Out in the Cold

Yup, it’s still winter and really cold in some parts of the world. Northern USA and Canada are in the grip of the polar vortex. How did it all happen?

Read the following words and phrases and their definitions.

• in a freeze frenzy - influenced and controlled by the effects of the freezing weather
• to undergo changes - to go through changes
• weather officials - people who work at organisations where the weather is studied
• frostbite - injury to someone caused by severe cold, usually to their toes, fingers, ears, or nose
• windchills - temperatures that shows how cold the air feels because of the wind

First read the assignment. Next watch the video. Take notes to help you do the assignment.

1. Where is the polar vortex actually?


2. How high up is the polar vortex?


3. Name two or more effects of the extreme cold.


4. Which two warnings have weather officials given?


5. How cold can the windchills get?

Special Delivery

Check out this month’s trending comics cartoon.

Read the following words and phrases and their definitions.

• drive-thru - a business (such as a bank or restaurant) where customers can be served while remaining in their cars
• large fry - big bag of fries
• pull to the front - drive on and stop at the front

First read the assignment. Next watch the video. Take notes to help you do the assignment.

1. How many things does guy in the car order?


2. What does he say when he cannot understand the person answering through the speaker?
   Give at least two examples.


3. The robber’s last words are: “Careful, it’s hot!”
   What does he mean: what is hot?

Extra speaking or writing assignment
Watch the video once more.
Now retell the whole story in your own words.

Slime!

Are you crazy about slime yet? Kids all over the world can’t get enough of it.

Read the following words and phrases and their definitions.

• food colouring - thick liquid that is added to food and drinks to give it a new colour
• laundry detergent - liquid soap that is used to wash clothes
• glue - sticky liquid that is used to stick things tightly together
• gross - very unpleasant to see or smell
• disgusting - very unpleasant to see or smell
• chunky - not smooth, but full of lumps and chunks
• in time - after a while
• mess up - make a mistake, do it wrong
• gradually - slowly
• fluffy - ight and soft

First read the assignment. Next watch the video. Take notes to help you do the assignment.

1. How many ingredients do you need to make the slime? Write them all down.


2. What happens if you use too much laundry detergent?


3. Note the four to five steps you need to take to make the slime.

Extra writing assignment
You will write a short instruction card: How to make slime.
1. Watch the video once more.
2. On your card, first name all the ingredients.
3. Now write short and easy instructions. Write each step on a new line.
Tip: Use your answers to the questions above.

Extra task
Make the slime.
Tell your class how it went.

We Are Family

Sumac Lottery is nine years old. A book about her and her family is coming out this month. In the video, she tells you a bit about it.

pets = huisdieren
figure out = verzinnen, bedenken

First read the assignment. Next watch the video. Take notes to help you do the assignment.

1. How many brothers and sisters does Sumac have?


2. And how many pets?


3. When Sumac’s grandpa arrives, they “have to figure out to make room for one more.”
   Explain what this means.

Extra speaking assignment

1. Now it’s your turn to introduce yourself and your family.
2. First write the answers to the following 2 questions:
   - How many people are there in your family?
   - Can you name one or more special things about your family? Write them down.
3. There you go: Hold your short introduction for your classmates. Or film it on camera.
   Use your answers to the 2 questions to help you.

Think Before You Share

You hear a lot about fake news these days. Some even talk about “real” fake news and “fake” fake news. Wrap your head around that!

Read the following words and phrases and their definitions.

• double check - to check once and then once more in order to be certain
• fishy - likely to be bad or untrue
• dodgy - false, untrue, dishonest

First read the assignment. Next watch the video. Take notes to help you do the assignment.

1. Everything online is true. True or false?


2. Name one reason why people make up fake news.


3. Name at least 3 questions you should ask yourself before believing (and sharing) a story.


4. What do you learn about sites with a .com web address, a .co.uk web address or a .com.co web address?

The Eagle Huntress

Each year in February the BAFTA Film Awards are announced. BAFTA is the British Academy of Film and Television Arts.
This year, The Eagle Huntress is nominated for a BAFTA award. It is a film about Aisholpan. She is a girl who lives in the Altai mountains.

Read the following words and phrases and their definitions.

• nomad - a member of a group of people who move from place to place instead of living in one place all the time
• a precious skill - een kostbare vaardigheid
• a master eagle hunter - een van de allerbeste arendjagers
• competition - an event in which people try to win by being better, faster, etc., than others
• soar - fly high, high in the sky

First read the assignment. Next watch the video. Take notes to help you do the assignment.

