22/10/07

The Canterbury Tales

READING CALENDAR:

BY THE 30TH OCTOBER YOU SHOULD HAVE READ AND DONE THE EXERCISES FOR CHAPTER ONE AND TWO.

THEN, A CHAPTER A WEEK WILL BE ENOUGH:


4 NOV. CHAPTER 3
11 NOV. CHAPTER 4 (the longest: 17 pages)
18 NOV. CHAPTER 5
25 NOV. CHAPTER 6
30 NOV. READING COMPREHENSION TEST
(30 multiple-choice questions)

DOING THE EXERCISES WILL HELP YOU TO CHECK YOUR UNDERSTANDING AND IMPROVING YOUR VOCABULARY AND STRUCTURES.

DON'T GIVE UP,
IT'S EASIER THAN YOU THINK AND THE STORIES ARE REALLY ENJOYABLE,
BELIEVE ME!


14/10/07

Unit 2 Writing Task: A Frightening Experience


It was a dark night and Linda was walking home by herself. It was raining hard and a cold wind was blowing. The street was deserted and Linda, who had always been afraid of the dark, began to walk more quickly.

Suddenly Linda thought she heard steps behind her. At first she told herself that she was imagining it, but after a few minutes she heard the steps again. She looked around and noticed a dark figure walking quickly behind her. Linda was terrified and began to walk faster, but the sound of the footsteps behind her became faster too. Linda could feel her heart beating as she began to run.

Then she saw the lights of a restaurant and hurried inside. A moment later, the door opened and a man entered. He was out of breath and didn't speak. As he took a step towards her, Linda opened her mouth to scream. At that moment, she noticed that he was holding her glove - the one she had dropped on the pavement while she was walking.



WRITING PLAN:

PAST SIMPLE,
PAST CONTINOUS
,
TIME AND SEQUENCE EXPRESSIONS
,
ADJECTIVES (-ED, -ING)


1st paragraph: OPENING
(
It sets the scene with details of time, place, atmosphere and characters).


It was a dark night and Linda was walking home by herself. It was raining hard and a cold wind was blowing. The street was deserted and Linda, who had always been afraid of the dark, began to walk more quickly.

2nd paragraph: BODY
(It develops the plot with details of events and characters).


Suddenly Linda thought she heard steps behind her. At first she told herself that she was imagining it, but after a few minutes she heard the steps again. She looked around and noticed a dark figure walking quickly behind her. Linda was terrified and began to walk faster, but the sound of the footsteps behind her became faster too. Linda could feel her heart beating as she began to run.

3rd paragraph: CLOSING
(It ends the story with the reason for what happened or the consequences).


Then she saw the lights of a restaurant and hurried inside. A moment later, the door opened and a man entered. He was out of breath and didn't speak. As he took a step towards her, Linda opened her mouth to scream. At that moment, she noticed that he was holding her glove - the one she had dropped on the pavement while she was walking.

( 177 words)


Now, it is your turn to write about one of the following topics:
a frightening experience, a bad dream or nightmare or a strange happening.
minimum: 100 words

Remember to check the "writing plan" above!!!!

WRITING 01

Good Sunday afternoon
here we are again!
have a look at your writing corrections
see also Guide for correcting writing errors
if you don't understand the abbreviations

