Boxing Day...

Sunday 26 December 2010

Boxing Day  is a bank or public holiday that occurs on 26 December and is observed in Australia, Austria, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and in some Commonwealth nations that have a mainly Christian population.

On this day, generally, the excess goods to countless shopping goes into liquidation, being sold at prices significantly lower than the original prices. It is one of the busiest days in total sales, trade of many countries, notably Canada and the United States.

In Britain, Boxing Day is a special day is also a commemorative date in relation to football. There is a full round of all their championships this day.

I hope you all enjoy.....

Hugo Queiros

 

Merry Xmas

Wednesday 22 December 2010

I wish all my students and their families a Wonderful Xmas and all the best for the New Year

Gender Equality

Monday 6 December 2010

More equality between men and women in labor, employment and professional training.

More conciliation of professional, family and personal life for women, therefore more flexible working hour.

More shared parenting.

Article 23.Tthe universal declaration of human rights.

 Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.

Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.

I hope you all enjoy...and think about this topic
Hugo Queiros

Imagine...

Saturday 27 November 2010

Once we’ve been talking about equality and the importance of the Human Rights in our society, I decided to post this video. Dance is my favorite expression of art and I think that through it we can catch people’s attention to social problems and to cultural discrimination. This routine was created by Mia Michaels, my favorite contemporary choreographer. The movement her dance pieces portray is breathtaking because we feel like we are part of the story the dancers are exposing. I honestly love it!
This video is from the American version of So You Think You Can Dance? (SYTYCD), one of my shows of election. The world has definitely amazing talents, as you’ll see.
I believe everyone knows this song but pay attention to the lyrics.

"Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man.
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world..."



I hope you like it!
Daniela

The meaning of life

Monday 15 November 2010

American History X

Wednesday 10 November 2010

“American history X” is a Drama. The premiere was in 30 October, 1998.

Main characters: Derek Vinyard (Edward Norton) and Danny Vinyard (Edward Furlong).

   Derek is a skinhead that hates different people. He is a violent man that learned some of his theories with his father, a policeman that  had a story to tell everyday mostly about crimes of black people. The death of his father made  the situation worse and one day, Derek kills a black guy and goes to prison where he felt alone.
   While Derek is in prison, his brother Danny is learning the ideas and theories of skinheads, to follow the example of Derek.
   Derek goes to work in prison with a partner, a black guy, called Lamont.
He recognizes the reality, how other people feel when they are discriminated. He feels worse when he wonders if he will be able to save his younger brother from this.
 

***

I chose this film, because it represents a reality in the world. We can see real problems such as racism, discrimination, emigration and violence. A shocking film, with an important message for all of us.

With Derek Vinyard in "American History X", Edward Norton earned a nomination for Academy Award for Best Actor.

Raquel Valente, 12ºC

Animal testing

Monday 8 November 2010

Animal testing is the use of non-human animals in experiments.
94%of animal testing is done to determine the safety of cosmetics and household products leaving only 6% for medical reseach!
It has been proven that there is already enough existing safety data, as well as in vitro alternatives to make animal testing for cosmetics and household products even more unnecessary and unethical.
To help  go to www.peta.com
made by: Giselda Bica num 11 from 12 B

        Cinema 

Cinema includes the technique of projecting images to create the impression of movement and it is as well as an art and a film industry. The films are produced by recording images of the world with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects.The cinema is considered to be an important form of art, a source of popular entertainment and a powerful method for educating citizens. 

There are many types of films such as action, animation,adventure, comedy, documentary, Drama, Fantasy, Musical, Romance, Horror or Suspense.

After knowing the most important facts of Cinema, I decided to name one film: my favourite film. The film is named " Memoirs of a Geisha" from Arthur Golden. First it appeared as a Book and then it was adapted to film. It is told in the  first person  by Sayuri Nitta, a retired Geisha. She is interviewed by Jakob Haarhuis, a professor at New York University. The story is told in flashback format and it makes many references to the time between Sayuri's carrer and the time she is being interviewed. She explains the different aspects of being a Geisha and how their live their lifes. For those who don't know what a Geisha is,  Geishas ( or Geiko or Geigi) are traditional female Japanese entertainers whose skills include performing various Japanese traditions such as classical music and dance. 

