Project 4: "Teachers Around Spain"

https://youtu.be/S_hgSoJl2Lo

CLASS 22ND OF OCTOBER

Yesterday, we did a very original and fun activity. The activity consisted of downloading the application, MadLipz and dubbing the voices in three videos. At first it seemed easy, but we had a hard time getting it right, since you not only have to read the text, but match your voice to the character.

Afterwards, we filled out some questionnaires about the subject, phonetics, intonation and our experience with the English language.

We found it to be a very interesting class, in which we learned a lot and had loads of fun!!

21/10/2020

In today’s class we went onto the Nearpod app to practice our pronunciation. For this, Jose Ramon had prepared a few phrases for us to record ourselves saying. Once we played back all the recordings, our teacher then went on to explain to us that every sentence requires a different type of intonation (rise, fall, rise-fall, fall-rise), and for this we had to read different sentences and determine which type of intonation corresponded to each phrase; for example: 

Finish your homework now! (Rise, because the emphasis is on the word “now”

Finally, to conclude the class, Jose thought of a very fun game for us to play. He asked us each to record ourselves reading a short story, using different voices and intonations, to see who could be the best story-teller! When we got to hear the recordings of our classmates, we couldn’t stop laughing! It was hilarious! 

Everyone had done such a good job, and it was so fun giving each of our friends a score because sometimes we’d give someone a very low mark just to tease them! And then we’d end up laughing even more.

Phrasal verbs

Hello everyone !!!

We started our class yesterday, Tuesday, 20th October, by accessing the Nearpod app and watching a video about the correct uses of phrasal verbs, which included many examples. Next, we did an exercise on the equivalents of phrasal verbs. The following is an image from that exercise:

Then, we watched a video about Halloween and answered a few questions. 

After completing the activities, we watched two videos, one that explained the multiple meanings of phrasal verbs, and the another called “Find out about Phrasal verbs”.  

Finally, to finnish off the lesson, we played a game where we had to choose an avatar and try to win a race against our classmates. To play the game, we had to answer questions regarding what we had just learned during the lesson. Every time you got an answer right, your avatar would climb higher up the mountain. The person to climb the highest (answer the most questions right), wins.

 

Verbs followed by ING OR INFINITIVE or both

Hello everyone! WE STARTED THE LAST WEEK OF CLASS!

Today Ramon tought us the passive verbs using the app he always uses, Nearpod. He explained the different verbs followed by ING or INFINITIVE or both:

1. VERBS + -ING / The negative is verb + not + -ing.

2. VERBS + INFINITIVE / The negative is verb + not + infinitive.

3. VERBS followed by either form with similar meanig

4. VERBS which can be followed by -ing or the infinitive with DIFFERENT MEANING 

In addition to the explanation, he played several videos and then we did a few exercises to review and practice.

                         

To end the class, he played the song Let her go by Passenger. Its one of our favourite songs and it brought back so many memories!

                         

Respect and equality

 First of all, we’d like to address that no one should be discriminated against for their economic differences, or for any other reason for that matter. We, as future teachers, have the responsibility not only to teach, but also to pass on certain values, like respect and equality. 

From our point of view, we believe that there are many things we can do inside the classroom to reduce the differences and inequalities that may appear among our students. For example, finishing all the tasks during the lesson, because if you give the students homework, some of them will have plenty of means to help and guide them at home, whereas others won’t have as many, if any at all. 

Moreover,  teachers could inquire with administration to see if it were possible that after school hours, different classrooms be set up so that those students who have fewer opportunities can stay there, and benefit from everything the classroom has to offer. In addition, we can also propose reinforcement classes for those students who are struggling with certain subjects. 

Finally, we would like to say that it’s of vital importance to act upon any sign of inequality and to provide possible solutions. As teachers, we must be able and willing to carry out the things previously mentioned. 

Project 3!

We are now going to present our 3rd project , which is aimed at 1st grade children, aged 6-7 

years. We have chosen Halloween as the main theme for our activities, since in addition to being 

close to the date, it’s a theme that really excites children and captures their attention. 

Before we dive into the different activities, we will begin by introducing the topic for more context.

Halloween isn’t a holiday  of Spanish origin, it belongs to the Anglo-Saxon culture. It  is celebrated every year on October 31st, when it is traditionally said that witches come out to perform their special rituals. 

To work on this topic, we’ve created a gymkhana with 10 different activities, in order to practice reading, writing, fine motor skills, technologies, and multiple intelligences. We’ve grouped them all onto a poster. 

