pastry,
Cruising down 8th street,
Off white Lexus,
Driving so slow but BK is from Texas,
Me I'm up at Bed Study,
Home of that boy Biggie,
Now I live on billboard,
And I brought my boys with me,
Say what up to Ty Ty, still sipping Mai-tai
Sitting court side Knicks and Nets give me high fives,
N-gga I be Spiked out, I can trip a referee,
Tell by my attitude that I most definitely from
[Alicia Keys:] CHORUS
In New York,
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of,
There's nothing you can't do,
Now you're in New York,
These streets will make you feel brand new,
The lights will inspire you,
Let's hear it for New York, New York, New York
[Jay-Z:]
I made you hot nigga,
Catch me at the X with OG at a Yankee game,
Shit I made the Yankee hat more famous than a yankee can,
You should know I bleed Blue, but I ain't a crip tho,
But I got a gang of niggas walking with my clique though,
Welcome to the melting pot,
Corners where we selling rocks,
Afrika bambaataa shit,
Home of the hip hop,
Yellow cap, gypsy cap, dollar cab, holla back,
For foreigners it aint fitted they forgot how to act,
8 million stories out there and their naked,
Cities is a pity half of y'all won't make it,
Me I gotta plug Special Ed and I got it made,
If Jeezy's paying LeBron, I'm paying Dwayne Wade,
3 dice cee-lo
3 card Monte,
Labor day parade, rest in peace Bob Marley,
Statue of Liberty, long live the World trade,
Long live the king yo,
I'm from the empire state that's
[Repeat Chorus:]
[Jay-Z:]
Lights is blinding,
Girls need blinders
So they can step out of bounds quick,
The side lines is blind with casualties,
Who sipping life casually, then gradually become worse,
Don't bite the apple Eve,
Caught up in the in crowd,
Now your in-style,
And in the winter gets cold en vogue with your skin out,
The city of sin is a pity on a whim,
Good girls gone bad, the cities filled with them,
Mami took a bus trip and now she got her bust out,
Everybody ride her, just like a bus route,
Hail Mary to the city your a Virgin,
And Jesus CAN save you! life starts when church starts,
Came here for school, graduated to the high life,
Ball players, rap stars, addicted to the limelight,
The Band U2 is in my hometown - Coimbra - and everything seems to turn around it these days. Wherever you go, whatever you do, this combination of one letter and one number seems to dominate each conversation and the entire life of the inhabitants of this quiet town. Have you got a ticket? - is the most heard question. The world seems to be divided into two categories: those who have a ticket and those who haven't a ticket. Unfortunately, I'm in the second category although I've watched the daily rising of the stage in front of my kid's school and been stuck in the traffic all week, and all of this due to the 120 trucks unloading the equipment for the concert. As a good sport I am, I've endured these hardships the best way possible and wish all the fans a terrific concert! Just don't break a leg because Bono seems to have antecipated you already... (a spark of black British humour!)
Here is some information about this tour.
The U2 360° Tour ( Europe, North America, Oceania) is an ongoing worldwide concert tour by rock band U2. Launched in support of the group's 2009 album No Line on the Horizon, the tour will visit stadiums from 30th June 2009 until 23rd July 2011. It includes 5 legs and 94 shows in three different continents.
The U2 360° Tour is named after the 360-degree staging and audience configuration it uses for shows, which U2 claims is "the first time a band has toured in stadiums with such a unique and original structure." To accommodate this, the stage set makes use of a massive four-legged supporting rig that has been nicknamed "The Claw" and has set a world record for the largest concert stage structure. In an era of declining CD sales, the tour is expected to be a major source of income for the band.
The penultimate show of the second leg, held at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, was filmed for the concert release U2 360° at the Rose Bowl. It was streamed live over YouTube, and set a new US attendance record for a single headlining act, as well as being the most watched live video stream in the website's history.
Bono sustained an injury to his back during preparation for the North American third leg of the tour, the damage to which included sciatica, a ligament tear, a herniated disc, and partial paralysis of his lower leg and resulted in the need for emergency spine surgery ain Munich.
bearing in mind the activities of Clube Europeu from Escola Secundária Fernando Namora, I would like to share with you the photos from our small exhibition about some countries of the European continent. It was a display of some leaflets, books and all sorts of objects concerning different countries, as well as a picture and text report of last year's school exchange with the German school Edit-Stein Gymnasium. We have also two wonderful movie makers of this exchange, related to the two sides of the coin: their visit in Condeixa and our visit in Bretten. Nevertheless, and due to the excess of information, I'm going to leave these two movie makers to another opportunity. Meanwhile, admire the photos and leave your comment.
Ana Paula
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