Up the river, we go

Today I've spent the day doing one of the things I love the most: taking photographs! It was the end of the assessment week, and the school board organized us a trip by boat up the Douro river, with several elements of our school community: from teachers, to vocational courses students, staff and parents' representatives... It was a beautiful sun shiny day, with astonishing landscapes to view and shoot. Everybody was happy and relaxed, as some days free of work are ahead of us. I am going to enjoy those days the best I can. I am going to the beautiful Madeira Island, here, in Portugal, with my family, where I'm sure I will take wonderful pictures! As soon as I return, I shall create a video of the day spent with my schoolmates on the river Douro. Until then, enjoy your free time and recharge energies! We still have a 3rd term of hard work to get through, and the exams season! See you in a couple of days!

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2013 Xmas Dinner @PineTree

A look on St. Valentine's Day

São Martinho 2013

Assessment Meetings Week

Yep! It's the assessment meetings season! Students are already enjoying the Easter break; we still have some days of intense work ahead! I'll be back shortly! Now, it's high time for rating students' performances. See you soon! Hopefully!...

Picture via Google Images

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The exams season is about to begin

Grammar Nazi

A substitute teacher from the inner city refuses to be messed with while taking attendance. Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele go hard on the syllables and even harder on a group of unsuspecting high schoolers in this hilarious sketch. And this is what happens when you play 'Grammar Nazi' with your teacher!

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Sorry! You have failed!

Stupid lasts forever

You're in trouble!

Image via Student-Tutor FB page

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E=MC2

Best classroom April Fools prank ever

A group of students decided to prank their instructor, after he established a policy that if a student’s phone rings during class, he or she must answer it on speakerphone, no matter the consequences. The best part of the prank is the professor’s reaction.

 

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The origins of April Fools Day

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March in review

March was a great month for Teaching@PineTree. We've had international celebrations, school events, the Oscars, inspirational moments, fun cartoons and ELT suggestions. We've started the month with the Shrove Tuesday, otherwise known as Pancake Day, Pi-Day, St. Patrick's Day, the arrival of spring and Happiness Day. At our school, we've had the first ever Color Run and the 'Semana da Leitura', with reading activities and theatre plays. 

March was also the month of the Oscars. We've suggested teaching resources on film literacy, two inspirational moments by two of this year's awarded actors, Your dreams are valid and Be creative, work hard and do something special. To finish the topic 2014 Oscars, The most retweeted selfie ever.

The English language was not forgotten: What is a G-check? and What does 24/7 stand for?. And neither were the younger students, with this delicious 'Pete, the cat'. And because laughing is the best therapy, Are you a typochondriac? and Oh, those Romans.

March has its less pleasant side, as well: it's the month for marking endless piles of tests and the scheduled oral assessments - That time of the year! But it is also a month in which students surprise us with beautiful moments of English fluency: Advertising is.... Last, but not least, two moments to make you think: Why I hate school and Reading is.... 

Dancing zumba at the First Color Run at PineTree

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February 2014 in review

January 2014 in review

It's been two years...

Advertising is...

A student of mine has presented this video in class to express her opinions on marketing and advertising. It was a great moment of oral assessment, as it was so easy to mark her presentation with a 20 (which corresponds to an A in US schools). Fluent speech, American accent, excellent pronunciation of words, wide range of vocabulary... Moments like this make our assessment tasks so easy and so rewarding!... 

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The students' corner

Good thoughts

Plastic

Pete, the cat

A reading of Pete, the Cat from Scholastic with pages. A funny way to practise vocabulary, speaking, listening and reading! To use with younger students! Fantastic!

Author & Reader: Eric Litwin

Art: James Dean

Produced, Engineered, Sound Design: Michael Levine

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The World Peace Game

Usher's ABC song

ESL Games+

Oh, those Romans...

Image via Student-Tutor FB page

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Math & the Alphabet

Math is simple!

Dog math

That time of the year...

Here we are back to the assessments season! I wish the day was longer than 24 hours... So much paperwork ahead of me! Will I ever end marking these piles of tests?

