Trick or Treat in USA

By Elisabete Carvalho

Spiderweb trees

Here’s a delightful morning snack: When Pakistan experienced severe flooding last year, it had the unexpected and rather creepy-crawly side effect of driving millions upon millions of spiders to the trees, where they could escape the floodwater. Since the flooding lasted for such a long time, many trees became blanketed in thick layers of web.

But according to the UK government, which assisted in the flood release effort this may have actually had a positive health effect: On-the-ground reports suggest that there are fewer mosquitos than would have been expected after the influx of so much stagnant water. This, in turn, may have reduced the very real risk of malaria to local populations afflicted with flooding. The web-coated trees, however, remain scary-looking.

(in http://www.geekosystem.com/spiderweb-trees-pakistan/ )

Monsters Vs Halloween Special Mutant Pumpkins

Halloween last year

Free digital slideshow personalized with Smilebox

Calling all the monsters

Get some ideas for your spooky costume!!!

Coming up!

Halloween is just around the corner!

Dress up a spooky costume and come to school to celebrate Halloween on 31st October! Treats are waiting for you!

Do you like spooky stories?

Shake your English! wants to challenge you to write the spookiest story ever!!! 

When you have finished writing it, give your story to your teacher (final entry date - 4th November).

The scariest ones will be published on the blog! 

But before you start,  learn something about the origin of Halloween and solve some puzzles about this festivity.

http://www.halloween.com/all-about-halloween/


in History.com

in Busy Teacher.org

in Areal Editores

Child Trafficking

Have you ever heard of children being trafficked?
Do you think that's something from the past? That it doesn't exist in the twenty-first century?
Think twice!

Search the web for more information.http://www.childtrafficking.com/
http://www.unicef.org/protection/index_exploitation.html
http://sctnow.org/

On the 18th October there will be a demonstration in Oporto at 15h in Aliados against this awful reality!

What a wonderful world (?)

SAVE THE EARTH QUIZZ

It's time to...

"9/11"

On September 11, 2001, 19 militants associated with the Islamic extremist group al-Qaeda hijacked four airliners and carried out suicide attacks against targets in the United States. Two of the planes were flown into the towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, a third plane hit the Pentagon just outside Washington, D.C., and the fourth plane crashed in a field in Pennsylvania. Often referred to as 9/11, the attacks resulted in extensive death and destruction, triggering major U.S. initiatives to combat terrorism and defining the presidency of George W. Bush. Over 3,000 people were killed during the attacks in New York City and Washington, D.C., including more than 400 police officers and firefighters.

I Believe - A 9/11 Tribute

A decade passed by

These last days you've heard a lot about this terrorist attack on the media. Ten years passed by, but I believe that no one has ever forgotten the pictures shown on TV that 11th of September 2001. I still remember that I was driving to school with my friend Elisabete Carvalho, when we heard on the radio that there was a huge fire on the Twin Towers, in New York. When we arrived at school we headed to the teacher's room and we saw in direct the second plane crashing on the second tower. It seemed like a kid playing with towers made of Lego and small airplanes, and crashing them. It didn't seem real! How come? How could it be possible to crash on purpose a plane towards a building? It seemed like a very imaginative film...a kind of science-fiction one: two towers being hit by planes, people falling down the windows and finally the towers crashing down!!!

SUMMER HOLIDAYS! HURRAY!!!

   The school year is coming to an end, which means that the well-deserved holidays are about to start.

   Before our blog also has a summer break I, as the coordinator of the English Club, would like to present my sincere thanks to all the excellent teachers of the English Department for their commitment to this project, which implied dedicating many long hours of their private life to it, in order to garantee the success of all the activities planned at the beginning of the year.

   Hadn't they embraced this project with so much enthusiasm, very little would have been accomplished ; the English Club, it goes without saying, did make a difference in the life of our School.

   So, once again, thank you my dear colleagues for having so willingly accepted to participate in this journey!

   I would also like to thank the students who have collaborated with the English Club, either as members of the staff, organising the different activities, or as contributors to the blog, producing texts, videos , roleplays and interviews. You were fundamental to the growth of our blog, which, having started on 16th October 2010, has already had more than 20 000 visits!!!

