WRITING ACTIVITIES

Rewording

Today's activity will be focused on rewording paragraphs. To start you will need to post a little text of about 5 lines. Once you have done that, one of your peers will be asked to read and rewrite your idea using different words and verbs. Once he has done that a third party will do the same with what was published by the second person. Look at the example below:

Your entry:

This is a very important day for me because I just got some news from the school I want to attend. They are telling me that I need to send them some more information and once they receive that, they will provide me with a specific date to visit the premises.

Peer one:

This is a very significant day for me because I have just received an update from the school I want to register in. The board just asked me to send some more data and once they have it, they will give me the date when I can visit the school.

Peer two:

This is a special day for me because I obtained fresh news from the school I want to frequent. The school is requiring some more details about my stay and once they acquire it, I will be given the time when I can visit them.

Now you are ready to submit your example. You can use some of the links below to complete the exercise.

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/reword
http://www.synonym.com/synonyms/reward/
http://www.rhymezone.com/r/rhyme.cgi?Word=call&typeofrhyme=perfect&org1=syl&org2=l&org3=y
http://www.synonyms.net/

Activity 2

Review some of the on-line newspapers from the links below and choose an article. Write down a list with all the active verbs you find in that article (max. 20)and submit it. You will be assigned another classmate's list in order to create a little story with at least 10 of the verbs they chose.

http://www.onlinenewspapers.com/
http://www.newspapers.com/

Writing activities

Essay 6 - Creative text

Why?…

Why do I love you? That’s an easy thing to state,
it is a pleasure to answer since you are my eternal lovely date.

Your kindness towards others is a very appealing trait,
because being good to strangers is for me in higher rate.

When tears come from your eyes when remembering your mom,
warm feelings blossom in my heart which with you is now in calm.

You are so thoughtful and so caring and I am so blessed to have you,
my life now has been enriched and I have grown a lot around you.

"You tame me", once I told you, and you smiled at my comment,
but I was serious and I meant it and it wasn’t just the moment.

If I am sad you offer comfort, and you listen and you are there,
but you don’t try to fix my problems which I think is very fair.

I discovered that I loved you when the place didn’t matter anymore
when your presence was sufficient and it was all I was longing for.

It takes time to find your partner, and for me there was no exception
but it was a worthwhile waiting because with you there is no deception.

Practice- poem

The visit

The leaves break under my tired feet as I narrow the distance between you and me.
Sweet perfume travels in the air and provides some calm to my still fragile spirit.
Not too much to see in this place, but such a strong meaning for a lot of people.
It has been almost three years since last I saw you.
It is not too long, yet at times the weight of sorrow on my shoulders makes it seem as if decades have passed already.
I suddenly stop. I don’t want to make it there now. Tears start flowing from my eyes like water falling from a fall, but I don’t fight them back anymore.
I can hear the beat of my heart and my body shakes with emotion.
I am here. I made it. I forced myself and I am relieved.
…someone brought you some flowers…I didn’t… but I brought you my most valuable treasure… myself.

Essay 5- After comments

A three-star hotel to a four-star hotel

When going on vacation a determining factor to make this time the most pleasant is the place where you are going to stay: the hotel. Choosing a hotel is not an easy task if comfort is one of your priorities, that is why aspects like location, price, condition of the facilities and services provided are some of the aspects to keep in mind prior to booking. In the next lines I am going to contrast some of those aspects which were provided by Soberanis hotel, a three-star hotel and Krystal hotel a four-star hotel, as an aim to illustrate how the number of stars does not necessarily mean higher quality.

Talking about price and location, Krystal hotel is located at the core of the hotel zone of Cancun which is where the night clubs are found. Malls and little plazas are in that area as well, so everything is within a walking distance. Soberanis hotel, on the other hand, is located downtown, at about 25 minutes from the malls and you need to take a taxi or a bus to go there, but if the budget is a little tight Soberanis hotel location is very convenient and the prices can be more than three times lower than at the Krystal hotel.

Krystal’s rooms have the touch of comfort and little luxury expected in a four-star like the tile in the bathroom, wide mirrors, an extra sofa and a little refrigerator, yet Soberanis hotel facilities are very convenient and cover the basic needs sought in a hotel: a bed, a shower, a TV and air conditioner, which is almost mandatory in the beach. Regarding the attention from employees it is fair to say that it was good in both hotels, but still being Soberanis a small hotel the attention feels more personal and cozy.

There are two aspects that I consider important, one of course is food availability and the second aspect will be the computer services. Even though there are usually plenty of places to go and eat outside hotels, it is always nice to at least have breakfast there before you start your day. It is maybe in this aspect that Soberanis hotel beats Krystal hotel because Soberanis has a good variety of dishes at very affordable prices while krystal hotel has a good variety too but the cost is very high. Also Soberanis hotel provides a free internet hour to the guests along with two free bottles of water a day while Krystal hotel charges for the use of the computers and sells the bottles of water they leave in the room.

