IMMIGRATION
Alabama passes tough immigration law
"The new legislation, similar to one passed last year in Arizona, requires schools to find out if students are there illegally.
The law, which takes effect on 1 September 2011, also make it a crime to give an illegal immigrant a ride in a car...
There are an estimated 12 million illegal immigrants in the US - and individual states have increasingly taken matters
into their own hands in an attempt to tackle the problem."
(BBC)

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GIANT GLOBE
Mitsubishi creates giant OLED globe for Tokyo's museum-goers, cloud gazers
"This year, Tokyo's National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation is celebrating its 10th anniversary -- a milestone that Mitsubishi is commemorating with a giant OLED globe. Comprised of over 10,000 Diamond Vision OLEDs (each measuring 96 x 96mm),
the six-meter 'Geo-Cosmos' installation will hang about 18 feet above the museum floor, where it will beam clouds and other satellite
images at a resolution of 10 million pixels."
(engadget.com)

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GEESE / POLICE / ROAD
Geese given police escort on US highway
Article + Video 
"A Canada goose and her goslings are escorted from a busy highway in Seattle by no less than three police cars...
The operation "to get the little guys cleared" took around 20 minutes."
(telegraph.co.uk)
VOCABULARY :
1) goose / geese - goslings - the gaggle - the little guys
2) police escort - state troopers - motorists - the authorities - officers - patrol spokeswoman
3) busy highway - rush hour - lanes of traffic - highway exit
4) after - whilst
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RICH DOG

Trouble, the dog that inherited $12m, dies
"One of the world's richest dogs, which inherited $12 million (£7.3m) from eccentric US hotelier Leona Helmsley, has died...
The funds held in trust for her care have reverted to the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust for charitable purposes."
(telegraph.co.uk)
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PIERCING
World's most pierced woman gets married to balding civil servant
"The world's most pierced woman got married in Britain on Wednesday, to a balding retired civil servant who has no metal attached to his body...
Elaine Davidson (46), who has almost 7000 piercings covering her body, married Douglas Watson, at a low-key wedding reception in Edinburgh."
Her face "was painted green and covered in 192 piercings."
She "now has 6,925 including more than 1,500 that are "internal" that are said to weigh almost seven pounds.
According to her website, she "never removes the rings and studs"."
(telegraph.co.uk)

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MILITARY ARSENAL
Gears of War: Inside America's Incredible Military Arsenal
(time.com)
"From high-tech stealth bombers, to the latest night-vision rifles and assault helicopters, the U.S. armed forces have the most sophisticated
military hardware in the world. Here are some of the niftiest pieces of equipment used in recent missions
from Operation Odyssey Dawn in Libya to the Osama bin Laden raid in Pakistan."
Bin Laden Raid: Pakistan
Anti-Terrorism Missions: Pakistan
American Aviator Rescue: Libya
Operation Odyssey Dawn: Libya
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AC-130 Gunship
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FORTUNE TELLER / FUTURE
Fortune teller
"This lesson, suitable for pre-intermediate students, follows on from presentation and controlled practice of the future ‘will'.
It is an extended role-play activity which is simple to set up and fun for the students."
(teachingenglish.org.uk)
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CLIMATE CHANGE
Climate change overview
"In this lesson students will gain an overview of what climate change is.
They will read some short texts, exchange information and make notes.
They will also learn some useful vocabulary on the topic."
(teachingenglish.org.uk)
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"LAMB TO THE SLAUGHTER"
Pouvoir prendre part à un procès
"Cette séquence se propose de mener les élèves vers la prise de parole en interaction lors d’un procès simplifié
à partir de l’étude d’une nouvelle de Roald Dahl "Lamb to the Slaughter" mise en scène par Alfred Hitchcock...
Ce scénario a été testé en classe de troisième en fin d’année..."
(Cécile Clavel - Ac. Toulouse)
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CHILD LABOUR
Child Slavery - Lesson plans 
(continuetolearn.uiowa.edu)
High street retailers accused of exploiting workers in Asia - an article 
"Report claims Tesco, John Lewis, Levis and Asda are among UK firms denying factory workers a living wage...
Any members of the Ethical Trading Initiative, an alliance of UK retailers and trade unions working to improve lives around the world,
must sign up to a labour practice code which stipulates that working conditions should be safe and hygenic, that child labour is not used
and that reasonable wages are paid."
(guardian.co.uk)
US: End Child Labor in the Fields 
"Hundreds of thousands of children are employed as farmworkers in the United States, often working 10 or more hours a day.
They are often exposed to dangerous pesticides, experience high rates of injury, and suffer fatalities...
The Children’s Act for Responsible Employment (CARE Act) would update US law to ensure that all working children are protected equally."
(kintera.org)
Fingers to the Bone: Child Farmworkers in the United States 
(YouTube)
Children of the Fields 
"a short documentary about the hidden problem of migrant children working in U.S. agriculture today...
Filmed in Minnesota, North Dakota, and Texas..."
(YouTube)
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THE AMAZING RACE
Recommendé par Marie Luce Morin (Ac. Rouen) :
"Cherchant une tâche finale pour la séquence aventure en 4ème, j'ai pensé à une émission télé
dans laquelle les participants se montrent débrouillards et sportifs.
Je suis tombée sur l'émission américaine « The Amazing Race ».
La « saison » 18 , épisode 2 se déroule en Australie.
Je pense que la tâche intermédiaire va consister à se présenter pour le casting de cette émission: les pays que j'ai déjà visités, les expériences que j'ai déjà eues (nourriture, moyen de transport etc...) et à présenter la personne avec qui l'on part: la règle du jeu; une équipe de 2 personnes."
Des videos exploitables : 
The Amazing Race : Season 18 - Episode 2 - In Australia
- The Amazing Race 18 Episode 2 Part 2
- The Amazing Race 18 Episode 2 Part 3
- The Amazing Race 18 Episode 2 Part 4
- The Amazing Race 18 Episode 2 Part 5 :
"Cette partie me semble exploitable pour montrer quelques éléments de la culture aborigène."
(YouTube)
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SAGGY TROUSERS
Saggy trousers banned on Texas buses
"Saggy trousers may be fashionable among urban youth but they won't be allowed on some buses in the state of Texas...
"Pull 'em up or find another ride," reads signs on city buses in Ft. Worth."
"The saggy trousers look has been around for more than a decade, tracing its roots to prison attire because inmates are not issued belts.
It spread to the rap and hip-hop music community, and from there became a popular symbol of freedom
and cultural awareness for many young people."
(telegraph.co.uk)

