Focousing on writing

Email Writing Skills 

EUROPEAN COLLABORATION.PROJECTS ONLINE

PRESENTATION:
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1YNRpybLrmOLereFpdOTW1taxSxubIai6PCU-hokmd1c/edit?usp=sharing

ETWINNING:
https://twinspace.etwinning.net/45660/pages/page/291018

https://es.surveymonkey.com/r/W98WPWW


TIME TO CHOOSE THE BEST OPTION. THE SHORT LIST WITH THE MOST VOTED IMAGES WILL GO FOR THE RUN-UP EUROPEAN CONTEST AND MAY BECOME THE OFFICIAL LOGO OF THE ETWINNING PROJECT "I FEEL VERY EUROPEAN TODAY". THANKS TO ALL THE CONTRIBUTORS AND GOOD LUCK FOR EVERYONE. IT´S YOUR TURN.

http://our-european-super-meal.de/?page_id=57

Useful info

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http://www.educantabria.es/informacion/anuncios-y-convocatorias/212-anuncios-y-convocatorias-principal/39717632-programa-becas-usa-2018.html

Programa de becas privado para que estudiantes de 4º ESO, 1º y 2º de Bachillerato estudien un curso escolar en Estados Unidos. Se premia el expediente académico del estudiante durante su último curso académico. Más información  Bases Programa Descargar  Manual | Descargar

Thanksgiving & Black Friday 2017

Test your knowledge of Thanksgiving history and tradition. 

1. Where did the Thanksgiving holiday originate? 
a. America
b. England
c. Ireland
d. Mexico
2. In 1621, Pilgrims at Plymouth Colony shared a harvest feast with which American Indian Tribe?
a. Chickasaw
b. Shoshone
c. Susquehanna
d. Wampanoag
3. What percentage of Americans eat turkey on Thanksgiving?
a. 39%
b. 50%
c. 88%
d. 99%
4. Where did turkeys originate?
a. Africa
b. Central Asia
c. North and Central America
d. Australia
5. In what city is the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade? 
a. New York City
b. Macy, Ind.
c. Macy, Neb.
d. Pasadena, CA
6. Which president proclaimed Thanksgiving Day an official national holiday?
a. Thomas Jefferson
b. Abraham Lincoln
c. Ulysses S. Grant
d. John F. Kennedy
7. Each year, the president receives a gift of a live turkey and then “pardons” the bird during a ceremony at the White House. What happens to the pardoned turkey? 
a. It is set free to live in the wild
b. It is served at the president’s Thanksgiving dinner
c. It lives the rest of its life on a farm
d. It is auctioned off to the highest bidder
8. For many Americans, football is as much a part of Thanksgiving as are turkey and pumpkin pie. An NFL game has been played on Thanksgiving Day since what year? 
a. 1920
b. 1930
c. 1940
d. 1950
9.The day after Thanksgiving typically is the busiest shopping day of the year. The day often is referred to as: 
a. Thanksgiving Friday
b. Black Friday
c. Casual Friday
d. Super Friday
10. Which dessert was not part of the first Thanksgiving celebration? 
a. Pumpkin pie
b. Apple cake
c. Pecan pie
d. All of the above

Adapted from https://www.ereadingworksheets.com/reading-comprehension-worksheets/nonfiction-reading-test-black-friday.rtf

Judging. Crimes and offences

Here are some of the sentences possible in an English court. 
_______________________________________________________

Community Service
You have to d a period (eg.100 hrs) of unpaid work  in hospitals/old people’s homes
Fines 
You pay money to the court
Probation 
You have to stay out of trouble. Once a week you visit a “probation officer”, who asks about your behavior
Suspended Prison
You don’t go to prison immediately, eg. “a six-month  sentence sentence suspended for one year” means if you behave well for one year, you are free. If you do something wrong, you go to prison for six months.
Prison 
You go for a fixed period (ranging from a very short Period to “life.”
Death Penalty:
A person is put to death by the state as a punishment for a crime.

