VÍDEO DE JUEZ DE MENORES DE ANDALUCÍA

THE EXECUTIVE POWER · QUESTIONS

The Executive Branch · Questions to the text

1. What is the President of the USA responsible for?

2. Who does he appoint?

3. What is the Cabinet responsible for?

4. How many people does the Executive Branch employ?

5. The President of the USA is the head of what two things?

6. What other executive agencies complement the Cabinet?

7. What powers has the President?

8. What responsibilities has the President?

9. What 3 requirements must a person fulfill to be President of the USA?

10.     Where does the President live?

11.     Where does the President have an office?

12.     What 3 transport means are designated for him?

13.     What responsibilities has the Vicepresident?

14.     What does also the Vicepresident preside?

15.     In what two places does the Vicepresident have an office?

16.     Where does he reside?

17.     What 3 transport means are designated for the Vicepresident?

18.     How many members has the Cabinet?

19.     How are they called?

You can find answers to these questions visiting the website of the 

WHITE HOUSE

THE BLACK CAT, by Edgar Allan Poe. Answers to the questions

SETTING

Place / Places

The story opens in the cell of a prisoner the day before he is to be executed by hanging. After introducing himself to readers as a man who underwent a horrifying experience, the prisoner writes down the details of this experience, which led to his imprisonment and scheduled execution. The events in his tale are set at his home and in a tavern.

Time

Although these events take place over several years, the recounting of them in writing takes place on a single day in the narrator's prison cell.

CHARACTERS

Narrator: Prisoner scheduled for execution. His loathing of a cat he once loved leads to his commission of a capital crime.

Narrator's Wife: Woman of agreeable disposition who likes animals and obtains many pets for her husband.

First Black Cat: Cat named Pluto that loves the narrator but irritates him when it follows him everywhere.

Second Black Cat: Cat that resembles the first black cat and may be a reincarnation of the latter—or so the narrator may think.

Policemen: Officers who investigate the happenings at the home of the narrator.

Servant: Person working in the narrator's household.

POINT OF VIEW

•       Who is telling the story?

The narrator tells the story in first-person point of view. He is obviously deranged even though he declares at the outset of the story that "mad am I not." He tells readers that excessive drinking helped to bring on his erratic, violent behavior. (It may be that the drinking worsened an existing mental condition.) The narrator tells his story as he sees it from his demented point of view.

•       Why, in your opinion, did Poe not give a name to the narrator?

As in many of his other short stories, Poe does not name the narrator. A possible explanation for this is that Poe wanted the unnamed narrator to represent every human being, thereby enhancing the universality of the short story. In other words, the narrator represents anyone who has ever acted perversely or impulsively—and then had to pay for his deed.

MAIN THEMES

•       Perversity

A human being has a perverse, wicked side that can goad him into committing evil deeds. The narrator says it was this inner demon that brought about his downfall.

    Who has not, a hundred times, found himself committing a vile or a silly action, for no other reason than because he knows he should not? Have we not a perpetual inclination, in the teeth of our best judgment, to violate that which is Law, merely because we understand it to be such? This spirit of perverseness, I say, came to my final overthrow. It was this unfathomable longing of the soul to vex itself -- to offer violence to its own nature -- to do wrong for the wrong's sake only -- that urged me to continue and finally to consummate the injury I had inflicted upon the unoffending brute.

•       Alcohol Abuse

Heavy drinking can bring out the worst in a human being. To be sure, alcohol abuse alone did not cause the narrator's violent behavior. But, as he readily acknowledges, it certainly put him in a foul mood.

•       Vengeance

Evil deeds invite vengeance. Pluto gets even, the narrator indicates, by causing the fire that burns down the narrator's house. And, if the second cat is indeed Pluto reincarnated, Pluto sweetens his revenge by alerting police with his crying behind the wall hiding the corpse of the narrator's wife.

•       The Power of Suggestion

A weak, unbalanced human psyche may be highly vulnerable to the power of suggestion. Consider that the narrator's wife had suggested, apparently in jest, that Pluto was more than a harmless black cat.

   In speaking of his [the cat's] intelligence, my wife, who at heart was not a little tinctured with superstition, made frequent allusion to the ancient popular notion, which regarded all black cats as witches in disguise. Not that she was ever serious upon this point -- and I mention the matter at all for no better reason than that it happens, just now, to be remembered.

In fact, the apparently deranged narrator may well have taken his wife's comments seriously.

