Saturday 5 December 2015

A short story about Christmas

December 25th is Christmas Day. 
It's a holiday for most people, and there are lots of customs and traditions, and children get lots of presents! 
Listen to a boy talking about Christmas, and find out about some of these customs in the United Kingdom.
                                                        


(click here):


A little bit of humour...


Tuesday 10 November 2015

Remembrance Day - 11th November

Remembrance Day in the United Kingdom (UK) honors the heroic efforts, achievements and sacrifices that were made in past wars. The main observance is on the second Sunday in November, but 2 minutes of silence is also made on November 11.

The red poppy - a symbol of wartime remembrance.
©iStockphoto.com/remem

Observe Remembrance Day

People stop work to observe a moment of silence at 11am on November 11, which is the time and date when hostilities formally ended after more than four years of battle during World War I. Poppies are worn as a symbol of respect and tribute on Remembrance Sunday and/or November 11.
The day is also marked by events such as memorial services, church services and parades. A national commemoration takes place at Whitehall, a road in the City of Westminster in central London.

Public life

Remembrance Day is an observance and not a public holiday in the UK. Many businesses may temporarily pause activity at 11am for 2 minutes of silence on November 11.

About Remembrance Day

Also referred to as Poppy Day or Armistice Day, Remembrance Day is observed in Commonwealth countries, including Australia and Canada. Other countries such as the U.S. have similar observances like Veterans Day. November 11 is the anniversary of the signing of the armistice, which ended World War I hostilities between Allied nations and Germany in 1918.



Tuesday 3 November 2015

Guy Fawkes Day - 5th November



Guy Fawkes Day: 4 Things To Know

Want to know what November 5 was made famous for? Read on.
1. Guy Fawkes joined a group of English Catholics and attempted to plant gunpowder in the cellar of the Palace of Westminister in 1605, planning to blow up the House of Lords during the State Opening of England’s Parliament. He was discovered by Thomas Knyvett, the keeper of the Whitehall Palace on November 5. He found Guy (who was posing as John Johnson), along with about 900 kg of gunpowder. The group he was involved with was planning to assassinate the Protestant King James.
2. The holiday was celebrated by fireworks because those in London were encouraged to celebrate the safety of the king by lighting fires. The celebrations were actually repealed in 1859. The celebration has become less and less each year, but many have fireworks to remember the Gunpowder plot.
3. Those who searched the palace actually found out about the assassination plan from an anonymous letter!
4. “Remember, Remember, the fifth of November” is the line from a poem that took on the nature of a nursery rhyme. Here is the full verse:
Remember, remember the fifth of November,
The gunpowder, treason and plot,
I know of no reason
Why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.

Listen to it:  




Sunday 25 October 2015

Saturday 24 October 2015

HALLOWEEN ! How spooky is it?


Watch this video and learn more about this celebration:





Halloween jigsaw puzzle
CLICK HERE

Saturday 17 October 2015

It's Autumn time !





AUTUMN LEAVES SONG LYRICS:

Autumn leaves are falling down,
Red and yellow, orange and brown
Turning, turning round and round
Down, down, down.

Take a rake and rake them up, 
rake them up, pile them high
pile them high up to the sky
jump right in

Autumn leaves are falling down,
Red and yellow, orange and brown
Turning, turning round and round
Down, down, down.

Take a rake and rake them up, 
rake them up, pile them high
pile them high up to the sky
jump right in

Tuesday 30 June 2015

1st July - Canada Day

Canada Day celebrates the birthday of Canada.


 On July 1, 1867 Canada became a new federation with its own constitution by signing the Constitution Act - formerly known as the British North America Act.


Wednesday 17 June 2015

Saturday 2 May 2015

9th May - Europe Day






On Saturday 9 May 2015, the EU institutions in Brussels will open their doors to the public to mark Europe Day, the anniversary of the Schuman Declaration.


