Happy 2009!

London is a great city to celebrate the festive season; there's so much going on!
You can go ice-skating throughout the Christmas and New Year period, enjoy fireworks or more alternative entertainment on New Year's Eve or experience something totally different for your New Year's Resolutions. (VisitLondon.com)

Happy 2009!

London Quiz

New Year's Resolutions

New Year's Eve has always been a time for looking back to the past, and more importantly, forward to the coming year. It's a time to reflect on the changes we want (or need) to make and resolve to follow through on those changes. Can you tell us your New Year's resolutions? (Comments)

Examples:

- I guess I'd better spend more time with family and friends.

- I promise I'll quit smoking.

- I really should learn English.

- Never again will I fail an exam.

Translation - Unit 3 (4º E.S.O.)

TRANSLATE THESE SENTENCES INTO ENGLISH

1.- Sergio ha besado a Laura en el pasillo del instituto y todo el mundo se ha reído.
2.- He leído ya el libro de inglés, pero no me ha gustado.
3.- Hemos oído esta canción muchas veces este año, la hemos repetido en clase casi todos los días. 4.- Acabo de ver a tu hermana, estaba enfrente del cine con un amigo muy guapo.
5.- ¿Habéis estado alguna vez en Australia? No, hemos viajado a Nueva Zelanda, pero no hemos estado nunca en Australia.
6.- Daniel ha sido el mejor alumno desde el año pasado y ha recibido un premio hace 1 mes .
7.- El gato ha roto la silla de mi abuela con sus garras, pero mi padre lo ha arreglado ya.
8.- ¿Ha entregado la maestra el examen ya? No, ella ya ha puesto las notas de la composición, pero no ha dado el examen todavía.
9.- Te he echado de menos. ¿Por qué no me has llamado?
10.- Perdona, he estado muy ocupada. He tenido mucho trabajo esta semana
11.- Julio ha gastado 90 euros en unos zapatos nuevos. El ha usado el mismo par de zapatos durante 2 años.
12.- No he visto a Marcos desde hace 3 días. ¿Dónde ha estado? No sé.
13.- Sara ha preguntado a su padre algo muy importante, pero su padre no le ha contestado aún.
14.- Mis primos acaban de encontrar un cuerno de toro en una caja y un rabo de conejo debajo de un árbol.
15.- No he estado nunca en un concierto de música clásica.
16.- Raquel no me ha invitado a su fiesta todavía. No he ido a una fiesta desde el verano pasado.
17.- Carmen ha tenido un dolor de cabeza durante 3 días, hoy ha ido al médico.
18.- ¿Cariño, has desayunado ya? No,me acabo de levantar y no tengo hambre aún.
19.- ¿Habéis conocido alguna vez a alguien famoso? Sí, yo he visto a Brad Pitt en Madrid hace algunos años.
20.- ¿Has volado en helicóptero alguna vez? No, me pongo enferma cuando vuelo.

Ana's contribution

Do They Know It's Christmas? (2004 version)

BAND AID 20 (Wikipedia)

"Do They Know It's Christmas?" (azlyrics) [Chris Martin:] It's Christmastime, there's no need to be afraid At Christmastime, we let in light and we banish shade [Dido:] And in our world of plenty we can spread a smile of joy Throw your arms around the world at Christmastime [Robbie Williams:] But say a prayer, Pray for the other ones At Christmastime it's hard, but when you're having fun [Sugababes:] There's a world outside your window And it's a world of dread and fear [Fran Healy:] Where the only water flowing [Fran Healy & Sugarbabes:] Is the bitter sting of tears [Fran Healy & Justin Hawkins:] And the Christmas bells that ring there are the clanging chimes of doom [Bono:] Well tonight thank God it's them instead of you [Will Young & Jamelia:] And there won't be snow in Africa this Christmastime The greatest gift they'll get this year is life [Ms Dynamite & Beverly Knight:] Where nothing ever grows No rain nor rivers flow [Group of ten and Joss Stone:] Do they know it's Christmastime at all? [Tom Chaplin (Keane):] Here's to you [Justin Hawkins (Darkness):] Raise a glass for everyone [Dizzee Rascal:] Spare a thought this yuletide for the deprived If the table was turned would you survive

