OUR COLLABORATIVE PROJECT WITH BRAZIL

YOUR OPINION COUNTS!

2009-12-17T18:07:00.015-03:00

We did lots of regular activities connected with language learning this year. We followed a textbook, did exercises in the workbook and you had grammar tests, too!

We also did something different, we worked with the so-called ICTs (Information and Communication Technologies). As regards these tools, you could get in touch with students from La Plata city and interchanged opinions and experiences in two chat sessions. You also opened your own blogs and published interesting posts and last, but not least, you worked together in this blog, answering intelligent questions asked by students from Brazil about our country.

I'd like to have some kind of feedback now. It would be fantastic if you could say, in a few words, what you think about this last experience. You can do it directly here, in this post.

Miss Marina

Hi, people!
My opinion about what we've done during this year is that it has been great.
Marina has showed us that there are many different ways of learning, not just reading books and memorizing theory. This year has been different from the rest, we've communicated with children our age from La Plata and Brazil, and we've exchanged our opinions about some topics. This allowed us not only to speak in English but to learn about other cities and countries.
Apart from this, we have had a great time this year, we've laughed together and we've acted as if we were a big family, so I think this project worthed our effort =)
Well, that's what I think.
Thank you for everything, miss!
I hope to see you next year!

Mariana S.

Hi everybody!
In my opinion working and exchanging ideas, knowledge and information is something different, original and, definitely, great!
Sometimes it was hard to do all the exercises, but, in the end, we realizaed we could learnt even more English than using always a book, thst's why now we are able to describe some parts of the Brazilian culture and new web sites hihihi
I hope this comment is OK, remember we are on holidays and our brains don't work very well
kisses

Irene ♫

This year we had the opportunity to do something different.
Our teacher of bilingual, showed us that Internet is not only a way of entertainment. It´s also a learning tool.
That´s why we created a class blog, and our own blogs; where we could resolve the exercises she gave us and give our opinions about different topics.
Meanwhile, we shared this experienced with pupils from La Plata city and Brazil. We also had the opportunity to chat with La Plata´s students.
To sum up: IT WAS A GREAT EXPERIENCE!!!!!

xoxo
Noelia

In my opinon this project was a very good idea. It was another way to learn English, in this case with a computer, through blogs, other websites and chatting with kids from other schools, instead of using the typical books.

Through this project we could know more about the kids at school in La Plata the thing he likes to do in his spare time, as they're doing in school, they will do on vacation, among other things and the children of Brazil, on where they live, they like to eat and think about football.

The truth I liked a lot and I'd like to do next year.

Best wishes,
MAYRA

Diego and Irene's answers....

2009-11-05T21:21:00.003-03:00

Hi everybody! We are Diego and Irene. We are uploading the answers for the questions you made us. We hope you like them.

When you go out, where do you usually go?

It depends who you are going out with. For example, if Diego goes out with boys they usually go out to ride their bikes. If Irene goes out with girls, she is likely to go to the cinema or get something to eat. But, if they go out all together, they usually meet at a friend’s house at night, see a movie and eat pizza.

What kind of food do you usually eat?

We usually eat all kinds of food. From fast food to the healthiest vegetables. If you ask about our favorite food, Diego would choose sauté rice and Irene, pancakes with milk jam (‘dulce de leche’ in Spanish) inside.

What do you think about Brazilians?

When Irene thinks about Brazilian people, she imagines taned people and sunny beaches everywhere; and Diego thinks about beaches, too, and very very colorful parades at night.

What do you usually watch on TV?

Irene doesn’t watch anything as she isn’t very keen on Tv. Meanwhile Diego likes watching The Simpsons, some animes (Japanese animation) and American series, such as The Mentalist, Mental, Lie To Me, Dr House and Lost.

All the best...

Diego and Irene

ANSWERS to Gabriela and Larissa & Luciana Dantas and André

2009-11-05T20:09:00.012-03:00

To Gabriela and Larissa:

1- Would you like to come to Brazil?

Yes, we think it would be really interesting to visit such a beautiful country as Brazil is.

2- Is soccer in Argentina as popular as it is in Brazil?

Yes, it is. We have had very good players, Lionel Messi, Martin Palermo and Roman Riquelme, for example.

3- Why is meat so popular for lunch?

Meat is far the base of the Argentineans nutrition.

Asado (grilled) is the most typical way to prepare and it is always present when family and friends gather on weekends. Besides the steaks we tend to eat sausage, kidneys, gizzards and innards: the famous mixed grill. As accompaniments: bread and salad.

