Post 10 Evaluation of your Blogging Experience

Write about your experience using blogs in the English class.

Say:

- What you think about the experience in general
- How much you feel your writing skills have developed
- What you would like to include in the future
- What else you would like to write about


Wordcount: 200
Make comments on 3 of your classmates' posts.

Post 9 MY HOLIDAYS PLANS

Dear Students,  Hi!

Today,  you will have to write about your holidays plans.

Refer to:
1. what you will do,
2. where you  would like to travel and why,
3. with whom you would like to travel,
4. what your ideal holidays are 

- Leave a comment on 3 of your classmates` posts

- Word Count: 190 words 

WEBQUEST 2: CARBON FOOTPRINT

Dear all,  Hi!

Before today´s activity, please take 10 minutes of your time to answer the "Encuesta Docente"  on www.plataforma.uchile.cl   [programa de inglés > encuesta docente]. To take it, you must have signed up to the plataforma website.  This activity is compulsory. The results are an essential tool for both, improving the programme and showing proof of its quality.
  

And ...Today you will have to do the following activity on Carbon footprint. To do so, answer the questions on our answer sheet by clicking on the links. You have to turn in your findings at the end of the class.

Enjoy!

Definition:   http://timeforchange.org/what-is-a-carbon-footprint-definition

TASK

Part 1- Calculate your carbon footprint!

http://www.carbonfootprint.com/calculator.aspx

·        Don’t forget to select English before starting the activity.

Questions:

Ø What’s your carbon footprint?

Ø What’s the average carbon footprint of a person?

Part 2 - Take these Recycling Quizzes

http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/quiz-going-green/

http://www.quizmoz.com/quizzes/Science-Quizzes/r/Recycling-Quiz.asp

Questions:

Ø Hand washing dishes can use up to ______ % more of water than using an efficient dishwasher.

Ø Only about _________ % of global energy comes from renewables.

Ø True or false? Appliances that are turned off don’t use any electricity.

Ø Can you make paper out of hemp?

Part 3- Video >> Top ten tips for recycling

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjbSEIOUp4w

Watch the video and choose the best 3 tips in your opinion.

1.

2.

3.

Post 8 Themed Post 3:BRAZIL AND THE WORLD CUP

In your post, please refer to:

1. Brazil`s facts: location, population and government
2. Current social and political problems in the country
3. Your opinion about having the world cup in Brazil: is it  beneficial or harmful?
4. Your prediction: Who will win the cup?

- Leave a comment on 3 of your classmates´ posts
- Word Count: 180 words

Blog Session 7 Carrer-Related Website OR An Expert on your Field

For this post, you have to choose only ONE of these  2 options:

Post 1 (Instructions). 
Write about a career-related website that you enjoy visiting.

You have to:

- provide the link
- describe the website (sections, features,etc)
- say how often you visit the site
- explain why you like the site.




>Add comments to at least 3 of your classmates’ blogs
>Word Count: 170
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Post 2 (Instructions)
Who is a person/expert on your field that you admire?

Say:

-Who she/he is. (short biography)
-What she/he has done. (examples of their work)
-Why you like her/him.
-Include his/her image

> About 170 words
>Add comments to at least 3 of your classmates’ blogs

Hello people!!!

Today, I am going to tell you about my favorite career related website. It is The Harvard Gazette from the University of Harvard.  http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2011/10/breakthrough/

 I like it because I have first hand access to very interesting lectures on the field of Education and Neurolinguistics, there are also articles, book reviews, photography and  art performances, interviews with prominent musicians or innovative movie directors, and above all,  the latest information on what´s happening at the University and in the academic world in different scenarios. 

I visit it whenever I have time or want to relax, or get inspired or even when I want to listen to different English accents. Try it. You won´t regret it!

Blog Post Nº 6: My favorite movie

Please include the following points in your post:

1. what movie it is
2. what the plot is(or what it is about)
3. why you like it
4. when was the first time you watched it.
5. who the director is
Leave a comment on 3 of your classmates posts
- Word Count: 140 words

POST 5 (week 9) >> A PHOTOGRAPH YOU LIKE

Write about a photograph you like.

Say:

Who took it
What it shows
When it was taken
Why you like it
Upload it too

Include any other information you'd like to mention.
Write at least 150 words.

Add comments to at least 3 of your classmates’ blogs

In this picture Piñera is being attacked by a walrus, at a boat fair, in Valdivia. This happened when he was looking for supporters during his presidential campaign at the fish market before the elections. Apparently, Piñera was too close to the fence which walruses usually approach for food. Piñera who was scared to death, said the sea creature had almost kissed him, even though, to me, the walrus was more likely to have had him for lunch. I really don´t know who this picture was taken by, but it appeared in “Las Últimas Noticias” newspaper, in 2005. I like it because I think it is a photographic success and the horror, dread and disgust in Piñera´s  face are absolutely unique.   Could this animal have been hired by “the opposition" parties prevailing in the country at that moment?

