''Blizzard in Birmingham''

The Turner kids were not accustomed to snow. The most they ever got in their southern city of Birmingham was an inch or so per year. Even that was quite infrequent—it never snowed more than once or twice each winter. And on the few occasions that it did snow, it was always too warm for the snow to accumulate. The temperature almost never got below freezing.

What was funny was that even the slightest bit of snow was enough to cancel school and close businesses. No one knew how to drive in the stuff. It was never enough for young Lily Mae Turner, though, because the snow that came was always too sparse to build a snowman or to go sledding.

But one night, in March of 1993, something magical happened. An unexpected blast of cold air from Canada and moist air from the Caribbean converged on the eastern part of the United States to create the “Storm of the Century.”

All that the Turner kids knew was that when they woke up Saturday morning, there was 17 inches of unbelievable snow on their front lawn and as far as the eye could see.

The Turner parents were in shock. Most folks in town were ill-prepared for such a storm. They had no shovels to dig their way out and no salt to keep from slipping. They had no idea what to do.

 While the adults seemed paralyzed with disbelief, the Turner kids set about having the time of their lives. Lily Mae discovered that a rope tied to a metal trash can lid made a perfect sled. John Henry figured out that if he put his feet in plastic grocery bags before putting on his rain boots, his feet stayed warm for a longer time. Rachel made snow angels in every part of the yard. Together, all the kids made a huge snowman and dressed it in their dad’s hat and jacket. (Mr. Turner didn’t own a scarf!)

For three straight days, the Turner kids had a splendid time. On Tuesday, the temperature hit 70 degrees, and life for these Southerners went back to normal.

Questions:
1) As used at the beginning of the story, what does accustomed mean? A. used to B. aware of C. scared of D. interested in	2) As used at the beginning of the story, which is the best antonym for infrequent? A. common B. long C. rare D. surprising
3) Which other title would best fit this passage? A. “1993” B. “A Cold March” C. “Magical Snow” D. “Ill-Prepared Parents” 4) The author may have described the storm as magical because A. Lily Mae believed the snow was magic B. it was such an unusual thing to happen that it felt like magic C. there was no other explanation for why the storm occurred D. the author wanted to cast doubt on whether the storm actually took place 6) What conclusions can be drawn about what the weather is typically like in Birmingham during the month of March? I. It is warm. II. It does not snow. III. It is windy. A. I only B. I and II C. II and III D. I, II, and III 8) "What was funny was that even the slightest bit of snow was enough to cancel school and close businesses." "No one knew how to drive in the stuff." Which of the following punctuation marks could best be used to combine the above sentences? A. a comma ( , ) B. a semicolon ( ; ) C. an ellipsis ( … ) D. a hyphen ( - ) 10) As used at the end of the story, which is the best antonym for splendid? A. great B. perfect C. happy D. terrible 12) Pick one of these two situations, and write a paragraph to describe what would you do and why if you were in the same shoes as: 1-Turner kids    2- the Turner parents You can start off by saying:  If I were the Turner kids, I would build a snowman with my friends or maybe, I could take some funny pictures to show to my school's friends, because I think they would like to see.	5) How are the children different than the adults in this passage? A. The kids stayed warm, while the adults were very cold. B. The kids knew the storm was coming, while the adults did not. C. The kids went out and had fun, while the adults did not know what to do. D. The adults still had to go to work, while the kids stayed home. 7) What can be said about the Turner kids' ideas for playing in the snow without the usual snow gear? I. They were creative. II. They were effective. III. They were complicated. A. I only B. I and II C. II and III D. I, II, and III 9) What was going on outside of Birmingham during the snowstorm? A. The rest of the country was also dealing with snow. B. Nothing—Birmingham was the only area affected by the storm. C. The Eastern United States was also hit by the storm. D. The passage does not provide enough information to say. 11) Find synonyms for all the underlined words in the passage and then use them in sentences of your own. sledding = amazing accustomed= usual infrequent= rarely blast =blow paralyzed = without action 13) Click on this link and record one to two minutes of a personal experienced that you had once and you felt "ill-prepared" for it. Then save the link and add it on your blog. You need to include the following points: When and where this event happened? What was the situation? Why were you ill-prepared for it? What did you do? How did it end?

