Valentines and love letters.

Here is a video that could be used to introduce a class about St Valentine's Day:

One thing I like about it is that it uses lots of song lyrics in the sentences the character is trying to write and it could be a good idea to make some competition in class to try to identify (and sing!!) some of them. Students could also try to "help" the man to write his love letter or valentine without watching the end of the story.

If you need more materials about St Valentine's Day, Larry Ferlazzo's blog could be of use. Here you will find more links to what he considers the best sites to learn about St Valentine's Day.

Now here is a song which is not mentioned in the video above but which is directly linked to its theme. It could represent the reaction of the lady who receives the letter from the man in the video.

The song is "Love letters", a classic, in the voice of Alison Moyet (the first version I heard although not necessarily the best, that is up to you).

To help you write valentines, here is a suggestion I have taken from Times Online. The two first lines are the "cliché" of valentine "poetry". The rest is a highly political statement and the basis for the joke.

It makes reference to an interview in which the Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, opens his heart about private matters in front of the cameras. This has been perceived by some people (the cartoonist Peter Brookes , for example) as a change of attitude in the prospect for votes in the next election.

TV shows and teenagers

Here is an article (click on the image) from Guardian.co.uk, the online version of The Guardian , a British broadsheet newspaper.
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In the article, some of the most popular UK TV shows among teenagers are described by one of them, Liberty Love (15), by answering to three questions:

- Who watches it.

- Why it is good (written as an indirect question, thus the word order).

- Best character.

A similar activity could be done in class (about programmes in your own country, other types of programmes, or for other age groups) and present it as an article or as a short talk.

Of course, as it is an opinion article, disagreement and debate could be another ingredient in the final recipe.

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Interesting vocabulary: must-see (adjective created from shortening the sentence "must be seen", meaning you cannot miss it or worth seeing). Read about its origin in Wikipedia.

Messages: which one is more effective?

Warning: You might not want to watch the following advert if the previous one already managed to convince you and left you with a very good feeling.

Which one is more effective in your opinion?

Graffiquette

Banksy is a famous British graffiti artist whose real identity has been kept secret for years. El Pais made reference to him in connection with the release of his film "Exit
Through The Gift Shop", which will take place at the Berlinale.

A world with no rules?

Meanwhile, the "war" between Banksy and Robbo, another graffiti artist, still continues on

Regent's Canal walls (in the Camden area), as reported by the Camden New Journal.

Will this be a case of lack of "graffiquette"? (I just made it up from netiquette) or just hype to promote both artists?

How would you define "graffiquette", as used above, if such word existed?

Groundhog Day

Today is Groundhog Day. You might not know what it is, but it surely is an excellent opportunity to watch a great movie with lots of tips for language learners, as dialogues are repeated and repeated.

In the following scene you have basic questions for introductions and how to ask somebody to marry you (in a traditional way):

If you actually want to know about Groundhog Day, here is the "official" link: