Today, The Newtons and The Grandma have been playing Monopoly, the multi-player economics-themed board game and they have bought some interesting places of New York City.
Before playing, they have been studying the Imperative, some modal verbs (Should and Must),and also Countable and Uncountable nouns.
It has been an intensive day.
Monopoly is a multi-player economics-themed board game. In the game, players roll two dice to move around the game board, buying and trading properties, and developing them with houses and hotels. Players collect rent from their opponents, with the goal being to drive them into bankruptcy.
Money can also be gained or lost through Chance and Community Chest cards, and tax squares. Players receive a stipend every time they pass Go, and can end up in jail, from which they cannot move until they have met one of three conditions.
The game has numerous house rules, and hundreds of different editions exist, as well as many spin-offs and related media.
Monopoly has become a part of international popular culture, having been licensed locally in more than 103 countries and printed in more than 37 languages.
Monopoly is derived from The Landlord's Game created by Lizzie Magie in the United States in 1903 as a way to demonstrate that an economy that rewards individuals is better than one where monopolies hold all the wealth, and to promote the economic theories of Henry George -in particular his ideas about taxation.
The Landlord's Game had two sets of rules originally, one with taxation and another on which the current rules are mainly based. When Monopoly was first published by Parker Brothers in 1935, it did not include the less capitalistic taxation rule, which resulted in a more aggressive game.
Parker Brothers bought the game's copyrights from Darrow. When the company learned Darrow was not the sole inventor of the game, it bought the rights to Magie's patent for $500.
Parker Brothers began marketing the game on November 5, 1935.Cartoonist F. O. Alexander contributed the design. U. S. patent number US 2026082 A was issued to Charles Darrow on December 31, 1935, for the game board design and was assigned to Parker Brothers Inc.
The original version of the game in this format was based on the streets of Atlantic City, New Jersey.
Parker Brothers was eventually absorbed into Hasbro in 1991. The game is named after the economic concept of monopoly -the domination of a market by a single entity.
The Watsons are still in Copenhagen. They have suffered a terrible day. A real tragedy has hit their hearts and they are absolutely destroyed.
On the one hand, YolandaWatson has injured her leg and she has stayed at hotel without visiting the city, on the other hand NeusWatson has disappeared in the middle of the Nyhavn canal.
Nyhavn is a 17th-century waterfront, canal and entertainment district in Copenhagen. Stretching from Kongens Nytorv to the harbour front just south of the Royal Playhouse, it is lined by brightly coloured 17th and early 18th century townhouses and bars, cafes and restaurants. The canal harbours many historical wooden ships.
The Watsons were sailing by boat when they have realized that Neus Watson was not with them. Quickly, they have asked for help and they have phone the police that has arrived in five minutes.
After hours and hours of intense searching, Neus Watson has not appeared and the family has started to think the worst things and to live the hardest feelings. They do not want to lose their hope but they must admit news is not as good as they liked.
The Watsons are a strong talk-active family. They have not got secrets, or at least they think it. They have been exposing some theories knowing that Neus is a great fan of Hans Christian Andersen's tale, The Little Mermaid.
While The Watsons were worried about Neus, Yolanda was at hotel studying some English grammar without knowing anything about this tragic disappearance. First, she has read two chapters of her new book The Secret of Oldstone Hall.Later, she has reviewed some modals verbs (Must & Should)and finally, she has been reading about the origin of European surnames and the Saxon genitive.
The Grandma is sad with Yolanda and Neus's news and she has thought in William Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet because her situation is a real tragedy, it is a question of to be or not to be.
The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, often shortened to Hamlet is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play with 30,557 words.
Neus Watson
Set in Denmark, the play depicts PrinceHamlet and his revenge against his uncle, Claudius, who has murdered Hamlet's father in order to seize his throne and marry Hamlet's mother.
Hamlet is Shakespeare's longest play and is considered among the most powerful and influential works of world literature, with a story capable of seemingly endless retelling and adaptation by others.