Well, here is a little trailer about the film for those who became/may be interested.

I chose this film for two reasons: first, and as I have  mentioned before, it is my favourite movie and second, it portrays something about the culture of one of my favorite countries: Japan. 

by: Vânia Amaral 12ºC

Music

  

"There is no noise, only sound." (John Cage, 20th-century composer)

Music is a form of art form whose medium is sound. The word derives from the Greek word – Mousike – which means: ‘(art) of the Muses’. It’s also one of the Performing Arts; the others being dance, opera, drama, magic, spoken word and circus and it’s divided into 8 genres: Drama, Tragedy, Comedy, Tragicomedy, Romance, Satire, Epic and Lyric.

 

Music is originated from the Paleolithic era, commonly known as the Stone Age, which dates back roughly to 2.6 to 2.5 million years ago even thought the ‘age’ of music can be determined fairly easily, the culture from which it was originated can’t. It’s estimated that is originated from Asia, more specifically China, where it was found one of the earliest and oldest collections of prehistoric musical instruments, dating back from between 7000 and 6600 BC.

 

Roughly until the beginning of the Renaissance music (1300 – 1470), music was used as a form of a complement in plays, poems and stories. It was during this time that music as a true form of art was made, it was also the catalyst to the musical compositions and the Baroque music. It was during this period that classical music was born.

Music was a bit unchanged until the middle of the 20th century, when the forms of commercial music was formed with the aid of the Radio era. Many more styles of music were born, such as the blues, jazz, rock, etc. This styles and, more recently called, genres still live today but much of the music it’s used commercially.

"The border between music and noise is always culturally defined. By all accounts there is no single and intercultural universal concept defining what music might be." (Jean-Jacques Nattiez, musicologist)




Andreia Pinto, nº 3

Sunday 7 November 2010

Gorillaz is a virtual band of comic book characters that was created in 1998 by two British, the Musician Albarn Damon and the cartoonist Jamie Hewlett.

The idea to create Gorillaz appeared while both creators were watching MTV and they thought that there was no substance there.

Jamie Hewlett(left) and Albarn Damon(right)

The Virtual band is composed by four characters: 2D(Vocals, keyboard), Murdoc Niccals( bass guitar), Noodle(guitar, vocal, keyboard) and Russel Hobbs( drums an percussion). The band's story is explored through the website and music videos.

(Noodle, 2D, Russel and Murdoc)

The music is a collaboration between multiple musicians, however Albarn is the only permanent member.

The style of the band is a variety of musical genres with a great number of influences like hip hop, alternative rock and electric.

(Snoop Dogg)

(DE La Soul)

(Little Dragon)

The band entered the Guiness Book of World Records as the Most Successful Virtual Band(2001) and they also achieved innumerable music awards( Mercury Prize in 2001, five times platinum with Demon Days Album in 2005, Grammy Award nominations and the Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals).

Some music videos:

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

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f16k4xaaw94

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

Miguel Pedro

Gorillaz

Art

Friday 5 November 2010

I was born and grew up surrounded by an atmosphere of theater. I am passionate by any kind of play, wether it is drama, comedy, musical or any other type. That's why I've chosen this theme. I've chosen art and, as a subtheme, I've chosen theater. I know that nowadays, people think that watching a play is boring and a waste of time. Let me tell you that you're wrong. Watching a good play, with a great plot and good actors, is a cross ??of feelings that you can't imagine.


