Leonardo da Vinci -The Man Who Wanted to Know Everything 1

The beginning of a BBC documentary on Leonardo. To watch more, click on the link you'll see on the screen of the same name + 2.
Thanks go to Susan.

Church of England votes against women bishops

The Church of England has voted against allowing women to become bishops after more than a decade of divisive debate. The Church's legislative body, The General Synod failed to reach the two-thirds majority needed to enable change.  
dog collar: a stiff white collar with no opening in the front; a distinctive symbol of the clergy

Schools in Britain

This video explains very simply the education system in Britain. I couldn't find one without the subtitles.

 

Madrid Halloween party crush kills four women

It was supposed to be a gigantic Michael Jackson 'Thriller' themed party to celebrate Halloween in the Spanish capital.

US declares major disaster in NY after Sandy

Feel like watching the video again? This is your chance!

The Haunted History of Halloween

Halloween was originally called Samhain /'sauein/ and marked the end of the harvest season for Celtic farmers.


Vocab: 
gorge /gɔː(r)dʒ/(on):  to stuff (oneself) with food
heathen/ˈhiːð(ə)n/= pagan /ˈpeigən/
famine /ˈfæmin/:a severe shortage of food, as through crop failure or overpopulation
starving:  suffering from lack of food

How to Choose a Prepaid Cellphone

Prepaid plans for cellphones allow you to purchase minutes as you use them, so you only pay for the minutes you use. These plans are attractive for those who cannot qualify for a wireless contract, and for those who don't need all the minutes provided by a standard cellphone plan.

Spanish students join anti-austerity campaign

Students in Spain are voicing their anger over the cuts in the education budget, saying their future is now at stake. 

Vocab: 

• voucher: coupon 
• denunciation:very strong public criticism of someone or something very strong public criticism of someone or something
• divide: an important difference or disagreement between two people or groups
• tuition (fees):money that you pay to take lessons, especially at a college, university, or private school 
• austerity:an economic policy by which a government reduces the amount of money it spends by a large amount. A situation in which economic conditions are bad and people's living standards fall
• truancy:the act or habit of staying away from school without permission

School calendar

Click here to download the school calendar

Petition against the fee rise in the Official School of Languages

A student at EOI San Sebastián de los Reyes has written this petition. If you wish to sign it too, follow the link below:

http://www.change.org/es/peticiones/ministerio-de-educaci%C3%B3n-comunidad-de-madrid-retiren-las-subidas-de-tasas-en-escuelas-oficiales-de-idiomas

¡Salvemos la enseñanza pública de idiomas!

If you wish to sign the petition, follow this link.

Will the Spanish bailout end the eurocrisis?

Michael Rowland talks to Oliver Marc Hartwich about the bailout for Spain.

Spain's Bank Bailout

How To Eat Better

How To Eat Better on Howcast

Sicko 1

A video about health care in the US.

Why pulling a sickie may cost you dear

Monday is the first day of the week and also the most popular day for employees to call in sick.

Vocab

to pull a sickie - taking time off work under the false pretence that you are sick

pull a fast one on - to deceive or trick someone

call in sick - to telephone work or school to say you are ill and will not be there

absenteeism - persistent absence from work, school, etc.

Body idioms

Here's a good list & an exercise

Try this game

Bankia chief quits as Spain readies bailout

Planned Obsolescence

Since Montse told us about this documentary in her presentation, I thought you might be interested in watching it:

The Dawn of Space Tourism?

Virgin Galactic unveiled SpaceShipTwo and plans to take paying customers for a two-and-a-half hour trip into sub-orbital space.
Vocab:

• tycoon= A wealthy and powerful businessperson or industrialist; a magnate. 
• pitfall= an unsuspected difficulty or danger 
• cutting edge= the position of greatest importance or advancement; the leading position in any movement or field

Belfast centre remembers Titanic 100 years on

A new chance to see the video once again:



Some vocab:

• dungeon: A dark, often underground chamber or cell used to confine prisoners.
• poignant: sharply distressing or painful to the feelings
• destitute: Lacking resources or the means of subsistence; completely impoverished. 
• shilling: a former British and Australian silver or cupronickel coin worth one twentieth of a pound: not minted in Britain since 1970. 
• dinner suit: formal suit for evening events and social functions.

