Joseph Kony - the birth of a web star

Source: freepostermaker.com

If Joseph Kony was an anonymous for many now he has the status of a web star ... for the worst reasons - a new model of modern campaigning.
Last Monday, the advocacy group Invisible Children released a 30-minute video as part of a campaign to increase global awareness about the atrocities carried out by Joseph Kony's Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) in Uganda. He is long wanted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court and is now being hunted not only by 100 US Special Forces operators in four African countries but also billions of people aim to make him famous (!?) by spreading the word. Supporters are also encouraged to plaster cities with posters; now, too, the #stopkony Twitter hashtag has a global prominence.
At http://www.kony2012.com/ you can sign the pledge to help the organisation bring Kony to justice in 2012 and watch the video either on Vimeo or here.
In any case, as teachers, why not make part of this campaign? Why not somehow contribute for this world effort while teaching English and new marketing campaigns as well as instilling active citizenship values on a classroom basis? The least we can do, whether we agree with this "Stop Kony" viral video phenomenon or not, is to give it some thought by discussing it in class, right?

Source: header logo, voxy.com

From here you can download the printable content from a kit with material you may find useful and Voxy, described as "a new way to learn English" using current articles from world news, pop culture..., has just published a short article you can read here. By clicking on the highlighted words, you hear them pronounced. There are also questions on the text, its repetition to fill in gaps among other exercises - its surely more relevant and interesting than other stuff :=)

Roald Dahl Day 2011

Roald Dahl Day takes place every year on 13 September, on the birthday of the world's no. 1 storyteller and  this year will be no different: there will be many different celebrations around the UK and the world. As I posted here last year, I still enjoy reading his books and one of my favourites is undoubtedly Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Have a look at the trailer of the most recent film adaptation:

 

Now a curiosity...

Source: roalddahlmuseum.org

During the time Roald Dahl attended Repton School in South Derbyshire from 1930 to 1934 he and his schoolmates were used by Cadbury to taste and rate new products before they went to market.
The school believes this sparked not only the inspiration but also a lifelong love of chocolate culminating in Dahl's world-famous story.
Today it is holding a day of celebrations to mark what would have been the author's 95th birthday. The special day includes a quiz, an assembly about the author and a visit to The Priory, the Repton school house where Dahl lived.
Another curiosity...

Many of Roald Dahl's best loved and unforgettable stories, including Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, and James and the Giant Peach, were written in a small hut at the bottom of his garden in Buckinghamshire. It was built in the 1950's and hasn't been touched since the author's death.
The hut is falling apart and now a fund-raising campaign has been launched to preserve it for future generations. Check here:

http://www.roalddahlmuseum.org/uploads/SAVE%20THE%20HUT%20Press%20release%20FINAL.pdf
However, this can become controversial particularly now in these tough economic times, don't you think? With such a wealthy family which still earns huge royalties from Dahl's classic children's books, is it fair to ask for public fundraising when Sophie Dahl (Dahl's granddaughter) and her husband are wealthy enough to support the expenses? Shouldn't they pay to preserve the family's legacy???

Anyway, as for resources, check here : there is a book description, teaching ideas in / for different topics (art / science / maths...) and useful resources as wordsearches, crosswords,... just browse by category or author; as simple as that!!! By Roald Dahl you'll also find The Twits, George's Marvellous Medicine orThe BFG
Check them out and ... enjoy :))