As you can see, picking a hotel is tricky and sometimes what you see in the publicity is deceiving, but if we narrow down our demands to what is really basic for us and what we can live without then the decision is easier. Both of the mentioned hotels are good options for having a good stay in Cancun and the final pick will depend on what you are looking for and what you are willing to invest. Whatever your decision is what is guaranteed is that you will enjoy your time in the city and you will always want to go back again.

Essay 5- compare-contrast

A three-star hotel to a four-star hotel

When going on vacation a determining factor to make this time the most pleasant is the place where you are going to stay: the hotel. Choosing a hotel is not an easy task if comfort is one of your priorities, that is why aspects like location, price, condition of the facilities and services provided are some of the aspects to keep in mind prior to booking. The purpose of this essay is to contrast some of those aspects which were provided by Soberanis hotel, a three-star hotel and Krystal hotel a four-star hotel, as an aim to illustrate how the number of stars does not necessarily mean higher quality.

Talking about price and location, Krystal hotel is located at the core of the hotel zone of Cancun which is where the night clubs are found. Malls and little plazas are in that area as well, so everything is within a walking distance. Soberanis hotel, on the other hand, is located downtown, at about 25 minutes from the malls and you need to take a taxi or a bus to go there, but if the budget is a little tight Soberanis hotel location is very convenient and the prices can be more than three times lower than at the Krystal hotel.

The higher the number of stars means higher quality of the facilities and a better service, right? Well, not necessarily. Krystal’s rooms have the touch of comfort and little luxury expected in a four-star yet Soberanis hotel facilities are very convenient and cover the basic needs sought in a hotel: a bed, a shower, a TV and air conditioner, which is almost mandatory in the beach. Regarding the attention from employees it is fair to say that it was good in both hotels, but still being Soberanis a small hotel the attention feels more personal and cozy.

There are two aspects that I consider important, one of course is food availability and the second aspect will be the computer services. Even though there are usually plenty of places to go and eat outside hotels, it is always nice to at least have breakfast there before you start your day. It is maybe in this aspect that Soberanis hotel beats Krystal hotel because Soberanis has a good variety of dishes at very affordable prices while Krystal hotel has a good variety too but the cost is very high. Also Soberanis hotel provides a free internet hour to the guests along with two free bottles of water a day while Krystal hotel charges for the use of the computers and sells the bottles of water they leave in the room.

As you can see, picking a hotel is tricky and sometimes what you see in the publicity is deceiving, but if we narrow down our demands to what is really basic for us and what we can live without then the decision is easier. Both of the mentioned hotels are good options for having a good stay in Cancun and the final pick will depend on what you are looking for and what you are willing to invest. Whatever your decision is what is guaranteed is that you will enjoy your time in the city and you will always want to go back again.

Movie review

What where you doing in 1973?

            During an hour and 45 minutes Antonino Isordia Llamazares immerses us in the lives of three totally different characters portrayed by themselves in this documentary called 1973. Mexico City is the scenario where Rodolfo, Mafer and Alejandro never cross paths yet they have something in common that makes them get together in this sometimes confusing piece of work by Isordia, the year 1973, the year when they all were born.

            Rodolfo Escogido “El fantasmon” still smiles when he remembers the crowd cheering his name in his days of glory, but since glory doesn’t last forever when it is not honestly earned, sooner or later there is a pay off and he tells us how his rise and down happened in his life.

            Maria Fernanda Ramos Macín talks about her encounter with drugs and all kinds of abuse she went through till the day she jumped from a bridge without having consciousness of what was happening, an interesting story to follow with a surprising ending in the last minutes of the documentary.

            After listening to Alejandro Cota, your beliefs in good and evil will be challenged. A shaking and intriguing story that will bring up many questions with not too many answers from the people involved but  many from what is witnessed by the audience.

            Totally produced by the Centro de Capacitacion Cinematografica and Churubusco Estudios this documentary received the JVC award for best director in the 20^th International Cinema Festival of Guadalajara and was nominated for an Ariel.

            The music by bands like Santa Sabina, B4, los Ultrasonicos and others adds a sense of uncertainty to what comes next, which is a constant in the film and is a determining factor to hook the viewer to the plot.

             1973 is a film that you will probably see only once but that time will be enough to make you get a different perspective of life and will open your eyes to a reality that some people live day by day and the rest of us will never imagine.

http://www.jornada.unam.mx/2006/03/10/index.php?section=espectaculos&article=a10n1esp