This term we´re going to work on one of the most important writer´s of English literature:William Shakespeare.
To know more about his life and work clic here: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6!, 7
To learn more about the historical context in which he lived visit: http://www.bardweb.net/england.html and  1 , 3! , 4 , 

 To learn more about the Elizabethan theatre and Shakespeare's theatre "The Globe":2!, 1 , 2

This term we´re going to work on one of the most important writer´s of English literature:William Shakespeare. To know more about him clic here: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6!, 7
To learn more about the historical context in which he lived visit: http://www.bardweb.net/england.html and 2!, 3! , 1To learn more about the Globe: 1, 2

Easter traditions – Las tradiciones de Pascua

As with almost all “Christian” holidays, Easter has been secularized and commercialized. The dichotomous nature of Easter and its symbols, however, is not necessarily a modern fabrication.

Since its conception as a holy celebration in the second century, Easter has had its non-religious side. In fact, Easter was originally a pagan festival.

The ancient Saxons celebrated the return of spring with an uproarious festival commemorating their goddess of offspring and of springtime, Eastre. When the second-century Christian missionaries encountered the tribes of the north with their pagan celebrations, they attempted to convert them to Christianity. They did so, however, in a clandestine manner.

It would have been suicide for the very early Christian converts to celebrate their holy days with observances that did not coincide with celebrations that already existed. To save lives, the missionaries cleverly decided to spread their religious message slowly throughout the populations by allowing them to continue to celebrate pagan feasts, but to do so in a Christian manner.

As it happened, the pagan festival of Eastre occurred at the same time of year as the Christian observance of the Resurrection of Christ. It made sense, therefore, to alter the festival itself, to make it a Christian celebration as converts were slowly won over. The early name, Eastre, was eventually changed to its modern spelling, Easter.

The Date of Easter

Prior to A.D. 325, Easter was variously celebrated on different days of the week, including Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. In that year, the Council of Nicaea was convened by emperor Constantine. It issued the Easter Rule which states that Easter shall be celebrated on the first Sunday that occurs after the first full moon on or after the vernal equinox. However, a caveat must be introduced here. The “full moon” in the rule is the ecclesiastical full moon, which is defined as the fourteenth day of a tabular lunation, where day 1 corresponds to the ecclesiastical New Moon. It does not always occur on the same date as the astronomical full moon. The ecclesiastical “vernal equinox” is always on March 21. Therefore, Easter must be celebrated on a Sunday between the dates of March 22 and April 25.

The Lenten Season

Lent is the forty-six day period just prior to Easter Sunday. It begins on Ash Wednesday. Mardi Gras (French for “Fat Tuesday”) is a celebration, sometimes called “Carnival,” practiced around the world, on the Tuesday prior to Ash Wednesday. It was designed as a way to “get it all out” before the sacrifices of Lent began. New Orleans is the focal point of Mardi Gras celebrations in the U.S. Read about the religious meanings of the Lenten Season.

The Easter Bunny Bunny

The Easter Bunny is not a modern invention. The symbol originated with the pagan festival of Eastre. The goddess, Eastre, was worshipped by the Anglo-Saxons through her earthly symbol, the rabbit.

The Germans brought the symbol of the Easter rabbit to America. It was widely ignored by other Christians until shortly after the Civil War. In fact, Easter itself was not widely celebrated in America until after that time.

The Easter Egg

As with the Easter Bunny and the holiday itself, the Easter Egg predates the Christian holiday of Easter. The exchange of eggs in the springtime is a custom that was centuries old when Easter was first celebrated by Christians.

From the earliest times, the egg was a symbol of rebirth in most cultures. Eggs were often wrapped in gold leaf or, if you were a peasant, colored brightly by boiling them with the leaves or petals of certain flowers.

Today, children hunt colored eggs and place them in Easter baskets along with the modern version of real Easter eggs — those made of plastic or chocolate candy.

Traducción:

Como ocurre con casi todos “los cristianos” de vacaciones, Semana Santa se ha secularizado y comercializado. El carácter dicotómico de la Pascua y sus símbolos, sin embargo, no es necesariamente una fabricación moderna.

Desde su concepción como un santo en la celebración del segundo siglo, la Semana Santa ha tenido su lado no religioso. De hecho, la Pascua fue originalmente un festival pagano.

Los antiguos sajones se celebra el regreso de la primavera con un festival que conmemora uproarious su diosa de la descendencia y de la primavera, Eastre. Cuando el segundo siglo de misioneros cristianos que tropiezan las tribus del norte con sus fiestas paganas, intentaron convertirlos al cristianismo. Lo hicieron, sin embargo, de manera clandestina.

Hubiera sido suicida para los primeros cristianos convertidos para celebrar su santo día con celebraciones que no coincide con las celebraciones que ya existían. Para salvar vidas, los misioneros decidieron hábilmente para difundir su mensaje religioso lentamente en toda la población por lo que les permite continuar para celebrar fiestas paganas, pero para hacerlo de una manera cristiana.