To start the lesson, we will divide the class into four groups. Once the groups are made, the teacher will then proceed with the first activity, for which he/she will tell an interactive story that will be shown on the digital whiteboard. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tFDcLCx7R0

Next, each group will be handed a map with all the activities listed from 1 to 10, so that they don’t get lost or confused. Once everyone is seated, we will begin with activity number 2, HALLOWEEN BINGO, this activity is very simple, and will consist of crossing out the numbers as they appear by spinning the roulette wheel.  The boy or girl, who first manages to cross all of the numbers out, wins. 

https://www.juegosjuegos.com/jugar-juego/halloween-bingo.html

In activity 3 we will get to design a pumpkin. With this interactive application, each student will be able to use their imagination to create a personal pumpkin using their tablet.

https://www.starfall.com/h/holiday/pumpkin/?t=307156786 

Activity 4 will be an interactive activity to learn and work on Halloween vocabulary. For this, we will need to access the following link:

https://www.mundoprimaria.com/juegos-educativos/juegos-de-ingles/halloween-1

Furthermore, activity 5, will also be an interactive game.  However, it instead focuses on Halloween characters and objects. 

https://www.mundoprimaria.com/juegos-educativos/juegos-de-ingles/halloween-2

In activity 6, we will play Connect Four, a competitive game which will test each student’s speed, sight and concentration. 

https://www.juegosarcoiris.com/juegos/halloween/4rayahalloween/

Later, for the 7th activity, we will have fun making pumpkins and ghosts using different fruits. The teacher will explain how the activity is to be carried out, with the help of a video that will be played on the digital whiteboard. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eF5KywYcs6M 

For activity 8, we will make ghost costumes with sheets, following the instructions of a YouTube video presented by a girl named Dany. To make things easier, the teacher will play this video on the digital whiteboard, and everyone will make the costumes together. The costume will also be used for the last activity, where we’ll all dance together. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZLE9s6q3hY

Activity 9, will consist of practicing logic-mathematics, thanks to an interactive game which can be easily accessed with a tablet. It involves adding fractions, something that we will have already worked on previously in the classroom. As we get the answers right, we continue to level up. When playing the game, it’s easy to see how fun it is and how it’s also in keeping with the Halloween theme, because it has this pumpkin that’s in charge of guiding us and moving us to the next level.

https://www.starfall.com/h/multdiv/pumpkin-fractions/?sn=main 

The last activity (10) , will be a Halloween song, with which we will encourage the children to dance and have fun, thus finalizing the topic of Halloween in the classroom.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXi2iMq8HDU

LINK MAP: https://create.piktochart.com/output/49773755-calabazas

LINK VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wVr2s3n8wiY

CLASS THURSDAY, OCTOBER 15 th

In today’s class, we continued working on the passive voice, and learned about the 3 different forms it can take on: 

She is believed to dance well.

It is believed that she dances well.

People believe that she dances well. 

In order to make understanding these new structures easier, the teacher gave us many examples for us to complete. 

Moreover, once everything was explained, we went onto the Nearpod app, to continue practicing and to clear up any doubts we might have after the lesson! 

Finally, Ramon played a few songs for us and we had a lot of fun :)

The Passive

Hello everyone!!

On Tuesday, the 13th of October, we learned all about passive verbs! 

As usual, we accessed the Nearpod app to complete some activities and practice this new topic. 

We had to think of examples with the passive voice. Like, for example:

I gave Lucy the book.

Direct object as subject: The book was given to Lucy

Indirect object as subject: Lucy was given the book 

In addition, we also watched a short scene from Harry Potter, where examples of the passive voice could be heard; as well as another video that talked about the differences between HAVE and GET. 

Finally, we were given examples of phrases using HAVE SOMETHING DONE.

Relatives Clauses

Hello everyone!!

On Tuesday 6th and Wednesday 7th of October, Jose Ramon explained the relative clauses. Depending on who and what we’re referring to, we must use one type of relative clause or another. When we’re referring to a person, we write WHO as the subject, WHOM as the object of the verb and WHOSE when expressing possession. When relating to an animal or object, we use THAT or WHICH. On the other hand, we use WHERE to mention a place, WHEN to express time, WHY to express reason and WHAT that refers to things. 

It’s very important to distinguish between two types of relative clauses, defining and non-defining. When they are non defining, we use commas and the pronouns cannot be omitted (WHO, WHICH); whereas defining phrases don’t have commas and the pronoun (THAT)  can be omitted if it’s followed by a subject. 

Example:

Defining: That's the man that I like

Non-defining: They introduced me to John, who I liked immediately

Today's Class!

