Happy New Year!!

A very happy New Year 2011  and... welcome back to school! I'm looking forward to see you on Monday.

I hope that you have all had a good time, because now it’s time to focus on learning  :)

Merry Christmas

What does the word 'Christmas' mean?

The word Christmas is taken from 'Christ's Mass' or, in the original Latin, Cristes maesse. Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus on this day.

Is Christmas only a religious holiday?

Certainly, for practicing Christians around the world, Christmas is one the most important holiday of the year. However, in modern times traditional Christmas festivities have become much less related to the Christ story. Examples of these other traditions include: Santa Claus, Rudolf the Red Nose Reindeer and others.

Why is Christmas so important?

There are two reasons:

There are approximately 1.8 billion Christians in a total world population of 5.5 billion, making it the largest religion worldwide.

And, some think more importantly, Christmas is the most important shopping event of the year. It is claimed that up to 70 percent of many merchants' annual revenue is made during the Christmas season.It is interesting to note that this emphasis on spending is relatively modern. Christmas was a relatively quiet holiday in the USA until the 1860s.

Why do people give gifts on Christmas day?

This tradition most probably is based on the story of the three wise men (the Magi) giving gifts of gold, incense and myrrh following the birth of Jesus.

However, it is important to note that gift giving has only become popular in the last 100 years as figures such as Santa Claus have come to be more important, and emphasis has been shifted to giving gifts to children.

Why is there a Christmas Tree?

This tradition was begun in Germany. German immigrants moving to England and the USA brought this popular tradition with them and it has since become a much loved tradition for all. 

(http://esl.about.com/od/holidayresources/a/christmas_traditions.htm)

Diana Piedade na nossa escolinha

A Sara a cantar com a Diana

a despedida e os resistentes que não queriam deixar ir... :)

Professora Luísa

O vencedor

Os concorrentes

As definições

Os maiores fãs

E foi hoje! Ela aceitou o nosso convite e, dentro do escasso tempo que nos restou para organizar, fizemos o melhor possível :) A Diana veio à nossa escola entregar o prémio ao vencedor do concurso "Definition of Music".

Obrigada Diana pelas palavras, pelo miminho e por teres cantado para nós!

Obrigada aos meninos do 5ºG que tão bem a souberam receber. Obrigada aos concorrentes e apoiantes (9ºA, 9ºB, 9ºC, 8ºA). Obrigada às professoras da biblioteca que recebem e acarinham as iniciativas do English4u. Obrigada à Professora Alice, Prof. Rafael e Prof. Margarida Ministro pelo "tempinho roubado".

Aqui ficam algumas das muitas recordações :)

Biggest challenge ever! DEFINITION OF MUSIC

Write your definition of music... tell me what music is (for you) or what makes you feel... It must written in English!

The best definition will win a CD and a HUGE SURPRISE!!

Dare to define music and let's ROCK on!! :)

Happy thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Day is the fourth Thursday in November. It is a federal holiday, so schools, banks, post offices, and government offices are closed. Thanksgiving was the first holiday celebrated in America. It was first celebrated in the autumn of 1621 when the Wampanoag Indians and the pilgrims got together for a three-day feast and festival of fun.

Today, families celebrate Thanksgiving by eating turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, yams, corn, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie. In 2010, Thanksgiving will be on Thursday, November 25.

New challenge!

Every week there will be posted (in our school) jokes in english or "chistes" in spanish!

Here's a joke:

Teacher: Maria please point to America on the map.
Maria: This is it.
Teacher: Well done. Now class, who found America?
Class: Maria did. 

What's the challenge?

Write a joke in English or Spanish and win this prize :) An original "Gato Fedorento" T-shirt! You can send them to me (pocenglishclub@gmail.com) until the 3rd of January. Hurry up!

Newsflash - Best summer shot Contest

We met today at 11:40 ...and the winners were: Inês Honrado and Diogo Magalhães.

Congratulations! Thanks to all participants :)

Thank you, teacher Luísa and teacher Mariana for all the help and support :)

Past Perfect Continuous

The past perfect continuous tense is used to talk about longer situations that continued up to the moment in the past we are talking about.

Past Perfect Continuous Timeline

No! IT'S EASY!!

For example:

"By the time I left Portugal we had been living Sintra in  for five years."

"Her hand was sore because she had been playing volleyball all day long."

It is also used to say how long something went on for, up to a time in the past.

For example:

"We apologised because we had kept them waiting since lunchtime."

EXERCISES:
http://www.ego4u.com/en/cram-up/grammar/past-perfect-progressive/exercises

Present Perfect Continuous

Nice exercises:
http://www.englishexercises.org/makeagame/viewgame.asp?id=1484

Tempo verbal formado com:

To have + particípio passado do verbo to be + verbo principal no gerúndio (-ing):

I have been doing

Indica que uma  acção ou estado iniciado no passado que se continua a desenrolar no momento presente. É comum, nesse caso, expressar também desde quando (since...) ou há quanto tempo (for...) essa acção se está a desenvolver:

It have been doing my homework since yesterday evening.

negativa:
 

Full Form		Short Form
I have not been doing		I haven't been doing
you have not been doing		you haven't been doing
he she it	has not been doing	he she it	hasn't been doing
we have not been doing		we haven't been doing
you have not been doing		you haven't been doing
they have not been doing		they haven't been doing

na interrogativa:

Full Form have I been doing? have you been doing? has he she it been doing? have we been doing? have you been doing? have they been doing?