   

  Summer holidays mean a break from work. They also mean sunshine, beaches, summer sports and lots of outside fun! 

   So, before "Shake your English!" also goes on holiday, the English Club Team would like to challenge you with some puzzles and quizzes for those days when  the weather is not so warm and sunny and you feel like staying at home. 

HAVE FUN AND SEE YOU IN SEPTEMBER!

Adelaide Sá

 

in BusyTeacher.org

in BusyTeacher.org 

in  activity village.co.uk

Today is Adelaide's birthday

CONGRATULATIONS, ADELAIDE!

Today marks the day someone special was born. That special person is our beloved colleague and friend Adelaide Sá whose hard work, knowledge, wisdom, determination and creativity have greatly contributed to the success of the English Club in our school and to the growing importance of this blog in particular.

Adelaide’s professionalism and commitment to her job as a teacher of English and as the English Club Coordinator have been vital to the remarkable success of so many different activities that have been accomplished this school year.

Adelaide has also managed to keep a contagious sense of doing well in our English Department and English Club even during difficult times and periods of intense work. We all admire her for that.

Adelaide, we want you to know that we deeply appreciate your commitment to setting and trying to achieve high standards for all the activities that we organize for our students. It’s a pleasure to work with you and have you as a Coordinator of the English Club, always pushing us up to be great!

Dear colleague and friend, congratulations on your birthday. May this day bring you all that you wish for!

Big hugs and lots of love

from your workmates,

Alice, Aurélia, Branca, Clarisse, Conceição, Eduarda, Graça, Helena, Isabel, Margarida, Maria José, Natália,Teresa.

Karaoke final contest

             Here's a remake of the film about the karaoke final 

  contest, now with more photos and the voices of our Stars.

             It portrays what happened before, during and after  

  the contest as well as everyone that made it possible.

             I hope you'll enjoy it.

Survey about the English Club activity and its blog

   The school year is coming to an end together with 9 months of work of the English Club and eight months of life of our blog "Shake your English!".
   In order to be able to meet the expectations of the whole school community about the role the English Club should play as well as to improve the quality of the blog in the coming year,  we decided to ask some students and teachers about their opinion concerning the English Club activity and the blog.
  Here is what they said:

                                Reporter: José Cardoso (8th grade student)

Reporters: Mariana, Mafalda and Priscila 

                                        (11th grade students)

  Reporter: João Veloso (8th grade student)

                 Reporters: Viviana  Szczurek and Rita Terroso 

(11th grade students) 

Interviewing Daniel ( 9th grade student) and 

Joaquim (7th grade student)

  Reporter:Filipa (7th grade student)

 

Reporters:Yamine and André 

(11th grade students)

Students from 8th B express their opinions on the blog: 

The blog is interesting, complete and the games are well done.

By Afonso Pinheiro

"I like the whole blogue a lot. There are good news, videos and games. I specially liked the videos about our school. I would like to see a video of a contest where students played Gear. I think the blogue is interesting. Through the games and the quizzes I learnt new words and so I improved my English. " 

By Miguel Ângelo Pinto

"We like the blogue, specially the games: the interactive quizzes and the quiz shows. We enjoyed to learn more about general culture in English. The blogue itself is very well-organised. We will visit it more often." 

By Nuno Silva and Pedro Leite

" We loved the mob dance Gotta Keep Reading. It was an unusual and very interesting activity. We hope it will happen again in our school." 

By Ana Sofia Silva and Francisca Moura

" We are not alone in this school, we can get together in one place, in a single location and that is a good meeting point." 

By Daniela Moreira and Filipa Magalhães

" The games are really cool and interesting!"

By Maria Miguel Ribeiro and Teresa Aguiar

English Refresher Course

"Refresh your knowledge of the English language!" 
This was a challenge some teachers of Maia Secondary School decided to meet. And, how well they did that! After a five month course here they are receiving the diploma that certifies their success. Congratulations to them all and to their teacher as well. Well done!