Quiz 28 Feb

I apologize for skipping another week. As the school was closed last Mon-Wed I didn't have internet access until Thursday evening. I actually prepared a listening from a file in my iTunes and then realized it wasn't archived online. Bummer. Well, here's the new quiz for the week--a topic that is pertinent to young people (and teachers and parents too).

It comes from ABC Radio National and so you'll get to practice deciphering the Australian accent this week! Just to warn you that there are derogatory and offensive comments as teenagers share the destructive words their peers wield as weapons in the battle that is bullying.

Street Stories, 18 February: We’re Watching You
1. “When conflicts _______ young people are likely to use their ______ with ________ as their weapon”
2. What did Natasha receive in the form of a text message?
3. Why is text messaging so bad?
4. “Girls ________ ____ cyber bullying more than boys”
5. What are teens mostly being victimized for, aside from looks?
6. What is said about stereotypes?
7. What was Natasha’s dad’s first reaction to the text message?
8. “Two’s _______, three’s __ _______”
9. What was the mother of the bully’s reaction when Natasha’s mum called her?
10. “Maybe it was a bit ______ out of _______”. What does that mean?
11. “Teachers have a bit more _______ about what is going on”. What does that mean?
12. What did bullying used to be before technology?
13. What word was used to mean not knowing that bullying is happening but it’s harmful all the same?
14. What type of young person opts for cyber bullying?
15. What is said to be the worst type of bullying?


Article: Cyber Bullies are Wrecking Lives

1. How does cyber bullying differ from “conventional” bullying?
2. How is Avalon described to mean she doesn’t want to talk to others?
3. What adjective is used to mean that messages can be critical and disrespectful?
4. The adjective to describe students having technological skills?
5. What aspect of cyber bullying makes it more accessible to students?
6. Cyber bullying is illegal in Australia, true or false.
7-10. Write a comment below to compare what you’ve heard/read here to what you know about cyber bullying in your school (either now or when you were in high school). Include your ideas of what a parent’s role is.

Quiz 14 Feb

Star-Crossed Love
This American Life

Well, I’m not one prone to being enthusiastic about Valentine’s Day. It’s not really my “cup of tea,” if you will. However, I found this week’s edition of This American Life interesting (actually, I enjoy every single episode and am a subscriber to their weekly podcast through iTunes). This story here drew my attention due to the unlikelihood of such a romance, that actually being the point of this edition of the programme, which saw fit to highlight three rather unorthodox relationships.

You need to click on the link above and go to the 10 February episode called "Star-Crossed Love." Personally, I recommend listening to the whole episode, though I only have questions written about the first story, which starts around minute 7 and ends at minute 33 or thereabouts. Yes, it’s a bit longer than I like the listening to be, but you have a long weekend coming up, so what the heck! So enjoy listening to an Armenian, Shant Kenderian, in the Iraqi army, who was caught and held as a prisoner, talking about how he fell in love with an American soldier.

1. What is “drafted”?
2. What was the soldiers’ greatest hope while on the boat and why?
3. What was Shant most impressed about when seeing the American soldiers?
4. What was assumed about Shant?
5. What were Shant’s friends baffled about with regard to the American’s interactions with Monica?
6. How did Monica contrast with her surroundings?
7. When did Shant realize he had feelings for Monica?
8. What gave him some tenuous hope that she might like him back?
9. What did he mean by “the stakes were very high”?
10. After she gave him a hug, he said “I let _____ _______ _______.” What did he mean by that?
11. How many days left before his transfer did Shant have when he saw Monica again?
12. What did he say about their relationship in the end?


Article: A Veteran’s Love Story: Valentine’s Day 2007
by Shepherd Bliss

Here is another soldier, but from a different war and a slightly different perspective. Read his "love story" and answer the following questions.

1. What word in paragraph one is used to mean “to appear or come into view / to come to the surface”?
2. A mole is a small animal which digs and lives underground. Why did the author describe himself that way in the story?
3. What’s the significance of the phrase “now a seasoned veteran at the age of nineteen”?
4. Explain his question “Is she the enemy?”.
5. In your own words, why do these war veterans join together to write?
6. In your own words, explain why Shepherd calls this a love story.
7. What words does he use to say that he took various stories and made them into one?
8. What word does he use to mean “personal faults or failures”?