Post Nª 4 (week 6) >>> Themed/Free Post 1: PLACES I WOULD LIKE TO VISIT

Develop the following points:

• what place or places you would like to visit
• why you want to go there
• with whom
• when you would like to go: in what season or on what date
• how you will get there: by plane, bus, train, bicycle, car? On foot? Hitchhiking or backpacking? 

- Leave a comment on 3 of your classmates posts
- Word Count: 140 words minimum
- include a picture

My Favorite dish is Razor Clams with Parmesan Cheese.   (Example)

For this delicious dish you need 1kg. of fresh razor clams, a little of white wine, grated parmesan cheese, lemon juice, garlic and butter, at taste.

They are easy to prepare: you just have to open them with a sturdy knife, clean the tongue, wash away any sand or any black substance at the base, and  put them back on the half shell.  You need to add butter,  grated parmesan, a little of garlic, white wine and lemon juice, at taste.

Bake them at high temperature for a few minutes. When razor clams are cooked, they turn pink and that is why they are also called "Pink Clams" .

This dish is one of the classics of Chilean cuisine, and it was created 50 years ago in Viña del Mar by an Italian immigrant called Eduardo Melotti Ferrari.

http://eatingchile.blogspot.com/2009/06/machas-la-parmesana.html.

Even though, there is no reference of razor clams before the 1950s in Chile, archeologists refer to "the Machas Phase" 10.600 to 8.000 years before now based on findings in coastal middens (conchales) of southern coastal Peru, at that time.

I like them because they remind me of my childhood, when it was possible to find them on the beach, in Tongoy, Harvesting them together with my family was great fun. I eat them with a cup of good white wine and toasted bread, for Easter or May 21st, with family and friends.

And you? Would you like to try them?

 

POST 3 MY FAVOURITE PIECE OF TECHNOLOGY

*Write about your favourite piece of technology

Say:

What it is.
When you got it.
How you use it.
How often you use it.
Why you like it.
What life would be like without it.




- 130 words minimum.
- Include a picture. 
- Comment on at least 3 of your classmates’ blogs.

Hi there!!

My favorite piece of technology is my Aspire One Netbook. I bought it some years ago to work on my Dissertation for my MA and since then, I have become very addicted to it. I am not a techie person but now I love the freedom that Wi-Fi can give you around the house or almost anywhere!  That´s why I use it all the time for many hours each day to look up information, prepare my classes, listen to music, download lectures from Youtube, and watch or read the news. I also like it because it is light and handy and I can take it to the university or to my friends´ houses. My life would be boring without it, something like going back to the past. I know, though, you may think that netbooks are already considered old fashioned compared to cutting- edge technologies like  tablets, or i-phones. This is true, still, you should feel comfortable and happy  with the technological advances you use, and my netbook is good for me!

Bye!

Post 2 (week 4) > Expectations for a New Semester

Dear Students,

This post is on your expectations for this new semester. To write about them please include the following points: 

- the subjects you are doing this term
- extracurriculars you are taking
- other activities that you are part of  at university
- what you expect from this new academic period

wordcount: 110 (minimum)

> Make comments on three of your classmates 

HI, well, I´m going to tell you a little bit about my semester and my expectations.

At the moment, I am doing many things. I am teaching English for special purposes (ESP) at Alberto Hurtado University. I teach English to students of Business Administration, Law, Education and Librarianship, besides you at UChile.

It is very challenging because each group of people is different and constitutes a different world! I also like it because I have to be constantly adapting strategies and activities to engage students and help them learn. That´s my final expectation, really, that everybody learns, improves his English and has a nice time in class.

Apart from that, I´m planning to start a course on line on developing writing skills in teaching in the near future because I think writing is a good way to learn and improve  students´  English. In fact, that´s why we use blogs in class!

I expect this semester to be a successful  and happy one, And I hope you enjoy it, too.     

Good luck!                

Blog Session 1 (Week 3) >> My Auto Biography

Blog Session 1 (Week 3) >> My Auto Biography

This week, and as the first post of this semester,  the students have to write their auto biographies.
They have to include:

- Birth info
- Studies info (elementary/high school/ univ)
- Family Info
- Hobbies
- Others...


> Number of words: 100 (minimum)
> Make comments on three of your classmates posts


Hi My name is Paula Vergara. I was born in Santiago, Chile in 1967. I studied at Saint George´s College and graduated in 1986. After that I studied English-Spanish Translation and Interpretation at Universidad Vicente Pérez Rosales. As I wasn´t very happy with my career, because it was a very lonely activity, I decided to get a Master´s in Teaching English as a Foreign Language, at Universidad Metropolitana de Ciencias de la Educación, UMCE.

Let me tell you now about my family. I have a small family: My older brother Francisco, he is 48 years old. Francisco is very different from me. He is an Engineer.  My parents are Eliana and Mario.  My father passed away but I always remember him. He was a lawyer. My mother is very nice and funny, she likes going to the movies. I have a son, his name is Vicente and he is 11 years old. He is very cheerful and loves technology.

My hobbies are swimming, reading all kinds of novels, and going out with my family.

I really like English, I think it is a beautiful language and I hope you like it, too.

Bye