Wednesday, July 30, 2014

Kindergarten Cop: Father's Day



This is a classic. Funny and thrilling. It takes place in Astoria, Washington, USA. I spent a few days there a few years ago and had a great time with friends. The city is lovely, and so is the movie.


I. Work in Small groups. First read the way some countries celebrate Father's day and then try to match them with the country.


1) Thailand
2) Mexico
3) Japan
4) South Africa
5) Germany

 

( ) It  is celebrated along with the birthday of the King  on December 5. The King is very much beloved and considered 'The Father of the Nation.' Tradition holds that everyone wears yellow on Father's Day, the "official color" of Monday, the day of the week the King was born. The children start the day off by presenting their fathers with a Canna flower, which is considered to be a masculine plant.

( ) It began in the Middle Ages as a religious procession. The celebration in modern days usually begins with a Male's only hike accompanied by wagons filled with regional food, beer and wine, which are pulled by the men. The gentlemen party has taken on a more urban tone, with men going to beer gardens to drink all day. Father's Day is always celebrated the Thursday about 40 days after Easter. They  organize a group of dads who enjoy golf, cycling or even wine-tasting and let Dad make a day of it.

( ) Similar to a typical Father's Day celebration in the U.S., children present their fathers with gifts such as flowers, cards, neckties and other novelties. They often enjoy picnics on Father’s Day, or spend the afternoon fishing in hopes of securing a catch for dinner. The emphasis of the day is on celebrating the role of fathers in the lives of their children.

( ) Flowers are an integral part of a Father's Day celebration. Children also give their dads handmade beer glasses and candies or a box of sweets. Lunch or dinner is almost always a dish of crab, prawns or other seafood. Personalized champagne and beer bottles and sandals also comprise many of the gifts. Fathers enjoy gifts of perfume as well.

( ) It is celebrated much as it is in the U.S. with prepared meals and distribution of gifts to dads or father figures in appreciation of all that they do for their families. As in the U.S., there is a strong emphasis on family values when celebrating Father's Day. There is a city-wide 21-kilometer race that takes place in an area of open-space used for hiking and jogging.

Key:

1, 5, 4, 3, 2


II. Watch the movie segment and answer the questions with a friend.


















1. What is the game the teacher decided to play with the students?

2. What did the children talk about their parents?

3. Do they have a good interpretation of their dad's lives and jobs?

4. How do you assess a game like this in a classroom? The fact that many children do not know their parents would cause an embarrassment to those children? Explain it?


Prepare a speech about your dad. Make sure you include these questions while preparing your speech. Then make a presentation about your dad.

Talk about your dad. Who is he? What does he do? What are his greatest qualities? What would you change in him? How close is your relationship? Do you have a picture of your dad on your phone? If so, show it to your friends. What physical and personality traits did you take after your dad? How do you usually celebrate Father's Day? Choose one word that would best describe him.

MOVIE SEGMENT DOWNLOAD - KINDERGARTEN COP

Thursday, July 24, 2014

Mr. Peabody & Sherman: French Revolution, Historic Moments





I. Work with a partner. The French Revolution is one of the most important historic moment of all times. Discuss the following questions.

1. What do you know about the French Revolution?

2. Did you study about this historic moment at school? Why do you think history should be taught at school?

3. Do you like studying history? What is your favorite/most most important historic moment of all times?

4. Would you like to have lived in a period in which radical changes are taking place?




GAME:


Read the statements below and decide if they are true or false. The winner is the group with most correct answers.

1. The French Revolution took place in the 19th century.

2. France was one of the richest and most powerful nations in Europe before the French Revolution.

3. Only in Great Britain and Portugal did the common people have more freedom and less chance of arbitrary punishment.

4. A popular rebellion executed the king Louis XVI and, later, his wife Marie Antoinette.

5. Many factors led to the revolution.

6. During The American Revolutionary War. there was much contact between the Americans and the French, and revolutionary ideals spread between the groups.

7. The clergy wanted the Revolution to take place, which motivated peasants to rebel.

8. Food scarcity in the years before the revolution was crucial for the revolution



Watch the movie segment. Then  work in small groups.





