Infonews n°263 du 08/01/2005
Choosing a Pet
Learning about Pets
Videos about Pets
Lesson plans
Extra Second Will Be Added to 2005 (from [LII New This Week] January 5)
Poisson rouge for kindergarten
MES for primary school
Building to the Extreme
Las Nannies
Pronunciation
Music
Audio Comprehensions
Shopping Bags: Paper or Plastic or ... ? (from [LII New This Week] January
5)
100 things we didn't know this time last year
Poetry portfolios (from Riverdeep's Classroom Flyer, Friday, January 6th)
Winter Vocabulary (from Riverdeep's Classroom Flyer, Friday, January 6th)
FBI History: Famous Cases (from [LII New This Week] January 5)
Girl Troubles
Youth in inner-city London
from the US Department of Defense
from The Biometric Consortium
from the Electronic Frontier Foundation
Praising instead of telling off
Pets is always a popular theme : you can invite students to discover unusual
critters or learn more about their favorite pet, discuss the advantages and
problems of each animal, write a guide about a pet, how to chose it and how
to care for it. Vous pourrez retrouver le plan complet pour une séquence sur
le sujet dans Infonews et le Café pédagogique:
http://perso.numericable.fr/~dreymondch46/infonews/archives/131.htm#Pets
http://www.cafepedagogique.net/disci/anglais/10.php
The lesson plan is still valid, and works well each year with a different class,
but the links are old so I found some new ones and updated the page in the
Infonews thematic index. Here are my findings.
Choosing a Pet
*** Pet Selector
This site doesn't look very nice and isn't easy to read, but the questions
are appropriate and the answers interesting (note the pun : dollars and scents!).
In the end, you get to a page about the most appropriate pet for you, with
lots of information and vocabulary. the tone is familiar, for example about
Anoles and a possible insect phobia from the owner, it says : "Eat insect
entrees that may upset the squeamish. "
I think this site is appropriate for weak intermediate students interested
in animal. they will discover unusual pets and be willing to present their
findings to the class because it will come from a personal result given by
the machine. The call will learn basis vocabulary about pets and pet care through
different ways, and produce sentences such as "it doesn't need any grooming
but it requires some training to be hand fed".
http://www.selectsmart.com/beta_all/
on this page, you can also select breeds of cats and dogs
http://www.petuniverse.com.au/find_your_pet.htm
and here is an excellent critters guide, with short but efficient info
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/critter.html
If they are more scholarly-orientated, you can also direct your students to
this page listing the different questions and the points to consider before
getting a pet, and invite them to build their own profile from this text, and
then choose a pet corresponding to their profile, either with the pet selector
or directly from a list.
http://scsc.essortment.com/howtochoosea_rgiy.htm
http://www.thepetcenter.com/gen/choose.html (more
difficult)
for upper intermediate and advanced students, here is a full text dealing with
all the questions you should ask yourself before getting a pet, including more
tricky questions like "should I rescue a pet?"
http://www.helpguide.org/life/pets.htm
Learning about Pets
Pets on Webindia 123
A very comprehensive site with all the info you need to choose a dog, cat,
bird or fish and learn how to select it according to your lifestyle and how
to care for it.
http://www.webindia123.com/pets/
Pets on the BBC
easy and comprehensive fact files for lower intermediate, about "normal" pets
(cats, dogs, hamsters)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/animals/pets/
Animal guide from Yahooligan
short files to learn about animals in general, not so much about pet care.
http://yahooligans.yahoo.com/content/animals/
Videos about Pets
For audio comprehension, Canon and Thirteen worked with PBS to produce the
new Nature program. You can visit the companion site, find interesting documents
and enjoy some previews at :
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/
you can also watch this online video from CBS about a Chimp that can count,
with full transcript:
http://www.pbs.org/saf/previous/watchonline205.htm
and find more videos about animals performing sometimes amazing tasks at
http://www.pbs.org/saf/1201/video/watchonline.htm
Dogs' athletic events and shows plus advertisements for Purina cat and dog
food and care products. Watch also the amazing Pug show!
