Student New Production (Huaxing News 20120131)

Here is a recording by recorded and scripted by my old students. They have now all moved on to high school and soon, before you know it, they will be in college. The news is from end of January 2012, as a class project. We only managed to create one clip of news reading. What a shame!

The news is fairly funny and they have their own sense of humor (some in Chinese). Enjoy :)




You can also go to the archive.org page to download.



from Jerry-sir :)

Workplace English (3) Vocabulary Review (units 4, 6, 9)

Please download for review PPT here:

Unit 4

Unit 6

Unit 9

Don't forget to study hard...

Best luck to your exam!

Determination~~~~~~!!!

From Jerry-sir

Workplace English (3) Page 56-58

P56-a 英文朗讀 (直接播放)
 
P56-b 中文解說、英文跟讀 （按下一首）

P58-a 英文朗讀 （按下一首）

P58-b 中文解說、英文跟讀 （按下一首）

Practice makes perfect!!

--from Jerry-sir :)

Youtube Video: Look Up (subtitles)

The very popular clip on Youtube this week: "Look Up"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z7dLU6fk9QY

1

00:00:01,079 --> 00:00:08,020

I have 422 friends, yet I am lonely.

I speak to all of them everyday, yet none

2

00:00:08,020 --> 00:00:10,700

of them really know me.

3

00:00:10,700 --> 00:00:16,390

The problem I have sits in the spaces between,

looking into their eyes, or at a name on a screen.

4

00:00:16,660 --> 00:00:20,750

I took a step back, and opened my eyes,

I looked around, and then realised

5

00:00:20,750 --> 00:00:23,580

that this media we call social, is anything

but

6

00:00:23,580 --> 00:00:26,750

when we open our computers, and it's our doors

we shut.

7

00:00:26,750 --> 00:00:30,679

All this technology we have, it's just an

illusion,

8

00:00:30,679 --> 00:00:36,760

of community, companionship, a sense of inclusion

yet when you step away from this device of delusion,

9

00:00:36,760 --> 00:00:39,699

you awaken to see, a world of confusion.

10

00:00:39,699 --> 00:00:43,089

A world where we're slaves to the technology

we mastered,

11

00:00:43,089 --> 00:00:46,479

where our information gets sold by some rich

greedy bastard.

12

00:00:46,479 --> 00:00:51,769

A world of self-interest, self-image, self-promotion,

where we all share all our best bits, but leave

13

00:00:51,769 --> 00:00:53,049

out the emotion.

14

00:00:53,049 --> 00:00:57,170

We are at our most happy with an experience

we share,

15

00:00:57,170 --> 00:01:02,659

but is it the same if no one is there.

Be there for you friends, and they'll be there too

16

00:01:02,659 --> 00:01:05,539

but no one will be, if a group message will do.

17

00:01:05,990 --> 00:01:11,710

We edit and exaggerate, we crave adulation,

we pretend we don't notice the social isolation.

18

00:01:11,710 --> 00:01:15,339

We put our words into order, until our lives

are glistening,

19

00:01:15,340 --> 00:01:18,010

we don't even know if anyone is listening.

20

00:01:18,010 --> 00:01:19,830

Being alone isn't the problem, let me just

emphasize,

21

00:01:19,830 --> 00:01:22,610

that if you read a book, paint a picture,

or do some exercise,

22

00:01:22,610 --> 00:01:25,610

you are being productive, and present, not

reserved or recluse,

23

00:01:25,610 --> 00:01:28,610

you're being awake and attentive, and putting

your time to good use.

24

00:01:28,610 --> 00:01:30,980

So when you're in public, and you start to

feel alone,

25

00:01:30,980 --> 00:01:33,250

put your hands behind your head, and step

away from the phone.

26

00:01:33,250 --> 00:01:36,350

You don't need to stare at your menu, or at

your contact list,

27

00:01:36,350 --> 00:01:38,130

just talk to one another, and learn to co-exist.

28

00:01:38,130 --> 00:01:41,740

I can't stand to hear the silence, of a busy

commuter train,

29

00:01:41,740 --> 00:01:44,899

when no one wants to talk through the fear

of looking insane.

30

00:01:44,900 --> 00:01:49,500

We're becoming unsocial, it no longer satisfies

to engage with one another, and look into

31

00:01:49,500 --> 00:01:50,430

someone's eyes.

32

00:01:50,430 --> 00:01:53,330

We're surrounded by children, who since they

were born,

33

00:01:53,330 --> 00:01:55,789

watch us living like robots, and think it's

the norm.