Task 3:

1. What is the name of the caller?
A. Nick
B. Nate
C. Neil

2. According to the girl, her father:
A. is not home.
B. is on another line.
C. can't come to the telephone.

3. What is the man's telephone number?
A. 598-7482
B. 587-4728
C. 589-7248

4. The man tells the girl:
A. that he will call again sometime after 7:00 PM.
B. to ask her father to call him later.
C. that he will drop by around 8:30 PM.

5. What does the girl refuse to tell the caller?
A. her age
B. her name
C. her address

Task 2:

In small groups, discuss what you consider an appropriate salary for each occupation. Complete the table. Then locate the actual salaries using the Ontario Job Futures website or click on this link.

	Appropriate Salary	Reason	Actual Salary
Airline pilot	150.000	Because it is hard to study and it's expensive.	68.500
Chef	50.000	Because it's cheaper to study and you don't have too much responsibilities.	49.000
Civil engineer	100.000	Because you have too much responsibilities and you can make a disaster.	61.900
Computer programmer	90.000	It's hard to find someone good at computer programs.	50.568
Early childhood educator	50.000	I think it's easier than another jobs.	43.000
Electrician	60.000	You don't need much qualifications and formal studies.
Elementary school	80.000	You have to be an expert and spend a lot of money to keep  your knowledge.	50.500
Teacher	80.000	You have to be an expert and spend a lot of money to keep  your knowledge.	59.600
Family physician	150.000	You have to study hard and spend a lot of money to have your credentials.	139.000
Receptionist	40.000	You don't need formal education and it's easy.

Opinion and reason

Albert: He agrees. Overkin is the best player in the team. Nobody can be close to him.

Robert : He agrees too. It’s absolutely right because he’s the best player of the team.

Cathy: She thinks that salary is too high but she likes to bring her soon to watch hockey.

Maria: She thinks It’s wrong because nobody can do this money. It’s too much money to the player hockey.

http://vocaroo.com/i/s1IlwjjPOXR3

Second, listen to this presentation and answer the following questions.

What is the purpose of this presentation?

To show some common questions and answers in the interviews. 

Why was the first answer he presented was bad? What does it mean by saying “generic”? Give different examples.

Because he needs to be more specific. 
Generic means not specific. 

Why should I hire you?

Ex: I am a hard work or I can learn very quickly. 

List the tips this presenter has offered.

1- Research about the position and the company.

2- Read the job description

3- Tell them about the benefits that you had done. 

Now, moving on to the practical part. Think of your best fixed qualities. What are the features, advantage(s), and benefits from them to any prospect employer? Follow the same pattern as in the presentation. Prepare and practice your answers to share with your peers. 

I have a bachelor's degree in Psychology. I can catch some details of personalities and hire the best candidate.

I can speak Portuguese and English. I can do interviews in Portuguese and English.

I have 4 years of experience in HR department. I know how the HR department works.

I can understand Spanish. I can translate if someone need help.

Good morning everyone,

Hope that everyone had a great holiday. Now back to our work, we are going to learn and practice more about job interviews.

First step, listen to this presentation and answer the following questions.

1. What are the names of the two presenters?
2. How many things did they mention in the first tip? What are they?
3. What does it mean “inside and out”? Use this same expression in a sentence of your own.
4. What is a success story from the presenter’s point of view? Plan one to share with your classmates.
5. Why do you need to plan some questions to ask the employer?
6. Find a synonym for the word “tailor” in this presentation.
7. What did he mean by “what is the position calls for” and “position yourself”? Plan and give related examples.
8. What was the presenter’s advice at he end of his clip?
9. Share any addition tip(s) that you have learned from this presentation.

1- Jeff and Mike.

2- They mentioned 5 things in the first tip. Exactly what trey do, read the job description, search about the company, .......

3- You know all the details. 

