UK CULTURE CLASS

 

A member of the Teacher Training Department of Burlington Books visited our school on Tuesday, 15th March and gave the students of ESO an inspiring Culture Class about the UK. In the four sessions we learnt lots of interesting facts about this country.

The editorial has been offering these entertaining talks since February 2011 when Luke Roberts first came to our school exhibiting his typical British humour. He came back in May 2016 and he was  brilliant as usual. The following year he was replaced by the lovely American Tammy, who gave us several talks, in June and November 2017 and three years later in November 2020. Tammy gave really interesting talks about USA, UK and about a variety of English-speaking countries around the world.

This time we counted on a new performer, Damien Sheehy, to entertain and hold the attention of our young audience. This Irishman was full of beans and captivated us all with his energy and powerful voice, so we honestly enjoyed the experience.

The students who were challenged to reply to questions related to the UK culture were rewarded with a gift, the traditional limited-edition Burlingtonbooks ballpen.

We look forward to the next culture class.

We are truly grateful to the editorial for their support.

AROUND THE ENGLISH-SPEAKING WORLD

 

On Wednesday 4th November, despite all  the restrictions that keep us confined to our classrooms, sitting apart  in order to keep the required safety social distance, and wearing our masks, which are now our daily uniform, we welcomed Tammy to IES Bergidum Flavium. She lives in Galicia, but she was born in USA. I guess some of you still remember her because this is not her first visit. Tammy is a Burlington English trainer and she came to our school to give us a Culture Talk in 2017, especifically on 6th June.

It was only three years ago, yet the situation was quite different.  What academic year were you in? You were three years younger and since then things have changed a lot. Back then, another visitor was also here. Do you remember Andee Kaluzna, the American volunteer from Illinois? She spent the third term with us, just like Elizabeth from Arizona had done in the second term. Well, am I getting nostalgic? Perhaps it’s because these teachers opened a window to the outside world, which is not so easy these days with the mobility restrictions. We are in a State of Alarm and  although we are not on lockdown, at least not yet, we are under nighttime curfew, so we don’t feel quite at ease. We know we are not alone in our villages and English is a wonderful tool that enables us to communicate with people worldwide. The pandemic may give us a feeling of isolation, but on the other hand, it makes us well aware of how all human beings are connected and affected by the same problems. Therefore, let’s take advantage of this universal language. Let’s learn English so that all together, regardless of the country where we were born, can come out with brilliant ideas that help us work out solutions to the current issues. Learn and share your knowledge, you will need it in the future. It’s in our power to make a better world and it’s also our responsibility.

Tammy gave the students in the first year of Bachillerato a humorous but informative talk on some cultural and linguistic curiosities. She took us on a trip Around the English-Speaking World and we stopped off at different countries such as England, Scotland, Ireland, USA, Australia and South Africa. 

Just to give an example, we learned that Prince Charles is not a hare, but the heir to the British throne, though he might be thrown to the air by his son with no hair. Gosh, I think I’m putting my foot in it. Anyway, Tammy was delighted to see the students were knowledgeable about the English-speaking countries and she is looking forward to coming back next year. The next day she sent the students a few questions to check they had been paying attention during her talk. But had they? Yes, of course. The students are willing to learn. What about you? Do you know the answers to the following questions? If you don’t know you could ask your teacher.

1. Who is the heir to the British throne?

2. What is the most common Royal Family souvenir?

3. What is the name of the Roman wall between England and Scotland?

4. Which plant is the national symbol of Scotland?

5. What did New York use to be called?

6. How do you say ‘torch’ in American English?

7. What is an Irish Hooley?

8. Which two animals are on the Australian coat of arms?

9. In Australian English, what is a ‘dunny’?

10. Which language does the word ‘trekking’ originally come from?

Hopefully, you will find some curious facts.

CULTURAL TALKS

On Tuesday, 28th November 2017, students of 1º ESO and 3º ESO attended the talk about the United Kingdom. It was not the first time Tammy came to our school, so the students remembered her from last year and she had not forgotten them either. The students enjoyed the presentation and took part in the quizz and contest about British culture. Some of them were given the superb limited -edition pens provided by the editorial. 

We had a really good time learning about typical British food and cultural curiosities. We even learned to pronounce  the longest toponym in the world, Llanfair­pwllgwyngyll­gogery­chwyrn­drobwll­llan­tysilio­gogo­goch, a town which is located in Wales. Thanks Tammy for your entertaining talk and we hope to see you next year.

CULTURE TALKS: USA

Tammy is from New Jersey, near New York, but now she lives in A Coruña. She has lived in Spain for five years. She works for the editorial Burlington Books and she travels far and wide to give cultural talks to the students. 

On Tuesday, June 6th she came to our school to check if the students still remembered what they had learned about USA, but did they?

Well, someone thought that Donald Trump was the first president of US! No way! He's the 45th! George Washington would turn in his grave if he knew. Also, many students confused sons to mean children and they said that Barack Obama has got two sons. It is true that he has got two children, but they are daughters.
It is said that USA and Britain are two countries divided by the same language. Tammy gave examples of words that are used in American English that are different in British English, such as underpants / pants, elevator / lift, French fries / chips, trunk / boot, cookies / biscuits.
Tammy also told us about an incredible woman from Nebraska, Molly Schuyler, who holds the record for eating around 6 kilos of steak, three baked potatoes, three side salads, three rolls and three shrimp cocktails in just twenty minutes and she only weighs 55 kilos. Her competitors were green with envy. How does she do it?
Tammy reminded us about the pilgrims that came to the New World on the Mayflower and that they celebrated the first Thanksgiving dinner with the Native Americans that helped them survive the first winter. She ended up with the the quiz "Who wants to be a millionaire?"

 

The smart ones received the unique, limited edition, state-of-the-art writing machines. I hope they will use them to write top mark tests. Let's hope for the best...!

Thank you Tammy for your entertaining talk.