1. My English 2007-2009

• About written document

- The first writing: http://laia26sportfolio.blogspot.com/2008/02/my-description.html
- The last writing: http://laia2bportfolio.blogspot.com/2009/04/writing.html

In my first writing I presented a little bit myself and, in the last one, I had to write about the influence of psychologists on our society as an opinion essay. Of course, it has been an improvement with my English expression, vocabulary, grammar and fluency.
To analyse them I’ll start with the structure and the content:
The content isn’t as mature as now because if I will have to write again a presentation of myself I will do it very different, moreover I didn’t structure the writing because I divided it in paragraphs but not at all, and I also mixted the information. Furthermore, in the first composition I didn’t use connectors, I only used a few pronouns (where…) and I repeated some words during the writing (now, maybe I do it too but less than before) and using short sentences. Nowadays, the things have changed in concretely things, for example I can do a structured writing, as the last one (about the influence psychologists), with its paragraphs, its connectors to make the composition in order and organized, its relative clauses and give a conclusion.
And finally, about the language and the vocabulary I can say that I’ve learnt more words to use and control a little more the verbs and the modal verbs, and the structure of the sentences. For example, in the first writing I wrote short sentences with repeated words, and now I’m able to use some synonyms of some words and use relative clauses to make the sentence longer…
As I said before, I think I’ve improved my English language practising to write compositions and thanks the grammar taught in class.

• About the oral presetation:

- The first oral presentation: I didn’t post the first one because we haven’t got the portfolio yet. We started in second term.
-The last oral presentation: http://laia2bportfolio.blogspot.com/2009/03/2nd-oral-presentation.html

The first oral presentation we had to do in first of batxillerat we had to do it alone, without a partner and the topic could be about ourselves, a trip we had done, talk about our hobbies… I chose, at first, introduce myself and then tell my classmates the trip I did with my family in Disney Land Paris in 2003. So, I knew very well the topic to be able to tell it them but, of course, I had to prepared it a lot at home.
Between both presentations I can see a difference with the vocabulary, the grammar, the fluency and the construction of the sentences, but not of the structure because it was well: it had an introduction, a body and a conclusion with some connectors as “at first, then, in conclusion…”.
About the vocabulary and the grammar, I can say that I’ve improve because I’ve correct some mistakes I did before (although I do mistakes still!!), I’m able to use a vocabulary and grammar more varied doing sentences longer and more complex sentences (as relative clauses). The thing I follow doing in the oral presentations is to speak with a calm voice and slowly, it hasn’t changed… Either it had changed my nervous before to do it, but it is my personality…I hope to lost them in few time!! An other aspect that it hasn’t changed, well..it has changed but I think a little, it is the pronunciation.
In general, I think I’ve improved in all, especially the fluency. And now it’s the time to practice and practice because we don’t forget it, concretely because we improve it more!!

2. My English competence in 2009

• My best oral evidence:

http://laia2bportfolio.blogspot.com/2008/11/1st-oral-presentation.html
About all my oral evidence of this course I’ve chosen the first one oral presentation as the best one. It was about the book we had to read the first term: Pride & Prejudice of Jane Austen, and I did it with a partner, Elisenda.
The oral presentation in London was original, I learn more things about the city and it was funny, but I think the Pride & Prejudice oral presentation is the best I’ve done. It is because, apart it was longer than the London one, it was easer for me to tell about a book I had read because you can remember what you have to say more than an information that you have to study. Also, I’ve chosen it because its topic.
In it we talked about the important moments that Elizabeth, the main character of the novel, and Mr. Darce had during the romantic novel and how their love were growing. The presentation was good structured because we showed the information in order using some connectors (moreover, although, furthermore…) and discourse markers (first, the second, the last, finally…) to make the presentation more fluency and to give the ideas more organized to the audience; and it also was attractive because of its pictures of the characters, the ambient music and some sentences characters said in the book or in the film.
Moreover, I think we could introduce some little things about the feelings between both loved characters than maybe someone hadn’t paid attention when he had been reading the book. And to finally my reasons why I’ve chosen this presentation I want to say that doing it I learnt new things about the story of the novel’s characters that I hadn’t understood before and I also learnt new vocabulary that I had to check in the dictionary.

• My best written evidence:

http://laia2bportfolio.blogspot.com/2009/03/writing-of-shepherd.html
Between all my writings (blog, portfolio, forum...) I didn’t know which of them choose but as the knowledge of the idiom improve through the long time and the English classes; I’ve decided to choose the last one composition which is about the shepherd’s life written with a dialogue.
I think in this composition I used the most of my knowledge of English until now, because I tried to write with different kinds of verbs (past, present, conditionals, past perfect…), some connectors, relative clauses and other grammar and vocabulary that I have been learning.
Apart of that, I knew a few things about this profession (shepherd) and to think and write about the differences between the past and nowadays of this profession it was, for me, a little difficult. Moreover, it had to be a dialogue and I hadn’t written it before that it was based in a concretely topic. However, when I was writing it the inspirations comes to me and the composition resulted very long, too much I know. I have to try to summarize and make the topic clear.
In conclusion, I consider writing is the best form to know, to show and to improve any language (if you have a teacher who teaches you and who corrects your mistakes) and to get fluency. So, I’ve learnt a lot writing and writing.

