Spain in the News

Here´s a good listening comprehension exercise; watch this video and check how much you understand: you know everything about it since it is about the crowning of King Felipe VI so you know what to expect, and that, together with the images will make the listening understandable.

Anyway, just in case, here´s the transcript - both video and transcript have been taken from Newsy:

Jun 19, 2014

Can Spain's Felipe VI Restore Monarchy's Image?

(Image source: CBS)

BY ERIK SHUTE

​Even amid a shocking World Cup elimination, the streets of Madrid had something to cheer about Thursday as Spain crowned a new king.

"There are ceremonies to mark a new king of Spain. King Felipe VI was formally sworn in. The ceremony was low-key. His father, Juan Carlos, abdicated the throne at age 76." (Via WABC)

The 46-year-old king takes the throne at a time when the Spanish monarchy's ratings are at their lowest point. The country faces a double-dip recession and unemployment rates reaching 26 percent. (Via Flickr / Richter Frank-Jurgen)

The king's father, former King Juan Carlos I, ruled for more than 40 years but announced his abdication three weeks ago. He's credited with bringing democracy to Spain but also sinking the monarchy's reputation with a luxury lifestyle and no transparency. (Via Euronews, Flickr / Pedro de Matos)

While speaking to the Spanish Parliament, Felipe VI urged for a united nation. The Washington Post quotes him speaking to lawmakers:

"Today, more than ever, the people rightly demand our public lives be guided by ... moral and ethical principles."

In response to the speech, BBC News added: "But this cannot be business as usual for the Spanish monarchy, and the new king seems to accept that. Now, he has to deliver on his promise."

Many in the media pointed out the normally extravagant ceremonies now depicted a humble beginning Thursday. CBS noted they seemed deliberately simple to downplay the monarchy's grandiose image.

Standing at Felipe's side through each reception was his wife, Queen Letizia Ortiz. "Good Morning America" explains her marriage is a true Cinderella story and similar to another famous royal couple.

"She's a blue-collar beauty and he a blue-blood prince educated at Georgetown. … Her middle-class background has many comparing her to another famous royal, and like Kate, she's quickly becoming a fashion icon." (Via ABC)

Headlines have dubbed her the "middle-class Queen," and others drew comparisons to Prince William's wife, Kate Middleton. (Via CTV, The Globe and Mail)

As the ceremonies finish, the royal family will write their own history with some uncertainty.

In a recent poll by Spanish newspaper El Pais, crowning Felipe boosted the popularity of the royals. However, nearly two-thirds of Spanish citizens also support the idea of a referendum on whether Spain should continue to be a constitutional monarchy.

The World Cup

The World Cup, promoted by FIFA, starts tomorrow bout I am sure you have heard about the protests against it in Brazil. 

The video below - by Brazilian director Carla Dauden - was the origin of the protests; in the video, Carla explains why she said she was not going to the world cup.

 

Some time after that first video, Carla shared a new one where she gave some reasons why you could change your mind and still go to the world cup; this video is called "Yes, you can still go to the world cup, if…"

Now it is up to you to decide, can people still go to the world cup?

Drawbacks of Social Networks

Think twice before posting news about you on Facebook or other social networks, or else something like this may happen:

 

It´s too easy to convince a stranger that you are an old friend, isn´t it? That´s scary!

No Tobacco Day 2014

Tomorrow is May 31st, No Tobacco Day; the theme of this year´s celebration is "Raise taxes on tobacco". Do you think it is likely to work? Why (not)?

The Meaning of "Elegance"

What does "being elegant" mean to you? Is it something important in your life? Watch this video and check if your opinion agrees with the meaning of "elegance" shown there (languages in the video: English and french)

 

Read the explanation that comes with this short documentary, do you agree with it?

In this documentary we illustrate the brightly coloured and social affairs that bring the 'Sapeurs' together. Their bold choice to live an unexpected lifestyle is a source of celebrated originality and positivity. Their life is not defined by occupation or wealth, but by respect, a moral code and an inspirational display of flair and creativity. The Sapeurs show us that whilst in life you cannot always choose your circumstances, you can always choose who you are. 

Share your thoughts!

Reasons to Study Languages

A couple of years ago, Alex Rawlings won a national competition to find the UK´s most multi-lingual student; he is 20-something now and speaks eleven languages.

Watch the video and reflect on this question, how and why did Alex learn all those languages? When learning a language, do you use any of the strategies he mentions?

If you want to imitate Alex, here´s a video which tells you how to learn a language in ten days

Physics in Everyday Life

Here is an interesting video for you to practise your listening comprehension skills while you learn some everyday physics.

Roger Bowley is a retired professor from the University of Nottingham (UK). In this video he explains how to unlock a car from various distances, using waves from his key, brain and a big bottle of water.