It's an old art, the first recorded theatrical event is from 2500 BC in Egypt. It is a complex job build / To build a  play and to present it to an audience, anxious to see a piece of art, is a complex job.
Enjoy a good moment from a play, a musical called Jesus Christ Superstar that was presented in Porto and was directed by Filipe Lá Féria. It's one of my favorite parts from this musical that I saw, perhaps, three or four times ;D


 
Ana Pereira

Religion

Religion is the belief in and worship of a god or gods, or a set of beliefs concerning the origin and purpose of the universe.
Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories associated with their deity or deities, that are intended to give meaning to life. They tend to derive morality, ethics, religious laws or a preferred lifestyle from their ideas about the cosmos and human nature.

Judaism is the oldest Abraham religion, originating in the people of ancient Israel and Judea. Judaism is based primarily on the Torah, a text which Jews believe was handed down to the people of Israel through the prophet Moses in 1,400 BCE. Judaism today is practised by about 13 million people, with about 40 per cent living in Israel and 40 per cent in the United States.

Christianity is based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth (1st century) as presented in the New Testament. The Christian faith is essentially faith in Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God, and as Savior and Lord. Almost all Christians believe in the Trinity, which teaches the unity of Father, Son (Jesus Christ), and Holy Spirit as three persons in one Godhead.

 Catholic Church, headed by the Pope in Rome.

 Protestantism, separated from the Catholic Church in the 16th-century Reformation and split in many denominations.

 Eastern Christianity which include Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and the Church of the East.

Islam refers to the religion taught by the Islamic prophet Muhammad, a major political and religious figure of the 7th century CE. As with Christianity, there is no single orthodoxy in Islam but a multitude of traditions which are generally categorized as Sunni and Shia, although there are other minor groups as well.

Buddhism was founded by Siddhartha Gotama in the 6th century BCE. Buddhists generally agree that Gotama aimed to help sentient beings end their suffering by understanding the true nature of phenomena, thereby escaping the cycle of suffering and rebirth, that is, achieving Nirvana.                   

I hope you all enjoy...

Hugo Queiros

The living will

Someone once told me that everything we do, as individuals and as citizens, is politics. So, I decided to choose a topic that has been intensely discussed in the Assembly.


The living will is an advance health care directive in which the instructions for treatment of an individual are written, specifying what actions should be taken in his/her behalf when he/she is no longer able to make decisions due to illness or incapacity.

It was created in response to the increasing medical technology and also because studies diagnosed many problems related to the medical care of the dying. Besides, aggressive medical interventions leave millions of people confined to nursing homes. Others only survive through the use of feeding tubes and some are kept alive in permanently vegetative state.

A living will must portray the wishes of the patient and it should be constantly updated. It is only used if the individual has become unable to give informed consent about his state.

As a health directive it brings ethical issues related to the power and freedom of will and values related with the relationship between the patient and the (responsibility of the) doctor, and also the wishes of the loved ones.

I hope you like it. Daniela :)

Future life

We can only have some ideas but we don’t know for sure how  life will be. We can only base ourselves in what we see know, and in what we do and think now.

In the future people will be more careful with the environment?

 Will theyrecycle?

Will they  fight for peace?

Or make war for resources?

Will people  be richer?

Or only a few will have everything?

Technologies will help us?

Or  will we become more independent?

What can we expect?

Maybe a completely different world where things will be more fair. Where the wealth and resources of the world will be very well distributed.

Or a world with lots of conflicts. Let’s find out . . .

Some of the areas affected by future technologies will be:

- robotics;



- transports;

- health;

- army equipment;

And a lot more.

Diogo 12ºA nº9

How to deal with this topic changes from person to person because everyone has their idea of what the future will be.

Our future life is very uncertain.

We imagine ourselves in a world with lots of robots, flying cars and with almost 200 years and full of energy because of the development of medicine, remedies and technologies.

Thursday 4 November 2010

I found this video and I loved the music and the message that it brings to us. I think that it shows us that we are unique and everyone is special in his own way. We are brothers and we shouldn't discriminate anyone.

Just look at the video and listen to the music and you will feel like a firework.