34

00:01:55,790 --> 00:01:57,979

It's not very likely you will make world's

greatest dad,

35

00:01:57,979 --> 00:02:01,700

if you cant entertain a child without a using

an iPad.

36

00:02:01,700 --> 00:02:05,170

When I was a child, I would never be home,

I'd be out with my friends, on our bikes we

37

00:02:05,170 --> 00:02:07,070

would roam.

We'd ware holes in our trainers, and graze

38

00:02:07,070 --> 00:02:10,228

up our knees;

we'd build our own clubhouse, high up in the trees.

39

00:02:10,500 --> 00:02:12,110

Now the parks are so quiet, it gives me a

chill

40

00:02:12,110 --> 00:02:15,330

to see no children outside and the swings

hanging still.

41

00:02:15,330 --> 00:02:18,940

There's no skipping, no hopscotch, no church

and no steeple,

42

00:02:18,940 --> 00:02:25,940

we're a generation of idiots, smart phones

and dumb people.

43

00:02:26,920 --> 00:02:29,649

So look up from your phone, shut down that

display,

44

00:02:29,650 --> 00:02:32,650

take in your surroundings, and make the most

of today.

45

00:02:32,650 --> 00:02:38,480

Just one real connection is all it can take,

to show you the difference that being there can make.

46

00:02:38,480 --> 00:02:42,959

Be there in the moment, when she gives you

47

00:02:42,959 --> 00:02:46,740

the look,

that you remember forever, as when love overtook.

48

00:02:46,740 --> 00:02:49,010

The time you first hold her hand, or first

kiss her lips,

49

00:02:49,010 --> 00:02:51,410

the time you first disagree, but still love

her to bits.

50

00:02:51,410 --> 00:02:54,569

The time you don't have to tell hundreds,

about what you've just done,

51

00:02:54,569 --> 00:02:57,119

because you want to share this moment, with

just this one.

52

00:02:57,120 --> 00:03:00,319

The time you sell your computer, so you can

buy a ring,

53

00:03:00,319 --> 00:03:03,238

for the girl of your dreams, who is now the

real thing.

54

00:03:03,239 --> 00:03:06,790

The time you want to start a family, and the

moment when,

55

00:03:06,790 --> 00:03:09,179

you first hold your little girl, and get to

fall in love again.

56

00:03:09,180 --> 00:03:13,030

The time she keeps you up at night, and all

you want is rest,

57

00:03:13,030 --> 00:03:18,380

and the time you wipe away the tears, as your

baby flees the nest.

58

00:03:18,380 --> 00:03:20,160

The time your little girl returns, with a

boy for you to hold,

59

00:03:20,160 --> 00:03:27,160

and the time he calls you granddad, and makes

you feel real old

60

00:03:27,730 --> 00:03:29,988

The time you take in all you've made, just

by giving life attention,

61

00:03:29,989 --> 00:03:34,910

and how your glad you didn't waste it, by

looking down at some invention.

62

00:03:34,910 --> 00:03:38,770

The time you hold your wife's hand, and sit

down beside her bed

63

00:03:38,770 --> 00:03:42,489

you tell her that you love her, and lay a

kiss upon her head.

64

00:03:42,489 --> 00:03:46,410

She then whispers to you quietly, as her heart

gives a final beat,

65

00:03:46,410 --> 00:03:53,410

that she's lucky she got stopped, by that

lost boy in the street.

66

00:03:54,510 --> 00:03:59,620

But none of these times ever happened, you

never had any of this,

67

00:03:59,620 --> 00:04:04,239

When you're too busy looking down, you don't

see the chances you miss.

68

00:04:08,200 --> 00:04:11,208

So look up from your phone, shut down those

displays,

69

00:04:11,209 --> 00:04:14,239

we have a finite existence, a set number of

days.

70

00:04:14,239 --> 00:04:16,530

Don't waste your life getting caught in the

net,

71

00:04:16,529 --> 00:04:19,518

as when the end comes, nothing's worse than

regret.

72

00:04:19,519 --> 00:04:23,680

I am guilty too, of being part of this machine,

this digital world, we are heard but

73

00:04:23,680 --> 00:04:25,909

not seen.

Where we type as we talk, we read as we chat

74

00:04:25,909 --> 00:04:29,248

where we spend hours together, without making eye contact.

75

00:04:29,809 --> 00:04:33,129

Don't give in to a life where you follow the

hype,

76

00:04:33,129 --> 00:04:36,259

give people your love, don't give them your

like.

77

00:04:36,259 --> 00:04:41,400

Disconnect from the need to be heard and defined

Go out into the world, leave distractions behind.

