Darwin Bicentenary

"In the long history of humankind (and animal kind, too) those who learned to collaborate and improvise most effectively have prevailed."

Darwin Bicentenary.
Let´s practice translation into Spanish!!!
In our 3º ESO classes we are working on several projects as a Celebration of the Bicentenary of Darwin’s birth, jointly with the Departments of Science and Biology.
Within these projects and with the aim to improve your English learning, here you have an activity in which you will have to translate into Spanish several of the better-known quotations by this great, wise scientist.

Individual or group activity:
Translate into Spanish, at least five of them at your own choice, the following quotes:
Compulsory Translations for Everybody!!!:

A.- "In the long history of humankind (and animal kind, too) those who learned to collaborate and improvise most effectively have prevailed."

B.- "It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change."

Additional quotations (choose five of them):

1.- "A man who dares to waste one hour of time has not discovered the value of life."

2.-" I have tried lately to read Shakespeare, and found it so intolerably dull that it nauseated me."

3.-"A man's friendships are one of the best measures of his worth".

4.-"A moral being is one who is capable of reflecting on his past actions and their motives - of approving of some and disapproving of others."

5.-"A scientific man ought to have no wishes, no affections, - a mere heart of stone."

6.-"I love fools' experiments. I am always making them."

7.-"If the misery of the poor be caused not by the laws of nature, but by our institutions, great is our sin."

8.-"Ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge: it is those who know little, and not those who know much, who so positively assert that this or that problem will never be solved by science.

9.-"Man is descended from a hairy, tailed quadruped, probably arboreal in its habits."

10.- "We can allow satellites, planets, suns, universe, nay whole systems of universes, to be governed by laws, but the smallest insect, we wish to be created at once by special act."

April's Fools Day

"Los Santos Inocentes Day" is getting closer in the United Kingdom.
In this activity I encourage you to find out about April Fool´s Day and "Los Santos Inocentes" celebrations.
In both countries there is a date when traditionally it is acceptable to play jokes and tricks on other people. The dates on both countries are different. Come on! Try to find the correct answers to the following questions.


1. When does April Fool's Day or All Fool's Day occur annually in the United Kingdom? And in
Spain?
2. How is the victim of a joke known in Britain? And in Spain?
3. How do you translate "hoax" into Spanish?
4. Are the origins of April Fool´s Day certain?
5. In which century did the English give April Fool's Day its first widespread celebration?
6. How is April Fool's Day known in France? Which prank do they usually play on their schoolmates? And in Spain? Are their victims called "Poisson d'Avril"?
7. Which is the favourite April fool's joke or prank in Scotland? Why? How is April Fools' day called in Scotland?
8. Whom was the Gregorian Calendar named after and when was it introduced?

The following links will be helpful to find some answers:
http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/customs/year/april.htm
http://www3.kumc.edu/diversity/other/aprlfool.html
http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santos_Inocentes
http://www.infoplease.com/spot/aprilfools1.html
http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/society/A0804428.html
http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/hoax/aprilfool/
http://familyfun.go.com/arts-and-crafts/season/feature/aprilfools-pranks-main-ms/

Bilingual dictionary:
http://www.wordreference.com/

English monolingual dictionary:
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/

Share with us any trick you have suffered ...or a trick you would like to play on a friend!!!
You may answer in Spanish or in English, and we will work on them in class.

Let's check if you are a Friend of the Earth

This time I suggest you to carry out this easy quiz to check by yourself if you respect the environment.

After completing it, please comment on ways you can improve your relationship with it.

Are you a Friend of the Earth?
Let´s check it with this quiz game.

1.- Do you turn off lights and heaters when no one is using them?
a. Yes, always.
b. Sometimes.
c. I don´t usually think about it.

2.- Do you turn on the heaters when it´s a bit cold?
a. Yes, quite often.
b. Sometimes.
c. No, never.

3.- How often do you go by car when it is possible to walk?
a. Very often.
b. Ocassionally.
c. Never.

4.- How do you store food in the fridge?
a. In plastic boxes or bottles that I use again.
b. In paper or plastic bags that I throw away.

5.- Do you ever throw garbage down the toilet?
a. Never. What a terrible thought!
b. Sometimes.
c. Often.

6.- How often do you use just one side of a piece of paper?
a. Never.
b. Sometimes.
c. Often.

7.- How often do you use just one side of a piece of paper?
a. Never.
b. Sometimes.
c. Always.

8.- When you go shopping, do you take your own bag with you?
a. Yes, always.
b. Sometimes.
c. Never. All shops give you a free bag.

9. When you go to the beach, do you take shells or plants?
a. Never.
b. Quite often.
c. Sometimes.

10. When you go to the countryside, mountains or forests, do you pick any flowers, berries or mushrooms?
a. Sometimes.
b. Often.
c. Never.

11. When you go to the countryside, do you stay on the paths?
a. Yes, always.
b. Most of the time, if it is possible.
c. No.

12. Are you a member of an environmental group?
a. Yes.
b. No.

…What do you think? Are you concerned about environmental issues or not at all?
Follow these tips in your everyday life and you will improve your friendship with the Earth!!!

(P. S.: If you have any problem with the vocabulary, do not hesitate and ask me)

Your environmental tips would be:

1.-
2.-
3.-

Introduction

Hi,
My name is Pilar Candela and I´ve been teching English for twenty years at IES Julio Baroja in Fuenlabrada .

The aim of this space is to encourage our students to improve their language skills and having a fun time at the same time.

It could also become a tool to allow the exchange of their opinions about the issues they are interested in, bearing in mind they always have to be related to their academic tasks and interests.

The contents of this blog will be chosen to facilitate the knowledge of relevant aspects of the English culture by our students through the use of texts, images, links, videos, opinions, commentaries and above all, interactive activities.

Let´s hope you´ll take part and make it a live and fun place.