I WISH YOU A HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Click on the picture.
SUPERLATIVES
What’s Your State Good At? 
Just what does your state do best ?
(1bog.org)
Recommended by Laurence Haquet
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
NEW FOODS
Top 10 New Foods at the 2010 State Fairs
"From cotton candy to corn dogs to deep-fried Coke, the enterprising folks
at America’s state and county fairs top themselves year after year..."
(endlesssimmer.com)
Recommended by Renée Maufroid. (Ac. Lille)
ENGLISH
Planet English - INFOGRAPHIC
"The title says it all: English is everywhere you look, listen, shop, work and
walk your dog. Speakers of English as either a first (L1) or second language (L2) comprise 27% of our world’s population. Even more noteworthy, perhaps, is the astounding fact that non-native speakers currently outnumber native speakers
by a ratio of three to one. Planet English is indeed expanding – and quickly!..."
(voxy.com)
Recommended by Larry Ferlazzo.
Rodolphe Maurel a modifié son site : 'Soundguide'.
Je changerai son adresse prochainement sur mes pages.
Pour retrouver son travail, voici l'adresse de son site :
http://www.soundguideweb.com/
qui comporte maintenant un moteur de recherche.
How to avoid a stomach ache at Christmas and New Year 
- an animation
(explania.com)
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2) (Permanent link 3)
SOCIAL TECHNOLOGY
3 Ways Educators Are Embracing Social Technology
- Skype and Language Learning
- Mobile Phones
- Twitter
(mashable.com)
SOCIAL MEDIA
10 Beautiful Social Media Infographics
1. Social Web Involvement
2. Social Marketing Compass
3. Web Trend Map
4. Conversation Prism
5. Popular Site Demographics
6. Social Landscape
7. How are Mobile Phones Changing Social Media?
8. The Boom Of Social Sites
9. The Biggest Shift
10. Social Media In Business
(mashable.com)
EUTHANASIA
Soylent Green (1973)
– Charlton Heston, Joseph Cotton, Edward G. Robinson,
Leigh Taylor-Young, Chuck Connors
(dir. Richard Fleischer).
"Central theme is the “Greenhouse effect”, but it contains
the classic scene of Robinson’s idyllic euthanasia."
(finalexit.org)
+ a VIDEO
(YouTube)
Films Dealing with Dying and Euthanasia
(finalexit.org)
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
CALENDAR
Pictorial Facts of the Day - Calendar 2010
- "a day-by-day calendar of holidays, historic events, birthdays and special days
for each month of of the year. Each day contains a short article about why the
day is special, a historic event, custom, tradition, famous person
or interesting facts related to the date."
(projectbritain.com)
Queen's Christmas message 2010 & Her Royal phonems
-
25 December 2010
A worksheet 
(sabironlangues.typepad.fr)
See VIDEOS
Taking the plunge
"It's difficult to understand how diving into a freezing body of water on
Christmas Day ever caught on, but it has become an annual custom in Britain
(brave Londoners leap into the Serpentine on Hyde Park or, pictured here,
Brighton beach), Ireland (where many head for the chilly Irish Sea),
and France (there's an annual dip in Nice)."
(telegraph.co.uk)
CALENDARS
2011
Educators' Calendar
"Enjoy your FREE 2011 Educators' Calendar, full of interesting holidays,
significant dates in history, and month- and week-long celebrations.
It's sure to present teachable moments all year long!...
The 2011 Educators' Calendar is also available online."
(teachervision.fen.com)
MORE CALENDARS HERE.
The Queen's Xmas message - 25 December 2010
+ Activities
(sabironlangues.typepad.fr)
In full: Queen's Christmas speech
VIDEO + TEXT
(BBC)
See Activities
to print 
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
THE YEAR 2010
2010 in Review
(theatlantic.com)
2010 : The Year in Cartoons
- a slideshow
(theatlantic.com)
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
CONFUSIONS / HOMOPHONES / HOMONYMS /
COMPUTERS / SHOPS
The One Ronnie: Blackberry Sketch
"Ronnie Corbett and Harry Enfield star in this fruity sketch
from The One Ronnie show."
(jeffreyhill.typepad.com)
The Hardware Shop Sketch
with The Two Ronnies
(jeffreyhill.typepad.com)
+ interactive quiz
(eslvideo.com)
+ the TRANSCRIPT
(angelfire.com)
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
(Permanent link 3) (Permanent link 4) (Permanent link 5)
(.theatlantic.com
I Want A Hippopotamus For Christmas 
(YouTube)
+ the LYRICS
"I want a hippopotamus for Christmas
Only a hippopotamus will do
Don't want a doll, no dinky Tinker Toy
I want a hippopotamus to play with and enjoy"
(lyricsmode.com)
China Protects its Language from English
(25th December, 2010)
- a lesson plan
(breakingnewsenglish.com)
It's Time to Protect Chinese Language
(chinaculture.org)
China cracks down on media's use of English
(behindthewall.msnbc.msn.com)
WINTER SPORTS
Top 10 unusual winter sports
1. Polar bear swimming in Korea
2. Ski biking in Colorado
3. Ice karting in Finland
4. Dog sledding in Alaska
5. Skijoring in Minnesota
6. Snow tubing in Canada
7. Ice climbing in Chile
8. Ice sailing in Poland
9. Snowkiting in Utah
10. Shark ice fishing in Greenland
(BBC)
Dog-sledding
Wikileaks suspect Bradley Manning's health 'declining'
"Pte Manning, a US soldier, is being held in solitary confinement in a
high-security military prison at Quantico marine base, Virginia."
