Unit 8 - Self-assessment

We reached the end of Unit 8 and now it's time to check what you've learned. Tick all statements that are true for you.

• I can express ability and probability
• I can ask how to borrow something
• I can write a short biography
• I can use the correct modal verb in each case
• I can use the correct verb pattern in each case (-ing, bare infinitive or infinitive with to)
• I know about music trends in the English-speaking countries
• I can make a presentation about a popular English-speaking singer/band

If you ticked them all, congratulations and keep it up! If not, don't give up and keep practicing!

Unit 8 - What kind of music do you like?

Nowadays, music is freer than ever, we can listen to it anywhere and at any moment. Freedom in music is also its variety. There are so many music styles out there that everyone can find his/her favourite type of music. 

Next, we'll see examples of different music styles that are successful in the English-speaking countries nowadays. The importance of both the UK and the USA in the music industry is really huge. The reputation of British singers is known worldwide and this country is always looked at to know which is the latest music trend. As for the USA, music industry has a big power there, just as big as Hollywood film industry. For this reason, many American singers succeed all over the world, just like films do. The music power of these two countries has become so big that many other bands or singers who are not native English-speakers decide to sing in English in order to reach fans from the whole world and succeed internationally. Examples of these are ABBA (Swedish), Shakira (Colombian) or Enrique Iglesias (Spanish).

But, who's being successful in the English-speaking countries right now? Some of them you know for sure, but some others are not so well-known internationally.
Here's a list with different styles, singers/bands, their countries of origin and links to their music videos. Enjoy them!

- Pop: Katy Perry (USA)

- Rock: U2 (Ireland)

- Hip hop: Jay-Z (USA)

- Dance: Calvin Harris feat. Dua Lipa (UK)

- Country: Blake Shelton (USA)

- R&B: Rihanna (Barbados)

- Indie: The Killers (USA)

- Punk: Sum 41 (Canada)

- Grunge: Pearl Jam (USA)

- Soul: Amy Winehouse (UK)

- Jazz: Ella Fitzgerald (USA)

- Blues: Norah Jones (USA)

- Swing: Michael Bublé (Canada)

- Folk: The Corrs (Ireland)

- Gospel: David G (Nigeria)

Well, which were your favourite music styles? Do you think our music tastes here in Spain are similar to the ones in the English-speaking countries?  You can make any comments on our Google Classroom group.

See you in class!

Unit 8 - Happy St. Patrick's Day!

On March 17th, the Irish celebrate their biggest day, St. Patrick's Day. With this, they're commemorating the death of their patron, St. Patrick. Even though this celebration started in Ireland, because of Irish immigration to other countries, it's now celebrated in many other places, such as the USA, Canada and Australia. In those countries, this day has become a big celebration of Irish culture, rather than a Catholic commemoration of St. Patrick, as it originally was. The tradition of wearing green, for example, which is internationally spread nowadays, actually began in the USA, since that colour reminded Irish-Americans of the old Irish flag, despite the fact that green is considered an unlucky colour in Ireland.

St. Patrick's celebrations in the world include, besides wearing green, drinking Irish beer, eating Irish food and dancing Irish folk music. It's the day when people from all over the world who share an Irish origin feel proud to be Irish. 

If you'd like to know more about the origins and celebrations of St. Patrick's Day, click on this link:

Origins of St. Patrick's Day

And since we're talking about Ireland, would you like to know something more about this amazing country? Here's a video for you to enjoy and see the wonders of Ireland:

Discover Ireland

And, to end this post, nothing better than listening to one of the most popular Irish bands, The Cranberries. Its leading singer, Dolores O'Riordan, sadly left us last year, so this is also a way to honor her.

The Cranberries - Zombie

What do you think of Ireland? Would you like to travel there? What does the song Zombie speak about? Feel free to make any comments.
Slán go fóill! (See you in Irish Gaelic)

Unit 7 - Self-assessment

Before evaluating yourselves, let me congratulate you all for you great work on Dessert Day, everything was so delicious! I knew you were good actors, but now I realise you're good chefs, too! You'll never stop surprising me!
Now, it's time to check what you've learned. Tick all statements that are true for you.

• I can compare and contrast several people and/or things
• I can use previous knowledge to help oral and written comprehension
• I can order at a restaurant
• I can give instructions for a cooking recipe
• I can use words to quantify different elements
• I know several traditional dishes in the English-speaking countries
• I know several English idioms

If you ticked them all, congratulations and keep it up! If not, don't give up and keep practicing!

