7 Mind Blowing Facts About Your Body

Read more at: http://www.social-consciousness.com/2013/09/7-mind-blowing-facts-about-your-body.

A hyphen can make a difference

Indefinite Pronouns: everybody, somebody, anybody, nobody

The first four words you see describe you :-)

Ask your students to spot them, write them down and compare them with their parther's.

Punctuation

Happy

Ways to say "Thank you"

British English vs American English

I had a black dog, his name was depression

I had a black dog - his name was _______________

I had a black dog - his name was _____________. Whenever the black dog made an _____________, I felt empty and life just seemed to slow down. He could surprise me with the visit for no reason or _____________. The back dog could made me _____________ and _____________ older than my years.
When the rest of the world seemed to be enjoying life, I could only see it through the black dog. Activities that usually brought me _____________ suddenly ceased to. He liked to ruin my _____________. He chewed up my _____________ and my ability to _____________. Doing anything or going anywhere with he black dog required _____________ strength.
At _____________ occasions, he would sniff out what confidence I had and chase it away. My biggest _____________ was being found out; I worried that people might _____________ me. Because of the _____________ and stigma of the black dog, I was constantly _____________ that I would be found out.
So I invested vast amounts of _____________ into covering him up. Keeping up an emotional life is _____________! Black dog could make me _____________ or say negative things. He could make me _____________ and difficult to be around. He would take my _____________ and bury my intimacy. He loved nothing more than to wake me with highly repetitive negative _____________. He also liked to remind me how _____________ I was going to be the next day.
Having a black dog in your life isn’t so much about feeling a bit down, sad or _____________; at its worst, it is about being devoid of feeling altogether. As I got  older the black dog got _____________ and he started hanging around all the time. I chased them off with whatever I thought might send him running. But more often than not, he’d come out on top. Going down became _____________ than getting up again.
So I became rather good at self _____________ which never really helped. Eventually I felt totally _____________ from everything and _____________. The black dog had finally succeeded in _____________ my life. When you lose all joy in life you can begin to question what the point of it is. Thankfully this was time when I sought professional _____________. This was my first step towards recovery and was a major turning point in my life.
I learnt that it doesn’t matter who you are, the black dog affects millions and millions of _____________. It is an equal opportunity mongrel. I also learnt that there was no silver bullet or magic _____________. Medication can help some and others might need different approach altogether.
I also learnt that being emotionally _____________ or authentic to those who are close to you can be an absolute game changer. Most importantly I learnt not to be _____________ of the black dog and taught him a few _____________ of my own. The more tired or stressed you get, the louder he barks, so it’s important to learn how to quiet your mind.
It’s been clinically proven that regular exercise can be as effective for treating mild to moderate depression as antidepressants. So go for a _____________ or run and leave the mutt behind. Keep a mood _____________, getting your thoughts on paper can be cathartic and often insightful. Also keep track of the things you have to be _____________ for.
The most important thing to remember is that no matter how bad it _____________, if you take the right steps, talk to the right people, black dog days _____________ and _____________ pass.
I wouldn't say that I am grateful for the black dog. But he’s been an incredible _____________. He forced me to re-evaluate and _____________ my life. I learnt that rather than running away from my _____________, it’s better to embrace them.
The black dog may always be a part of my life. But he would never be the _____________ that it was. We have an _____________. I've learnt through knowledge, _____________, discipline and humour, the worst black dog can be made to heal.
If you’re in difficulty, never be afraid to ask for help. There is absolutely no _____________ in doing so; the only shame is missing out _____________ life.

your body is my canvas

Alexa Meade takes an innovative approach to art. Not for her a life of sketching and stretching canvases. Instead, she selects a topic and then paints it--literally. She covers everything in a scene--people, chairs, food, you name it--in a mask of paint that mimics what's below it. In this eye-opening talk Meade shows off photographs of some of the more outlandish results, and shares a new project involving people, paint and milk. 

Alexa Meade paints mesmerizing, illusionistic portraits directly on living subjects, subverting familiar visual cues with perspective and colour.

here is the gallery: click here

Ballet dancers in random situations

beautiful pictures of ballet dancers for viewing, interpreting, discussing.

Click here

Notes on "The power of vulnerability" by Brene Brown

1. “When you ask people about love, they tell you about heartbreak. When you ask people about belonging, they tell you about their most excruciating experiences of being excluded. When you ask people about connection, the stories they tell you are about disconnection.”
2. Shame and fear (excruciating vulnerability).
3. "There was only one variable that separated the people who have a strong sense of love and belonging and the people who really struggled for it … and that was that people who have a strong sense of love and belonging believe they’re worthy of love and belonging.  That’s it.  They believe they’re worthy.”
4. Fear of being not worthy of connection.
5. The courage to be imperfect.
6. The compassion to be kind to yourself first and then to others.
7. To let go who you think you should be and to be who you are.
8. To fully embrace vulnerability.
9. To believe that what makes you vulnerable makes you beautiful.
10. The willingness to say "I love you" first.
11. The willingness to do something whether there's no guarantee.
12. The willingness to invest in a relationship that may or may not work out.
13. I am enough.

Materials:
1) To read: Embracing Vulnerability and Putting Yourself Out There

2) To watch:

A useful guide for your classroom wall

Learn English from movies

Here is a fantastic site called Speechyard: http://speechyard.com/video.
There are a lot of films and music videos you can use in your lessons.
Check that out :-)

10 stunning images from Liu Bolin, the disappearing man

Here click it :-)

lesson on empathy

the whole lesson here: here

Paper has a huge future

the pleasure of... life

Another topic to discuss the matter of happiness.
The theme is A bit Amelie-esque :-)
The aim is to capture and discuss simple things in life which makes us happy. Students can make their own short films, as Vituc (the director of the film) made it with the help of an iphone and cannon camera.
Among things portrayed in the films there are:

• a melting ice cream cone, 
• watching a nearby insect,
• opening closed shutters to a sunny day,
• being submerged in water,
• the crackle of burning wood,
• the cooling breeze of a fan
• taking a bite from a slice of watermelon,
• slicing a vegateble into smaller segments,
• a cat flexing his paws
• a moka pot brewing coffee
• a bug about to take flight
• drawing with blue chalk on the sidewalk
• pouring wine to accompany a meal of fresh bread and cheese
• a film maker pictures himself floating in the sea

Here is the whole lesson: here

And here is the short video: http://vimeo.com/48236494

Board games and good animation

Tell your Students they are going to watch a clip with no sound.

Dubstep group Delta Heavy released the new video for their song “Get By”. It features a few of well known board games bouncing along to the music in stop motion format. Then, something horrifying happens with hilarious results.

Ask your Students the following questions:

1. What is this video about?
2. What is the man doing? What is the intention?
3. How many different toys and games can you see?

Board games, games and toys:

• dominoes
• draughts
• scrabble
• chess
• bricks
• Rubik's cube
• pick-up sticks
• cards
• Hungry Hungry Hippos
• Connect Four
• Guess Who? 

Brains over brawns

Nuno Rocha's film: "3x3"

The whole lesson: here