2B Or Not 2B

sábado, 15 de março de 2008

International Festival 2008!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Jantar Internacional 2008!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Aila Cruz!!!!

The kids were ready to perform!!
As criancas estavam prontos para cantar!!

Marina and Daniela Cruz!!

Our homage to Celia Cruz!!
Nossa homenagem a Celia Cruz!!

A good Cuban revolutionary, Pietro!!
Um bom revolucionario cubano, Pietro!!

Three Cuban cuties!!!

Pedro Neto, Leonardo(Nuggets) and Clayton

Tres gatinhos cubanos!!!

Long live Cuba!!!

Que viva Cuba!!!

Another great performance!!

Congratulations 2A & 2B!!!

Abracos,

George

A New Semester, Social Studies & Cuba!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The kids spent a good part of the third quarter learning about Cuba.
They learned about Fidel Castro's transition to power fifty years ago and we were all surprised to learn a day or so after we began our unit that Castro resigned as leader of Cuba. The children already knew the name of his succesor and brother, Raul Castro, because we had discussed that many people believed his brother was already making important decisions because of Fidel's failing health. The children were impressed to learn that he had been in power for so long especially when they reflected on their own and other international leaders. They also were intrigued that Castro's Cuba has had such an interesting and often unfriendly relationship to the United States. This was a marked departure from most of what they hear about the United States at our school.

As criances passaram boa parte deste terceiro periodo aprendendo sobre Cuba. Aprenderam sobre a transicao ao poder de Fidel Castro cinquenta anos atras e ficamos todos sorprendidos quando alguns dias depois de comecar os estudos que Castro renuncio o cargo de presidente de Cuba. Os alunos ja conheciam o nome do novo presidente que eh tambem o irmao de Fidel, Raul Castro. Ja tinhamos discutido que muitos achavam que tinha outros tomando decisoes importantes no governo porque a saude de Fidel parecia nao muito boa. As criancas ficaram impressionadas ao aprender um pouco da historia interesante e nao amigavel entre o Cuba de Fidel e os Estados Unidos. Foi muito diferente do que outros noticias que eles normalmente ouvem sobre os Estados Unidos em nossa escola.

Young Castro after his victory in the Cuban Revolution.

O jovem Castro depois da sua vitoria na Revolucao Cubana.

Castro today.

Castro hoje em dia.

Raul Castro

The children and I took another of our famous Google Earth field trips to various landmarks including the landmark fortress El Morro at the mouth of Havana's entry port. I told the children how chains would be extended across this entry from El Morro to La Punta, another fortress on the opposite side, to prevent pirates and other enemies from entering Havana.

Nos partimos de novo em um de nossos famosos excursoes no Google Earth para visitar varias lugares importantes em Cuba. Incluiu o forte marcante El Morro ubicado na boca do porto de Habana. Eu expliquei para as criancas que antigamente os cubanos esticavam correntes fortes e grandes do forte El Morro a outro, chamado La Punta que estava do outro lado, para impedir que piratas e outros enemigos entrassem na Havana.

We also visited and talked about the U.S. Naval Base and the region it is in, Guantanamo, but more as a reference for the children to the song they would be singing at the International Festival, Guantanamera.

Tambem visitamos e discutimos sobre a base naval americana e sobre a regiao na qual se encontra, Guantanamo mas era mais como referencia para as criancas a cancao que eles cantariam no jantar internacional, Guantanamera.

************************************************************************************************** An Encounter

Um Encontro

We also talked about Cuba's unique position in the history of the Western Hemisphere. They learned about Christopher Columbus' sense of adventure and courage in undertaking his famous first voyage across the Atlantic in search of an easier route to India and its precious spices.

Tambem falamos sobre a posicao unica que Cuba tem na historia do hemisferio occidental. Eles aprenderam sobre o espirito de aventura e a coragem de Cristovao Colombo de inventar fazer uma viagem na procura de uma ruta mais facil de chegar a India e acesar suas especiarias preciosas.

They learned that Cuba was the second island visited during the first of Columbus's four voyages to what would later be called the West Indies and to South and Central America. We discussed that it was on this voyage that he first encountered natives of the Taino tribes scattered throughout the islands of the Caribbean Sea.

Eles aprenderam que Cuba foi a segunda ilha visitada por Colombo nessa primeira de quatro viagens a o que depois serao chamadas das Indias Occidentais, America do Sur e America Central. Falamos que foi nessa primeira viagem que Colombo conheceu pela primeira vez os nativos Tainos que viviam espalhados em quase todas as ilhas do Mar Caribe.

They also learned that it was the natives that helped give Cuba its name. It was they who answered the inquisitive Spaniards when they asked where the natives had found their gold trinkets, by saying "cubanacan" which meant "in the center of the island."

