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22 mai 2012

Elia and Margaux about Earth Day

Today , Elia and Margaux have spoken about Earth Day

          

 

Great cake, isn’t it ?   

 

                What is Earth Day ?

Earth Day is the day aimed at promoting people’s awareness of  the earth's environment and of the issues that threaten it. It encourages people to reduce their pollutants and recycle more. The idea is to make this planet better for this generation and more to come

Actually, Earth Day is one of two days, depending on when you choose to observe it. Some people celebrate Earth Day on the first day of Spring, which is the vernal equinox that occurs on or around March 21st. In 1970, U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson proposed a bill designating April 22 as a national day to celebrate the earth. Since that time, Earth Day has been officially observed in April.( internationally since 2000)At present, Earth Day is observed in 175 countries, and coordinated by the nonprofit Earth Day Network.

Its origins ( cf Elia’ and Margaux’s very complete slideshow , attached)

 This day originated as far as in 1962 when Senator  Gaylor Nelson wanted to put the environment into the political limelight  ( sous les projecteurs) Therefore he talked President Kennedy into touring the country and speaking about the environment, which he did.  However it didn’t really come into being before April 1970.

You can watch this introduction video : http://www.childrenoftheearth.org/earthday/earth-day-every-day.html

In 2012 , many actions were undertaken

 Here for examples,  Olympians explain the lifestyle choices they have adopted to make their daily lives more sustainable here :  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TxvMh2DaGfk     

And You , what do you do to make your daily life more sustainable ?

Go her e to discover 35 absolutely beautiful photos chosen to represent Earth Day in 2012 : http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2012/04/earth_day_2012.html

Which do you prefer and why ? Which according to you embodies Nature best ? 

What is

 

What is

16 mai 2012

Lou's oral presentation on SAint George's Day

 

Today Lou has spoken about Saint George's day which is celebrated on April 23rd.

St. Georges is the patron saint of England( although he has never set foot in England ! ) His emblem, a red cross on a white background( cf above) is the flag of England, and part of the British flag. St George's emblem was adopted by Richard The Lion Heart and brought to England in the 12th century. The king's soldiers wore it on their tunics to avoid confusion in battle.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Who was Saint George?

St. George is believed to have been born in Cappadocia (now Eastern Turkey) in the year A.D. 270. He was a Christian. At the age of seventeen he joined the Roman army and soon became renowned for his bravery. He served under a pagan Emperor but never forgot his Christian faith.

When the pagan Emperor Diocletian started persecuting Christians, St. George pleaded with the Emperor to spare their lives. However, St. George's pleas fell on deaf ears and it is thought that the Emperor Diocletian tried to make St. George deny his faith in Christ, by torturing him. St George showed incredible courage and faith and was finally beheaded near Lydda in Palestine on 23 April, 303 ( incidentally on the same day as William Shakespeare or Rupert Brooke). Hence his banner which represents the red cross of a martyr on a white background.

In 1222, the Council of Oxford declared April 23 to be St George’s Day and he replaced St Edmund the Martyr as England’s patron saint in the 14th century. In 1415, April 23 was made a national feast day.

St George is patron saint not only of England but also of Aragon, Catalonia, England, Ethiopia, Georgia, Greece, Lithuania, Palestine, Portugal, and Russia, as well as the cities of Amersfoort, Beirut, Bteghrine, Cáceres, Ferrara, Freiburg, Genoa, Ljubljana, Gozo, Pomorie, Qormi, Lod and Moscow !!!!

The legend of Saint George

In Lybia,  he met a poor hermit who told him that everyone in that land was in great distress, for a dragon had long ravaged the country.

'Every day,' said the old man, 'he demands the sacrifice of a beautiful maiden and now all the young girls have been killed. The king's daughter( Princess Sabra) alone remains, and unless we can find a knight who can slay the dragon she will be sacrificed tomorrow. The king of Egypt will give his daughter in marriage to the champion who overcomes this terrible monster.'

When St. George heard this story, he was determined to try and save the princess.

He entered the valley where the dragon lived..