GLOBAL CLASSROOMS: HOW TO MAKE A GOOD PRESENTATION

Topics for the presentations (3º)

Presentation topics for the 1.30 min speaking activity (in pairs) to take place on October 10. Choose your pair, then both decide on a topic and tell ASAP Simina (3ºA) or Natalia (3ºB). Remember topics can´t be repeated, they´ll be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis! (On October 3 Natalia and Simina have to give me the list with the pairs and the topics each pair has picked). 

1. The best thing that has ever happened to me 
2. The worst thing that has ever happened to me
3. A surprise I had 
4. A memory from childhood I´ll always remember
5. What is friendship?
6. Bilingual education: pros and cons 
7. A problem I have 
8. Your most embarrassing moment.
9. What would you like to change and why? 
10. Things I can't understand 
11. Your most curious dream.
12. High school is the best time in your life. Or not…
13. Things you would change in our high-school 
14. Your favourite book 
15. Should mobiles be used at school?
16. Your dream job 
17. Will robots replace humans?  Will robots take our jobs? 
18. Would you want to live on another planet?
19. Social networking sites: pros and cons.
20. What will future houses look like?
21. Sex roles

HOW TO MAKE A GOOD PRESENTATION
A. BASIC SUMMARY. How to make a good presentation in 4 simple steps:
1.CONTENT AND ORGANIZATION: The topic must be clear and follow a logical order. You must use examples to prove your points.

2.COMPREHENSION: Speak slowly and loudly enough. Your audience must understand what you say!

3.PREPARATION: The more you prepare the more confident you´ll feel.

4.INTERACTION WITH THE AUDIENCE. Remember you must sell your ideas, suggestions or points! Use your body language, try to capture the attention of the audience.
 
5. BE ENTHUSIASTIC!  The more excited you are about your topic the better your presentation will be. You must convince us!
B. IT´S TIME NOW FOR A LONGER EXPLANATION…  
1.Organising the content
a.Introduction
-Capture your listeners’ attention: Begin with a question, a funny story, a startling comment, or anything that will make them think.
-State your purpose; for example:
‘I’m going to talk about...’
‘This morning I want to explain…’
-Present an outline of your talk; for example:
‘I will concentrate on the following points: First of all…Then…
This will lead to… And finally…’
b.The Body
-Present your main points one by one in logical order.
-Pause at the end of each point -Make it absolutely clear when you move to another point. For example:
‘The next point is that ...’
‘OK, now I am going to talk about ...’
‘Right. Now I'd like to explain ... ’
‘Of course, we must not forget that ...’
‘However, it's important to realise that...’
-Use clear examples to illustrate your points.

c.The Conclusion
-It is very important to leave your audience with a clear summary of everything you have covered.
-Make it obvious that you have reached the end of the presentation.
-Summarise the main points again, using phrases like:
‘To sum up...’
‘So, in conclusion...’
‘OK, to recap the main points…’
-Restate the purpose of your talk, and say that you have achieved your aim:
‘I think you can now see that...’
‘My intention was ..., and it should now be clear that ...’
2.Delivering your presentation
-Talk to your audience, don't read to them! A presentation is not the same as an essay.If you read out your presentation as if it were an essay, your audience will probably understand very little and will lose concentration quickly.
-Speak to the audience. Include everyone by looking at them and maintaining eye-contact.
-Watch your language! Keep it simple. The aim is to communicate, not to show off your vocabulary.
-Emphasise the key points—and make sure people realise which are the key points. Repeat them using different phrasing.
-Use your voice to communicate clearly. Speak loudly enough for everyone in the room to hear you. This may feel uncomfortably loud at first, but if people can't hear you, they won't listen.
-Speak slowly and clearly.Don’t rush! Speaking fast doesn’t make you seem smarter, it will only make it harder for other people to understand you.
-Key words are important. Speak them out slowly and loudly.
-Vary your voice quality. If you always use the same volume and pitch (for example, all loud, or all soft, or in a monotone) your audience will switch off.
-Use pauses—don't be afraid of short periods of silence. (They give you a chance to gather your thoughts, and your audience a chance to think.)
-Use your body to communicate, too! Stand straight and comfortably. Hold your head up. Look around and make eye-contact with people in the audience. Do not stare at a point on the carpet or the wall. If you don't include the audience, they won't listen to you.
-When you are talking to your friends, you naturally use your hands, your facial expression, and your body to add to your communication. Do it in your presentation as well. It will make things far more interesting for the audience.
-Don't turn your back on the audience!
3.So you are nervous…
-The first few times you make a presentation, you will be nervous. That's quite a good thing—a bit of adrenalin often helps you to perform well.
-Smile! Your audience will react warmly to you if you smile and at least look relaxed.
-Breathe deeply. It will calm you down and help to control the slight shaking that you might get in your hands and your voice.
-Be well-prepared. Practise giving your talk. The better prepared you are, the more self-confident ypu´ll feel
-Be organised. If you are well organised, your task will be easier.
-Slow down! When people are nervous, they tend to get confused easily. So your mind may start to race, and you may feel panicky. Make use of pauses: force yourself to stop at the end of a sentence, take a breath, and think before you continue.
-Remember: The way you perform is the way your audience will feel. Giving an oral presentation is a performance—you have to be like an actor. If you act the part of someone enjoying themselves and feeling confident, you will not only communicate these positive feelings to the audience, you will feel much better, too.