Hello my name is Antonio and my best friend is called Manuel Malla but he likes to be called Lito. He is sixteen years old. His birthday is on 26th of September.He lives in Barcelona in Spain. He has got brown hair and black eyes. He has got a brother and his name is Jordi.
He is my classmate. He is studying at I.E.S. Barri Besòs. He likes football and he is a feminine football team’s coach. He doesn´t like economy as a subject. He hasn’t got any favourite music. He wants to become a Spanish teacher or a Catalan teacher but he says it is very difficult but I think he hasn´t got any problems.
I don´t know anything else. (121) (7/10)
Natàlia said...
One of my best friend is called Laia, she lives in Cerdanyola del Valles 14km far from Barcelona. She's 18. Every day, she goes to Barcelona by train, here, she studies in Barcelona. She likes children.
Laia is a very importatnt person for me, she understands me. She is a funny person.
She likes the cinema and surfing the net.
She loves discos. She hates false people. I like my friend :) (71) (7/10)
vero said...
One of my best friend is called Sabina. She lives in Barcelona, but she’s from Uzbekistan. She’s 16 years old. She studies first Batxillerat at IES Barri Besòs. I met her at primary school 6 years ago.
She lives with her parents, their names are Ilsiar and Stephen. She has got two sisters, Cris and Marta. They are younger that her. Cris is 6 years old and Marta is 2 years old. Cris and Marta study at primary school. Her family are very nice.
We go to the disco because we like dancing. We like talking about our things. She likes listening to music. She loves Maths this year and she hates English. (112) (8/10)
Sonia.. said...
One of my best friend is called Erik. He is 18 years old. He lives in Barcelona. He studied at our high school ,but now he studies at university.
His family is very nice. He lives with his parents(Vicente and Manoli)and his brother. His brother is called Alex.
He is 14 years old and he studies at our school too. His house is near mine,just some streets aways. His favourite hobby is martial arts(our hobby). He has practised it since he was 8.
He likes drawing and listening to music.
It is possible to trust him and he is very good!(100) (7/10)
Estefania(zulu) said...
One of my best friends is called Edu and he lives in Barcelona.He is 17 years old and his birthday is in March.
He studies first Batxillerat.He lives with his parents, he hasn't got any brothers.
His favourites hobbies are reading books and listening to music.
He likes the beach; moreover he has a house near the beach in Cubelles(this is the last town of Barcelona province)
He is a very intelligent person and always helps me to do my homework. His favourite subjets are Philosophy and English, he hates Economy. (91) (7/10)
isra said...
Hello
my best friend is called Oscar
He wishes to be an economist,
He lives in Equador, he is a teacher in a school for two tears.
His parents work in a company of hotels he likes to do gimnastics and cheerleading. (42) (6/10) TOO SHORT
--> (5/10)
Yaiza said...
One of my best friends is Caroline. She is 17 years old. Caroline lives in Barbera del Valles, this is a town of Barcelona province, in Spain. I met her in the summer. She goes to the same village as me in the summer vacations. I have known her for 10 years! At this moment she is studying in the adults' school. She is looking for a job.
She lives with her parents. She has got two brothers, Carlos and Javi. They are older that her. Carlos is 26 years old and Javi is 21 years old. Carlos and Javi work. They are very nice.
We see once or twice a month because we live nearby. When we go out we go downtown. There we go windowshopping and speak about our life. She loves the discos and going out at night. She is very funny. She is really into fashion. Carolina is very beautiful. Her hair is blonde and short, and her eyes are brown. She is thin and tall. She can’t stand the swimming pools but I don’t know why. She hates sports. She smokes and I don’t like that (she smokes) because it is bad for her health.
(207) (8/10) VERY LONG --> (9/10)
Anònim said...
Eliana Córdova said...My best friend is Byron. He lives in Barcelona,in Spain C.He's 19 years old. He's working in a mail company (POST OFFICE )??.
He lives with his sister and his brother, their names are Virginia and Nicolas. She's 36 years old, he's 31 years old.
Her house is small but beautiful.
His hobbies are playing football, listening to music and studying.
His interests are studying at university and learning many languages. (68) (4/10)
Laura said...
My best friend is called Jonathan, he lives in Fabra i Puig in Barcelona and he works at the port. He is 18 years old. Jonathan is a very good person and intelligent.
He lives with his parents. He has a small dog. He has 2 sisters, Carolina and Beatriz, Carolina is 28 years old and Beatriz is 31 years old. Beatriz has got 1 children and his name is Daniel and he is 1 year old.
I met him 2 years ago because he was one of my cousin’s friend. We always go out to the cinema, to buy, to dance etc. Jonathan loves music. He likes the beach and swimming in the sea. He plays football, we see once or twice a month. He hates people who smoke. (130) (8/10)

