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As it has been said in our class, we will use this tech tool to help reinforce the knowledge we acquire every day in the classroom.
We will share important information such as videos, articles, homework, exercises, comments and many more fun activities that will support us in the process of learning English.
I warmly invite you to actively participate. Let's begin!

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In the link below you'll find an article about a man who survived a kidnapping in Iraq. You'll read the story and in a piece of paper you'll write all the verbs you find, classify them in regular and irregular ones. Bring the list to the class. We will discuss the main events of the story.

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Illustration by Levente Szabo Told live at a Moth show at the Miramar Theatre in Milwaukee, WI
I grew up in Baghdad, where car bombs were an everyday occurrence after 2003. At that time, it was considered the most dangerous city in the world. My 25-minute ride to school took two hours because of the many checkpoints in the city.

My mom would hug and kiss us every day before we left for school because she knew it might be her last hug or kiss.

I always told myself I should focus on school, get my degree, and tomorrow will be better than today, always hoping for an end to the Sunni and Shia civil war and to see a strong Iraqi military defeat Al Qaeda.

I graduated and got a job, but to get there I had to cross town. After news of sectarian killings and kidnappings, one morning my mom said the salary the job paid wasn't worth the risk making the journey posed. So my only choice was to leave Baghdad.

On Thursday, November 23, 2006, I kissed my mom and siblings goodbye. My mom hugged me tight, and her eyes started to tear. I wiped her tears and told her, "I'll be OK, and I'll come visit."

She said, "Don't. I'm OK with you being away and alive. It's better than you being close and always in danger."

I arrived in Kurdistan, in northern Iraq, and managed to get a job working for the U.S. military as a translator. I would translate documents, paperwork, and meetings between Iraqi military, Iraqi police, local mayors, and top U.S. military commanders. Other times, between soldiers and local Iraqi labor.

After a year of being away from home, I really missed my family, so I asked to go on vacation during Christmas and New Year's break and was able to go to Baghdad to visit my family and spend time with my mom.

One evening, I went to a restaurant, and after I ate, I was feeling a bit lazy and full, so I decided to take the bus. In Baghdad, most buses are these ten-passenger vans, and one pulled over to pick me up. The van was empty, so I sat in the front passenger seat.

Once we got to my stop, the driver didn't stop. I told him, "Hey, you missed my stop!"

He said, "I'm sorry. I'll turn around for you."

I said, "It's OK. I can walk back," but he insisted on turning around.

At the end of the street, he turned left and then took the highway ramp. I told him, "You did not turn around. Where are we going?"

And that's when he gave me the evil face and said, "You'll know once we get there."

He was driving at least 100 miles per hour, and I didn't know what to do. I looked at him and saw a gun in his hand and calmly asked, "What do you want from me?"

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I was afraid. If he knew I worked for the U.S. military, then I would be beheaded. He said, "You'll know once you meet my group."

His answer made me even more scared.

Living in Baghdad, I would hear about kidnappings almost every day in the news but never what to do if it happened to you.

I thought of hitting him, like what Tom Cruise or Jack Bauer would do. In the movies, the lead actor always survives, but in reality, a terrorist would just put a bullet in my head or simply crash the van and kill both of us.

The sun had set, and all I could think was: Will I see another day? Will I see my family again? My mom?

He exited the highway, and all of a sudden I saw an Iraqi military checkpoint on my right.

A voice inside of me said, If you don't survive this now, you might not survive it at all.

Without thinking, I opened the door. I screamed, "Help me!" Again, that voice said the pain of the jump is nothing compared to the pain of being terrified until they behead you.

The next thing I knew, I was on the ground, and all I can remember is getting up and running. I don't remember if I rolled. I don't remember feeling any pain. I just ran. I ran for my life.

I made it to the checkpoint and fell to the ground. Two soldiers rushed to help me, asking what happened, and all I could do was point to the street. I couldn't catch my breath to even speak. But I made it. I survived.

I left Baghdad early the next morning, knowing it would be years before I could ever return.