Unit 7 - Jamie Oliver

Have you heard of Jamie Oliver? He's a very famous young English chef who has proved to be the total anti-symbol for the traditional view of British eating habits. As we've mentioned on earlier posts, the world tends to have a very bad idea of British food and eating habits, associating them with junk and unhealthy food. Well, Jamie Oliver is radically opposite to that idea. He has a TV show on British TV (and also on American TV) where he cooks all sorts of tasty dishes made out of fresh ingredients he grows himself. He masters Italian cuisine and very often includes elements from this country in his dishes. 

But he's not just a young talented chef, he's also a great promoter of healthy food and eating habits. Through his campaign "Jamie's School Dinners", he went to several schools in England giving advice for improving the quality of kids' meals, understanding eating habits need to be part of our education since we're little. Another campaign helping young people he made was opening a series of restaurants around the world, called "Fifteen". In each of these restaurants, he trained 15 young people with social problems, teaching them a job and helping them to re-start their lives. For all these merits, Jamie was awarded as a Member of the Order of the British Empire, a very prestigious recognition in the UK.

If you'd like to know more about Jamie Oliver, click on this link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jamie_Oliver

Let's do an activity now. Click on this links and you'll watch several recipes cooked by Americans. I'll ask you a question afterwards.

Pasta Puttanesca
Healthy lunch recipes

Did this post make you change your mind about British and American cooking style? Why? Feel free to make any comments on our Google Classroom group.

See you in class

Unit 7 - Women's Day

Today, 8th March, we're celebrating International Women's Day, I'm sure you've already seen that on the news. But, do you know why we celebrate it on this particular day?

The history of International Women's Day

Last year, women all around the world, both famous and anonymous, started several movements, called Me too and Time is up, in which they protested against sexual harassment and the abuse that women have suffered for centuries, as well as the inequality that is still present in our society.

Me Too and Time's Up

Let's hope that, soon, we don't have to speak about inequality ever again and men and women are always treated equally.

See you in class!

Unit 7 - Anything for dessert? (1)

American and British food is much more than burgers and hot dogs. For different reasons, desserts have resisted the pass of time much better than traditional savoury dishes, and today, there are many typical American and British desserts known and respected worldwide. Next, we're going to present a list of different desserts, with links to their recipes:

- American Pie (USA): It's the one from the picture above. Apples are its main ingredient and it's normally served with vanilla ice-cream, what is known as American Pie á la mode.

- Apple crumble (UK): Delicious British dessert, also containing apples as its main ingredient. The British like to side it with warm custard and jam.

- Brownie (USA): If you love chocolate, this is definitely your dessert. Try it warm and topped with ice-cream, it's not to be missed!

- Trifle (UK): A multi-layered cake with jam, custard and whipped cream.

- Cookies (USA): Chocolate-chip ones are by far the most truly American. They tend to be soft, and not crispy, as most people think.

- Blueberry muffins (UK): Similar to Spanish "magdalenas", but bigger and softer.

- Banana bread (USA): Don't be misled by the word bread, since it's actually more like a cake.

- Plum Cake (UK): A soft cake filled with fruit, perfect to eat with a cup of tea or coffee.

- Pumpkin Pie (USA): The most traditional dessert for Thanksgiving Day. Often sided by whipped cream.

- Pavlova (Australia and NZ): A Down Under cake with fresh fruit and whipped cream.

Read this list very carefully, since very soon you'll be cooking one of these desserts!

See you in class!

Unit 7 - Eating well in the UK and USA

There are many differences between the UK and the USA, but if they share one thing, besides their language, that is their bad reputation for food. When you travel to one of these countries, one of the first pieces of advice people give you is: try to eat well! Many people have the image of these countries as the paradise for fast food restaurants, where no other type of food can be found, and that is definitely not true. Perhaps this image comes from the fact that neither American nor British people have many traditional dishes, and those they have don't have a very good reputation, since they tend to be greasy and high in calories: burgers, hot dogs, fish 'n chips, etc. However, to be fair, there are other traditional dishes which have survived through generations, and are, unfortunately, less internationally famous:

Shepherd's Pie (UK)
Clam Chowder (USA)
Lancashire Hotpot (UK)
Jambalaya (USA)

You could try those recipes and then maybe you'll change your mind about American and British food! Other examples of good traditional food in these countries are desserts, but we'll dedicate an entire post for that, since it will be the topic of this unit's sweet special project. 

Besides traditional food, the UK and the USA offer a wide range of good international food, due to the high presence of foreign people living in these countries. Their multicultural nature results in good authentic food from all over the world: Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Mexican, etc. Indian food, for instance, has become so immersed in the British life that people even speak of English curry which, apparently, is different from Indian curry. Something similar has happened with Mexican food in the USA, giving way to the creation of Tex-Mex style (meaning Texan-Mexican), of pure American origin.

This is an interesting link about that topic:
http://www.lifeintheusa.com/food/texmex.htm

See you in class!