NEW SCHOOL YEAR!

Hi friends, now that we are starting the new school year I want to introduce it with the first activity of our English class: cultural differences!
Here you have some links about interesting facts in terms of cultural differences:

http://www.cicb.net/en/home/examples http://www.eupedia.com/europe/cultural_differences_europe_usa.shtml

MY P.E. SESSION

VOLLEYBALL P.E. SESSION

WARM UP

GENERAL WARM UP

-3 minutes running, increasing the speed progressively, but not running at the maximum speed. We will run between 20% and 70% capacity.

-Articular movement, especially exercises related to the trunk and arms.

-Stretching both legs and arms.

SPECIFIC WARM UP

-The students will make pairs and they will try to perform all the hits seen and taught in class, playing with the net to have a reference to the real game.

MAIN PART

-The first exercise is a kind of competition, using the same pairs as in the warm up. The teacher will make a sign and all the students will start playing. The aim is to maintain the ball in the air, without it touching the ground. When a couple’s ball falls down, they are out and a new round starts. The pair which maintains the ball in the air during the last round is the winner.

-For the second exercise, we will divide the class into four groups. One of the groups will make a line in front of another group, and the other two groups will do the same. The person with the ball has to pass it to the first person at the front of the line, and then he or she goes back to the last position in the line. When the person in the other line receives the ball, he or she has two options: take the ball and pass it again to the other line, or pass it without taking it. When the ball has been passed, he or she has to go to the last position in the line.

-The third exercise is a match, but we will play two against two. The main aim of these matches is to practice all the hits, because later we will have to put them into practice in the real game.

-The last exercise is also a match, but now we will play in teams of six people, and we have to play using all the hits we have practiced. We also have to rotate and serve as we saw in the theory classes, and as in the real and professional game. It is a simulation of a real match.

COOL DOWN

We will run decreasing our speed progressively, until we finish walking slowly. To finish, we will stretch again to relax our muscles.

Social Science, GLOSSARY UNIT 10

CEREALS: grasses grown for the edible components of their grain.

MORTGAGE: a loan to finance the purchase of private residential or commercial property.

SPECULATION: investments in stock, property or other assets in the hope of gain, but with the risk of loss.

CROP: a cultivated plant to be harvested as food, animal fodder, fuel or any other economic purpose.

AGRICULTURAL LANDSCAPE: a landscape that has been transformed by people to cultivate crops and/or rear livestock.

CULTURAL HERITAGE: the things, places practices that define who are as the individuals, as communities, as nations or cultures.

DOMESTIC TOURISM: tourism in which tourists do not leave their out country.

LARGE-SCALE TOURISM: a travel accommodation offered to large groups at affordable prices by tour operators.

TOUR OPERATOR: a company that combines tour and travel components to cater for large-scale tourism.

SPECULATION: investment in stocks, property or other assets in the hope of gain, but with the risk of loss.

HIGH-SPEED RAIL: a type of rail transport involving high-speed trains.

PEAK SEASON: time of the year during which demand of tourism is highest.

OFF-PEAK SEASON: time of the year during which demand of tourism is lowest.

RECESSION: a temporary depression in economic activity or prosperity.

Social Science, GLOSSARY UNIT 9

FREIGHT: goods or produce transported by ship, aircraft, train, lorry or van.

CAPITAL FLOWS: large amounts of money moved around the world.

EXPORTS: goods or services that are sold outside the country when they are produced.

IMPORTS: goods or services that are brought into a country from abroad for sale.

BALANCE OF TRADE: the difference between the monetary value of the exports and the imports of a country.

BALANCE OF PAYMENTS: record of all monetary transactions between a country and the rest of the world.

RETAIL: type of trade in which businesses sell small quantities of goods directly to consumers.

WHOLESALE: trade in which buyers purchase large quantities of goods and sell them, in smaller quantities, to other companies.

TRADE BLOC: a group of countries that join together to form an area with special trade regulations.

TRANSPORT NETWORK: the connection of roads, railway lines, ports or airports that facilitate the transport of goods and people.

MARKET: the meeting of buyers and sellers of goods and services. They can be tangible or abstract.

INFRASTRUCTURE: the basic physical and organizational structures needed for an economy to function.