1. Describe the scene.

2. What features in exercise I (True or False) did you manage to see in the segment?

3. What are the characters' social importance?  

4. Do you like this kind of movie? Why (not)?

5. What would you rather do? See a musical about the French Revolution, or watch similar stories as a drama, an animated movie or a comedy? Why?



 Answer key:

1. The French Revolution took place in the 19th century. (F - 18th century)

2. France was one of the richest and most powerful nations in Europe before the French Revolution. (T)

3. Only in Great Britain and Portugal did the common people have more freedom and less chance of arbitrary punishment. (F - Great Britain and the Netherlands)

4. A popular rebellion executed the king Louis XVI and, later, his wife Marie Antoinette.(T)

5. Many factors led to the revolution. (T) 

6. During The American Revolutionary War. there was much contact between the Americans and the French, and revolutionary ideals spread between the groups. (T)

7. The clergy wanted the Revolution to take place, which motivated peasants to rebel. (F)

8. Food scarcity in the years before the revolution was crucial for the revolution (T)

MOVIE SEGMENT DOWNLOAD - MR PEABODY AND SHERMAN

Sunday, July 20, 2014

42: Aggressive Behavior, Motivation

A great movie and a great story full of pleasant moments. I recommend it. 





I. Discuss the quotes with a partner. Do you agree, disagree or partially agree with them? Justify your answers.


1. People who are rude a couple of times and seem to be acting out of character may be upset at something else in their life, and simply taking their frustration out on you for no reason. Although that individual should know better than to let their emotions get the best of them, we all have our moments of irrationality. It's a very human quality.

2. Aggressive behavior  most commonly occurs with strangers, who don't expect to see you again and probably don't care about what you think of them. They don't bother to consider your feelings, especially if they're already emotionally bogged down by something else in their lives.

3.  When the person in question does something rude or offensive to you, politely but firmly call them out on their inappropriate behavior. Look at the them in the eye and ask them to please stop provoking you.

4.  If you think that the rudeness is based on a resolvable misunderstanding, you can extend the confrontation by asking them why they are behaving this way.

 5. Some people genuinely don't realize they're being rude. They may not have learned certain social skills. In case you have encountered someone like this, you may want to politely inform that they have been rude. You'll generally get an apology straight away.

II. Rank the types of aggression below, according to what you believe are most offensive to you. Rank 1 is the most aggressive and 9 the one that hurts you the least.


  • Shouting
  • Swearing
  • Personal insults and name calling
  • Racial or sexual comments
  • Verbal threats
  • Posturing and threatening gestures
  • Abusive phone calls, letters, online messages
  • Emotional abuse
  • Sarcasm

 III. There are three major theories that explain aggressiveness. Try to match the theories and their descriptions.

1. Theories that see aggression as an instinct.
2. Theories that suggest frustration is an important factor in aggression. 
3. Theories that suggest aggression is learned behaviour.

(  ) This theory argues that aggressive behaviour is not inborn, rather it is something that is learned, either through direct experience or through observation or imitation of others.  The more that an individual’s aggression is rewarded, perhaps by getting what is wanted or by parental approval, the more likely that person is to be aggressive in the future. 

(  ) There are a number of theories which attempt to explain aggression by suggesting that aggressive behaviour occurs because each individual is born with an aggressive instinct. Such theories suggest that aggression is innate, i.e. inborn, and, therefore, unavoidable.  

(  )  This theory proposes that aggression occurs as a result of disappointments in not achieving their aims.  Such individuals are motivated to be aggressive towards whoever or whatever is standing in their way. 


IV. Watch the movie segment and then discuss the questions that follow.




 
 1. Describe the scene.

2. What types of aggression in exercise II did you manage to see in the segment?

3. What was the reason of the aggression?

4. How did the baseball player react to the insults?

5. What were the consequences of the aggressive behavior in the baseball player?

6. Does this kind of strategy work when the objective is affecting another person behavior? Did it work that time?

7. How would you react in that situation?

8. What should be done in that case? Do you think that that kind of aggressive behavior is acceptable when it comes to sports, for example? Why (not)?



