3. Tell some anecdotes about parents and grandparents and how they met. “Imagine” a family history, either inspired by actual events or made up of fictional people and how they met. The stories must begin with an ending such as the one in The Danish Poet: "If it hadn't been for a Danish poet and Sigrid Undset and a rainy summer in Norway and a slippery barn plank and a careless mailman and a hungry goat and broken thumb and a crowded train, my parents might never have met." There are many ways to trace one's ancestors, either by researching genealogy or through DNA tracing, but if we want to know the human stories, we have to ask family members and hope for the best.
Let's begin the last part of our summer course with something very interesting. The Danish Poet is an awarded short animated film in 2006, it even won the Oscar in that category, so, it´s really good, you'll see.
Here's what you are going to do:
1. Watch the film (it takes aproximately 15 minutes)
2. Answer these questions on the blog: A. Discuss the subtle techniques used in the film. Which elements had an emotional impact? (The delicate music and the lilting accent of the narrator, for example, give the film a kind of Sweetness and sense of pending romance.) How did the filmmaker, Torill Kove, prevent the story from being too sweet? (She adds regular dashes of wickedly funny detail, e.g., the perilously sliding bovine, the madly growing hair, the dog that gets kicked regularly, the eventual love affair between that dog and the neighbor dog, etc.) B. Talk about the elements of truth in the film: summers in Norway are notoriously rainy; many Danes, Swedes and Norwegians are somewhat confused about their national beginnings; Sigrid Undset was a writer who won the Nobel Prize for Literature. Do you believe that Undset was really a distant relative of the filmmaker? Or is this a device to tell a wonderful story? Does it matter? This should lead to a discussion about poetic license and fact vs. fiction, when writers and filmmakers create an entertaining story based on real events and people. C. Did you like it? why?
Chose a problem from the unit 7 or use one of your own. Write a letter to our city Major in Tuxtla describing the problem and one solución.
See sample:
Dear Mr. Vals
Recently, poor farmers in your region have started growin poppies to eran money. Ooppies produce opium, which is used to make illegal drugs. This has to stop!
Imagine that you bought something that was damaged. You took it to the store back, but the clerk refused to exchange it. Write a letter to the store's manager describing the problem and waht needs to be done.
Sample: Manager, Smith's Beauty Supply: A week ago I bought a hair dryer in your store. After using it three times, I discovered it was damaged. It keeps overheating and . . . .
You nee to write 5 sentences using the vocabulary in unit 6. 5 using the adjective and 5 using the noun. Then you will have to write 5 sentences with need, and 5 with keep to describe problems.
The Alchemist is one of my favorite books. I would like to share a little bit with you.
Vocabulary
alchemist- a person who can change plain metal into gold, or change something lower into something higher
shepherd- a person who takes care of sheep and takes them to different places to find food
Gypsy- a person from a group that moves from place to place. Some people think gypsies can know the future.
pyramids- a triangular-shaped building like in the picture below
treasure- something of great value (money or other things)
encounter- meet, find, discover
author- person who writes (a book)
as well- too
___________________________
Reading The Alchemist is an easy story with a deep message. It is a message to follow your heart and search for your dreams. The book is about a young man named Santiago who lives in Spain and works as a shepherd. He begins to have strange dreams so he goes to a Gypsy to find out what they mean. The Gypsy tells him that he needs to go to the Egyptian pyramids to find his treasure. Of course he does not believe her. But later he meets another person who tells him the same thing. At last Santiago decides to give up his life as a shepherd and go find his treasure. Santiago encounters many problems as he goes on his journey. He meets many people and learns a lot along the way. He also learns to listen to and trust the Soul of the World. Does he ever find his treasure? And why is the book called The Alchemist? I can't tell you. You will have to read the book if you want to find out. The Alchemist was originally written in Portuguese by Paulo Coelho, a Brazilian author. It has been translated into many languages, including, of course, English. It is a good book for people who are learning English because most of the sentences are fairly short and you will recognize a lot of the vocabulary. There are definitely words you will not know at first, but with a little patience and study you should be able to finish (and maybe enjoy) the book. And hopefully you will be able to follow your dreams as well.
Answer the questions.
1. The Alchemist is a book about following your dreams. True False 2. Santiago takes care of cows. True False 3. A Gypsy is from Egypt. True False 4. Santiago has a lot of problems as he looks for his treasure. True False 5. The author of the book is from Brazil. True False 6. The author wrote the book in English. True False 7. The book has only easy English words. True False
Write a news story for one of the following headlines: 1. Illusion or Aliens? 2. Identical Twins reunited after 45 years apart, 3. Man receives letter mailes 50 years ago, 4. Job applicant's life saved by being 5 minutes late.
Don't forget to write about and answer these questions in your writing. who as involved? when did it happen? where did it happen? how did it happen? why did it happen? what was the result or outcome?
____________________:_:_:::_:_:_:_ bye see ya in class
Hey Lucy, I reallt need a few small favors, I had a terrible cold last week, and I missed a couple of classes. I wonder if I could borrow your notes. Also, ....
___ You can ask to a member in the class a favor and the rest can participate in the conversation repplying to the same person. For example, Xico asks Sandra, she repplies and also Isela, Sergio and Felix (something like a chain if you know what I mean) You should repply to all, so please start asking for favors.
Imagine that you are looking for a new job. Which do you think will be the best three characteristics that could define your personality and why?
here are some you can use: 1. working alone 2. making a lot of money 3. following a routine 4. working outside. 5. being the boos 6. working with people 7. doing interesting work. 8. doing something different every day 9. working in an office 10. having a boss
Chose a job and make a list of its advantages, then use the list to write a paragraph about the job you have chosen. And don't forget to add a title!
Sample: Being a comedian. It's fun to be funny. Working as a comedian seems exciting. First of all, making peole laugh would be a lot of fun, because you would be laughing all the time. In addition, . . . .
Don't forget to use the gerunds as subjects or objects. Also use this importan expressions to make your writing easier and funnier.
1. First of all, . ... 2. In addition, . . . 3. Further, . . . 4. On the other hand, . . . 5. For example, . . .
Remember to post your writing activity before Sunday Midnigth. thanks and have an excellent weekend.
Hello everyone: Welcome to our summer blog for English 5. I hope this can work out to be helpful and interesting for you. Here we will discuss several topics and also I will give you the information to take this course in the best way. So for now, enjoy and we see you in class soon. Your teacher. Álvaro Zúñiga
3. Tell some anecdotes about parents and grandparents and how they met. “Imagine” a family history, either inspired by actual events or made up of fictional people and how they met. The stories must begin with an ending such as the one in The Danish Poet: "If it hadn't been for a Danish poet and Sigrid Undset and a rainy summer in Norway and a slippery barn plank and a careless mailman and a hungry goat and broken thumb and a crowded train, my parents might never have met."