It was one of Shakespeare's most popular works during his lifetime and still ranks among his most performed, topping the performance list of the Royal Shakespeare Company and its predecessors in Stratford-upon-Avon since 1879. It has inspired many other writers -from Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Charles Dickens to James Joyce and Iris Murdoch- and has been described as the world's most filmed story afterCinderella.
The story of Shakespeare's Hamlet was derived from the legend of Amleth, preserved by 13th-century chronicler Saxo Grammaticus in his Gesta Danorum, as subsequently retold by the 16th-century scholar François deBelleforest.
Shakespeare may also
have drawn on an earlier Elizabethan play known today as the Ur-Hamlet,
though some scholars believe Shakespeare wrote the Ur-Hamlet, later
revising it to create the version of Hamlet we now have. He almost
certainly wrote his version of the title role for his fellow actor,
Richard Burbage, the leading tragedian of Shakespeare's time.
In the 400 years since its inception, the role has been performed by numerous highly acclaimed actors in each successive century.
Three different early versions of the play are extant: the First Quarto (Q1, 1603); the Second Quarto (Q2, 1604); and the First Folio (F1, 1623). Each version includes lines and entire scenes missing from the others. The play's structure and depth of characterisation have inspired much critical scrutiny.
One
such example is the centuries-old debate about Hamlet's hesitation to
kill his uncle, which some see as merely a plot device to prolong the
action but which others argue is a dramatisation of the complex
philosophical and ethical issues that surround cold-blooded murder,
calculated revenge, and thwarted desire.
More recently,
psychoanalytic critics have examined Hamlet's unconscious desires, while
feminist critics have re-evaluated and attempted to rehabilitate the
often-maligned characters of Ophelia and Gertrude.
Hamlet
Any dating of Hamlet must be tentative, cautions the New Cambridge editor, Phillip Edwards. The earliest date estimate relies on Hamlet'sfrequent allusions to Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, itself dated to mid-1599. The latest date estimate is based on an entry, of 26 July 1602, in the Register of the Stationers' Company, indicating that Hamlet was latelie Acted by the Lo: Chamberleyne his servantes.
From the early 17th century, the play was famous for its ghost and vivid dramatisation of melancholy and insanity, leading to a procession of mad courtiers and ladies in Jacobean and Caroline drama.
Much of Hamlet's language is courtly: elaborate, witty discourse, as recommended by Baldassare Castiglione's 1528 etiquette guide, The Courtier.This work specifically advises royal retainers to amuse their masters with inventive language.
Written at a time of religious upheaval and in the wake of the English Reformation, the play is alternately Catholic or piously medieval and Protestant or consciously modern.
Hamlet is often perceived as a philosophical character, expounding ideas that are now described as relativist, existentialist, and sceptical. For example, he expresses a subjectivistic idea when he says to Rosencrantz: there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.
Sigmund Freud's thoughts regarding Hamlet were first published in his book The Interpretation of Dreams (1899), as a footnote to a discussion of Sophocles'tragedy, Oedipus Rex, all of which is part of his consideration of the causes of neurosis.
Freud does not offer over-all interpretations of the plays, but uses the two tragedies to illustrate and corroborate his psychological theories, which are based on his treatments of his patients and on his studies.
Hamlet is one of the most quoted works in the English language, and is often included on lists of the world's greatest literature.
Today, The Jones have spent their last day in Scotland. In the morning, the family has revised some English Grammar with the Modal Verbs (Need, Must & Should) and some Social English. They have also received some presents from MJ and M. In that case, a fantastic Grammar English book.
Show must go on. The family has received medical assistant and following medical advice, the family has continued with the originals plans. The doctors have recommended them that they should travel to Paris, they need to trust in the Scottish Emergency Services and they must be strong because they have suffered a terrible experience.
This afternoon, following the advice of the local authorities, The Jones are flying to Paris where the staff of the Mandarin Hotel are waiting for them. During the flight, the family has chosen some furniture to redecorate and refurbish S'Estaca in Majorca and Urquhart Castle in Loch Ness and The Grandma has recommended them a masterpiece: The Color Purple, the Alice Walker's best seller that Steven Spielberg adapted in 1985.