Picture via Google Images 

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Test correction season, AGAIN

Test correction season

Why I hate school

What does '24/7' stand for?

Image via Free ESL Topics

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45 ways to avoid using the word 'very'

What is a G-check?

Spring 2014 & International Day of Happiness

Today is the first day of spring! Fresh buds bloom, animals awaken and the earth seems to come to life again. Farmers and gardeners plant their seeds, and temperatures slowly rise. It's the season for new beginnings. Coincidentally, spring has arrived on the International Day of Happiness promoted by UN. Pharrell Williams has joined the United Nations Foundation to celebrate this day, 'because people everywhere deserve a chance to be happy.' Go to #HAPPYDAY to know more about this project and how you can be part of it. In the meantime, clap along and watch this new version of Pharrell Williams' Happy.

Image via UN Foundation

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Spring and the Holi Festival

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St. Patrick's day 2014

Telegraph presents a selection of St. Patrick's Day celebrations on its online edition. Watch the full gallery HERE. You can also wath the Chicago river turn green for St. Ptrick's Day in THIS article by TIME. To view many other photos and videos from St. Patrick’s day celebrations, check out the Instagram blog. Restrictions on eating and drinking for lent are lifted on this day, adding to the merry St. Paddy's Day atmosphere. A public holiday in Ireland and Northern Ireland, March 17th is also widely celebrated across the world by enthusiastic expats.

Image credits: mandygaga via Instagram

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Happy St. Patrick's Day

'Semana da Leitura' 2014

This week we are celebrating the 'Semana da Leitura' (Reading Week), all along with many schools across the country. From 17th to 21st March, the Portuguese language will be celebrated, and students will have the chance to meet authors, whose books they have already read, declaim poetry and watch /perform plays at the school library. In the foreign language classes, such as English and French, poems/quotes will be read at the beginning of each lesson: 'Our memories of the ocean will linger on, long after our footprints in the sand are gone' is one of the seleted quotes. Books, poetry and plays: it will be a very pleasing week!

Image via ebspinheiro.net

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I wish I was a fisherman

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Sailing the sea

Happy St. Patrick's Day

If you're Irish, today is the day to wear, eat and drink GREEN! St. Patrick's Day is here to remind you the history of the Patron Saint of Ireland, and why there are so many parades around the Irish world! In short, this is a day of celebration for millions worldwide, which involves lots of feasting and celebrations that include traditional Irish music, drinking Guinness and eating bacon and cabbage. Another tradition is one has to wear green clothing or they will be pinched. Green is the national colour of Ireland. Scroll down to the end of this post for more information on the topic! The image credits go to Randy Glasbergen.

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It's Pi Day

Today is Pi Day and Albert Einstein's birthday!...

Image credits: Universal Uclick

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Celebrating Pi Day 3.14

Creativity

What's a G-check?

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Gonna Wanna Ain't

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Why I hate school

... but love Education!

"I Will Not Let An Exam Result Decide My Fate" picks up on the education topic but takes a different stance and angle from "Why I Hate School But Love Education". This poem talks about how we have been made to think about how education and getting university degrees can give us opportunities to have a better chance in making our dream careers a reality. It also touches on how as individuals we are judged and tested by how well we perform on exams, but not all people perform well in exams so why are they made out to feel like they're dumb? The inconsistencies of the education system are really peeled open to reveal a deep problem that needs to be addressed and how society's needs have changed to make this even more apparent.

When it boils down to it, why are we misled into thinking that education is the only way forward for successful means in our work and career lives? We need to open our minds and educate ourselves that exam results aren't the barometer of success and that we can't let them decide our fate. We are in charge of our own destinies!

In Youtube (adapted)

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Stupidity lasts forever

Sorry! You have failed!

Learning is for life

Reading...

Found picture via Grammarly FB page

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Strategies for close reading

Reading is dangerous

Books vs Technology

Are you a typochondriac?

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Are you a phubber?

Using a dictionary