As soon as the dragon saw him it rushed from its cave, roaring with a sound louder than thunder. Its head was immense and its tail fifty feet long. But St. George was not afraid. He struck the monster with his spear ( lance), hoping he would wound it.But the dragon's scales ( écailles) were so thick that the spear broke and Saint George fell but fortunately he rolled under an enchanted orange tree against which poison could not prevail, so that the venomous dragon was unable to hurt him. Within a few minutes he had recovered his strength and was able to fight again.He pierced it under the wing where there were no scales, so that it fell dead at his feet.

How it is celebrated

By tradition, 23rd April is the day for a red rose in the button hole, the national flower. However, unlike other countries, England does not celebrate it like Americans celebrate 4 July with fireworks but rather with small concerts . However in Birmingham, they install giant inflatable dragons !   It is not even a bank holiday : for most people in England St George's Day is just another ordinary working day.

You can check your knowledge on this day by taking this quiz here : http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/1945854.stm?markResults=true&a_01=2&a_02=3&a_03=1&a_04=2&a_05=3&a_06=2&a_07=3&a_08=1&a_09=2&a_10=2  or this one here which is easier : http://www.funtrivia.com/playquiz.cfm?qid=73621&origin=

 

06 avril 2012

Marion's Talking About the News

Today Marion has chosen to speak about Joseph John Kony and the video about him on the Net.

A brief reminder of who he is , seems necessary:  he is the head of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), a Ugandan guerrilla group.

While initially enjoying strong public support, the LRA turned on its own supporters, supposedly to "purify" the Acholi people & turn Uganda into a theocracy ( a form of government under divine guidance).  Kony proclaims himself the spokesperson of God  ( porte-parole)  &

 a spirit medium, has nurtured a cult of personality, and claims he is visited by a multinational host of 13 spirits, including a Chinese phantom.

He ordered the abduction( enlèvement)  of children to become child-sex slaves and child soldiers. About 66,000 children became soldiers and two million people have been internally displaced since 1986 In 2005, Kony was indicted for war crimes and crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands, but has evaded capture.

On March 5th  a  30-minute documentary entitled Kony 2012 for the campaign group Invisible Children Inc was released.The intention of the production is to draw attention to Kony in an effort to increase United States involvement in the issue. By  March 17th, the video has

been viewed more than 80 million times .

The group Invisible Children describes itself as a movement seeking to end the conflict in Uganda

However  some activists have voiced concerns about the methods used by Invisible Children, such as manipulating the facts, to promote its cause.

So, watch Marion’s presentation again , watch the video and try to answer Marion’s question : do you think this big campaign could accelerate  the work of the investigators ? is it only to increase our awareness of such horrible facts ( nous sensibiliser) Has  Invisible Children  used the video to promote its ideas ?

 

Here is the link to the video : http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/uganda/9129085/Joseph-Kony-2012-online-video-campaign-to-bring-Uganda-war-criminal-to-justice-goes-viral.html

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Y4MnpzG5Sqc" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

30 mars 2012

Red Nose Day

 

Today , we’ve listened to Clara’s and Auriane’s presentation on Red Nose Day 

 

 

Thank you for their delicious biscuits !!

 

Red Nose Day is  a biennial telethon held on the second or third Friday in March. It takes place every two years, alternating wwith Sports ReliefThe first Red Nose Day (RND) was held on the 5 February 1988. It aims at raising money for Comic Relief .Last year it took place on March 18th and  they raised £102, 166,598 !!

 What is Comic Relief ?

The organization raises money and then uses it to help end poverty and unfairness.

It works in the UK and also in the poorest countries in the world. Here's what it does:

  • Gets money in: Raises money from the public in the UK by getting them involved in fun special events.
  • Shares money out: Does a lot of research to find out which charities to support and then carefully decides how best to spend the money the public donated.
  • Educates people: Explains the causes of poverty in Africa and problems faced by groups and communities in the UK. Also lets people in the UK know how they can change things for the better. This video on this page  is quite explicit  http://www.rednoseday.com/about


How  is red Nose Day  “celebrated” ?

