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MUMMIFYING OR EMBALMING

Here are some links to places where you can learn more about embalming mummies in Egyptian times. Some are interactive and you can help in the mummification process!

http://oi.uchicago.edu/OI/MUS/ED/mummy.html

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/egyptians/launch_gms_mummy_maker.shtml

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/media/tv/mummy/index.html

http://www.salariya.com/web_books/mummy/index.html

http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/Homework/egypt/mummies.htm

 http://www.guardians.net/egypt/postcards/index.html

 

 

 

DICTATIONS SECOND SENIORS (22,23,24)

Vampire Bats

         While much of the world sleeps, vampire bats emerge from dark caves, mines, hollow tree trunks and abandoned buildings in Mexico and Central and South America. Like the legendary monster from which they get their name, these small mammals drink the blood of other animals for survival. Though it is uncommon, vampire bats occasionally bite humans for blood. They do not actually suck the blood of their victims. They make a sharp cut with their teeth and then lap up the blood with their tongues. These bats are very light and agile and are able to drink blood for 30 minutes without waking it up. The blood sucking does not hurt the animal.

         Vampire bats, unlike other bats, have special adaptations for their feeding necessities. They can walk, run and jump. They also have strong hind legs, and special heat sensors on their noses help them find the best spot on the animal’s body. If they can’t find blood two nights in a row, they will die. Contrary to popular opinion, bat bites are not really harmful. Their only danger is that they can spread rabies among their victims.

 Mummies

         The people of ancient Egypt believed that a person’s soul split into several parts when he or she died, and continued to live on in an afterlife. The best-known forms of the spirit were the ba, the akh, and the ka. The ba was the personality, and it was shown as a bird with a human head, the head of the person it belonged to.The akh was represented by a bird called a crested ibis, and at the moment of death, the akh left the body and flew to the stars to spend eternity in the heavens. The ka was the life force, like our definition of soul, and looked exactly like its person. The ka lived in the tomb for eternity. so it needed personal possessions, such as furniture, weapons, clothing, food and drink. But the most important thing the ka needed was a body to inhabit. If the body rotted away, there would be no afterlife, so it was absolutely necessary to preserve the body as a mummy. That is why the Egyptians made mummies to guarantee eternal life. This process lasted 70 days in total.

The Guillotine

         The guillotine is a device used for carrying out executions by decapitation. It consists of a tall upright frame from which a heavy blade is suspended. This blade is raised with a rope and then allowed to drop, severing the victim’s head from his or her body. The guillotine is famous for having been the main method of execution in France, especially during the French Revolution.   

   

It was introduced into France by a man called Joseph-Ignace Guillotin, an anatomy professor who was part of a committee in charge of studying a new method to be used on all condemned people regardless of class. It was considered to be a humane form of execution, in contrast to other forms. Noble people were beheaded using either the sword or the axe, with which it was at times necessary to deal several blows, whereas common people were hanged and this sometimes took several minutes. So the guillotine was seen to deliver an immediate death, without misses.

LIONS AND UNICORNS

          PLUS     

              ST  PAUL'S  SCHOOL  FRIENDS

SMILE, PLEASE

A: I’m in  big trouble!
B: Why is that?
A: I saw a mouse in my house!
B: Oh, well, all you need to do is use a trap.
A: I don’t have one.
B: Well then, buy one.
A: Can’t afford one.
B: I can give you mine if you want.
A: That sounds good.
B: All you need to do is just use some cheese in order to make the mouse come to the trap.
A: I don’t have any cheese.
B: Okay then, take a piece of bread and put a bit of oil in it and put it in the trap.
A: I don’t have oil.
B: Well, then put only a small piece of bread.
A: I don’t have bread.
B: Then what is the mouse doing at your house?!

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A very drunk man comes out of the bar and sees another very drunk man.
He looks up in the sky and says, "Is that the sun or the moon?"
The other drunk man answers, "I don’t know. I’m a stranger here myself."

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Fred is 32 years old and he is still single.