Courtesy Renee Rosensteel In July 2009, I got my special immigrant visa. It's a program that was set up for translators and their families to go to America, because once you worked for the U.S. military, you will forever be an Al Qaeda target. So my family and I were able to come here and become citizens. My mom was the most excited because, as she said, "Now we can finally live, all of us, in one country, in peace."

via amazon.com I was excited about living my American dream. I enrolled in the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee to get my master's degree, and life was going well for me. But I felt something was missing. And every time I saw a post on Facebook from one of my soldier friends that I worked with in Iraq, I felt like I should be with them. And I was afraid of losing my new, safe home, America.

In Baghdad, I was weak. But in America, I am strong. Now I am a sergeant in the Army National Guard and belong to an organization that can prepare me to defend my adopted country and do my part as a citizen. Because I know how it feels living under terrorism, and I don't want to ever experience that again.
Abbas Mousa, 32, is an economist at the Bureau of Economic Analysis for the Department of Commerce and a sergeant in the Army National Guard. He is writing a memoir.

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Terrorist Kidnapping: How One Man Escaped Death | Reader's Digest

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Illustration by Levente Szabo Told live at a Moth show at the Miramar Theatre in Milwaukee, WI I grew up in Baghdad, where car bombs were an every­day occurrence after 2003. At that time, it was considered the most dangerous city in the world.

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Well done reading the article and completing the task on the kidnapping story.
Now, I want to reinforce the content we studied at school. I invite you to please watch the following video.

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Simple Past Tense - 01 - English Grammar Lessons

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Now that you watched the video I need you to do the following exercise by clicking on the link below. Also, write-down just the answers and bring them to our next class please.

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Dear student, please read this short story and answer the questions at the end. You'll find a vocabulary section to help you understand. We'll check your responses in class.

Sick on Saturday

I have just had a terrible weekend! On Saturday I was so tired that I slept all morning. When I woke up I had a head ache and my throat was sore. My body ached all over. My nose ran and I coughed a lot. My mother took my temperature but I did not have a fever.

My mother made me some soup for lunch and I ate it in bed. I dranksome juice. I tried to read a book but I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I lay in bed all afternoon. I drifted in and out of sleep. I drank more juice. I felt miserable all afternoon. I didn’t want to do anything.

I got out of bed at dinner time. My parents ordered pizza for dinner and I was able to eat some of it. I drank more juice! I felt a bit better after dinner so I stayed up. I snuggled under a blanket on the couch and watched some TV with my parents. I fell asleep in front of the TV.

The next morning I felt better but now my mother had a cold! She looked miserable. It was her turn to be sick.

Vocabulary help:

ache (verb) - hurts, is painful

asleep (adjective) - to be sleeping

couch (noun) - furniture to sit on

drifted (verb) past tense of to drift - to move slowly

drifted in and out of sleep - when you are not really awake but not really asleep either

miserable (adjective) - sad, unhappy, unpleasant

snuggled (verb) past tense of to snuggle - to move into a warm, comfortable position

terrible (adjective) - very bad,

woke up (verb) past tense of wake up - to stop sleeping

Comprehension Check:

Did you understand the story? Are these sentences true?

1. The boy was sick on Saturday. Yes or no?

2. On Sunday his father was sick. Yes or no?

3. He had a fever on Saturday. Yes or no?

4. He ate dinner in bed on Saturday. Yes or no?

Fill in the Blanks:

5. The family had _______________ for dinner on Saturday.

6. On Saturday night the boy fell asleep while he __________________________.

7. He had a head ______________ and his throat was ________________.

8. The boy drank lots of _______________.

9. What is the present tense of these verbs? tried _____________, took ________________,

felt ________________, did _________________

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To finish with this topic I want you to chose a movie. In the following video you'll see short synopsis about ten movies based on true stories. Next class we will watch the most voted moved. Go ahead and select the one you like.

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Top 10 Real Life Survival Movies Subscribe http://goo.gl/Q2kKrD Based on true stories, these films showcase the desperate struggle to stay alive against impossible odds and the wrath of mother nature herself. List Entries and Rank: #10. "Open Water" (2003) #9. "White Squall" (1996) #8. "The Perfect Storm" (2000) #7.

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Well done guys! This couple weeks have been very interesting and rewarding. I want to thank you for your hard work in this project. I'm very proud of you!