78

00:04:45,400 --> 00:04:48,400

Look up from your phone, shut down that display,

79

00:04:48,650 --> 00:04:50,979

stop watching this video, live life the real

way.

Game on Grammar (eslgamesplus)

Hi all~~!

This is an interesting grammar practice site for ESL student.

http://www.eslgamesplus.com/past-simple-irregular-verbs-esl-grammar-interactive-activity-online/

It also has many other games for practicing different grammars or vocabulary learning activities. check it out!

NOTE: If you find other interesting English learning sites, please post in the links! Much appreciated!! ^^


from Jerry-sir

The Hospital Window

Warm-up question:
If your best friend becomes blind because of an accident, what will you do to help?
A. Buy him or her a pair of sunglasses
B. give him or her a walking stick
C. send him or her to a special school for the blind
D. get him or her a guide dog
E. keep him or her company 24 hours a day
F. others

Activity:
Take out a pen and paper. Draw out what the view is like outside the window according to the old man's description.


Reading:

A young man and an old man shared a hospital room. The young man was recovering well from eye surgery, but the old man was still quite ill. The two men talked for hours every day, and they became good friends.

Every morning, a nurse would bring them breakfast and open the window of the room. The young man always turned away from the window sadly because he couldn't see anything. The old man realized this, he he would try to describe all the things outside the window to his friend.

"It's a lovely day. Young couples are walking arm in arm around the lake. Some ducks and swans are swimming on the water. The kids are playing with their model boats. They are jumping up and down with joy. You'll get to see those beautiful things very soon," the old man encouraged him.

Day after day, the old man described the view in detail. The young man would then imagine the colorful world. Sometimes, he even smiled in his sleep.



Check point:
Now compare your drawing with your classmates. What are the differences and similarities between your drawing and the others?



Reading: (continued)

Days and weeks passed. It wad time for the young man to remove his bandage. He would finally be able to see the world again. Before he was wheeled out of the room, he turned around and said to the old man, "I will be right back. Let's enjoy the view together!" The old man gave him a smile.

When the young man returned, he was shocked because the old man was not there. He padded sways during his nap. The young man walked over to the old man's bed and looked out the window. Surprisingly, he saw nothing but a wall. "The old man couldn't even see this wall," the nurse said. "He was blind."

Tears fell from the young man's eyes. "Thank you," he whispered.


Question:

What is the main idea of "The Hospital Window"?
A. A white lie is always needed.
B. It is important to have an old friend when you are sick.
C. Love and care give people hope.
D. A wall is always there among modern people.

True or false?
____ The old man could see everything outside the window.
____ After eye surgery, the two enjoyed the window view together in the hospital.
____ The young man was pleased to find the wall behind the window.
____ The old man described things, such as couples, ducks, swans, and model boats. But none of them were real.


Reflection:
Write a reflection paragraph after reading this story. Also, write about what you think regarding the following passage:

The late world superstar Michael Jackson said: If you enter this world knowing you are loved and you leave this world knowing the same, then everything that happen in between can be dealt with. What is the power of love and caring?

(Text source: 龍騰高職英文第ㄧ冊，龍騰文化出版，2013）

To find out what Jerry-sir saw when he opened the Hospital Window, click on the link:
media3.handmadecharlotte.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/spiderman-window-washer2.jpg

Shakespearean Thor from BBC Culture

BBC Culture:

Finding Shakespeare in Thor: The Dark World

8 November 2013
By Solvej Schou

There is more in common between the Bard and blockbusters than men in tights, says Solvej Schou.

“You are a vain, greedy, cruel boy,” snarls Sir Anthony Hopkins as the white-haired and bearded god Odin to his rebellious son in 2011’s Marvel Studios film Thor.

“You are an old man and a fool!” howls Thor, played by toned, blond Chris Hemsworth, before he and his mythic hammer are cast out of their celestial home to the doldrums of Earth.   

That blistering exchange, ripe with Freudian father-son tension, disappointment and bravado, could come straight out of Shakespeare, from a tragedy like King Lear or Hamlet. And Tom Hiddleston’s quest for power in the film and in last year’s Marvel box office hit The Avengers is pure Macbeth.

Opening in US cinemas this weekend, Thor: The Dark World is filled with sibling rivalry, hubris and paternal frustration. Once again it shows the lasting influence of William Shakespeare in superhero films and in other big budget fantasy and adventure movies that dominate the big screen.

“Stan Lee, who edited and wrote most of the early Marvel comics, was heavily influenced by Shakespeare,” says Stuart Moore, co-author of the Marvel tie-in book The Art of Thor: The Dark World. “It's evident in everything from the language the gods use to the larger themes behind the stories.”

