Project Time: June 2014

Jumbled paragraph and gapped text

By: Lucía Sosa

Level: intermediate

1-     put the paragraphs in order:

a- Gonzalo Higuain, Rodrigo Palacio and Messi himself all passed up clear opportunities chances to put Argentina in front before Gotze struck seven minutes from time.

b- Argentina captain Lionel Messi regretted his side's missed chances after Germany beat his side 1-0 in the FIFA World Cup Final™ on Sunday thanks to Mario Gotze's extra time goal.

c- And Messi insisted it was hard to take consolation from carrying his country to the final for the first time in 24 years in the immediate aftermath of the defeat.

d- "There is sadness to finish in this way, I think we deserved a little more today", said the Barcelona star. "The best chances were ours and between the forwards we couldn't take them," he told Direct TV.

e- "After a long time not getting past the quarter-finals we managed to get to the final, but today there is the disappointment of having lost in the last minutes of extra time."

f- Messi was still crowned as the player of the tournament for his performances and four goals in seven matches. However, he insisted the individual award was scant consolation for missing out on a much bigger collective prize.

g- "We wanted to win the World Cup for all the people in Argentina and we couldn't do it," he said. "We tried, but we didn't have the luck we had in other games.

1-     ____

2-   ____

3-   ____

4-   ____

5-   ____

6-   ____

7-    ____

2-   Read this article. Choose from the sentences A-G the one which fits each gap (1-6). There’s one sentence that you won’t need.

In 1901 Uruguay played against Argentina in their first ever match, a close contest won by Argentina 3-2. Prior to 1916, Uruguay played more than 30 matches, of which all but one were against Argentina. The inaugural Copa America provided Uruguay with more varied opposition. 1-(___) The following year Uruguay hosted the competition, and retained the title by winning every game. The 1919 Copa America saw Uruguay's first defeat in the tournament, a 1–0 defeat in a playoff with Brazil which went to two periods of extra time, the longest Copa America match in history.



In 1924 the Uruguay team traveled to Paris to become the first South American team to compete in the Olympic Games. In contrast to the physical style of the European teams of the era, Uruguay played a style based around short passes,and won every game, defeating Switzerland 3–0 in the gold medal match. 2-(___) FIFA assumed the responsibility of the organization of the Football Games to be played by FIFA rules and the tournaments would be recognized as World Championships. It only happened twice (1924/1928 Summer Olympics Games) until the creation of it own FIFA World Championship (FIFA World Cup) in 1930.

The team that beat Brazil in the 1950 FIFA World Cup final to win Uruguay's secondFIFA World Cup



Following the double Olympic triumph, Uruguay was chosen as the host nation for the first World Cup, held in 1930, the centenary of Uruguay's first constitution. 3- (___). Due to the refusal of some European teams to participate in the first World Cup, the Uruguayan Football Association urged other countries to reciprocate by boycotting the 1934 World Cup played in Italy. For the 1938 World Cup, France was chosen as host, contrary to a previous agreement to alternate the Championships between South America and Europe, so Uruguay again refused to participate.



Uruguay again won the World Cup in 1950, beating host Brazil in one of the biggest upsets in World Cup History. The final was at the Maracanã Stadium in Brazil. Uruguay came from behind to beat the host nation in a match which would become known as the Maracanazo.

4- (___)

After their fourth place finish in the 1954 World Cup, the team had mixed performances and after the fourth place finish in 1970, their dominance, quality and performance dropped.

5- (___). They reached an all time low, and were at one time 76th in the FIFA rankings.



However, in 2010 a new generation of footballers created a team that is considered to be the best in the last 4 decades, and caught attention of many, by finishing fourth in the World Cup. A year later, they won the Copa America for the first time in 16 years and broke the record for the most successful team in South America.

6- (___). Two days after the match, the FIFA Disciplinary Committee banned Suárez for nine international matches. It was the longest such ban in World Cup history, exceeding the eight-match ban handed to Italy's Mauro Tassotti for breaking the nose of Spain's Luis Enrique at USA '94.Suárez was also banned from taking part in any football-related activity (including entering any stadium) for four months and fined CHF100,000 (approx. £65,700/€82,000/US$119,000).

Options:

a- In the 1928 Summer Olympics Uruguay went to Amsterdam to defend their title, again winning the gold medal after defeating Argentina 2–1 in the final.

b- They were no longer a world football power and failed to qualify for the World Cup on 5 occasions, in the last 9 competitions.

c- Victories over Chile and Brazil along with a tie against Argentina enabled Uruguay to win the tournament.

d- During a match against Italy in the 2014 World Cup, forward Luis Suárez bit Italian defender Giorgio Chiellini on his left shoulder.

e- Uruguay are the current reigning South American champions, having won the 2011 Copa América.

f- During the World Cup, Uruguay won all its matches, and converted a 1–2 half-time deficit to a 4–2 victory against Argentina at the Estadio Centenario.

g- Many Brazilians had to be treated for shock after the event, such was the surprise of Uruguay's victory.