Enjoy (;

 
Ana Pereira

an ex student of teacher Ligia Silvia

Wednesday 27 October 2010

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_azV_82gsA

from your best student, Claudia Carvalho

Moments

Saturday 23 October 2010

‎"When I will be with you at the end of the day, you will see my scars, then you will know that I was hurted and I was also healed."

 

 

 

António Moreira

MTV Exit and Muse against Human traffic

Saturday 16 October 2010

As you all know I am a big fan of MTV’s commercials. Not only are they fun as they also have a very strong message about a lot of important social issues such as discrimination, human traffic, poverty, sex, war, disease, environment, politics and education. This time MUSE and MTV Exit get together to produce this amazing awareness music video.

"Some things cost more than you realise"

I hope you like it :)

Daniela

Discovering Ghana

Thursday 14 October 2010

Searching for an English speaking country is, indeed, a very hard task. I could have never imagined in how many countries English is an official language. In the end I chose Ghana. The Republic of Ghana is a West African country. It caught my attention because the word Ghana means “Warrior King”.

Independence Arch

Ghana was one of the British colonies but the country asserted its complete independence in 1960. The Portuguese people came to Ghana in the 15th century because of the extensive availability of gold.

Its flag has the colors red, gold, green and a black star. The red represents the blood that was shed towards independence, the gold represents the mineral wealth of Ghana, the green symbolizes the rich agriculture and the black star is the symbol of African emancipation.


Although Ghana has twice the per capita output of the poorer countries in West Africa, it remains dependent on trade and international assistance and its population lives below the international poverty line. This kind of phenomenon only happens because the economic growth doesn’t necessarily means human development. Nevertheless Ghana has amazing landscapes.

Ghana is an ethnically diverse country which is evident through its cuisine, arts and clothing. Ghana is also well-known by its sports. While men’s football is the most widely followed sport, the national women’s team, the Black Queens, is gaining exposure.

I hope you have learnt something about this country :)
Daniela

 

Nigeria

Nigeria

The Federal Republic of Nigeria, mostly known as Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising thirty-six states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. There are three large and influential ethnic groups in Nigeria: the Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba and in terms of religion Nigeria is roughly split half and half between Muslims and Christians with a very small minority who practices traditional religion.(what is this traditional religion?)

Portuguese explorers were the first Europeans to begin trade in Nigeria; the Europeans traded with the ethnicities of the coast and also negotiated a trade in slaves, to the detriment and profit of many Nigerian ethnicities. Slavery was finally outlawed in northern Nigeria in 1936.

On January 1, 1901 Nigeria became part of the British Empire; many wars against subjugation had been fought by the states of what later became Nigeria against the British Empire in the late 19th and early 20th century.

In 1914, the Niger area was formally united as the Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria. Administratively, Nigeria remained divided into the northern and southern provinces and Lagos colony. Western education and the development of a modern economy proceeded more rapidly in the south than in the north, with consequences felt in Nigeria's political life ever since. The unification became the beginning of Nigeria’s independence which was declared and recognized on October the 1st of 1960 and on its third anniversary it became a republic.

Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa, the eighth most populous country in the world and the most populous country in the world in which the majority of the population is black. It is listed among the "Next Eleven" economies (the “Nest Eleven” economies consists of 11 countries that are considered to have the high potential of becoming the world's largest economies in the 21st century) and is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. Nigeria as only one official language: English, even though it is estimated that there are more that 500 languages spoken in the country. It’s also the third country with more native speakers of English.

Andreia Pinto

The Bahamas

Wednesday 13 October 2010

Search of one country with english as a foreign language?.
Country: The Bahamas

The Bahamas is an North American country, where the official language is English.


In 1942 Christopher Columbus set out to explore the New World. That’s when he arrived to San Salvador, one of the islands of the Bahamas. After he observed how plain the ocean was in there he said “baja mar”, and that’s when the islands where called “The Bahamas”.

