THE SEASONS ON EARTH
A season is a division of the year, marked by changes in weather
Seasons result from the yearly revolution of the Earth around the Sun and the tilt of the Earth's axis relative to the plane of revolution.
During June, July and August, the northern hemisphere is exposed to more direct sunlight because the hemisphere faces the sun. The same is true of the southern hemisphere in December, January, and February. It is the tilt of the Earth that causes the Sun to be higher in the sky during the summer months which increases the solar flux


Solstices
The solstices are days when the Sun reaches its farthest northern and southern declinations. The winter solstice occurs on December 21 or 22 and marks the beginning of winter (this is the shortest day of the year). The summer solstice occurs on June 21 and marks the beginning of summer (this is the longest day of the year).
Equinoxes
Equinoxes are days in which day and night are of equal duration. The two yearly equinoxes occur when the Suncrosses the celestial equator.
The vernal equinox occurs in late March (this is the beginning of spring in the Northern Hemisphere and the beginning of fall in the Southern Hemisphere); the autumnal equinox occurs in late September (this is the beginning of fall in the Northern Hemisphere and the beginning of spring in the Southern
Spring Equinox : day and night are each 12 hours long and the sun is at the midpoint of the sky.
Summer Solstice: the longest day of the year, when the sun is at its most northern point in the sky.
Autumn Equinox: day and night are each 12 hours long and the sun is at the midpoint of the sky.
Winter Solstice: the shortest day of the year, when the sun is at itsmost southern point in the sky.

CHINESE NEW YEAR
Chinese New Year is the biggest holiday celebrated among Chinese people. It is often referred to as the spring festival because it signals the beginning of spring. It is a time when families and friends get together to say goodbye to the old and welcome the new. It originally lasted for about 4 weeks, but now only lasts for 3-5 days.
The holiday originated when a beast named Nian (which means year in Chinese) came out the night before the new year and started to prey on the people in the villages. Of course, the people were very frightened by this monster and so a brave old man went up to the beast and said to him that instead of eating the people of the villages, he should eat the other beasts that frightened these people. Nian followed the old man's request and all of the beasts were chased into the forest. The old man rode away on Nian's back, and as it turns out, the man was an immortal god. The people of the village were very grateful to the old man for giving them a peaceful life. Before the old man left for good, he told the people to put up red paper decorations on their windows and doors at the beginning of each new year because the color red scared the beast. They also set off firecrackers to scare away the horrible beast. This is only a legend about how Chinese New Year
An interesting thing about Chinese New Year is that very few people know when this holiday is celebrated without looking at a traditional Chinese calendar because it never falls on the same day. The ancient Chinese used a lunar calendar. (Today we use solar calendars.) On a lunar calendar, the new year begins the first night of the new moon after the sun enters Aquarius. This date is anywhere between January 20 and February 19 (on a solar calendar).
In 2010, Chinese New Year is celebrated on February 14. In the Chinese calendar, it is the year 4707, and the Year of the Tiger.
During the Chinese New Year's celebration, people participate in many traditional activities. The Chinese believe that as they enter a new year, they should put behind them all things of the past. They clean their houses, pay off debts, buy new clothes, paint their doors and window and even get new haircuts. These activities symbolize new life and new beginnings.
Homes are decorated with flowers and paper decorations stating wishes of prosperity, good luck, happiness, good fortune, wealth, and longevity for the coming year. Decorations of the incoming zodiac animal are also displayed. Red and gold are very popular colors to decorate with. Red represents power happiness, vitality (and scares away beasts). Gold represents wealth and good fortune.
One very important tradition of the Chinese New Year is exchanging gifts

The dragon is another popular symbol for Chinese New Year. It is a symbol of strength, goodness, and good luck, and supernatural forces. The dragon is said to be a mythical combination of many animals. During New Years, one of the main events is a large parade down the city streets. As part of this parade, people dress up in dragon costumes and dance down the streets. These costumes are made of brightly colored silk and decorated very extravagantly. Some of the dragons are 100 feet long! Men and boys perform intricate dragon dances with one person manipulating the head of the dragon and the rest moving the body.
A Chinese New Year celebration would not be complete without fireworks. There are many beliefs about why fireworks are used. One is that the noise wakes up the dragon who will fly across the sky to bring the spring rain for the crops. Another belief is that the noise of the fireworks is supposed to scare away all evil spirits and misfortunes, preventing them from coming into the new year. In fact, gunpowder was invented in China over 1000 years ago for that very purpose. Firecrackers are thrown at the feet of the dragons in the parade to keep them awake for the celebration. The dragons are believed to sleep the rest of the year.

