Unit 11 - Save Our Planet!

Nowadays, everyone's aware of the importance of protecting the environment, there's a general feeling in all of us telling us we've been doing wrong all this time and we couldn't just keep treating our planet like that. However, lately, we've been feeling the consequences of all we've done this time, and it seems there's no turning back. All over the world, there have been great weather changes: longer summers, more extreme temperatures, violent nature phenomena, etc. The Earth is behaving in a way it never did before, like warning us we've been doing quite a lot of harm to it. 

Scientists all over the world have come to the conclusion those big weather changes are occurring because of a phenomenon known as global warming, caused by the greenhouse effect. Because of the great amount of pollution thrown into the air, we've turned the atmosphere in a sort of greenhouse ceiling, keeping the world's temperature warm and not letting it breathe. This is not good for nature, since, as it occurs with real greenhouses, life cycles are distorted and growing rythms accelerate. As a consequence, plants are starting to grow in different seasons as they were, creating great confusion in animals. Also, because the world's temperature is getting hotter and hotter, the poles are melting quickly, changing animals' environment and making the oceans contain more water.

If this dangerous situation continues, and the poles keep melting, oceans can overflow, and floods would sink islands and cities by the sea. This is not a legend or an exaggeration, it's something it's already happening, and it'll get worse if we don't act. Global warming has been ignored by governments before, which kept allowing factories to produce all toxic gases they wanted. However, a documentary made by American former vice-president Al Gore showed us all what was really happening. This documentary is called An Inconvenient Truth, and it proves how governments knew about this phenomenon, but preferred to hide it, because causing pollution was just making them richer and richer. This documentary was awarded with two Oscars in 2006. If you haven't watched it yet, check it out, it's worth it a look. 11 years later, Al Gore presented the second part, called An Inconvenient Sequel, and this is an interview in which he explains why he decided to make a sequel:

An Inconvenient Sequel - Truth to Power

What do you think of global warming? Do you think governments are doing enough to fight against it? Do you think we can solve this problem or it just can't be undone? As always, feel free to make any comments on our Google Classroom group.

See you and be nice to our planet!

Unit 10 - Self-assessment...and extra tips

Now, it's time to check what you've learned this unit. Tick all statements that are true for you.

• I can contrast past events using different tenses (Simple and Continuous)
• I can write a mystery and crime short story
• I'm aware of some intonation variations in English
• I can use vocabulary of crime in my conversations
• I know about British famous mystery and crime writers and novels

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

See you in class!

Unit 10 - British mystery and crime (2)

There's another famous British character related to the world of mystery, Agent 007, Bond...James Bond. First, a a book saga written by Ian Fleming and, then, a series of successful movies. James Bond is secret agent working for MI6, the British Secret Service, always at the service of Her Majesty the Queen. This character has been played by different actors along the years, for example, Sean Connery, Roger Moore, Pierce Brosnan and, the most recent one, Daniel Craig (picture above)

If you're a James Bond's fan and would like to know more about this popular character, click on its official website:

007

An important element in James Bond films is soundtrack, always performed by popular singers. In class, we listened to one of them, Skyfall, by Adele, from the movie Skyfall, where Spanish actor Javier Bardem plays the evil villain. Would you like to listen to the song and sing long?

Adele - Skyfall

Great song and great voice, don't you think? See you in class!

Unit 10 - British mystery and crime (1)

One of the many literary genres available is mystery and crime. These stories normally focus on a murder and the investigation to find out who the murderer is. Along history, the British have proved to master these type of literature, and there are many mystery and crime stories which have been written by authors from the UK.