Methodology: 

1. Before watching the video, think about the topic and imagine the kind of vocabulary you will be hearing
2. Since many words in physics come from Latin, they are very similar to the Spanish ones so you will have no problem in understanding them. Here is a list of words you will hear; how many of them do you understand? Do not look them up, just read them aloud. Use a pronunciation tool, if you need it

• central locking device
• press a button
• to flash (the lights flash)
• electromagnetic waves
• frequency
• MHz= megahertz
• wavelength
• range
• signal
• extend (extend the range)
• pace
• water molecule
• electric field
• proton
• upwards and downwards
• oscillate
• ray
• synchronization
• phase

    3. Watch the video and listen for those words; once you hear them in context, you will understand their meaning. You may watch the video once for general understanding and the second time for listening comprehension: write the list of words on your notebook and tick them when you hear them.

Put this experiment into practice next time your parents park your car in a large parking lot. Let me know if it works!

Sophie´s World, the Movie

Sophie´s World  is a book written by a Norwegian philosophy teacher called Jostein Gardner; it presents philosophical ideas and the history of philosophy in the form of a story, from ancient Greece, over the Roman empire, the Middle ages, the renaissance, the enlightenment, the big revolutions and up to today. 

I think this book is a must for all BAC students so here you are:

Sophie´s World, free pdf in English, click here

El mundo de Sofía, free pdf (in Spanish), click here

And here is the film - original version in Norwegian with subtitles in English. 

I would read the book first and watch the film afterwards, but that is just a suggestion...

"Hurricane" Carter

Rubin Carter, known as Hurricane Carter, died yesterday at the age of 76. He was an American middleweight boxer who spent almost 20 years in prison after being convicted of a murder he had not committed. HIs life was depicted in both a film and a song.

Bob Dylan believed that Carter was innocent and wrote the song "Hurricane". Listen to it and read the lyrics as you watch the video. Afterwards, write Carter´s biography, from your point of view, according to your interpretation of the song. Remember to include the answers to the 5 wh- questions: who? when? where? what? why?

The film "The Hurricane" focuses on Carter´s unfair incarceration and on the people who helped to set him free. Denzel Washington got an Oscar nomination for this film - and should have got it, in my view...

Stockholm

This is a video dedicated to all the students at our school who have been to Sweden as exchange students and to those who are leaving for Stockholm soon.

Charlie Caper is a magician who makes a play on these words," the magic of Stockholm" - watch the video  and you will understand why; besides, you will learn a lot of facts and statistics about Stockholm and Sweden.

 

To The Dance Lovers Out There

The video below, shot on the streets and rooftops in LA, is actually a commercial that advertises a brand name of jeans and cut-offs (definition from Urban Dictionary:"Cut offs" or "cut off jeans" are the names that are given to jeans that have been cut, usually D.I.Y, into shorts. They can be loose or they can be tight,and the length of the cut offs generally does not go past the knee. They can be worn by both guys and girls and typically are made from old pairs of jeans or jeans bought from a second hand clothing store.)

Could you describe one or two types of dances? It is not easy! This vocabulary may come in handy: float like, spin like, wobble like, step, walk …

These are the types of dances shown:

A - Arabesque, Morgan Quinn 
B - B-girl, Bgirl Terra 
C - Chicken Noodle Soup, Terence Dickson 
D - Death Drop, Nick Lanzisera 
E - East Coast Swing, Yani Marin, Nathan Kim 
F - Finger Tut, John P-Nut Hunt 
G - Grand Jeté, Julia Cinquemani 
H - Harlem Shake, Amanda Meade-Tatum 
I - Indian Bhangra, Reshma Gajjar 
J - Jump Style, Høps 
K - Krump, Jigsaw 
L - Liquid Dance, Phillip 'Pacman' Chbeeb 
M - Memphis Jookin, Lil Buck 
N - Northern Soul, Levanna McLean 
O - OMG, Anthony 'Lil' Bob' Cabaero 
P - Pole, Nicole 'The Pole' Williams 
Q - Questionable, Reid Shapiro 
R - Rumba, Junior and Emily Alabi 
S - Step, Soul Steps: Dionne Norton, Heather DeLeon, Maxine Lyle
T - Twerk, Twerk Team: Lady Luscious, Mizz Twerksum 
U - Ultimate, Shofu Tha Beatdown 
V - Vogue Hands, Javier Madrid of Legendary House of Ninja 
W - Whine, Colleen Craig 
X - X-press Yourself, Ryan Heffington 
Y - YMCA, Allison Chu at Next Models LA 
Z - TurF FeinZ: Byron Vincent Sanders Jr aka T7, Donald Brooks aka Torch, Eric Bossett aka Kidd Strobe, Gary Morgan aka Noh-justice, Leon M Williams aka Mann, Rayshawn Thompson aka Looney2smooth

Start the Weekend With a Smile

This is said to be a real story: a waitress receives extraordinary tips, which, in fact, are part of a plan to thank her for her previous actions and help her have the "best shift* ever". Click here to read more about it

* shift= a person's scheduled period of work, esp. at a place of employment operating continuously during the day and night.

