THE WINSORS DISCOVER WHO THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE IS

Today, The Winsors and The Grandma have discovered who the Half-Blood Prince is.

 

Half-blood is the term commonly given to wizards and witches who had known Muggle or Muggle-born parents or grandparents. 

Half-bloods were the most common type of wizard or witch, as the pure-blood wizarding population would have become extinct had they not inter-married with Muggles and Muggle-borns.

 

Before discovering the Half-Blood Prince, the family has been preparing their Cambridge Exam studying some English vocabulary about Useful Things, Other Countries and In The Classroom. They have also practised an A2 Cambridge Test.

Download Useful things Vocabulary

 

More information: Useful things

 

 Download Other Countries Vocabulary

 

 More information: Other Countries

 

Download In The Classroom Vocabulary

 

More information: In The Classroom

 

Download A2 Cambridge Test_04 (Reading & Listening)

 

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is a fantasy novel written by British author J.K. Rowling and the sixth and penultimate novel in the Harry Potter series.

Set during Harry Potter's sixth year at Hogwarts, the novel explores the past of Harry's nemesis, Lord Voldemort, and Harry's preparations for the final battle against Lord Voldemort alongside his headmaster and mentor Albus Dumbledore.

The book was published in the United Kingdom by Bloomsbury and in the United States by Scholastic on 16 July 2005, as well as in several other countries. It sold nine million copies in the first 24 hours after its release, a record that was eventually broken by its sequel, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

There were many controversies before and after it was published, including the right to read copies delivered before the release date in Canada. Reception to the novel was generally positive, and it won several awards and honours, including the 2006 British Book of the Year award. 

Reviewers noted that the book took on a darker tone than its predecessors, though it did contain some humour. Some considered the main themes to be love, death, trust, and redemption. The considerable character development of Harry and many other teenage characters also drew attention.

The film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince was released 15 July 2009 by Warner Bros.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is the sixth book in the Harry Potter series.

The first book in the series, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, was first published by Bloomsbury in 1997, with an initial print-run of 500 copies in hardback, 300 of which were distributed to libraries. By the end of 1997, the UK edition won a National Book Award and a gold medal in the 9- to 11-year-olds category of the Nestlé Smarties Book Prize.

More information: Wizarding World I & II

The second book, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, was originally published in the UK on 2 July 1998 and in the US on 2 June 1999.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban was then published a year later in the UK on 8 July 1999 and in the US on 8 September 1999.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire was published on 8 July 2000 at the same time by Bloomsbury and Scholastic.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the longest novel in the Harry Potter series, was released 21 June 2003.

After the publishing of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the seventh and final novel, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, was released 21 July 2007. The book sold 11 million copies within 24 hours of its release: 2.7 million copies in the UK and 8.3 million in the US.

J.K. Rowling stated that she had Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince planned for years, but she spent an entire two months going over her plan before she began writing the story seriously.

This was a lesson learned after she did not check the plan for Goblet of Fire and had to rewrite an entire third of the book. She started writing the book before her second child, David, was born, but she took a break to care for him.

The first chapter, The Other Minister, which features meetings between the Muggle Prime Minister, Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge, and his successor, Rufus Scrimgeour, was a concept J.K. Rowling tried to start in Philosopher's Stone, Prisoner of Azkaban, and Order of the Phoenix, but she found it finally works in Half-Blood Prince.

She stated that she was seriously upset writing the end of the book, although Goblet of Fire was the hardest to write. When asked if she liked the book, she responded, I like it better than I liked Goblet, Phoenix or Chamber when I finished them. Book six does what I wanted it to do and even if nobody else likes it and some won't, I know it will remain one of my favourites of the series. Ultimately you have to please yourself before you please anyone else!"

More information: Screen Crush

J.K. Rowling revealed the title of Half-Blood Prince on her website on 24 June 2004. This was the title she had once considered for the second book, Chamber of Secrets, though she decided the information disclosed belonged later on in the story.

On 21 December 2004, she announced she had finished writing it, along with the release date of 16 July. Bloomsbury unveiled the cover on 8 March 2005.

The film adaptation of the sixth book was originally scheduled to be released on 21 November 2008 but was changed to 15 July 2009. Directed by David Yates, the screenplay was adapted by Steve Kloves and produced by David Heyman and David Barron.

The film grossed over $934 million worldwide, which made it the second-highest-grossing film of 2009 worldwide and the fifteenth-highest of all time. Additionally, Half-Blood Prince gained an Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography.