TRADE: the buying and selling of goods to meet the needs of the population.

BARTERING: to trade in exchange for other goods or services, rather than for money.

TOURISM: a sector dedicated to travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes.

INFORMATION SOCIETY: society where information technology and related activities dominate the economy.

PUBLIC SERVICES: decentralized services that are financed by money from taxes.

PRIVATE SERVICES: services that are offered and managed by private companies and the people have to pay for these services.

Social Science, GLOSSARY UNIT 8

Mechanisation: the use of machinery in the production process.

Mining: the process of extracting minerals from the ground. 

Mineral: a naturally occuring solid chemical substance.

Fossil fuels: fuels that are formed by the decomposition of buried organic material, and exposure to heat and pressure, producing substances such as coal, oiland gas.

Industry: any economic activity that produces a service or transforms raw materials into consumer goods.

Energy: power that comes from the utilisation of physical or chemical resources. 

Biomass: organic material used as a fuel that releases energy when burned. 

Management: the people that run a company and ensure that goods and services of a high enough quality are produced and sold at competitive prices. 

Workforce: the employees required to produce goods and services. 

Wind turbine: a device that converts kinetic energy from the wind into mechanical energy to drive machinery or generate electricity. 

Solar panel: special panel that gets energy from the sunlight.

Renewable energy: type of energy that is inexhaustible.

Non-renewable energy: type of energy that comes from limited supplies.

Traditional energy: energy sources that are most commonly used.

Alternative energy: refers to sources that are still being developed.

Dam: a barrier of concrete, earth, etc, built across a river to create a body of water for a hydroelectric power station, domestic water supply, etc

Guild: an association of men sharing the same interests, such as merchants or artisans

Heavy industry: type of industry that uses large quantities of resources.

Light industry: they produce goods that are ready for consumption.

Cutting-edge industries: type of industries that have a high level of technology.

Craftsperson: a person who makes products using basic tools and manual labor.

Modern Times

Social Science, GLOSSARY UNIT 7

PLOT: an area of land where crops are grown.
SOIL: the substance on the surface of the Earth in which plants grow.
CROP ROTATION: the practise of growing different types of crops in the same area in sequential seasons.
INTENSIVE AGRICULTURE: an agricultiral system characterised by heavy investments of capital and labour.
EXTENSIVE AGRICULTURE: an agricultural system that uses small inputs of labour, fertilisers and capital.
DRYLAND FARMING: farming in which fields receive only rainwater.
IRRIGATED FARMING: farming in which the water from groundwater, reservoirs or rivers is brought to fields.
POLYCULTURE: the growing of different types of crops.
MONOCULTURE: the continuous growing of one type of crop.
GREENHOUSE: a building with transparent walls and roof, usually of glass, for the cultivation and exhibition of plants under controlled conditions.
SUBSISTENCE AGRICULTURE: a type of agriculture in which farmers only grow enough food to feed themselves and their families.
LIVESTOCK FARMING: farming based on rearing animals to obtain products.
HOUSED LIVESTOCK: livestock fed with fodder in farm buildings.
CATTLE: bovid mammals.
FODDER: bulk feed for livestock.
REAR: to care for, breed and grow animals until maturity.
FISHING GROUNDS: areas with abundant fish stocks.
AQUACULTURE: an activity that consists of farming marine animals and plants in pools. ponds or enclosed areas of the coast.
OVERFISHING: it is a problem because of the effectiveness of today's fiching techniques and the increasing number of fishing boats.
FLEETS: a number of aircraft, ships, buses, etc, operating together or under the same ownership.

