POEM BY JUAN K: OUR TELEVISION

POEM BY JUAN K

OUR TELEVISION

Competition among telly channels

Were expected to bring

More quality and amusement

But that´s not what I see.

Thousands of soap operas,

Tons of ads,

Therefore to see that crap

We need to have real guts.

Pay per view tv

Is always an option

But unless you are a millionaire

You won´t play that function.

Will all that balance?

What has Internet to do?

I think you´d better listen to Maria Callas

Otherwise you´ll suffer a "Déjà vu".

A nice chat with all of you

I´m glad to enjoy and spend,

I´m talking like a sentenced man

Who is in fact innocent.

For the parents to educate their children

There´s no clear nor right method,

Just empathy from the very beginning

Allowing them to see "los teleñecos".

Things will turn to right

From blue to red,

So don´t worry any more and

Therefore this is a farewell.

Thank you for your contribution, Juan K. Everybody has a poet inside.

SESSION 14: EXERCISES FOR DISCUSSION AND FINAL TASK

SESSION 14: EXERCISES FOR DISCUSSION AND FINAL TASK

2. EXERCISES FOR DISCUSSION

2.1 EXPRESS YOUR OPINION:

• I strongly believe politicians should be able to claim $200,000 a year in expenses.
• I strongly believe politicians´ expenses are unnecessary.

2.2 FURIOUS: Who makes you angry? Rate these people from 10 (makes you superboiling mad) to 1 (never, ever makes you angry)

• Your English teacher ____
• Your country leader ____
• Your mother/father ____
• Your favourite sports team ____
• Your neighbour ____
• Your boyfriend/girlfriend/wife/husband ____
• Your boss ____
• Your colleagues ____
• Your classmates ____
• Yourself ____

2.3 POLITICIANS DISCUSSION: Here are some questions you can try asking yourself before you come to our discussion on Wednesday:

a. What did you think when you read the headline?

b. Did you like reading the article?

c. What springs to mind when ou hear the word 'politician'?

d. What do you think of the politician´s husband making the British taxpayer pay for his adult videos?

e. Do you like the politicians you know?

f. Do you think Jacqui Smith should resign?

g. A well-known expression says you know when a politician is lying because his/her lips move. What does this mean? Do you agree?

h.What stupid things do politicians in your country do?

i. Do you think politicians are overpaid?

j. Do you think politicians should face heavy penalties if they betray the public´s trust?

k.Would this kind of story cause political damage in your country?

l. Would you like to be a politician?

m. Are politicians useful and necessary in our society? Why?

n. Do politicians work hard enough in your country?

o. What kind of person makes a good politician?

p. Should a politician go to prison for falsely claiming expenses?

q. Would you like a say in how your government spends your taxes?

r. Do you know of any similar case to this one in your country?

PREPARING A DISCUSSION IS FUNDAMENTAL:

THIS MUST BE DONE IN TWO DIRECTIONS:

FIRST, YOU NEED TO LEARN NEW VOCABULARY AND EXPRESSIONS THAT YOU WILL HAVE TO USE FOR THE DISCUSSION.

SECONDLY, YOU HAVE TO PREPARE THE TOPIC BY LOOKING UP INFORMATION IN THE INTERNET, BOOKS, ENCYCLOPAEDIAS.

THIS WAY YOU WILL FEEL MUCH MORE CONFIDENT AND AT THE SAME TIME YOU WILL HAVE MUCH MORE TO TALK ABOUT.

FINAL TASK:

HERE IS ONE FINAL TASK THAT YOU MAY DO AND THIS WAY YOU WILL COVER THE FOUR SKILLS YOU MUST IMPROVE WHEN LEARNING A LANGUAGE: LISTENING, READING, SPEAKING AND WRITING.

WRITING:

Write a composition of not more than 180 words and leave it in the blog as a comment to Session 14, I will edit it in the blog so that everybody can learn from other people´s opinions.

Express your opinion on one of the following quotes:

• "I have come to the conclusion that politics are too serious a matter to be left to politicians." Charles de Gaulle.
• "Ninety percent of the politicians give the other ten percent a bad reputation." Henry Kissinger.
• "The word 'politics' is derived from 'poli' meaning 'many' and the word 'ticks', meaning 'blood sucking parasites' ". Larry Hardiman.
• "Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it whether it exists or not, diagnosing it incorrectly, and applying the wrong remedy." Ernest Benn.

SESSION 14: ANSWERS TO EXERCISES

SESSION 14: ANSWERS TO EXERCISES

1.1 TRUE/FALSE
a. T / b. F / c. T / d. T / e. T / f. F / g.F / h.F

1.2 SYNONYM MATCH
1.g / 2.i / 3.h / 4.d / 5.b / 6.c / 7.j / 8.e / 9.a / 10.f

1.3 PHRASE MATCH
1.d / 2.a / 3.j / 4.f / 5.h / 6.e / 7.i / 8.b / 9.g /10.c

1.4 GAP FILLL
OURTAGE - LIGHT - MADE - DETAILS - CLAIMED - SEVERAL - COMES - SUFFERING

ACTED - SET - EARNS - AROUND - EFFECT - OBVIOUS - COMPLEX - QUICK

SESSION 14: EXERCISES WORKING WITH THE TEXT

SESSION 14: EXERCISES WORKING WITH THE TEXT


NOTE: IN ORDER TO WORK WITH THE TEXT, UNDERSTAND AND PREPARE IT BETTER I RECOMMEND THESE EXERCISES.


THERE WILL BE TWO TYPES OF EXERCISES:
1. EXERCISES WORKING WITH THE TEXT: THESE ARE EXERCISES FOCUSING ON THE READING COMPREHENSION, WORKING WITH VOCABULARY AND EXPRESSIONS.
2. EXERCISES FOR DISCUSSION: EXERCISES FOCUSING ON THE PREPARATION FOR THE DISCUSSION.


1. EXERCISES WORKING WITH THE TEXT


1.1 TRUE FALSE: Look at the article and guess whether these sentences are true (T) or False (F):
a. British people aren´t happy at how much politicians claim in expenses.
b. A politician´s husband bought a light, and so angered the British public.
c. The politician´s husband said he was sorry on British television.
d. British taxpayers´ paid for the politician´s washing machines and sink.
e. Gordon Brown was not slow to react to this news.
f. UK politicians cannot ask family members to assist them in their job.
g. A committee will start looking into politicians´ expenses from 2010.
h. The committee´s recommendations will make the British public happy.


1.2 SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:
1. expressing .................... a. difficult
2. outrage ....................... b. hurting
3. claimed ....................... c. swiftly
4. several ........................ d. numerous
5. suffering ...................... e. start
6. quickly ........................ f. if
7. set up ......................... g. communicating
8. take effect ................... h. asked for
9. complex ...................... i. anger
10. whether ..................... j. created


1.3. PHRASE MATCH: Match the following phrases from the article (sometimes more than one combination is possible):
1. people are expressing .......................... a. to light
2. after it came .................................... b. just over $90,000 a year
3. He apologized for his .......................... c. with a quick fix
4. This all comes from ............................ d. their outrage
5. Many Britons are suffering .................... e. damage
6. control any political ............................ f. taxpayers´ money
7. He asked for a committee to be ............. g. from April 2010
8. A top-ranking politician in Britain earns .... h. financially
9. his changes would take effect ................ i. set up
10. This is not something which can be done .. j. error on national television


1.4 GAP FILL: Put the words into the gaps in the text:


DETAILS - LIGHT - SEVERAL - SUFFERING - OUTRAGE - CLAIMED - MADE - COMES

British people are expressing their __________ over how much they have to pay for their politicians. Their anger increased this week after it came to __________ that a politician´s husband claimed expenses for two adult movies. The husband of Britain´s Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said he __________ a mistake. He apologized for his error on national television. A day later, more __________ came out about Ms Smith´s expenses to make the British people angrier. Media reports state she __________ over $150,000 in expenses for her second home. This includes __________ washing machines, antique furniture, two televisions and even a kitchen sink for her home. This all __________ from taxpayers´ money. Many Britons are __________ financially because of the global financial crisis.

OBVIOUS - QUICK - SET - AROUND - ACTED - COMPLEX - EARNS - EFFECT

Britain´s Prime Minister Gordon Brown __________quickly to try and control any political damage. He asked for a committee to be __________ up to look into politician´s expenses. A top-ranking politician in Britain __________ just over $90,000 a year. However, it is possible for them to claim an extra $200,000 a year in expenses. This can include paying a husband or wife __________ $65,0000 to be a personal assistant. The chairman of the committee Sir Christopher Kelly said his changes would take __________ from April 2010. He told reporters: "It is now __________ that this piece of work needs to start as soon as possible." He added: "The issues involved are __________ ... This is not something which can be done with a __________ fix." It is unclear whether his changes will make Britons happier with their politicians.

SESSION 14: TEXT FOR WEDNESDAY 29TH APRIL

SESSION 14: TEXT FOR WEDNESDAY 29TH APRIL

BRITONS FURIOUS OVER POLITICIAN´S EXPENSES

Text taken and adapted from:
http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/

THE ARTICLE:
British people are expressing their outrage over how much they have to pay for their politicians. Their anger increased this week after it came to light that a politician´s husband claimed expenses for two adult movies. The husband of Britain´s Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said he made a mistake. He apologized for his error on national television. A day later, more details came out about Ms Smith´s expenses to make the British people even angrier. Media reports state she claimed over $150,000 in expenses for her second home. This includes several washing machines, antique furniture, two televisions and even a kitchen sink for her home. This all comes from taxpayers' money. Many Britons are suffering financially because of the global financial crisis.