CONDITIONS :
"frazzled / confined to his cell 23 hours a day
and is not allowed to exercise or have access to media /
checked upon every five minutes / light kept in his cell /
heavy and uncomfortable blankets / very weak"
(BBC)
 |
 |
Cooperative learning
"is a successful teaching strategy in which small teams, each with students of different levels of ability, use a variety of learning activities to improve their understanding of a subject..."
Why use Cooperative Learning?
Elements of Cooperative Learning
Class Activities that use Cooperative Learning
(edtech.kennesaw.edu)
CHORES
Jane : I'm not a robot !
by Jane, an English woman living in France
Jane, an English mother, is fed up with all the chores.
(audio-lingua.eu)
(Permanent link)
SHOPS
Candice : differences between French and English groceries
by Candice (an English woman living in France)
Candice talks about shopping and eating habits in England and in France.
(audio-lingua.eu)
Candice : specific English products
by Candice (an English woman living in France)
Candice details the specific English products that she sells in her grocery
and that you can't usually find in France.
(audio-lingua.eu)
Candice : what I sell in my grocery
by Candice (an English woman living in France)
Candice talks about the products that sell very well in her shop,
especially at Christmas.
(audio-lingua.eu)
Candice : my English grocery in France
by Candice (an English woman living in France)
Candice introduces herself and talks about what she sells in her grocery.
(audio-lingua.eu)
(Permanent link)
VIDEO GAME
Operation Flashpoint: Red River
It is a video game. It is a sequel to Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising.
The plot is about a fictional conflict in 2013 Tajikistan.
(Wikipedia)
Watch the trailer.
(dailymotion.com)
The New Year around the World.
"Watch the video .Then learn some vocabulary.
What is the New Year like in your area?"
+ Flashcards + Matching + Concentration + Word Search
Created by Renée Maufroid. (Ac. Lille)
Cat found 'marinating' in New York man's trunk has a new home
"Former owner charged with cruelty.
The police "found the man's black-and-white cat, Navarro, in a cage,
covered in oil, chili peppers, crushed red peppers and salt."
(latimesblogs.latimes.com)
See 2006 New York Code - Unlawful Acts.
ex : "It shall be unlawful for any slaughterhouse,
abattoir or other place or establishment,
or for any person, to slaughter or butcher
domesticated dog
(canis familiaris)
or domesticated cat
(felis catus or domesticus)
to create food,
meat or meat products for human or animal consumption..."
(law.justia.com)
New York statutes
"A person who overdrives, overloads, tortures or cruelly beats or unjustifiably injures, maims, mutilates or kills any animal, or deprives any animal of
necessary sustenance, food or drink, is guilty of a misdemeanor,
punishable by imprisonment for not more than one year,
or by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars, or by both..."
(animallaw.info)
THE YEAR 2010
So Long To Ya, 2010 | The JibJab 2010 Year in Review!
"This year we've turned Obama and Biden into puppets to sing a duet of regret. After a grueling year of Wikileaks and oil spills, join our Oval Officers
in kicking off 2011 by kicking 2010 out the door!"
(YouTube)
LOVE
Justin Bieber - Baby
(YouTube)
+ the LYRICS
"My first love, broke my heart for the first time...
I'll buy you anything
I'll buy you any ring
And now I'm in pieces
Baby fix me"
(paroles-musique.com)
PROHIBITION
Boardwalk Empire
"is an American television series from premium cable network HBO,
set in Atlantic City, New Jersey, during the Prohibition era...
The first episode was directed by Martin Scorsese."
(Wikipedia)
 |
Boardwalk Empire (HBO) - Official Trailer
(YouTube)
DEPRESSION
Yael Naim - Go To The River
(YouTube)
+ the LYRICS
"When you feel ashamed go to the river
When you’re feeling sad go to the river
When you’re feeling blue inside, immersed and tied
When you’re feeling stuck in pain, forever...
When you’re feeling bad, go to the river
When you’re feeling mad, go to the river
When you feel it blows your mind, cause you can’t find
When you feel you’re going blind, you can’t deny…
When you feel you’ll lose your mind – they’ll let you slide
When you feel you go insane – they let you die"
(tictacflo.com)
12 Foreign Objects
"The late Colombian drug kingpin Pablo Escobar had a pet hippopotamus
named Pepe that went on the loose and was shot in 2009.
This highly-detailed poster by Dan Zettwoch documents
the foreign objects that Pepe ingested
and were found after his death."
(streetanatomy.com)
LANGUAGE
How English evolved into a global language
"As the British Library charts the evolution of English in a new major exhibition, author Michael Rosen gives a brief history of a language that has grown to world domination with phrases such as "cool" and "go to it"."