Social Science, GLOSSARY UNIT 6

ECONOMIC ACTIVITY: the different processes involved in the production and consumption of goods and services.
ECONOMIC AGENT: a person, group or institution  involved in the economy.
GOODS: tangible economic products, that are usually consumed after production.
SERVICES: economic activities that are intangible.
PRODUCTION: an activity that provides services for consumption.
DISTRIBUTION: the marketing, delivery and sale of goods and services.
MARKETING: the act of researching, promoting and advertising a product or service in order to sell it.
CONSUMPTION: the use of a product or service to satisfy needs or desires.
SUPPLY: avaliability of something for use or sale.
DEMAND: the desire to own something in the market nad the willingness to pay for it.
INFLATION: a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in the economy or a decrease in value of the purchasing power of money.
PROFIT: the monetary gain of a business after all expenses have been met.
TAX: a monetary contribution to the government required of people, groups or businesses.
RAW MATERIAL: material on which a particular manufacturing process is carried out.
TELECOMMUTING: the use of home computers, telephones, etc, to enable a person to work from homw while maintaining contact with colleagues, customers, or a central office.
EMPLOYER: a person, business, firm, etc, that employs workers.
EMPLOYEE: a person who is hired to work for another or for a business, firm, etc, in return for payment.
SELF-EMPLOYED: earning one's living in one's own business or through freelance work, rather than as the employee of another.
ACTIVE POPULATION: section of people working, unemployed or looking for their first job.
DISABLED: lacking one or more physical powers, such as the ability to walk or to coordinate one's movements, as from the effects of a disease or accident, or through mental impairment.
RETIRED: having given up one's work, office, etc, esp on completion of the normal period of service.
FULL-TIME CONTRACT: contract in which employees must work during all the hours established on the agreement.
PART-TIME CONTRACT: contract in which employees must work during a fewer number of hours than the established on the agreement.

Fair Trade Shop

http://www.glogster.com/javi5uds/pinboard-glog-by-javi5uds/g-6k541fc4k36a8o5ujp2slra

My ideal future city

Idioms and expressions

TO ASK FOR THE MOON: it means to make demands for things or to wish something impossible to achieve or to obtain.

HOLD THE FORT: it means that you take care of a place when the person normally in charge is away.

UNDER THE TABLE: it is used to decribe secretive behaviour, often suggesting corruption or illegality.

TO HORSE AROUND: it means to behave in a silly way, making noise and causing disruption.

TO CHICKEN OUT: it means someone has failed to do something or they have not tried to do it because they were afraid.

WISE OLD OWL: a person very experienced in life.

A NIGHGT OWL: someone who stays up late into the night.

IN SAFE HANDS: you mean they are being cared for someone who is confident and skilled-

A SAFE PAIR OF HANDS: ir refers to someone who can be trusted to do a good job avoiding mistakes.

TO HOLD YOUR TONGUE: it means they want you to stop talking because the don't like what you are saying.

SOMETHING IS BLACK AND WHITE: it means you have a clear opinion about it, you can easily see what you think is right and wrong.

MONEY DOESN'T GROW ON TREES: means you don't have to spend much money as there is a limited amount of it.

MONEY IS NO OBJECT: means that you have a lot of money to spend.

LET THE CHIPS FALL WHERE THEY MAY: it means to allow things to happen no matter what the consequences are.

AS CHEAP AS CHIPS: it means that something is very cheap.

CHASING YOUR TAIL: it means that you are very busy doing a lot of different things but not achieving very much.

Our English friends are coming!!!

Dear family Jones,

We are very happy to receive you here in Spain. We hope you spend a good time with us. Here we can do lots of great things, but you are only going to be here for five days, so we’ll try to do the best activities for you to have a good time.

The first day we will try to go to Warner Bros in Madrid, but this activity depends on the weather, so we will plan it the day before you come.

The second day we will go to Aveiro. It’s a place in Portugal where much people go to have a bath on the beach. There you can also buy some souvenirs.

The third day will be a special day for your children because we are going to one of the most famous zoos in Spain, Cabárceno. It is located in the northern part of Spain, near Santander.

The fourth day we will visit Barcelona, where we can see the famous cathedral “La Sagrada Familia” and “Parque Güell”.

During your last day we will go to the biggest football stadium in Europe, Nou Camp, and “El Palau Sant Jordi”. After that we will go to Prat Airport to fly back to Liverpool.

See you next week,

Javier Vicente and Carlos Muñoz.