This year's visual for Europe Day and the Open Doors Day of the European institutions is composed from elements of the 28 flags of the European Union member states. They were separated into pieces and re-assembled into characters with the help of 6-8 year old children in schools in Paris and Brussels.
The series of figures resulting from their creativity, in all shapes, colours and sizes, represent the EU’s diversity, not only within the European Union, but also far beyond, as citizens of the world. In the context of the European Year for Development, this year’s visual for Europe Day symbolises how united we can be in our diversity and highlights the important role played by the European Union in supporting and funding of Development projects in poorer regions of the world.


It's a girl!




A NEW PRINCESS WAS BORN                 2nd May 2015




FACTS: 
The baby weighs 8lbs 3oz.
The princess is the first to be born into the British monarchy in 25 years. The last was Prince Andrew's daughter Princess Eugenie in 1990.
She made her first public appearance at 6.12pm, before leaving for home with her family.

Saturday 25 April 2015

30th April is... Honesty Day!

Honesty Day is all about telling the truth. Be brave and share opinions, thoughts and perspectives that might otherwise go unsaid in order to be polite – but take care not to upset or offend others.


A little bit of humour...




A song about it:

Monday 6 April 2015

7th April 2015 is ...

The laundry will be just fine in the basket until tomorrow.
You’ve got enough plates to leave the washing up until the morning, just this once.
No Housework Day is the one day a year you can just relax, forget those daily chores and do absolutely anything else instead. It’s a chance to indulge yourself with no guilt, no stress and no dusting.
You could celebrate it a little differently; if you’re not the person who normally does the housework, why not take over just for today to give them a break? Or if you have a neighbour who’s not as young as they were, how about offering to help out with chores this No Housework Day?
However you choose to celebrate, don’t forget to sit back and raise a (presumably dirty) glass to the kind soul who invented it!


Watch this video and learn the vocabulary:




Tuesday 10 March 2015

SAINT PATRICK'S DAY - 17th March

READ SOME FACTS ABOUT THIS DAY:



A little bit of fun...


My name is  Lucky McMuffin... What's yours?

Wednesday 25 February 2015

ST. DAVID'S DAY - 1st March


Harlech Castle, Wales
Harlech Castle, Wales

Learn about Wales

  • Wales, known to Welsh speakers as Cymru, is part of the United Kingdom.
  • King Edward 1st conquered the nation following the death of the Welsh leader in 1282, which eventually led to a legal union with England in 1536.
  • A feature of the warring factions of the Middle Ages is the large number of defensive castles built by nobles, which provide tourists with an insight into the torrid history of the region.
  • Self rule, in the form of a new devolved National Assembly, was won after the referendum in 1997.
  • Wales has lovely sandy beaches on the Gower Peninsula as well as beautiful National Parks, for example mountainous Snowdonia, which are justly popular with hikers.
  • Rugby is the National Sport, with the national team, drawn from a mere 3 million population, often excelling against the much larger nations of England and France.
  • Whilst famed for its countryside, the majority of people live in modern thriving cities such as Cardiff.
  • Saint David is the patron saint of this country.

DO YOU SPEAK WELSH?
Here are some words related to traditional Welsh culture:




Now  do this quizz and test yourself:



Sunday 22 February 2015

Strawberry Day - 27th February

  

Strawberry Day was created to celebrate those little red fruits bursting with sweet perfection! 
A gift from Chile in the 1700s, garden strawberry plants made their way to North America in the 1750s. The plant is fairly easy to grow and doesn’t seem adverse to flourishing anywhere in the world. If you’d like your own homegrown strawberries this summer, make sure your plant has full sun and sandy soil – and your dogs don’t eat off all the berries before you can pick a few. If fresh strawberries aren’t at their best in your grocery store, don’t forget the many accessible forms you can always get your hands on. Frozen and dried strawberries can help in a pinch if you’re creating in the kitchen. Strawberry preserves, ice cream, yogurt, smoothies and milkshakes are nothing to shake a stick at either. But if you are one of the lucky folks who stumbled on some great fresh strawberries, you can whip up a strawberry pie, shortcake or even a simple dish of strawberries and cream. 




WOULD YOU LIKE TO LIVE IN A STRAWBERRY?






I wish you a berry nice day, and strawberry fields forever.