Thursday, June 13, 2013

International Food

urucan seeds

The world is full of crazy food. Check out the following two articles.

email bordner@cityhigh.org the answer to any of the following prompts

  • What is your reaction to the images? Which food looks tasty? Which food looks nasty? Based on these images, which country would you want to travel to? Which country would you stay away from?
  • Dig deeper into the cuisine of a country mentioned. 
  • Students often complain that school lunch is awful. I think our options here are phenomenal, tasty, and healthy. Have you ever had better school lunches? Where? What do you like about our school lunch?
  • Create a Google map putting the images of one of the sites on a map. Watch this video to get started and this video to add details. 
  • Have someone in your family cook a meal then take a photo of it similar to the ones in the Portraits of Grandmas and Meals from around the world. Describe what kind of food you eat and why.

46 Places to Go in 2013

The New York Times has a list of 46 places to go in 2013.

Check out the list then email bordner@cityhigh.org answers to the following questions

  • Rank the top five places you would travel. Why do you rank them?
  • List all the Spanish speaking places. Rank them in order that you would visit.
  • What countries/places surprise you? 
  • Are there any places that you want to go that aren't on the list? Create your own list of top 10 places to travel.


Saturday, June 8, 2013

More geography fun!

Google created this game online where you see an image from Google Maps Streetview and then you guess where that place is in the world. Click here to play the game.


Hot Tamale Activities - email bordner@cityhigh.org

  • Play GeoGuessr, take a screenshot of your score and share it with me.
    • If you get a better score than me I'll double your Hot Tamale Points!
  • After you play GeoGuessr, describe why you thought the images were in the places you selected. What have you learned about different places in the world after playing the game?

But wait there is more!

  • Play the GeoGuessr game I created and take a screenshot of your score and share it with me.
  • What have you learned about me?
  • Create  your own by going to GeoSettr and moving around the little guy in the map on the left. Share it with me to play! Is there a theme that made you choose the places you selected?

There is no official language of the United States

As some students know, I was born when my parents were farming rice in Missouri and grew up in a small town in Missouri, but I've spent the last six years teaching in Chicago. So it's pretty obvious I'm not from Pittsburgh, and students can really tell I'm not from here when I speak.

Recently there was a study to find out how people in the United States use different words to say the same thing.

clearly they missed that yinzers say "yinz"

Hot Tamale Activities - email your responses to bordner@cityhigh.org
  • How do you answer each of these questions/say these words? Email me your responses to each question.
  • What are some other words that you've heard people pronounce differently than what you are familiar with? (For example my grandpa who lives in Ohio calls the machine that cleans his clothes the "waRsher")
  • Why do you think that people who speak the same language and live in the same country say things differently? How does this happen?
  • Check out this website about pittsburghese, the people of Pittsburgh have their own way of saying things. Do you use any of these words? Which words have you never heard of before?


Monday, June 3, 2013

Where to stay when you travel

In 10th grade Spanish we have been talking about getting around in a city. When you travel, especially around the world, you always have to find a place to sleep. There are 3 common options-

  • hotels - the most expensive and classy option
    • Here are two videos tours of hotels I stayed in when traveling around Spain a few summers ago. They are not you're normal Holiday Inn!
    • check out how the toilet flushes and the bidet!
  • hostels - more like a dorm for people who are traveling. 
    • You share a room with other people.
    • You get to meet people from all around the world and get suggestions on places to go and things to do, but there is little privacy.
    • hostelworld.com is a good place to find a quality hostel that you are comfortable with
  • renting a room/couch/apartment - can be cheaper than a hotel and more "authentic" 
Hot Tamale Activities - email bordner@cityhigh.org the answer to one or more of these activities
  • Watch the videos - list everything that is different than what we are familiar with in the United States. (My hair cut does not count :) )
  • If staying at a hotel was not an option, which other option would you choose and why?
  • Check out the different websites listed above. Find a city you want to go to (it does not have to be in a Spanish speaking country) and find a place to stay from each of the websites. (Choose a date one month in advanced and stay at the place for 5 days.) Take screen shots of the location, price, and amenities.