Red Nose Day is often treated as a semi-holiday  for example, many schools have non-uniform days. The day culminates in a live telethon event on BBC. http://www.youtube.com/user/rednoseday

As the name suggests, the day involves the wearing of plastic/foam red noses which are available, in exchange for a donation, from Sainsbury's and Oxfam shops. People are encouraged to wear the noses on Red Nose Day to help raise awareness of the charity

Celebrities are often involved in RND  : http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/newsid_9420000/newsid_9427600/9427695.stm

                                                                               http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAxzIwPogD8  ( Mr Bean  !! )

23 mars 2012

Commonwealth Day by Raphaël and Léo Pa.

Today, we’ve listened to an oral presentation about Commonwealth Day by Raphaël and Léo ( who this time hasn’t forgotten his USB key  !) Last week, they made delicious NutellaTM-filled slices !

You can see how pleased they look

 Since 1994 a theme has been chosen for Commonwealth Day  and this year ( on March 12th), it was Connecting Cultures. 

What they have not really mentioned is what the Commonwealth is.

The Commonwealth is a voluntary association of 54 independent countries, almost all of which were formerly under British rule.

The origins of the Commonwealth come from Britain's former Empire. Many of the members of the Commonwealth were territories which had historically come under British rule at various times by settlement, conquest or cession.

After achieving independence, India was the first of a number of countries which decided that, although they wished to become republics, they still wanted to remain within the Commonwealth.

To reconcile these aims, the 1949 London Declaration recognised King George VI as Head of the Commonwealth. Following his death, the Commonwealth leaders recognised Queen Elizabeth II in that capacity.

Each year, The Queen attends the Commonwealth Day celebrations in London. Since 1977, Commonwealth Day has been celebrated throughout the Commonwealth on the second Monday in March.

On that occasion , The Queen delivers an address to the Commonwealth, broadcast throughout the world.http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/video/video-queens-commonwealth-day-event-features-rufus-wainwright/article2367037/

Every four years , there are the Commonwealth Games

If you want to look at the complete list , you can go here : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Member_states_of_the_Commonwealth_of_Nations

The largest member of the Commonwealth is Canada, at nearly 10 million square kilometres.


The most populous Commonwealth country is India, with nearly 1.1 billion people.

The smallest member is Nauru, with only 13,000 inhabitants.

You’ll find attached the nice slideshow they have made( 2 formats)

 

10 février 2012

Chinese New Year

Today we’ve listened to a nice oral presentation of Léa and Jeanne on Chinese New Year.

We have also eaten some delicious pancakes …

I’ve attached their slideshow ( whose mistakes are now corrected !)  to this article .

 

Read it carefully of course.

 Here is also what  you  can  also remember

To begin with ,  Chinese New Year starts with the New Moon on the first day of the New Year and ends on the full moon 15 days later.The 15th day of the new year is called the Lantern Festival which is celebrated at night with lantern displays and children carrying lanterns in a parade.In 2012, Chinese New Years falls on January 23rd.

Read also about  the taboos and superstitions : http://education2.uvic.ca/Faculty/mroth/438/CHINA/taboos.html

Here is also an interesting page about the meaning of food : http://education2.uvic.ca/Faculty/mroth/438/CHINA/traditional_foods.html

03 février 2012

Australia Day

Today  Yuto and Elias have made an oral presentation on Australia day which is  on the 26th of January. Nice chocolate cakes  too !

General information

Before learning more about it , you should first know a bit more about Australia, so read the page here : http://panique.com.au/trishansoz/index1.html   

You should also know about the flag which is also called the Commonwealth Blue Ensign. It has three main design elements on a deep blue background:

  • The British Union Jack flag is in the upper left corner - noting Australia's ties to Great Britain
  • The Southern cross  constellation (5 stars) is on the right side of the flag - the Southern Cross is a major navigational constellation in the Southern Hemisphere
  • The large, white, seven-pointed Commonwealth Star (also called the Star of Federation) - it is symbolic of the original states of Australia.