_____________

To Luciana Dantas and André:

1- What is there to do in spare time?

As we are adolescents, we like going out with friends to cinemas, shopping or we also like going to pubs. We like doing sports too, like playing tennis or handball. Also we like surfing on the internet and chatting by MSN.

2- What kind of national/typical music do you listen to?

We like dancing while listening to reggaeton; and also a bit of national rock music. But, actually, we like listening to foreign music better. The genders we like most are rock&pop.

3- What are the most typical foods?

The most typical foods are: meat, "pasta", "empanada", we had excellent wines, for many people the favorite dessert is ice cream, we made delicious "alfajores", and we usually have breakfast with "facturas"

By Sheila, Mariana A. and Mayra.

2009-11-04T20:53:00.005-03:00

Answers of Brazilian Questions:

1) Do you usually go skiing on vacations?
Macarena: I´m the only one in my group that sometimes go skiing on vacations, because I have some members of my family living in the South of our country, in a little city called Ushuaia, is one of the most beautiful places on Earth and it is the southernmost city in the world... But Narella and Matías don´t know the snow... Of course a dream of us, is to spend a week of our winter holidays in a place where usually snows. ^^
That´s me, the first time I went to ski alone (without my parents always looking at me... )

2) What is Argentina's main agricultural exportation product?
The main agricultural exportation of our Nation is the grain, like cereals.

3) What do you like the most about life in Argentina?

Argentina is a very big country, in totality have 23 provinces with the most diverse and beautiful terrains; and many interesting things that we love doing...

4) What food would you consider the most typical in Argentina?

The most typical food in Argentina is barbecue or roast.

5) What kind of music is more popular there?

Matías thinks, that the most popular kind of music here is national rock (ex: Rata blanca; Los piojos; Charly Garcia)

Group: Narella, Matías and Macarena.

Answer

2009-11-04T14:56:00.008-03:00

From Giovanna and Luísa:

13. What do you think of Brazil?
Yes, we have got a lot of national holidays, one of them is the student's day. We celebrate with our friends and go to some place and spend time talking or doing others activities

14. Do you have a national holiday you like to celebrate?

Well, Brazil is a nice country with a lot of beaches and a place to entertainment and spend the time. Brazil is very beautiful and lf I have the opportunity I will travel to Brazil again.

15. What do you like the most about Argentina?

Well, we like a lot of things. One of them is stay with our friends and going to difference places, for example go to "Parque de la Costa"

Answers

2009-11-03T19:15:00.006-03:00

Hello there, we are Juani And Stefa, and we'd like to finally post our answers to the questions we recieved from you!

What kind of parties do you like to go?

Buenos Aires is a really energetic city, full of active people, always willing to go to any party.

As we are somehow too young to go to the non-stop discos’ parties -that usually last from 12 PM to 6 AM or 7 AM-, or to go to spend some time in pubs, we usually go to matinees. These are parties that last from 8 PM to 12 PM, organized in discos, but with an independent name, its own staff and rules.

We also like going to parties in friend’s homes. They might make one for a birthday, or without any reason, and actually they are the most common among young people like us. In those parties we have the opportunity not only to dance, but make socials, meet people and have a good time, play games or may be have some pizza. In these parties, there’s always a friend that knows something about djing. We used to have a classmate that worked in a public relations (RRPP), and also did some djing; he would always get the PC and download a programme which emulates the equipment of a dj, and we would have a great time.

Interior of a very popular disco here in Buenos Aires, Pachá.

What are the most famous music groups there?

As the citizens of Buenos Aires are so many, there are various different cultures, traditions, and music preferences. These music preferences are related to the social level or the neighborhood of the person, but this is not a requirement.

Buenos Aires has about 12 million inhabitants, so there’s always a place for every type of music. The most listened is rock. AC/DC, Queen, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, as well as the youngest bands such as Green Day, top the list of the most popular international rock bands. There are also plenty of national rock bands, such as Rata Blanca, Los Tipitos, Viejas Locas, La Renga, Ataque 77, or Sodastereo.

Another music genre which takes a big part of people’s likings is cumbia, but not the original one, which came from cultural-rich Caribbean countries, but the one called “cumbia villera”, that has its origins in the “slums” of Buenos Aires. We think there are about 40 slums in Buenos Aires, and they hold a big part of the population. In this genre you could find groups like Pibes Chorros, El Empuje, La Liga, and so on.