+ Ages of English Timeline
- interactive
(BBC)
Un détenu pédale sur un vélo relié à une dynamo
"pour produire de l'électricité dans la prison de Makati, Philippines,
le 7 juillet 2010."
(20minutes.fr)
FOOD
Birke Baehr: What's wrong with our food system
- with subtitles
"Birke Baehr wants us to know how our food is made, where it comes from,
and what's in it. At age 11, he's planning a career as an organic farmer."
Why you should listen to him
(ted.com)
Cartoon: All Flights Cancelled
"This cartoon by Christian Adams from The Telegraph relates
to the wintry weather which is causing chaos in Britain
(and elsewhere in Europe),
ruining the travel plans of thousands of air passengers..."
(jeffreyhill.typepad.com)
Tell Me about Christmas - Part 1
"In this video, get to know some of the traditionally served Christmas food
in the UK, like mulled wine, mince pie, Christmas pudding, etc."
+ Interactive activities
+ The transcript + Activities on paper
(British Council)
IRAQ
'Normal life' in Iraq amid the violence
"The United States is to withdraw all its forces from Iraq by the end of next year.
In that time, the roughly 50,000 American soldiers who remain will be trying to
train Iraqi security forces to deal with the daily violence
that still plagues the country."
(BBC)
AFGHANISTAN
Life with the Lancers with photos and videos
"Between December 2009 and 2010, BBC News followed the progress of four soldiers from the Queen's Royal Lancers from basic training to deployment in Helmand province, Afghanistan."
(BBC)
CANDY
Sweet Starts
"Some familiar candy brands have been in production for more than a century,
while some others reach back even further. How did these sweet treats get
their start? We’ve got their sugar-coated beginnings right here..."
1. NECCO WAFERS 2. SQUIRREL NUT CHEWS
3. HERSHEY’S CHOCOLATE BAR 4. TOBLERONE
5. GOOGOO CLUSTERS 6. MARY JANE
7. CLARK BAR 8. BABY RUTH
9. MOUNDS 10. MILKY WAY
(neatorama.com)
FOIL BLANKET
The emergency foil blanket
"retains most radiated body heat while protecting against wind and rain.
Ideal to include with your first aid kit supplies."
(redcross.org.uk)
( = 'couverture de survie')
"Quickly and effectively retains body heat preventing Hypothermia."
(physique.co.uk)
CORONER
Ella Fitzgerald - Ding Dong! The Witch Is Dead
- with the lyrics
"Once there was a wicked witch
In the lovely land of Oz
And a wickeder, wickeder
Wickeder witch that never,never was
She filled the folks in munchkin land
With terror and with dread
Till one fine day from kansas way...
And the coroner pronounced her: dead"
(YouTube)
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
CORONER
A coroner
"or forensics examiner is an official chiefly responsible for investigating
deaths, particularly some of those happening under unusual circumstances,
and determining the cause of death. Depending on the jurisdiction, the coroner
may adjudge the cause him/herself, or act as the presiding officer
of a special court (a "coroner's jury")..."
See Coroners in England and Wales.
See Coroners in the United States.
(Wikipedia)
 |
 |
Nursery rhymes get naughty
"The new versions are hardly suitable for children."
ASBO - with audio
"ASBO, ASBO, little law,
How we wonder what you're for,
Chavs and yobs who love to fight
Terrorise us every night...
On the streets with hoods and knives,
How they terrorise our lives..."
(thesun.co.uk)
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
ZOOM sur …les comptines traditionnelles
- 10 conseils pour la mise en oeuvre des chansons, poèmes et comptines
- Des séquences ou des suggestions pédagogiques autour des comptines
- Des ressources multimédia en ligne (textes, sons, images, animations)
dans toutes les langues
(primlangues.education.fr)
SMOKING
Smoking is a trap. Quit today
"The Brazilian Association for Smokers Awareness or ADESF
created another great non-smoking campaign."
(creativecriminals.com)
YEAR 2011
Lonely Planet’s 10 best things to do in 2011
1) Hug a tree in the Amazon
2) Cricket in India and Sri Lanka
3) Visit the new 9/11 memorial in New York City
4) DIY wonders of the world list
5) Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico
6) FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Oslo, Norway
7) Climb a 'stairway to heaven'
8) Isle of Man Tourist Trophy motorbike race
9) Indy 500 in Indianapolis, USA
10) Write a postcard
(BBC)
AFGHANISTAN
Q&A: Foreign forces in Afghanistan
"There are currently about 140,000 foreign military personnel in Afghanistan operating under US and Nato command, supporting Kabul's Western-backed government against a Taliban-led insurgency that has gained strength
in recent years."
(BBC)
Children of Men
"is a 2006 American dystopian science fiction film co-written and directed by Alfonso Cuarón. The Strike Entertainment production was loosely
adapted from P. D. James's 1992 novel The Children of Men..."
- with Clive Owen
"Set in the United Kingdom of 2027, the film explores a grim world in which two decades of global human infertility have left humanity with less than a century to survive. Societal collapse, terrorism, and environmental destruction accompany
the impending extinction. Meanwhile, the United Kingdom—perhaps the last functioning government—persecutes a seemingly endless wave
of illegal immigrant refugees seeking sanctuary..."