http://www.events.purina.com/dogs/events/index.aspx?&DCMP=AFC-PUR-IDC+Video&HQS=Home
http://www.events.purina.com/dogs/index.aspx
Lesson plans
Here is an excellent lesson plan from CBS for lower intermediate or intermediate
students, aged no more than 14
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/puppies/lesson_plan.html
and for older students, you can use the teaching unit suggested at the beginning
plus this page I designed for my students
http://perso.numericable.fr/~dreymondch46/infonews/themes/exoticpets.htm
Extra Second Will Be Added to 2005 (from [LII New This Week] January 5)
Article describing how and why "an extra second will be added to 2005
to make up for the slowing down of the Earth's rotation. ... The once-common
'leap second' is the first in seven years and reflects the unpredictable nature
of the planet's behavior." Includes a list of previous leap seconds added
back to 1972 and links to related information.
From LiveScience.com, an online magazine
"focusing on innovative and intriguing science and technology."
http://www.livescience.com/technology/050705_leap_second.html
Poisson rouge for kindergarten
Beatrice Monnier recommends Poisson rouge site on e-Teach. It is aimed a
very young children, kindergarten level. The part I liked most is the ABC,
with links and pronunciations exercises, both in English and in French.
http://www.poissonrouge.com/
for pronunciation of words, she recommends: where the words are pronounced
when the mouse comes over the drawing representing it.
http://www.interactica.com/school/
both adresses come from this site that she recommends for young children at
home and at school
http://www.interactica.com/
MES for primary school
Leo Covo recommends this site packed with resources : flash cards, interactive
games, phonics and even an address to find key pals.
http://www.mes-english.com/
Building to the Extreme
see a video (no transcript), see the animation about the world's tallest
tower, then read the article and see the figures for the tallest buildings.
An interesting site from PBS
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/innovation/episode1.html#
Las Nannies
CBS features this serie about las domesticas and las nannies, those Spanglish
words for domestic workers. this article is interesting from the cultural point
of view, but you may also use the short preview to discuss with your students
the special relationship between a nanny and a child : the child has a mother,
the nanny has children of her own, and yet, their relationship is stronger
because they spend so much time together. Is it time stolen from the others?
http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/maidinamerica/domesticas.html (
don't miss the preview, on the left)
Pronunciation
the BBC has enlarged its pronunciation section adding more information, exercises
and activities. There are over 60 new downloads including worksheets and audio
examples. See for example the page on the schwa, with examples and exercises:
http://www.bbclearningenglish.com/multimedia/pron
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/multimedia/pron/schwa/index.shtml
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/multimedia/pron/downloads/pdf/exercises/schwa_exercises.pdf
Music
Listen to the BBC program about the last top of the charts in the UK (no
transcript, but easy to understand, especially if the studnets recognise the
mane of the songs.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/radio/specials/1218_the_charts/
Audio Comprehensions
Two audio comprehensions from the BBC about the topical issues of the moment.
Bargain hunting (no transcript)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/radio/specials/1128_london_life/
New Year's resolutions (with transcript)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/flatmates/episode23/index.shtml
Shopping Bags: Paper or Plastic or ... ? (from [LII New This Week] January 5)
Discussion of the "debate over whether plastic or paper bags are better
for the environment."
Contains statistics on energy used and waste generated for both types of bags.
The article concludes that neither type of bag is a good choice, and reusable
bags are a better option. From the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
[ for those interested in environmental issues.]
100 things we didn't know this time last year
Claude Covo Farchi on eteachNet recommend this page packed with unusual facts.
This is the end of year almanac of the Magazine which picks out snippets from
the news each week, and compiles them into 10 Things We Didn't Know This Time
Last Week.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/4566526.stm
Poetry portfolios (from Riverdeep's Classroom Flyer, Friday, January 6th)
Students will explore language and writing through poetry portfolios, where
a weekly poem is examined, illustrated, and shared. Find further directions
here.
http://www.readwritethink.org/lessons/lesson_view.asp?id=152
[ with lots of interesting links to easy sites with poetry for children.]