Answer key:
III. 3, 1, 2

Thursday, July 10, 2014

Surviving Picasso: Picasso, Creativity


 Adapted from the great site
http://www.neatorama.com/2008/10/25/10-fun-facts-about-pablo-picasso/#!jX69u

 QUIZ ABOUT PICASSO:

I. Work with a partner and choose the best answer. The winner is the group that guesses most correct answers.

1) How many names did Picasso's full name had?

a) 8  b) 11 c) 13 d) 23

2) Picasso's first word was in Spanish, of course. What word was it (in English)?

a) Mom  b) Dad  c) Pencil  d) Pen  e) Car

3)  Picasso's first painting was at  the age of ____________













a) 9  b) 12  c) 13  d) 15

4) Picasso's first job was as a:

a) painter
b) carpenter
c) locksmith
d) cook

5) Who founded the Cubist movement with Picasso?













a) Degas
b) Braque
c) Chagall
d) Basquiat

6) How many "official" wives did Picasso have?

a) 3
b) 5
c) 9
d) 17

7)  Where is Picasso buried?

a) Barcelona, Spain
b) Malaga, Spain
c) Vauvenargues, France
d) Grenoble, France

8) Where was Picasso born?

a) Barcelona, Spain
b) Malaga, Spain
c) Madrid, Spain
d) Bilbao, Spain

Check your answers with your teacher.

II. Watch the movie segment and discuss the questions:



1. Is the scene about Cubism? Why (not)?

2. How do you think his creativity works?

3. What's your opinion about Picasso?

4) Does Picasso deserve the fame his has? Explain it.

5) If you found a lost painting of Picasso's, would you sell it to make a lot of money or would you hang it on one of your walls to decorate the house? Explain your decision.

6) Who are your favorite painters?

70 Are there any Brazilian artists you admire? Talk about their work.


Answer key:

Picasso's Full Name Has 23 Words
Picasso was baptized Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Martyr Patricio Clito Ruíz y Picasso. He was named after various saints and relatives. The "Picasso" is actually from his mother, Maria Picasso y Lopez. His father is named Jose Ruiz Blasco.

Picasso's First Word: Pencil
It's like Picasso was born an artist: his first word was "piz," short of lápiz the Spanish word for 'pencil.' His father Ruiz, an artist and art professor, gave him a formal education in art starting from the age of 7. By 13, Ruiz vowed to give up painting as he felt that Pablo had surpassed him.

Pablo's First Drawing

Le Picador by Pablo Picasso (1890)
At the tender young age of 9, Picasso completed his first painting: Le picador, a man riding a horse in a bullfight.

6. Picasso's First Job

A painter. Picasso signed his first contract in Paris with art dealer Pere Menach, who agreed to pay him 150 francs per month (about US$750 today).

Cubism: Full of Little Cubes

Le Guitariste (The Guitarist) by Pablo Picasso (1910)
In 1909, Picasso and French artist Georges Braque co-founded an art movement known as cubism. Actually, it was a French art critic Louis Vauxcelles who first called it "bizarre cubiques" or cubism, after noting that Picasso and Braque's paintings are "full of little cubes."

Picasso was a Playboy
Being a famous artist certainly helped Picasso get the girl. Girls, in fact - many, many girls. Here's a short list of known "official" wives of Picasso. 9 official wives.
- Fernande Olivier (Picasso's first love, she was 18?; he was 23)
- Marcelle Humbert AKA Eva Gouel (she was 27, Picasso was 31)
- Gaby Lespinasse (he was 34, I don't know how old Gaby was, but she was young, that's for sure!)
- Olga Khokhlova (Picasso's first wife; she was 26 and he was 36 when they met)
- Marie-Thérèse Walter (she was 17, he was 46)
- Dora Maar (she was 29, Picasso was 55)
- Françoise Gilot (she was 21 when she met Picasso, who was 61)
- Geneviève Laporte (one of Picasso's last lovers. She was in her mid-twenties and a French model of Picasso, who was in his seventies when the affair started)
- Jacqueline Roque (who became Picasso's second wife. She was 27 and he was 79)

Where is Picasso buried?

Picasso was buried in the grounds of a chateau that he bought on a whim in 1958 in the village of Vauvenargues in the south of France
Where was Picasso born?

Malaga, Spain

MOVIE SEGMENT DOWNLOAD - SURVIVING PICASSO

Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Vacation

Dear Readers,

I will be on vacation during  the next month. Soon I will be back with new activities. See you soon!!!