This Week's Report

“A visit to our School by a volunteer from Médicos Sin Fronteras / Doctors Without Borders.”

 Introduction

On Monday 17^th October, students and staff of EOI Santa Brígida attended a talk about Médicos Sin Fronteras / Doctors Without Borders, an international humanitarian organisation. The speaker was the doctor, Evelyn Fernández Bowyer, a volunteer who works for the regional office in Barcelona.

Background

Médicos Sin Fronteras / Doctors without Borders was created in 1971 in France to help people who have problems in conflicts, such as wars, drought problems or epidemics. The organisation has neither political ideology or religion. The money that they receive is from donations and contributions from the general public and from its members.

Principles

The organisation’s main objective is one of humanitarian aid to people in underdeveloped countries which suffer from natural disasters or who are victims of armed conflicts.

Médicos Sin Fronteras / Doctors without Borders Today

They operate especially in Latin America, Africa and Asia. They help people with medicines, alleviate that suffering, and give witness to possible violation of human rights.

Work in the Horn of Africa

In the Horn of Africa, people are experiencing severe famine, and thousands of people die every day, not only because of this natural disaster but also due to the armed conflict which concerns Somalia. This situation causes many people to seek refuge in the neighbouring countries of Kenya and Ethiopia.

Risk to Volunteers

Volunteers do not have any special protection. They try to stay neutral wherever they go, avoiding taking sides. This is their best protection.

International Recognition

The organisation has received prestigious prizes but the most important prize is the acknowledgement of people and they affection and respect of the population wherever they go.

Conclusion

Last but not least, we will say that the work done by volunteers of Médicos Sin Fronteras / Doctors without Borders is priceless. They place their knowledge and their time at the service of the neediest, and they are often at risk of losing their own life . . . Considering this, any donation that can be made will always be insufficient.

 Prudencio García García and Lorenzo Negrín Rodríguez. NA1

This Week's Homework

NB2 (Monday / Wednesday): revise for test (see below); make sure you have completed Unit One in your Workbook and on the CD Rom. Do Listening Test Parts, 5, 6, 7 and 8 for next Monday. If you did not come to class this Wednesday, make sure you have done Student's Book P 15 "Help with Pronunciation",  and Page 16 - 17 Ex 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. Prepare SB P 17 Ex 8. Do Workbook Lesson 2A and CD Rom 2A. Ask  me if there's anything you don't understand. Also, ask me for the Reading Test which is to be prepared for Monday 7th. Do the next 4 parts (9-12) of the Listening Test.

NB2 (Tuesday / Thursday): prepare Student's Book Page 16 Ex 1 and 2; do Listening Test Parts 9, 10, 11 and 12 for Tuesday 8th November; do Reading Tests for Thursday 3rd November. Make sure you have completed Lesson 2A in your workbook and on the CD Rom. Remember that Tuesday 1st November is a holiday; also, Friday's class on 4th November has been cancelled because I am going to a congress in Las Palmas. Please inform your colleagues.

NA1: make sure you have completed listening test number 2; prepare SB P 20 - 21 Section 2 Grammar a - f. If you did not come to class on Wed, complete SB P 18 and prepare P 22 Ex 3 a - f and Ex 4 a and b. If you have the grammar handout for Unit 2, do the first exercise on Page 1. Homework for Monday 31st is: prepare SB P33 sections a - c; (section d will be for Monday 14th); prepare P 134 - 135 Grammar Bank 2B. Do listening test number 3 for as soon as possible.

Next Week's Guest Speaker

What do you know about Vampires? On Monday 31^st October at 8 o’clock, come and listen to Melena Illijin, a Vampire Expert, but don’t go too close . . .

This Week's Festival

Come to our Halloween Cocktail on Thursday 27th between 6.45 pm and 7.15 pm and on Monday 31st October . . . if you dare!!!

And if you know how to make a jack o'lanterns, an apple cake or pumpkin pie, bring it along too!

This Week's Important News

We are finishing the first unit of our textbook. At the end of every unit, we will do a test to revise the different points we have seen. The proposed dates for the test are:

• NA1: Monday 24th October
• NB2C: Tuesday 25th October
• NB2A: Friday 28th October (new date)

This is what we need to know about:
Students of NB2

Topics: 

• countries where they speak English;
• Jamie Oliver;
• Princess Ann;
• the British way of life; 
• speed dating.

Vocabulary:

• question words (Who / How much / How many / Where / How often / How long, etc . . . . );
• how to ask questions about commuting;
• free time activities (When do we use: do / play / go / go to);
• frequency adverbs and expressions (always, occasionally, once a week, etc . . . );
• adjectives and their order.

