THE YEAR I WAS BORN-PART I

An Autobiographical Research Project 

                                                                               

What happened the year that you were born? What was going on in your town? Were there important events going on in your country? How about the rest of the world?

Part I

Today you are going to do online research to find details on what was going on internationally, nationally, locally, in sports, music, arts, commercial, TV, and publishing during the year that you were born.

Click on the links below to browse the websites. Use the ‘autobiography’ worksheet to record your findings.

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history 

 http://www.inthe90s.com/  
                            

 http://www.inthe80s.com/   
                     
http://www.inthe70s.com/

 http://www.calendarhome.com/clink/history.html 

             http://www.scopesys.com/anyday/

 http://www.blamepro.com/cal/0927.htm

                                                                                                                  http://dmarie.com/timecap/

     

HOMEWORK!     

You will conduct interviews of friends and family members to get more details.

Interview your family and other people about your birth and first year of life. If available, look through photo albums, baby books, and so forth. Before your interview, brainstorm a list of questions to ask. You can include questions about your parents’ occupation, other members of the family and community, pets, significant family and community events (in addition to your birth), activities family and friends were involved in, extended family members, favorite music, book, or sports team, and so on.

                                             Bring all your findings next class.

TO BE CONTINUED…

                           

PEOPLE'S LIVES AND ACHIEVEMENTS

How are  people's lives and achievements documented and recorded?                          

                                                 Let's find out:

                                  

Biographical works in diverse media—from literature to film—form the genre known as               biography.

A biography is a detailed description or account of someone's life.   It entails more than basic facts (education, work, relationships, and death), biography also portrays a subject's experience of these events. It presents a subject's life story, highlighting various aspects of his or her life, including intimate details of experience, and may include an analysis of a subject's personality.       People who become the subject of biography are usually famous or notorious-as statesmen, warriors, writers, inventors, scientists, captains of industry, artists, campaigners, criminals. The biographer normally attempts to shed light on the publicly known-the claims to fame-of the subject. The most characteristic connections, then, are between the public and the private-the origins, inspirations, costs, lapses, vicissitudes of fame or notoriety.

An authorized biography is written with the permission, cooperation, and, at times, participation of a subject or a subject's heirs.

An autobiography is about a life of a subject, written by that subject or sometimes with a collaborator.

References:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biography

 http://human-nature.com/rmyoung/papers/paper48h.html

Now we are going to get into the life of  a very well-known writer. Let’s see how much you know about him.

                                   WHO WAS ERNEST HEMINGWAY? 

1.       Hemingway was born in

      a.      Australia

      b.      France   

      c.        USA  

      d.      UK

2.      He lived during

a.      The 17^th century

b.       the 18^th century

c.       The 19^th century

d.      The 20^th century

3.      Hemingway

    a.      Never got married.

    b.      Married just once.

    c.       Married twice 

    d.      Married four times

4.      He fought in the

   a.      The  first world war

   b.      The second world war

   c.       The Spanish war

   d.       The Vietnam war

5.  His first novel was called

a.      A Farewell to Arms

b.      The Sun also Rises

c.       For Whom the Bells Toll

d.      The Old Man and the Sea

6.      He loved

a.      Painting the characters in his novels

b.      Travelling around the world

c.       Hunting

d.      Drinking tea

7.      He won

a.      the Pulitzer Prize

b.      The Oscar Award

c.       The Nobel Prize

d.      The Royal Academy of Arts Award

8.     He died

a.       By  taking his life away

b.      Due to a car accident

c.       During the war

d.      Due to a severe illness

To  check your answers and learn a bit   more about Hemingway, watch this video:

                                 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35vrg7a64nY   

                                                                                            Music credits:

   Edith Piaf - L'Hymne a l'amour

   Albert Farrington - It's a Long Way to Tipperary

   Georges Brassens - Le vieux Leon

   Ignacio Pineiro - Echale Salsita

   Frank Sinatra - Don't Worry 'Bout Me

Your Turn: Recreating Heminway’s Bio 

Follow the link below, click on the bio cube creator and fill in the corresponding information. When you finish, save your work and print a copy to hand in  to your teacher. Enjoy!

http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/interactives/cube_creator/

                                       

WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO KNOW?

    Asking for Information

   

A.    Read the email below and tick the correct statements.

a.      It’s the first time Richard has written to the organization.

b.      He has never been part of a conversation group before.

c.       He wants to find out about a job.

d.      He asks information about transport.

e.      He asks about equipment.

f.        He says how he found out about the group.

B.    Complete the email with the words in the box.

grateful      provided       let       keen       regards advert      join      experience      confirm        forward

Language in Use           

      

 How much do you remember about indirect questions? Let’s revise some important aspects:

In writing, we often use this type of questions to sound polite. Indirect questions Use statement word order Don’t use do/does/did Use if /whether when there isn’t a question word  Often use introductory phrases like: I would like to …

A.   Find indirect questions in the email, write them in you notebook and double check whether all the aspects listed above are included.

B.   Make indirect questions using the introductory phrases. Write them down in your notebook.

1.    Do I have to wear anything special?

Can you confirm……………………………….......?

2.    How is transport to each session organized?

I would like to know …………………………..

3.    Where is the nearest car park to the gym?

I wonder …………………………………………?

4.    Does your tutor have a good success rate?

Could you tell me ………………………………?

5.    How much does a course of lessons cost?

I’d be grateful if you could tell me ……………..

6.    Will I have to take an exam or a test?

      I would like you to confirm …………………….

Project: Study Abroad!  

You are going to write an email to a foreign language school  asking for  information about their  courses.

  

Follow the steps below:

1. Browse these links and choose a language school that appeals you. 

·         http://www.language-schools-uk.com/

·         http://www.englishinusa.com/

·         http://www.studyingaustralia.com/australia-language-schools.html

·         http://www.languageschool.co.nz/

2. Use the content checklist below to plan your text.

• How you heard about and/or got interested in  the course.
• Specific skills you want to improve
•  Hours a week
•   Accommodation
• Cost (tuition, lodging,etc)
•  After-school activities
•  Trips to other places in the country   
• (Your own)

3. Use the checklist to handwrite your first draft. Hand in your work to   

           your teacher at the end of the lab session.

VERY IMPORTANT!      When your teacher returns you your first draft with her comments and suggestions, you should type a second improved draft and send your email to the Institution you have chosen. Hopefully you will get an answer, which must be printed and submitted for correction and marking together with all the preliminary steps requested to complete this assignment.