Evaluation of Your Blogging Experience

Hi everyone,

Today is our last class writing on our blogs. This time, we are going to write about our experience using blogs in the English class.

In your post you must say:

> What you think about the experience in general
> How much you feel your writing skills have developed
> What you would like to include in the future
> What else you would like to write about


Word count: 200
Write a comment on your teacher's post and 3 comments on your classmates' posts.

This is my sample post:

I think that writing on a blog with my students for the English program has been really beneficial for me because I enjoy writing in general, but it’s also nice to practice putting your ideas in coherent way on paper. What I've enjoyed the most was reading my students' posts and learning more about your lives, your opinions, the things you like to do in your daily lives and what you would like to do in the future. It makes me feel very fulfilled when I see you interested in an activity and when you find it relevant in your lives.

My writing skills have developed, and I can see it when I want to write something that may be complex but I must make the effort of summarizing the information in a way that is clear for everyone. In the writing experience I’ve had so far, which is not too much : ) , I have learned that to catch your readers’ attention you need to find ways of reordering the sentences and paragraphs, and use a wider range of vocabulary.

In the future, it would be interesting to include a blog in the class where we can give our opinions on current issues that we are going through in our culture and society. Some examples I can think of are the feminist movement and other rights movements like the LGBTQ+ rights, indigenous peoples rights, or even what is happening now with the TPP-11 agreement and how this impacts our lives.

There are so many things we can write about, it would be nice to know what you think of the blogging experience and what other themes you’d like to write about in the future.

Post nº9

Today we have to write about a topic that we choose, and I would like to offer you three options. You must choose ONLY ONE option.

Option 1: A Book or Novel I’ve Enjoyed Reading

In this post you must include the following:

-The title and author of the book or novel

-The genre (fantasy, mystery, drama, horror, etc)

-Why you liked it

-What the story was about

-A picture of the front cover

Option 2: A TV Series I’ve Enjoyed Watching

You must include:

-The name of the series and main characters

-The genre (fantasy, mystery, drama, horror, etc)

-Why you liked it

-What the story was about

-A picture of the main characters

Option 3: A Game I Like Playing

You must include:

-The name of the game

-How you play it

-Who you play it with

-Why you like it

-When and where you play it

-A picture of the game

-You must write at least 190 words

-Remember to write a comment on my post and on three classmates’ posts.

Here is my sample post:

A Book I’ve Enjoyed Reading

I like reading different kinds of books, about different topics.

A book that I remember enjoying a lot was “The Debt: A 5000 Thousand Year History” by David Graeber, an anthropologist and anarchist. As you can see in the title, the book is about history but also about a view of the economy. I read this book about 7 years ago, and it was about a thousand pages long, so a lot of its details escape my memory. But in general, the book explained the link there has been in history, especially from the time of the Roman Empire, between war and looting, the creation of slavery, and the creation of Nation-States based on imposing taxes on the people that are conquered, showing the direct link between the capitalist economy and the use of military force.

One of the points that I really liked about this book is that it showed that there have been in history (and still are in some parts of the world) different systems of economy. One example is that instead of using paper money, people get indebted with each other in such a way that everyone in the community should have access to the things they need. According to the author, this debt system makes us take care of our human relations, because we need people to trust us in our community in order to have these kinds of exchanges.

The book is really well written and is easy to understand for everyone. And he can be funny as well, sometimes using irony and a sense of humour. 

A Subject You Enjoyed Studying this Semester

Hi everyone!

Today we are going to write a post about A Subject You've Enjoyed Studying this Semester.

You must say:
What the subject is about
Why you like it or why you're interested in it
What it is useful for

You must write at least 180 words.


This is my sample post:

Western Feminism and the Arab World

A topic that I am really interested in learning more about are the misconceptions of feminists over the views of the lives of women in Eastern and Middle Eastern societies and how we can free ourselves from these prejudices.