(Wikipedia)
Children Of Men Trailer
(YouTube)
Ben Franklin’s 200+ Synonyms for “Drunk”
with The Drinkers Dictionary.
ex : His Head is full of Bees,
He’s kiss’d black Betty,
He’s been in the Cellar,
He’s seen the Devil,
Been to France,
As Dizzy as a Goose, ...
(mentalfloss.com)
Mark Zuckerberg Named TIME's 'Person of the Year' 
+ the TRANSCRIPT
"Some in the media say Zuck deserves it- others say-
Wikileaks’ founder Julian Assange- was robbed..."
(newsy.com)
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
The Digital Story of the Nativity
"How social media, web and mobile tell the story of the Nativity.
Christmas story told through Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Google,
Wikipedia, Google Maps, GMail, Foursquare, Amazon...
Times change, the feeling remains the same."
(YouTube)
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
Facebook Creator is Time Person of the Year
(16th December, 2010)
- a lesson plan
(breakingnewsenglish.com)
Any Given Sunday: "That's Football, Guys" - with subtitles
Difficulty : Easy
- with a practice mode
(englishcentral.com)
Any Given Sunday
is a 1999 American drama film directed by Oliver Stone depicting a fictional professional American football team. The film features an ensemble cast,
consisting of Al Pacino, Cameron Diaz, Dennis Quaid,
Jamie Foxx, James Woods, ..."
(Wikipedia)
Green Lantern - with subtitles
Difficulty : Easy
- with a practice mode
(englishcentral.com)
Green Lantern
"is an upcoming superhero film based on the comic book character
of the same name appearing in DC Comics."
It "is scheduled to be released on June 17, 2011 in 3D...
In a universe as vast as it is mysterious, a small but powerful force has existed
for centuries. Protectors of peace and justice, they are called the Green Lantern Corps. A brotherhood of warriors sworn to keep intergalactic order,
each Green Lantern wears a ring that grants him superpowers..."
(Wikipedia)
DEATH PENALTY
US inmate John Duty executed with animal drug
"Officials in the US state of Oklahoma have executed a death-row inmate with
a drug cocktail that includes a sedative typically used to put down animals."
(BBC)
Wikileaks' Julian Assange tells of 'smear campaign'
(smear campaign = "campagne de diffamation")
"Mr Assange is staying at a house in Bungay, Suffolk, after being freed on bail
by the High Court in London while awaiting extradition proceedings...
Mr Justice Ouseley ordered Mr Assange be bailed on payment
of £240,000 in cash and sureties.
The judge imposed strict bail conditions including wearing an electronic tag, reporting to police every day and observing a curfew.
Mr Assange must also reside at a manor home on the Norfolk-Suffolk border
owned by Vaughan Smith, a Wikileaks-supporting journalist
and owner of the Frontline Club in London. "
+ AUDIO
(BBC)
"Julian Assange sur les marches |
"Julian Assange devant le manoir |
Shakin' Stevens - Merry Christmas Everyone
Listen to the song.
- with the lyrics
(YouTube)
+ A WORKSHEET
created by Marie-Madeleine Cloup-Speer (Ac. Paris)
THE YEAR 2010
2010 in Photos - Part 1 + Part 2 + Part 3
(boston.com)
INTERNET
Generations Online 2010: Summary
- an infographic
"Pew Internet has updated its data on how different generations are using
the Internet for 2010, and the results clearly show that the older generations
are catching up with younger internet users, even surpassing them
in some online activities."
(mashable.com)
MAPS
Mapping America: Every City, Every Block
"Browse local data from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey,
based on samples from 2005 to 2009."
Race and Ethnicity / Income / Housing and Families / Education
(projects.nytimes.com)
"TIME's 2010 Person of the Year: Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg...
For connecting more than half a billion people
and mapping the social relations among them;
for creating a new system of exchanging information;
and for changing how we all live our lives,
Mark Elliot Zuckerberg is TIME’s 2010 Person of the Year."
(time.com)
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
Dear Santa Letter Generator
"Kids! Too busy to sit down and write an old-fashioned letter to Santa? Have no fear! This handy-dandy interweb doo-dad can do the heavy lifting for you!"
(chickenhead.com)
Here is the beginning :
The Night Santa Went Crazy by Weird Al Yankovic
(YouTube)
+ the LYRICS
"Wo, The night Santa went crazy
The night Saint Nick went insane
Realized he'd been gettin' the wrong deal
Somethin' finally must've snapped in his brain"
(sing365.com)
Wikileaks Christmas Song 2010
"Dan and Dan blow the whistle with their Wikileaks Christmas Song 2010.
Looking for Christmas gift ideas? Worried about freedom of speech?
Why not combine the two! Are they really going to expose
all those Christmas lies?"
(YouTube)
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
Christmas celebrations around the world 
(neatorama.com)
"Whether you’re just interested in learning more about other cultures or want
to incorporate some new traditions into your holiday celebrations, this article is
filled with all you need to know about international Christmases."
For example in Austria :
Cartoon: The Fat Man of Europe
"This cartoon by Andy Davey from The Sun relates to a new health report
which says that Britain has more obese people
than anywhere on the continent..."