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BULLYING
Student bullying - infographic
"The statistics show a student is bullied every seven minutes in the U.S.A., and that most of the time, bullying occurs on playgrounds.
77% of students are bullied and cyber-bullying is rapidly approaching this percentage as well."
(anglais.over-blog.org)

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CULTURE
Causey Farm
"is a family-run, fun based venue for a variety of entertainment, tourism and educational programs...
Our educational programs have an interactive, 'Hands-On' focus, visitors get to participate in all activities.
For international tourists - learn about live Irish culture the fun way!
Dance a jig, play the bodhráin, cut turf in a bog, bake brown soda bread, see a sheepdog at work and more!...
Causey Farm is situated 5 miles from Kells in County Meath, just 40 miles from Dublin, Ireland."
(causey.ie)
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ORGAN TRAFFICKING
China: Teenager 'sells kidney for iPad 2'
"The 17-year-old... told a local TV station he had arranged the sale of the kidney over the internet...
It all started when the high school student saw an online advert offering money to organ donors.
Illegal agents organised a trip to the hospital and paid him $3,392 (£2,077) after the operation.
With the cash the student bought an iPad 2, as well as a laptop...
In 2007, Chinese authorities banned organ trafficking and have introduced a voluntary donor scheme to try to combat the trade."
(BBC)
More information here (siliconrepublic.com) and there. (telegraph.co.uk)

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NUCLEAR
Special report : NUCLEAR ENERGY
"25 years after Chernobyl, a nuclear crisis confronts Japan. We examine the pros and cons of our nuclear world...
Explore our global database of nuclear reactors."
+ Featured Stories
+ Timeline of Nuclear History - interactive
(voanews.com)

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IDIOMS
Idioms 4 You 
English Idioms and Idiomatic Expressions including definitions, explanations, conjugations, scenarios and audio.
Since launching the site, Robert Ross has added many fine illustrations. 
(idioms4you.com)

"to rest on your laurels"
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BLACK HISTORY
Milestones in Black History
"African Americans and their contributions to American society and culture are honored each February with Black History Month.
Since arriving in America in 1619 as slaves, African Americans have fought for their independence and to be seen as equals.
These struggles have produced many historical icons and events that make all Americans proud..."
- with "a chronological list of many events that shaped black history and some information
about the brave men and women who led the way for today’s generation."
(usa-people-search.com)
Thanks to Mrs Morgan Suzies
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MOBILES / CANCER
Mobiles 'may cause brain cancer'
" The World Health Organization's cancer research agency says mobile phones are "possibly carcinogenic"...
it is important to take pragmatic measures to reduce exposure such as hands free devices or texting."
See : What else is labelled possibly carcinogenic ?
(BBC)
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POLICE
Brazilian police to use 'Robocop-style' glasses at World Cup
"Brazilian police will use futuristic 'Robocop-style' glasses fitted with facial recognition equipment
to identify and root out troublemakers at the 2014 World Cup...
A small camera fitted to the glasses can capture 400 facial images per second and
send them to a central computer database storing up to 13 million faces...
The camera will generally be used to scan faces in crowds up to 50 metres (164ft) away but can be adjusted,
if searching for a specific target, to recognise faces as far as 12 miles away...
Robocop, the American film of 1987, told the story of a police officer who was killed by criminals
but re-created as a cyborg with an array of weaponry and built-in zoom vision."
(telegraph.co.uk)

"Military Police officials from Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro
have been given demonstrations of how the device works." |
Robocop |
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DAILY ROUTINE
Useful dog tricks 
"Jesse loves helping around the house."
(YouTube)
- with a song : Josh Woodward - Coffee :
"My life is grounded in a firm routine
Of coffee sleep and work"
(lipwalklyrics.com)

Thanks to Renée Maufroid. (Ac. Lille)
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STORYTELLING
Storytelling – #eltchat summary
"Storytelling is one of those great lessons where students are mostly in control and have freedom to be creative."
IDEAS FOR GETTING STUDENTS TELLING STORIES
(eltchat.com)
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SWEARING

£80 fine for swearing in public
"Swearing in public could result in boisterous people being fined £80 in a new police initiative to combat anti-social behaviour...
Officers in Barnsley, in south Yorkshire, have been told to monitor the language of people
out shopping, eating or merely relaxing in the town centre...
The fines are a part of a series of monthly campaigns aimed at tackling different types of anti-social behaviour."
(telegraph.co.uk)

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GUN GESTURES 
School reprimands seven-year-old boys for playing 'army game'
in Nuneaton, Warwickshire.
"A primary school has been condemned by parents for disciplining two seven-year-old boys after teachers ruled
playing army games amounted to "threatening behaviour"...
Staff ... reprimanded the two boys after they were seen making pistol shapes with their fingers."
The school said "the gun gestures were “unacceptable” and were not permitted at school."
(telegraph.co.uk)

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BACKGROUNDS :
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