The Color Purple is a 1985 American period drama film directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Menno Meyjes, based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name by Alice Walker.
It was Spielberg's eighth film as a director, and was a change from the summer blockbusters for which he had become famous. The film was also the first feature-length film directed by Spielberg for which John Williams did not compose the music.
The film starred Danny Glover, Desreta Jackson, Margaret Avery, Oprah Winfrey, in her film debut, Adolph Caesar, Rae Dawn Chong, and featured Whoopi Goldberg, also in her film debut, as Celie Harris-Johnson.
Filmed in Anson and Union counties in North Carolina, the film tells the story of a young African American girl named Celie Harris and shows the problems African American women faced during the early 20th century, including domestic violence, incest, pedophilia, poverty, racism, and sexism. Celie is transformed as she finds her self-worth through the help of two strong female companions.
Noelia Jones and her English book
Set in rural Georgia during the first forty years of the twentieth century, the filmcenters on the life of a fictional character named Celie, an oppressed black woman. In the film, Celie endures rape, sexism, the loss of her children at birth, a tyrannical husband, domestic violence, chauvinism, the loss of her sister, and the demoralization of her friend, Sofia, who also loses her freedom to the law.
Celie and the other characters tell a story of overcoming racism and misogyny in the rural South during this time period, depicting a struggle for equality. Celie maintains her resolve throughout the story. By the end of the film, the characters have undergone remarkable changes and relationships have begun to heal.
The Color Purple was nominated for eleven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actress for Goldberg and Best Supporting Actress for both Avery and Winfrey. It failed to win any of them, tying the record set by 1977's The Turning Point for the most Oscar nominations without a single win.
The Jones have spent another wonderful day in Hogwarts. Today, they have talked about SocialEnglish and they have revised some aspects of grammar like Too-Enough, Questions Tags and Modals Verbs (Should and Must).
The family is working hard enough to reach their objectives and they don't hesitate in her effort to learn every day. After the grammar explanations, The Grandma has talked about the possible origins of Sant Boi de Llobregat a beautiful and historic town near Barcelona.
This city has been very important during all the history, since the Prehistorical ages to recent ones although its inhabitants are too shy to talk about how important and wonderful the town is. The city is blessed by a beautiful natural environment which must be protected; important industry, which should be improved and nice inhabitants, who must be well-known around the world.
The Llobregat river, the Montbaig range, the agricultural lands, the Capuccins, the Romans, the Via Augusta, the thermes, The Succession War, Antoni Pujadas, Antoni Gaudí, the fight against the dictatorship in the 20 century, Manel Esteller, the Gasol brothers, the Marquis of Samà or the mental hospitals are some examples of a historical place, which doesn't invest enough efforts in being an important cultural and natural reclaim for visitors.
Finally, The Jones have played The Goose Game in an oral way in an attempt to join leisure and stories. The Jones have also talked about Saint George and the Black Virgins, two concepts that hide incredible stories that come from Egypt.
Tomorrow, the family is going to spend a free day and visit the outskirts of Hogwarts. It will be a beautiful trip to enjoy and play without limits before Easter arrives.
Last Thursday, 21, The Beans continued with their English classes. The class started a bit late because The Grandma had been attending some important business in Barcelona. She must vote.
That day, they talked about modal verbs: Must and Should. They also discussed about So and Such.
It's important to know when you have to choose one kind of verb or another because it demonstrates the power of the emitter over the receiver.
The Beans prepared the last details to travel to TheUSA at Christmas and thought about which places they wanted to visit and they were discussing about their new home. The Grandma accepted all their proposals and now they have an enormous work to refurbish all of them.
Today, The Bonds are practising some Social English and some grammar like Prepositions of Place and Direction, Zero and First Conditionals and Modal Verbs (Must).
They are working together to demonstrate Juanjo and Irene Bond's innocence and they are creating little guides about the most important places of New York City.