SONG:

We must have been stone crazy
when we thought we were just friends,
'Cause I miss you, baby,
And I've got those feelings again.
I guess I'm all confused about you,

I feel so in love
Oh, baby, what can I do?
I've been thinking about you.
I've been thinking about you
I've been thinking about you
I've been thinking about you, shi-pow-pow!

Suddenly we're strangers,
I watch you walking away.
She was my one temptation,
Oh, I did not want her to stay
Deep down, I'm still confused about you

I feel so in love
Oh, baby, what can I do?
I've been thinking about you.
I've been thinking about you
I've been thinking about you
I've been thinking about you, shi-pow-pow!

PAST PERFECT

Form of Past Perfect Simple

	Positive	Negative	Question
no differences	I had spoken.	I had not spoken.	Had I spoken?

Tempo verbal formado pelo auxiliar to have + past participle do verbo principal.  

Expressa uma acção que aconteceu antes de outra no passado simples (de duas ações passadas é a que acontece em primeiro lugar). É comum vir acompanhado de conjunções como before, after, when:

 

Use of Past Perfect

• action taking place before a certain time in the past
  (putting emphasis only on the fact, not the duration)
  Example: Before I came here, I had spoken to Jack. Type III (condition that was not given in the past) 
  Conditional Sentences type III
• Example: If I had seen him, I would have talked to him.

Signal Words

• already, just, never, not yet, once, until that day (with reference to the past, not the present)
• If-Satz Typ III (If I had talked, …)

EXERCISES: 

http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises/tenses/past_perfect_simple_past.htm

PRESENT PERFECT

Song: U2 - One 

I have climbed highest mountains
I have run through the fields
Only to be with you
Only to be with you
I have run
I have crawled
I have scaled these city walls
These city walls
Only to be with you

But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for

I have kissed honey lips
Felt the healing in her fingertips
It burned like a fire
This burning desire

I have spoke with the tongue of angels
I have held the hand of a devil
It was warm in the night
I was cold as a stone

But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for

I believe in the Kingdom Come
Then all the colors will bleed into one
Bleed into one
But yes I'm still running

You broke the bonds
And you loosed the chains
Carried the cross
Of my shame
Oh my shame
You know I believe it

But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for

The present perfect simple expresses an action that is still going on or that stopped recently, but has an influence on the present. It puts emphasis on the result.

Form of Present Perfect

	Positive	Negative	Question
I / you / we / they	I have spoken.	I have not spoken.	Have I spoken?
he / she / it	He has spoken.	He has not spoken.	Has he spoken?

For irregular verbs, use the participle form (see list of irregular verbs, 3rd column). For regular verbs, just add “ed”.

Exceptions in Spelling when Adding ‘ed’

Exceptions in spelling when adding ed	Example
after a final e only add d	love – loved
final consonant after a short, stressed vowel or l as final consonant after a vowel is doubled	admit – admitted travel – travelled
final y after a consonant becomes i	hurry – hurried

Use of Present Perfect

• puts emphasis on the result
• action that is still going on
• action that stopped recently
• finished action that has an influence on the present
• action that has taken place once, never or several times before the moment of speaking

Signal Words of Present Perfect

• already, ever, just, never, not yet, so far, till now, up to now 
•  
• exercícios:
• http://pocenglishclub.blogspot.com/2010/10/song-u2-one-i-have-climbed-highest.html

Past Continuous

The past CONTINUOUS puts emphasis on the course of an action in the past.

Form

	Positive	Negative	Question
I / he / she / it	I was speaking.	I was not speaking.	Was I speaking?
you / we / they	You were speaking.	You were not speaking.	Were you speaking?

Exceptions in Spelling

Exceptions in spelling when adding ing	Example
final e is dropped (but: ee is not changed)	come – coming (but: agree – agreeing)
after a short, stressed vowel, the final consonant is doubled	sit – sitting
l as final consonant after a vowel is doubled (in British English)	travel – travelling
final ie becomes y	lie – lying

Use of Past Progressive

• puts emphasis on the course of an action in the past
  Example: He was playing football.
• two actions happening at the same time (in the past)
  Example: While she was preparing dinner, he was washing the dishes.
• action going on at a certain time in the past
  Example: When I was having breakfast, the phone suddenly rang.

Signal Words of Past Progressive

• when, while, as long as
•  
• exercises: http://www.ego4u.com/en/cram-up/tests/past-progressive-1
•  

Simple Past

Expressa uma acção terminada e realizada num passado definido (isto é, em geral vem acompanhado de advérbios como yesterday, last night, last month, last year, two days ago, when, while). Todos os verbos em inglês pertencem a uma das duas conjugações: ou são regulares ou são irregulares. Os regulares formam o passado com o acréscimo de -ed enquanto os irregulares possuem uma forma própria para o passado. Assim, são regulares verbos como:

Work -> worked - Bernardo worked at Coca-Cola Company in 1998.