Project Time: Brazuca

By Germán Rivas
Level: CAE

Brazuca, which is the official ball used in the 2014 FIFA World Cup, was created by Adidas; this brand is in charge of designing the ball for each world cup that takes place since 1970 as was set down, and this time wasn’t the exception. 

For the final match, when the last two countries are competing, “Brazuka final Rio” is going to be used. This ball has been inspired by the world cup, having a variation of colour with the original one. 

Although the original one was presented in September 2013, three days before the setting up of the groups, the Brazuka final Rio was launched in December of 2013.

A duplication of the ball was delivered to all of the teams competing on the FIFA World Cup, in order to give enough time to practice with them and letting the football players get use to the feeling of playing with this ball in a field.

Its name was selected with a poll where over a million of Brazilian football fans take part. This poll was organized by Adidas and the Local Organizing Committee. There were three different options: “Brazuca”, “Bossa Nova” and “Carnavalesca”.

Brazuca was chosen with a majority of votes. The meaning of this word is to express national Brazilian pride and also is known to be a way of naming the Brazilian people abroad. Meanwhile, “Bossa Nova” is the name of a genre in Brazilian music quite popular internationally. In addition, “Carnavalesca” makes reference to the extremely colourful carnivals that are celebrated each summer.

Two and a half years of test were needed for reach at a final result with the Brazuca. Also, is considered the most tasted ball of Adidas. It has been used by around 600 football players and 30 teams, in 10 different countries across three continents.

When presented to the public, was stated that it is more aerodynamic than Jabulani, the ball used for South Africa. The material of Brazuca is said to be better for its use, preserving the weight and shape even in the heaviest storm.

As far as I’m concerned, there’s a good chance that you find an original duplication in the market, due to the commercialism that this ball has. On the other hand, there are also a great number of fake Brazucas, being commercialized as If they were original.

The horrible quality of these fake balls is what reveals them, making them not only illegal but also a waste of money for the ones who buy it.

A number nearly to 10.000 of fake brazucas were discovered by the Uruguayan government, who later destroy a part of them and the other was donated.

Germán giving his presentation

German´s activity for his classmates: writing

Exercise: Writing

* ARTICLE:

You have seen that there’s a competition in a school magazine:

Which is, in your opinion, the best football team? 

They are all so different and so similar.

You can make your nomination 

by sending us an article, 

giving your reasons and 

expressing why you like it so much.

Write your article for the magazine (Around 120-180 words).

*LETTER:

The World Cup is taking place and you are an English football fan.  The FIFA have sent a letter asking for opinion to some fans around the world and you are lucky to receive one. 

Unfortunately, we do not have an idea of which country should be selected for the next World Cup, taking place some years ahead.

It would be excellent to have an opinion of the different fans around the world.

It is required to tell us which facilities this place could have for the football players. In addition, why the weather of this country is suitable for everyone and the economy it has for building the stadiums needed.

At the moment of writing, you are also free to add any opinion that you think would be important to let us know.

Write your letter for the FIFA in the appropriate style (Around 120-180 words).

Project Time: Brazil & Neymar

By Nahuel Barreto
Level: Elementary

The FIFA World Cup this year is in Brazil. Brazil has played all world cups. This year Brazil is a favourite to win the World Cup. Brazil  has already won five World Cups.

—Brazil is a touristic country. Its beaches are beautiful.

Its official language is Portuguese. Brazil is the largest country in South America.

—I chose Neymar because he  plays very well.

—His real name is Neymar Santos da Silva Junior

He was born  on 5 February, 1992. Mogi das Cruzes, São Paulo.

—His T-shirt number is 10(in Brazil)

—He played for  Santos Futebol Clube (2009-2013) and now he plays in Fútbol Club Barcelona.

He should play quietly.

He must score a goal

He mustn´t get a yellow or red card.

 
Nahuel giving his presentation.


Nahuel's activity for his classmates: hangman.

Project Time: Mascots

By María Eugenia García
Level: FCE

Maru gave her presentation using the projection of her power point. She talked about the World Cup Mascots and she prepared a Use of English exercise for her classmates.

Choose the most suitable alternative below to fill in the gaps in the following text.

Each FIFA World Cup 1)______ 1966 has had its own mascot. The designs show  a characteristic feature of the host country.

The World Cup 2)_____ us many things, fun is one of them, and mascots for each event are a very important part of this, too.

The first appearance was in England.

1-   A) by       B) for         C) since     D) from

2-    A)tells       B)gives         C) thinks    D)says

“Willie” England 1966  was the first.

A cute 3)_____footballer who welcomed the participants, wearing a shirt with the flag of Britain. He was widely accepted by the people especially from British people.

3-   A)kitten     B)puppy       

C) calves    D)cub

"Juanito" Mexico 1970

Juanito was a child wearing football clothes with Mexican colours, and he had a big Mexican hat that had on it the words "MEXICO 70".  He wanted to 4)______  fair play.