Britain´s Prime Minister Gordon Brown acted quickly to try and control any political damage. He asked for a committee to be set up to look into politicians' expenses. A top-ranking politician in Britain earns just over $90,000 a year. However, it is possible for them to claim an extra $200,000 a year in expenses. This can include paying a husband or wife around $65,000 to be a personal assistant. The chairman of the committee Sir Christopher Kelly said his changes would take effect from April 2010. He told reporters: "It is now obvious that this piece of work needs to start as soon as possible." He added: " The issues involved are complex... This is not something which can be done with a quick fix." It is unclear whether his changes will make Britons happier with their politicians.

"Britons furious over politician´s expenses" - 1st April, 2009

http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/

SESSION 11 & 12: TOP FIVE MISTAKES

SESSION 11 & 12: TOP FIVE MISTAKES

NUMBER 1 MISTAKE: (I know you know it but you still continue making the same mistake over and over again)
PEOPLE IS .... PEOPLE ARE
TWO PERSONS .... TWO PEOPLE
(Singular: Person ...... Plural : People)

NUMBER 2 MISTAKE:
IN ORDER TO BECAME .... IN ORDER TO BECOME

NUMBER 3 MISTAKE:
BEAUTY(noun) - BEAUTIFUL(adjetive)
e.j. She is very beautiful.
Her beauty is only skin deep.

NUMBER 4 MISTAKE:
TRUE -- THE TRUTH
e.j. We will never know the whole truth.
What she said is true.

NUMBER 5 MISTAKE:
I HAVEN´T TIME... I HAVEN´T GOT TIME / I DON´T HAVE TIME
HAVE GOT --- HAVEN´T GOT
HAVE --- DON´T HAVE

There were also some problems with "make/do" and with "remind/remember". If you are not sure about the differences, revise them. You can use one of the "Links to work with grammar" in the blog.

SESSION 13: EXERCISES FOR DISCUSSION AND FINAL TASK

SESSION 13: EXERCISES FOR DISCUSSION AND FINAL TASK

Here are some questions you can try asking yourself before you come to our discussion on Wednesday:

a. Do you think kids that watch too much TV become abnormal adults?

b. Can obesity be a result of watching a lot of TV?

c. What´s your favourite TV programme? Why?

d. Do you like watching TV?

e. How many hours a day do you watch TV?

f. Do you watch TV to relax or for other reasons? Which?

g. Is watching TV one of your hobbies?

h. Do you know exactly what you want to see when you put on your TV?

i. Do you watch more TV now than when you were a child?

j. Do you think computers will in the end be more addictive than TV? Or do you think this is already happening?

k. What time of day do you normally watch TV?

l. Do you think TV programmes now are better than they were before?

m. Do you think the people that want to get informed about the latest news choose TV or other means of communication?

n. Are there any positive things you see in watching TV?

PREPARING A DISCUSSION IS FUNDAMENTAL:

THIS MUST BE DONE IN TWO DIRECTIONS:

FIRST, YOU NEED TO LEARN NEW VOCABULARY AND EXPRESSIONS THAT YOU WILL HAVE TO USE FOR THE DISCUSSION.

SECONDLY, YOU HAVE TO PREPARE THE TOPIC BY LOOKING UP INFORMATION IN THE INTERNET, BOOKS, ENCYCLOPAEDIAS.

THIS WAY YOU WILL FEEL MUCH MORE CONFIDENT AND AT THE SAME TIME YOU WILL HAVE MUCH MORE TO TALK ABOUT.

FINAL TASK:

HERE IS ONE FINAL TASK THAT YOU MAY DO AND THIS WAY YOU WILL COVER THE FOUR SKILLS YOU MUST IMPROVE WHEN LEARNING A LANGUAGE: LISTENING, READING, SPEAKING AND WRITING.

WRITING:

Write a composition of not more than 180 words and leave it in the blog as a comment to Session 13, I will edit it in the blog so that everybody can learn from other people´s opinions. Choose one of the two following options:

1. "TELEVISION IS THE MOST POWERFUL MEANS OF COMMUNICATION AND MANIPULATION" Express your opinion.

2. Write a letter to the Director of Channel 1 (TVE 1) and tell him what you think of this channel and its programmes.

SESSION 13: TEXT FOR WEDNESDAY 22ND APRIL

SESSION 13: TEXT FOR WEDNESDAY 22ND APRIL

LIFE THROUGH A LENS

Text taken from:
http://www.onestopenglish.com/

Just click on http://www.onestopenglish.com/section.asp?catid=58224&docid=155847 and you have the text together with the exercises for you to practise. Hope you will enjoy it!

SESSION 12: TEXT FOR WEDNESDAY 15TH APRIL

SESSION 12

THE TEXT, EXERCISES AND FINAL TASK WILL BE THOSE WHICH APPEAR IN SESSION 11. IN THE ORAL SESSION WE WILL DEAL WITH THE SAME TOPIC.