- Sherlock Holmes: There is probably no one in the world who hasn't heard of this English detective. This Londoner, who lives on Baker St, is famous for smoking his pipe, looking through his magnifying glass and, above all, resolving crimes together with his friend and faithful helper, Dr. Watson. Holmes is the main character of a series of novels and short stories written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle around late 19th c. and early 20th c. Sherlock Holmes became such a powerful character at that time that Doyle started to feel jealous of his own creation, and decided to kill him in one of his stories, to keep on writing about something else. However, Holmes fans complained after his unexpected death and criticised Doyle for his decision. Then, the writer decided to bring his famous character back to life in his next story, understanding no one could ever kill Sherlock Holmes, not even his creator. Today, Sherlock Holmes is a universal character, probably the best known detective in the whole world. The book to you have read on the holidays is actually a compilation of several Sherlock Holmes stories, which I'm sure you enjoyed.

- Agatha Christie: Known as the Queen of Crime, this prolific English author wrote mystery and crime stories almost along 3 entire quarters of 20th century. No wonder why she was labelled as the Queen of Crime! Her stories are unique, with such degree of suspense and mystery that they keep you hooked on them until you finish reading and find out who the murderer was. They're also easy to read, since they tend to follow the same pattern: a murder, an investigator looking for clues and, finally, a shocking discovery of who committed the murder, normally the person no one could ever suspect of. There are two famous characters in Christie's novels: Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple, who always end up resolving the crimes. They were quite different from each other, since while Poirot was a proud Belgian detective, Marple was an apparently fragile elderly lady, but so clever that she could resolve any crime, surprising all characters in the story, including the police. The most famous works by Agatha Christie are Murder on the Orient Express, Death on the Nile and Ten Little Niggers.

If you'd like to know more about Agatha Christie, click on this link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agatha_Christie

By the way, have you watched the BBC series Sherlock? It's a modern reinvention of Sherlock Holmes stories and it's been a huge success all over the world. I'd like you to watch the video a this girl speaking about the series and then, I'll ask you a few questions:

10 Reasons to watch BBC Sherlock

Now, if you haven't watched the series, would you like to watch it? Why/why not? Why don't you try watching it in English with subtitles? Did you find any crime vocabulary on the previous video? You can ask all these questions on our Google Classroom group.

See you in class!

Unit 10 - Read! Read! Read!

Do you enjoy reading? It's an activity we just can't live without nowadays. We read signs on the streets, cooking recipes, ingredients on food packages. etc. That is reading for information and everyone needs to do it. But what about reading for pleasure? Reading literature is a very recommendable activity. It allows you to be part of a story, another world that came from the writer's mind. Reading can make your imagination fly to other places you could have never imagined and discover things you never knew. Reading can make you laugh, cry, fear, hate and love. And all this can be done while you're sitting down on your sofa, or lying on your bed. 

Reading is also a fantastic way of learning things. By reading, we can learn about history, science, geography, art, and many other topics. If you read in another language, as it's our case, reading makes you learn new vocabulary and expand your knowledge in that language. That's why it's important for you to read several books throughout this course. During the holidays, it would a good idea to read the second term book: Sherlock Holmes Stories, by Arthur Conan Doyle.

What do you know about English literature? I'm sure you could mention Shakespeare, Oscar Wilde and many other authors, couldn't you? But what about contemporary literature? There are many successful English-speaking writers nowadays, creating book sagas sold all over the world. We'll give the examples of two women writers:

- J.K. Rowling: This British writer is the author of the Harry Potter book saga, a series of best-selling books also turned into several blockbuster films. The books tell the story of a young boy and his adventures at school of witchcraft and wizardry.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Potter

- Stephenie Meyer: This American writer is the author of the Twilight saga, also best-seller books later made into blockbuster films. These books tell the love story of a vampire and human girl, and the difficulties they need to overcome.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twilight_(novel_series)

Have you read any Harry Potter or Twilight books? Have you seen the films? What kind of book do you like reading? As you know, you can make any comments on our Google Classroom group. In following posts, we'll be talking about mystery and crime. You can't miss it!

See you in class

Unit 9 - It's springtime!

Are you enjoying your holidays? I hope you are, but also that you don't forget to practise your English!