Do some speaking practice: tell this story aloud; include as many details as possible and remember to answer the 5 wh- questions: who? when? where? what? why?

What do you think about this story? Who do you think feels happier, the person who gives or the person who receives?

Left- handers

Let´s learn a thing about left-handedness; common questions about left-handedness:

When you watch the following video, you will understand why it is hard to be a lefty - the world isn´t designed for lefties.

Ten curious facts about being a left-hander

Ted Talk: Lizzie Velasquez

Here is an inspiring talk about the importance of believing in oneself; the speaker is Lizzie Velasquez, an American woman whose extremely rare medical condition has led her to become a motivational speaker.

Read the introduction of her talk at Ted Talks: 

In a time when beauty is defined by supermodels, success is defined by wealth, and fame is deified by how many followers you have on social media, Lizzie Velasquez asks the question, `how do you define yourself?´ Once labeled, "The World´s Ugliest Woman," Lizzie decided to turn things around and create her own definitions of what she defines as beauty and happiness.

I am afraid the captions are automatic so there are quite a few mistakes but they may be helpful, anyway - listening practice: try to find the mistakes in the subtitles.

What lessons have you learned from this talk? Do you think it is a motivational one? How does it help people to see life from a different perspective?

Vocabulary Learning

Learn some vocabulary (things invented in the USA) while you revise some geography (states in the US) to improve your general knowledge 

What Is Your Favourite Memory? (Homework Assignment 9))

What is your favorite memory?

The following video is a piece of a larger picture called Fifty People, One Question, by Benjamin Reece and Nathan Heleine. Fifty People, One Question is  a social experiment and film series exploring human connections through people and places. The project began in New Orleans in 2008; along the way it has managed to depict a slice of humanity: dreams, losses, reflections stories and secrets.

What is YOUR favorite memory?

Think about it and share it with us; consider the five questions to let us have a full picture of the situation: who? when? where? what? why?

If you could, would you photoshop any of your memories?

What Languages Sound Like

One of the weak points of Spanish students when speaking English is the oral part, they may pronounce the words correctly but the intonation and the "sound" of the language is not there and that is just what this girl from Finland has. She (she calls herself "Smoukahontas") speaks several languages in this video but, in fact, she is just imitating how they sound - everything she says is utter gibberish, in her words, i.e., all the sentences are fabrications made to sound like the actual languages. How did she manage to sound like a native - to foreign ears, at least? By listening to the original language a lot, I guess.

The Spanish and Portuguese parts are not the best, in my view, but it is a video worth watching.

If you want to speak English like a native, watch this video. For different posts related to pronunciation, click here.

Thanks to my colleague Fátima for the link!

As her first video became viral, she felt obliged to make the second one; here it is:

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Would you Give Up Your Jacket ?

Children in Syria are cold, give them a warm jacket:  this is the slogan of a social experiment set up by SOS Mayday, an action network which wants to raise awareness about the thousands of children suffering in Syria and to raise funds for SOS Children´s Villages, as part of their winter campaign. 

The experiment involved an 11-year-old boy who told people that his jacket had been stolen while sitting at a bus stop in Oslo, Norway. Watch the video to see how people reacted. 

What would you do? Do you think it is an effective campaign? Why (not)?

The Story Behind Lorde´s Song "Royals"

Where can you find inspiration for a song?

About a month ago, we "sang" (sort of…)  Lorde´s song Royals; today I would like to share with you the story behind that song - as it has been published in National Geographic News.

According to the magazine, Lorde wrote the song after seeing a National Geographic photo of Kansas City Royals player George Brett. This photo appeared in a July 1976 article about Kansas City. (Click here to read the entire piece of news).

And this is Lorde´s explanation: 

"I had this image from the National Geographic of this dude just signing baseballs. He was a baseball player and his shirt said 'Royals.'"

In the video below you can hear Lorde herself telling us about the first line she wrote for the song

Could you understand Lorde´s words? Here they are, just in case:

"One thing about words that people may not know is … Oh, gosh!I think the first line I wrote from that song was, ‘We’re driving Cadillacs in our dreams,’ which was in a diary that I had when I was like 11 or 12, so young.”

Food For Thought

This video is meant to be a letter to a newborn child including some advice on how to be a good person. It´s good listening practice; you will hear vocabulary related to everyday stuff so it shouldn´t be too difficult.

If the accent is hard for you to understand, read the subtitles: you´ve got the audio, the subtitles and… some grammar mistakes but let´s ignore those and focus on the listening comprehension: it´s a good and positive message - and we are in need of these type of messages nowadays, aren´t we?

 

What do you think about the message, do you like it or do you find it soppy?