Tambem os alunos souberam que foram os nativos que ajudaram a dar o nome que Cuba leva hoje. Foram eles que responderam aos espanhois curiosos por saber de onde tinham sacado o ouro que usavam como joias e decoracao, dizendo "cubanacan" que significava "no centro da ilha."

We also spent time discussing the negative impact the arriving Spaniards had on the native population and how their quest for riches, which caused them to enslave the natives as well as the diseases they brought with them from Europe against which the natives had no immunity, ended up decimating the natives. We also discussed how these events eventually influenced the arrival of African slaves to the island.

Tambem discutimos o impacto negativo que a chegada dos espanhois teve na populacao nativa e como o desejo forte dos espanhois para a riqueza que obrigou eles a escravizar os nativos tanto como as doencas que trouxeram contra as quais os nativos nao tinham imunidade, acabou decimando a populacao. Discutimos coma essa escassez de lavradores influenciou a chegada de escravos africanos a ilha.

Chango

Xango

The kids were reminded that Africans were forcibly brought to places like Cuba because the natives were dying or resisting working for the Spaniards and workers were needed for mining or agricultural purposes. Much as the children can see here in Salvador, there were elements of African cultures that arrived in Cuba with the slaves.

Eu fiz as criancas lembrarem que os africanos eram forcados a vir a lugares tal como Cuba porque os nativos ja tinha morrido ou resistiam trabalhar pelos espanhois e lavradores eram necesarios para trabalhar nas fazendas ou nas minas. Tal como aqui em Salvador, chegaram juntos aos escravos, elementos de culturas africanas.

I explained to the children that because the Spanish were so devoutly Catholic, they prohibited the slaves from openly worshipping their gods and goddesses. The Africans were forced to find a secret way to continue worshipping the deities they looked to for comfort and guidance and so in Cuba the practice of Lucumi or Santeria was born. What this practice involved was that the slaves would worship in Catholic churches and make references to Catholic saints but in truth they continued to worship their own gods and goddesses only now with a Catholic veneer. Chango, an African warrior god of thunder armed with an axe and dressed in red (shown above) would be called upon as Santa Barbara, a Catholic saint who also appeared with a sword and dressed in a red cape.

Eu expliquei para as criancas que o fato dos espanhois ser rigidamente catolico, eles proibiram os africanos a venerar os seus deuses e deusas. Os africanos eram obrigados a procurar uma forma segreda de continuar de venerar os seres divinos que eles procuravam para socorrer e orienta-los. E foi assim que nasceu em Cuba a pratica de Lucumi ou Santeria. O que surgiu foi que os escravos rezavam em igrejas catolicas e faziam referencias a santos catolicos mas na verdade eles continuavam venerando os seus deuses e deusas so com a diferenca de uma verniz mascara catolica. Chango, um deus guerreiro africano de trovao armado com um machado e vestido de vermelho (retratado acima) era chamado de Santa Barbara, uma santa catolica que tambem usava uma espada e uma capa vermelha.

Santa Barbara.

The children learned a famous Cuban song that makes mention of both Chango and St. Barbara, Que Viva Chango.

As criancas aprenderam uma cancao famosa en Cuba que faz referencia a ambos Chango e Santa Barbara, Que Viva Chango.

Yemaya, whose color is blue and who is an African goddess of the ocean.

Iemanja, que tem como cor representante azul e que eh uma deusa africana do oceano.

La Virgen de la Regla, a Cuban Our Lady often depicted dressed in blue and floating above the water. A popular story has her saving three sailors all named Juan.

A Virgem da Regua, uma Nossa Senhora de Cuba frecuentemente retratada vestida de azul e flutuando acima da agua. Uma historia popular a tem socorrendo tres marinheiros chamados todos de Juan.

*********************************************************************************************

Cuba Naturally

Cuba Naturalmente

We also spent a good amount of time exploring the flora and fauna of Cuba. Cuba at some point in time was connected to either South or Central America and after separating, the animals that remained on the island were related to animals found in both Americas and yet developed over time into unique species that are endemic to the island.

Tambem passamos um bom tempo estudando a flora e a fauna de Cuba. Cuba, milhoes de anos atras, estava conectado a ou America do Sul ou America Central e depois de separar, os animais que ficaram na ilha eram parentes de especies encontrado em ambos Americas mas que com o pasar do tempo viraram especies bem unicos e endemicos a ilha.

This Cuban frog is tied with a frog from the Amazon rainforest as being the smallest frogs in the whole world. They each measure only one centimeter. The Cuban frog is a recent discovery.

Esta ra esta empatado com uma da floresta amazonica pra ser a menor ra do mundo entero. Cada um deles so mede um centimetro. A ra cubana foi descoberta recentemente.

