Feeding the mind, the heart….and the soul


This project was the follow-up of “Feeding the Mind”, a unit in the coursebook, “Objective Advanced”. As the students had shown interest in a painting by Gainsborough, I thought they might enjoy interpreting one of their choice. I asked them to choose a painting they liked and then brainstorm 4 or 5 words. After that, I told them to write a short poem including those words. Finally, I invited them to think of a song that matched the spirit of the painting and the poem.

Upshot: when they presented their work, I was speechless. I was amazed at the quality of their work.

I wondered, “How come they were able to do this with such little input?”

Answer: the so much neglected role emotion plays in classroom motivation!

Historically, the psychological components of cognition, motivation and emotion have tended to be considered separately. However, Meyer and Turner (2002) suggest that, in real life situations, the three concepts operate synergistically.

Conclusion: the role of emotions should not be underestimated in language teaching. 

 Heaven by Natalia Erquicia

Liberty Leading the People by Sofía Rossit

Serenade by Valentina Ecalle

Shiny Stars by Micaela Vidoz

Starry Night by Luciana Lemos

Sur le mer, la nuit by Florencia Moreno

The Entombment of Atala by Milena Moroni

The Kiss by Patricia Paterno

Teacher: Mariana De Biassi
 
Class: CAE B

Cultural Readers Competition








We would like to show you our beautiful country and to do so we have created a fantasy character called Maria Paz. She will be in charge of showing the different corners of our country and telling you about our customs.

We believe that a good sense of humour helps understanding among people, which is surely Macmillan's aim with the Cultural Readers devoted to different countries in the world.

We have decided that our tourist guide should be Mafalda's daughter, Maria Paz (our own creation). Mafalda is a comic strip character from Argentina, probably the best-known Argentinian cartoon character abroad. This comic strip was written and drawn by Quino (an Argentinian cartoonist) and it appeared in newspapers and magazines between 1964 and 1973. It's been translated into many languages.

Mafalda is a six-year-old girl who cannot understand many things that are happening in the world or things that adults do. Mafalda is truly worried about world peace and the future of humanity, which is why we have chosen María Paz (Peace in English) as her daughter's name. She thinks adults are doing things wrongly. She is a very curious girl whose 'naive' questions are really thought-provoking.


 

Teacher: Alicia Zuliani
Class: Post- First Certificate

Sassy Mini Sagas

by a class struck by inspiration


"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder" 

My reflection doesn't show what I really am. Kind, smart, sincere and honest. My shape, as big as my heart. Never thought of finding true love. Round the corner there he was, my soulmate, with his arms wide open. He doesn't judge me, he only looks at my soul. He's blind, literally. 
                                                                                                    Micaela, Milena and Sofia.

"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly, what is essential is invisible to the eye" A. de Saint Exupery.
 


"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder"

Once upon a time, an ugly boy, whom all the students bullied, was made to bet his classmates that he would take the prettiest girl in the school to the prom. Amazingly, not only did she happily accept the invitation, but also fell in love with him. Never judge by appearance.
eye
Luciana and Andrea

"The early bird catches the worm"

The show was getting close and I was in charge of buying the tickets. Days passed by and I was confident that it wouldn't be sold out so fast. Two days before the show, my friends wanted to kill me.
Martin and Nicolas

"The early bird catches the worm"

 Always overslept. To the point of getting the sack. Looked for another job. Bought two new alarm clocks. Woke up at six. Caught the first bus. Arrived at the office early. Car park empty. Door locked. Nobody in the building. It was Sunday.
    
   Patricia and Nadia
Teacher: Mariana De Biassi
Class: CAE `B'

ARCI Drama Club: A Passion for the Arts

A free version of the anecdote taken from Sir Ken Robinson´s book The Element. Written and directed by Patricia Zorio.

“The arts especially address the idea of aesthetic experience. An aesthetic experience is one in which your senses are operating at their peak; when you’re present in the current moment; when you’re resonating with the excitement of this thing that you’re experiencing; when you are fully alive.”

- Ken Robinson
   








Drama Club members
Agnoli Scarabelli, Gina
Bracco, María Florencia
Coll, Raúl
Covicchi, Marcelo
Fernandez de Leuco, Tomás
Fittipaldi, Clarisa
Galimberti, María Soledad
Maraval, María Belén
Messina, Paula
Neder, Josefina
Sainz, Marisol
Sanchez, Eduardo
Santonocita, Victoria
Sednaui, Adriana
Testino, Esteban
Tudino, Francesca
Vazquez, María del Rosario


A Truth Universally Acknowledged


It is a truth universally acknowledged that…” –quoting Jane Austen’s opening line of Pride and Prejudice – adolescents have developed a strong negative attitude to writing. So, I find myself invariably squeezing my brains to figure out how I can make writing more appealing, more authentic, more creative for my FCE students. In Unit 4 of FCE Result, they are asked to produce a review of a film. 

Therefore, I thought it’d be far more motivating and engaging to start with a class discussion of films in general – different kinds, films they’d seen or would like to see, films they would or wouldn’t recommend at all. They worked in groups, exchanged opinions, agreed or disagreed about the messages sent by some films they discussed and, most importantly, they naturally used loads of meaningful, thematically related language. The final step of the activity would be, of course, writing the review. 

I do not know if they had a good time while writing it at home. I choose to think they did. Anyway, if it was half as much as the fun they had while discussing the movies in class I believe the task was successfully accomplished. 