2nd video news

UK tourists abandon Mexico trips

Hundreds of British tourists, because of the swine flu originated in Mexico, cut short their holidays in this country; the people who are spending their holidays there only think to come back at home early because they don’t want to run the risk of to get the flu. However, there are some people who want to spend all their holidays there wearing a mask, but not leave from Mexico until their end holidays.
The Cancun beach, its economy and its hotels depends on tourists but now the situation is exasperating: Cancun, the capital of Mexico, is like a desert.

Link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8026168.stm

I’ve learnt these new words:
Cut short = escorçar/reduir (les vacances)
Swine = porc
Flu = grip
Exasperating = desesperant

1rst video news

Teen spring breaker missing

Brittanee is a 17 missed girl who were with friends on spring break beach trip. Before to go to Myrtle Beach on Wednesday, the young girl asked to her mother if she could go to this trip but her mother said ‘no’, however the daughter disobeyed her mother and went to the trip. Saturday morning was her last seen alive, she went to walk but she didn’t’ return.
John is a teen’s friend who was with Brittanee on this trip and he reported her missing. Now he is helping the girl’s parents to look for her. Everybody is praying for her return.

Link: http://edition.cnn.com/video/#/video/crime/2009/04/28/ng.teen.missing.cnn

I've learnt these words:
Teen = it is form teenager, it means adolescent
Disobey = desobeir
Break= in this context it means ‘una escapada/unes curtes vacances de primavera’

Writing

Write about the influence of psychologists on our society. Are they well considered? Could they be the answer to our psychological necessities?

Every day, there are more people who need external help because of the stress, personality problems, worries, fears... For these problems it's increasing the number of people who assist or ask for help to psychologists.

Although, there are a lot of people in our society that do not accept the advice which psychologists can give to. Those people who don't believe in the psychologists' help think that the only person who needs to go to psychological centre has to be crazy; they think that these centres is not for the society who needs only help.

However, there are people who consider very well the psychologist's job and their solutions in front of the patients' problems.

Personally, they can give us a good help with their treatments and advice on our problems, but not all of them can work, and not all the problems can be solved. So, I think we have to give them an opportunity if we need to tell someone our problems or worries, and that they can give us their advice respect our necessities. In fact, psychologists are as a doctor and we have to trust in them.

Summary of reader story

The Enchanted April

Four women of London, after to see an advertisement in the newspaper about a castle in Italy, decide to rent it as a residence for the spring, the April month, to forget their problems and their unhappiness.
Two of them, Rose and Lottie, are in the same situation: each one is married but their relationship with their spouses isn’t well and this is the reason why they want to go away some days. The others women are: Signora Fisher, who is an elderly widow, struggling and rude with a lame leg; and Caroline, who is a single very pretty, young and rich girl but a little cold, and she want to leave from London because she is sick of man who tell her that she is very beautiful; she wants to be alone.

When they arrive to Italy they like San Salvatore castle and the landscape of the sea and the garden with his flowers a lot. In Italy they find the path. During the days, this place becomes magic because all the ladies have a change in their personalities and in their feelings: the married women miss their husbands and decide to invite them to the castle and the men accept. After a few days of their arrival in Italy, the relationships of both couples alive. Apart of the husbands, the other man who goes to San Salvatore castle is its owner called Thomas Briggs, he immediately falls in love with Caroline, the pretty young girl. Another change is about Fisher who becomes friendly, sympathetic and nice with everybody.
So in San Salvatore castle, on April month, between flowers and sunshine, everybody rediscover happiness.

This is a summary of the reader book I've had to read this 3th term. It has been easy and quickly to read and easy to understand too.

I think the author of this novel called it as "The Enchanted April" because the story happens during all the April month in San Salvatore castle (Italy), where the characters experiment changes in their personalities and in their feelings; but the moth of April belongs to the spring season, when it supposes the good weather arrives, the flowers bloom, all is more beautiful, and the most important thing in this story is the love also improve between the couples.

2nd news

Barcelona’s stray dogs and cats finally get a kennel to call home

The construction of the new kennel to the spray dogs and cats will finish in 2011.
This new facility will be in the park d l’Oreneta, in Sarrià (Sant Gervasi district) and it also will have a sport area to the animals .
The capacity of the new kennel will be for 250 dogs and 200 cats, approximately.
If in the new site for abandoned animals is overflow, the current kennel has though remain open as a backup.

I've learnt these new words:

Facilities = instal·lacions
Kennel = caseta del gos/gat/altres
Spray = perduts
Ovewflow = exces/ple
Backup = reserva/ajut
Remain = continuarà