Cases:

1. 8-year-old Miranda worked in a shoe-shop. She lost her job when she stole $92 from the shop.
2. Nigel is 38. He drank a bottle of wine and then drove home. He had a car accident and killed a 13-year-old boy.
3. Kevin, 15, was caught traveling on the train without a ticket. The correct ticket would have cost $1.75.
4. Stacey, aged 22, was caught selling marijuana at a disco. At her flat about 50 grams of the drug was found. (value/ around $250).
5. Dean, 17, broke the window of a new Mercedes and stole a mobile phone and four CD’s.
6. Samira is 32. She killed her husband wit a knife while he was asleep. He had been very cruel and violent with her for more than 10 years, and he often had girlfriends.
7. The accused is a prisoner of war. Your country has just defeated His. He was a pilot. He dropped an atom bomb on your tenth largest city, killing 200,000 people and injuring many more.
8. The accused is a doctor. He gave an overdose to an 85-year-old painter who had terminal cancer. The painter had asked for the overdose. The painter’s family accuse the doctor of murder.
9. The accused found her husband in their bed with another woman. She took the bread knife and killed him.
10. This man is a well-known leader of a radical organization. He was recently tried for possessing one marijuana cigarette and sentenced to ten years in prison. He is appealing the decision.
11. This factory owner is on trial for cruel and inhuman treatment. The workers in his factory had a sit-down strike to protest against low wages. The owner set rats loose in the factory. The workers killed all the rats and no one was hurt.
12. This woman was given thalidomide while she was pregnant. She gave birth to a baby without arms and legs. When it was two months old, she smothered it while it was sleeping.
13. These three teenage boys were having a fight with a fourth boy near a swimming pool. They threw him in the water and then stood on him till he drowned.
14. These five adults were sitting not far from the pool and watched the fight. They did nothing and are accused of complicity.

Writing: Organising ideas. Linking words

Telling stories is common in any language. Think of all the situations in which you might tell a story in everyday life:

• Talking about last weekend to a friend
• Giving details about something that happened during a job interview
• Relating information about your family to your children
• Telling colleagues about what happened on a business trip

In each of these situations - and many others - you provide information about something that happened in the past.

In order to help your audience understand, you need to link these ideas together. One of the most important ways to link ideas is to sequence them. Read this example paragraph to get the gist:

A CONFERENCE IN CHICAGO

Last week I visited Chicago to attend a business conference. While I was there, I decided to visit the Art Institute of Chicago. To start off with, my flight was delayed. Next, the airline lost my luggage, so I had to wait for two hours at the airport while they tracked it down. Unexpectedly, the luggage had been set aside and forgotten. As soon as they found my luggage, I found a taxi and rode into town. During the ride into town, the driver told me about his last visit to the Art Institute. After I had arrived safely, everything began to go smoothly. The business conference was very interesting, and I enjoyed my visit to the Art Institute a lot. Finally, I caught my flight back to Seattle.

Luckily, everything went smoothly. I arrived home just in time to kiss my daughter good night. 

LEARN MORE ABOUT SEQUENCING

Sequencing refers to the order in which events happened. These are some of the most common ways to sequence in writing or speaking:

BEGINNING YOUR STORY

Make the beginning of your story with these expressions.

Make sure to use a comma after the introductory phrase.

First of all,
To start off with,
Initially,
To begin with, 

To begin with, I began my education in London.
First of all, I opened the cupboard.
To start off with, we decided our destination was New York.
Initially, I thought it was a bad idea, ...

CONTINUING THE STORY

You can continue the story with this expressions, or use a time clause beginning with "as soon as", or "after", etc. When using a time clause, use the past simple after the time expression. 

Then,
After that,
Next,
As soon as / When + full clause,
... but then
Immediately,

Then, I started to get worried.
After that, we knew that there would be no problem!
Next, we decided on our strategy.
As soon as we arrived, we unpacked our bags.
We were sure everything was ready, but then we discovered some unexpected problems.
Immediately, I telephoned my friend Tom.

INTERRUPTIONS  AND ADDING NEW ELEMENTS TO THE STORY

You can use the following expressions to add suspense to your story.

Suddenly,
Unexpectedly,

Suddenly, a child burst into the room with a note for Ms. Smith.
Unexpectedly, the people in the room didn't agree with the mayor.

SPEAKING ABOUT EVENTS OCCURRING AT THE SAME TIME

The use of "while" and "as" introduce a dependent clause and require an independent clause to complete your sentence.

"During" is used with a noun, noun phrase, or noun clause and does not require a subject and object. 