Australia Day : History   The colonization  of Australia by the English :

    In 1770 an expedition from England lead by Captain James Cook sailed to the south pacific. They were supposed to make astronomical observations. But Captain Cook also had secret orders from the British Admiralty to find the southern continent.

They landed in a bay on the east coast on the 29th of April 1770. Cook first called this place Stingray Bay, then he changed it to Botanist Bay and finally called it Botany Bay because of all the strange and unusual plants there.

He called this new land New Wales and then changed it to New South Wales. He claimed the land for England (even though the land already belonged to the Aborigines).

 A penal colony : They decided to establish a penal colony by bringing convicts ( bagnards).The  first fleet arrived in Botany Bay but the landing party was not impressed with the site, and moved the fleet to Port Jackson and settled in Sydney Cove on January, 26th 1788.751 convicts and their children disembarked, along with 252 marines and their families.

The vast majority of the convicts to Australia were English and Welsh (70%), Irish (24%) or Scottish (5%),Most of the convicts were thieves who had been convicted in the great cities of England. Only those sentenced in Ireland were likely to have been convicted of rural crimes.

 

Two more convict fleets arrived in 1790 and 1791, and the first free settlers arrived in 1793. From 1788 to 1823, the Colony of New South Wales was officially a penal colony comprised mainly of convicts, soldiers and the wives of soldiers.

è So  Australia Day commemorates the arrival of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove in 1788.

 

How is it celebrated

Outdoor concerts, community barbecues, sports competitions, festivals and fireworks are some of the many events presented in communities across Australia.

The Order of Australia awards are also a feature of the day. The Governor-General and Prime Minister both address to the nation. On the eve of Australia Day each year, the Prime Minister announces the winner of the Australian of the Year award, presented to an Australian citizen who has shown a "significant contribution to the Australian community and nation", and is an "inspirational role model for the Australian community".

One of the highlights of the day is the regatta : to be viewed here : http://australiadayregatta.com.au/

17 janvier 2012

Martin Luther King Day

Today we listened to a nice oral presentation on Martin Luther King’s Day by Hermona and Marion

 

They've made a nice cake too !

 

Here is what you should remember  about that day which it is possible to celebrate because in 1983, President Ronald Reagan signed a bill declaring that beginning in 1986, the third Monday of every January would be celebrated as a national holiday known as Martin Luther King Day. ( to commemorate MLK’s birthday on January 15th 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia)

His childhood

 When he was a child he saw that White and Black people were treated differently. Martin, his family, and Black friends could not drink out of the same drinking fountains or use the same public restroom as White people. Martin's best friend was a little White boy. They played together everyday. One day, the little boy's mother told Martin that her son could no longer play with him

He graduated from Morehouse College, There, he began studying about Mohandas Ghandi. This was a man who had shown the people of India how to settle their disagreements peacefully. Martin liked this idea.

A few major events in his life

·         On June 18, 1953, Martin married a woman named Coretta Scott. They moved to Montgomery, Alabama where Martin became a minister.( a pastor)

·         In 1955, Martin led a year long protest against the bus laws in Montgomery. He decided to do this after a Black woman by the name of Rosa Parks ( you can view a nice animation in your audio-rom Let’s Step In 3ème)  was arrested for not giving up her seat for a White man on a city bus. Martin asked the Blacks not to ride the buses until this law was changed. It took a whole year for this to happen, but when the law was changed there were no more "White Only" sections on the buses and Blacks were not forced to give up their seat when a White person wanted it..

·         Dr. and Mrs. King decided to move to Atlanta in 1960. There Martin led many marches and peaceful protests against segregation

·         In 1963, Martin led the March on Washington. Thousands of people attended the civil rights march and listened to Martin's speech. In his speech, Martin told the people about his dream. He said, "I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character"

 

 ·         In 1964, Martin was given $54,000 for winning the Nobel Peace Prize.

 ·         On April 4, 1968, Dr. King went to Memphis, Tennessee to lead a march for Black garbage workers who wanted the same pay as White garbage workers. While Martin was standing on the balcony of his hotel room, he was shot and killed by James Earl Ray, a man who did not want Blacks to have the same rights as Whites.