[Busted:] Here's to them [Justin Hawkins (Darkness):] Underneath that burning sun [Dizzee Rascal:] You ain't gotta feel guilt just selfless Give a little help to the helpless [Joss Stone & Justin Hawkins:] Do they know it's Christmastime at all? [Tom Chaplin:] Feed the world [Tom Chaplin & Chris Martin:] Feed the world [Tom Chaplin & Chris Martin & Sugababes:] Feed the world [Tom Chaplin & Chris Martin & Sugababes:] Feed the world [Everyone in full chorus line.] Feed the world Let them know it's Christmastime again - [repeated] [Group of ten:] Feed the world [Everyone in full chorus line.] Feed the world - [repeated to end] [Joss Stone ] [Ad libs over outro]

Present Perfect

Present Perfect

1) USES:
- Past actions at an unspecified time---> Peter has gone to the cinema

- Past actions with present result--->Susan has caught a cold so she is in bed.

- Duration from past until now --->We have been friends for years

- Actions just finished ---> Paul has just finished the exam

2) FORM:
- Affirmative: have/has + past participle*
- Negative: haven't/hasn't + past participle
- Interrogative: have/has + subject + past participle

* Past Participle formation: Regular verbs add -ed to form the past participle and irregular verbs have different forms so you must study your list of irregular verbs.
-------------> Examples: regular verb: I work - I have worked ; irregular verb: I go - I have gone

3) TIME EXPRESSIONS:
- Already: Peter has already finished the exam
- Ever: Have you ever been to London?
- Never: I have never been to Italy.
- Just: They have just made the cake.
- Yet: I haven't finished the exam yet.
- For: I have studied for 2 hours.
- Since: I have studied here since 2004.
- How long...?: How long have you studied here?

Present Perfect Tense

4) ACTIVITIES:

- Grammar and exercises (ego4u)
- Games: The Euro, Uses, Past Simple or Present Perfect
- Statements, Negation, Questions, Since or For, Review, Test (englishhilfen)
- Video
- Karaoke (We are the Champions by Queen)

December's Special Dates

Christmas

25 December

Christmas, also referred to as Christmas Day or Christmastide, is an annual holiday celebrated on December 25 that marks and honors the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. His birth, which is the basis for the anno Domini system of dating, has been determined by modern historians as having occurred between 7 and 2 BC. The date of celebration is not thought to be Jesus' actual date of birth. It may have been chosen to coincide with the winter solstice, which the ancient Romans celebrated on December 25.
Modern customs of the holiday include gift-giving, church celebrations, and the display of various decorations—including the Christmas tree, lights, mistletoe, nativity scenes and holly. Santa Claus (also referred to as Father Christmas, although the two figures have different origins) is a popular mythological figure often associated with bringing gifts at Christmas. Santa is generally believed to be the result of a syncretization between St. Nicholas of Myra and elements from pagan Nordic and Christian mythology, and his modern appearance is believed to have originated in 19th century media. (Wikipedia)

- Games

- Christmas around the world

- Vocabulary

- Vocabulary review

- Activities

- Karaoke: Jingle Bells, We Wish You a Merry Christmas, Jingle Bell Rock

- We wish you a Merry Christmas (song and activities)

- A Christmas Carol by C. Dickens (AUDIO)

- Nightmare Before Christmas -What's this? (VIDEO)
- Links (Isabel Pérez)