This islands are mainly famous because of the “Age of the Piracy”. The most well known pirates were Edward Teach (Barba Negra) and Francis Drake. History says that in their travels they hide/hid in the Bahamas, and they stay? (present?) there until they are strong enough to come back to the ocean.

The Bahamas have more than 700 islands, so it become a great place to hide treasures. A lot of ships full of gold sink ? around there.

Many histories about pirates and their adventures give some mystic to the Bahamas.

One of the most interesting traditions of these islands is that the crowd /people from the Bahamas still use plants as a cure for many diseases. It’s a tradition that African slavers bring to this (plural) people.

By Cláudia Carvalho 12ºA

The Commonwealth

The Commonwealth of Nations,, is an intergovernmental organization of fifty-five independent member states. The Commonwealth was first officially formed in 1931.

The member states co-operate within a framework of common values and goals as outlined in the Singapore Declaration.

These include the promotion of democracy, human rights, good governance, the rule of law, individual liberty, egalitarianism, free trade, multilateralism and world peace.

The symbol of their free association is the Head of the Commonwealth, which is a ceremonial position currently held by Queen Elizabeth II.

Some members; United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Jamaica...
These countries have in common are all former colonies of the British Empire.

I hope you all enjoy!

Hugo Queiros

Australia....

Australia ,officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.

On 1 January 1901, the six colonies became a federation and the Commonwealth of Australia. Australia ranks highly in many international comparisons of national performance such as human development, quality of life, health care, life expectancy, public education, economic freedom and the protection of civil liberties and political rights.

Australia continued to recognize the monarch of United Kingdom as head of state. Because of the continent's great age, extremely variable weather patterns, and long-term geographic isolation, much of Australia's biota is unique and diverse. About 85% of flowering plants, 84% of mammals, more than 45% of birds, and 89% of in-shore, temperate-zone fish are endemic. Australia has the greatest number of reptiles of any country, with 755 species.

 

Hugo Queiros

All Blacks

Sport has a major role in New Zealand's culture, with the unofficial national sport of rugby union being particularly influential.

Rugby union, commonly referred to as rugby, is closely linked to the country's national identity. The All Blacks represent New Zealand in rugby union, which is regarded as the country's national sport. They won the inaugural Rugby World Cup, are the leading points scorers of all time and the only international rugby team with a winning record against every test nation they have ever played. They have the highest win ratio of 75 percent and rank as the number one team in the world for the most period of time in IRB World Rankings. Only 5 of the top 20 ranked rugby union test nations have ever beaten New Zealand in over 100 years of international competition. 

The All Blacks perform a haka (Māori challenge) before each international match. The haka has been closely associated with New Zealand rugby ever since a tour of New South Wales in 1884. The New Zealand native team that toured Britain in 1889/89 used Ake Ake Kia Kaha and the 1903 team in Australia used a mocking haka, Tupoto koe, Kangaru!. The 1905 All Blacks began the tradition of using Ka Mate and by 1914 this was firmly established as part of New Zealand rugby. The 1924 All Blacks used a specially composed haka Kia Whaka-ngawari, but later All Blacks reverted back to Ka Mate.

Miguel Amaral

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean. It is composed by two main Islands (the North Island and the South Island), and numerous smaller islands, most notably Steward Island/Rakiura and the Chatam Islands. The indigenous Māori language¹ name for New Zealand is Aotearoa , commonly translated as land of the long white cloud. The Realm of New Zealand also includes the Cook Islands and Niue (self-governing but in free association); Tokelau; and the Ross Dependency (New Zealand's territorial claim in Antarctida). New Zealand’s capital city is Wellington and it is located south of North Island.

New Zealand is notable for its geographic isolation: it is situated about 2,000 kilometres (1,200 miles) southeast of Australia across the Tasman Sea. During its long isolation New Zealand developed a distinctive fauna dominated by birds, a number of which became extinct after the arrival of humans and the mammals they introduced.

