Hi, how are you doing!!!

Me, not so well...it'll pass. Hopefully! I'm writing from an Internet Point because I've been having dialling problems. A thunder-storm damaged my twin set cordless phone and that affected my modem connection too. I've changed the modem master card but that does not seem to help... Plus, I'm moving houses and there's a lot to do. I'll keep in touch!

"N" for NOTICE

This summer I'm going to work on the grammar and glossary pages. So gradually, by the beginning of the next school year, this blog will start developing its school teaching side, too. At the moment it is more of a personal school journal, but I don't mind.

Yes, I would like more participation from my students, but hardly everybody knows that this blog exists. And those who do, choose to take no notice of it! Never mind..."The Less we are the Better we Feel" I will say, quoting the title of one of Renzo Arbore's shows!

P.S. Renzo Arbore is one of the best Italian entertainers: shows author, presenter, singer, musician and what not!

Glossary

• to choose-chose-chose= scegliere
• to take no notice of something=non fare caso (a qualcosa), non registrare (un fatto)
• never mind=non importa
• to quote=citare
• what not= chi più ne ha più ne metta

"W" for worried...

Dear Students,

I'm talking to you, IIIrd Level students....to you who are preparing to sit for your final exam. Are you worried? Are you nervous? Are you tense! DON'T! Worrying has a bad influence on the learning and memory processes....RELAX.

I wonder who might be the person who is lying on the hammock by the sea. Will it be a boy or a girl? I bet it is a girl....What do you think?

Glossary

to be worried= essere preoccupato/a

to be tense=essere teso

to wonder=chiedersi

hammock=amaca

by the sea= in riva al mare

to bet=scommettere

"K" for kiss...to myself!

Isn't my blog pretty?! I love it!!! I'm SO pleased with myself!

REFLEXIVE PRONOUNS

Myself (me stesso)

Yourself (te stesso)

Himself (lui stesso)

Herself (lei stessa)

Itself (esso/essa stessa)

Ourselves (noi stessi)

Yourselves (voi stessi)

Themselves (loro stessi/stesse)

Here comes the end...

...of the 2006/2007 school year. The exact date is June 9, but many of my students have already stopped attending, particularly those of the Ist year courses. Namely those of the Commercial and Hotel courses. Actually, I should point out that some of them hardly ever attended!

I wonder...These people did enrol to get a High School Certificate. It normally takes a high school student 5 years' attendance to get one, but this being an abbreviated evening classes course, they are only required 3 years' attendance to sit for their final exam.

Most of our students are adults who hold a regular job and attend classes on a regular basis. However some of them are younger boys or girls who have failed to make it through at the day courses. These are the tricky ones...

They have little or no motivation at all, and their school attendance is very poor or non-existent. Usually they start attending late when the summer season is over, and stop by mid April when it is in full swing. We could put up with that. The problem however, is that these people do not attend or work seriously through the late autum, winter and early spring periods either!

All year round they shun you when they meet you in the school corridor...But when the end of the school terms approaches, they are back! And expect to be questioned ON THE SPOT, and...to get GOOD MARKS, of course!

Glossary

to attend =frequentare

to point out=specificare

hardly ever=quasi mai

attendance=frequenza

namely=per la precisione, vale a dire

to enroll=iscriversi

to sit for (an exam)=sostenere un esame

to hold a regular job= avere un lavoro fisso

to fail to make it through= non riuscire a farcela, a superare

tricky=difficile, problematico

very poor= molto scarso

to be in full swing= essere in pieno svolgimento

to put up with= accettare, sopportare

to shun=evitare, girare le spalle

to be questioned=essere interrogati ( a scuola e al commissariato!)

"B" for Beach, or by the Sea

Jesolo is a small town, on the North Eastern Coast of Italy. Before being moved to its new, larger, more comfortable establishment the school was hosted in an old building by the beach, surrounded by a park. The building was owned by the local priests who let it out to the school. The premises were most unsuitable for a school, but from its top windows you could look out at the sea. And from mid-April, looking up from your books and away from your students you would see the colourful beach umbrellas lining the beach down below, and people strolling by in their swimming costumes....