In today’s lesson, Jose Ramón asked us to join him on the Nearpod app to learn about the different sounds in the English language. More specifically, to demonstrate to us how some words can end with the same consonants but sound completely different. An example of this would be the words “Loved” and “Looked”: they look very similar and both end in “ed”, but loved is pronounced with a “d’ sound at the end, whereas looked ends with a “t” sound. 

Most of the activities required speaking into the microphone and pronouncing the different words on screen. This way, Jose Ramon was able to listen to our recordings and point out where we were going wrong. He also combined this with calling on us to speak to him directly, ensuring that we all had a chance to partake. 

Additionally, during the lesson he played a few videos for us; some that were more theory-based and others that were more light-hearted and entertaining. The latter, disguised as humor, really highlighted the importance of getting to know, understand and pronounce a language properly.  

Like this ad, for example! Where a German coastguard mishears an English captain’s cry for help, something that could’ve easily been avoided if he had learned the language properly. 

https://youtu.be/x9wJxZc2KF8

To end today’s entry, I’d like to praise our teacher for always knowing how to make our classes enjoyable. There’s never a dull moment and we spend most of our time joking around, and just overall having a great time! That’s really what makes the difference between feeling excited to turn up to class and feeling totally unmotivated. 

 

Modal Verbs Review Class

Hello!!! Today, we had an English lesson.

We spent the entire class using the website “Nearpod” where the teacher had already prepared activities for us to do.  We completed some exercises where we had to determine whether the sentences were true or false, and also played a few games related to the theory of the subject (in this case, of the modal verbs: can, could, may, should, ought to, had better). One of those games consisted of guessing which young celebrity we were looking at and answering the questions using modal verbs. 

Afterwards, we had to match current photos of celebrities to photos os them when they were much younger. There were several photos, and each time we got a correct pair, the photos would turn green so we would know if we got the right answer. An example of one of the celebrities that appeared is Messi.

This is the activity we enjoyed the most.

Finally, at the end of today's session, Jose Ramón explained several things and answered all our queries regarding the exam we have on the 5th of October.

 

 

¡

Modal Verbs!

HELLOOOO!! WE’VE STARTED A NEW WEEK

Today, Ramon started the class off by playing a few movie trailers: "Her" and "Forget About Me" because he had really enjoyed watching those films and wanted to share them with us!

He then began to explain the modal verbs with the help of an interactive webpage, where the information is presented first, and then you practice your knowledge with a fun game. This way, the explanation is much more meaningful and it helps the teacher to figure out if his students have actually understood the lesson, because he is able to view how we scored on each exercise. There is a wide variety of different exercises available to practice pronunciation, grammar and listening.

          Verbs/ Forms                     Meaning

• Can/Could                        - Ability

• May/Might                        - Obligation

• Will/Would                        - Permission

• Shall/should                     - Request

• Have to/Had to                 - Advice

• Ought to                           - Probability

• Had better                        - Deduction

• Must                                 - Offer

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  

  
  
  

  
  

Project 2. Flashcards and Mindmap.

Our second project consists of creating different flashcards and a mind map on a certain topic. For this, we have chosen the theme transport, since to us it seems like something that always captures children’s attention, and is also quite interesting.

We’ve designed this activity to be suitable for children aged 6-7 years old, in a 1st of Primary classroom.

To work on the different means of transport, we decided to divide them into 3 groups: Land, water and air; and made flashcards for each of them.

To present this topic in the classroom, the teacher will explain to the students that we’ll be learning about different modes of transport; and before handing out the flashcards, we'll brainstorm ideas on the blackboard. During this, the kids will also be asked a few questions to test their knowledge.

Here are some examples of questions that could be asked:

Could someone tell me what means of transport they used to come to class? Can you think of a way to travel on water? and how about through the air? 

Once we've listed all the different types of transport we can think of, we’ll then begin to classify them into the three groups mentioned earlier (Land, air and water), designing a mindmap. 

Next, we’ll begin using flashcards. Each one has a little image of a way of transportation, with its name appearing directly below it. The children will be shown these flashcards and will have to say each name out loud and match them to their corresponding group on the mindmap. For example, a child will have to match the flashcard of a boat to it’s appropriate group, which in this case would be water.

Once the phonetics of the words have been worked on, we will then move to playing a fun game where the students will be divided into groups and flashcards will appear on all the computers, but repeated twice.