Feminism as a movement for women’s rights originated in Europe and, therefore, it has done a great job in defending women’s rights in those parts of the world where white people are dominant. Nonetheless, this kind of feminism does not really address the needs of women coming from other parts of the world, women who are basically not considered white or who do not live under liberal Western values.

Because I volunteer in a solidarity organization for Palestine, and we work on the ground connecting our local social struggles with that of Palestine, I have learned how in our Western society there are many negative preconceptions about women in the Arab world in general. There are many prejudices against Islam, for example, such as the idea that all Muslim women live under brutal male oppression. There is also a very common misconception that being Arab and being Muslim are equivalents, when in reality, not all Arabs are Muslim, and not all Muslims are Arabs.

This is why I have started to read papers and watched speeches from Middle Eastern female scholars, either Muslim or secular, who talk about the lives and struggles of women in this region. The misconceptions that Western feminism have created around the lives of Arab women, and how they somehow feel entitled “to save” Arab women from male oppression are, in my opinion, very dangerous. These ideas of saviourship inevitably cast an image of inherent weakness in these women, as if somehow they could not take care of themselves, but worse of all, the very arrogant idea that we in the West can actually tell them in the East how they are supposed to decide how to live. This sense of entitlement is a form of colonization.

Examples of women working for their rights in Eastern societies are numerous, and I can share with you some names of Palestinian women, because this is the territory I know best. Janna Jihad, Ahed Tamimi, Hanan Ashrawi, Khalida Jarrar, just to name a few. When you have time, you can search them on the internet and learn about their leading roles.

A Career-Related Website or An Expert in Your Field

Today, we are going to write a blog post and choose only ONE of the following options:

Option 1

Write about a career-related website that you enjoy visiting.

You have to:

- provide the link- describe the website (sections, features,etc)- say how often you visit the site- explain why you like the site.

>Add comments to 3 of your classmates’ blogs + a comment on your teacher's post
>Word Count: 170

Option 2 

Who is a person/expert in your field that you admire?

Say:

-Who she/he is. (short biography)
-What she/he has done. (examples of their work)
-Why you like her/him.
-Include his/her image

> About 170 words
>Add comments to 3 of your classmates’ blogs + a comment on your teacher's post.

_________________________________________________________________________

You can find my post as an example here:

My Favorite Career-Related Website

My favourite website in this moment for all topics related to English teaching is Larry Ferlazzo’s EduBlog.

You can find it here: http://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/

I visit this website once in a while and I find it useful to get ideas about ways to motivate students or how to use teaching materials in classes.

This blog is full of teachers’ resources to teach English as a Second Language and for English Language Learners. It includes links to resources like videos and podcasts, and many tips on how to use technology in the classroom. You can spend a long time browsing it because it is a lot of fun to discover what it offers, and it makes me enjoy preparing my classes.

The website’s author, Larry Ferlazzo, is a High School Teacher in California, and he is constantly uploading interesting articles from American newspapers about education and how to improve it. He occasionally posts videos of himself discussing different relevant topics for teachers, such as a video where he talks about how to keep your students motivated in class.

I really admire a person who is passionate about his or her work and wants to share it. It also makes me feel like I am part of a community of English teachers around the world. 

My Favourite Place in Chile

Today I would like to propose writing about a place that we love, this could be your favourite place in Santiago, in Chile or another place that you have visited abroad.

In this post, you must say:

Why you like this place

How often you go there or when you went there

What you can do there

Who you go there with

Write a minimum of 160 words

Include a picture

Remember to write a comment on my post and a comment on 3 other classmates' posts.

This is my sample post:

Valle de Elqui

I have been to Valle de Elqui two times in my life, and the last time I went there I was with my mother. This place is very special for me because I think it has a very special energy where you can do meditation and watch the stars at night. Of course, it’s also a very hippie place, there’s a lot of partying, too, and a lot esoteric gurus and teachers, many of them not really serious. But its still fun to visit, and the place itself is just very beautiful and relaxing, and the mountains are gorgeous. 

