Hackschooling makes me happy - Logan La Plante - TED presentation

Before watching the video presentation, discuss in group:

• What characteristics do teenagers seem to have in common
• Use your imagination and think about why it might be relevant for adults to stop to think about teenagers at all.

Watch thisTED presentation by Logan La Plante and answer the following questions:

•   What question do adults ask teenagers very often? What do teenagers ask themselves very often? 
•    What does Logan say about teenager brains and teenager attitudes ?
•    How does Logan tackle the issue of happiness, health and education? Include in your comment these words by Logan …“Making a living rather that making a life”…
•  What resolution did Logan parents take some years ago and why? Is he all right with his parents´ decision?
• What is a “hacker mind-set” for Logan? How does this concept adapt to “hackschooling” (include the terms: happiness, health, shortcuts, education)
• What values and attitudes has he incorporated from his experiences in a “hackschooling” environment?
• What does Logan mean when he shows the photograph of the white mountains?
• How does Logan put together the following by the end of his presentation: community, freedom, education, happy?

Watch the video presentation again and discuss with your teacher terms and phrases of interest, think of synonyms, antonyms and semantic fields involved.

After the video presentation:

• Is his approach possible in your community? Why?
• Would you like this kind of approach for your children education? What are the pros and cons in your opinion?
• What lessons has he learnt through “hackschooling” that are very valuable for everyone, not only teenagers?

E-mail writing

Follow this quick advice when writing a business e-mail.

Brazil and Germany - World Cup legacy, by BBC

 Before watching this news report from BBC, what do you know about the countries of Brazil and Germany? What are they like?

Watch the report and answer the questions:

• How much do you pay for a ticket at the Stadium in Hannover, Germany? Why?
• When will the high-speed train between Rio and Sao Pablo be ready in Brazil?
• What can German people do now, having a high-speed train connecting different cities?
• What is the controversy about having brand new stadiums in Brasilia and Manaos?
• What happened in Leipzig, Germany with one of the World-Cup stadiums from 2006?

Watch the report again and complete the blanks:

We are in Hannover, Germany, to talk ……………………………………, and to see ……………………………. any lessons that Brazil can learn from the Germans …………………………………………………. back in 2006.

After eight years, Germany is now full of modern stadiums like this one that …………………………………….. birthday parties ……………………………………...

One of the things that the Germans have really ………………………………………………….. is the price of tickets. You can watch this match here today …………………………………………... The secret for that is the very expensive …………………………………………………………………………. there, where ………………………………………….. are …………………… very expensive ……………………………………. everyone else here can enjoy cheap tickets. Because of that, Germany now has the ………………………………………………. attendance of any European league.

Brazil has ………………………………………………….. to get its ………………………………….. between Rio and Sao Paulo ……………………….. We now know that it will only be ready ………………………………… the 2016 Olympics in Rio.

Here in Germany, the World Cup …………………………………………………………… to get infrastructure projects ……………. This train between Leipzig and Berlin ………………………………………… just three weeks before football kicked off in 2006. Now, eight years later, Germans can live in one city and work in another.

Brasilia, Manaos, Guyaba are …………………………………………………  venues in Brazil. But there are serious questions about whether these cities will ……………………………………… any great games after ……………………………………………, as there aren´t any big teams ………………………………..

That was exactly ………………………………………….. here in Leipzig. The only venue from the ……………………. East Germany used in 2006 World Cup, this stadium ………………………………………………………………… for three years after the tournament. But in 2009, a multinational company came here and formed RB Leipzig, a team that ………………………………………………………. through the ranks in Germany football.

Now, a game like this …………………………………………… of German football is able ………………………………………………………. of 30.000 people. The question many in Brazil would be asking ………………………… after the World Cup is will its modern stadiums …………………………………………………………, or are they doomed to becoming ………………………………………………………?

After watching, discuss in groups:

• Are you interested in football and the World Cup? What are the news coming from Brazil these days?
• Do you think it´s OK to compare Brazil and Germany regarding the coming event?
• Do you think your country would be a good host for a World Cup event? Why?

Time Management: 2nd in-company workshop 2014

Comienza nuestro segundo workshop de la serie 2014: "Time management: Living to Work or Working to Live" . 

Este workshop y el anterior (Leaders make the difference) se dictan in-company en nuestras empresas clientes y en empresas interesadas. 

Para más información: mkepic@global21.com.ar | Twitter: @marcelakepic
Los esperamos, gracias!

Enjoy Earth Day 2014

Before watching the video, debate briefly with your peers:
 

What´s a "selfie"?

Is Earth Day important in your community / city ? Why?

Watch the video and discuss:

•  Is the message of the video presentation optimistic or pessimistic? What elements in the presentation give you that idea?
•  The narrator talks about cities mainly; why is that so in our opinion?
•  The narrator talks about two possible futures; can you describe them?

Watch the video again, find out when these terms appear and think of synonym expressions:

we need to stand up for the future

outdated

here´s the thing

rely on

within our grasp

After watching:

• Consider the pros and / or cons of having Earth Day in our calendars.
• Are there any initiatives in your city to foster a cleaner, more sustainable future? What would be good ideas in this sense?

A great commercial: New Gillette Campaign

Comment orally in groups:

What do you know about Gillette? What range of products do they sell? Where are they based? Is Gillette popular in your country?

Now, enjoy the commercial:

After watching the commercial, answer these questions orally in class to test your memory:

• Where are the sport athletes at the beginning of the commercial?

• How many shavers do they have to choose from?

• What are Messi and Federer wearing?

• How many sports do they experience? What countries are they from?

• What does Federer do at the end of the commercial? Why?

Did you enjoy the commercial? Why?