 

·         A memorial was inaugurated by President Barack Obama in Washington in October 2011( originally it was to be inaugurated in ZAugust but a hurricane named Irene - which incidentally means peace in Greek ! -  postponed the inauguration)

 

 

 You can view the nice slideshow presentation which will nicely and with pictures and audio files recap MLK’s life.

Ultimately here is a little quiz online for you to check your knowledge : https://www.mygradebook.com/secured/quiz_take.cfm?DEMO=Y&DEMO_TEACHER_ID=10177443&DEMO_QUIZ_UID=55D9097B-C0B3-4E80-8853-D68D2F9E8AB5&DEMO_RETURN_URL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.teachervision.fen.com%2Fmartin-luther-king-jr%2Fquiz%2F8727.html%3Fdetoured%3D1    ( the quiz is nearly shorter than the link !)

03 janvier 2012

The English and American Bills of Rights

Today we’ve listened to an oral presentation on the American and English Bills of Rights By Timothée and Léo.

 

Thanks for their nice chocolate cake which was supposed to represent the flag of England ( The Cross of Saint Georges) Unfortunately , the icing has melted a bit. It was nonetheless very good.

 

Here is what you should remember…

The English Bill of Rights  

General information

The Bill of Rights is an act of the Parliament of England

The Bill of Rights was passed by Parliament on 16 December 1689.

After Catholic oriented King James II abdicated his throne, following the Glorious Revolution, a statutory form of Declaration of Rights was presented to William and Mary in February 1689, by the Convention Parliament, inviting them to become joint sovereigns of the kingdoms of England and Scotland.

Its contents

It limited the power of the monarchy

·         The royal power to suspend and dispense with law was abolished

·         the crown was forbidden to levy taxation or maintain a standing army in peacetime without parliamentary consent.

·         It also included the right to bear arms for self defense and right to petition the monarchy.

·         the succession should pass to the heirs of Mary, then to Princess Anne (later queen) and her heirs

·          no Roman Catholic could ever be sovereign of England.

 

è By its provisions and implications it gave political supremacy to Parliament and was supplemented (1701) by the Act of Settlement.

èIt reestablished the liberty of Protestants to have arms for their defense within the rule of law

The Bill of Rights (1688 or 1689) was one of the inspirations for the United States Bill of Rights

The American Bill of Rights  

General information

It  is the collective name for the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution. 

When the Constitution was ratified in 1789, many people were concerned that it did not protect certain freedoms. They thought that the Constitution should be changed or amended to protect these freedoms. On December 15, 1791, ten amendments were added to the Constitution. These amendments guarantee certain freedoms and rights, so they are known as the Bill of Rights.

Some of the freedoms and rights protected in the Bill of Rights include:

  • Freedom of Religion
  • Freedom of Assembly
  • To Keep and Bear Arms
  • Freedom of Speech
  • Freedom of the Press
  • Protection for those Accused of Crimes


They were introduced by James Madison to the First United States Congress in 1789 as a series of legislative articles.
They came into effect as Constitutional Amendments on December 15, 1791, through the process of ratification by three-fourths of the States

Further details

You can watch thisslideshow which is very informative: http://madison-ms.lausd.k12.ca.us/kashj/ushistory/rights.htm, or here http://www.texaslre.org/downloads/bore.pdf  

 

Then if you feel like it ,  you can test your knowledge with this game : http://www.texaslre.org/BOR/billofrights.html

18 novembre 2011

Buy Nothing Day

Today we've had a nice presentation on Buy Nothing Day by Martin and François

 

It's a day where you challenge yourself, your family and friends to switch off from shopping .

The rules are simple, for 24 hours you will detox from shopping and anyone can take part provided they spend a day without spending!

 

Everything we buy has an impact on the environment, Buy Nothing Day highlights the environmental and ethical consequences of consumerism. The developed countries - only 20% of the world population are consuming over 80% of the earth's natural resources, causing a disproportionate level of environmental damage, and an unfair distribution of wealth.

 

Thnak you for their nice chestnut-cream-covered chocolate cake with a code bar on it !

 

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