Learning to communicate with the world
November 26, 2012 Leave a comment
¡Hazlo! ¡No lo hagas! ¡Hágalo! ¡No lo haga!
Hay cuatro maneras de mandar a una persona hacer algo. Es importante saber si quieres ser formal (¡hágalo!) o informal (¡hazlo!). Mira las fotografías de América Latina y decide si la frase es el imperativo informal o formal.
November 24, 2012 3 Comments
Ya que Gangnam Style es el video más visto en la historia de YouTube con mas de ochocientos millones de hits, es obvio que todo el mundo quiere hacer su propia versión de la canción. Aquí hay dos versiones de Gangnam Style en español, ninguna apta para menores, pero divertidas.
Rudy y Ruymán tienen una parodía llamada “En el paro estoy” que critica la situación económica española. Es protagonizada por un obrero que no encuentra trabajo y pasa sus días bailando. No se puede mostrarlo en la clase de español menor que nivel universitario por las groserías.
Esta otra versión viene de Los Angeles, con el famoso Don Cheto y su parodía llamada “Ganga style.” Tampoco es apropiada para la clase de español, esta vez por los estereotipos que presenta, con imagenes de cholos, pandilleros y prisiones. Aunque el video sea popular en México (dónde hay otro concepto del humor, el racismo y lo que es “politicamente correcto” –término completamente estadounidense), de todos modos nunca lo enseñaría en una clase de español estadounidense. En mi experiencia los alumnos estadounidenses ya tienen tantos estereotipos y ideas racistas inconscientes sobre los mexicanos, no se debe hacer nada que puede ser interpretada como insulto a los mexicanos o los latinos. Pero es divertido ver como baila Don Cheto.
¿Cuál es tu parodia favorita de Gangnam Style?
¿Hiciste tu propia version de Gangnam Style? (Photo credit: KOREA.NET – Official page of the Republic of Korea)
November 18, 2012 Leave a comment
What do turkeys, travel, family, (American) football games, giant balloons, indigenous rights, cooking, shopping, school vacations, traditional costumes and thankfulness have in common?
Roasted turkey. Photo by M Rehemtulla via Wikipedia
They are all ideas associated with the American tradition of Thanksgiving, celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November every year. November is a great time for English classes around the world to learn about this American holiday and pick up some new vocabulary as well. Here are resources to learn about Thanksgiving and plan your own celebration.
1. Learn the history of Thanksgiving. The first Thanksgiving was celebrated in 1621 in what is now Massachusetts, United States. It was a harvest celebration attended by English colonists and Wampanoag indigenous people. Back then, it wasn’t called “Thanksgiving” and it probably was not celebrated in November! To learn more about what really happened on Thanksgiving, visit this Interactive Plimoth Plantation Exhibit and become a historian.
2. Read another point of view. Not everyone in the United States agrees about the way Thanksgiving should be observed. This editorial explains another point of view.
3. Cook some food! Today, Thanksgiving is celebrated with a big family dinner. It usually includes roast turkey, stuffing, cranberries, potatoes, squash, pumpkin, and other vegetables. In 1621, the English colonists and the wampanoag ate venison (deer) and pumpkin. Today, apple pie and popcorn are favorites. Learn some traditional Wampanoag and English colonial recipes here. Then, use this application from the New York Times to plan your own Thanksgiving feast according to your personal taste.
4. Be thankful. Thanksgiving is a time to think about the good things in our lives and express gratitude for them. Click here to read about an interactive art project called the Look for the Good Project.
Kermit the Frog (Photo credit: MikeMonello)
5. Create your own Thanksgiving Parade float. Every year on Thanksgiving Day there is a big parade in New York City, New York. There are celebrities and musical performances, but the parade is most famous for its giant balloons. They are usually characters from television, comic books, and movies. You can watch a video of the parade here. Then, follow these instructions to make your own balloon floats. Your balloon float won’t be as large as the ones in the parade… or will it?
6. Watch American football. The Thanksgiving Day football game is a tradition at the high school, university, and professional level. Not sure how to play football? This Goofy cartoon will teach you.