(jeffreyhill.typepad.com)
Sorry, Kevin Rudd's Apology to "The Stolen Generation"
(YouTube)
Apology Transcript
"We apologise for..." / "we say sorry."
(australia.gov.au)
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
WISH
Somewhere Over The Rainbow by Eric Clapton
(YouTube)
+ the LYRICS (lyrics007.com)
"Somewhere over the rainbow
Skies are blue
And the dreams that you dare to dream
Really do come true
Some day I'll wish upon a star
And wake up where the clouds are far behind me"
PHILOSOPHERS
The ancient philosophers of Greece
"The fresco School of Athens was painted in the Papal apartments
of the Vatican by Raphael.
Aristotle, who stands right of center, is leading, with Plato on his left,
all of the ancient philosophers of Greece."
(hubpages.com)
PEACE / WISH
Peace - cartoon
"I wish I may, I wish I might, Have the wish I wish tonight..."
(msnbc.msn.com)
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2) (Permanent link 3)
LOCATION TECHNOLOGY
The History of Location Technology
"from the most primitive to the most advanced."
- an infographic
(mashable.com)
Page recommended by Larry Ferlazzo.
POPULATION
Population change
- interactive map
(2010.census.gov)
Page recommended by Larry Ferlazzo.
Christmas Morning Blues by Sonny Boy Williamson
"Santa Claus, can I get you to understand?
Now said I want you to bring my baby one of these radios
And two or three of them little 'lectric fans"
(metrolyrics.com)
Listen to the song.
(YouTube)
Lonesome Cabin by Sonny Boy Williamson
"I could hear it rainin',
and see the lightnin' flashin' on my window pane
But the little girl lay her head up in my chest
and said "I love you, and I'm not ashamed"
(lyricstime.com)
+ the VIDEO
(YouTube)
Skyline
"is a 2010 alien invasion science fiction film directed
and produced by the Brothers Strause."
(Wikipedia)
See the TRAILER (YouTube)
Inception
"is a 2010 American science fiction thriller film written, produced,
and directed by Christopher Nolan.
The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Ellen Page, Marion Cotillard, ...
DiCaprio plays Dominic Cobb, a specialized spy or corporate espionage thief.
His work consists of secretly extracting valuable commercial information from the unconscious mind of his targets while they are asleep and dreaming."
(Wikipedia)
ASBOs
Rat race ...
"mouse hooligans wearing hoodies and carrying knives
just love the fact they have been issued ASBOs
(Anti-Social Behaviour Orders)"
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
FOR TEACHERS
ECRIF: Seeing Learning
ECRIF stands for: encounter, clarify, remember, internalize, fluently use.
"Rather than prescribing what teachers should or should not do, the aim of this framework is to provide a tool that teachers can use to see student activities and content from the perspective of student learning. In this way, ECRIF is connected
to how teachers think about what is happening in their classrooms."
"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes,
but in having new eyes." - Marcel Proust
(Josh Kurzweil, Berkeley, CA - ecrif.com)
CLIMATE CHANGE
UN climate change talks in Cancun agree a deal
"UN talks in Cancun have reached a deal to curb climate change,
including a fund to help developing countries."
(BBC)
The key effects of climate change
(BBC)
Tackling climate change with technology
"Here we survey options for power-generation and transport, and also
engineering solutions to reflect sunlight or remove CO2 from the atmosphere."
(BBC)
The 2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference
"was held in Cancún, Mexico, from 29 November to 10 December 2010."
(Wikipedia)
 |
Zeitgeist 2010 : How the world searched
"Based on the aggregation of billions of search queries people typed into
Google this year, Zeitgeist captures the spirit of 2010."
(google.com)
A Christmas Carol by Dickens - Worksheets : 
- Word Meanings
- Scrooge Description
- Stave 4 Questions
(Primary Resources)
STUTTERING
A History of Stuttering in the Movies
"The new movie The King’s Speech is about George VI and his problem with stuttering. The film is being hailed for its sensitive portrayal of stuttering,
which is relative to the quite insensitive way previous movies
have presented the disorder."
View a video slide show.
(slate.com)
stuttering :
"This refers to the repetition of whole words, parts of words
or complete phrases in an uncontrollable manner."
(lucidspeech.com)
Alicia Keys' Last Tweet and Testament
"Alicia sacrificed her digital life to help Keep a Child Alive save millions
of real lives affected by HIV/AIDS in Africa and India.
This is her Last Tweet and Testament, the last message
she will send out until $1,000,000 is raised
to buy her digital life back."
(YouTube)
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
Mark Zuckerberg & Facebook, Part 1 - December 5, 2010
+ Part 2
"Mark Zuckerberg, the 26-yr.-old founder and CEO of mega-social media site Facebook, talks to Lesley Stahl about his life and his business, now worth an estimated $35 billion."
(cbsnews.com)
See The Social Network (the film)
(Permanent link)
GONE WITH THE WIND
- with subtitles and a quiz mode
Difficulty: Easy
(englishcentral.com)
Gone with the Wind
"is a 1939 American epic romance-drama film adapted from
Margaret Mitchell's 1936 novel of the same name.
It was produced by David O. Selznick and directed by Victor Fleming from a screenplay by Sidney Howard.