Grammar:

• how to form questions (Who do you love?);
• how to form questions when the question word / words (“Who . . . ?” / “What . . . ?” / “How many people . . . ?” are the SUBJECT of the question (Who loves you?);
• how to agree with someone (So do I; Neither do I);
• how to disagree with someone: (Oh, I do!  Oh, I don’t!);
• when to use: in / for / as / with.

Writing:

• how to write a formal e-mail asking for information.

Students of NAI:

Vocabulary:

• personality
• illness and treatment

Grammar:

• question formation
• auxiliary verbs
• the . . . the . .  + comparatives
• present perfect (simple and continuous)

This Week's History in the Making

Dandi joins the "indignants" on 15th October in Las Palmas de G.C.

London became part of the global Occupy movement when protesters set up camp at St Paul's. From Frankfurt to Madrid, Wall Street to Athens, people are taking to the streets to rage against greed and inequality. Who are the demonstrators and what do they hope to achieve? See The Guardian's photo gallery here; this is another photo gallery from The Boston Globe; Top Ten Protest Symbols is a slideshow from Time Magazine of what they think are - historically - the most important symbols of protest; A Brief History of People Power is also from Time.

Source: Larry Ferlazzo

Week Beginning Monday 17th October

This Week's Vocabulary



This Week's Homework

Important note: there will be no class on Friday 4th November because I shall be attending a congress in Las Palmas. This affects NB2 Tuesday & Thursday only.

NB2 (Monday / Wednesday): make sure you have prepared P 13 of the Student's Book. Prepare Pages 1 - 4 of the Grammar Revision handout I gave you. Do Activties 1 - 4 of the Listening exercises I gave you, too. Start preparing for a test which will be on Wednesday 26th October.

NB2 (Tuesday / Thursday): do  exercises 1 - 4 of the listening texts I gave you; complete the grammar handout on the present simple / present continuous and check your answers; make sure you've prepared P 14 Ex 1 and 2. Start revising EVERYTHING you have seen in class since the beginning of the academic year for a test on Tuesday 25th October.

NA1: do Listening Test 2. Revise all the grammar and vocabulary from Unit One for a Consolidation Test on Monday. Do SB Page 18 Grammar and Vocabulary.

This Week's Crime Report

They may look cute, but some of them are hardened criminals! Watch this extract from BBC One's Frozen Planet Series.  Learn about Emperor Penguins with National Geographic here (you might have to click on video and sound). What can Penguins Teach Us about Earth? is a report by ABC News. Tracking Penguins in Antartica from 400 Miles Up is a very informative video by the Wall Street Journal. And if you haven't met Cookie the Little Penguin at Cincinnati zoo, here's another chance!

This Week's Art

No Woman, No Cry by Chris Offali at Tate Britain 

Visit museums from around the world, discover and view hundreds of artworks at incredible zoom levels, and even create and share your own collection of masterpieces.  Explore Art Project by Google by clicking here.

This Week's Quote

"I'd rather cry in a Rolls than be happy on a bicycle." Thus spoke Patrizia Reggiani, ex-wife of the Gucci heir. At the moment, she's serving a 29-year sentence for ordering his murder.  Find out about her trial and her attitude to work and prison here.

Week Beginning Monday 10th October

This Week's Good News

We Did It!

The students and staff of
the Escuela Oficial de Idiomas
de Santa Brígida raised

1397,70 euros

in aid of hunger victims in Somalia.

On Monday 17^th October, Dr Evelyn Fernández Bowyer, representative of Médicos Sin Fronteras (MSF), will come to the School’s Library on the ground floor at 19:00 to give a short talk in English about the work that this NGO does in the world, especially in the Horn of Africa. She will show a short documentary in Spanish. Please come! (There will be class as usual afterwards.)

This Week's Homework

NA1: make sure you have completed the first Listening Test to give to me; learn vocabulary on P147 (Student's Book); do P14 Ex 5a, b and especially c; do reading P 15; do "auxiliary verbs" on Page 4 of your handout. If you did not come to class on Monday, have a look at P 12 as well. It is assumed that you are up-to-date in your Workbook.

NB2 (Monday & Wednesday): I'm expecting a perfectly written formal e-mail from you on or before Friday 14th; prepare Student's Book (SB) Page 12 - except Ex 2. It would be a good idea to have a look at P 13, too. Continue working in your Workbook and CD Rom.

NB2 (Tuesday & Thursday): make sure you have completed Pages 12 - 13 in your SB (Student's Book); your workbook and CD Rom activities should be up-to-date; prepare SB Page 14 Ex 1 and 2 for Tuesday 18th; do Pages 1 - 4 of the grammar revision handout I gave you on Friday.

Important note: there will be no class on Friday 4th November because I shall be attending a congress in Las Palmas. This affects NB2 Tuesday & Thursday only.

This Week's Good Advice

If you're going cycling this weekend, watch out for any wild animals! You can read about the incident here.