4-It's a story from your past worker,personal life, highlights your achievement and reflects one of your strength.
5- To show preparation, knowledge and enthusiasm about the position and the company.

6- Customize or Modify.

7- What the employer is looking for and what you have to do to customize the interview. 

8- He said: It's not about you, it's about them." 

9- I learned that it's important to ask something to the employer because it means you are really interested in this position.

Note Taking While Listening

Most of the strategies for note taking while reading also apply to note-taking while listening: you need to think about your purpose for listening, recognize the main ideas, and make decisions about what information is relevant to your purpose. But there are two important differences. First, your note-taking must keep up with the speaker, so you have to take notes quickly. And second, your initial notes will follow the order and outline of the speaker’s talk, so you may need to review and re-organize your notes later so that they make sense to you.

Here are some tips for effective note taking while listening:

1.Listen carefully to the introduction of the presentation because most presenters will give an overview of their talk in the introduction. 


2.Use symbols and abbreviations to speed up the process of taking notes. You can develop your own system of symbols and abbreviations, but make sure you use them consistently so that you always remember what they mean.

3.Listen for phrases (signposts) that indicate how the presentation is organized and signal different parts of a presentation/lecture. For example:

a)    Introducing the topic: The topic of my presentation today is ...; I intend to show that ... 


b)   Indicating the organization: First, I’d like to talk about ...; In the second place ...; And finally..


c)    Reviewing information: As I mentioned previously ...; It’s clear that ...; You probably remember that ... 


d)   Emphasizing information: I’d like to stress that ...; The main point is that ... 


e)    Starting a new point: I’d like to move on to ...; Now let’s turn to ... 


4.Listen for logical connectors that express the relationship between ideas. For example, as a result of, in contrast to, although.

Task 2:

Listen to this presentation and answer the following questions.

How many parts are in the talk?

     There are 4 parts in the talk.

Write the main topics that the presentation will address. Take notes on key information.

This presentation is about two provinces in Canada: Alberta and Saskatchewan.

He was talking about similarities and differentiates between these two Canadian 's provinces. 

Write headings for your notes.

1- Geographic and location

2- Climate

3   3- Economic and natural resources.

     4- Population 

Compare your notes with two of your peers and discuss the strategies you used (listening for key words, using abbreviations, using a chart).

 List all the new vocabulary that you have picked from the presentation and use them in sentences of your own.

Predominate - In Brazil, the population are predominate happy.

Landlocked - Belo Horizonte is a landlocked city.

Hello all,

I hope that you have enjoyed your time off. Now, back to our writing and reading theme. Today we will practice note talking. Please read the following explanation and follow the tasks below. 

By the way, since this Friday is off, our weekly presentation will be on Thursday, please check it and start working on it!

Note Taking While Reading

When reading for study purposes, it is common to take notes. People take notes for different reasons: to stay focused on what they are reading or listening to, to remember information better, or to deepen their understanding of the information. Here are some steps for note-taking focused on what they are reading or listening to, to remember information better, or to deepen their understanding of the information.

Here are some steps for note-taking:

1.Define your purpose for reading. Is it to get a general understanding of the text? To find specific information for a class assignment? Or to be able to recall information during an exam? Thinking about the purpose will help you stay focused on the information in the text that is relevant to your needs. 


2.Preview the text to get a general sense of its content and how the information is organized. For example, skim headings, sub-headings, chapter summaries and charts. Getting a sense of how the entire text is organized and what the main ideas are will help you organize your notes. For example, the headings in the text (or table of contents) can be used as headings for your own notes. 


3.While reading the text, try to differentiate between the main points and supporting details. It is helpful to read the introduction to the text and topic sentence of each paragraph for the main points. Take notes of the main points and supporting details. 


Skim the following text to find out what it is about.

In today’s economy, more and more workers are being laid off and relying on the employment insurance program. Today we’re featuring the history of Canada’s Employment Insurance program. When did it start? Why did it start? What’s it like today?

