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World Book and Copyright Day

Today's Google Doodle: St George's Day

23rd April marks different observances. It's St George's Day, England's National Day, as well as the anniversary of the birth and death of famous writers such as Miguel de Cervantes and William Shakespeare.        

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For this reason,UNESCO chose this date to pay tribute to books, authors and copyright laws that protect them.
Therefore, to promote reading among all age groups, a range of activities usually take place worldwide which include reading alouds, the distribution of bookmarks, announcement of literary prize winners, ...

guardian.co.uk

What about you, yes, have you discovered the pleasure of reading? How? When?
What are you currently reading? What do you recommend? How do you read, in other words, would you rather read physical books or digital ones?
If willing to read more about the importance of reading, take a peek to see previous articles
http://issuu.com/teacheralex/docs/the_importance_of_reading_def_p_issuu_nov_2011/1
http://issuu.com/teacheralex/docs/reading_challenge_in_l2_-_part_1/1
and former blogposts with many different suggestions on reading and reading sources.
Happy Reading, y'all!

WORLD BOOK and COPYRIGHT DAY

An updated version of Shakespeare's dilemma...

"In all formats, books embody ideas and values considered by men and women to be worth passing on. They are valuable tools for knowledge-sharing, mutual understanding and openness to others and to the world."

Irina Bokova
Message for World Book and Copyright Day
23 April 2012

 

World Book and Copyright Day (also known as International Day of the Book or World Book Days) is a yearly event on 23 April, organized by UNESCO, to pay a world-wide tribute to books and authors on this date, encouraging everyone, and in particular young people, to discover the pleasure of reading and gain a renewed respect for the irreplaceable contributions of those who have furthered the social and cultural progress of humanity.
The Day was first celebrated in 1995 and in 2012 the UK World Book Day was celebrated on March 1, 2012.
World Book Day was celebrated for the first time on April 23. The connection between 23 April and books was first made in 1923 by booksellers in Spain as a way to honour the author Miguel de Cervantes who died on that day. In 1995, UNESCO decided that the World Book and Copyright Day would be celebrated on this date because of the Catalonian festival and because the date is also the anniversary of the birth and death of William Shakespeare and the death of Miguel de Cervantes, among others.

from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Book_and_Copyright_Day and
http://www.un.org/en/events/bookday/

So, Happy Birthday Shakespeare!!! Watch and enjoy artists and athletes read a famous Shakespeare passage:

For more info, please check http://festival.london2012.com/
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history
http://www.history.com/news/2011/10/24/10-things-you-didnt-know-about-william-shakespeare/?cmpid=INT_Outbrain_HITH_HIS&obref=obnetwork
...
or my latest resource, a webquest on the English Bard at http://zunal.com/webquest.php?w=145126 and the worksheets at http://issuu.com/teacheralex/docs/handout_webquest__april2012

Shakespeare Pelas Barbas

http://www.oteatrao.com/

Chandos portrait by J. Taylor(?)

Last Thursday April 12th, I took a group of students to Coimbra for the theatre play "Shakespeare pelas Barbas". It was great fun - the performance as well as the outing, mainly because some of the students had already complained they spent too much time at school (?). In the end, it was even more rewarding as our students had the chance to chat with the actors and actresses on stage.
Anyway, this 1-hour play contains several references to Shakespeare's plays and characters, and to the present time. In order to give my students some insight into the Bard / William Shakespeare's world and works, I designed a webquest (an inquiry-oriented lesson format in which most or all the information that learners work with comes from the web) you can find here. In my ISSUU shelf above, there is also a worksheet on this.
Now some pictures:

Our thanks to O Teatrão.