Social Science, GLOSSARY UNIT 5

CONSTITUTIONAL MONARCHY: a system of government in which the king is the head of the state but the parliament chooses the government. The government manages the politics of the state.
CROWN: the part of a constitutional monarchy represented by the king.
ARBITRATOR: a person chosen to decide a dispute or settle differences. In a constitutional monarchy, the king is the arbitrator between governmental institutions.
DECENTRALISED GOVERNMENT: a system of government in which decision-making is devolved to a local level and is therefore closer to the citizens.
MOTION OF NO CONFIDENCE: document that the Cortes Generales passes to force the president to resign.
MINISTERS: government officials that, together with the president, make up the Spanish cabinet
MUNICIPALITY: the most basic administrative body in the Spanish territory.
TOWN COUNCIL: the organisation that governs each municipality in Spain.
MAYOR: person who is in charge of the town council of a municipality.
COUNCILORS: government officials that, together with the mayor, make up the town council.
PROVINCE: an administrative body made up of several municipalities in the Spanish territory.
SELF-GOVERNMENT: a system of government in which a community or region has authority to govern itself without the intervention of any other authority.
STATUTE OF AUTONOMY: a law describing the institutions, laws and responsibilities for each of the autonomous communities in the Spanish territory.
SUBSIDIARITY: the principle of devolving decisions to the lowest practical level so that services are closer to the citizens.
AUTONOMOUS COMMUNITY: one of 17 regions that form part of the Spanish territory with its own devolved government.
EXCLUSIVE AUTHORITY: the power of the autonomous communities to pass laws related to town planning, housing, monuments, health care and education.
SHARE AUTHORITY: power of developing the laws passed by the Parliament and adapting them to the different autonomous communities' features.
POST-INDUSTRIAL SOCIETY: a society in which the economy is has undergone a shift from production of goods to the provision of services.
WELL-BEING: the level of satisfaction of a population as measured by education levels, healthcare, life expectancy and consumption.
LIFE EXPECTANCY: the number of years a person or population is expected to live.
ILLITERACY: inability to read or write.
EXTENDED FAMILY: family made up of grandparents, parents and children.
NUCLEAR FAMILY: family made up of parents and children.
SINGLE PARENT FAMILY: family made up of a father or a mother and children.
SAME-SEX MARRIGE: family in which both parents are a same-sex couple.

The Spanish Constitution

I think that for us, the citizens, is very important to have an official document to control the country, because we are free but we have the limits that the Constitution says, other ways the country would be a mess. I think that it's a great idea to be able to change the Constitution depending on our needs and requirements, that's a sing of the country's freedom.

Our cover magazine

Here you have our cover magazine. Our group was Pablo Honorato, Javier Tendero and Javier Vicente; we hope you like it.

Social Sience, GLOSSARY UNIT 4

FREE MOVEMENT: the unrestricted movement of goods, services, people and capital in a common market.
COMMON MARKET: a market based on common policies and the free movement of goods, services, people and capital.
MONETARY UNION: the sharing of the same currency between two or more states.
COHESION: the act of uniting or staying together.
TREATY: a formal agreement between two or more states related to international relations. HETEROGENEITY: a thing that consists of dissimilar elements or parts.
HOMOGENEOUS: composed of similar or identical parts or elements.
OUTSOURCING: a part of a company’s work is sent to another company, sometimes in a different country, because it is a cheaper or more efficient option.
FRAGMENTATION: when production processes occur in different phases, in different places. DEVELOPMENT: the act or progress of growing or making progress.
BUDGET: a sum of money to be used for a specific purpose by a government.
CITIZENSHIP: the condition or status of a citizen, with its rights and duties.
DUTY: a task or action that a person is bound to perform for moral or legal reasons.
FUNDS: the financial resources use by governments or political institutions for a specific purpose. INVESTMENT: the act of using something to achieve a goal.
SUBSIDY: a type of financing offered by a government.
SCEPTICAL: not convinced that something is true.
SURPLUS: a quantity or amount in excess of what is required.
SEAFARING: travelling by sea.
OUTSKIRTS: outlying or bordering areas, districts, etc, as of a city.
PROFITABLE: affording gain, benefit, or profit.
HIERARCHY: a system of persons or things arranged in a graded order.
GDP: gross domestic product.
CAP: Common Agricultural Policy.
CFP: Common Fisheries Policy.

Wishes and resolutions for the new year

Hi, here you have the link of my VoiceThread presentation, I hope you like it...! https://voicethread.com/share/4593928