Teacher: Laura Lupo
Class: FCE `G´ and FCE Cultural Norte

Diogenes and the Wise Man



Last month we read the short story Diogenes the Wise Man, by James Baldwin and that  inspired us to talk about who we would have liked to be if we weren´t ourselves. The result of this debate made us realize that we all had had a mentor that had made a difference in our lives.

The topic coincided with a unit of the course book entitled INSPIRED. Throughout the pages of this unit, we read and discussed about where people might take or might have taken - Leonardo Da Vinci, for instance- their inspiration from.

Therefore, at the end of the unit, we decided to write about our personal “Muses” -or sources of inspiration- that would lead or have already led us to become an improved version of ourselves.

We would like to share them with you.



If I weren’t myself, I would be Norberto Pelizza.  He was in charge of the discipline at my boarding secondary school.  I admire his wisdom, simplicity and availability.  Unluckily, he died due to cancer two years ago.

Jeremías Brandi
 
A person who has really inspired me since I was a child is my godfather.

He is a fantastic and talented journalist who has based his whole life on growing in his job but also making a family. I can remember several times that he gave me life tips on what to study at university and “how to get on well with my sister,” as well as politics and geography.

He is such a great and adorable father, son, husband, uncle and of course, godfather, that I’d like to be like him in my future.
Aranza Castillo



Who inspires me?

Someone who inspires me is my pet, Ramona.  She is still a puppy, and she is cute and easy-going, so she transmits me her quietness and makes me feel comfortable when I’m with her.  She also inspires me because I’m certain that she trusts me.  Besides, when I finish working with whatever I’m doing that needs inspiration, she knows I take her to the park, so it’s convenient for her to stay with me and looking at me as if she were insisting me on finishing.

Ayelén Calvet
 
At school I’ve learnt a lot of things: mathematics, languages, history, etc. Unfortunately, there are very few teachers that can teach you these kinds of things and, at the same time, make you learn how to manage in life.

I was fortunate to have one these teachers. My inspiration nowadays is called Laura, and she is my teacher of Language. She is a gorgeous woman, extremely friendly and tolerant person that cares more about our moral and good manners than about our marks. Laura always places being a good friend, companion and student first. There’s no need to be rude to be respected. It’s a question of knowing what to say and how to say it. Always with good manners and education.
Lucía      
 
Many writers have inspired me but one in particular: Eduardo Galeano.  I find him original, creative and extremely witty.  Through his writing I could know about him.  I love his simple way of expressing controversial issues like religion, politics, gender, etcetera.

Thanks to Galeano’s influence I can say that now I am more tolerant and respectful of others’ beliefs.  I really consider myself and open-minded person.

Also when I ponder on about myself, on how to be, I realize that the feeling of freedom I have, has been influenced and fed by this great man.

Teacher: Patricia Zorio
Class: FCE 'L'

Exam Classes Online

With a project launched in 2011 for the implementation of Exam Classes online,  we have escalated from First (FCE), to Advanced (CAE) and this year into Proficiency (CPE). We are currently offering all three courses online.


By going online, ARCI gives advanced learners the opportunity to pull down time and distance barriers, 24/7/365. Students decide when to access their virtual classrooms and from where they connect. All our courses have a real-time speaking component to develop oral skills under the guidance of a class teacher. The syllabus is exactly the same as in face-to-face classrooms, with the same coursebook and support materials. Our courses are taught by experienced teachers who cater for the needs of our students and use made-to-measure digital materials. We combine the best aspects of face-to-face and online teaching.


FCE, CAE and CPE develop the language competence and abilities needed to sit Cambridge English Language Assessment exams (University of Cambridge). Students can choose between the paper-based and computer-based exam format.


THE ARCI ADVANCED TEAM

Trial by Jury

 
 Trial by Jury in the USA 

In December 2012 the Chamber of Deputies of Buenos Aires Province passed a bill on Trial by Jury. Therefore, Buenos Aires will be the first province in Argentina to apply the system of trial by jury. The jury will be made up of ordinary citizens, and it will deal with major penal crimes in public and oral hearings.

Córdoba has had a mixed system since 2005. In this province juries consist of lawyer jurors as well as ordinary people. 

Last April 9th my pupils and I had the opportunity to have a friendly talk with an American citizen, Sandra, who very kindly accepted our invitation to come to our Legal English class to talk on the subject of Jury Trial and tell us her own personal experience as a juror in the USA on more than one occasion. No doubt, a unique chance for all of us. 

Here is a summary of what we learnt on the topic: 

*A jury is formed from 12 jurors who are chosen by the defence * Jurors come from different social, educational, and religious backgrounds 
*The system of trial by jury is used in criminal and civil cases except for family ones 
*The purpose of the jury is to find the defendant’s guilty or innocence 
*If you can vote, you can be a juror 
*A juror can do any types of job except for any related to the law. 
*The State pays the juror 15 dollars a day. He/She can't be fired from their jobs and their employer must continue paying them their salary during the trial 
*They have to be in court for about 8 hours a day 
*During deliberation they examine all the proof and make a decision. The decision is taken by the majority 
* A juror can be summoned to serve once every 6 years 
* If you have a social security card and you`re a USA citizen, you can get a notice to serve as a member of a jury
* Cases can be as short as one day or as long as a few years 
* If a juror doesn’t show up for jury duty, he/she will be visited by the police at his/her house, and can be forced to go to court * Jurors are not excused from jury duty until a verdict is reached 
* To reach a verdict, the majority must agree 






Teacher:Claudia Saldaño
Class:ILEC