*The Long Walk to Freedom

This week we are going to read about Nelson Mandela and his fascinating and inspiring story. To understand his fight, it is important to have some background information on the history of South Africa.

First, read this timeline. You should be able to briefly tell about South Africa to your classmates.
Then read the text "Long walk to freedom" and as usual learn all the words.

For 9C this is homework for Wednesday 4th and 9D Thursday 5th.
9E: This is homework for Wednesday 4th
9F: This is homework for Friday 6th

*IDIOM OF WEEK 46

Achilles heel  is an expression that refers to a vulnerable area or a weak spot that could cause failure.

Do you know the story behind this expression? Find out! Try to put this idiom in a good sentence. Share it all in class!

9EF: This is homework for Tuesday November 18th.
9CD: This is homework for Wednesday November 19th.

*Mock Exam Prep

The date for the Mock Exam is closing in - Thursday the 27th of November. We will spend most of our time the next couple of weeks preparing and working on your writing. You now know the drill - when writing non-fiction texts you have to plan your text thoroughly, you have to be able to write inspirational introductions (hook the reader), you have to have a thesis statement, you have to have great arguments, topic sentences and killer conclusions. We'll focus on planning essays/articles in class, being able to vary your language and using a vocabulary suitable for both the topic and the context.

9EF: You started on (and some of you completed) Task 1 and 2 from the 2013 Mock Exam in class on Thursday (you'll find both the tasks and an online version of Perspectives Magazine on Fronter at the English room under EF 2013). Go to Fronter and find your text and complete it (Archive -> English -> Task 1 and 2 - Overcoming Obstacles). Finish it and polish it! Make it as good as possible - use suitable words, a varied language and transition words and phrases. Use different ways to express your opinion. This is homework for Tuesday November 11th - we'll be at the computer room, so e-mail the text to yourself online.

NB! TAKE A LOOK AT THE CHART BELOW (click on it to make it bigger):

*IDIOM OF WEEK 45

What do we mean when we say:
This is a catch 22 situation!
Put this idiom in an interesting context, share in class.
This is homework for 9EF for Thursday November 13th.

*From Victims to Victors

This week we want you to read about a boy who used to be a bully victim. He decided to make a documentary about his experiences and he created a project to inspire people into taking action against bullying. Read about him in Perspectives Magazine at p. 13. Learn all the words by heart - you migt be tested!

Also go to his website http://www.thebullyproject.com/ and see the trailer of his film. Then write a text of about half a page where you explain if you think taking action against bullying is important or not, and why.

This is homework for 9EF for Tuesday the 28th of October.
This is homework for 9CD for Monday the 27th of October.

*Scout Bassett

Sometimes in life you are handed challenges that may seem difficult to overcome. Some people have the amazing ability to turn a challenge into an advantage. This week you will read the text about Scout Bassett.

1) Read the text, and learn ALL the words.
2) Explain the saying on the picture above, it is good to know!

If you like, you may watch this amazing video of Amy Purdy, who lost both her legs and still kept pursuing her dream.

This is homework for 9CD for Monday 27th of October.
This is homework for 9EF for Thursday 30th of October.

IDIOM OF WEEK 43

Explain this idiom in class:

Break the back of the beast.

*Yellow Ribbon

This week's short story is a wonderful, wonderful tale about an old man and the love of his life. Read the text in Perspectives Magazine and learn all the words by heart (you might be tested).

This is homework for:
9AB for Thursday October 23rd
9CD for Wednesday October 22nd
9EF for Tuesday October 21st

*Jackie Robinson

Throughout history people have had to overcome many difficulties. Being an African American in the U.S. was a struggle for centuries. Today we all take for granted that everyone is equal and deserve the same rights. Also when it comes to sports. This week we want you to meet Jackie Robinson, an athlete who grew up in an era when segragation and racism were part of the daily life. So hit the magazine at page 9 and read about him! Make sure that you know all the words (you might be tested).

This is homework for 9CD for Monday October 13
This is homework for 9EF for Tuesday October 14

*Thank You M'am

Meet Langston Huges. Langston wrote novels, short stories and poetry during a time when African Americans were expected to stay segregated from whites. But Langston was positive and believed that if you just kept going , you would overcome any obstacle.

This week's short story is a real treat. "Thank you M'am" is a wonderful story, and we can't wait to hear what you think about it.

Read "Thank You M'am" and make sure you understand all the words. Be prepared to talk about the story.

This is homework for 9CD for Wednesday 15th.
This is homework for 9EF for Thursday 16th.

Treat: Here is a wonderful poem by Huges, about overcoming difficulties and not give up.

*How to analyze characters

This week we are talking about characters. Often when you describe characters you describe their appearence. Now, we would like you to go deeper into the characters and describe their personalities.

Read this link.

Now write down notes on each of the two characters in Thank you M'am, and bring to class. (Do this thoroughly!)

This is homework for 9CD for Wednesday 15th.
This is homework for 9EF for Thursday 16th.

*Idiom of week 41

"To be on pins and needles"!

Find out what it means and write a very short text where you put this idiom in a context.

This is homework for 9CD for Wednesday 8th.
This is homework for 9EF for Thursday 9th of October.

*OVERCOMING OBSTACLES

We have now finished our work on the subject "Money". Hopefully you have learned a bunch of new words, that will come in handy. We are now moving to a new subject: "Overcoming obstacles". This is a very exciting theme, as we combine history with your and other's personal stories. We will read some amazing short stories as well.

We will kick you off by having you read the article: "How to overcome fear" in Perspectives Magazine. Read the text and learn the words. Create 8 sentences using 8 of the words.

This is homework for 9CD for Wednesday 8th of October.
This is homework for 9EF for Thursday 9th of October.

If you like, you can watch the film of his jump here, it is AMAZING!