And the Oscar goes to...

The Academy Awards Ceremony last night at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles had plenty of surprises in store but, nevertheless, the greatest winners were expected.
Yes, "The King's Speech" won a total of 4 Oscars:  for Best Picture, Best Actor, Original Screenplay and for Directing.
Have a look at this. Here you'll find stunning opening montages for the several moments at the Oscar ceremony starting with the co-hosts - Anne Hathaway and James Franco. It's also packed with celebrity pictures ;) It is very well done!

I told you in previous blogposts how much I had appreciated "The King's Speech" and therefore decided to read something more about it - about the real King George VI, speech therapy, about stuttering and came across loads of information, really.

The exact causes of stuttering remain mysterious though many suggest it is connected with neurological problems. In this case, in "The King's Speech", we become aware that Bertie was left-handed and forced to use his right hand and also that from an early age he was forced to wear corrective splints for his knees. He was not born that way; he started stuttering around 4 / 5.
Stuttering though hasn't stopped George VI from becoming a king or some of the biggest names in many areas. If you click here, besides finding help for those who suffer from stuttering or have to deal with stutterers (including parents and teachers), you'll find famous people who have overcome stutter. The fallen golfer, Tiger Woods, overcame a childhood stutter; Marilyn Monroe, Charles Darwin and Lewis Carroll are among the many who had stutters. Please have a look:

It was indeed a royal night for stutterers at the Oscars with "The King's Speech". David Seidler, now 73 and a man who overcame a debilitating stutter as a child, put it nicely while accepting his Oscar on behalf of all the stutterers in the world: "We have a voice. We have been heard".

THE great KING'S SPEECH

Two days ago, a group of 25 comprised of adult learners, teachers as well as four teens went to the movies for "The King's Speech", the true story of King George VI's effort to overcome his pronounced stutter. As far as I am concerned, I found the film excellent and would strongly recommend it to all teachers of English and teens.

The film starts in 1925 with Bertie (family name for Albert) struggling to speak before a crowded arena and a radio audience during the British Empire Exhibition. Painful! Embarrassing! Painful and embarrassing not only for himself but for all those who were listening to him and now for us, too, 2011 viewers. His wife, Elizabeth, worried sick about the fact that her husband might face more public humiliation and after so many failed attempts with renowned speech therapists, desperately seeks out an Australian commoner, Lionel Logue, who has set up a speech therapy practice in London. From their conversations - at this point with Mrs Johnson (Lionel is not yet aware of who they really are) and later with Mr Johnson / Duke of York / Bertie, we have some of the finest aspects of this film for teaching / learning such as the insight given to monarchy and history (though some argue the film is not 100% accurate), details of class distinctions, different levels of language or even clothing - these are amazing fields to explore.

From then on, the film focus on the psychological struggle between Bertie and Lionel, his new speech therapist, on his unorthodox yet successful methods, and on their friendship.  At the same time, it is becoming clearer that, sooner or later, Bertie will have to make more and more public appearances and speeches. Indeed, George V, (Bertie's father) dies, Edward (Bertie's eldest brother) becomes Edward VIII but soon afterwards abdicates "in order to marry the woman I love" and, reluctantly, Bertie becomes George VI.
To have a better idea of the chronology of events depicted in the whole film, have a look:
Oct 31, 1925 - Bertie's / Duke of York's public speech during the London Exhibition
Jan 20, 1936 - death of George V; Edward, George's eldest son and Bertie's brother, becomes Edward VIII
Dec 11, 1936 - abdication of Edward VIII; Bertie becomes George VI
Sep 3, 1939 - "The King's Speech", climax of the film, with Britain entering into war with Germany
(On Feb 6, 1952 George VI dies and his eldest daughter, Elizabeth becomes Elizabeth II, reigning for the last 59 years!)

The final minutes of the movie are...absolutely masterful!
It is now the year of 1939, September 1939 to be more precise. Hitler occupies Poland and the Allies declare war on Germany. King George VI has to make the speech of his life intended to inspire people in the United Kingdom, overseas in the Empire and in the armed forces. As Britain prepares to go to war, this means speaking for a quarter of the Earth's population or more - including Germany! To do this, his family, his speech therapist and friend are by his side (as they have always been). But, besides them, his staff and household are nervous - as I was - and it is painful to watch the king's anxiety as he walks along those long corridors and rooms as if walking towards his death. After panicking with a three page speech of 6 minutes, the king and his speech therapist are alone in a room previously decorated by Lionel who, as always, helps encourage the nervous king saying "Forget everything else and just say it to me - say it to me, as a friend."

Superb! I just loved the whole film but these last moments were really touching with the king delivering a faultless speech.
If you wish to listen to the actual 1939 speech, click here:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/archive/ww2outbreak/7918.shtml
Have a look as well at this collection of picures by LIFE
http://www.life.com/image/first/in-gallery/54991/george-vi-the-reluctant-king?xid=newsletter#index/0

THE KING'S SPEECH

Image Credit: The Stuttering Foundation

A great film, I hope!!!

Directed by Tom Hooper and written by David Seidler, the film stars, among others, Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush and Helena B. Carter who have already been awarded for their extraordinary performances though the ultimate recognition is yet to come: the Oscars!!!

After the death of his father King George V (Michael Gambon) and the scandalous abdication of King Edward VIII (Guy Pearce) to marry an American divorcée, Bertie (Colin Firth) who has suffered from a debilitating speech impediment all his life, is suddenly crowned King George VI of England. With his country on the brink of war and in desperate need of a leader, his wife, Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter), the future Queen Mother, arranges for her husband to see an eccentric speech therapist, Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush). After a rough start, the two delve into an unorthodox course of treatment and eventually form an unbreakable bond. With the support of Logue, his family, his government and Winston Churchill (Timothy Spall), the King will overcome his stammer and deliver a radio-address that inspires his people and unites them in battle.