The Grandma is talking about some universal painters like Salvador Dalí, Joan Miró, Pablo Picasso and Francisco de Goya and their influence while the whole family is visiting The Metropolitan Museum. She's a fan of Joan Miró although her favourite painting is The Pantocrator of Sant Climent de Taüll in La Vall de Boí, a part of the Romanesque art inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2000 and which is now exposed in the MNAC in Barcelona.
Today, The Poppins have studied some modal verbs
like Must and Need and have revised Should.
They have done some exercises about Social
English and they’ve chosen which model of exam they want to do.
The family,
which is still in Scotland, wanted
to start to search Nessie but the
latest news about Eurovision Song Contest
have changed their plans. Isa from Malta, Lulú from Russia, Carmen from Czech Republic and M.José
from The Netherlands have arrived to
the final, which will be celebrated next Saturday in Stockholm (Sweden).
The Grandma has talked about using some kind of tools to search an
employment and about their utility and reliability. She has put like an example
the case of her old friend Ofèlia Puig,
who is a great fan of social networks. She has tried to explain that the most
important thing in a job searching is the own person and, maybe, the tools aren’t
sometimes as useful and honest as we think but nevertheless we must try it.
Finally, Tonyi Poppins in her name and in Irina's has answered lots of questions about her participation and experience in Eurovision Song Contest.
Tomorrow,
they’re preparing Nessie’s searching and they’re starting to work with
connectors and prepositions.
Self-esteem is as important to our well-being as legs
are to a table.
It is essential for physical and mental health and for
happiness.
Yesterday, The Holmes reviewed some aspects of
grammar and talked about adverbs of
manner. They also created a Personal
Message, discussed about job webpages and its difficulties and read a
little more of Charles Dickens’ A Carol
Christmas. The family stayed all the weekend in Venice enjoying the carnival and sailing by gondola thanks to Asun.
Today, The Holmes have reviewed The Superlatives and some modal verbs
like Must, Have to and Should.
Moreover, they’ve created a composition using this new theory and they have
worked Social English, too.
For other
hand, the family is spending its last hours in Italy. This morning they’ve visited Pisa; this afternoon Verona
and in this moment they’re having dinner in Siena.
In a few
hours, they’re flying to Belgium and
later to London. Tomorrow, the
family is going to continue its adventures. The Grandma is going to explain them some stories about numbers and
they’re going to prepare new budgets and invoices.
The family
could reach one of the most important dreams for Karen: sing in the Eurovision
Song Contest. This year, Vienna
was the city which organizes it and The
Collins Family moved from Salzburg to the capital of Austria.
The Song
Contest was amazing and after a hard fight between the local artist, Conchita,
and Karen, who represented Ukraine, our heroine won playing a
beautiful song called “Hou, hou”, a
song which talked about peace and love, obviously.
The Collins
Family continued its English preparation and during this intensive week, they
revised grammar: Must/Mustn’t, Can/Can’t, Could/Couldn’t, Should/Shouldn’t, the Conditional Tense or the Second
Conditional and advanced in its reading about Robinson Crusoe’s novel.
Yesterday, we continued the Robinson’s
story and we talked about Navajo Nation,
its language, and its importance in the Second World War. We reviewed Must (modal verb) and we recycled being
as eco-friendly as we could.
We gave our best wishes to MariCarmen, who had an important exam
and we stayed the last hours in Paris.
Today, TheCollins Family is
packing their suitcases again. They’re going to Salzburg to spend some days and
visit some places guided by M. Ángeles.
Navajo
Indians live in the Four Corners area of northern Arizona, north-western New
Mexico, and south-eastern Utah. As members of the largest Indian nation in both
population and land area (160,000 people by Bureau of Indian Affairs estimates,
and 25,000 square miles of reservation land, roughly the size of West
Virginia), many Navajos still speak only their native language, and most
others, although they may be bilingual and bicultural, still cherish their
songs, dances, and rituals. Woven into the fabric of everyday life, Navajo
songs not only reinforce ancient beliefs but also serve as entertainment.
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