Although electronic music is not much heard, there are a growing number of people who like electronic music, specially house, electro, deep house, trance and dance. Of course, there are a lot of DJs I could name, but the most important here are Crookers, Dj Tiesto, Tiga, Deep Dish, David Guetta and the Argentinian Hernán Cattaneo.

There’s also a place for rap, hip hop and R&B, with Eminem, Akon, Flo-rida, Sean Kingston on the top of the list.

We should definetly name the reaggeton, genre that has gained many fans with singers such as Daddy Yankee, Makano, Pitbull, Nigga, La Factoría, Calle 13, and Wisin & Yandel.

As you can see, the most famous bands and singers in Argentina are foreign, except for rock bands and some other groups. It’s a shame that folklore music isn’t as famous as other types of music, but fortunately our culture is not lost, as there are still a great deal of fans of Argentinian traditional music.

Front of the last Sodastereo's CD.

Do you prefer Pelé or Maradona?

It’s obvious that argentinian would say that Maradona is better.

First of all, we think Maradona is better because he came from a poor family but although all difficulties he had, he could make his way up to success.

Besides we are proud of him because he could give up drugs and alcohol, and overcome all his problems, such as been overweight.

He showed it, at Local's Clubs in Argentina, at Napoles in Italy and at many Mundial Cups.

In contrast, Pele have always played with football players of high level; moreover he always played by himself, never with the team.

Maradona kissing the Mundial's cup, in 1978.

What are the most sports played in Argentina?

There a big variety of sports played in Argentina. The most played are football, tennis, rugby and polo.

Football is played by almost everyone and it’s the most televised and commercialized sport.

Tennis it’s a less play sport than football but, although, a lot of people like it.

Rugby it’s a very popular sport among adolescents. Usually boys, who play rugby, are wrongly thought to be more popular and successful with girls. Besides that winning cups every argentinian become funs of rugby’s selection.

There two ways of looking at Polo. Most people see Polo as a rich men class, specially in Capital Federal, where the only way of learning how to play polo, is to attend to expensive horse-riding classes, and buying expensive equipment. But there is the other side: in the country and rural zones, where horses are widely used, polo is played as a normal sport, with the horses people use to work on their fields.

Those are the most played sports in Argentina, the ones which are most popular.

Los Pumas, the national rugby selection, singing the national anthem.

Two polo players

All right! Take care! C ya!

INTRODUCING OUR-SELVES!

2009-10-31T12:42:00.009-03:00

Hello everybody! We are Mariana, Sheila and Mayra, from Capital Federal-Buenos Aires, Argentina. We go to Santa Rosa’s school, 2nd year, and we three are 15 years old. We have bilingual classes every Thursday and Tuesday. Mayra and Sheila are studying Business Administration and Mariana Social Communication. Our group of friends is composed by Macarena, Narella, Maria Eva, and us.

Mariana is an only child but she has stepbrothers in her father’s size, Mayra has got two sisters, Leila and Irina, and Sheila have got one sister, called Melanie, and two half-brothers, called Mariano and Sergio.

We love listening to music (all kinds), going out together (to cinemas, Winter, shoppings, etc), or going to our houses to have pajamas’ party. Today is Halloween, so a partner is organizing a fancy dress Halloween party.

Mayra and Sheila play volleyball and Mariana does swimming. And next Monday, Mayra and Sheila will compete against other courses and the following Monday Mariana.

That’s all, we expect you enjoy reading from us, and we will be willing to hear from you too.

Kissies,

Sheila, Mariana and Mayra.

This is from Mariana. S & Noelia

2009-10-29T20:36:00.010-03:00

Hi Everyone!!!

We have just posted this video to introduce you our city, Buenos Aires.

We hope you like it...

XOXO

Marian & Noe :)

Answers to the questions from Paula and Juliana

2009-10-28T18:42:00.004-03:00

BY NOELIA AND MARIANA S.

1. What is you government planning to do about global warming in Patagonia's icecaps?
We don't know what the government is planning to do, but we can tell you why the global warming is affecting Patagonia's icecaps: this happens because the glaciers don't have the snow they need. Argentina's icecaps began being affected in 1990, with the exception of the famous Perito Moreno, that today has caught the attention of a lot of Latin Americans.

2. Does anyone dance tango in this group?
No, in this group no one dances tango. We are from Argentina, but although it is a traditional dance here, we don't know how to dance it.