The Bee Hummingbird, the smallest bird in the Western Hemisphere and only found in Cuba.

O Beija-flor Abelha, o menor passarinho do hemisferio occidental e somente encontrado em Cuba.

The Cuban Jumping Crocodile. It propels itself out of the water to catch animals foraging in overhanging trees.

O Crocodrilo Cubano Pulante(?). Ele se propulsiona fora da agua para pegar animais se alimentando nos galhos de arvores a beira da agua.

**********************************************************************************************
Celia Cruz

Finally, we spent some time learning about the life and times of Celia Cruz, a Cuban singer with a unique life story and even more unique artistic style. She had an amazingly long and successful career. She only stopped performing when she was no longer able to get up on stage or into the studio which was only a year or so before her death in 2003. 200,000 people attended her wake in Miami. Celia was Cuban yet had many fans throughout Latin America and the world.

Finalmente pasamos tempo aprendendo sobre a vida de Celia Cruz, uma cantora cubana com uma historia unica e um estilo de artista ainda mais unica. Ela disfruto de uma carreira super longa e cheia de sucesso. Ela so parou de cantar quando no dava mais pra entrar no estudio para gravar ou para subir no palco e isso aconteceu mais ou menos um ano antes da morte dela em 2003. Duzentos mil pessoas foram ao velorio dela em Miami. Celia era cubana mas tinha fas em toda america latina e no mundo entero

The children really enjoyed her singing as well as her over the top style of dressing!!

As criancas gostaram muito dela cantando tanto como seu estilo exagerado de se vestir!!

It was a special pleasure of mine to help my students develop an appreciation of Celia Cruz because as an artist there are few that have enriched my life as much as she has. She was truly a queen.

Foi um prazer especial meu ajudar aos meus alunos desenvolver uma apreciacao de Celia Cruz porque entre artistas sao poucas que tem enriquecido a minha vida tanto quanto ela. Ele foi realmente uma rainha.

AZUCAR!!!!!!!!

A big hug, Um forte abraco,

George

sábado, 8 de dezembro de 2007

Semester Coming to A Close!! O Fin do Semestre Chegando!!

The children opened their end-of-semester Animal Research Project presentations with a little Holiday cheer. They sang a lively version of the American Christmas song classic Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. It was very well-done. The children practiced singing with emotion and energy and I must say that I loved their performance. Not only had they prepared amazing research projects but they invested themselves into adding something fun and attention-grabbing for their parents and peers to enjoy. Needless to say, I was soooooo proud of them!!

As criancas abriram as suas apresentacoes dos seus Projetos de Pesquisas de Animais do fim do ano com um pouquinho de animacao natalina. Eles cantaram uma versao bem animada do cancao classico natalino americano, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Foi super bem feito. As criancas ensaiaram cantando com emocao e energia e eu preciso declarar que eu amei o desempenho deles. Nao so que eles tinha preparado projetos de pesquisas fantasticas mas que tambem eles se comprometeram para acrescentar algo divertido e que chamava a atencao para que os seus pais e colegas disfrutassem. Nao precisa dizer que eu fiquei muuuiiitto orgulhoso deles!!

As criancas trabalharam bastante para preparar os seus projetos. Eles pesquisavam e escreviam varios tipos de informacao sobre o animal que cada um deles escolheu. Esa informacao incluia a dieta ou caracteristicas fisicas por exemplo. Logo depois eles levavam essa informacao escrita e organizada para sua aula de computacao na qual o profesor deles ajudou eles a criar e formatar um Powerpoint slideshow das informacoes.

The children worked hard to prepare their projects. They researched and wrotpe about the animal they had chosen to learn more about. This information included diet or physical characteristics, for example. After writing and organizing this information in the regular classroom, they took it to their computer class where their teacher there helped them to create and format a PowerPoint slideshow of their findings.

Todo mundo ficou contente com o desempenho dos alunos. Os pais, os profesores e os colegas tambem!!!

Que maneira bacana de fechar o semestre!!

Everyone was pleased with the children's skills. Parents, teachers and peers alike!!!

What a great way to end the semester!!

Abraco,

George

sábado, 10 de novembro de 2007

Johnny Appleseed! An American Legend!! Johnny Appleseed! Uma Lenda Americana!!

As criancas atuaram numa peca sobre a vida de uma personagem lendaria do pasado colonial dos Estados Unidos, o Johnny Appleseed. O nome verdadeiro de Johnny era John Chapman e ele viveu em meados do seculo 19 e era um homem de fe que adorava a natureza e andava descalzo pela frontera dos Estados Unidos plantando sementes de arvores de maca. Tudo isso para ajudar as familias que ainda nao tinha chegado para estabelecer casas e comunidades. Seguindo a lenda, ele era muito amigo dos animais e andava com uma panela na cabeca que ele usava para cozinhar e tembem para que nao se molhasse na chuva.