1. For how long have the nomads of the Altai mountains hunted with golden eagles?


2. Write down three things about Aisholpan.


3. It’s a “true story”. What does that mean?

Snapchat

The makers of Snapchat are about to become very rich. Their company will be going public (gaat naar de beurs) later this year.
Rory doesn’t Snapchat, but he wants to find out what’s so great about the app. In the video, Priscilla shows him.

Read the following words and phrases and their definitions.

• I’m determined to understand this. - I really want to understand this.
• spiral staircase - stairs that go round and round and round
• make money out of something - earn money with something
• appeal - the thing or things that make people like something

First read the assignment. Next watch the video. Take notes to help you do the assignment.

1. According to Priscilla, what is the best thing to do in Snapchat?


2. According to Priscilla, what’s the point of Snapchat?


3. Roger asks if their lunch is snappable.
   Explain the underlined word.
   What does Priscilla answer?


4. How does Snapchat make money out of people using their app? Name two ways.


5. According to Priscilla, what is it about Snapchat that makes people like it so much?

Extra speaking assignment
1. Watch the video once more.
2. Listen to Priscilla explaining how Snapchat works.
3. Now it’s your turn to explain how Snapchat works. Do it in three to five steps.

Extra speaking or writing assignment
Do you Snapchat?
Tell people why you think Snapchat is really fun. Do this in 30 to 40 words.
Write them down or just tell your classmates.

Looking a Gift Horse in the Mouth

December is gifts month. When you don't know what to give, you can always give a gift voucher.

Read the following words and phrases and their definitions.

• gift voucher - cadeaubon
• cheese junkie - kaasgek
• awesome - supergoed

First read the assignment. Next watch the video. Take notes to help you do the assignment.

1. What do you learn about Cat?


2. What do you learn about Mouse?


3. In the video, who makes money? 


4. And who saves money?

Creepy Clowns

Horror clowns, creepy clowns, killer clowns ... They are all over the news. Not just in our country. The clowns also show up in the UK and the US. The Bee family ran into a scary clown as well. Look what happened next.

Read the following words and phrases and their definitions.

• creepy - strange or scary, making you feel afraid
• punk - a worthless person; an aggressive, rude young man
• handle a situation - to deal with a situation successfully

First read the assignment. Next watch the video. Take notes to help you do the assignment.

1. How does Mr Bee say that he will handle the situation?


2. What do the clowns in Mr Bee's town do?


3. What’s not cool according to Mr Bee?


4. What does Mr Bee say about Halloween?


5. Who scares the clown off?

Extra speaking assignment
1 Watch the video once more.
2 Retell the story in your own words.

Hurricane Matthew

A super powerful hurricane, Hurricane Matthew, has caused a lot of damage, and some deaths in the Carribean and along the East Coast of the US. The video shows how Florida prepared for the arrival of the hurricane.

Read the following words and phrases and their definitions.

• evacuate - leave a dangerous place
• storm surge - a large wave of water caused by strong winds
• inland flooding - when a large amount of water covers areas of land that are usually dry
  power outages - periods of time when there is no electricity in a building or area
• power - the electricity that people use

First read assignment 1. Next watch the video.



Assignment 1
Fill in the missing numbers:

1. “More than .................... million people from Florida to the Carolinas have been urged to evacuate ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Matthew.”
2. Hurricane Matthew is “expected to be a category .................... storm when it makes landfall.”
3. “Hurricane Matthew is expected to bring up more than .................... mile-per-hour winds, a .................... to 9 foot storm surge, inland flooding, and power outages.
4. Matthew hit the island nation of Haiti “leaving at least .................... people dead and more than .................... homes flooded.”

Assignment 2
First read the questions. Next watch the video once more. Make notes to help you answer the questions.

1. Governor Rick Scott warns the people of Florida: “Evacuate, evacuate, evacuate. Be prepared, don't take a chance.”
   Explain the meaning of the underlined phrase.


2. Fill in the missing word:
   “Time is running .......”
   What does this phrase mean?


3. What will millions of people living on the East Coast lose?
   What does this actually mean?
   Give 2 or more examples.


4. On what day of the week did Hurricane Matthew hit Haiti?

Barking Mad?

It’s the first week of October, which means it’s Oktoberfest month. Oktoberfest is a two-week festival held each year in Munich, Germany. The popular festival is now celebrated all over the world. For example in Melbourne, Australia. The video shows one of the Melbourne Oktoberfest activities.