Winter Vocabulary (from Riverdeep's Classroom Flyer, Friday, January 6th)
What exactly is the difference between a winter squall and a winter flurry?
And what kinds of conditions can cause an avalanche? Print out this winter
vocabulary worksheet on cardstock and then cut up the definitions and terms.
Put everything into a file folder and use it as a winter-themed game in your
spelling center. Use the 2nd link above for advanced winter weather vocabulary
for middle and high school student challenges.
http://www.teach-nology.com/worksheets/misc/winter/vocab/ (easy
and rich)
http://www.usatoday.com/weather/wwterms.htm (technical,
for those who want to understand the weather forecast)
[ you can invite the students to tell a story using those words to enrich their
vocabulary.]
FBI History: Famous Cases (from [LII New This Week] January 5)
Information about bank robberies, gangsters, kidnappings, espionage, and
other famous Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) cases. Covers people (such
as Al Capone, Bonnie and Clyde, and John Dillinger) and specific cases (such
as the Brinks robbery, Charles Ross kidnapping, Lindbergh kidnapping, and the "Atom
Spy" case). From the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
http://www.fbi.gov/libref/historic/famcases/famcases.htm
Girl Troubles
Although we can't watch the films, the site provides interesting information
about those girls who were in trouble and got out of it, with description of
the centers they lived in and links to the organisation which help them. If
you worked on the riots in Paris, this is the opportunity to pick up the theme
again and find out how those youth can get out of this situation:
http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/girltrouble/
Youth in inner-city London
Less encouraging but more realistic, see this interactive essay in a new
section on the Slate site recommended by Darren Rigby on eTeachNet about youth
in trouble in the poor London housing estates "Youth in inner-city London" .
It is long and you can't use it all, but the stories are so captivating and
true that you don't know which to choose!
http://todayspictures.slate.com/20051214/
[LII New This Week] January 5 features several sites about the subject. They are all for advanced students interested in technology who want to learn everything about how biometrics work and its current use and research. Here are three sites:
from the US Department of Defense
Features information about the use of biometrics by the U.S. Department of
Defense for national security purposes. "Biometrics can help provide these
security requirements by basing identity on a physiological characteristic
distinctive to an individual." The "Biometrics 101" section
contains terminology, types of biometrics systems (such as fingerprint, hand,
face, and voice), and other basic information. The site also features references,
tutorials, links to news, and updates on the use of biometrics by the U.S.
military.
http://www.biometrics.dod.mil/
[ With a tutorial which is a conference, without a script but with the reader's
notes which are quite interesting both to follow the conference and get an
idea of how to prepare notes to speak.]
http://www.biometrics.dod.mil/bio101/index.aspx
from The Biometric Consortium
Find background information about biometrics, which are "automated methods
of recognizing a person based on a physiological or behavioral characteristics
... [such as] face, fingerprints, hand geometry, handwriting, iris, retinal,
vein, and voice." Includes publications, research, and links to other
resources on biometrics. From a group providing the U.S. government with
"research, development, test, evaluation, and application of biometric-based
personal identification/authentication technology."
http://www.biometrics.org/
[ a complement to the previous one, with several links to research papers and
publications.]
from the Electronic Frontier Foundation
This document outlines concerns with biometrics,
"the automatic identification or identity verification of living persons
using their enduring physical or behavioral characteristics."
Discusses specific concerns (such as accuracy of the systems and privacy),
current biometrics initiatives, attributes and components of biometrics systems,
types of systems (such as fingerprinting, facial recognition, and voice verification),
and related information. From the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF).
[ this site is an interesting counter-point to the previous official site,
stressing the limits and problems of the devices. ]
Praising instead of telling off
Sarah Rapnouil-Dunn recommends on eteachNet this article from the Times which
might interest some young teachers who are battling with disciplinary problems
in the classroom. It sounds
rather simplistic, but gives some food for thought, don't you think?
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-1972306,00.html
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