The game consists of finding a match. When a child finds the pair, he/she will have to say the transport that he’s/she’s ended up with. This is an exciting way to practice memory and cooperation

Finally, each child will present a flashcard to the rest of their group telling them what the name of their transport is and any interesting detail about them. 

We have to emphasize that the teacher will check on the different groups, to advise and guide the students, as well as to solve any questions they may have.

To create the mindmap we used the website “MIRO” and for the flashcards we used “CANVAS”. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0jS4jgnuEo

MIND MAP

FLASH CARDS 

WATER 

EARTH

AIR 

Animals! Class 25/07/20

 Helloooo to all, again!

In today’s lesson, Jose Belda started the class off by playing a variety of different songs to celebrate the fact that it’s finally Friday and that it’s also Jose Ramon’s birthday tomorrow. We spent several minutes laughing and cracking jokes, it was very funny and entertaining 

Later, we went on to watch a video, directed towards children, that showed the different sounds animals make. Jose Ramón and Jose Belda then organized a Kahoot for the class to see if we had been paying attention to the video, and started imitating those sounds to make us laugh. It was hilarious, they seemed like farmers!! :)

Lastly, the teacher gave us all time to finish our projects and ask him whatever questions we had on a private call. All-round, today’s lesson has been very fun and enjoyable, which is a very nice change from our more ordinary and mundane classes. 

 Greetings and see you soon!!

                            

Phonetics Part and Kahoot!

Today,  we practiced phonetics. 

At the beginning of the class, we did a pronunciation exercise and the teacher asked each person how to pronounce certain words. Then we played a game of Kahoot, which helps us enormously because it gives us a chance to go over what we've just learned, but in a very fun way! 

Then, each group had to think of a creative way to work on the conditionals, and then the whole class had to decide which ideas were the best! 

Here are the different ideas our classmates came up with to practice conditionals: interactive applications, different songs, phonetic and memory exercises, diphthongs, etc. 

Finally, we voted on a poll to choose the best activity.

Project 1.INFOGRAPHICS.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bk6y8xtO5l0

We decided to do our infographics project on Norway’s education system.

There wasn’t really a particular reason why we chose to do this job about Norway, other than the fact that I (Rose) had been to Norway earlier this year before the pandemic and absolutely fell in love with it, so I jumped at the opportunity to learn more about the country. 

Once we had all agreed on the topic of the infographic, we put our heads together to decide what information would be the most relevant to include, and this is what we came up with:

 

The Norwegian School system can be grouped into 3 stages, the first two being mandatory. 

First of all, we have primary school, for kids aged 6-13 years. In their first year, they learn by mostly playing educational games; and are taught the alphabet, basic math and English. Then, for the remainder of those 6 years they are taught a variety of different subjects. During this level, the students aren't given actual grades but the teacher does comment on their work. 

Then, we have lower secondary school, for ages 13-16. During this time, they do get graded and these grades determine which upper secondary school they'll be able to attend later. 

The following 3 years of upper secondary school are optional, where the student gets to choose between doing general studies or vocational studies.

Higher education is anything after upper secondary school, which is divided into universities, university colleges, and private schools. 

School hours:

-Students are at school from roughly 8.30 to 14:45. 

-Between five and six hours a day.

-They have two breaks throughout the day (40-30 minutes)

 

Holidays:

-The school year runs from August to mid-June.

-Holidays are celebrated at Christmas and in July.

 

% GDP in education:

-Norway’s GDP value represents 0.34% of the world economy.

 

Scholarships:

- Scholarships are usually between $ 500/2000 and have different sponsors (universities, the government, independent organizations, etc)

 

Student/teacher ratio:

- 11.6 pupils/teacher in 2019/20, whereas the world average (134 countries) in 2017 was 21.79 students/teacher.

 

Some benefits:

- Norway rewards students who complete their studies,and school dropout rates are almost nonexistent. On the contrary, in Spain, school failure and the generation of 'NEETs' is very high.

- Also, they give huge importance to diversity and accessibility. Norway is known for guaranteeing equal opportunities for success and education to people of all different nationalities, race, gender and background.

 

Once we had gathered all the information, we went onto the Website Canva and designed a “poster” with all the key points condensed into a few simple statements and illustrations, to make it more visual and pleasant for the reader. 

 

Finally, we’d like to add that we found this project to be a very fun way of learning a lot about another country and the way their schools are run. We were all able to contribute our ideas and skills to enlighten each otherand create something amazing. We believe that education is a very important topic and should be discussed and treated as such; and being able to compare the education system of our country with those of other countries is an absolute necessity for being able to recognize the mistakes we’re making and how we can improve, to provide a better education for all.