3. How often do you go to Florida Street?
We are used to going there because it has many shops. For example, you can go to Galerías Pacífico, that is a shopping mall where you can eat, buy presents and have a walk. This place is loved by tourists. In Florida Street you also have Fallabella, which is a "shopping for women". This is because it's all about decoration. Apart from this, in Florida Street there are a lot of tango dancers who offer shows for tourists.

Well, we hope you could understand everything.
Take care =)

Noelia & Mariana S.

TATS & FEDE

2009-10-28T16:44:00.008-03:00

Hello! We are Tatiana and Federico, but you can call us Tati & Fede. We met in 2000 at Santa Rosa’s school and we have been friends since then. Fede is 14 years old but I’m 15. We love listening to music, but we like different kinds of music. Fede likes listening a lot of kinds of music one of them is metal but me, Tati, I prefer reggae, reggaeton, and that sort of things. We have been studying English for eight years, and we have bilingual classes two times a week. Fede hasn’t got any brothers or sisters but I have got one brother called Agustin.
With Tati we have a lot of anecdotes one of them is the trip to Mendoza when we did Rafting and she was pushed out of the boat.
Well that is all see you. Our blogs are:
http://blog-of-tati.blogspot.com
http://toto-blogger.blogspot.com

INTRODUCE YOUR SELF!!

2009-10-21T16:49:00.004-03:00

Hello everybody, we are Macarena, Matías and Narella. We are students at

Santa Rosa school in Buenos Aires. We have billingual classes every Thursday and Tuesday.
Today, we are supposed to intruduce ourselves.
First of all, we are 14 (Maca and Maty) and 15 (Nare) years old. We are best friends and we do everything together (not everything xD) We love listening to music and have fun going out. We love going to Starbucks' café every week because it's a way of having fun and talking about our life. We enjoy studying English by internet because it's a different and funny way of learning.
Well we must go now. Hope you enjoy reading our "introduce your self" post.

kisses!!!
Maca, Maty and NareY...

2009-09-28T20:31:00.008-03:00

Hi everyone! My name is Diego Zerni and, as you may guess, I live in Buenos Aires as all the others that have written in this blog. I am the youngest in 3rd year, as I was born in the middle (the 16, to exact) of June in 1994. I have a little sister 7 years younger than me (so, she would be 8 :P).

I love drawing and, because of that, I have recently taken up clases. At the same time, I have started playing the Bass, and I am begging to catch the taste to it. And, finally, I'm planning to begin Rugby (If my doctor allows me jajaja).

I really like my city, but it could be better. It isn't in a very well shape, as the river is contaminated and de sounds are disturbing.

In my free time at home, I like to practise Bass, to use the computer (specially to play) and to draw, trying to be better. And, outside my home, I like to go out with my friends, specially to go riding to Puerto Madero.

Here it is a photo of me, in Irene's party. Next to me it is Agustin (a friend). See yaa~!

Hi! My name is Irene. How are you? I live in Buenos Aires, too.
My friends call me: Bruji, Ire, Iri or Iru (I think only Diego calls me Iru) haha
In my free time I love playing my guitar and listening to music; and on Saturdays I sing opera and zarzuela (a typical Spanish music). I've never thought I would be singing the way I sing now☺. You can think: 'music is everything for this girl', and you are totally right. Music makes me feel the real Irene, sometimes I miss myself (when I am sad, disapponted, you know). Music changes me and let e travel very very far from my problems, great!!!
My favourite singers are Soledad Pastorutti and Avril Lavigne (in her old times), and i must mention two friends that sing with me in the chorus: Paula, Claudia, Luis and Sergio. You should hear them singing.
Well, through this blog, I expect to know people from other places who are studying English.
Gotta go. Take care.

Here you can see a photo of myself, I was making a photo session for my 15th birthday party. Hope you like it.