Glossary

to move to= traslocare, trasferirsi

comfortable=comodo

establishment=complesso, struttura, edificio

to host=ospitare,

to surround=circondare

to own=possedere

to let out=dare in affitto

premises=locali, edificio

unsuitable=inadatto

to look up=alzare lo sguardo

to look away=distogliere lo sguardo

beach umbrella=ombrellone

to line= disporre in riga

to stroll by=passeggiare senza fretta

swimming costume=costume da bagno

"F" for Football Fans

Guess why the title of this blog is The Black and Blue Blog? Because I am an Inter fan. Inter what?! , you may ask. Internazionale FC of course, or "InterMilan" as the foreign press used to call the team.

"AC Milan" fans will be disturbed by this rather confusing name. Me too!

When I was a little girl there were less Inter fans than Milan fans in the Venice area. The big crowd supported AC Milan. I chose to support Inter FC because at the time it was THE winning team. And to distinguish myself from my classmates and schoolfriends. My parents came from Verona and we felt different. Today there are still more Milan and Juventus fans than Inter fans, but I don't mind. I never did, because deep down I'm a fighter...The only thing which worries me is unfair refereeing.

The funny thing is that some of my students pretend to support Inter to please me!

What football team do you support?

Glossary

to guess= (provare a ) indovinare

less....than=meno....di (comparativo di minoranza)

big crowd=la maggior parte della gente

classmate=compagno di classe

to mind= importare

deep down=sotto sotto, dentro,

fighter=lottatore, combattente

unfair refereeing=arbitraggio ingiusto

to pretend=fingere

to please= far piacere, compiacere

"P" for pets

Now I just have a cat. But once I used to have many cats and a dog. Do you have pets, too? What kind of pets do you have?

Glossary

once=una volta

to use to= imperfetto inglese (i.e, I used to have= avevo)

An Angel at my Table

This cat looks 98% like my persian cat Leonetta. She always sits next to me when I am sitting at my computer desk. Do you have pets too? What do you have dogs, cats, canaries, rabbits?

Glossary to look like= assomigliare pet=animale domestico

Sea breeze

The girls in the picture are holding their hats to keep the sea wind from carrying them away. Jesolo is a sea town but there wasn't much breeze tonight! It was very close and humid...Where do you live?

Glossary

• to hold=tenere fermo, in mano
• to keep from+ verbo+ing= impedire che
• away=via
• breeze=brezza, venticello
• close=afoso

The Black and Blue Blog: "I" for Images

The Black and Blue Blog: "I" for Images

"I" for Images

The thing I like most about blogging or writing in forums is including pictures in my posts. I love that! " A picture is worth a thousand words", said someone.

Including pictures in my blog posts or forum messages gives me so much joy. It makes me feel free. That's what blogs (or forums) do for you. They allow you to express your feelings, your thoughts, your interests and share them with other people.

[The lady in the picture is Alessandra Ferri from Italy. A wonderful prima ballerina who has sadly just retired. That was much too soon, Alessandra!]

Glossary

to include=inserire

to be worth=valere

(to) say-said-said=dire

someone=qualcuno (AE=somebody)

to feel free=sentirsi libero

to allow=consentire, permettere

feeling=emozione, sentimento

thought=pensiero

to share=condividere

to retire=andare in pensione, ritirarsi

too soon=troppo presto

"M" for Market...

Have you ever been to the San Donà Market? I have. And how could I help it? For the people who live on the Lower side of the Piave River, attending this sacred ceremony each Monday morning is more than a must. It is a destiny to which we are sadly doomed...

Glossary

to help (doing something)=fare a meno, evitare di

Lower side of the Piave River=Basso Piave

to attend=partecipare, presenziare

each=ciascuno

sadly=tristemente

to doom=condannare/ doomed=condannato

"P" for "Page Elements"

On the right hand side of this blog homepage you can see some headings.

Some stand out against a green background: Informazioni personali, Visualizza il mio profilo completo. Some stand out against a blue background: The Black and Blue Glossary, The Black and Blue Grammar Files, Archivio Blog.

To "open" (access) these headings you just click on them. However, The Black and Blue Glossary and The Black and Blue Grammar Files do not open. Why? I have added these elements to the page. But I don't know how to manage them! Hopefully, I will soon learn...