Read the following words and phrases and their definitions.

• barking mad - completely crazy
• sausage dog - teckel
• costume - special clothes that you wear to look like a different person or thing
• pretty pooch - pretty dog

First read the assignment. Next watch the video. Take notes to help you do the assignment.

1. How long is the racing track?


2. Complete the sentence:
   Stanley can run like the .....
   Explain what this expression means.


3. How many times has this event been held?


4. The first contest is a racing contest. What is the second contest?

Extra words assignment
In the introduction, the commentator says: “It may seem barking mad...”
1 The underlined expression is a extra funny for this video.
2 Can you explain why?
Hint: Find out what the verb “bark” means. You can look it up in a dictionary.

Mowgli and Baloo

The Jungle Book is a famous Disney movie, made in 1967. This week saw the release of a new version with all kinds of special effects.
The movie tells the story of Mowgli, a young orphan boy, who is left behind in a basket in the deep jungles of India.
In the movie clip below you see what happens when Mowgli and Baloo the bear start talking.

Read the following words and phrases and their definitions.

• get worked up - get very angry or upset about something
• get on with it - finally get started with something
• payback - revenge; doing something to someone because that person did something that hurt you

First read the assignment. Next watch the movie clip.

1. Explain why Baloo says: “No need to get worked up.”


2. Where are Baloo and Mowgli?


3. What did Baloo do for Mowgli?


4. Explain what it means when Baloo says: “Let’s quit wasting time.”

Extra reading and writing assignment

The Jungle Book is originally a collection of stories by English author Rudyard Kipling.

1. Find out more about Rudyard Kipling and copy the main points of his life. Things like: when and where he was born, where he lived, when he wrote The Jungle Book, what else he wrote, etc.

The BFG

British writer Roald Dahl wrote many famous books that are still read by millions today. The BFG is one of them. Ever heard of it? That’s De GVR for Dutch readers.
It’s the story of Sophie, a 10-year-old orphan girl who lives in an orphanage. It’s now being made into a movie. Just this week, a new trailer was released.

Read the following words and phrases and their definitions.

• orphan - a child whose parents are dead
• orphanage - a home for orphans
• witch - a woman with magic powers
• witching hour - that special time late at night when witches and ghosts turn up and strange things can happen
• bogeymen - a scary man; some parents frighten their children with the bogeyman
• curtain - a piece of cloth that is used to cover the window

First read the assignment. Next watch the trailer. Take notes to help you do the assignment.

1. Did you spot the word orphanage? Where was it?


2. Listen to Sophie: “It was the witching hour, when the Boogeyman comes out.”
   What else happens at the witching hour?


3. Fill in the missing words:
   “The girls say the witching hour arrives ..........................
   I think it comes .................................................................”


4. Name the three things you should NEVER do when the witching hour arrives.


5. Where does our story begin?


6. Will you go see the movie when it comes out?

April Fools

It’s almost April 1st. In English, this day is called April Fools’s Day. Watch the video to find out more.

Read the following words and phrases and their definitions.

• prank - play tricks or jokes on someone
• origins - the time and place where something begins
• Julian calendar - the calendar established by Julius Caesar in 46 Before Christ
• get the memo - to receive a specific piece of information; to know what’s up
• fool - a stupid or silly person
• butt of the joke - a person who is made fun of, a person who is the target of jokers

First read the assignment. Next watch the video. Take notes to help you do the assignment.

1. What was the first day of the year on the Julian calendar?


2. What happened in 1582?


3. Who became known as the so-called April fools?


4. What pranks will you play this April Fools’ Day? Swap tips with your classmates. In English of course!

Water Ping-Pong

A couple of weeks ago, British astronaut Tim Peake explained how to go to the loo in space. Now he’s back with another video about how things work in space.

Read the following words and phrases and their definitions.

• float - move or drift slowly and lightly in the air or water
• resist - to remain strong against the force or effect of something
• sticky - easily becoming attached to something else
• fizzy tablet - little pills that create lots of bubbles when you put them in water
• to be released - to become free

First read the assignment. Next watch the video. Take notes to help you do the assignment.

1. Tim says: “These bats are hydrophobic.” What is the meaning of the underlined word? Listen carefully to Tim, he explains it clearly.


2. Tim is playing space Ping-Pong. What other word does he use that means the same as Ping-Pong?


3. When in space, what happens when you put a fizzy tablet in water?

You can find the previous space video with assignments here.