(Adapted from the Academic Skills Program of the University of Canberra. Link.)

ROARING TWENTIES QUESTIONS (Illustrated History of USA pg 93-96 )

1. Why were the USA rich during the Roaring 20s?
2. What were the busiest factories?
3. What other important industries were there at the time?
4. The USA were the 1^st in what?
5. Why were many Americans well-off?
6. Explain ‘Installment Plan’
7. Who became heroes? Give an example
8. What did the Republican Party believe?
9. What did the Government do to help American businessmen?
10. What percentage of Americans were poor?
11. Who worked in the North? And in the South?
12. Who were the sharecroppers?
13. Why did the farmers in the West have problems?
14. Who looked to the future with more optimism?
15. Which president was elected in 1928?
16. What year did the ‘Prohibition’ (Dry Law) start in?
17. What were the ‘Speakeasies’?
18. Whom did the Speakeasies obtain alcohol from?
19. What was the name of the bands formed by the bootleggers?
20. What was Al Capone’s nickname?
21. Why was bootlegging a dangerous business?
22. When did the Prohibition end?
23. Why was the Prohibition harmful for America in the end?

TWENTIETH CENTURY AMERICANS: QUESTIONS (An Illustrated History of USA pg 88-91)

1.    When did World War I start?

2.    What two sides were fighting and which countries did each one include?

3.    What was the Americans’ attitude at first about WWI?

4.    Name a reason that made the Americans difficult to stay impartial at first?

5.    Did the USA trade with the Germans? Why?

6.    Did the USA trade with the Allies? What did it consist of mainly?

7.    What did the Germans do to prevent this trade?

8.    Did the sinking of the Lusitania make the Americans enter the war?

9.    What made the Americans enter the war?

10. When did the USA declare war on Germany?

11. How long did it take the USA to have a big army?

12. When did WWI finish?

13. What differences were there between the USA and the European Allies when signing the peace treaty?

14. What was the name of the peace treaty? When and where was it signed?

15. Why was Wilson disappointed with it?

16. What plan did President Wislon have?

17. What was it for?

18. Why did it fail?

19. What happened with the Zimmermman telegram?

20. What were Wilson’s 14 Points?

21. Give three examples of these points.

2º Bach Sección · A Balance of Terror · QUESTIONS (Ilustrated History USA, pg 120- 123)

             

1. Who made the 1^st H-bomb and when? 
2. What does H-bomb and  A-bomb mean? Which is more destructive? 
3. What countries could afford to go on making H-bombs?
4. Who was the Secretary of State under Eisenhower’s presidency?
5. What is a Secretary of State?
6. What did this  Secretary of State think about how Truman dealt with the Russians?
7. How did he change this attitude later and why?
8. What was “brinkmanship”?
9. What was the threat of “massive retaliation”?
10. Were the Americans worried by the Sputnik? What worried them and why?
11. What were the nuclear missiles?
12.  What was The Polaris?
13. Explain “balance of terror”.
14. Explain Khrushchev’s concept “peace of coexistence”.
15. Why didn’t the Paris summit take place?

SPACE RACE

16. Name the two reasons for the Space Race between the USA & the USSR.
17. What is the name of the mission to put the 1^st man on the Moon?
18. How many men were in this mission? How many stepped down on the Moon’s surface?

BERLIN WALL

19. When was the Berlin Wall built? Why?
20. When was the Berlin Wall destroyed?

CRISIS OVER CUBA

21. How did Fidel Castro start the revolution in Cuba?
22. What happened in the Bay of Pigs?
23. Why did the Russians help Cuba?
24. What did Kennedy do to stop the Russians?
25. Why was the world horrified in October 1962?
26. What did the two superpowers do to reach an agreement?