GOOSE and TURKEY

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Legend tells that she was eating this particular dish on Christmas Eve in 1588, when news came that Spanish Armada had been defeated by English troops.
The Queen declared that goose should always be eaten as Christmas celebration. |
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It’s also told that her father KingHenry VIII was the first person recorded to have eaten turkey on Christmas Day.
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Originally the turkey came from the country of Mexico. It was introduced to Europe after the Discovery of America, but it was too expensive for most people. In northern England roast beef was the traditional dish for Christmas dinner while in London and the south England, goose was favourite.
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Only by the end of the 19th century most people feasted on turkey for their Christmas dinner.
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THE UNITED KINGDOM and THE UNION JACK
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The United Kingdom includes England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
the capital city of England is London;
thecapital city of Scotland is Edimburgh;
The capital city of Wales is Cardif;
the capital city of Northern Ireland is Belfast.

The Flag Of United Kingdom is called
Union Jack
The Union Jack includes three different flags with different crosses:
The cross of St.George, the patron saint of England;

The cross of St. Andrews, the patron saint of Scotland;

The cross of St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland.



The flag was called Union Jack because “Union” stands to symbolize the union of the nations, but historians do not agree on the origin of name of “Jack”.
Some say it’s the nickname of King James I who, in 1603, united England and Scotland;
Others say it’s called Jack like the “Jack staff”, the tall pole of the ship where flags wave
FEELINGS
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Her football team has won the cup: |
Her mum and dad give her a present: |
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She took a bad mark: |
She's fallen from her bike: |
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His pencil's broken: |
She's scared because there's a bee in the classroom |
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There's a monster in the cupboard: |
She's played volleyball all day long: |
HALLOWEEN HISTORY and ORIGIN
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The origin of Halloween comes from the tradition of the Celtic people. They held celebration near the end of our month of October, which they called “Samhain”.
Samhain is a festival to celebrate the end of summer. Celt people offered food to the Gods. During this festivity, they often went from door to door to collect food to donate to their deities. Young Celts asked for wood, and take it to top of the hill for the Samhain bonfire. That ‘s the possible origin of “ trick or treat ’’.
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Samhain was fire festival. Sacred bonfire were lit on the tops of hills in honor of the Gods. People took an ember from the bonfire to their home and re-light the fire in their family hearth
The ember was carrier in an empty pumpkin. That’s the possible origin of Jack o’ lantern.
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Later, Romans celebrated the Pomona festival at the same period .
Then, Christian people celebrated the All Hallow’s Eve (October the 31st), at the same period. That’s why nowadays the festivity is called Halloween |
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CHOCOLATE IS DELICIOUS
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The first people who made chocolate were Maya and Aztec from Mexico and Central America.They used to grind cocoa seeds and mix them with water, then they used to add various seasonings to make a spicy, frothy, bitter drink. |
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Before chocolate was a sweet candy, it was a bitter and spicy drink. |
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About in 1521, a spanish conqueror, Hernaldo Cortès, brought the cocoa plant to Europe. |
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COCOA TREE |
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ClaudiaV. |
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Nowadays Everyone Likes Chocolate |
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VAN GOGH and his ART
Learning Art in English
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Vincent Van Gogh is a very famous painter. |
His Paintings
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The Potato Eaters |
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Van Gogh 's self-portrait. |
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Starry Night. |
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Van Gogh Paintings |
Our Paintings |
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Erika |
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Claudia V. |
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Gaia |
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Roberta |
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Carlotta |
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Greta |
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Marta |
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Claudia C. |
PREMIO LETTERARIO
In un mondo sperduto dove la campanella suona circa dieci volte al giorno, i più forti del reame lottano per la sopravvivenza scolastica.
Quest'anno, lottando ...lottando, non ci siamo accontentati della vincita per il nostro blog, ma.......
Leggete.....leggete......
Abbiamo vinto anche il premio letterario indetto dalla nostra scuola.
Hip hip urrà in prima media si va!!!
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Ecco la motivazione del premio letterario:
Buona raccolta poetica composta da poesie brevi ed originali che fanno un uso accorto della parola e creano nel lettore delle emozioni suggestive.
GRAZIE ALLA GIURIA!
Le poesie che abbiamo presentato al concorso sono pubblicate su questo blog.
L'INFINITO ed OLTRE
Riportiamo in chiaro un feedback di Rosa, mamma di Silvia, e la ringraziamo del suo prezioso contributo alla nostra ricerca
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Care ragazze e ragazzi, siete veramente molto bravi. Ho letto i vostri commenti sulle poesie di Leopardi e ho pensato a quanto sia triste la solitudine e quanto sia bella l'amicizia. Vi mando un testo che parla di amicizia. a me è piaciuto e a voi? (Rosa)
Sono pronti ad ascoltarti quando hai bisogno, ti sostengono e ti aprono il loro cuore. Mostra ai tuoi amici quanto li ami. |


















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