Michaeeeel!! said...
One of my best friends is Albert (we called him "Gina"). He's 16 years old and his birthday is in December. He's my friend and my neighbour too. I met him at school when we were children. He hasn't got any brother but he's got a dog called Terry. Terry is black and ugly too.
He likes listening to heavy music, and he loves PC games and Chopper motorbikes. His favourite hobby is making his own games. He hates going to school and going to gigs.
We always go together to the cinema and to the skating with some other friends. Last weekend we went to the fair and it was fabulous. I can't remember more things from him. He's a good friend! (123) (9/10)
Sabina said...
One of my best friend is called Vero, she lives in Barcelona, in Spain. She’s 16 years old. She studies at IES Barri Besòs. I met her at school 6 years ago.
She lives with her parents. She has a brother and a dog. Her brother’s name is Raul and her pet’s name Crispy.
She likes going to the disco and listening to pop music. Once or twice a week we go shopping. She hates English and she loves Maths. (78) (7/10)
Albert Giralt said...
One of my best friends is called Gaby, she lives in Barcelona in a street near my home and studies in the same college as me. I met her 13 years ago, when we begun to study at the same school and in the same class.
She lives with her parents and her brother in a flat where I have been a lot of times.
She has got a parrot and a nice cat which was found in our college 3 or 4 years ago.
She also has got a piano and she plays it very well, but it’s not the only instrument which she plays, she plays the guitar and the accordion too. I think she loves music and playing instruments because she talks a lot about music.
I don’t know the reason why we became friends, maybe because she has a great personality, she is funny, nice and the most important, she is a good person.
I love talking with her, because it is possible to talk about all topics and we never have arguments if I have a different point of view. (186) (9/10) VERY LONG --> (10/10)

-Gonzalo Salirrosas said...Richard +W one of my better Sp friends, Richard, +W has WC 18 years, right this week +W will turn 19 years BE 19. He lives in Barcelona, with his mother (Mercedes) and his brother (Pier), all of them of Peruvian nationality.
It WC studies electronics and works in a super market by WC the mornings, just next to the restaurant that WHERE I work. We see +W +W much and often it remains to sleep to my house.
It is a good boy P +W likes +W much to go to billiards, to drink a beer from time to time, to dance, to listen to music and to sleep. –ING!!!!!!!!
We now –W know since we are VT 4 years old and -W but we were without seeing us near HAVEN’T SEEN EACH OTHER FOR seven years, but the destiny allowed to us to be again together WO. (124) (0/10)
- jorge vc said...Two of my best friend is S/P called ruben C ,guille C
He –W Guille is 17 year old,he live S/P in barcelona C .he C studies first batxillerat in IES barri besos.
He –W Ruben is 17 year old, he live S/P in barcelona C. he C studies first batxillerat +W IES Barri Besos.
She live S/P with her parents,
They have go S/P one sisters S/P.
They have WC very important of WC my WC because whe are vey differents S/P (63) (0/10)
i don't kwow put

- pilar said...My best friend (is my boyfriend )called WO Andres.He's from Dominican Republic but actuallity WC he's Sp live S/P here in Barcelona .He is like an Sp child P +W is very jocker WC.
He hate S/P the –W shools Sp ,he prefers to work.
In his country +W played to –W baseball and it's WC like S/P to listening WO latin music .
His mother (Margarita) is very nice and him WF brother (Darvel) also WC.(59) (0/10)
- alex rivera said...Hi, my best friend is Danilo, he +W fron Sp Ecuador. He havening WC 17 years old and havening WC +W 3 brothers. +W Life WC in El Triunfo - Guayas. His parents havened Sp a finca WC.
these are olways us invited. Age very big and his parents very entertainer.
Was companed of class in 2 and 3 the secundaria.
He and My going to much place and discoteca.
Was a very friend. MNC (TALK WITH ME AND I’LL HELP YOU!!)
(65) (0/10)


