GOODBYE TO ANOTHER GROUP OF STUDENTS FROM RAFAEL DIESTE SECONDARY SCHOOL

Last night we rolled out the red carpet once again in front of our school's main entrance to receive our 2ºBAC students in their Farewell-Graduation party. Students, parents and teachers gathered together to celebrate the end of these students' life in our school. Everybody elegantly dressed took part in a celebration where we took photos, listened to speeches, danced, sang, laughed -or even shed a tear or two. After a snack and a chocolate fondue, the students continued partying... To all of them, good luck!

ERNEST HEMINGWAY, THE BIOGRAPHY

Here is a sample answer to the writing exercise of Ernest Hemingway's biography:

Ernest Hemingway was born in Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, in 1899. He had a middle-class upbringing, as his father was a doctor. However all his life he rebelled against the morals of his parents and the conventions of life in Chicago. He graduated from High School in 1917, but, being impatient for a less sheltered environment, he didn't go to college. Instead, he went to Kansas City, where he was employed as a reporter for a leading newspaper, "The Star", and this gave him invaluable vocational training. He wanted to be soldier, but was rejected for military service because he had poor eyesight, so he became an ambulance driver for the American Red Cross. He was injured in World War I, and also decorated for heroism. He was fascinated by war, working as a war correspondent in Spain, China and Europe, and many of his books were about war, For Whom the Bell Tolls, his most succesful book, was written in 1940, and is about a volunteer American soldier in the Spanish Civil War. This book dealt with the comradeship of war, while A Farewell to Arms is about the pointlessness of war. He won the Nobel prize for literature in 1954, but he suffered from depression towards the end of his life. He loved life, although he was obsessed with death, and he committed suicide in 1961.

PASSIVE vs ACTIVE

The passive voice is used when we want to focus attention on the person or thing affected by the action.

Normally, the performer of the action, or the agent, comes first and is made the subject of the verb and then we use the active form of the verb. The other person or thing is made the object of the verb. Consider these examples:

'The boss invited her to the party.'
'The construction company in Station Road employs three hundred people.'

However, if you want to focus on the person or thing affected by the action, you make the person or thing the subject of the sentence and use the passive voice:

'She was invited to the party by the boss.'
'Three hundred people are employed by the construction company in Station Road.'

When, then, should we use the passive voice in preference to the active?
We often prefer to use the passive voice when:
1. We do not know who the agent is:
'I don’t know who did it, but my pet rabbit has been let out.'
'I had the feeling that I was being followed.' instead of:
'I don’t know who did it, but someone has let out my pet rabbit.'
'I had the feeling that somebody was following me.'
2.When it is obvious to the listener or reader who the agent is:
'I had been instructed to remove all the ash trays.'
'She discovered that she was being paid less than her male colleagues.' instead of:
'My boss had instructed me to remove all the ash trays.'
'She discovered that the firm was paying her less than her male colleagues.'
3. When it is not important to know who the agent is:
'Do you want a lift?' 'No thanks, I’m being collected.' instead of:
'Do you want a lift?' 'No thanks, someone is collecting me.'
4. When the agent has already been mentioned:
'In the next session of parliament, new laws will be introduced aimed at stopping domestic violence.' instead of:
'In the next session of parliament, the government will introduce new laws aimed at stopping domestic violence.'
5. When people in general are the agents:
'All the Beatles records can be borrowed from the central library. instead of:
'You can borrow all the Beatles records from the central library.

Here is a complete list of all the verb forms that are normally used in the passive.
Passive forms are made up of an appropriate form of the verb ‘to be’ followed by the past participle (pp) form of the verb:

Present simple am/is/are + ppHow is this word pronounced?
Present continuous am/are/is being + ppThe house is being redecorated.
Present perfect simple has/have been + pp
He's just been sacked!
Past simple was/were + ppAll his credit cards were stolen last week.
Past continuous was/were being + ppHe was being treated for depression when he won the lottery.
Past perfect simple had been + pp
The vegetables had been cooked for far too long, but we had to eat them.
Future simple will be + pp
The house contents will be auctioned a week on Saturday.
Future perfect simple will have been + pp
There’s no point in hurrying. It will all have been eaten by now.
Infinitive (to) be + ppExams have to be taken almost every year you are at school.
Do you know who is going to be invited?

Links to exercises:

http://www.ego4u.com/en/cram-up/grammar/passive/exercises?simple-present

http://www.nonstopenglish.com/allexercises/grammar/grammar-passive_voice.asp

http://esl.about.com/library/quiz/blgrquiz_passive2.htm

RAFAEL DIESTE'S GREEK WEEK

Our students dancing the syrtaki at the Greek Week in our central indoor hall.


Greek week at Rafael Dieste Secondary School on PhotoPeach

Note: The song that sounds during the photo-slide is "Syrtaki" ("Siko Chorepse Syrtaki"), it was written by Greek composers G. Zambetas & A. Sakelarios. It's the same song which our mate-students danced to at school. This version is sung by Swedish singer Frida (Anni-Frid Lyngstad), best known as one of the girls in Swedish pop group Abba, the red-haired one. Her version is sung in Swedish and belongs to her 1975 solo-album "Frida ensam" ("Frida alone").

PRACTICE CONDITIONALS: KATIE MELUA, "IF YOU WERE A SAILBOAT"

Katie Melua

Ketevan "Katie" Melua (English pronunciation: /mɛˈluː.ə/),born 16 September 1984, is a Georgian-British singer, songwriter and musician. She was born in Georgia, but moved to Northern Ireland at the age of eight and then relocated to England at the age of fourteen.In November 2003, at the age of nineteen, Melua released her first album, Call off the Search, which reached the top of the United Kingdom album charts and sold 1.8 million copies in its first five months of release. Her second album, Piece by Piece, was released in September 2005. Melua released her third studio album Pictures in October 2007, which was the last of her albums to be made in collaboration with Mike Batt. In May 2010 she's about to release her fourth album The House.

The song we listen today was the first single from the album Pictures, and it's full of second type conditionals.

Video "If I were sailboat", Katie Melua:


"If you were a sailboat" lyrics:
IF YOU WERE A COWBOY, I WOULD TRAIL YOU
IF YOU WERE A PIECE OF WOOD, I'D NAIL YOU TO THE FLOOR
IF YOU WERE A SAILBOAT, I WOULD SAIL YOU TO THE SHORE.

IF YOU WERE A RIVER, I WOULD SWIM YOU
IF YOU WERE A HOUSE, I WOULD LIVE IN YOU ALL MY DAYS
IF YOU WERE A PREACHER, I'D BEGIN TO CHANGE MY WAYS.

Chorus:
SOMETIMES I BELIEVE IN FATE
BUT THE CHANCES WE CREATE
ALWAYS SEEM TO RING MORE TRUE
YOU TOOK A CHANCE ON LOVING ME
I TOOK A CHANCE ON LOVING YOU.

IF I WAS IN JAIL, I KNOW YOU'D SPRING ME
IF I WAS A TELEPHONE, YOU'D RING ME ALL DAY LONG
IF I WAS IN PAIN, I KNOW YOU'D SING ME SOOTHING SONGS.

(Rep chorus)

IF I WAS HUNGRY, YOU WOULD FEED ME
IF I WAS IN DARKNESS, YOU WOULD LEAD ME TO THE LIGHT
IF I WAS A BOOK, I KNOW YOU'D READ ME EVERY NIGHT

(Rep first paragraph)