7. Go shopping. The day after Thanksgiving in the United States is called “Black Friday,” and it is traditionally a day for people to start shopping for Christmas gifts. Stores have big sales and people go shopping very, very early in the morning to get the best deals. Practice numbers and prices exploring this Black Friday shopping website. Who can find the best deal on a TV? On clothing? On video games?
Hand Turkey by Kara (Photo credit: Rory Finneren)
8. Do some arts and crafts. In the United States, most schoolchildren have a small vacation, starting with a half day of school on the day before Thanksgiving and continuing for four days. It is traditional for families to travel to visit one another and be together for Thanksgiving Dinner. If you still have school this week, here are some arts and crafts you can do with your class.
Send some e-cards here and here.
Do a variety of educational crafts here.
People in the United States don’t dress up in folkloric costumes as much as many other countries do, but schoolchildren often still wear costumes to represent the colonists and Wompanoag. You can watch a video about how to make a colonist costume here.
And, no Thanksgiving arts and crafts session would be complete without our favorite craft: make a Thanksgiving hand turkey here.
9. Watch a Thanksgiving video. Now that you know about American Thanksgiving traditions, sing along with this Thanksgiving song by Nicole Westbrook. How many Thanksgiving traditions do you see represented in the video? What do you see in the video that doesn’t make sense? What traditions is the video missing? Check your answers in the comments.
I’m wide awake, and I should take
A step and say thank you, thank you,
For the things you’ve done, and what you did
Oh yeah, ooh yeah.
December was Christmas, January was New Year’s.
April was Easter, and the Fourth of July, but now it’s Thanksgiving.
Oh oh oh, it’s Thanksgiving. We we we, we’re gonna have a good time.
Oh oh oh, it’s Thanksgiving. We we we are gonna have a good time.
With the turkey (hey!) And mashed potatoes (hey!)
We we we are gonna have a good time.
We need the turkey (hey!) And mashed potatoes (hey!)
Does this happen at your house on Thanksgiving?
It’s Thanksgiving, It’s Thanksgiving.
You know school is out, I can’t wait,
I can shout thank you, thank you, thank you.
No matter what you do, no matter what you say,
This is my favorite day.
December was Christmas,
January was New Year’s.
April was Easter,
and the Fourth of July,
but now it’s Thanksgiving.
Yo, it’s Thanksgiving-givin’ and I’m tryin’ to be forgivin’.
Nothing is forbidden, you know we gotta have it.
I gotta give thanks to you, and you, and you.
Can’t be hateful, gotta be grateful; gotta be grateful, can’t be hateful.
Mashed potatoes on my, on my table, I got ribs smelling’ up my neighbors’ cribs.
Havin’ good times, we be laughin’ ’til we cry.
It’s Thanks, Thanks, Thanksgiving, come on
It’s Thanks, Thanks, Thanksgiving, give ‘em thanks, y’all.
Oh oh oh, it’s Thanksgiving. We we we, we’re gonna have a good time.
Oh oh oh, it’s Thanksgiving. We we we, are gonna have a good time.
With the turkey (hey!) And mashed potatoes (hey!)
We we we, are gonna have a good time.
With the turkey (hey!) And mashed potatoes (hey!)
It’s Thanksgiving, it’s Thanksgiving.
Conversation Questions:
Do you celebrate Thanksgiving in your country? Do you have another similar holiday? Which Thanksgiving tradition is your favorite?
November 14, 2012 Leave a comment
People love to talk about themselves. Use these quick activities to practice the forms of the verb ‘to be.’ You can use these in Spanish and other languages, too.
Use beanbags or another soft projectile for Verb Ball. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
1. Verb Ball. Everybody stands in a circle and tosses around a beanbag, a beach ball, or some other object. This is a good activity for right after you have learned all the forms of a verb– and it doesn’t even have to be ‘to be.’ The first person starts with ‘I’ and passes the ball. The person who catches the ball says ‘am,’ and then throws the ball to another person while saying ‘you.’ The recipient replies with ‘are,’ and then throws the ball to somebody else while saying ‘he’ or ‘she.’ Keep going through all the pronouns and their conjugations.
2. Matching race. Split the group into teams. Give each team a set of cards with the forms of the verb and put a big card with each of the pronouns on it up on the wall. This is a relay race: only one person on each team can go up to the board at the time with one card. Teammates take turns running up to put their cards under the correct pronouns. The team that gets all their cards up on the wall in the correct places first is the winner.