Como ocurrió, el festival pagano de Eastre se produjo en la misma época del año como la celebración cristiana de la Resurrección de Cristo. Tiene sentido, por lo tanto, para alterar el festival en sí, para que sea una fiesta cristiana que se convierte poco a poco ganó más. Los primeros nombres, Eastre, fue cambiado a su ortografía moderna, Semana Santa.

La fecha de la Pascua

Antes de 325 dC, la Semana Santa se celebra de diversas en diferentes días de la semana, incluyendo el viernes, sábado y domingo. En ese año, el Consejo de Nicea fue convocado por el emperador Constantino. Se publicó el artículo de Pascua, que establece que la Pascua se celebra el primer domingo que ocurre después de la primera luna llena en o después del equinoccio vernal. Sin embargo, una advertencia debe ser introducido aquí. La “luna llena” en el Estado es la luna llena eclesiástica, que se define como el decimocuarto día de lunación un cuadro, donde el día 1 corresponde a la Luna Nueva eclesiástica. No siempre ocurren en la misma fecha que la luna llena astronómica. La jerarquía eclesiástica “equinoccio vernal” es siempre el 21 de marzo. Por lo tanto, la Pascua debe celebrarse el domingo entre las fechas del 22 de marzo y 25 de abril.

La temporada de Cuaresma

La Cuaresma es el cuadragésimo período de sólo seis días antes de Domingo de Pascua. Comienza el Miércoles de Ceniza. Mardi Gras (francés para “Fat Tuesday”) es una celebración, a veces llamado “Carnaval”, practicado en todo el mundo, el martes antes de miércoles de ceniza. Fue diseñado como una forma de “conseguir que todo fuera” antes de los sacrificios de la Cuaresma comenzó. Nueva Orleáns es el punto focal de las celebraciones de Mardi Gras en los EE.UU. Más información sobre el significado religioso de la Cuaresma.

El Easter Bunny Bunny

El Easter Bunny no es una invención moderna. El símbolo se originó con el festival pagano de Eastre. La diosa, Eastre, fue venerado por los anglosajones a través de su símbolo terrenal, el conejo.

Los alemanes que el símbolo de la Pascua del conejo a América. Fue ampliamente ignorado por los demás cristianos, hasta poco después de la Guerra Civil. De hecho, en sí misma no era de Semana Santa se celebra ampliamente en los Estados Unidos hasta después de ese momento.

El huevo de Pascua

Al igual que con el conejo de Pascua y las vacaciones en sí, el huevo de Pascua cristiana es anterior a la fiesta de Pascua. El intercambio de huevos en la primavera es una costumbre que siglos de antigüedad cuando la Semana Santa se celebró por primera vez por los cristianos.

Desde los primeros tiempos, el huevo es un símbolo de renacimiento en la mayoría de las culturas. Huevos a menudo se envuelven en hojas de oro o, si usted era un campesino, de colores brillantes hirviendo con las hojas o los pétalos de algunas flores.

Hoy en día, los niños caza de huevos de color y el lugar en canastas de Pascua, junto con la versión moderna de los huevos de Pascua real – los hechos de plástico o de chocolate dulce.

Published on: http://ingles.blog.linkua.com/2009/04/08/semana-santa-en-ingles-easter-traditions-las-tradiciones-de-pascua/

Create your own Christmas film here!!!!

Mobile phones

Look at this video about the use and/ or abuse of our mobile phones. It´s just Food for Thought!

3rd Term Oral exams

1. Role playing exercise: dialogue (pair work)

2. Speaking ( individual work)

3. Reading (individual work)


1. Role playing exercise: Dialogue

Here you have some of the questions you may use for your dialogue test. Remember you will be given a role-play card. Enjoy it!


* What's your name? My name's...

* What's your surname? My surname's...

* How old are you? I'm …

* When's your birthday? It's on …

* Where are you from? I'm from...

* What's your nationality? I'm …

* How tall are you? I'm ... tall.

* How much do you weigh?

* How many brothers or sisters have you got? I've got …

* What's his / her/ their name/s? His / Her/ Their name/s are / is ...

* How old is he / she / are they? He / She is... /They are …

* Where do you study? I study at … / I go to … school.

* What's your job? I'm a …

* Where do you work? I work in / at...

* What are your hobbies? My hobbies are... / I like...

* What are you interested in? I'm interested in …

* What's your favourite colour / food / singer / actor / book / subject...? My favourite... is …

* What do you usually do on Mondays / Tuesdays/ Saturdays...? I usually...

* Have you got a boyfriend / girlfriend? Yes, I have. / No, I haven't.

* What's your phone number? My phone number is … / It's …

* What's your e-mail address? My e-mail address is … / It's …

* Do you preactice any sport? Yes, I do. / No, I don't.

* What sports do you practice? I play / practice / do …

* What's your dream? My dream is …. / I dream of ...

3rd TERM PROJECT: OLIVER TWIST

In the third term we're going to work with Charles Dicken's Oliver Twist. First, we will watch the film, and then we'll work on a project about this wonderful work, its author and its time! Enjoy it!



Project: group work
In small groups you'll work on these points:

1. Plot
2. Main characters
3. The author: Charles Dickens, his work and characteristics.
4. The Industrial Revolution: social problems reflected in the film.

Only for 4ºB

5. The Industrial Revolution: a general overview