British Pronunciation

Hi guys!,
I share with you a very interesting video, because I think that it will be very useful for future speakings.
See you in class!.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7SWETadMn0

A lovely song

I want to share this song with all of you. I fell in love when I heard it the first time. It's a good way to learn English: listening songs with subtitles.
Happy weekend!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcnQdb8BYcY

A description

I admire people for what they do, and the works and actions that Angelina Jolie has done during her life, have led me to admire her. Angelina Jolie is an American actress, director, writer, producer, humanitarian and philanthropist.

Angelina started her career as a model since age 16. But then, after her studies at Academy of Acting she appeared in several films as The Bone Collector, 60 Seconds, The Exchange. Although she rose to fame in her debut as protagonist in Lara Croft (Tom Rider), and Mr. and Mrs. Smith where also met her current husband Brad Pitt. She has a great ability as an actress, and her beauty that distinge her of all others.
But her best striking feature is that she has spent all her life, and even still devoted to humanitarian work. That not only makes her special, but unique. I think she succeds at this brilliantly.

Angie is taller and slimmer than me, she looks quite exotic. She gorgeous, her hands are long and elegant. Her nose is short and her lips are thick. She has got thin and black hair. However, her natural hair is blonde, but since she was young she dyed her blond hair to black, and in my opinion I think that it looks more beautiful in her because it highlights her amazing and cheerful big blue eyes. She is an intelligent and strong woman. Angie is also a very patient, understanding sort of person, which makes her a good listener of people with needs. She lives her life without prejudice and without thinking others will say.

In the 1990s, Angelina Jolie became a popular actress. She gave a star-making performance in the 1998 television film Gia based on the short, tragic life of model Gia Marie Carangi, which won her a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress.
Another great dramatic role in Girl, Interrupted brought Angie her first Academy Award for best supporting actress. She has continued to take on a variety of interesting roles, such as an adventurer in the Lara Croft films.

At first, she appears to be like any other actress, but are her actions that differentiate her from the others. She is an example of the ugly duckling can become a swan. What I admire most in her is that when she was young she fell into drugs but devoted all her time to people in need and due to that she could be recovered. She adopted two orphaned babies, one Vietnamese and other African girl. She was a single mother for a long time, until she met Brad Pitt and had several children. Now they have 6 beautiful children. She is a very special person to me, I think she is a role model. I also in the future will continue these steps. She as human made mistakes, she is not perfect but she is not her mistakes.

A description

The person I admire the most is my dad. He is the one who taught me that even if you lose everything in your life and you have nothing, never lose the faith in yourself and the faith in god. I feel lucky because my father's presence has always been there when I needed him, no matter how far he was from his family.
My hero is physically a handsome guy. He is tall, well-build, he has a dark short hair and a brown skin just like mine. In dress and manners, he looks very smart when he wears my favourite color's outfit.
My father is a cheerful and generous person. He gives his hand to everyone who needs help, no matter what the consequences can be. I love his sense of humour because his old-school jokes always drive me crazy. My dad is an organized, businesslike person and always tries to give his best at work as well as at home.
I feel blessed by his presence in my life. I thank god for giving me such an adorable and charming family.

A personal description

A person that I really admire is my friend Paula. She lives in Madrid, so we don't see each other much because of the distance, but when we meet in summer, it's as if we had been together all the year.

Paula is shorter and slimmer than me, although she is quite attractive. She has long, curly, brown hair and big, blue eyes. She is used to wearing high street clothes because she doesn't follow fashion at all.

However, we've got similar personalities: she is really affectionate and reliable, and they are things that make us get on well. Also, she is pretty sensitive because she understands other people's feelings and tries to help everybody. At first, she seemed to be an unkind girl, but life always surprises, and I realized she was so friendly.

I look forward to seeing her as soon as possible. I've got lots of friends who I see very often, but she is probably my best friend.

We are built to be kind

This is a four-minute video published by some researchers at the University of California. Let us watch it together and do the worksheet below.

Worksheet

Raise your hand when you hear the following words in the video.

Do you know the meaning of all of them?sympathy       offspring       genes       empathy       

frontal lobes        requires        
cognitive achievement        wealth       charity       strength    

personally fulfilling         engage          on behalf of

According to the researchers at UCLA, are the following statements TRUE of FALSE?

1-      If you feel physical pain, a part of your brain hurts.

2-      According to Darwin, compassion is really old in the nervous system.

3-      Compassion, the feeling of caring for someone in need, activates the vagus nerve, the longest bundle of nerves in the human nervous system.

4-      Upper class individuals have a lot of compassion that's produced by lots of wealth.

5-      Lower class individuals give more.

6-      16 percent of what we do is really about maximizing an individual's personal gratification and desire

7-      The brain really cares about other people.

What the difference between empathy and sympathy? Match the words to the definitions.                                

