Book Review

The 2017 reader list (Burlington Books):
3ºESO: The Picture of Dorian Gray (Oscar Wilde) OR The Invisible Man (H.G. Wells)
4ºESO: Around the World in Eighty Days (Jules Verne) OR The Man in the Iron Mask (Alexandre Dumas)
1ºBach: The Ghostly Visitors (Henry James) OR Culture Shock (Janet Chandler)
2ºBach: Three Men in a Boat (Jerome K. Jerome) OR Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)

Your handwritten book review should include: A frontpage, summary (max. 1 page), character description (max. 2 pages), activities/questions about the book, joint personal opinion (min. half a page). Deadline: 4 May.

Europe Day Contest

Here's the question of our language department for this year:
How many countries formed the former European Economic Community (EEC) in 1958 and could you name them?

Reading

This year's reading list (editorial: Burlington):
2º ESO: The adventures of Tom Sawyer - Mark Twain
3º ESO: King Solomon's Mines - H. Rider Haggard
1º Bach: A foreigner in Britain - Ramón Ybarra Rubio & Fiona Smith OR
              The Murders in the Rue Morgue - Edgar Allan Poe
2º Bach: A foreigner in New York - Ramón Ybarra Rubio OR
              The Secret Agent and Lord Jim - Joseph Conrad

EUROPE DAY

France and Italy are suggesting to change a certain agreement... What agreement should be changed according to them?

Curiosities (2)

The Pillar Dollar: The two promentories on either side of the Straights of Gibralter are often called the Pillars of Hercules. In mythology it was Hercules who supposedly raised the Rock of Gibralter on the European side and the Jebel Musa on the African side. In 1661 the Spanish issued a Coin with an illustration of the Pillars and a scroll running across them, and many people suggested that a stylized version of this, with the scroll taking on the S shape, became the dollar symbol. A later version of the Spanish coin with the pillars of Hercules and two globes showing Europe and the Americas, often called the Globe Dollar, is shown at right . In the absence of an American coinage, this coing became the most common coin in use in many parts of the colonial Americas. When the Americas did decide to mint there own, they chose to copy the well known Spanish Dollar. IN a 1777 letter to Jefferson, the previously mentioned Robert Morris, writing as the Superintendent of Finance for the Continental Congress ilustrates how common the coin was when he wrote, "The various coins which have circulated in America have undergone different changes in their value, so that there is hardly any which can be considered as a general standard, unless it be Spanish dollars. These pass in Georgia at five shillings, in North Carolina and New York at eight shillings, in Virginia and the four Eastern States at six shillings, and in all the other States except South Carolina at seven shillings and sixpence, and in South Carolina at thirty-two shillings and sixpence."

One of the most popular theories is that the dollar sign is derived from the initials of the United States. If you superimpose a capital "U" on a capital "S" then drop the lower part of the "U", what you end up with is a version of the dollar symbol with two strokes. This theory was endorsed by the American libertarian philosopher and staunch defender of capitalism, Ayn Rand, in her novel Atlas Shrugged. Chapter 10 is entitled the Sign of the Dollar. Rand claimed the dollar sign was the symbol not only of the currency, but also the nation, a free economy, and a free mind
The word 'dollar' itself derives from the Flemish or Low German word daler (in German taler or thaler), short for Joachimstaler, referring to a coin from the silver mines of Joachimstal, in Bohemia (now Jáchymov in the Czech Republic). The term was later applied to a coin used in the Spanish-American colonies and also in the British North American colonies at the time of the American War of Independence. It was adopted as the name of the US currency unit in the late 18th century.

What if it were your home?

If you were not born in the country you were, what would your life be like? Would you be the same person? This website offers the opportunity to compare your country to any other country in the world... It's a nice way to practise the use of comparatives and superlatives... Visit www.ifitweremyhome.com and find out!

Artist of the week (9)

Robyn Rihanna Fenty (born February 20, 1988), better known as simply Rihanna (pronounced /riˈɑːnə/ ree-YAH-nə or /riˈænə/ ree-AN-ə), is an artist and songwriter born in Saint Michael, Barbados. Rihanna moved to the United States at the age of 16 to pursue a singing career. In 2005, Rihanna released her debut studio album, Music of the Sun. Less than a year later, she released her second studio album, A Girl Like Me (2006), which peaked within the top five of the Billboard albums chart, and produced her first US number one hit single, "SOS". Rihanna's third studio album, Good Girl Gone Bad (2007), featured five top ten hits including three US number one hit singles:"Umbrella", "Take a Bow" and "Disturbia". Her fourth studio album, Rated R, was released in November 2009. Its first three singles, "Russian Roulette", "Hard" and "Rude Boy" peaked within the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100, with "Rude Boy" peaking at number one.

Class vocabulary

Some vocabulary that may be useful in class:
Board rubber:

Beamer:

 

Thumbtack:

Artist of the week (8)

Peter Gene Hernandez (born October 8, 1985), better known by his stage name Bruno Mars, is an American singer-songwriter and music producer. Raised in Honolulu Hawaii by a family of musicians, Mars began making music at a young age. After performing in various musical venues in his hometown throughout his childhood, he decided to pursue a musical career and moved to Los Angeles after graduating from high school. As a child, he was highly influenced by artists such as Elvis Presley and Michael Jackson and would often impersonate these artists from a young age. Mars also incorporates reggae and Motown inspired sounds into his work.

London Treasure Hunt

After our class tour around London, why not have a look at the city up close... Here's an 80 gigapixel (and that's a lot of pixels!) picture of the capital of England: London 360º. Try and find some of the most famous landmarks by scrolling over the picture:

• Big Ben
• Westminster Abbey
• The London Eye
• The Tower Bridge
• Buckingham Palace

Could you tell the time on the Big Ben clock?
How many cabins are there on the London Eye?

French contest

Enclosed you will find all the data about the French contest.

Reading list

Editorial: Burlington Books

2ºESO: The Canterville Ghost

3ºESO: The Lost World

1ºBACH: Pride & Prejudice OR The Last of the Mohicans

2ºBACH: Brave New World OR The Moonstone

Artist of the week (7)

This week I've posted Oceana's song, Cry Cry... since you've all sung this song in class, don't be shy and sing along. The song is actually about Oceana's childhood friend who got on the wrong path...

Where is Matt?

If you like travelling, have a look at this video. It's about Matt, a 34-year-old man from Connecticut who used to think that all he ever wanted to do in life was make and play videogames. Matt achieved this goal pretty early and enjoyed it for a while, but eventually realized there might be other stuff he was missing out on. In February of 2003, he quit his job in Brisbane, Australia and used the money he'd saved to wander around Asia until it ran out. He made this site so he could keep his family and friends updated about where he is.

Answers for this year's Selectivity Exam!

Have a look at this year's exams...

Green energy industry asks for government help to meet targets
Social care for graduates: compassionate embrace