Media Education: Moonlight

Posted by Speakeasy News > Friday 17 February 2017 > Webpicks

Nominated for seven Oscars, Moonlight is a coming-of-age movie about Chiron, an African-American boy growing up in the 1980s and 1990s in a poor housing project in Miami. A short video gives a fascinating insight into how the film was made, and is perfect for working on éducation aux médias et à l’information. We wouldn’t particularly … Continue reading “Media Education: Moonlight”

Fighting for the Right to Love

Posted by Speakeasy News > Thursday 16 February 2017 > Webpicks

Loving tells the astonishing true story of an American couple who married in 1958 and spent the first nine years of their marriage fighting the segregationist laws that found them guilty of the crime of loving someone who was a different colour. Richard Loving and Mildred Jeter were childhood sweethearts in Virginia. When Mildred became … Continue reading “Fighting for the Right to Love”

Valentine’s Day

Posted by Speakeasy News > Friday 03 February 2017 > Ready to Use

This A1+-level article will shed perhaps a different light on what your pupils think of Valentine’s Day in the U.S.A and in the U.K. The audio activity distinguishing kind and mean messages in Valentine’s poems fits into the media education and citizenship curriculum. Vocabulary and structures friendship, love simple present simple past: irregular verbs rhymes … Continue reading “Valentine’s Day”

National Parks and Sequoia Tunnel Trees Webpicks

Posted by Speakeasy News > Thursday 02 February 2017 > Webpicks

The U.S. National Parks Service celebrated its centenary in 2016. Although the first park, Yellowstone, was founded in 1872, the park service and rangers date from 1916. The U.S. was the first country to legislate to protect areas of national beauty, and National Parks are popular with American and foreign visitors alike. These resources allow … Continue reading “National Parks and Sequoia Tunnel Trees Webpicks”

Weather Webpicks

Posted by Speakeasy News > Tuesday 31 January 2017 > Webpicks

Groundhog Day, 2 February, gives lots of possibilities for revising vocabulary for weather and seasons, considering weather proverbs in English and French, and getting a bit of science into English class. The weather, like Groundhog Day, comes back around regularly, and discussing the tradition can serve as a handy reminder of weather terms. Or pick … Continue reading “Weather Webpicks”

Happy Birthday, Professor Hawking

Posted by Speakeasy News > Friday 20 January 2017 > Ready to Use

In this B1-level article, students will learn about Stephen Hawking, one of Britain’s most famous scientists, as he unexpectedly reaches his 75th birthday in spite of a terrible neurological disease. The film The Theory of Everything , released in 2014, pays tribute to this exceptional man, played by Eddie Redmayne who won a Golden Globe, … Continue reading “Happy Birthday, Professor Hawking”

Up Helly Aa Webpicks

Posted by Speakeasy News > Thursday 19 January 2017 > Webpicks

The highpoint of the cultural calendar in the Shetlands, Scotland, is a spectacular Viking fire festival in January: Up Helly Aa. This video and photo galleries are useful for discussing the festival.  Find out more about the celebration in our article. In this video, an American man with Shetland roots describes discovering Up Helly Aa … Continue reading “Up Helly Aa Webpicks”

Prohibition

Posted by Speakeasy News > Tuesday 17 January 2017 > Webpicks

Ben Affleck’s gangster film Live By Night is a great opportunity to introduce your classes to the period of Prohibition. Live By Night centres on the organised crime gangs which profited from Prohibition by producing or importing illicit alcohol and running underground bars called speakeasies. The Bill of Rights Institute has free downloadable teaching resources … Continue reading “Prohibition”