While / As + S + V, + Independent Clause OR Independent Clause + While / As + S + V

While I was giving the presentation, a member of the audience asked an interesting question.
Jennifer told her story as I prepared dinner. 

During + noun (noun clause)

During the meeting, Jack came over and asked me a few questions.
We explored a number of approaches during the presentation. 

ENDING THE STORY

Mark the end of your story with these introductory phrases.

Finally,
In the end,
Eventually,

Finally, I flew to London for my meeting with Jack.
In the end, he decided to postpone the project.
Eventually, we became tired and returned home.

When you tell stories you will also need to give reasons for actions. Here is some help with linking your ideas, and providing reasons for your actions that will help your understand.

Reading and Listening. Sleeping is good !!!

TED LESSONS; 3:30-minute video. B2 / B1+ .

STUDENT’S VERSION

How getting more sleep could boost your salary

        Sleep has become a big deal in working life. Sleeping is no longer seen as a sign of weakness among competitive colleagues. Apple introduced a Night Shift feature on its devices earlier this year, as consumers recognised that stimuli such as your screen’s backlight can affect your sleep quality.

          Research shows that more sleep can lead to us earning more money. A US study has found that in areas where the sun sets earlier, people sleep for longer – and this translates into higher earnings. In the long term, just one extra hour of sleep a week increases wages by 4.9%. So if you live in an area that gets darker earlier, you should be richer. But don’t move house just yet – the higher wages correspond almost exactly with inflated house prices. As Jeffrey Shrader, one of the authors of the study, puts it: “If you want to sleep more, there are better ways to do it than moving house – just buy better curtains.”

         This goes against conventional economics. Each extra hour of sleep should be taken away from working time. So how can sleeping earn you money? The answer is productivity. “The biggest effects come through employees who work on commission,” says Shrader. “If you go to work well rested, you are livelier and happier, and can sell more to increase your earnings.”

       Even small amounts of sleep deprivation can have large effects. Another study found that sleeping six hours a night for two weeks produced the same results in cognitive tests as being totally sleep-deprived for up to two days straight. But a mid-afternoon nap can help. “Naps are great,” says sleep psychologist Dr Hans Van Dongen. If you struggle to get eight hours of sleep a night, a siesta can have a “reset” effect, and your productivity improves afterwards. “Roughly speaking, an hour’s nap can make up for an hour in lost sleep at night.”

       So, the introduction of nap pods at Google’s headquarters does have some science behind it. Although once you start sleeping at work, what is the point in going home at all? Even short naps of up to half an hour can partially offset the productivity lost from chronic sleep deprivation. You snooze, you win.

          But the most important workplace revolution would be much more flexible hours. Most of us fall into two broad “chronotype” categories: morning and evening types. Rigidly early start times at work are fine for larks, but a third of us are night owls, who are likely to earn up to 5% less as a result of being tired at work.

     Lack of sleep has already been shown to be worse for productivity than being overweight or underweight. So, why are you still reading this? You should go back to bed.

Question 1: [2,5 POINTS] Indicate whether the following statements are true or false and write down which part of the text justifies your answer.

a)     The best way to get more sleep is to move to a new home.

b)     Sleeping more makes employees produce more.

c)     The less you sleep at night, the longer you need to sleep during the day to get the same effect.

d)     Google is about to introduce places in their offices for the workers to have a nap.

e)     You may earn less if you are a nocturnal person.

Question 2: [1,5 POINTS] Find words or phrases in the text that correspond to the words   and definitions given.

a)     characteristic (par.1)

b)     salary (par.2)

c)     to remove (par.3)

d)     to make better (par.4)

e)     to recompense (par.5)

Question 3: [2 POINTS] Choose the most suitable answer (a, b or c) according to the text

1.     You sleeping quality…

a)     affects your colleagues at work.

b)     is said to be related to being overweighted..

c)     is affected by how you use technology at night.

2.     Productivity is linked to….

a)     mainly to your weight.

b)     only to sleeping

c)     both your sleep and your weight. 

3.     In places where it gets dark earlier….

a)     people sleep more hours.

b)     houses are cheaper.

c)     you’d better use curtains. 

4.     Working shifts….

a)     Are more tiring for workers.

b)     are the change needed.

c)     are only for nocturnal people.