CHRISTMAS QUOTES QUIZ

I hope you're all having a wonderful festive season!

Can you match these Christmas quotes [1 - 6] with their sources [a - f]?  The answers are at the end of the quiz.

1. "Look, Daddy. Teacher says, every time a bell rings an angel gets his wings."

2.  "There are always Uncles at Christmas."

3.  "I heard the bells on Christmas Day,
       Their old, familiar carols play."

4.  "Where the treetops glisten
        and children listen
        to hear sleigh bells in the snow."

5.  " 'One can never have enough socks,' said Dumbledore. 'Another Christmas has come and gone and I didn't get a single pair.  People will insist on giving me books.' "

6.  " 'Christmas won't be Christmas without any presents,' grumbled Jo, lying on the rug."

Little Women - 1933 film version

a.  Irving Berlin: White Christmas [song]

b.  Louisa May Alcott: Little Women [novel]

c.  Dylan Thomas:  A Child's Christmas in Wales [fictionalised autobiography]

d.  J:K: Rowling:  Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone [novel]

e.  Henry Wadsworth Longfellow:  Christmas Bells [poem]

f.  Wonderful Life [film]

Highlight the space below to see the answers:

1f, 2c, 3e, 4a, 5d, 6b.

IS IT YOUR CUP OF TEA?

Is it your cup of tea?

2015 saw the 150th anniversary of the publication of Alice in Wonderland.

Can you match these “tea” expressions with their meanings? – Sai abbinare queste espressioni idiomatiche con i loro significati? Riguardano tutti il té!

1.    It’s not my cup of tea

2.    Not for all the tea in China

3.    A storm in a teacup

4.    As good as a chocolate teapot

5.    Put the kettle on

     a. To put water on the hob to boil – fare bollire l’acqua [per il té] nel bollitore

b.    A dramatic reaction to something unimportant – una tempesta in un bicchier d’acqua

c.    I don’t like this type of thing – non è di mio gusto / questa cosa non è per me

d.    Not for any price or reward – a nessun prezzo / per niente al mondo

e.    Useless – inutile / utile come il fumo negli occhi

Have you put the kettle on?

Highlight the space below to see the answers: 

1c, 2d, 3b, 4e, 5a.

CONGRATULATIONS, YOUR MAJESTY

Today Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II becomes the longest-reigning monarch in British history. Previously, the record was held by her great-great-grandmother, Queen Victoria [1819 - 1901].

At London Town, Modica - Centro Linguistico Internazionale we've got cake to celebrate!

Here are some similarities and differences between Queen Elizabeth II and Queen Victoria:

1.  They were both very young when they came to the throne.  Queen Victoria was 18 and Queen Elizabeth II was 25.

2.  Queen Victoria was very much in love with her husband, Prince Albert and Queen Elizabeth II remains very much in love with her husband, Prince Philip.

3.  Queen Victoria had a lonely childhood and her mother was strict. Queen Elizabeth II and her sister, Princess Margaret, had a very happy childhood.

4.  Queen Victoria's only job was being Queen! Queen Elizabeth II, as Princess Elizabeth, served in the ATS [the then women's branch of the British Army] during World War II.

5.  Queen Victoria had nine children and Queen Elizabeth II has four.

6.  Both queens were educated at home.

7.  Both queens survived assassination attempts.

Queen Victoria

8.  Queen Victoria's reign saw the Industrial Revolution in Britain;  Queen Elizabeth's reign has seen the Technological and Digital Revolutions.

9.  During Queen Victoria's reign, the British Empire expanded. The reign of Queen Elizabeth II has seen its end but many of Britain's former colonies are now members of the Commonwealth of Nations.

10.  Queen Victoria only travelled in Europe and often these were private visits. Queen Elizabath II, however, has visited 126 countries, 116 of these on official trips.

11. Queen Victoria loved, and Queen Elizabeth II continues to love, Scotland.

12. Both queens celebrated diamond jubilees, Queen Victoria in 1897 and Queen Elizabeth II in 2012.

SUMMER OFFERS 2015

Se sei a Modica, chiama il Centro ora!  Call the Centre now!

A DOGGY STORY

Some of you may be surprised to know that the talent show Britain's Got Talent was won, this year, not by a singer or rock group but by a dog and his trainer. If you watch the video of the winning performance, however, I think you'll see why!