The playwright’s the thing

In multiplexes aroundthe world, Marvel Studios’ franchises rub shoulders with the X-Men, Hobbit and James Bond films. And increasingly, these genre movies attract classically-trained, heavyweight British actors like Anthony Hopkins, and also Royal Shakespeare Company alumni Sir Kenneth Branagh, Sir Ian McKellen, Sir Patrick Stewart, Dame Judi Dench and Dame Helen Mirren, to name a few.

“I guess great Shakespeare actors like McKellen, Dench, Mirren, Branagh and company have the capacity to scale the heights of human emotion that Shakespeare charts in roles like Lear, Hamlet, and Cleopatra,” notes Gregory Doran, artistic director of the UK’s Royal Shakespeare Company. “He challenges an actor to go to the limits of human experience, and find the surprising elements of humor and pathos, the absurd and the pathetic, at the very edges of catastrophe. Perhaps that’s why they have the ability to play the almost superhuman scale that science fiction and fantasy demand.”

Genre roles exist on a superhuman scale. They are made for movie-going masses who love high drama and strong heroes with cracks underneath their skin. And the Shakespearean backgrounds of the actors involved add respectability to material often dismissed as lowbrow.

Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart, both Shakespearean juggernauts who have taken the title role in Macbeth on stage, battle against each other as Magneto and Professor Charles Xavier in the X-Men series, including the upcoming X-Men: Days of Future Past. McKellen will also reprise his Lord of the Rings turn as the wise wizard Gandalf in December’s The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.

Helen Mirren is best known to film buffs for her stately Oscar-winning role in 2006’s The Queen, but Shakespeare aficionados might first recall her work on stage in Troilus and Cressida and As You Like It. She vamps it up as an assassin in the comic book film RED (2010) and this year’s sequel RED 2. Judi Dench, with Shakespeare stage credits including Ophelia in Hamlet, Juliet in Romeo and Juliet and Lady Macbeth, has played steely British secret service boss M in seven popular James Bond movies.

It might be tempting to think these theatrical heavyweights take on pop culture roles just for the money. But that is not so, says Sean Howe, author of Marvel Comics: The Untold Story. “There’s a lot of resonance with Shakespeare in these stories, and it's probably a comfortable, perhaps even nostalgic, mode for the actors. I would never accuse those fine women and men [of being] cash-grabbers, but let's say that these movies are cost-effective for them. They're not big budget romantic leads. It's probably the biggest possible payday they can enjoy. And they're in the company of other great actors.”

Of gods and monsters

Shakespeare loved to map a hero’s upward and downward journey and show how a tragic flaw or moral weakness makes them come unstuck. His tragedies, based on Greek, Roman, Danish-Nordic and English history and legends, are stuffed with elements of betrayal, lust, sibling and parental rivalry, supernatural beings, witches and ghosts.

Still, there is comedy too, with a royal fool or clever commoners as silly yet truthful commentators. Writer-director Joss Whedon added some saucy dialogue worthy of a fool to his superhero ensemble piece The Avengers, and followed it up with this year’s black-and-white version of the Bard’s tart romantic comedy Much Ado About Nothing.

The first Thor film was directed by Kenneth Branagh, who has starred in and overseen a slew of Shakespeare film adaptations, including Henry V, Hamlet, Love's Labour's Lost and his own version of Much Ado About Nothing. In Thor he sets up the Shakespearean motif of brother versus brother, vying for and defying their godly father’s approval to take his throne.

Its follow-up, Thor: The Dark World, directed by Game of Thrones director Alan Taylor, places Thor at the center of a epic fight to save Earth from the marauding Dark Elves. For help he enlists the untrustworthy Loki, a role taken by Hiddleston, a fan favourite bred on Shakespeare. He told told GeekExchange.com and other outlets that he and Branagh discussed the similarities between cheeky, scheming Loki and the illegitimate son Edmund in King Lear. In Shakespeare’s play, Edmund grows up in the shadow of the Earl of Gloucester’s legitimate heir, Edgar, just as Loki, Odin’s adopted son, the bastard offspring of a Frost Giant, was raised alongside Thor – and like Edmund, Loki plots to betray his brother. Thor himself takes after Prince Hal, the young, petulant heir to the throne who is a letdown to his royal father but later matures to become King Henry V.

“Thor: The Dark World features kings, commoners, family betrayals, invading armies, and troops dispatched in defense of the realm,” says Moore. “Despite the low-culture trappings of comic book films, they're the closest thing in modern entertainment to the kind of grand-scale melodrama that Shakespeare trafficked in.”

original post from BBC: http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20131108-shakespeare-and-superheroes