Source: YouTube/mcsmcc

This Week's Lost and Found

Dandi in his new home

We found this little abandoned dog 3 weeks ago. But he's got a new home now. A BIG thank you to Amelia, Rita and Dara. (You're the best!)

Week Beginning Monday 3rd October

Gift Fair at EOI Santa Brígida

1001 Beautiful, Useful or Unusual Things

Some of the beautiful things on display at our fair.

Come to our fair on Wednesday 5th and Thursday 6th October and have a look at the many beautiful, useful and unusual things which our students have brought. Choose something that you really like. Then, give a donation - at least 1 euro - for every item you are going to take home with you.

All the money we raise will go to help hunger victims in Somalia through the NGO Doctors without Borders/Médicos Sin Fronteras.  Find out more about this organisation and the work they do here.

This Week's Birthday Boy

Do you recognise this guy? If you do, give him a big kiss because it's his birthday!

This Week's Quote

 "Being the richest man in the cemetery doesn't matter to me … Going to bed at night saying we've done something wonderful … that's what matters to me."

Apple's co-founder Steve Jobs has died. Find out about his impact on the lives of many, many people here.

This Week's Photos

A selection of the best photos from around the world according to The Guardian newspaper. Click here.

This Week's Lost and Found

One of our classmates in NA1 has lost his workbook. Have you taken it home by mistake? Please check.

This Week's Idiom

"Over the hill at 40!"

There's a saying in English which goes something like, "How old is Rafa? Oh, he's over the hill". It means that, now the person is 40 years old or more, he or she is too old to enjoy life. How wrong this saying is! People in their 40's or over are usually much more self-confident and well-balanced than many people in their 20's. Moreover, they tend to be people with clear ideas and objectives. If you've got a moment, take a look at this wonderful collection of photos of people in their 70's, and you´ll be surprised at how stylish and creative they are. Click here.

This Week's Homework

NB2 Monday and Wednesday: learn vocabulary; complete question forms on "Enrolling at a Language School." Make sure you have done Page 11 Ex 5a, b, c, d, e and Ex 6a and b. Do Unit 1C in your workbook. Do the activities which correspond to unit 1C on the CDRom.

NB2 Tuesday and Thursday: learn any new vocabulary; prepare Student's book Page 11 Ex 5 and 6 (everything.); do Workbook 1C; do CD Rom 1C; prepare P12 Ex 1a and 1b; Ex 3a, b and c. You have a written assignment to prepare for Friday 14th October. See me for details.

NA1: page 9, Student's Book (SB) "Mini Grammar"; complete Vocabulary on Page 146; revise Grammar Pages 132 - 133 Section 1A; do Grammar Section 1B. If you did not come to class on Wed, make sure you do P9 Ex 2c, P10 Ex 6c and Page 11 Ex 7a and c. Our homework is the supplementary grammar exercise on auxiliary verbs in your handout. Test One in our listening pack should be completed for Monday 10th.

This Week's Geology

"I'm more worried about earthquakes than El Hierro volcano," says volcanologist Nemésio Pérez, the man in charge of trying to anticipate Canary Island eruptions. Read the article here. Find out more about volcanoes here.

This Week's Prepositions

"At the beginning" or "in the beginning"? Do you know the difference. Click here to find out.

Source: Macmillan blog.

This Week's Hot Dog

Let's go to Edinbugh, the capital city of Scotland. Edinburgh is an old and beautiful city, full of fascinating places to visit. One of these is a church called Greyfriars Kirk. “Kirk” is a Scottish word for “church”. The church is built on land which was once a Franciscan monastery. The Franciscan monks wore grey clothing, hence the name “Greyfriars”. Greyfriars Kirk played an important part in the history of Scotland in the 17th century, and was a centre for Protestant opposition to the king. However, the reason that thousands of people visit Greyfriars Kirk every year has nothing to do with 17th century history. No, the visitors come to see a little statue of a dog, called Greyfriars Bobby.

Bobby belonged to a man called John Gray (or “auld Jock” as he was commonly known.) Auld Jock was a night watchman, and Bobby went with him everywhere. Then, in 1858 Auld Jock died of tuberculosis. He was buried in the churchyard of Greyfriars Kirk. For the next 14 years, Bobby sat beside his master’s grave waiting for him to return, until at last in 1872 Bobby himself died. Soon after that, a wealthy lady paid for a statue to commemorate the dog, and tourists have come to visit the place ever since. There have been books and a film about Greyfriars Bobby, and in Edinburgh you can buy all sorts of Greyfriars Bobby souvenirs. Bobby is indeed one of the most famous dogs in the world.

Source: http://www.listen-to-english.com/?cat=podcasts  (You can go to this source to read and listen to the full text.)