For a more advanced class, give them almost complete sentences on the cards. For example, the card says “…am a student,” and the team has to put it on the wall under the pronoun I. There are different variations you can play, like putting cards in boxes. We like having students tape the cards to the wall or board, because there can be a rule that only one student from each team can have the tape in his or her hand at a time. That way, they have to run back to the rest of the team and hand off the tape to the next person, and it prevents overeager competitors from all running at once.
3. Interviews. Make up a list of questions that the students should know how to answer using ‘to be.’ For example:
Have students sit in pairs and interview each other. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Who am I?
Who are you?
Who is he?
Who is she?
Who are we?
Who are you and he?
Who are you and she?
Who are they?
Who is the teacher?
Who are the students?
Who is the principal?
Who is your mother / father?
Who is the president?
Interview the students, and, when they get good at answering, have them interview each other. The questions can be changed to use students’ names, too, like this:
Who are Alana and Robert?
They are students.
Who is Mrs. Harrison?
She is the teacher.
You can make it into a game and give teams points for correct answers, or play jeopardy.
4. Tic Tac Toe: Question the Answers. Set up a tic-tac-toe board and fill it with simple statements using the verb ‘to be.’ Divide the students into an X team and an O team. In order to gain a point, the team must ask and answer a question correctly. For example, Victor and Jack are on the same team and want to take the square labeled, “Yes he is.”
Victor: Is Martin a student?
Jack: Yes he is.
5. Movie Quotes. Find clips of famous movie scenes and show them to the class. You could give them a list of the quotes and have them fill in the different forms of the verb as they listen. Here are some movies with famous lines that include am, is, and are:
You don’t understand! I coulda had class. I coulda been a contender. I could’ve been somebody, instead of a bum, which is what I am.
–Marlon Brando as Terry Malloy in On the Waterfront
Love means never having to say you’re sorry.
–Ali MacGraw as Jennifer in Love Story
I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take this anymore!
—Peter Finch as Howard Beale in Network
There’s no crying in baseball.
—Tom Hanks as Jimmy Dugan in A League of Their Own
I’m the king of the world!
—Leonardo DiCaprio as Jack Dawson in Titanic
6. Celebrity identity game. Click here for a full description of this fun conversation activity.
Can you guess who wrote this autobiography?
7. Mini autobiography. When the students know some basic adjectives, have them write mini-autobiographies describing themselves physically, personality-wise, and talking about where they are from. Have each student draw a picture as well. Post the autobiographies around the room and have the class guess whose is whose.
8. Grammar circle. Stand in a circle and have each person introduce himself. Then go around the circle again: this time the first person introduces herself, and the second person introduces himself and the student who went before. Each student has to introduce him- or herself and all of the previous students. The person who started has to remember everyone’s name.
Julie: I am Julie.
Paco: I am Paco, and she is Julie.
Ruth: I am Ruth, and he is Paco, and she is Julie.
David: I am David, and she is Ruth, and he is Paco, and she is Julie.
9. I am; who is? Write I am ___. Who is ___? on the board for everyone to see. Then start the game by filling in the blanks with your name and another student’s name. The student who is called must answer with his or her name and another student’s name. Continue until all students have been called. Time the group to see whether they can improve their record.
Mrs. Harrison: I am Mrs. Harrison. Who is Victor?
Victor: I am Victor. Who is Alana?
Alana: I am Alana. Who is Ruth?
Ruth: I am Ruth. Who is Martin?
10. “To be” Jeopardy! Create a simple Jeopardy! game using descriptions that students have written of themselves previously. A sample question could be: He is a student. He is tall and blonde. He is from Chicago. The answer, of course, is in the form of a question: Who is Jack? Harder questions would use multiple people: They are girls. They are friends. One is blonde and one is brunette. They are serious students. Answer: Who are Alana and Julie? Don’t forget to use I, you, and we.
November 12, 2012 10 Comments
Don’t let your next Spanish conversation leave you feeling as awkward as these folks. (Photo credit: Ed Yourdon)
There’s a place for basic Spanish phrases like “Es un placer conocerte” and “¿dónde está el baño?” that you can learn on any Spanish-learning app worth its salt, but every traveler knows that soon situations will pop up for which no Spanish 1 course prepared you. Here are seven sets of phrases that could be lifesavers on your next trip to a Spanish-speaking country.