[Photo]
Hi everybody, this is your unit 1 writing task: write 80-200 words, don't forget to follow the three-paragraph-plan and remember to use -ing after like and dislike verbs. From this very moment, you've got a week to send it .
Javi, one of my friends.
One of my best friend is called Javi, he lives in Valencia and he works in the 9 channel TV studios. I met him at school 16 years ago, he was one of my last-year students and he didn’t like English. He wasn’t good at it. Now he’s 35. He lives by himself in a small flat, and I think he is lucky because he enjoys a communal swimming pool. He’s got a sister, she’s older than him and she still lives at their parent’s home in Calpe.
We became friends because he loves taking and developing pictures and so do I. We hardly ever see each other but when we meet, we have always many things to talk about. He loves cinema and he likes travelling very much; he really enjoys eating out, you can ask him where to eat in Firenze or in Istambul. He can’t stand people behaving like hooligans and he isn’t really into fashion, he doesn’t mind smoking and he hates sport, perhaps he will become a coach potato in the future, who knows? (180 words)

13/10/07

The Canterbury Tales

Dear students,
Antonio and Lito gave the first,
and some of you (Albert, Sabina & Vero, Pilar, Sonia and Gonzalo, Yaiza, Laura and Miguel Angel, Alex, Estefanía, and Eliana) corrected them very well!
THANK YOU SO MUCH,
I've closed this topic post,
have a look and keep on reading!




THE LIFE OF GEOFFREY CHAUCER (5-8)
Complete these sentences:

Chaucer was born in 1340.
He was born in London.
He was connected with the royal court in London.
He was taken prisoner in France.
The Canterbury Tales was almost certainly based on Boccaccio’s Decameron.
Chaucer began writing it when he was about forty years old.
He hadn't finished writing it when he died in 1400.
The place he was buried in in Westminster Abbey is known as Poet’s Corner.

CHAUCER'S WORLD (10-11)
Answer these questions:
-Which three kings were in power during Chaucer's life?
There were three kings during his lifetime: Edward III, Richard II and Henry IV.
-Which country had a long war with England?
France
-What was the 'Black Death'?
An illness which killed great numbers of people in the Middle Ages
-Complete this line: 'God is ..... '
'God is deaf '
-Name three people from The Tales who work for the church.
The Pardoner, the Summoner and the Prioress.
-Where was Thomas Becket murdered?
In Canterbury Cathedral
-Why did the Wife of Bath visit Jerusalem?
Because she is an authentic religious person
-In which month did the pilgrims begin their journey?
In April the pilgrims began their journey





12/10/07

CHRONOLOGY: in Chaucer's times



Choose only one topic to research
(don't forget to write your name), do the research on Internet and write 4-5 lines about it, add one or more pictures to make it nicer (write the link(s) and I will upload them for you)

the topics done (10 out of 18) are in red:

- 'Middle English' - 'The Hundred Years' War' - 'Black Death' - Dante Alighieri - Giovanni Boccaccio - Petrarch - Decameron -Westminster Abbey - Canterbury - Edward III - Richard II - Henry IV - What does a Parson do? - and a Summoner? - and a Pardoner? - pilgrimages
- Thomas Becket - the Middle Ages - the printing press - medieval medicine and astrology


Edward III
Was one of the most successful English monarchs of the Middle Ages. Restoring royal authority after the disastrous reign of his father, Edward II, he went on to transform the Kingdom of England into the most efficient military power in Europe.
Reign: 25 January 1327 – 21 June 1377 Cononation: 1 February 1327
Born: 13 November 1312 Died: 21 June 1377
ANTONIO'S OR LITO'S


