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 film’s website has a perfect lesson on Prohibition ready … Continue reading “Prohibition”

Christopher Columbus, Myth or Hero?

Posted by Speakeasy News > Friday 23 September 2016 > Webpicks

Columbus Day in October is a good time for class work exploring this controversial figure, and how his legacy is perceived in the U.S.A. and in Spanish-speaking countries. Christopher Columbus is honoured with a national holiday in the U.S.A., on the second Monday in October. For collège, this is a relatively simple description of Columbus … Continue reading “Christopher Columbus, Myth or Hero?”

The Beat Generation on the Web

Posted by Speakeasy News > Friday 02 September 2016 > Webpicks

The Beat Generation exhibition at the Paris Pompidou Centre looks at the legacy of these anti-conformist writers from the 1940s-1960s. It fits well into a lycée theme on Mythes et héros or L’idée de progrès. Or in LELE, the themes Voyage, parcours initiatique, exil or L’écrivain dans son siècle. See our article about the exhibition. … Continue reading “The Beat Generation on the Web”

Jesse Owens Webpicks

Posted by Speakeasy News > Thursday 18 August 2016 > Webpicks

The film Race tells the story of Jesse Owens’ victories at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. Read more about the film in our article. Jesse Owens’ extraordinary achievements are a great topic both in collège and lycée, where it fits well into a Mythes et héros theme. Biographies This video from the film’s website mixes real … Continue reading “Jesse Owens Webpicks”