Travel -> travelled - 9ºA  travelled to Jamaica last year.

Dance -> Danced - We danced all night long.

E são irregulares:

Begin -> began - The game began earlier last night.

Fall -> Fell - The boy fell off the tree this morning.

Buy -> Bought -  I bought a book for my cousin Ana two days ago.

.

Há apenas uma forma no passado para todas as pessoas. Para se formar uma frase no passado interrogativo usa-se o auxiliar did (invertendo-o com o sujeito); para formar uma frase negativa usa-se did not = didn’t. O verbo principal fica no infinitivo sem o to:

 

Did Inês walk 100 miles yesterday?

Did you receive the letter?

They didn’t like you at all.

exercises:

http://www.englishexercises.org/makeagame/viewgame.asp?id=3303

 

Let's do it with Freddy Mercury!!!! 

Sometimes I get to feelin’
I  back in the old days - long ago
When we  kids when we  young
Thing  so perfect - you know
The days  endless we  crazy we  young
The sun  always shinin’ - we just  for fun
Sometimes it seems like lately - I just don't know
The rest of my life’s been just a show

Those  the days of our lives
The bad things in life  so few
Those days are all gone now but one thing is true
When I look and I find I still love you

You can't turn back the clock you can't turn back the tide
Ain't that a shame
I'd like to go back one time on a roller coaster ride
When life  just a game
No use in sitting and thinkin’ on what you

When you can lay back and enjoy it through your kids
Sometimes it seems like lately - I just don't know
Better sit back and go with the flow

Cos these are the days of our lives
They've flown in the swiftness of time
These days are all gone now but some things remain
When I look and I find no change

Those  the days of our lives - yeah
The bad things in life  so few
Those days are all gone now but one things still true
When I look and I find
I still love you

I still love you

PRESENT CONTINUOUS

Descreve, geralmente, uma acção que está a acontecer agora, no momento da fala. É formado com o presente do verbo to be mais a forma terminada em -ing do verbo principal. Corresponde ao gerúndio em português:

Verbo to be + verbo principal acrescido de ing -> I am working = estou trabalhando

 I'm speaking English.

It’s raining a lot in Damaia now.

A forma negativa é feita com o acréscimo de not ao verbo auxiliar to be e a interrogativa invertendo-se o verbo auxiliar to be e o sujeito:

I am not watching tv.

She’s not writing a letter.

Are you working hard?

Usa sempre o verbo no gerúndio (ING) nos seguintes casos:
1. Depois de preposições;
2. Quando o verbo for sujeito;
3. Depois das expressões no good..., no use..., no point....

Without trying hard, you won't make it.
Smoking is harmful to your health.

Exercícios:

http://www.englishexercises.org/makeagame/viewgame.asp?id=2126 

Vídeo:

Simple Present

Descreve um facto ou estado permanente, ou uma acção que acontece com frequência. A forma básica do presente dos verbos principais na afirmativa é a mesma do infinitivo (sem o to) com excepção das 3^as pessoas do singular que levam um “s:

verb to play:

I play football everyday. He plays football everyday. 

Nas frases negativas do presente usa-se don’t, e doesn’t, para a 3ª pessoa do singular. 

I don’t play football.

She doesn’t play football.

As frases interrogativas são formadas colocando-se do ou does no início das perguntas sendo precedidos apenas por pronomes interrogativos. O verbo principal sempre fica no infinitivo sem o to. 

Do you play football?

Does he play football?

exercises:

http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises/tenses/simple_present_statements.htm

video:

This is Halloween!

Halloween is close!

Join us... We'll prepare a surprise (Mondays 18th and 25th of October from 5 to 7 p.m.) and also watch this fabulous movie on the 2nd of November (Auditório) at 5 p.m.!

HALLOWEEN IS FUN!

What about costume parade on the 29th of October? No intervalo da manhã, os alunos de 2º ciclo irão fazer um desfile! Vem participar (ou ver!). Até lá!
Apesar da tempestade que nos surpreendeu à hora do desfile, foi possível cumprirmos o nosso desafio! Houve um desfile de máscaras no bar dos alunos com máscaras muito giras e prémios à mistura! Ora vejam:

Aulas de halloween!

Best summer shot vacation

You'r still in time to send us your pictures. Deadline: 2nd of November.
Just a glimpse...

We hope you're back from your vacation with lots of photos. Give us your best shot for our a "How I Shot My Summer Vacation" contest.

On Nov.10, we'll publish some of the best images. It can be an "All-Around Photo" or a "Best People Picture". We will select the top photo; the winner will receive a discard camera.

BASIC RULES: - Contestants may enter only one photo. 

                    - Images must have been taken after June, 2010. 

                    - Cropping is allowed, but images cannot be digitally manipulated.
                    - Beware of your clothes 
                    - The photo has to have a substitle written in english

  

The photos will be in BE/CRE and the blog. We need you to send us the digital photo to  poc.englishclub@gmail.com and also hand-out a printed version for the expo.