More information: The Guardian

Download Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling

 

You dare speak his name with your unworthy lips,

you dare besmirch it with your half-blood's tongue, you dare...

He dared — he dares — he stands there — filthy half-blood.

Bellatrix Lestrange

THE FOSTERS ARE IN THE GOBLET OF FIRE'S TOURNAMENT

Today, The Fosters and The Grandma have started to prepare their participation in The Goblet of Fire, an interesting tournament that it is going to be celebrated in Hogwarts. The Fosters have been invited by Albus Dumbledore and it has been a great honour for them to have this chance. The rivals are very powerful and strong but The Fosters are going to offer their best result.

 

Before, the family has been preparing their Cambridge Exam studying some vocabulary about Transport and Useful Things.

 

Download Transport Vocabulary

 

More information: Transport

 

Download Useful things Vocabulary

 

More information: Useful things

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is a fantasy book written by British author J. K. Rowling and the fourth novel in the Harry Potter series.

It follows Harry Potter, a wizard in his fourth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and the mystery surrounding the entry of Harry's name into the Triwizard Tournament, in which he is forced to compete.

The book was published in the United Kingdom by Bloomsbury and in the United States by Scholastic. In both countries, the release date was 8 July 2000. This was the first time a book in the series was published in both countries at the same time.

The novel won a Hugo Award, the only Harry Potter novel to do so, in 2001. The book was adapted into a film, released worldwide on 18 November 2005, and a video game by Electronic Arts.

More information: Wizarding World

Throughout the three previous novels in the Harry Potter series, the main character, Harry Potter, has struggled with the difficulties of growing up and the added challenge of being a famed wizard.

When Harry was a baby, Lord Voldemort, the most powerful dark wizard in history, killed Harry's parents but was mysteriously defeated after unsuccessfully trying to kill Harry, though his attempt left a lightning-shaped scar on Harry's forehead.

This results in Harry's immediate fame and his being placed in the care of his abusive Muggle, non-magical, aunt and uncle, Petunia and Vernon Dursley, who have a son named Dudley.

Albus Dumbledore & The Goblet of Fire

On Harry's eleventh birthday, he learns he is a wizard from Rubeus Hagrid, Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and enrols in Hogwarts. He befriends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger and confronts Lord Voldemort, who is trying to regain power.

Albus Dumbledore & The Goblet of Fire

In Harry's first year, he has to protect the Philosopher's Stone from Voldemort and one of his faithful followers at Hogwarts.

After returning to school after summer break, students at Hogwarts are attacked by the legendary monster of the Chamber of Secrets after the Chamber is opened. Harry ends the attacks by killing a Basilisk and thwarting another attempt by Lord Voldemort to return to full strength.

The following year, Harry hears he has been targeted by escaped mass murderer Sirius Black. Despite stringent security measures at Hogwarts, Harry encounters Black at the end of his third year and learns Black was framed and is actually Harry's godfather. He also learns that it was his father's old school friend Peter Pettigrew who betrayed his parents.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is the fourth book in the Harry Potter series. The first, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, was published by Bloomsbury on 26 June 1997.

The second, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, was published on 2 July 1998. The third, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, followed on 8 July 1999. Goblet of Fire is almost twice the size of the first three books, the paperback edition was 636 pages.

More information: Wizarding World

Rowling stated that she knew from the beginning it would be the biggest of the first four. She said there needed to be a proper run-up for the conclusion and rushing the complex plot could confuse readers. She also stated that everything is on a bigger scale, which was symbolic, as Harry's horizons widened both literally and metaphorically as he grew up. She also wanted to explore more of the magical world.

Until the official title's announcement on 27 June 2000, the book was called by its working title, Harry Potter IV. Previously, in April, the publisher had listed it as Harry Potter and the Doomspell Tournament.

However, J. K. Rowling expressed her indecision about the title in an Entertainment Weekly interview. I changed my mind twice on what the title was. The working title had got out -Harry Potter and the Doomspell Tournament. Then I changed Doomspell to Triwizard Tournament. Then I was teetering between Goblet of Fire and Triwizard Tournament. In the end, I preferred Goblet of Fire because it's got that kind of cup of destiny feel about it, which is the theme of the book.

Rowling mentioned that she originally wrote a Weasley relative named Malfalda, who, according to Rowling, was the daughter of the second cousin who's a stockbroker mentioned in Philosopher's Stone. This stockbroker had been very rude to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley in the past, but now he and his (Muggle) wife had inconveniently produced a witch, they came back to the Weasleys asking for their help in introducing her to wizarding society before she starts at Hogwarts.