Richard II, born in 1367, was the son of Edward, the Black Prince and Joan, the Fair Maid of Kent. Richard was but ten years old when he succeeded his grandfather, Edward III; England was ruled by a council under the leadership of John of Gaunt, and Richard was tutored by Sir Simon Burley. He married the much-beloved Anne of Bohemia in 1382, who died childless in 1394. Edward remarried in 1396, wedding the seven year old Isabella of Valois, daughter of Charles VI of France, to end a further struggle with France.
SABINA'S








Henry IV (3 April 1367 – 20 March 1413) was the King of England and France and Lord of Ireland from 1399 to 1413. He was born at Bolingbroke Castle in Lincolnshire, hence the other name by which he was known, "Henry (of) Bolingbroke". His father, John of Gaunt, was the third and oldest surviving son of King Edward III of England, and enjoyed a position of considerable influence during much of the reign of Richard II. Henry's mother was Blanche, heiress to the considerable Lancaster estates. VERO'S




The Black Death, or The Black Plague, was one of the most deadly pandemics in human history. It began in South-western or Central Asia and spread to Europe by the late 1340s. The total number of deaths worldwide from the pandemic is estimated at 75 million people; there were an estimated 20 million deaths in Europe alone.

The Black Death is estimated to have killed between a third and two-thirds of Europe's population
.
ALBERT'S

The Decameron: is a collection of 100 novellas by Italian author Giovanni Boccaccio, probably begun in 1350 and finished in 1353. It is a medieval allegorical work best known for its bawdy tales of love, appearing in all its possibilities from the erotic to the tragic. Other topics such as wit and witticism, practical jokes, the moral degeneracy of the clergy and worldly initiation also form part of the mosaic. Many notable writers such as Shakespeare and Chaucer are said to have borrowed from The Decameron (See Literary sources and influence of the Decameron below). Laura Sánchez Bolivar
Giovanni Boccaccio (June 16, 1313 – December 21, 1375) He was an Italian author and poet, a friend and correspondent of Petrarch, an important Renaissance humanist and author of a number of notable works including On Famous Women anf the Decameron. Boccaccio's characters are notable for their era in that they are realistic, spirited and clever individuals.
Yaiza Montes Cebrián
St Thomas Becket: St Thomas of Canterbury (c. 1118 – December 29, 1170)
was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1162 to 1170. He is venerated as a saint and martyr by both the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Church. He engaged in a conflict with King Henry II over the rights and privileges of the Church and was assassinated by followers of the king in Canterbury Cathedral.
Miguel Ángel Sánchez


Dante Alighieri

His masterpiece (The Divine Comedy), is considered the greatest literary work composed in the Italian language and a masterpiece of world literature.
He was born into the prominent Alighieri family of Florence, with loyalities to the Guelphs, a political alliance that supported the Papacy, involved in complex opposition to the Ghibellines, who were backed by the Holly Roman Emperor.
His mother was Bella Degli Abat and she died when Dante was five or six.
He married Gemma in 1921 and they had a lot of children.
SONIA'S




Middle English is the name given by historical linguistics to the diverse forms of the English language spoken between the Norman invasion of 1066 and the mid-to-late 15th century.
What with the passage of time ah changed and nowadays one does not speak equally the English.
GONZALO'S


Francesco Petrarca (July 20, 1304 – July 19, 1374) " PETRARCH" in English.He was born in Arezzo (Italy) Petrarch was best known for his Italian poetry:The Canzoniere and the Trionfi. He was an enthusiastic Latin scholar and did most of his writing in this languag.Petrarch was often popularly called the "father of humanism".Based on Petrarch's works, and to a lesser extent those of Dante and Boccaccio, Pietro Bembo in the 16th century. PILAR