Hanukkah

21-29 December

Hanukkah, also known as the Festival of Lights, is an eight-day Jewish holiday commemorating the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt of the 2nd century BCE. Hanukkah is observed for eight nights, starting on the 25th day of Kislev according to the Hebrew calendar, and may occur from late November to late December on the Gregorian calendar.
The festival is observed by the kindling of the lights of a special candelabrum, the Menorah or Hanukiah, one light on each night of the holiday, progressing to eight on the final night. An extra light called a shamash, is also lit each night, and is given a distinct location, usually higher or lower than the others. The purpose of the extra light is to adhere to the prohibition, specified in the Talmud (Tracate Shabbat 21b-23a), against using the Hanukkah lights for anything other than publicizing and meditating on the Hanukkah story. (Wikipedia)

- Vocabulary quiz

- All about Chanukah

- The story

- Games

- Coloring pages

Boxing Day

26 December

Boxing Day is a public holiday in the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand and Australia, as well as many other members of the Commonwealth of Nations and Greece. It is based on the tradition of giving gifts to the less fortunate members of society. Contemporary Boxing Day in Canada is a "shopping holiday" associated with after Christmas sales.
It is usually celebrated on 26 December, the day after Christmas Day; however, its associated public holiday can be moved to the next weekday if 26 December is a Saturday or Sunday. The movement of Boxing Day varies between countries. (Wikipedia)

- Information

- Boxing Day in England

- Listening

- Quiz

New Year's Eve
31 December

New Year's Eve is on December 31, the final day of the Gregorian year, and the day before New Year's Day. New Year's Eve is a separate observance from the observance of New Year's Day. In modern Western practice, New Year's Eve is celebrated with parties and social gatherings spanning the transition of the year at midnight.
Many cultures use fireworks and other forms of noise making in part of the celebration. Some of the cities most well-known for their celebrations include Edinburgh, Sydney, Toronto, Moscow, Tokyo, Rome, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, Berlin, Rio de Janeiro, Paris, and New York City. (Wikipedia)

- Resolutions (advanced)

- Themes by British Council

- Webquest

- Wordsearch

- Auld Lang Syne: Lyrics, Video

"Elementary, my dear Watson"

Sherlock Holmes appears first in print on the 1st December 1887. He is the creation of Scottish-born author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. A brilliant London-based consulting detective, Holmes is famous for his intellectual prowess, and is renowned for his skillful use of "deductive reasoning" while using abductive reasoning and astute observation to solve difficult cases.

Many people believed that the famous detective, lived and worked at22B Baker Street, London. The fictional character was in fact created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in the 1880s, and the address doesn’t exist.

FACT OR FICTION? (Adapted from IT's Magazine)

Films include many action heroes – Iron Man, Speed Racer, Indiana Jones, The Incredible Hulk and Batman. But did any of these heroes actually exist, or are they all fictional?
Earlier this year, a television station in Britain asked 3,000 young people a series of questions about famous factual and fictional people. They wanted to find out ifanyone knew which of the people existed in real life and which were fictional characters.
Which names do you think are real people and which are fictional characters?
King Arthur, Winston Churchill, Cleopatra, Robinson Crusoe, Charles Dickens, Gandhi, Lady Godiva, Sherlock Holmes, Robin Hood, Michael Jackson, Indiana Jones, Mona Lisa, Iron Man, Florence Nightingale, The Pied Piper of Hamelin, The Three Musketeers, Sir Walter Raleigh, Eleanor Rigby, The Duke of Wellington.
According to UKTV, the TV station that carried out the survey, King Arthur is the fictional figure that most people in Britain (65%) believe existed and had a round table in Camelot. Half of those surveyed (51%) also believed that Robin Hood lived in Sherwood Forest during the 14th century, robbing the rich to give to the poor. Eleanor Rigby was the name of a fictional character in a Beatles song, but 47% of young people believed she was a real person. People were also confused when they tried to identify real historical figures. A surprising 21% thought that Winston Churchill, possibly Britain’s most famous Prime Minister, was a fictional character. And over a quarter (27%) thought pioneering nurse Florence Nightingale was fictional.Paul Moreton of UKTV said, “Stories like Robin Hood are so inspiring that it’s not surprising people like to believe these characters truly existed.”

Sources: Wikipedia, IT'S Magazine

- The Sherlock Holmes Museum

- Adventure Games