The place has changed a lot since the first time I went there. I remember when I first visited with my ex boyfriend, I think that was 2006, in the middle of winter, and the night we arrived was the date when the Mayan New Yew started and we had no idea. So, there was a massive party in the camping site Río Mágico, everybody of course was very drunk and high, but it also started snowing a lot, and the next morning people where calling the police to get everyone from the campsite out of the Valley because of the cold, it was freezing!! People where getting sick, the roads where blocked with the snow, and we invited a few people into the small cabin we had rented to keep them warm. Anyway, it was crazy because even the locals said it never snows in Valle de Elqui, or maybe just a little bit every 10 years.

In the trip I did last year with my mother, we went to an observatory to watch the stars, as you can see in this picture.

A Photograph You Like

Hi everyone!

Today, we're going to write about a photograph you like. In your text, you must say:

Who took the picture

What it shows

When it was taken

Why you like it

Anything else you want to say

And upload it

Write at least 150 words

Here is my example:

In this photo, I am standing with my mother in the middle of a desert called Valle del Arcoíris. This place is very near San Pedro de Atacama, and we went there in May 2016. I think a tour guide took this picture and he said that, at that time, it had been recently discovered, so not many people had been there before.

This valley is special because it has colours from the different minerals that have deposited over time. You could find green, red, yellowish and different kinds of orange sands. There were also some rock formations that were very interesting near this place. I love this picture because I love deserts in general, and this one is very unique, but also because it gives me a good memory of my mother. We both enjoy going hiking and exploring new places. She lives in the South of Chile, so I don´t see her very often, and this is why we decided to do this special trip together.

I remember we got up very early to take a bus to go to this desert. We also visited other places and took a map and a bicycle to visit ancient ruins. I remember it was very hot and dry during the day, and at night it was really cold. We were not used to spending so much time in the sun and almost got a sunstroke. But I can remember the feeling of quietness in many places and all the beautiful textures of the sand and rocks.  It was a very magical place. 

Post Nº 4: Free Theme Post

Hi everyone!

Today we are going to write about a topic that we can choose. I can think of three alternatives, for example:

"Your Favourite Film."

"Your Favourite Music Album."

"A Sport or Physical Exercise That You Enjoy."

Choose only ONE of these topics and write the following information about it:

1. What's the name of the film/music album/sport that you like.

2. When did you see the film OR how often do you listen to the music album OR how often do you play that sport.

3. Who did you watch the film with OR who do you listen to the album with OR who do you play that sport with.

4. What is the film about OR describe the lyrics and music style of the album OR describe the sport you play.

5. Give 3 reasons why you love that film OR music album OR sport/physical exercise you do.

Remember: in total you must write a minimum of 140 words (you can write more if you want) and you must write comments on 3 classmates' posts and 1 comment on my post.

This is my sample post:

"Yoga: My Favourite Physical Exercise."

I have done yoga for more than ten years. At the beginning, I started learning with a teacher in a class with other people but after a few years I stopped going to classes and decided to continue practicing by myself at home.

The type of Yoga I practice is called Ashtanga. It is originally from the South of India and it consists of a series of poses, starting with 10 sun salutations, and ending with poses that calm your body. The sequence of poses is always the same, which includes standing poses and sitting poses, and in every movement there is an inhalation and an exhalation. 

The main reason why I like Yoga so much is that it is a silent exercise, similar to a meditation in movement. Yoga has helped me gain flexibility and strength, and it helps me learn how to stay focused and concentrate on what I am doing in the moment. Another reason why I like Yoga is that it energizes me, and it lifts and stabilizes my mood. My favourite yoga pose is called Shirshasana, or Headstand. I love this pose because you stand on your head and your feet raise all the way up and you get to feel the world upside down.

Since I don't have much time during the week, I try to practice 2 times a week. The best time of the day to do Yoga is when you wake up, before breakfast, which means I must get up early. It's the best way to start my day.