The Space Bathroom

Tim Peake is the first British astronaut in space for more than 20 years. He is currently part of the team at the International Space Station.
This week, a video was released in which Tim Peake answers one of the most frequently asked question about space exploration.

First read the assignment. Next watch the video. Take notes to help you do the assignment.

1. Tim speaks about “going to the loo”.
   Do you know any other words or expressions that mean the same thing?
   Tip: If you listen carefully, you can hear several in the video.


2. Tim says: “It really is quite simple.”
   Listen carefully to the two instructions he gives next.
   Write them down.
   Optionally, make a sign for proper use to hang up at the ISS loo.


3. How does the machine make sure that going to the loo in space doesn’t create a big mess?

Extra listening assignment

1. Find the video in which Tim Peake shows how to brew a cup of coffee in space.
2. Watch the video.
3. Explain the coffee brewing procedure in your own words.

It Was Christmas Eve and Everyone in the Thomas Family Was Dreaming Sweet Dreams

Het is bijna kerst, daarom een filmpje met een kerstverhaal.

Lees eerst de opdrachten. Bekijk dan het filmpje.

1. Waarover dromen Nicky en Debbie?
   “Nicky and Debbie were dreaming about ......................”


2. Wat voor een droom heeft Mog, de kat?
   “Mog was having ...................”


3. Leg uit wat de onderstreepte uitdrukking betekent.
   “Mog had saved the day.”


4. De oude vrouw vindt dat Mog een medaille heeft verdiend. Wat zou Mog liever krijgen?
   “I think she’d rather have ......”


5. Wat dacht iedereen toen ze begrepen dat het gezin Thomas en Mog niets over hadden om kerst te vieren?
   “But everyone else thought that if the Thomas’ and Mog can’t have a Christmas, ..........”

Almost Christmas

Christmas is coming up. Check out this post for a Christmassy video and assignment.

Voedselverspilling

Sinds deze maand is er een app van Albert Heijn die voedselverspilling tegen moet gaan. Ongeveer 14% van de boodschappen in Nederland belandt namelijk ongebruikt in de vuilnisbak. Ook in andere welvarende landen wordt veel voedsel ongebruikt weggegooid. Het filmpje geeft informatie over voedselverspilling in Australië.

Deze woorden kunnen je helpen het filmpje beter te begrijpen:

• groceries: food sold by a grocer; food bought at a store
• bin: a can for trash or garbage
• a waste of money: a bad use of money
• toss away: throw away
• a loaf of bread: an amount of bread that has been baked in a long, round, or square shape
• veg: short for “vegetable”, a plant or plant part that is eaten as food
• bruise: a dark area on a plant or piece of fruit that has been damaged

Lees eerst de opdrachten. Bekijk dan het filmpje.

1. Vul de ontbrekende getallen in:
   We throw out ............... percent of the food we buy.
   That's ............... in ............... bags of groceries gone.
   Up to ............... percent what's in our household bins is food that could have been eaten
   It all adds up to ............... tons of food each year.
   That's the weight of ............... trucks. ............... billion dollars worth of thrown out food.
   That’s enough money to buy you ............... trips to the moon and back
   Like the ............... bathtub fulls of water that went into making that burger.
   Up to ............... percent is rejected.


2. Waarom wordt zoveel fruit en groente al afgekeurd nog voordat het naar de supermarkt gaat?


3. Luister goed naar de laatste zin: "In fact, just a quarter of the food wasted in first world countries could feed all the people starving in the third world."
   Leg in je eigen woorden uit wat dit betekent.

Hello and Goodbye

Komende zomer komt The Secret Life of Pets in de bioscopen, een animatiefilm over wat onze huisdieren allemaal uitspoken als wij op school of op ons werk zitten.

Lees eerst de opdrachten. Bekijk dan het filmpje.

1. Noteer alle begroetingen die je in de trailer hoort: hoe zeggen mensen en dieren ‘hallo’ en ‘tot ziens’?


2. Wat gaat Max de terrier vandaag allemaal doen?


3. Wat voor een dag staat Gidget de kat te wachten?

Extra spreekopdracht
Werk samen met een medeleerling.

1. Jullie voeren een kort gesprek zoals Max en Gidget.


2. Begroet elkaar. Doe dat allebei op een eigen manier


3. A vraagt B wat hij/zij die dag zal doen.


4. B reageert op A. Daarna vertelt A vervolgens hoe zijn/haar dag eruit zal zien.


5. Neem afscheid van elkaar. Doe dat allebei op een eigen manier