Here is an exercise based on the story told in that performance.  Complete the text with the words listed underneath it. You will find the answers at the bottom of the page:

A DOGGY STORY

One day, a dog ______ some ______ from a ______ shop.  A policewoman ______ him.  She ______  him and ______ him to the police station but the dog ______ .  Then the dog ______  with a traffic cone and hid* in a ______ .  The dog _____ the _______  to the policewoman and called his ______ , a dog with three ______ .  The sausages were a ______ for his friend!  Now the policewoman ______ the dog.

searched

loves 

sausages [x2] 

legs 

gave

friend 

butcher’s  

saw

bin** 

escaped 

gift

took

stole

played

* hid - past simple of hide = nascondersi

** bin = contenitore per rifiuti

Click the space below to see the answers:

stole, sausages, butcher's, saw, searched, escaped, played, bin, gave, sausages, friend, legs, gift, loves.

Welcome to the world, Princess Charlotte Elizabeth Diana of Cambridge!  The baby princess is a sister for Prince George and fourth in the line of succession to the British throne.

Here is a royal baby wordsearch for you:

ROYAL BABY WORDSEARCH

Z S R E X M E E M R P N E R J 
D N T A L T A B O R N V T E G 
I O G H A I C I I G H V U O S 
T I B K R A Z N L Z H N L U D 
Z T Q A Z O C A F L O U A A S 
C A F U I E N J B I I F S T C 
G L V W S R M E S E N W R C A 
E U Y S Y K H S P X T K A P M 
O T B N S S E N H G I H H A B 
R A A A D C H A R L O T T E R 
G R B I C S I S T E R H I H I 
E G A U Y B A B M U Y I E U D 
P N S L A Y O R O O Z J E R G 
A O D N S Q F F S Y S Y Y H E 
C C Z I J N U V M O W K N G M 

BABY
BORN
CAMBRIDGE
CHARLOTTE
CONGRATULATIONS
DIANA
ELIZABETH
FOURTH
GEORGE
HEIR*
HER
HIGHNESS
KATE
PRINCESS
ROYAL
SALUTE**
SISTER
SUCCESSION
THRONE
WILLIAM

*heir = erede

** Gun salutes are normally fired in London to mark the birth of a royal baby.

A KING'S REBURIAL

This is a simplified version of the story of King Richard III of England. Can you put the verbs [in brackets] into the past simple tense? Answers are at the end of the post.

King Richard III

King Richard III [be] an English king who [live] from 1452 – 1485. He [become] King on 26^th June 1483.

The white rose of York

Richard [be] a brave soldier and he [take] part in the Wars of the Roses.  These [be] battles for the throne of England between the House of York, which [use] the white rose as its symbol and the House of Lancaster, which [have] the red rose as its symbol.  Richard [belong] to the House of York.

The red rose of Lancaster

Henry Tudor [defeat] Richard at the Battle of Bosworth and Richard [die]. He [be] the last king of England to die in battle.  Henry Tudor then [take] the throne as King Henry VII.

King Henry VII

William Shakespeare [write] a play about Richard III and [portray] him as an ugly, deformed and evil man who [kill] his own nephews to obtain the throne. But Shakespeare [write] for the court of Queen Elizabeth I, a Tudor, so this representation of Richard may not be true.

Willian Shakespeare 

In 2012 archaeologists [find] Richard's skeleton under a car park in Leicester. Scientists at the University of Leicester [test] the DNA and [match] it to the DNA of two of Richard’s descendants.They [confirm] that the body was Richard’s.

On Sunday 22^nd March 2015 a procession [carry] Richard’s remains from the University of Leicester past Bosworth Field to Leicester Cathedral.  People [throw] white roses on the coffin.  Richard [receive] the burial of an English king in Leicester Cathedral on 26th March 2015,  530 years after his death.

The Queen [not attend] the funeral service.   She [send] Sophie, Countess of Wessex.

Highlight the space below to see the correct past simple tense forms:

was, lived, became, was, took, were, used, had, belonged, defeated, died, was, took, wrote, portrayed, killed, wrote, found, tested, matched, confirmed, carried, threw, received, did not / didn't attend, sent.

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY WORDSEARCH

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CELEBRATE	DAY	EMPOWERMENT
EQUALITY	HAPPEN	HASHTAG
INTERNATIONAL	MAKE	MARCH
MATTEI	NATIONS	OPPORTUNITY
PURPLE	RIGHTS	SOLIDARITY
TERESA	UNITED	VOTE
WOMEN

Notes:

The UN theme for International Women's Day 2015 is empowerment.

The social media hashtag for the day is #makeithappen .

It was the Italian activist Teresa Mattei who suggested the mimosa flower as a symbol for International Women's day, as it blooms at this time of year and is easy to find.

Purple was one of the colours used by the suffragettes [campaigners for votes for women] in Britain. It was adopted as a symbol of dignity. Some people in Britain wear purple ribbons on International Women's Day.