The film, set in the Old South in and around the time of the American Civil War, stars Clark Gable, Vivien Leigh, Leslie Howard, Olivia de Havilland, and
Hattie McDaniel. It tells a story of the American Civil War and
Reconstruction Era from a white, Southern point of view."
(Wikipedia)
TRON : Legacy
- with subtitles and a quiz mode
Difficulty: Medium
Description: "Father and son embark on a life-or-death journey
across a visually-stunning digital universe to get back home."
(englishcentral.com)
Tron: Legacy
is a "2010 American science fiction film produced by Walt Disney Pictures...
It is a sequel to the 1982 film Tron."
(Wikipedia)
WikiLeaks Starting an All-out Cyber War?
"Online hackers are extracting revenge against financial websites supporting
a crackdown on WikiLeaks. The hacks are forcing the websites to crash."
(jeffreyhill.typepad.com)
See transcript >> (newsy.com)
Five great European cities for Christmas markets
1. Cologne 2. Vienna 3. Bruges 4. Strasbourg 5. Prague
(BBC)
London's top shopping strips
"The big-name emporiums, such as Selfridges, Harvey Nichols, Hamleys,
Fortnum & Mason and Liberty, are both sightseeing attractions in their
own right and temples to shopping devotees. The nearby side-street boutiques
– the capital’s true delights — also sell just about anything,
from clothes to old-style British homewares."
Related gallery: Shopping in London
(BBC)
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
Working Class Hero - John Lennon
(YouTube)
John Lennon was shot in New York on 8 December 1980...
(Wikipedia)
FOG by: Carl Sandburg (1878-1967)
(poetry-archive.com)
- "
HE fog comes - on little cat feet.
- It sits looking
- over harbor and city
- on silent haunches
- and then moves on."
TREES
Tree Sculptures by Axel N. Erlandson (1884-1964)
(arborsmith.com)
More photos here
(forestry.about.com)
Nothing for Christmas
"Here is a well-known song in America for Xmas.
It tells the story of a little boy who has been bad and won't have presents.
Listen to the song and order the ten mistakes he has made.
Then you can imagine some more!"
Created by Renée Maufroid. (Ac. Lille)
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70 million by Hold your horses
"An entertaining and cheeky music video for 70 Million, hit song by Franco-American band, Hold Your Horses!, offers a wink at art history as band
members playfully reconstruct famous paintings
in an off the wall lyrical interpretation all their own."
(YouTube)
+ Compare with some of the paintings
(flavorwire.com)
+ The complete list of the famous paintings.
(rtfm.es)
+ the LYRICS
" And you were white as snow; I was white as a sheet...
And 70 million should be in the know
And 70 million don't go out at all
And 70 million wouldn't walk this street
And 70 million would run to a hole
And 70 million would be wrong wrong wrong
And 70 million never see it at all
And 70 million haven't tasted snow"
(sweetslyrics.com)
Hold your horses - the expression
"sometimes said as "Hold the horses", is a common idiom
to mean "hold on" or wait...
The saying is typically used when someone is rushing in to something. It is often combined with linked idioms such as, cool your jets, or look before you leap..."
(Wikipedia)
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(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
(Permanent link 3) (Permanent link 4)
Jonathan Coulton - Shop Vac
"I like the Starbucks here that's better than the other one
Because the other one's not as good
They really need to put a light there cause it's hard to turn
It's hard to make a left turn..."
(lyricsmania.com)
+ the VIDEO - an animation
(YouTube)
It is a "song about life in a suburban paradise.
This music video for it features the clever typographic animation
of Jarrett Heather. Words and corporate logos flow across the screen as
the narrator embraces a lifestyle of prosperity symbolized by the Shop-Vac
in his basement workshop."
(Neatorama)
Wikileaks' Assange arrested in UK - 7 December 2010
"Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is due in court in London for an extradition hearing over sexual assault allegations in Sweden...
A Wikileaks spokesman said Mr Assange's arrest was an attack on media
freedom but it would not stop the release of more secret files. "
(BBC)
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
(englishcentral.com)
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
"is a British-American 2010 3D fantasy-adventure film based on
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, the third published novel in C.S. Lewis's
epic fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia. It is the third installment
in The Chronicles of Narnia film series ..."
(Wikipedia)
WATER
“Glass Half Empty: The Coming Water Wars”
"is an infographic reviewing the water crisis in different parts of the world."
(princeton.edu)
Recommended by Larry Ferlazzo.
TATTOO
"Un homme exhibe ses tatouages
lors d'un salon à Berlin, Allemagne, le 3 décembre 2010."
(20minutes.fr)
VIDEO GAME
World of Warcraft: Cataclysm - Announcement Trailer
+ in French
(YouTube)
It should be interesting to compare the 2 versions.
World of Warcraft: Cataclysm
"is the third expansion set for the massively multiplayer online role-playing
game (MMORPG) World of Warcraft, following the last expansion
Wrath of the Lich King."
Read the story.
(Wikipedia)
At a glance: Wikileaks cables - 3 December 2010
"Read key revelations and quotes from Wikileaks' release
of thousands of US embassy cables."