How To Minimise Jetlag

Hi,
Here's your chance to watch again the video we saw in class.

The Internet in a box!

I couldn't find a site to watch the whole thing online but I found this bit. If you have suggestions for shows you'd like us to watch in class, drop me a line!

How to write a book report

Introduction

You should try to write a strong introductory sentence that grabs your reader's attention. Somewhere in your first paragraph, you should also state the book's title (italicized), the topic, and the author's name. Include publication information as well as brief statements about the book's angle, the genre, the theme, and a hint about the writer's feelings in the introduction.

Body

 Consider the following points:

• Did you enjoy the book?
• Was it well written?
• What was the genre?
• (fiction) Which characters play important roles that relate to the overall theme?
• Did you notice reoccurring symbols?
• Is this book a part of a series?
• (nonfiction) Can you identify the writer's thesis?
• What is the writing style?
• Did you notice a tone?
• Was there an obvious slant or bias?

 In the body of your book report, you will use your notes to guide you through an extended summary of the book. You will weave your own thoughts and impressions into the plot summary.

 

Conclusion

 As you lead to your final paragraph, consider some additional impressions and opinions:

• Was the ending satisfactory (for fiction)?
• Was the thesis supported by strong evidence (for non-ficton)?
• What interesting or notable facts do you know about the author?
• Would you recommend this book?

(Adapted from http://homeworktips.about.com/od/writingabookreport/a/report.htm )

Key to Progress Test for Unit 2

Here's the link to the key

Making way for Eurovision

Do you remember the listening we did the other day? You can download the sound file here
  
In May, the former Soviet state of Azerbaijan will for the first time host the Eurovision Song Contest. The authorities are busy preparing the capital Baku, including building a new concert hall. But residents of nearby apartment blocks say they are being forced to leave their homes. (from http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/language/wordsinthenews/)

Films in original version in Coslada

Filmoteca Municipal - Cines La Rambla 

Honduras 25 y 27. Coslada

 Tel. 916 278 200  - Ext. 1234

Every Thursday a film in original version: Today it's Albert Nobbs. Next week it's The Artist.
Shows at 6pm, 8pm & 10pm
Tickets are: 6´50 € without the Filmoteca card & 3´50 € with the Filmoteca card
You can download the programme  here 

Thanks for the info, Nerea.

SUGGESTED READING FOR 2ND TERM

British Fiction:

-         The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole aged 13 & 3/4, by Sue Townsend

-         About a Boy, by Nick Hornby
-   High Fidelity, by Nick Hornby
-   Fever Pitch, by Nick Hornby

-          Stardust, by Neil Gaiman.

-         Bridget Jones's Diary, by Helen Fielding.

-         The Remains of the Day, by Kazuo Ishiguro.

-         A Mind to Murder, by P.D. James.

-         The Private Patient,by P.D. James.

-         The Lighthouse, by P.D. James.

-         A Thousand Splendid Suns, by K. Hosseini.

-   The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams.

American Fiction:

-   Twilight, by Stephenie Meyer.

-   The Da Vinci Code, by Dan Brown.

-     The Lady and the Unicorn, by Tracy Chevalier.

    -   The Road, by Cormack McCarthy.
      -    The Left Hand of Darkness, by Ursula K. Leguin.

Jamie Oliver's TED Prize wish: Teach every child about food

A propos of Maria's presentation, you can watch the video I mentioned last week.

Subtitles are available.
 

How to write a discursive essay

Remember you should organise it into introduction, body & conclusion. Then give your opinion & reasons. For more information read the file you can download here.

Words in the news

I want to recommend this site for listening to news & reading the transcripts. 
It's got vocabulary info too.
It's here.

Punctuation

You can download a pdf file on punctuation here

Costa Concordia

One week on, hopes fade of finding any more survivors in the Costa Concordia cruise liner.

Is college worth it?