One day a friend asked, "Why aren’t you married? Can’t you find a woman who will be a good wife?"

Fred replied, "Actually, I’ve found many women I wanted to marry, but when I bring them home to meet my parents, my mother doesn’t like them."

His friend thinks for a moment and says, "I’ve got the perfect solution, just find a girl who’s just like your mother."

A few months later they meet again and his friend says, "Did you find the perfect girl? Did your mother like her?"

With a frown on his face, Fred answers, "Yes, I found the perfect girl. She was just like my mother. You were right, my mother liked her very much."

The friend said, "Then what’s the problem?"

Fred replied, "My father doesn’t like her."

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A: Doctor, will I be able to play the piano after the operation?
B: Yes, of course.
A: Great! I never could before!

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Teacher: Tell me a sentence that starts with an "I".
Student: I is the...
Teacher: Stop! Never put ’is’ after an "I". Always put ’am’ after an "I".
Student: OK. I am the ninth letter of the alphabet.

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Two cows are standing in a field.
One says to the other "Are you worried about Mad Cow Disease?"
The other one says "No, It doesn’t worry me, I’m a horse!"

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A guy says to his friend, "Guess how many coins I have in my pocket."
The friends says, "If I guess right, will you give me one of them?"
The first guys says, "If you guess right, I’ll give you both of them!"

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HAPPY TENTH BIRTHDAY GOOGLE

Where would you be without google? We'll probably be googling for a long time yet.

HENRY VIII

Wax model of Henry VIII at Madame Tussaud's in London

Henry VIII's six wives:

1. Catherine of Aragon

2. Anne Boleyn

3. Jane Seymour

4. Anne of Cleves

5. Kathryn Howard

6. Katherine Parr

 

ANY GOOD IDEAS?

Why don't you try for this Google competition? There's a wonderful prize offered. Click on the following link.

http://www.project10tothe100.com/?hl=en

 

This is living proof that time and effort can produce miracles. Only PATIENCE AND PRACTICE can give you the results you want. Nothing comes for free in this life, unfortunately.  Watch this!

 

 

WELCOME

Have a good week! Welcome back to school.

 

RIDDLES

Try to guess the answer. If you can't, place the cursor over the question and the answer will appear.

What do you call a kitten drinking lemonade?

Why did King Kong climb to the top of the Empire State building?

What do you call a fish without an eye?

What vehicle is spelled the same backwards and forwards

Fish and ships!What do sea monsters eat?

Why was the baby ant confused?

What month has 28 days?

What gets wetter the more it dries?

What's the difference between a jeweler and a jailer?

What is in the middle of Paris?

 

 

 

 

 

Enjoy the rest of your holidays!

 

HAVE A GOOD LAUGH!

FCE INFORMATION AND PRACTICE

What is FCE? An overview of the exam for Fourth Seniors.Click on the following link.

http://www.flo-joe.co.uk/fce/students/about/index.htm

Several links to tips, advice and exercises on FCE.Click on the following link.

http://www.flo-joe.co.uk/fce/students/index.htm

More advice and free exam sections to do. Click on the following link.

http://amaldi-english-corner.wikispaces.com/FCE+EXAMS

 

 

 

 HAPPY 18 HOLIDAYS TO EVERYONE!

I  hope all Third Seniors had a wonderful study trip!

We all look forward to hearing about your experiences. Have a good holiday.

 

WRITE A DIAMOND POEM

What is a diamond poem? (or diamante poem)

It is a style of poetry made up of six or seven lines, that usually form the shape of a diamond.