Based on the true story of King George VI, THE KING'S SPEECH follows the Royal Monarch's quest to find his voice. (Source: http://kingsspeech.com/about.html)

In some days, I'll let you know my feelings and views about the film; just hope adult learners and the participating teachers can also do the same :) By now, let's watch the trailer, shall we?

What about YOU? Have YOU been to the movies yet? Did you like this film nominated for 12 Oscars? If you haven't watched THE KING'S SPEECH yet, are your expectations as high as mine???
I'd love to hear your thoughts...

14th February, VALENTINE'S DAY

Google Doodle for VALENTINE'S DAY

Valentine's Day is one of the most famous celebrations in the world and it is the traditional day for lovers to express their love to each other. Besides the traditional sources such as wikipedia, there are so many others referring to this topic that it is hard to choose from.
Although you already know what my favourites are because I keep using them, here they are:

History Channel has a fabulous video on the history of Valentine's Day. Please have a look:


Besides other videos, written infos and a photo gallery, the site is also featuring stories of couples whose legendary romances changed the course of history - worth reading!

Also worth reading is TIME - it has a VERY comprehensive list of romantic movies, romantic books, songs for lovers or Loners,... you will find there everything you need to know about Valentine's Day and Dating.
BBC published today some good resources which include a video on how to say the world famous "I love you" (and includes incredible images from London!!!), heart idioms,...
If teaching secondary levels / more advanced and not really elementary, there is always cnn. Here you will always find updated news and transcript with discussion questions - today it obviously includes questions but on Valentine's spendings in America that we can then use for comparison to fuel discussion about our own country.
For vocab exercises, have a look, for example, at lanternfish where you'll certainly find something for your students from crosswords to rhymes. At kaboose you will also find good resources which include recipes, coloring pages or games.
Songs and films, poems or paintings are also great to introduce or discuss this topic - as with everything, our great obstacle is... time.
To finish this blogpost, allow me to leave you with one of the greatest poets and poems of all time:

Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer's lease hath all too short a date:
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimmed,
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance, or nature's changing course untrimmed:
But thy eternal summer shall not fade,
Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st,
Nor shall death brag thou wander'st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou grow'st,
   So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see,
   So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.

Sonnet 18, 1609, William Shakespeare

What about you? What are your plans for today?

Wherever you are, whatever you do, have a great St Valentine's Day!

Valentine's Day

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
painting by John Taylor (?)

To-morrow is Saint Valentine's day,
All in the morning betime,
And I a maid at your window,
To be your Valentine.
Then up he rose, and donn'd his clothes,
And dupp'd the chamber-door;
Let in the maid, that out a maid
Never departed more.

—William Shakespeare, Hamlet, Act IV, Scene 5

Safer Internet Day

Nowadays, one way or another, we are all dependent on computers. According to new research, children under five, for example, are more comfortable playing computer games than tying their own shoelaces which is a clear sign that practical skills are increasingly underdeveloped with traditional milestones being replaced by digital ones; the same research also pointed out that less than two in ten of the children surveyed could swim unaided while 23 per cent aged two to five were able to make a call on a mobile phone. This leads us to what is being observed today...

SAFER INTERNET DAY 2011.

As for older ones / teens, are you aware that...
SIX out of every TEN young people who make contact with strangers on the Internet lie about their age? Or that FORTY-THREE per cent have online "friends" they have never met in real life??? More worrying facts, I would say... 

Safer Internet Day is organised by Insafe each year in February to promote safer and more responsible use of online technology and mobile phones, especially amongst children and young people across the world. The topic for 2011 is "digital lives". Have a look at their short video:

Here you have top tips for parents and children about online safety; if you are at the same time a teacher and use the Internet in your classes, do read the article by the telegraph and get acquainted with the SMART rules (Safe. Meeting. Accepting. Reliable. Tell)
Are we sure of what our kids and / or learners are doing when they are online? Are they just browsing??
For further tips and infos, please click on the following links:
http://in.safely.yahoo.com/
http://www.saferinternet.org.uk/

Gulliver's Travels, the movie

On February 2nd off I went to the cinema with a group of 13 teens from 2 CEF classes - you all know what it means, don't you? Ya, right! Not even the schoolboard found it would be a good idea to take them to the movies on my own... so, only one colleague volunteered to come along: teacher Fernanda Rodrigues (thanks for your support, Fernanda!) But, you know... it wasn't that bad, really! The teens were pleased to be able to go to Coimbra, have some time off and watch a 3D film. They didn't disappoint me - quite the opposite: we all had a nice time together and they did exactly what they were told. What's the big deal???? I guess that teachers have to trust them more often, show them that we do care about them. I prepared this outing because they asked me to but I also asked them something in return ;) If they accomplish the tasks they have been assigned, maybe, just maybe, I can plan another afternoon at the cinema, who knows?

Now, as for the movie... they were really excited about it. They found it funny but the funniest of all was having to wear those 3D glasses - EhEhEh - they wouldn't take them off :)
As for myself, well, to tell you the truth,I was disappointed :( I found it full of special effects, especially designed for teens. Having seen Jack Black in other movies (for instance, "School of Rock") with his astonishing comic energy and knowing the original version of "Gulliver's Travels", I was expecting much more from this contemporary recreation of a classic piece of literature. But... that's just my point of view, surely not the teens'!
Now, just for you to have an idea how it was, enjoy this slideshow of my "CEF Travels" :=))))