You know how to order a lunch; here’s what to say after the lunch.
Disculpe. Excuse me.
El retrete no jala. The toilet doesn’t flush.
Creo que lo he tapado. I believe I may have clogged it.
Que pena, lo siento mucho. How embarrassing, I’m so sorry.
El almuerzo estuvo pesado. That was a big lunch.
Stating the obvious
No, no soy de aquí. No, I’m not from around here.
¿Cómo supo? How did you know?
¿Es mi accento? ¿Mis tenis blancos? ¿El hecho de que acabo de comprar un taxi / un recuerdo / una “antigüedad invalorable” por tres veces el precio normal? Is it my accent? My white sneakers? The fact that I just got a taxi / souvenir / “priceless antique” for three times the normal price?
Making friends
¡Que interesante! Hay muchas personas en Tennessee. No conozco su primo. How interesting! There are many people in Tennessee. I don’t know your cousin.
Don’t these people have a sense of humor?
The answer is yes, and it’s completely different from yours.
Sí, entiendo el chiste. Es que no me parece cómico. Yes, I understand the joke. It’s just that I don’t find it funny.
No te burles de mi. Don’t make fun of me.
Solo bromeo. I’m just kidding.
No me rio de ti, estoy riendo contigo. I’m not laughing at you, I’m laughing with you.
Perdón. Perdón perdón perdón perdón perdón. No quise ofender. Seguramente su mamá es una mujer agradable. Sorry. Sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry. I didn’t mean to offend. I’m sure your mother is a lovely woman.
The one excuse for everything
Lo haría pero no soy mexican@ / argentin@ / colombian@ / peruan@… I would do it but I’m not Mexican / Argentinian / Colombian / Peruvian…
Whether it’s being approached to give directions, vote for a political candidate, take a survey, or sign up for a credit card, this is the one excuse that always works. Even when it shouldn’t.
Sí, me gustaría donar dinero al hospital, y lo haría pero no soy colombiano. Yes, I would like to donate money to the hospital, and I would do it but I’m not Colombian.
Because you will be at the mercy of intermittent cell coverage and scant internet access
¿Hay internet inalámbrico aquí? Is there wireless internet here?
¿Cuál es la clave del internet? What’s the password for the internet?
In almost anywhere you go, even in the tiniest and most remote hamlets, you will be able to find internet access, or, at the very least, you’ll be able to find somebody who can direct you to someplace that is rumored to have internet access. It will likely be an internet cafe where you will have to pay by the hour for the use of an old, slow computer. And if you don’t already know how to make your computer bilingual, you may be stumped when you see the keyboard. One common feature of Latin American and Spanish keyboards is that, in order to make room for the ñ key and the accent keys, the indispensable arroba (@ symbol) has been moved. If you need to print a document (the directions to your hotel, your boarding passes, etc), you will need to know how to ask first.
¿Podría ocupar una máquina? May I use a computer?
¿Dónde está el arroba? Where is the @ symbol?
¿Podría mandar a imprimir? May I send to print?
No sé que pasó. I don’t know what happened.
De repente la pantalla se volvió completamente azul. The screen suddenly went all blue.
Lo siento. Sorry.
¿Podría ocupar otra máquina? May I use another computer?
The most useful polite response you can say
¡Gracias! Espero que sí. Thank you! I hope so.
Estoy aquí para aprender. I’m here to learn.
After a few minutes of basic conversation in Spanish, some meticulously polite person (especially in Latin America) will attempt to reassure you that tienes buen español (you have good Spanish). The appropriate response depends on whether you really do have acceptable grasp of the Spanish language or whether the whole conversation makes you feel like you are hanging off the edge of a cliff by your fingernails. If you agree that your Spanish is pretty good, respond with a cheery ¡Gracias! Espero que sí. If you think the person is just trying to be polite, respond with a hopeful Estoy aquí para aprender. Incidentally, this phrase’s French cousin, Je suis ici pour apprendre, is a good response to the pointed “If you don’t speak French, what are you doing here?” that you are likely to hear on your next trip to Paris.
Bilinguish 
¿Qué opinas?