More information: Wizarding World

Malfalda was supposed to be a Slytherin and was to fill in the Rita Skeeter subplot, but she was eventually removed because there were obvious limitations to what an eleven year old closeted at school could discover.

Rowling considered Rita Skeeter to be much more flexible. Rowling also admitted that the fourth book was the most difficult to write at the time because she noticed a giant plot hole halfway through writing. In particular, Rowling had trouble with the ninth chapter, The Dark Mark, which she rewrote 13 times.

It was pointed out that bigotry is a big theme in the Harry Potter novels and Goblet of Fire in particular. it was mentioned how Voldemort and his followers are prejudiced against Muggles and how, in Goblet of Fire, Hermione forms a group to liberate Hogwarts' house-elves who have been indentured servants so long they lack desire for anything else.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire was adapted into a film, released worldwide on 18 November 2005, which was directed by Mike Newell and written by Steve Kloves.

More information: Screen Rant

Download Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling

 

 

 Dark and difficult times lie ahead.

Soon we must all face the choice between

what is right and what is easy.

Albus Dumbledore

FAME FOREVER, THE HIGH SCHOOL OF PERFORMING ARTS

Today, The Grandma has visited some old friends at High School of Performing Arts, informally known as PA, the public alternative high school established in 1947 and located at 120 West 46th Street in the borough of Manhattan, New York City, from 1948 to 1984.

Meanwhile, The Grangers have been practising some English vocabulary about Transport and Useful things, and improving their Speaking. They have also studied Since/For (Present Perfect).

In 1961, the school was merged with another alternative arts school, the High School of Music & Art, while each retained its own campus. Plans for establishing a joint building for the merged schools took many years to be realized. There was opposition to the loss of PA's individual identity, but both student bodies eventually moved into a shared building in 1984, christened the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School.

More information: Since/For

More information: Transport

 

Download Useful things Vocabulary

 

More information: Useful things

 

 Download Cambridge KET Exam Speaking Models (02)

Leaving behind PPAS, a middle and high school created in 1990 to meet the needs of two groups of students: those who wanted to pursue professional work in the arts as they earned a junior/senior high school diploma and those who wanted to study the arts as an avocation.

Many well-known performers were trained at the school, such as Eartha Kitt, Liza Minnelli, Jennifer Aniston, Ving Rhames, Lorraine Toussaint, acting coach Bernard Hiller and Suzanne Vega, Hwang Hyunjin.

The 1980 film Fame was set in the High School of Performing Arts, though the building was not used in filming.

This school was created in 1947 by educator and creative thinker Franklin J. Keller, as a part of Metropolitan Vocational High School, using his staff and administrators on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Under Keller's stewardship, it offered music and theater arts programs in addition to the traditional trade skills.

In 1948, the school occupied Public School 46, a disused 1894 public school building on West 46th Street in the Times Square area. The new school offered programs in music, dance, drama, and, for a time, photography. There were many professionals on staff, including the young Sidney Lumet in the drama department. His production in 1948 was The Young & Fair.

Beginning in the mid-1950s, the New York City administration announced plans to move PA out of its ancient building and into new quarters. These plans evolved to joining the student body with that of the High School of Music & Art M&A in a newly constructed building. A site in the Lincoln Square area was chosen, eventually settling to within the newly developed Lincoln Center complex.

A groundbreaking ceremony was held in 1958, where Mayor Robert F. Wagner and the City Council publicly promised completion by 1964. In anticipation of this, PA and M&A formally merged in 1961 as sister schools on paper while retaining their respective campuses.

In 1969, the combined institution was coined the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts, named after the founder of M&A.

PA continued to audition, educate, and graduate students in its old location during these decades of uncertainty. 

In 1973, ground was again broken for a new building at Lincoln Center, but New York City's budget crisis forced all construction to be suspended until the early 1980s. 

Finally, in September 1984, the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts welcomed students from both schools into their new building.

In 1980 the motion picture Fame, based loosely on student and faculty life at PA, premiered. In 2009 a remake was released.

More information: New York Post

Fame is an American television series originally produced between January 7, 1982, and May 18, 1987, by Eilenna Productions in association with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Television and sponsored by Yamaha musical instruments, which are prominently showcased in the episodes.

The show is based on the 1980 motion picture of the same name. Using a mixture of comedy, drama and music, it followed the lives of the students and faculty at the New York City High School for the Performing Arts  -a fictional establishment, but based heavily on the actual Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts.