This new season that recently started, spring, is the season of joy and happiness, of renewance after a long cold winter. Therefore, many people have special celebrations in this time of the year. In Andalucia (Spain), people celebrate the Holy Week and several festivals (ferias), and, in the English-speaking countries, they also have their own festivals. These are the most famous ones:

- Easter: Originally, this is the celebration of the resurrection of Christ, and that's the main reason why it's celebrated in other countries, like Spain. However, in Anglo-Saxon countries, like the UK and the USA, Easter has become less religious and it's celebrated by both Christian and non-Christian people. In these countries, Easter is one of children's favourite holidays, because of symbols like Easter Bunny and Easter eggs, and the special games they do on this day. On Easter Sunday morning, American and British children wake up and find baskets filled with presents and candy for them, left by Easter Bunny. Later, in the afternoon, the whole family get together and have an Easter dinner, a big meal with a lot of delicious food. After that, they decorate hard-boiled eggs altogether. First, they dye them in coloured water, and then they paint them using brushes. After having coloured them, it's time for fun! Easter Bunny comes (without being seen by the children) and hides the eggs in the family's garden. Then, the children have to do an egg hunt, which means they have to find the hidden eggs. If they find the special golden egg, they'll get a prize!

If you'd like to know more about Easter traditions, click on this link:
http://festivals.iloveindia.com/easter/traditions/easter-in-usa.html

- Spring Break: Right now, here in Spain, we're having a holiday, in which people commemorate the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. In the UK and the USA, they also have a holiday around this date, but for less religious reasons. They call it Spring Break, and students have no school during about a week or so. Unlike our holidays, Spring Break might not coincide with Easter, it's merely a celebration of springtime. Many people decide to go on vacation for Spring Break, since the weather is starting to get nicer. This is the case of many American university students, whose Spring Break parties have become internationally famous. These beach parties are full of fun, dancing, drinking, and craziness! Students are celebrating they just finished their first semester and won't have to think of exams for a while!

- Parades: Other springtime celebrations include street parades, some of them done during Easter time, and some others before. This is the case of Mardi Gras, the famous parade they do in New Orleans, USA, on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. Mardi Gras is a carnival, so people traditionally wear costumes and masks. Everyone watches the street parades, full of colour and jazz music, a music style originated in New Orleans area. It's also a lucky day for getting married, so many couples decide to tie the knot on this day!

If you'd like to know about the origins of Mardi Gras, click on this link:
http://www.history.com/topics/mardi-gras

Enjoy the rest of your holidays and see you next week in class!

Unit 9 - Self-assessment

We reached the end of Unit 9 and now it's time to check what you've learned. Tick all statements that are true for you.

• I can express obligation and necessity
• I can advise and ask for advice
• I can order at a clothes shop
• I can write an argumentative text
• I can distinguish between main and supporting ideas in a text
• I know about shopping streets in London and NYC
• I'm aware of silent letters, so I don't pronounce them
   

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

Unit 9 - Shop 'til you drop!

Shopping is a pleasure for many people and a torture for many others. Those who love shopping and can't stop buying and buying are called colloquially known as shopaholics, since they have almost an addiction to shopping. Other people, however, just shop for what's really necessary and spend their money on something else.

Let's analyse two different streets for different types of shoppers:
- Oxford Street (London)

This street is famous for all types of shopping. You can find clothes, electronics, books, food, souvenirs, etc. It's not the place in London to find expensive designer clothes, such as Versace or Armani, but rather more affordable shops, like Zara, H&M or Adidas. This is also the favourite shopping venue for tourists and foreign students, since they can buy all kinds of London low-price souvenirs. Therefore, if you travel to London, don't miss Oxford St!

- 5th Avenue (New York)

People who shop at 5th Ave have a totally different idea from the ones who go to Oxford St. In this avenue, you can find the finest and most exclusive designer clothes and complements. Versace, Gucci, Prada, Armani, Christian Dior, Chanel, Carolina Herrera, Tiffany's, Manolo Blahnik, etc. They're all in here! 5th Ave shoppers can afford buying what those shops offer them, and therefore they spend great amounts of money in their favourite handbags, jewels, shoes, suits or cocktail dresses, for instance.