4-   A)reflect     B)imagine     C)show     D)represent

"Tip and Tap" Germany 1974

Two children that wanted to inspire the union and their t-shirts had the   WM74  on them (World Cup 74- Weltmeisterschaft in German). They pretended to be symbolize of the union of both Germanies, which at that time were separated.

"Gauchito Mundialito" Argentina 1978

He was a little boy that used  to wear the colours of Argentina, and he had details of a cowboy(a neckerchief, a hat and a horsewhip) so for that he was called Gauchito. His puma clothes arose some curiosity.

"Naranjito" Spain 1982

A big change appeared, where humans were no more 5)_____ and a fruit appeared  as a mascot.

It was an orange, a typical fruit from Spain, wearing the kit of the national team.

5-   A)used      B)show        C)part      D) convenient

"Pique" Mexico 1986

For Mexicans this chili with a big hat and a moustache was a better representation 6)_____ Juanito (1970 World Cup Mexico mascot). He had a big smile, an outfit of Mexico team, a ball and many other things that Mexicans felt  7) ------- represented.

6-   A)like       B) as          C)from     D)than

7-   A)most      B)more        C)the most  D)good

"Ciao" Italy 1990

Real characters and fruits were left to move to a  little strange design. It consisted of many cubes that 8)______ to be of wood and they were painted with the Italian colours and the head was a ball.

The name is a Italian  greeting (Hello and goodbye).

8-   A)had      B)seemed       C)may      D) might

"Striker" USA 1994

United States returned to animals as mascots, similar to their American football mascots, wearing a football outfit. For Americans, he was a symbol of fidelity and work.

"Footix" France 1998

Its name came from the beginning of "football" and the ending "-ix" from a popular comic strip (Asterix). It was chosen from a survey. This rooster had a strong , fun and sporty personality.

"Ato, Kaz and Nik, The Spheriks" Korea-Japan 2002

Another change of the mascots was this, the Asian created a kind of alien, that came from Atmozone planet and they were created 9)____  a kind of energy.

Ato (the orange one) was the official mascot, but then Nik (the purple one) and Kaz (the blue one) were joined for marketing.

9-   A) for       B)by          C)from      D)to

"Goleo VI and Pille" Germany 2006

A lion wearing a German shirt with the number 06 and a talking ball named Pille.

Goleo came from the words "goal" and the  "leo", the Latin word for lion. In German, "Pille" is a 10)______  term for football.

10-     A)colloquial   B) perfect   C)another     D) preference

"Zakumi" South Africa 2010

A leopard that is a typical animal from South Africa.

His name came from "ZA", for South Africa, and "kumi", a word that means "ten" in many African languages.

It tried to represent a joined continent.

"Fuleco" Brazil 2014

It's a Brazilian armadillo, whose name is composed by the word football and the word ecology

Project Time @ La Casona

Project Time is my favourite time of the year. Teachers come up with an agreed topic and then have to design clear instructions to give students according to their levels.Thus, every student is working on the same topic. Students' challenge is to give a presentation which will satisfy the most (worst) demanding audience: their own classmates. This is only one of the gruelling tasks, not to mention the chance to be part of La Casona's Hall of Fame. What is that?It is the collection of Best Projects teachers have kept over the years and which are shown to students so as to get an idea of what is expected of them. Among those favourite projects, some will remember Octavio Tognola's Bloody Sunday, Ernesto Aime's Big Ben, María Eugenia Montiel's Harry Potter, etc.
This time the topic is The World Cup.
For beginners, the task was to design a poster of one of the countries taking part in Brazil World Cup 2014 and one of their footballers. Each teacher will customize it to cater for their own needs. Take, for example, J2 will also include sentences about the footballer and his routine using: MUST, MUSTN'T, DOESN'T HAVE TO, SHOULD, SHOULDN'T, SHOULD.
For intermediate and advanced students, the task also included an activity for their classmates which resembles an exam exercise.
Here are some selected projects and their activities:

Lucía Pérez FCE
"Fuleco"
Activity: Open Cloze

For questions 1-15, read the text below and think of the word which best fits each space. Use only one word in each space.

Fuleco

Fuleco, as he(1)_____been named, is a Brazilian three-banded armadillo. The species of armadillos (2)____special. Fuleco is one (3)_____the only two armadillos that(4)______roll into a ball while threatened, hence the association with football. It is also native to Brazil and lives only in a small area of Brazil just below the equator, it is(5)_____”caatinga”.

According to research, the mascot creates positive vibes and emotion with people and children, and(6)______­representing the words “Brazilian”, “Nature”, “Friendly” and “Passion for football”.

Another very important reason (7)_____the mascot to(8)_____ popular, is the (9)______that the Brazilian three-banded armadillo is unfortunately part of an extremely endangered species. Reasons(10)_____deforestation and people hunting in its habitat.

(11)_____February 2014 the Brazilian Environment ministry stated it will create a strategy(12)_____ protect the armadillo’s environment. There are plans to educate people about(13)____risk of the armadillo’s extinction if people keep on hunting. The final concrete plans to save the animal(14)_____be presented by the end(15)_____2014.