The children performed a play about the life of a historic figure of America's colonial past: Johnny Appleseed. Johnny's real name was John Chapman and he lived sometime in the early to mid eighteenth century. He was a man of God who loved nature and wandered barefoot throughout young America's frontier planting apple tree seeds. He did all this in order to help pioneer families that were just settling in these new parts of the country. According to legend, he was a great friend of wild animals and he walked around with a stew pot on his head which he used to cook in as well as keep his head dry.

Clayton fez o papel do Johnny jovem. Marina segurou a panela que ameacava cair a toda hora!! Andrea fez o papel da filha de uma familia chegando na fronteira e Alice foi a mae.

Clayton played the young Johnny. Marina had to hold the pot on his head because it threatened to fall the whole time. Andrea played the part of the frontier family daughter and Alice played the pioneer mother.

O verdadeiro Johnny dedicou-se a vida inteira a plantar sementes de maca. Ainda existe arvores que vieram de sementes de frutas de arvores que ele plantou!!

The real Johnny dedicated his whole life to planting apple tree seeds. There are still apple trees that were started from seeds grown on trees that he planted!!

Eike fez o papel do velho Johnny e Marina continuo de assistente!!

Eike played the old Johnny and Marina was still needed to hold the pot!!

Tambem tinha um coro feito das irmas e irmaos de Johnny. Haviam cinco irmas: Aila, Daniela, Beatriz e Maria (Marianna faltou no dia) e cinco irmaos: Pietro, Leonardo, Pedro Neto, Pedro Henrique e Pedro Luiz.

There was also a chorus made up of Johnny's ten brothers and sisters. There were five sisters: Aila, Daniela, Beatriz and Maria (Marianna was absent on the day of the performance) and five brothers: Pietro, Leonardo, Pedro Neto, Pedro Henrique and Pedro Luiz.

Nos Estados Unidos a maca eh uma fruta historicamente significante. Tem muitas variedades.
In the United States the apple is an emblematic fruit. There are many different varieties.

Tem algo mais americana que torta de maca?!?!

Is there anything more American than apple pie?!?!

Eu lembro que fiquei impressionado, ao mudarme ao Brasil, que nao conseguia facilmente achar e comprar suco de maca. Sinto falta do sabor mais tambem curto bastante os sucos que se encontra aqui!!

I remember being surprised when I moved to Brazil to find that you could not easily find and buy apple juice. I miss it a lot but I love all the fruit juices that you can find here!!

Tem tambem apple cider que eh tipo suco de maca um pouco fermentado. Delicioso servido frio ou quente com especiarias!!!!

There's apple cider which is like slightly fermented apple juice. It's delicious served cold or spicy & hot!!!!

Macas caramelizados e enfeitados com nozes!!!! Delicia!!!

Caramel Apples!!!! Yummmm!!!

Gente eu nao sei com traduzir Apple Dumplings mas da pra ver que eh especial!!

I don't know how to translate apple dumplings but it's easy to see that they are something else!!

Apple Danish!!

Maca Frita!!! Eu amo com paixao!!!!!!!!!

Apple Fritters!!! I love these!!!!!!!!!

Apple Betty eh maca com chantilly e canela e acucar e nozes asado no forno. Eh otimo como sobremesa ou para um cafe de manha servida quentinha!

Apple Betty is whipped cream, cinnamon, sugar and nuts served hot from the oven for dessert or for breakfast!

A maca eh um simbolo cultural dos Estados Unidos e eh algo que se ve em toda parte.

The apple is an American cultural symbol and you will find it everywhere you go in the U.S.

Ate mais,

See you,

George

(Por favor se eu errei na parte de portugues, nao se incomodem por favor!)

sexta-feira, 2 de novembro de 2007

2B's Celebration of the Day of the Dead!! A Celebracao de 2B do Dia dos Finados!!

A celebracao foi realmente alegre e divertida. As criancas se animaram para desfilar e depois pra comer todas as comidas deliciosas que foram preparadas. O esqueleto Arthus e sua noiva lideraram nosso desfile. Pietro e Pedro Luiz trouxeram bouquets de flores e Leonardo carregou nossa caveira. As outras criancas carregavam bandeirolas de papel picado, bandejas de comida e lapides enfeitados com as fotos dos finados.

The celebration was really fun and spirited. The kids were excited to parade and were anxious to try all the delicious foods that were prepared. Skeleton Arthus and his bride led the parade. Pietro and Pedro Luiz carried floral bouquets and Leonardo held our classroom skull. The other children held up garlands of papel picado, trays of food and paper tombstones decorated with photos of departed friends and family.