Petrarch
: Poet and scholar, born in Arezzo, NC Italy. He studied at Bologna and Avignon, where he became a clergyman. In 1327 at Avignon he first saw Laura (possibly Laure de Noves, married in 1325 to Hugo de Sade), who inspired him with a passion which has become proverbial for its constancy and purity. As the fame of his learnings grew, royal courts competed for his presence, and in 1341 he was crowned poet laureate at Rome. The earliest of the great Renaissance humanists, he wrote widely on the classics, but he is best known for the series of love poems addressed to Laura, the Canzoniere, written in vernacular Italian. The work mirrors the poet's internal struggle between reality and dream, spirituality and the pleasures of the flesh. He left Avignon in 1353 after Laura's death, and lived the rest of his life in N Italy. His writing proved to be a major influence on many authors, notably Chaucer. His chief inspiration lay, however, in his sonnet form, which was adopted, among others, by Surrey, Wyatt, and Shakespeare. Eliana Córdova


7/10/07

Your opinion!

ThankU for giving us your opinions
(I haven't corrected anything, but colored only BIG "mistakes")
  1. Antonio and Manuel said...
  2. Yaiza,Laura y Miguel Ángel said...
  3. Estefania(zulu) and gaby said...
  4. Eliana c�rdova said...
  5. Albert Giralt, Sabina & Vero said...
  6. pilar said...
  7. ...Sonia & Gonzalo... said...
- How much have people changed in the last six hundred years?
A. More, actually we have got technology, in 1400 only has war for country.
B. We think that the people have changed a lot.
C. we think that people have changed a lot because now to live is very easy,we have things that they facilitate to us to make different activities from the daily life
D. My opinion is that we have advanced very much, that everything is easier now because we have advanced technology, as television, telephones etc

E. The people changed a lot, nowadays we have more comfort and we have another views of the world.
F. Much , actuallity there is more violence between teenagers,we have another form of to see the live.
G. The last six hundred years, the people changed a lot.Now we have more technologies, more resources...

- Is friendship more important than love?
A. +W
Is very difficult answer I think the both is very important.
B. Yes, it is because the friends always will be to your side but the love finishes
C. we think that the frienship and love are very important in the life.
D. I think that the frienship and love are very important in the life.

E. This question made we have an argument because Vero and Sabina think friendship is more important than the love, and Albert think+W is more important the love than friendship.
F. For my ,the two are very important
G. .The true friends always would be with you however the love is nor for always.
We think +W is more important the love than friendship(According to that friends).

- Do dreams have a meaning?
A. Yes, the dream help in future for me.
B. Yes, its do. We believe that the dreams are indicative , they inform us about something that is going to happen.
C. if I believe perhaps that they are as dejavu guide to us in the present and they make think the things us (?).
D. Yes, I believe that the dreams have importantly, because a veces the dreams are fulfilled.

E. Yes, because the mind do them and shows thinks which we can’t see when we are awake.
F. For my it haven't anything meaning
G. Yes, every dream has it meaning, the can mean fear, hope, happiness...

- Will men do anything for gold?
A.
Yes, we do for gold because the people like gold and will pay.
B. Yes, he will. For example the thieves, who rob things to have more money
C. yes, everybody needs but money to him to live better or single by avarice.
D. Yes, the gold is important for the man, always they will be joined by the greed of the man.

E. Yes, men will can do a lot of things for gold because gold is expensive and the men always do something to be rich.
F. yes , for to be richs
G. Yes, the money, nowadays is very important. They will do everything possible for obtaining it.

- What do women most desire?
A.
I don’t undertand you question.
B. We thought that they desire to have a family
C. All the women wish to have a family and to be happy.
D. All the women want to be happy and to have a better life with her family.

E. A women most desire suffer for her love and do all think to get his love.
G. I don't understand this question
H. To create a family and to continue forward.

- What makes a perfect marriage?
A.
A perfect marriage is speak and know listen is very important.
B. The fidelity and the respect towards the loved person
C. the respect, the fidelity, the love, to be listened to mutually that makes a marriage happy.
D. To be happy, to speak the things with respect and very much love.

E.The freedom, because a marriage is perfect when both partners are free.
F. It doesn't exist because always there are jealousy, little freedom...
G. It is perfect, when there is complicities, love and they are free.