Empathy	It is about finding a silver lining
Sympathy	It is about making an emotional connection with someone

According to this other three-minute video what is the best thing to say when someone shares something with you which is very difficult?
 .....................................................................................

Do you agree? Why? Why not?

We are back!

Hello

We are back! I hope you have had a good Christmas break!
My best wishes for the year 2015!!

Starting A New Year With A New Beginning

I'm posting this video just for you. I found that this video has a really good message that everyone should watch it and think about it. Hope you like it.

"Be a nice person, no matter what."

Merry christmas and a Happy new year people!!

AN INFORMAL EMAIL

Dear Julen.

Thank you for your email, I'd like know about you. I'm very happy because I'm working at the hotel called Princess in Barcelona, and I would like you to get a job in Spain, even if it is difficult.
My mum says that you arrive at 5 o'clock at the airport.
What time are you arriving in Barcelona, my boyfriend and me can meet you in Arrivals.
Your bestfriend gave me your nmber to call you. If you want to speak with me,  call me, so my phone number is 686645461.
If you need food tell me, I have no problems.
Hugs and kisses.
Best wishes.

An informal email

Hi Mark,

Sorry I haven’t written for so long, but I’ve been studying for my final exams. I know you are coming to my school next month, so I’m going to explain what the typical meals are because the more you know, the better you eat.

Most people eat cereals with milk for breakfast, but I prefer to wolf down a sandwich made of salad, tomato, boiled egg and a bit of crab sauce! This is fairly tasty. I eat lunch at school at 2.30 p.m. – that probably seems unbelievably late to you – and I often eat a fresh green salad and boiled rice because the other lunches are totally revolting. Anyway, you can take a packed lunch from home. When I arrive home, at 5 p.m., I always have a snack: home-made pastries or a piece of fruit (it depends on the day). Then, I have dinner at 9 p.m., and I normally eat meat or some bread with sausage. My sister is really into cooking and she does totally amazing lasagna with steamed vegetables. We also like to eat “paella”, a typical meal of Spain. Home-made food is always the best, isn’t it?

Bye the way, how are things with you? All good here, but it’s been a bit hectic because of my mother’s accident.

Bye for now,

Ona.

An informal e-mail

Hi Martina!

It's great to hear from you! Sorry I didn't write you straight back soon

How have you been? As I said, I've doing my exams and I studied a lot to pass them. I didn't
Moreover, I've been sorting out some issues about the adoption of the puppy. By the way, my sister and I have changed up our mind! Finally, the name of the dog is going to be "Otto".
If we hadn't changed the name that he had, It would have been too long to pronunce! My mum said to me that a long name would have been more difficult for the dog to understand.

How about your exams? And your dog? Say "hello" to your brother for me! We must meet and catch up soon. Maybe to take a coffee or going for a walk with the dogs. How do you see it?

Hughs and kisses,

Lydia

To: Alice

From: Yusra

Subject: Catalan food!

Hi Alice, Thanks for your email. Sorry I didn't write straight back, I was busy preparing your welcome at our school. We're pretty excited about your arrival. Have you finished your research? I'm writting to tell you abour our typical meals in Catalonia and our meal time. We have 3 meals a day, and we start the day at 7 am. Usually, we take cereals for breakfast with a glass of juice or chocolate milk and a slice of bread with ''Mel i Mato'', a soft, unsalted goat chese served with honey and sometimes walnuts. It's typical in Catalonia, and I prefer the last dish. ;) Time for a break! We eat breakfast at school at 11, we bring to us a homemade sandwich, or buy it at school. At 3 o'clock noon, it's time to eat at home, there are many Catalan dishes that I'm sure they will make you crazy!. Very healthy and mediterranean dishes, as ''Fideua'' that's like seafood paella, but served with shortnoodles, rather than rice. I'm imagining you lust to savour all these delicious dishes right now!.  At 5 o'clock we take a snack, we don't take the famous ''Tea time'' as in London – One day I will take it – We often cook Panallets. Small rounds, sweet and made with almonds. Or Catalan cream. I'm learning to cook Panallets, because I love them. Catalans, we rarely have ready-cooked food for dinner. We always eat a light dinner, as ''Pa amb tomàquet''. I think it's our national food (aside from ''Calçots''), it's too easy to do. Guess what! Even my relatives in Morocco do it too. 10pm, what better time for DINNER! I I'm just kidding of course. 10pm is a ridiculous time to eat. Probably you're suprised because it's so late. I'ts a bit hectic here. Our diet is really famous all over the world, and you will have the opportunity to try many delicious dishes. And you will meet many handsome Catalans. ;)    Well that’s all for now, take care of your little sister, hope she feels better soon. And good luck with your exams. We're waiting for you in Barcelona. See you soon, Yusra xxxxx