Maria das Graças

On April 25th, was Maria das Graças who managed the workshop. She showed us how English’ classes were years ago, at the first English’s schools in Brazil. For us it was so different! It’s hard to believe how things have changed since then. We are happy with this changes, in nowadays the teachers are taught they must motivate the students, and to teach with enjoyment. It hasn’t been always like that. Maria das Graças brought some old books so we could compare with the new ones. Studies were more based on automatic repetition back then. They also didn’t have any pictures inside, and the books now are much colorful, and have interesting article, not just exercises and repetition.

Alessandra's workshop

Friday (April, 11th), we had a workshop with Alessandra. It wasn’t boring at all, she is very at involving the students and she didn’t give time to us to feel asleep.

I think that was great for the ones are already English teachers, especially at public schools, because she taught many activities and games that we may use in our classes. To get teen ages’ attention isn’t an easy job, so we better learn lots of tricks to make them interested.

Late activity

Our first teacher at Prodocencia, Beatriz, asked us to post structure exercises on our blogs... Well that was 4th aphril, but I'm doing it now... I found this excellent website where we can find lots of tips for English teachers:

http://www.english-to-go.com/
It is available some lessons, like this one below:

The present perfect simple

The present perfect simple has these uses:

It is used to talk about an action which began in the past and continues to the present.

• I have always loved trees.
• I have gone to the National Forest Conference for the last six years.

It is used to talk about an action that happened in the past where the time is not mentioned. If the time is mentioned, you must use the simple past. (Also, see the rules about unfinished time and finished time below.)

• I have been to three conferences on air pollution. (present perfect simple)
• I went to the conferences in 2000, 2002 and 2004. (simple past)
• They have decided to make me President of the group. (present perfect simple)
• They decided this in a meeting yesterday. (simple past)

It is used with words like since 2003, this week and today. These words describe an unfinished time.

• I have worked here since 2003.
• I have read three articles today about trees and pollution.
  
  Note: It is never used with time words like last week, last year, yesterday, five minutes ago, in 1995 etc. These words describe a finished time.
  
  Wrong: I have planted three trees last year.
  Correct: I planted three trees last year.

It is used with just, already and recently.

• I have just read an article about trees and pollution.
• I have recently planted some oak trees in my garden.
  

It is often used with never and yet. It is used in questions with ever.

• I have never planted a tree.
• We haven't planted any trees yet.
• Have you ever hugged a tree?

The present perfect simple tense is made with has/have + the past participle.

I / we / you / they have always loved trees.
He / she / it has always loved trees.

I / we / you / they have never had asthma.
He / she / it has never had asthma.

Have I / we / you / they / ever planted a tree?
Has she / he / it ever planted a tree?

Exercise 1:

Fill the gaps in the sentences with the verbs in brackets. Put them in the present perfect simple.
a. I __________ a lot of articles about this problem. (read)
b. He __________to Canada. (go)
c. __________ you ever __________ on a farm? (work)
d. We __________more and more trees from our city over the last ten years. (lose)
e. She __________ very kind to me. (be)
f. I __________ on a farm all my life. (live)
g. They __________ us to build new pigsties for our pigs.(tell)
h. We __________ pigs for the last six years. (keep)

Exercise 2:

Here are some time words. Sort the words into two groups.

Group A: Those words that describe a finished time
Group B: Those that describe an unfinished time. (Two are done for you as an example.)

in 2003, this week, last year, since 2002, two minutes ago, yesterday, this month, three weeks ago, on Saturday, today, this evening

Finished: _in 2003 _, _, ________ , __________

Unfinished: _this week _, _, ________ , __________

He he he

Emperor's club

“Great teachers have little external history to record. Their lives go over into other lives.”

“Without contribution is without significance. What will your contribution be?”

The Emperor's Club is a fantastic film. It tells the story of a fascinating teacher, William Hundert, who loves his profession, and his students. He is very noble, and tries to show a good way, where men live their lives knowing who they are, what are their roles in the society.

William conquest his students trust and love. His great character bothers the shallow people who surround him, and, for good or for bad, he is always a strong memory to who that has known him. A special thing I found about the film is what the Teacher says at the beginning. He starts the narration saying it is a common story which he is going to tell. And also it finishes as a common story, with no unreal, unpractical end. William Hundert shows with his life many of teacher's roles. He acts like a involver, a mannager, a diagnonotcisian, a friend, a parent. Mankind is seen with no romantic view. It is, although, a beautiful story. It shows men’s limitation, but it also shows human’s soul with its good and worthy tones, and encourages us to find the way to give our contribution in this world.

Here is the link to the film's homepage, there is a test where you can find if you are a gladiator, a poet or a senator! http://www.theemperorsclub.com/

Secular world

Guys, I’ve finished the book (Dorian Gray)…

I can’t believe he actually killed himself at the end! Well, I wasn’t really expecting any happy end, but… I didn’t expect that neither! I imagined that Dorian was going to pay for his sins… or perhaps he could show a different life’s philosophy after so many years of lots of pleasure and none happiness.
I realized also that, in nowadays, living as Dorian lived and having this narcissistic behavior is not judged as it was before, at late 19th century. Now, it is part of our life the extreme aestheticism, but we don’t think that it is a bad thing. We pretend we are sensible, we pretend that we are more spiritual human beings, more human…
But, truly, to become more human means to become less divine… And we always forget that part.

The Picture of Dorian Gray

I'm reading this book for school, and I’m absolutely in love with it! Oscar Wilde was a genius, I have no doubt. I’d like to share this preface I’ve found today, so you can have an idea of what the book is about. I hope you will read it!

This is the cover of Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine(on the right), released on June 20, 1890, where the novel was first published. After this edition, Wilde made several alterations, and added new chapters.

Oscar Wilde

(1854-1900)

The Picture of Dorian Gray (1890)

Preface



The artist is the creator of beautiful things.


To reveal art and conceal the artist is art's aim.


The critic is he who can translate into another manner or a new material his impression of beautiful things.


The highest as the lowest form of criticism is a mode of autobiography. Those who find ugly meanings in beautiful things are corrupt without being charming.


This is a fault.


Those who find beautiful meanings in beautiful things are the cultivated. For these there is hope.


They are the elect to whom beautiful things mean only beauty.


There is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book. Books are well written, or badly written.


That is all.


The nineteenth century dislike of realism is the rage of Caliban seeing his own face in a glass.


The nineteenth century dislike of romanticism is the rage of Caliban not seeing his own face in a glass.


The moral life of man forms part of the subject-matter of the artist, but the morality of art consists in the perfect use of an imperfect medium. No artist desires to prove anything. Even things that are true can be proved.


No artist has ethical sympathies.


An ethical sympathy in an artist is an unpardonable mannerism of style. No artist is ever morbid. The artist can express everything.


Thought and language are to the artist instruments of an art.


Vice and virtue are to the artist materials for an art.


From the point of view of form, the type of all the arts is the art of the musician.


From the point of view of feeling, the actor's craft is the type.


All art is at once surface and symbol.


Those who go beneath the surface do so at their peril.



END OF PREFACE