Happy Halloween!

I found this on the popular American web site www.pinterest.com... Check it out!

Halloween Party Food!

Too cute! From www.ourbestbites.com. Have a great vacation!

Caught up in the Middle...

For the secondes.... Vacation begins Saturday, so.......

vocabulary

to sample (verb) = a. to take a short extract from (one record) and mix it into a different backing track 
sample (noun) = a small part of anything or one of a number, intended to show the quality, style, or nature of the whole
cover version, cover song, or cover = a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song. (Aretha Franklin's song "Respect" was originally done by Otis Redding.

"I Cry" is a song that is number 43 on the Billboard 100 charts in the United States today. (present)
Flo Rida's song was inspired by a song that was famous in the late 1980s. (past)
The original song has been sampled several times in other songs. (present perfect)
It had been sampled by Bingo Players before Flo Rida sampled it. (past perfect/past)

Listen to this Flo Rida song....Who sang the original version? Qwote and Pitbull?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLuWHr6-0YQ


What is Flo Rida's song about? Why is there so much water in the video? What does it represent?

We will play a game with this next song. I will ask each team to answer a question. You will get a point for a correct answer. I will remove a point if you teammate answers for you. Listen to the song.

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=brenda+russell+piano+in+the+dark

"Piano in the Dark" was released in early 1988. The song became Brenda Russell's biggest hit, peaking at number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100, number 8 on the R&B Chart and number 3 on the Adult Contemporary Chart. The song was also a moderate hit in the UK, peaking at 23.

The song earned Russell three Grammy Award nominations in 1989, including one for Song of the Year.

Who sings this original song? (tense:                             ) Answer: 
What is the name of this song? (tense:                             ) Answer:

When I find myself watching the time (tense:                                        )
I never think about all the funny things (tense:                                        )
you said (tense:                                        )
I feel like it's dead (definition of dead:                                       )
Where is it leading me now (definition of now:                                   )

I turn around in the still of the room (definition of room:                                      )
Knowing this is when I'm gonna make my move (gonna is slang for:                                 )
Can't wait any longer (definition of wait:                                      )
And I'm feeling stronger but oh (definition of stronger:               )

Just as I walk through the door (definition of door:                                      )
I can feel your emotion (definition of feel:                          )
It's pullin' me back
Back to love you

I know I'm caught up in the middle (definition of caught:                               )
I cry just a little (definition of cry:                              )
When I think of letting go (definition of think:                                  )
Oh no, gave up on the riddle (definition of riddle:                                 )
I cry just a little
When he plays piano in the dark

He holds me close like a thief of the heart (definition of thief:                    )
He plays a melody
Born to tear me all apart
The silence is broken (definition of broken:                          )
And no words are spoken but oh (definition of spoken:                                  )



So, which version of the "Cry" song do you prefer?

We probably don't agree... ;-)

The 2012 U.S. Presidential Election

The United States elects a new president every four years. The election is always held on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November (between November 2nd and 8th.)

This year the election will be held on Tuesday, November 6th.

Who can run for president?

Only native-born U.S. citizens (or those born abroad to parents who were both citizens of the U.S.) may be president of the United States, though from time to time that requirement is called into question. Candidates must be at least 35 years old to be president. John F. Kennedy was the youngest person ever elected president; he was 43 years old when he was inaugurated in 1961.

Candidates must live in the United States for at least 14 years to be president, in addition to being a natural-born citizen. The Constitution is vague on this point. (Must those 14 years be consecutive?) This requirement has not been challenged yet. 

Requirements are the same for the vice president because if the president were to die, become incapacitated, resign or be removed from office, the vice president becomes president. (Next is the speaker of the House of Representatives.)

There are two main current political parties: The Republican Party (the GOP, which means Grand Old Party) and the Democratic Party.


Who are the candidates? 

The incumbent is Barack Obama. He is a democrat. His vice president is Joe Biden.

Barack Hussein Obama II was born August 4, 1961. He is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American U.S. president. (There has never been a female president.) Source:  www.wikipedia.org:

 

Obama was born in Honolulu, Hawaii. His mom was from Kansas and his dad was from Kenya. Obama is a graduate of Columbia University and Harvard Law School. He worked as a civil rights attorney in Chicago and taught constitutional law at the University of Chicago Law School from 1992 to 2004.

He served three terms representing the 13th District in the Illinois Senate from 1997 to 2004. He lost an election for the United States House of Representatives in 2000. He won the Senate election in November 2004, serving until his resignation following his 2008 presidential election victory. He and his wife Michelle have two children, Sasha and Malia.

Here is a current TV ad for his campaign:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FBorRZnqtMo&feature=endscreen 

Here is his Republican challenger, Mitt Romney. His vice presidential candidate (running mate) is Paul Ryan. Source: TIME For Kids

Willard Mitt Romney was born on March 12, 1947 in Detroit, Michigan. His mother, Lenore, was an actress. His father George never graduated from college, but became a successful businessman and served as Governor of Michigan.