The Employment Insurance program was launched in response to severe economic conditions during the Great Depression. The Depression lasted from 1929 right up until the Second World War in 1939. During that time, millions of Canadians were out of work. With no government aid, families were forced to rely on whatever community aid was available. Many Canadians lost their homes, and many more were unable to provide for their families.

There was a lot of discussion about the pros and cons of an unemployment insurance program (as it was then called). People who were in favour of unemployment insurance said it would give families enough income to keep food on the table and a roof over their heads. But others felt that such a program would encourage people to stay unemployed.

Despite the debate, the Unemployment Insurance Act came into effect in 1941. In 1971, the program expanded, and began to cover maternity and sickness benefits. In 1996, the program changed its name to Employment Insurance. Today, EI places an emphasis on skills training. The program encourages laid-off workers who receive benefits to attend training programs before re-entering the workforce.

Employment Insurance operates like any insurance program: workers pay into a fund, and can apply for benefits under certain conditions. Workers most commonly receive benefits when they are laid off. However, they can also receive benefits when caring for a newborn or newly adopted child (maternity, parental and adoption benefits), when suffering from a long-term illness (sickness benefits), or when caring for a family member who is seriously ill (compassionate care benefits). Not all workers are eligible for benefits. Eligibility depends on how long workers have been employed and what type of work they have been doing.

 Adapted from information on www.hrsdc.gc.ca

 Task 1:

1.  Highlight the information you think you need to take notes on.
2. Compare and discuss with a partner.
3. Take notes on the key information.
4. Use your notes to write one paragraph summary of the text.

---------------------------------

There is a program that help unemployment people (laid off) in Canada, but there was a lot of discuss about the effect. After many years, this program expanded and changed the name. Now, this program operates like any insurance program: workers pay into a found and can apply for benefits under certain conditions. 

Writing Coherent Paragraphs

Fill in the blanks below with the appropriate transitions.

Such as	Further	Finally	In addition
First	In particular	For example	Specifically
In short	But

Cancer is one of the leading causes of premature death in Canada, but there are several ways we can reduce our risk of developing it. First, we can eat better. For example, we can eat foods that are high in fibre and low in saturated fat. Such as, black beans and whole grain breads. In additional, we can be more active. Specially, we can exercise for at least 30 minutes a day. Further, we can avoid smoking or being exposed to second-hand smoke. Finally, we can get screened for the types of cancer common to our gender. In particular, women can have mammograms to screen for breast cancer, while men can have PSA (prostate-specific antigen) tests to screen for prostate cancer. In short, by taking steps to reduce the risk of developing cancer, we can live longer, healthier lives.

Edit the following passage; underline all the errors in it. Then write down the correct form.

Jaime been applying for full–time jobs for several months. The last week he  is receiving a call from the Human Resources director at a computer software company the HR director asked Jaime  if he could he fly to Chicago for a job interview, the company is offering to pay for Jaimes’ plane ticket to Chicago so that he will not had to paid for it himself. Jamie have agreed to come for interview.

Since then Jaime has busy collected informations about the company, he also went

shopping for a new suite. Jaime and his wife has been rehearse answers to possible interview questions. so that Jaime will be good and ready his best. Jaime is being nervous about the interview; but he has been looking forward to work   at a new place.

Jaime has prepare a lot of questions before his interview starts last week. His wife has been help him a lot until he feels completely comfortable with all the questions.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jaime had been applying for full–time jobs for several months.  Last week, he received a call from the Human Resources Director at Computer Software Company. The HR Director asked Jaime if he could fly to Chicago for a job interview; the company offered to pay for Jaime’s plane ticket to Chicago, so that he will not have to pay for it himself. Jamie  had agreed to come to the interview.

Since then, Jaime had been busy collecting information about the company. He also went shopping for a new suite. Jaime and his wife had been rehearsing answers to possible interview questions, so that Jaime would be good and ready to give his best. Jaime was nervous about the interview, but he had been looking forward to work at a new place.

Jaime has prepared a lot of questions before his interview started last week. His wife helped him a lot until he felt completely comfortable with all the questions.