                                     Winter
                                 Rainy, cold
                       Skiing, skating, sledding 
                   Mountains, wind, breeze, ocean
                  Swimming, surfing, scuba diving
                                 Sunny, hot
                                  Summer

                  

Follow the instructions to create your own.

http://www.readwritethink.org/materials/diamante/

 

ADJECTIVES

Click on the following link to take you to an activity which will illustrate adjectives:

http://www.learnatglobal.com/assets/applets/grammar.swf

 

VOCABULARY GAMES

Parts of the body

http://www.learnenglish.org.uk/words/activities/body01.html

Animals

http://www.learnenglish.org.uk/words/activities/animalz01.html

Everyday activities

http://www.learnenglish.org.uk/words/activities/actions01.html

 

DICTATIONS SECOND SENIORS (19,20,21)

Troglodytes


Troglodytes is the name given to cave dwellers, which means people who live in caves. Do you know that there are millions of people who live in caves? These numbers do not count those who work in underground laboratories, or at other jobs which involve living underground . Some people live underground because they are following the paths of their ancestors. Others desire to move underground in order to avoid overcrowded cities and ground surface pollution. And there are still others who think it is a way to survive in the event of an enemy attack or nuclear holocaust.

There are several advantages to living in a home under the ground. First of all, a cave home maintains an even temperature all year round. Building a cave home is relatively inexpensive. and cheaper than building a home above the ground. These homes can have all the amenities of a regular house, such as plumbing, electricity and gas ducts. People live in homes like these in several parts of the world, such as China, Spain, Tunisia, Australia, Morocco, Afghanistan, Italy and France.


The Toilet: A Useful Invention


Although John Harrington, godson to Queen Elizabeth I was the first person to invent an indoor water closet for his godmother in 1596, simple toilets had been used since Babylonian times. After Harrington made one for the Queen and one for himself, he never made another one, and his invention was forgotten for almost 200 years. In 1775, a London watchmaker named Alexander Cummings patented the forerunner of today’s toilet.

The British word for toilet, ‘loo’, derives from the French ‘garde a l’eau!’. In medieval Europe, people had little conception of hygiene, and used to throw the contents of their chamber pots out of the window into the street below. In France, people would precede this action by ‘garde a l’eau!’, which means ‘watch out for the water!’. In England, this phrase was Anglicised, first to ‘gardy-loo’, then just ‘loo’, and eventually came to mean the toilet itself. The American word for toilet, ‘john’, is called after John Harrington. Curiously, toilet paper is believed to have been introduced in China around 850, long before the introduction of the toilet as we know it.


Henry VIII and his Six Wives


Henry VIII married six times. His first wife was Catherine of Aragon, a Spanish princess, daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella. They had a daughter, Mary. Henry divorced Catherine because she could not give him a son, but as she was Catholic, this led to a break with the Church of Rome, and by doing this, changed Britain’s social and cultural life forever. Catherine and Mary were kept prisoner for many years in different castles and homes in England.

His second wife was Anne Boleyn, whose daughter later became Elizabeth I. Unfortunately Anne was beheaded on a charge of treason and adultery. His third wife, Jane Seymour, bore him a son, who later became Edward VI. Next, Henry married a Protestant princess, Anne of Cleves, who was of Flemish origin, for purely political reasons, although he quickly divorced her because he felt tricked by the unrealistic portrait he had been sent of her. His fifth wife was Catherine Howard, who was convicted of adultery and executed. His last wife was Catherine Parr, who luckily outlived him.




NO WONDER ENGLISH IS SO HARD TO LEARN!

    We polish the Polish furniture.

    He could lead if he would get the lead out.

    A farm can produce produce.

    The dump was so full it had to refuse refuse.

    The soldier decided to desert in the desert.

    The present is a good time to present the present.

    At the Army base, a bass was painted on the head of a bass drum.

    The dove dove into the bushes.

    I did not object to the object.

    The insurance for the invalid was invalid.

    The bandage was wound around the wound.

    There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row.

    They were too close to the door to close it.

    The buck does funny things when the does are present.

    They sent a sewer down to stitch the tear in the sewer line.

    To help with planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow.

    The wind was too strong to wind the sail.

    After a number of Novocain injections, my jaw got number and number. 

    I shed a tear when I saw the tear in my clothes.

    I had to subject the subject to a series of tests.

    How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend?

    I spent last evening evening out a pile of dirt.