Romney has degrees from Brigham Young University and Harvard University. After working as a business consultant for several years, Mitt founded the successful investment firm Bain Capital in 1984. He helped organize the 2002 Winter Olympics, in Salt Lake City, Utah. Then he served as governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007.

Romney is a Mormon, a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS). He and his wife Ann have five adult sons and 18 grandchildren.

 
Here is a current TV ad for his campaign.

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/tv-ad-romney-tries-undo-damage-47-percent-131356305--election.html


How does the US elect a president? 

Source: Time for Kids

In most elections, the candidate with the most votes wins. But when it comes to picking a U.S. President, things aren’t quite that simple. Weeks after Election Day, a group of 538 people called the Electoral College will actually elect the President.

Each state is given electoral votes based on the size of its population. The 538 electoral voters are chosen by the political parties in each state. A candidate needs 270 electoral votes to become President. If no candidate gets a majority of electoral votes, members of the House of Representatives choose the President. There have been times when electors have voted contrary to the people's decision, and there is no federal law or Constitutional provision against it.

In 48 states, the winner of the popular vote (the votes cast by citizens) gets all of the state’s electoral votes. In Maine and Nebraska, the electoral votes can be split between the candidates.

The U.S. Constitution established the Electoral College. Some of the Founding Fathers wanted Congress to pick the President. Others wanted citizens to make the choice. The Electoral College was a compromise.

Things first got complicated in 1876. Samuel Tilden won the popular vote. But his opponent, Rutherford B. Hayes, won the election by a single electoral vote. The 2000 election was complicated too. George W. Bush won fewer popular votes than Al Gore. But in the end, Bush had more electoral votes and went to the White House.

Who's going to win?

This is how the election stands today, according to The New York Times. 

http://elections.nytimes.com/2012/electoral-map

And here is more information about swing states. This group includes North Carolina as a swing state; whereas The New York Times counts the state as leaning toward Romney.

http://www.politico.com/2012-election/swing-state/

Here is how the states voted in 2008.

http://elections.nytimes.com/2008/results/president/map.html

What issue is most important to Americans?

http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2012/10/23/which-issue-will-most-decide-who-will-get-your-vote-for-president/ 

Do the debates influence the vote? 

Monday night, the candidates had their third and final debate. Here is what people are saying about the results. 

http://nbcpolitics.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/10/22/14629085-did-the-final-presidential-debate-do-anything-to-influence-who-you-will-support-in-the-election?lite

Who do you think will win? Why do you think that?

Do you think the electoral college system is fair?

Could a child born in Switzerland to an American mom and a French dad become U.S. president?

Could a child born in New York to a French dad and an American mom run for the office?

The winner will be inaugurated on January 21, 2013.

Fewer Horses and Bayonets

This is the most talked-about segment of the third and final presidential debate, held last night:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgTHmIuOF1A

Don't forget to watch everything you can about the election during the break! The actual election will be Tuesday, November 6th. We will be talking about the results in our first class after vacation. I will post some information while we are on holiday.

Bad Grammar!

This photo is from a site called: www.icanhascheeseburger.com.

To have correct grammar, the site should be called, "Can I have a cheeseburger?"

Great Grammar Quizzes!

Test yourself! This is an excellent site.

http://a4esl.org/

Country Music Humor

Wireless Technology

Blog Talk Radio

The web site www.BlogTalkRadio.com is was launched in 2006 to allow users to create and promote their own Internet radio programs. Up to five listeners can call in at a time, and shows can have unlimited listeners. The site currently is ranked #758 in the US and 3,247 in the world by www.alexa.com.

Topics include politics, religion, parenting, health... anything you can imagine. In 2006, I had a 15-minute weekly show with my son called,  "French Fun." We produced the show for six months. He was just seven years old, so we quit when he started to get bored with it...

The Great American Melting Pot

Ideas for Texas Oral Reports

If your class is doing oral reports on Texas and you haven't found a topic yet, here are a few ideas. Be sure no one has chosen the same thing in your class before you begin work. Ask me!

Fort Worth (a large city near Dallas)
Galveston (a city/island near Houston)
Waco (a city in central Texas where the Branch Davidian compound was located
Reveille, the mascot of Texas A&M University
The Texas Prison System
Stanley Marsh 3/Cadillac Ranch
Demi Lovato, actress, singer
Selena Gomez, actress, singer
Jennifer Love Hewitt, actress
H. Ross Perot
Charlie Wilson, politician (played by Tom Hanks in "Charlie Wilson's War")
Friday Night Lights (book, movie or TV series)
Bernie Tiede, convicted murderer in the movie, "Bernie," based on the true story