Glossary

Page Elements=elementi di pagina

hand side=lato destro/parte destra

heading= intestazione, titolo

to stand out= stagliarsi, spiccare, risaltare

background=sfondo

However= tuttavia, comunque

to manage=gestire

Hopefully= si spera che

soon=presto

"S" for "Short"

Peter Ford, the primary school edublogging pioneer, says that the best thing about using blogging in Language 2 education, is that posts are short. Students find them easy to write and and read, and teachers find them easy to mark!

Glossary

primary school=scuola elementare

edublogging= blogging didattico

pioneer=pioniere

Language 2= lingua diversa dalla propria

post(ing)=messaggi spediti con il blog

to mark=correggere

"S" for "Sorry"

I have modified my blog model and the layout of the older posts has changed. I have tried to go back to the previous format, but NO WAY!

Glossary

previous= precedente

No Way=niente da fare!

"C" for Comments

You can comment my posts.

Only if you want to write a post or open your personal file in this blog, you need my authorization!

"L" for posts Layout

The body of my posts is ok. The layout is blocked, American style, not indented British style. But why is there a double spacing between the lines of my glossary? Until yesterday it was ok! Perhaps I have digited the wrong key!

I love the images! Blogtspot.com allows you to link directly to your image portfolio. But this layout has too many spaces in between...I will have to change something, somewhere.

Glossary

body (of a letter)= corpo, parte principale di una lettera

blocked style= stile giustificato

indented style= stile rientrato, alla prima riga di ogni paragrafo

double spacing=doppio interlinea

line=riga (verso,battuta di un dialogo..)

to link to= collegarsi

to digit= digitare ( anche to key in)

key= tasto della tastiera (keyboard) del pc

image portfolio= file immagini del proprio pc

to link to=collegarsi a

(text) layout= disposizione grafica (di un testo)

in betweeen= fra una parte e l'altra, fra una riga e l'altra

something=qualcosa

somewhere=da qualche parte

"H" for "Hope"

Dear visitors,

I hope you have finally managed to access my blog. Until yesterday it was impossible, because of security measures put in place by the platform webmaster.

Last night I talked to one of the computing laboratory technicians. He said that he would make sure that my link would be allowed access...And so he has.

It is funny though, access to my blog from school is still denied to a grammar file that is inside my blog. I have just opened it and it contains three words: Post di prova!

Glossary

to manage to=riuscire a

security measure=misura di sicurezza

to put in place= inserire, installare

to make sure= accertarsi

to allow=consentire, permettere

to deny=negare, rifiutare

denial= rifiuto

"R" for rain

Today I feel blue...Perhaps it is because of the rain. What do you think? How do you feel when it rains? Do you feel blue, too?

Glossary

to feel blue= sentirsi giù, triste

because of=a causa di

"G" for Grammar

FUTURE SIMPLE: Positive Form (I will go to the party= andrò alla festa!) I will go to the party (Andrò alla festa) You will go to the party ( Andrai alla festa He will go to the pary (Lui Andrà alla festa) She will go to the party (Lei Andrà alla festa He will go to the party (Esso/a Andrà alla festa) We will go to the party (Noi andremo alla festa) You will go to the party ( Voi andrete alla festa) They will go to the party (Essi/Loro andranno alla festa) Construction: Subject + will + verb base form = I will go to the party

"P" for Publishing

Writing in a blog is (=) publishing on the web. Why? Because, all the people authorized by you, can read what you write for free. Normally, if you want to publish what you write you go to a publishing house. And the publishing house editor decides if what you write is good or crap.

Above all, he decides if the publishing house can SELL what you write. Because press publishing costs are very high, and the reading [paying] public very small...So he would pick Antonella Clerici's cooking recipes and send "La Coscienza di Zeno", back to our good old friend Italo [Svevo]! Regardless of the script value.

Alternatively, you could open a web-site, but web-sites are difficult to manage. You need a web-master and that costs, too. [Did you get that, Prof. Anastasio?] Blogs allow you to publish for free and are very easy to manage. You can open as many as you like, and close them with a click!

