Dear Teacher,
I am delighted to announce that Tune Into English has been shortlisted by the British Council for an ELTons award for innovation in Teacher Resources – the winner will be announced at a ceremony in London on the 23rd May. This prestigious recognition is also thanks to all you who have contributed or used the worksheets and other resources on the website. So thank you!
This month sees the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. The first addition to the Downloadable Worksheets section of the Teachers’ Area of www.tuneintoenglish.com is Cèline Dion’s My Heart Will Go On, the love theme from the 1997 blockbuster Titanic. Submitted by Laura Casolero, from Grumo Nevano, there is also an extra activity comparing the events of 1912 with the 2012 Costa Concordia disaster.
The second new worksheet, also submitted by Laura Casolero (and featured in last year’s Tune Into English Roadshow), acknowledges another centenary – Bram Stoker, the author of Dracula, died on the 20th April 1912. Students may prefer the vampires in the Twilight series and Neutron Bomb Collision (Love Is Forever) by Muse comes from the soundtrack of the third movie.
New Team Up in English, the ideal course for the Scuola Secondaria di I° Grado, with songs by Tune Into English and published by ELI, is now available, and this month’s third worksheet is taken from this – Everybody Needs Somebody To Love, from the film The Blues Brothers, features an alternative activity, not in the book. Further details on this title can be found here, along with details of Up To You!, the holiday book. Thank you to Silvia Locchi from Città di Castello (PG) who sent an email with this comment: “Team Up is fantastic. I work with it very well and even my students are very enthusiastic about it.”
Also for the Scuola Secondaria di I° Grado, regular Tune contributor Mena Bianco has co-authored a civiltà book – “Let’s Take Off! A cultural journey through the English-speaking world” is published by Elledue Edizioni Napoli. It includes a page on Once – The Movie, this can be downloaded on the Once – Film Worksheet page of the Tune site.
The Italian worksheets have been so popular that we will be publishing a new one each month – Francesco De Gregori’s Buonanotte Fiorellino, with activities by Caterina Ziliani, based in Houston, Texas, is now on the Tune Into Italian page.
To celebrate last month’s St. Patrick’s Day Tourism Ireland have prepared a special Teacher’s Zone with links to didactic activities providing you with inspiration and activities to share with your class, whether you’re preparing for a visit to Ireland or just thinking about visiting one day.
The Tune Into English Roadshow will continue its tour after the Easter break, including a return to Ayamonte and the University of Huelva in Spain. Thank you to all those who have hosted the show, and to those who have sent in comments and drawings. You can see a large selection of videos and photographs from over five years of the Roadshow on the Tune facebook page.
The Karaoke page of Tune Into English features over 7,800 songs, including all songs mentioned in this newsletter. Don’t forget that you can sing along with the UK Top 10 Charts on the Speak Up site – updated weekly; there is a link on the Tune Home page too. There is also a special Easter Karaoke page, so why not have a sing along with your students before the break?
Have a wonderful Easter,
Best wishes,
Fergal Kavanagh
Tune Into English
www.tuneintoenglish.com