(BBC)
WikiLeaks Terrorist Guides
- a cartoon with an explanation
(jeffreyhill.typepad.com)
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
The Christmas Can-Can
"Christmas, Christmas time is here
And Christmas songs you love to hear.
Thoughts of joy and hope and cheer
But mostly shopping, shopping, shopping!"
+ AUDIO
(sncmusic.com)
+ the VIDEO
with the singers or with an animation
(link.brightcove.com)
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SOCIAL GAMES
6 Reasons Why Social Games Are the Next Advertising Frontier
1. Advertising in Games Is About Engagement, Not Eyeballs
2. Social Games Reach the Facebook Audience
3. Some Games Have Bigger Audiences Than Prime Time TV
4. Advertising With Social Games Isn’t Restricted to Virtual
5. Brands Can Be Part of the Experience
6. Brands Can Reward Players for Interacting With Them
(mashable.com)
Profile: Wikileaks founder Julian Assange
+ audio + a video
"To his fans, Julian Assange is a valiant campaigner for truth.
To his critics, though, he is a publicity-seeker who has endangered lives
by putting a mass of sensitive information into the public domain."
(BBC)
ADVICE
Quelques conseils de travail pour mieux réussir en anglais en 6ème
"Ce document a été rédigé par un groupe de collègues d’e-teach.
C’est une fiche de méthodologie à destination du professeur et ne contient
pas de ressources prêtes à être distribuées telles quelles aux élèves mais simplement des pistes pour aider l’élève à assumer une prise en charge
progressive de son apprentissage.
Les conseils méthodologiques doivent permettre la rédaction
d’une fiche de conseils pour les élèves..."
(openenglishweb.org)
sent by Catherine Serreau
EU
EUROPE CRUSADE: FURY AT EU'S GRAVY TRAIN
"LAVISH pay and perks enjoyed by the EU’s army of diplomats
were laid bare yesterday, provoking widespread condemnation."
(dailyexpress.co.uk)
Words in the News: Gravy Train
+ vocabulary + trivia note
(jeffreyhill.typepad.com)
The Gravy Train
"The word gravy by itself was used prior to any attestable use
of gravy train to characterize 'cushy' situations."
(rx5.blogspot.com)
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2) (Permanent link 3)
SUFFIXES
So many nationality suffixes
(linglish.net)
From the list, I find 8 major suffixes, they are:
- -ian (Italian, Norwegian)
- -ean (Chilean, Korean)
- -an (American, Mexican)
- -ese (Chinese, Japanese)
- -er (Icelander, New Zealander)
- -ic (Icelandic, Greenlandic)
- -ish (English, Irish)
- -i (Iraqi, Pakistani)
What's This? - Fall Out Boy
or HERE (a little different)
or KARAOKE (with the lyrics)
"What's this?
They're hanging mistletoe, they kiss
Why that looks so unique, inspired
They're gathering around to hear a story
Roasting chestnuts on a fire..."
(YouTube)
WikiLeaks Founder Hiding From “Superpower”
(4th December, 2010)
- a lesson plan
(breakingnewsenglish.com)
Julian Assange
(Wikipedia)
Interactive Game - Christmas
"Voici un jeu que j'ai créé sur Noël et les loisirs et talents du Père Noël.
Il est plutôt destiné aux niveaux de 6ème et 5ème.
Attention, le jeu ne marche pas sous Firefox."
(Laurence Haquet - Ac. Rouen)
HISTORY
Hans Rosling's 200 Countries, 200 Years, 4 Minutes
"In this spectacular section of BBC's 'The Joy of Stats' he tells the story of
the world in 200 countries over 200 years using 120,000 numbers - in just four minutes. Plotting life expectancy against income for every country since 1810,
Hans shows how the world we live in is radically different from the world
most of us imagine."
+ COMMENTS
(jeffreyhill.typepad.com)
Coldplay - Christmas Lights
(YouTube)
+ the LYRICS
"Oh Christmas lights, keep shining on.
Those Christmas lights, light up the street.
Maybe they'll bring her back to me.
Then all my troubles will be gone,
Oh Christmas lights, keep shining on..."
(lyricsmode.com)
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
999
Woman called 999 over 'stolen' snowman
"Kent Police issued a transcript of the ''completely irresponsible'' call which
they received overnight as they fielded thousands of calls from people
because of the sub-zero conditions."
(telegraph.co.uk)
GRAMMAR
The Linguists - We Are the World
"Some of the professors and students of the last 20 years of the Budapest
ELTE-MTA Theoretical Linguistics Programme sing on the occasion
of the 20th birthday of the department."
The full lyrics are available in the YouTube pulldown box.
"We are all a part of
God's linguist family,
And the truth, you know, grammar's all we need."
(YouTube)
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2) (Permanent link 3)
PHOTOS : Christmas comes to the White House
- a slideshow
(time.com)
Thanks to Larry Ferlazzo for this site.
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
JUST FOR FUN!
Cats Playing Patty-cake, what they were saying...
(YouTube)
From Renée Maufroid. (Ac. Lille)
Pat-a-cake, pat-a-cake, baker's man or "pattycake"
"is one of the oldest and most widely known surviving English nursery rhymes...
The rhyme is often accompanied by hand-clapping
between two people, a clapping game..."