Glossary

for free= gratuitamente

publishing house= casa editrice

publishing house editor= redattore di una casa editrice

crap=spazzatura

Above all=più di ogni altra cosa, soprattutto

to sell=vendere

paying public= pubblico pagante

to pick=scegliere

cooking recipe=ricetta di cucina

to send back= rispedire

Regardless= a prescindere da

script=manoscritto

value=valore (non solo commerciale)

to allow=consentire

as many...as= tanti quanti

"P" for Posting...

A "posting" (which is normally abbreviated in "post") is the message that you key in and publish in a blog. Peter Ford says that a post has a great quality. It is short! So it is easy to write (for the students) and easy to correct (for the teacher). Do you think Peter Ford is right?

Glossary

posting=messaggio

to key in=inserire digitando

keyboard=tastiera del pc

Is "Best" Good Enough? (Il meglio è nemico del bene)

Good - better - the best : buono/bene- meglio- il migliore Let's say that (diciamo che) you don't write because you're afraid of making mistakes. You wait until your English improves ...But how can it improve if you don't practise? Start writing NOW, and WHO CARES if you make some mistakes? I can edit your post if you like... Glossary post(ing) = messaggio di un blog

to be afraid of= aver paura di to make mistakes= fare sbagli to wait= aspettare to improve=migliorare to practise/practice= esercitarsi to care/not to care= importare non importare Who cares? = chi se ne importa? to edit= correggere

C for Confidence

"Confidence" means "fiducia" in Italian. "Self-confidence" means "autostima". How confident are you? A lot, much, little, not at all? Let's say that you are confident... But, how confident are you about writing in English? Let me guess. Not much! It's understandable. Writing is not easy in our mother tongue, and writing in a Language 2 is much more difficult! But don't let that stop you! The more you write, the more confident you get, the better you get at writing. Glossary to guess= provare a indovinare, immaginare understandable= comprensibile mother tongue=lingua madre Language 2= lingua diversa dalla propria the more...the more= più...e più...

Hey, this is not a "Spot"! (Spot=Italian for "Ad")

Dear Visitors There are many web-blog providers but my very favourite one is "blogspot.com". Why? Because it is very easy to use and manage. That's true, it doesn't allow you to load audio files, but if offers SO MUCH in terms of images! I HAVE A SOFT SPOT FOR BLOGSPOT.COM! Glossary (noun) spot= punto, pubblicità (adjective) soft= soffice, morbito To have a soft spot (for something/somebody)= avere un debole per qualcosa/qualcuno

Benvenuti al Black and Blue Blog!

Cari Studenti dei Corsi Serali dell'Ipssarct "Elena Cornaro" Benvenuti in questo spazio! Blogger.postcom è semplicissimo da usare e da gestire. E' gratuito. E' molto gradevole da vedere e consente l'inserimento di immagini ma non quella di file audio o filmati. Ora che avete ottenuto l'autorizzazione a entrare potete partecipare all'attività del tutor blog comune inserendo i vostri commenti. Inoltre, potrete farvi aprire il vostro blog personale all'interno di questo, dove inserire i vostri compiti o qualsiasi altra attività che vi interessi. Se lo desiderate, il vostro blog potrà essere visibile agli altri visitatori. Altrimenti io correggerò e commenterò i vostri prodotti in assoluta privacy. Dopodichè, se lo vorrete, potrete copiare il tutto nel blog comune, perchè sia visibile agli altri... La foto del signore che vedete è quella di Peter Ford, uno dei pionieri del blog didattico. Il primo in assoluto ad adottarlo con una classe della 5° elementare della British School di Amsterdam, nel gennaio del 2000. Si trattava della Class6F, una classe composta da 24 scolari di 15 nazionalità e 8 lingue madri diverse. Ford adottò questa formula per incoraggiare i ragazzini a leggere e a scrivere in inglese. Ma cos'è un blog? E' una specie di diario in rete. E un blog didattico? E' un blog gestito da un insegnante, che lo usa per favorire l'apprendimento della sua materia. Ci sono molti blogs didattici in Italia? Ce n'è più di qualcuno, in particolare alle scuole elementari. Come si dice "blog didattico" in inglese? Si dice "educational blog", che abbreviato diventa "edublog"! Buon divertimento... forse!