Most interior scenes were filmed in Hollywood, California. In all seasons except the third, the show filmed several exterior scenes on location in New York City.

The popularity of the series around the world, most notably in the United Kingdom, led to several hit records and live concert tours by the cast.

Despite its success, few of the actors maintained high-profile careers after the series was cancelled. Several of the cast members were seen again briefly in Bring Back...Fame, a reunion special made for Channel 4 in the United Kingdom in 2008.

The series won a number of Emmy awards, and in 1983 and 1984, it won the Golden Globe Awards: Television, Best Series, Musical/Comedy. Actress, director and choreographer Debbie Allen, who had a small role in the motion picture, but played a major character in the television version, also won several awards.

More information: Shondaland

 

You've got big dreams.
You want fame.
Well, fame costs.
And right here is
where you start paying: in sweat.

Lydia Grant

BETHESDA FOUNTAIN, THE ANGEL OF THE WATERS IN NYC

Today, The Grandma has visited one of her favourite places of New York City, the Bethesda Fountain in Central Park.

Meanwhile, The Newtons have been preparing their Cambridge Exam. 

 

They have studied some vocabulary about Transport and Useful Things.

 

 

More info: Transport & Useful Things

 

Bethesda Terrace and Fountain are two architectural features overlooking the southern shore of the Lake in New York City's Central Park.

 

The fountain, with its Angel of the Waters statue, is located in the center of the terrace.

Bethesda Terrace's two levels are united by two grand staircases and a lesser one that passes under Terrace Drive. They provide passage southward to the Central Park Mall and Naumburg Bandshell at the center of the park. The upper terrace flanks the 72nd Street Cross Drive and the lower terrace provides a podium for viewing the Lake. The mustard-olive colored carved stone is New Brunswick sandstone, with a harder stone for cappings, with granite steps and landings, and herringbone pattern paving of Roman brick laid on edge.

In Calvert Vaux and Frederick Law Olmsted's 1858 Greensward Plan, the terrace at the end of the Mall overlooking the naturalistic landscape of the Lake was simply called The Water Terrace, but after the unveiling of the angel, its name was changed to Bethesda Terrace.

Construction of the terrace and fountain occurred during the American Civil War. Only two major structures besides the Bethesda Terrace were completed during the Civil War: the Music Stand and the Casino restaurant, both demolished.

By the end of 1861, work on Bethesda Terrace was well underway. The stonework to be installed in the terrace arrived in 1862, and the masonry of the fountain was installed by 1863.

In 1864, the stonework of Bethesda Terrace was completed except for minor details, and the Central Park commission hired a sculptor to design the figures for the Fountain. The upper level of the Terrace was mostly built by 1867, by which time the Fountain's figures were being cast in bronze.

More information: Central Park Conservancy

The original plans had called for marble and bronze figures to be installed on the upper level, but those were not executed. The Bethesda Fountain was officially completed in 1873.

Bethesda Fountain is the central feature on the lower level of the terrace. The pool is centered by a fountain sculpture designed by Emma Stebbins in 1868 and unveiled in 1873. Also called the Angel of the Waters, the statue refers to Healing the paralytic at Bethesda, a story from the Gospel of John about an angel blessing the Pool of Bethesda, giving it healing powers. It was the only statue funded by the city in the original design for the park. Stebbins was the first woman to receive a public commission for a major work of art in New York City.

The 2.4 m bronze statue depicts a female winged angel touching down upon the top of the fountain, where water spouts and cascades into an upper basin and into the surrounding pool.

Beneath her are four four-foot cherubs representing temperance, purity, health, and peace. The statue alludes to the Croton Aqueduct, the first pure-water aqueduct in New York City, which opened in 1842 on the site of Central Park. The angel carries a lily in one hand, representing purity, and with the other hand she blesses the water below.

The lower basin has water lilies, lotus, and papyrus, inspired by an illustration in an 1891 book by Vaux's assistant and partner Samuel Parsons, the Superintendent of Planting in Central Park.

The base of the fountain was designed by Calvert Vaux, with sculptural details by Mould. The panels of carving in the abstracted organic style propounded by Owen Jones, a mentor of the sculptor Jacob Wrey Mould are organized by an iconographical program of themes: the Seasons, the Times of Day, the Ages of Mankind.

More information: Friends of the Old Croton Aqueduct

There's a spot in Central Park, the Bethesda Fountain,
where if you sit there long enough, the entire city walks by.

Alex Whitman