Blogs.......

1. What is your opinion about using blogs to teach "writing" in EFL classrooms?
I think that this way of teaching is different and profitable.
The students need to have several learning options, because sometimes the routine can be boring.
This via allows to share your ideas and the way of writing that you have, with friends and classmates.
Also it's a good motivational element for students that want to create and to experience new things.
2. Do you like working using blogs?
Yes, I like it very much! Because it was a new experience for me. This way of working heped me to develop my imagination and creativity.
3. What are some of the advantages of using blogs?
-You can check your own crations, and you can comment about the creations of your classmates.
-You can add pictures or images.
- In this space you can mix writing,creation, the personal opinion etc.
4. What are some of the disadvantages?
- we are depending of a program or we are depending of a system, so if the program doesn't work, we can't work in the activities.
- A lot of time in front of a computer can be harmful to our view.
5. Do you plan to use blogs in the future?
I would like to use the blogs with my students, but it depends of the place in which I will be working. If I have the opportunity obviously I will do it.
6. Do you have any suggestions to improve these "lab sessions"? or was everything all right?
I think that the activities were great! Everything was very well organized.
But the time was our main enemy, because sometimes there were many activities that we must do, and the time was short.
However, this experience was fantastic.

The Story Kitchen

Seeing an alien sitting in his treehouse, Brian Lee screamed. So did the alien, seeing Brian.

It opened its mouth, high above its eyes and a high neeeeeek came out. It waved its tentacles high in the air and ran around in circles.

Brian had never scared anything before in his life. He didn't like the feeling. He stopped yelling and climbed all the way into his treehouse and knelt on the wood planks.

"It's okay," he said gently. "I'm sorry I surprised you." The alien slowed, then looked at him carefully, tilting his head. It turned a dial on its shirt, then said, "Earth Boy, I have come to your spaceship to hide. Will you help me?"

"Space ship? This?" Brian asked. "You mean tree house. Sure, I'll help you if I can."

"Tree how-sa," the alien said slowly. "You will help me defeat the Mukows?"

Brian laughed. "Moo cows? You're hiding from the moo cows? Ha, ha. Yeah, I'll save you from the mean, nasty cows. Show me one, and I'll protect you."

The alien jumped up and down, very happy. "Thank you, Earth Boy! You can start now." It pulled Brian over to the window cut in the wooden wall. Brian looked down and his heart stopped. Below them, on the ground, strange creatures were moving. Each one slimed along like a snail, but had a pig snout and one large eye on the top of its head. The creatures came toward the tree, sniffing like dogs.

"What are THOSE?" cried Brian, turning to the alien.

"Mukows," answered the alien. "They have come to take me back."While they were running, the alien was telling to Brian the reasons because Mukows pursued them. The most important reason said the alien, it's when my army went to destroy the place where he lived. Since many years ago, our groups of war have been in problems. By means of this fight, Mukows are without home. I was the leader of the army that attacked them, said the alien. And now, I am pursued.

Please, help me!

They can escape and they arrive in the basement of Brian's house. It's a protected place, said Brian.

Mukows were a lot of time looking for them, but they didn't find them. So, they left, and never more they returned.

Brian told the alien: If you want to stay with me, there isn't problem. I would like to help you and take care of you.

The alien said: Do you want to be my friend?

Brian laughed, and said: I will be your friend and your protector.

The alien never returned to his planet, because he was happy with Brian.

Why is Writing important for an EFL teacher?

I am sure that writing is relevant for an EFL teacher, because it's an important skill that give us many elements to improve the English Language. With writing students can express their feelings, their thoughts and points of view about something. Through this way, teachers can determine which are the weaknesses that have their students at the moment to write. Of course we know that if we have a good writing, we have a good speaking.
What is the best way to teach writing to children? To teenagers? (Provide examples and references)
It's necessary teach writing to children, and teachers need to motivate them. They should prepare dynamic classes, because the students will be delighted to participate. For example: - Activities where students can express their thoughts and then, read them. - Writing essays. - Creating stories of different topics. - And the best way, using the thechnology through blogs, web sites, letters, etc.

The Lady with the Watch

What does she like to do on Saturdays?

She checks the watches around the world.

What is the secret she doesn't want anyone to know?
She is the owner of the time.
What does she think she does well?
She is pretty good to synchronize the time at midnight.
What is she NOT very good at doing?
She doesn't solve technical problems.
What is her favorite memory?
When she received the mission of synchronizing the time around the world.
Why is this watch important to her?
because the watch maintains her active and with energy to complete her difficult mission.
Who is her best friend?
Her best friend is her mother.
What does she want most in the whole world?
She likes to explore the planet earth and their lives.

This girl is very special because she has an important mission, she needs to control the time every night. When she received this task, she was very complicated, but with the help of her mother everything was different.
Her identity is a mystery, but the most important thing is that she is the owner of the time. At midnight She travels around the world, in company of her watch. It is the fuel that maintains her with vitality. She knows the people of the world, and she wants the peace and tranquility for all of them. she has the control of the time, for this reason we are in her hands!

Use your Imagination................

Emily is a smart girl; she is twenty-one years old, and she has a lot of friends because she is an optimistic person, sociable and very happy. However, that day Emily was very sad because she lost an important scholarship in her university. This was the only way to finish her studies of “Literature”. Emily’s mother has been unemployed since last year, and her father died in a terrible accident when she was eighteen years old.

When she knew the results of the scholarship, she was in shock and wanted to be alone. Her friends Simon, Lucas, Mary and Laura were worried because the major desire of Emily was to finish her studies, and that dream will be impossible because she didn´t have money.

After this unhappy moment, Emily pried to God and she asked him a fast and good answer to her problems. The next day she received a letter from the life insurance agency of his father, which contained the money that she needed. She was a woman of strong faith and God responded her request.

Newspaper's Article

Nebraska´s Abandoned Families

It was very difficult to find this article, because all articles were related with the presidential candidacies of USA.
Well I chose this topic because I did not know anything about the state of Nebraska, and I could notice that lawmakers and their decisions have a lot of power in that state. Even I thought that the article was related with the necessity and the pain of some families, and that's interesting for me.

There is a law that "allows parents to surrender unwanted children to the state". "The most incredible, It's that in few months more than two dozen children as old as 17 have been abandoned, because parents say that their children are uncontrollable". This law will be rewritten because the idea is to protect only newborns.
Nebraska needs a change in the justice system, and it needs a good service for all people (women, youngs, babies) that are suffering. Generally the state acts when children have mental dysfunctions, or they have been abused or mistreated, but they need to see facts and then they act.
The main problem is that government spends money trying to take care of these children, but it doesn't try to prevent or to combat the problem. If children have a bad behavior this is because the family has problems that probably can affect them. There are probabilities of that children in the next years will be in prisions as adults.
So this topic is really important to be aware about our families and the function of our society.

This article was taken from: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/05/opinion/05wed3.html?ref=opinion

Two new Words:
Lawmaker: Legislator
Neglect: Fail to care, or fail to do something.

Persona-Poem

Nata.........
sleepy, brave, happy, humble
daughter and friend of Lucia
who loves music, friends and sports
who is afraid of darkness, failure and snakes
who wants to see Jesus, Hillsong in concert and the end of the year
resident of the friendship
.....Carquin