2009-09-26T20:45:00.004-03:00

Hello! My name is Juani, I’m 15 years old and I live in Buenos Aires, Argentina. I’m in 3rd year at Santa Rosa’s School, located in Congreso. I’ve been studying here since 1997. It’s been a long time ago hahaha. I had two options: Studying Business Administration or Social Communication, of course, I’ve choose Business Administration . My family is composed by 4 members, my father called Jorge, my mother called Eugenia, my Brother called Gonzalo and me. My brother studies in the same school, he is in 5° Grade, Primary School.
I'm fond on football, video games, computer games, cards, cars and special weapons. At present I’m playing football at Boca Juniors Club but a different Type of Football which is called Futsal that it’s played with five players in each teams. Recently my parents bought me a pair of football trainers, really nice, they are "Puma" and they have a special sole for futsal's floor. At the weekend I like going out with my friends, we always go to a matinee called Abadia to dance and have some fun. Or we get together in a house, we buy pizza and we see terror films.
Every summer holidays I go to Mar del Plata, to a spa called ACA, that means Automobile Argentinian Club. My favourite TV programme is "The Simpsons". My favourite food is barbacue, I love it. My favourite drink is Coke-Cola". My favourite music is Raggaeton and Elektro. My blog is http://nacho3rd.blogspot.com/. Here is a picture of my brother and me.
Kisses.

I'm Marian!

2009-09-24T19:31:00.009-03:00

Hello to everybody!!My name is Mariana, but you can call me Marian. I'm fifteen years old, and I'm in the same group as Noelia. Now that I've mentioned her, I'd like to say that she is one of my best friends, and we both are one of the little groups that we organized to answer your questions. Well, what about me? Many people of my age could say that I'm not a normal teenager at all. This is because I don't like watching TV, I like going to school and I play the violin and the piano. I play the violin in an Orchestra, called "Orquesta de Cámara Juvenil de Buenos Aires", and there I can be with young people who do the same as me. I've gone to Santa Rosa School here in Buenos Aires since I was four years old, so I have been there for 11 years.About my likes and dislikes, I like watching films like Gladiator, Troy or The Lord Of The Rings. I also like The Notebook and Titanic. I grew up watchin Disney films =). In what music concerns, I like almost all kind of music: I listen to Avril Lavigne, Evanescence, Ashley Tisdale, Green Day, classical music and celtilc music, too.My best friends from my school are: Noelia and Tatiana (who go to the Bilingual) and Natalia, Florencia and Nahuel (who don't).My blog is http://www.ladymarian99.blogspot.com/, if you can, enter and leave a comment.Well, I think this one has been enough about me, so now I hope to read about you soon.Take care =)

With Noelia (she's the one at the right)

Hi! I´m NOELIA =)

2009-09-23T22:35:00.010-03:00

Hello! I’m Noelia. I’m fourteen years old, and I’m from Buenos Aires – Argentina.
I’ve been at Santa Rosa school since I was four years old. And I’ve also studied English since then. At first, I didn’t like English, because my teachers weren’t as friendly as they were supposed to be. But then, I started to like it and now I’m in the Bilingual. We are ten in total in our group.
I think that Bs As is the noisiest city in Argentina. If I could choose a city, I would never choose Bs As. I’d prefer a quieter city than this one. That depends on the person and what you like :-)
My hobby is dancing. I’ve danced for seven years. But I had to give it up, because I had to study. Now I want to start dancing again.Well, I hope you like what we will tell you about our city.

You can visit my blog, and leave a comment. http://www.noelia95.blogspot.com/

Let me say you...WELCOME!!!.

Introducing Stefa

2009-09-17T20:18:00.004-03:00

Hello my friends! My name is Juan Ignacio Stefanolo, but everyone calls me Stefa, as there's another Juan Ignacio in the class. I'm 16 years old, and I live in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
I really love my city, 'cause here is where I've lived all my life, and I don't think I could live without hearing all the noises from the streets...typical things of the big cities, don't you think?
Well, in my free time, I like to play my guitar, read books, and practise electro dance with a friend. I also like going to Puerto Madero to do some biking with my friends. Here is a picture of me and some friends there in Puerto Madero.

Ok, I'm looking forward to read your introductions!

OUR COUNTRY: ARGENTINA

2009-09-06T13:07:00.003-03:00

Hello dear friends from Brazil. It's great to be here, introducing ourselves, trying to know one another and exchanging information about our countries.

The internet allows us to be nearer, no matter distances and borders. Great, isn't it?

I'm Marina Alfonso, an English teacher from Buenos Aires, Argentina. This is going to be the site where we'll post our answers to your questions. So free feel to ask any doubts or questions you may have about our country, and my students from second and third year will be happy to answer you.

We will also think about what we'd like you to tell us about your wonderful country, of course.

See you soon!

Here is the first picture of our city:Puerto Madero.

It is a few blocks from Buenos Aires downtown. Lots of tourists come here to enjoy the view, walk by the river and eat at fancy restaurants.