The majority of New Zealand's population is of European descendent; the indigenous Māori are the largest minority. Asians and non-Māori Polynesians are also significant minority groups, especially in urban areas.

The most commonly spoken language is English but they also speak Māori.

New Zealand is a developed country that ranks highly in international comparisons on many topics, including education,  economic freedom and lack of corruption. Its cities also consistently rank among the world's most liveable.

Elizabeth II, as the Queen of New Zealand, is the country's head of state.

¹ Māori or te reo Māori is the language of the indigenous population of New Zealand, the Māori, where it has the status of an official language.

Miguel Amaral

Canada

Canada is by most known by it's Red and white flag with the maple leaf on the center. The national anthem is "O Canada", the motto is " From sea to sea", it's capital is Ottawa and the prime minister is Stephen Harper.

Canada is also the second largest country in the world, it has a population of about 34 000 000 and there are six time zones!

Canada is located in the North American continent and it's surrounded by the United States of America (south) and three oceans, the Pacific (west), the Atlantic (east) and the Arctic (north).

Canada has the longest coastline, about one fourth of all fresh water and one tenth of forests of the world.

Mount Logan is the tallest mountain and Mackenzie River is the country's largest River.

The first residents were Aboriginal people but Canada was named by the French explorer Jacques Cartier and the name "Canada" becomes/ comes from the word "kanata" that means Village (in a native language).

Nowadays about 77 per cent of Canadians live in cities and towns, in the southern part of Canada, like Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver that are also the largest cities.

Canadian's main sports are Ice hockey and Lacrosse (as the summer sport).

Canadians invented bowling, basketball and the the useful snowmobile.

        Canada National tower or CN tower in 2006 had the title of world's tallest building with 553 meters.

Miguel Pedro

South Africa

Tuesday 12 October 2010

The Rainbow Nation

A wide variety of cultures, languages and religious beliefs make up the South Africa’s population, 47 million people.

Eleven official languages are recognized in the constitution. Two of these languages descend from Europe dialects: Afrikaans, which was originated mainly from Dutch, is spoken by the majority of both white and colored South Africans, and South African English which descends from British. Though English has a large role in public and commercial life, it is nevertheless only the fifth most spoken language.

South Africa is ruled by a Constitutional Democracy, which doesn’t mean social development. A quarter of the population is unemployed and lives on less than US $1.25, and two quarters are non official employers. Poverty, racism, illiteracy and lack of health care institutions, are some of the problems that contribute to the human rights decadence.

Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, the Nobel Peace, was the major fighter against the Apartheid Regime that denies politic, social, and economic rights to the colored Community. Both Color and White Communities had different hospitals, different schools, different restaurants, even different toilets. As a consequence of his aims, Nelson Mandela faced the same cell for over 27 years. In the end he was successful and has created the foundation for the today’s community companionship in South Africa. With the support of several NGOs this balance is being sustained.

They find similarities, they start to accept their one differences, costumes and beliefs. For instance, the most amazing example of mutual cooperation  in South Africa is sport. Transcending race, politics or language groups, sport unites the country, giving them self-confidence, making them believe. 



by: António 12ºA

Jamaica

Jamaica is an island in the Caribbean sea with 234 km from east to west, and 80 km from north to south. Its capital is Kingston.

Jamaica was discovered by Spain (Cristovão Colombo) in 1494. Colombo used it as his family's private property. The British conquered it in 1670.

During the first 200 years of British rule, Jamaica became the largest exporter of sugar, which was achieved through massive use of African slave labour.

In 1838 the slaves made a revolt and slavery was abolished.
The head of state of Jamaica's Queen Isabel II of the United Kingdom.

Jamaica is divided into 14 parishes, which are grouped into 3 counties:

- Cornwall;

- Middlesex;

- Surrey.

Religion is very important in Jamaica but there is one very important religion that has its origins in Jamaica: spiritualism or rastafari.

Diogo