See the lyrics.
(Wikipedia)
(Permanent link ) (Permanent link 2) (Permanent link 3)
HOLIDAYS
Online Schools: Holiday Zone
" Ever wondered what other countries do around the holidays?
Do you want to learn about how others celebrate?
These resources provide activities and lessons for K-6 students.
Learn about diverse customs through games, food and fun lesson plans."
(onlineschools.org)
Recommended by Kelly Buckley
Bono Gathers Celebs for AIDS Campaign
"Bono's Product Red campaign created this public service announcement
to spread the word about how easy it is to save the lives of people with HIV.
(May 3, 2010)
(YouTube)
- with short sentences beginning with "I've got..."
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
Jim's recipe
- with Java Games: Flashcards, matching, concentration, and word search.
Created by Renée Maufroid. (Ac. Lille)
Highest Glass Floor in the World
"Not content with having the tallest building in America, the owners of
Sears Tower in Chicago have installed four glass box viewing platforms
which stick out of the building 103 floors up.
The balconies are suspended 1,353 feet in the air..."
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(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
V - Season 1 - Trailer
(YouTube)
V is an American science fiction television series
"A re-imagining of the 1983 miniseries created by Kenneth Johnson, the new
series chronicles the arrival on Earth of a technologically advanced alien
species which ostensibly comes in peace, but actually has sinister motives."
(Wikipedia)
Sony Christmas Carol
"Derek Jacobi stars in an advert promoting Sony's VAT
back scheme for Christmas."
(YouTube)
Compare with Dickens's Christmas Carol - Chapter 5
(ego4u.com)
Sydney Turns Red for World AIDS Day
(1st December, 2010)
- a lesson plan
(breakingnewsenglish.com)
Turning red on World Aids Day - Photos
"RED ALERT: U2 front man Bono in front of the Sydney Harbour Bridge
at an event yesterday to launch World Aids Day."
(timeslive.co.za)
^
VIDEOS
(history.com)
Strange Christmas Traditions (2:05)
"Ruled a legal holiday in 1894, Christmas has had
its fair share of strange traditions."
(history.com)
PHONES
Concept publicitaire artistique et créatif conçu par AT&T
"Le but du concept était d’illustrer le fait que AT&T
a un réseau mondial à travers plus de 215 pays."
(buzzcreatif.com)
 India |
 Paraguay |
(Permanent link 1) (Permanent link 2)
Nowhere boy
- Sortie le 8 décembre 2010, trentième anniversaire
de l'assassinat de John Lennon.
Compilation de ressources
(Elisabeth Prévost-Kaboré - crdp.ac-dijon.fr)
DRUGS
Rio's drug war - PHOTOS
"An estimated 500 to 600 drug traffickers were hiding in the Complexo do
Alemão area of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Over several days last week,
shootouts between police and gang members left at least 42 people
dead and residents terrified.
The Big Picture Blog has 40 photographs from the raids.
Some may be disturbing."
(boston.com)
80 Over 80: 2010
Slate's list of the most influential octogenarians in America.
- interactive
(slate.com)
Natural Disaster Hot Zones
"Want to know where you should live if you are hoping to avoid the next catastrophic earthquake, flood, megavolcano, or storm?"
(io9.com)
EVOLUTION
Pilot Frixion: Evolution
Pilot, the Japanese pen manufacturer based in Tokyopromoted
its new pen ‘Frixion’ by making this following animation spot.
The idea behind it lays in the evolution of mankind.
“Millions of years ago we have been created as a simple black point, evolved
over fish, reptilian and other species into modern men.
But nowadays, advanced technologies make us loose our way.
We only sit around looking in a digital screen, getting fat and useless.”
(creativecriminals.com)
The Raven by Edgar Poe :
Text of the Poem - Summary - Analysis
- Symbolism - Rhyme, Form and Meter
- Themes - Trivia - Allusions & Cultural References - Study questions
- Resources - Best of the web
(shmoop.com)
Wikileaks diplomatic cables release 'attack on world'
- with a VIDEO
"US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has denounced the release of classified diplomatic cables as an "attack on the international community".
(BBC)
Wikileaks: quiz on leaked State Department cables discussing world leaders
"The leaked State Department cables publish by Wikileaks disclose
a wide-range of opinions about world leaders.
Test your knowledge on who was described what."
(telegraph.co.uk)
Newsy Video: WikiLeaks—Where Should Journalists Draw the Line?
"As the WikiLeaks document dump makes news around the world, some are blaming news organizations for working with the whistleblower website.
Read transcript >> "
(jeffreyhill.typepad.com)
Cartoon: WikiLeaks Putting Lives at Risk
"This cartoon by Steve Bell from the The Guardian is a comment on the
official response to the disclosure by WikiLeaks of thousands of classified
US diplomatic cables. The UK government says that WikiLeaks
is threatening national security..."
(jeffreyhill.typepad.com)
The Amish
"This presentation presents some of the characteristics
of the Amish denomination."
+ a VIDEO
(prezi.com)
BODY LANGUAGE
Body language abroad
"Body language means different things in different countries.
Here are our top tips on using body language abroad..."
(spoton.de)