However, in the age of technology, streets are not the only place where we can go shopping, since more and more people prefer shopping online, and the most famous clothes shops (Zara, Mango, H&M...) have their own websites and phone apps, where we can easily buy anything we want without leaving home.

Shopping and fashion is also very present in films and TV. One of the clearest examples is Sex and the City, a popular TV series in the late 90's and early 2000's. This show was mainly about the love stories of 4 friends living in NYC. However, with the pass of time, the audience started to pay special attention on the clothes the characters were wearing. Designers saw this, and started to advertise themselves in the show, having the characters wear their clothes and shop in their stores. This show contributed, for instance, to the big international success of the Spanish shoemaker Manolo Blahnik, since its protagonist, Carrie Bradshaw (played by Sarah Jessica Parker), loved his shoes and wore them all the time. The series was so successful that they also made a movie in 2008 and a sequel in 2010. Now, watch the trailer of the first movie and then I'll ask you a few questions:

Sex and the city (The Movie)

What elements of fashion could you see in these videos? Do you feel reflected in those characters because of their relationship with fashion or are you totally opposite? Do you prefer traditional shopping or shopping online? Feel free to give your opinions on our Google Classroom group.

See you in class!

Unit 9 - Fashion Trends

Once shops have learned all new trends and bought those clothes that are supposed to be fashionable at the moment, how do they convince the general public of acquiring those clothes? 

This is mainly done through media. There's nothing more powerful than an image, and both designers and retailers know that. There are two kinds of advertising: direct and indirect. With indirect advertising we mean how designers use celebrities to show their clothes, so that people who admire them wish to wear like them. This is done in premieres, important events or through social media, like Instagram. Lately, there's even been a new phenomenon of people who were not initially famous but have become celebrities because of the number of followers they have on this kind of media. They're known as influencers and fashion industry has realised how important they are, especially to reach the young public, so they're letting them borrow their clothes and accesories as a way to advertise them on Instagram or YouTube, for instance.

Influencers 

Direct advertising is the one done through commercials on TV and magazines. There are many magazines specialised in fashion, showing fashion icons on their covers (like Sarah Jessica Parker above) and advising people what they should or shouldn't wear (also on the cover above).

Many of these publications were founded in the USA, and then spread internationally, obtaining great success and prestige all over the world. Out of all originally American magazines available on the market, we've selected four. The first one on the list, Vogue, is considered by experts the most influential one in the world of fashion. If you click on these links, you can visit their official websites:

- Vogue
- Cosmopolitan
- Harper's Bazaar

Do you normally read any of these magazines or follow any influencers? Do they help you finding out what the latest fashion trends are? You can make any comments on our Google Classroom group.

See you in class!

Unit 9 - Are you "in" or "out"?

We're constantly reading or watching lists of the most and least elegant celebrities, of what's in and what's out (short forms for "in fashion" and "out of fashion"), but who decides what's fashionable and trendy?

First, it's designers. They create their fashion collections, sell them to the shops and, finally, they reach people who end up wearing them. But how do shops decide what clothes to buy and what's trendy? This is done, among other things, through Fashion Weeks. These are one-week-long events in which designers present their collections to their buyers and the media, through runways and other special promoting events. There are Fashion Weeks in every main in the city in the world, but there are four main ones: London, Paris, New York and Milan. As you have seen, two of the cities are in English-speaking countries, which highlights the importance of this language in the world of fashion, as well.

These are some links to videos of some runway shows in those Fashion Weeks:
Palomo Spain at NY Fashion Week
Fashion Week Plus Size

As you can see, times are changing, luckily, and fashion is lately reaching more and more different kinds of people and bodies.

There's another step in which these designs reach the public, but we'll be talking about that in our next post.

See you in class!