http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/Italy-Mudslide-Landslide-Hits-Maierato-In-Calabria-Forcing-200-People-To-Be-Evacuated/Article/201002315550010?f=rss

I know I’ve been gone for close to 8 months! That’s not a very good thing, but the news is…I’m back!

I will try to post something new once every week or when I find something interesting!

For now, enjoy this site:

http://www.poodwaddle.com/worldclock.swf

(I forgot how to add a URL link!:S)

More to come!
Miss Li x

If it didn’t go too well, don’t worry. Just take the test as a stamina and time management practice. Remember that the mid year exam is going to be for a longer duration, but there will also be more questions to complete in that length of time.

The trick to completing the exam paper well and in time? I have some tips for you which I found useful as a secondary school student trying to ace my exams:

1. Understand the content that you are studying. Do not just memorise blindly because when you are doing your exam paper, the points which you memorised but did not understand will be useless as you may not be able to use them in your explanations. It also wastes more time thinking about the content instead of knowing them well enough to manipulate it and use it for your answers.

2. Have enough practise answering questions.  Another major part of the exam other than learning the content, is actually what you have to do while you are in the exam hall; just you and the paper face-to-face: ANSWER THE QUESTIONS.  There are a few ways this can be achieved: -practising by doing assigned homework, – practising via class tests / tasks and – practising at home with extra assessment books, sample questions, past papers etc. Getting feedback and working on that feedback helps you get better.

In general, even if you don’t have enough time to practise enough because of time constraints, during the exam, you should be very clear in your mind what the question is asking, and then writing an answer that fits the question.

3. Sleep well the night before the test / exam.  Even when I couldn’t finish studying for my exams, I would still try to get at least 6 to 8 hours of sleep the night before a major exam. This is crucial because you need a fresh and alert mind to tackle your paper.

4. Keep your head  up! Have a good attitude! Do not be defeated by past failures or a bad attitude. I always tell my friends this motto I have about exams: Preparation is half the battle won; the other half depends on how you perform during the exam itself. Go into the exam hall with a good, confident and humbled mind. Do not be complacent because chances are you will make mistakes if you are proud.  Try your very best in that paper so that you don’t let yourself down and go away thinking that you should have tried harder.

******Savvy tips for the savvy student!******

All the best!

excessive use of fertilisers and pesticides, (which are what we learnt in class)

Land pollution is also caused by :

nuclear wastes,

industrial wastes (factories),

deforestation,

human sewage,

mining and

increased mechanization.

There are so many causes of land pollution. You can go research on them if you are interested!

My MSN account which I use to contact students is jasmine_li@hotmail.co.uk

I log on when I have time to…which isn’t very much lately. Sigh.

Feel free to add me!

Also, I would like to say that I will try to update the blog this week! It was a very busy busy week for me!

Miss Li

Volcanic eruptions are one of the natural causes of air pollution. This is an amazing picture of an underwater volcanic eruption in Tonga.

Click here to see more pictures:

http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/03/undersea_eruptions_near_tonga.html

Just a reminder and a note about the holiday homework…

You were required to finish:

A) the workbook worksheet 8.3,

B) AND to find some newspaper articles about water / water conservation.

You are still required to finish the workbook worksheet and hand it up to me on MONDAY.

However, I have been reading the newspapers lately and there doesn’t seem to have anything about water…so it’s ok, don’t worry if you haven’t found anything about water yet. If you have managed to find something, bring it into class and let me have a look.

Basically, I just wanted you to have an idea of water conservation in preparation for a small project which I need you to do. Having the materials will be good, but not extremely vital, so do not worry. I will tell you more about the project in class this week.

Enjoy the last days!

See you on Monday in class! (Please do not misbehave because I have a bad throat and do not want to strain it further!)

**DO NOT READ AHEAD!! Read LINE BY LINE otherwise it won’t be fun!!**

An erupting volcano is one of the most awesome displays of nature’s fury, belching forth hot lava and poisonous smoke that can reduce the surrounding landscape to grey ash. The destruction it brings overwhelms everything in its path, and it’s easy to understand how ancient civilisations could have regarded volcanoes as signs of the anger of the gods. Even today volcanoes seem to be sending us a not so subtle message about our place in the grand scheme of things.

You are standing within view of an erupting volcano. Which of the following best describes your thoughts at watching the spectacle?

1. “Maybe this is nature’s way of warning us to stop destroying the earth.”

2. “I guess the pressure just got too high inside there.”

3. “Wow – what a sight! I’m impressed!”

4. “It’s in the nature of these things to blow up. Big deal.”

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

Key to The Big Blowup:

The thoughts you had about the volcano are linked to the way you react to explosive power, specifically the anger of a superior. We’ve all run into a boss, teacher, coach, or parent who throws the occasional tantrum – this scenario shows how you deal with those blowups.

1. “Maybe this is nature’s way of warning us to stop destroying the earth.”

You recognice when you’re responsible for other people’s anger and are willing to accept the blame. That same sensitivity and adult attitude lets you clear up any problems you might have caused.

2. “I guess the pressure just got too high inside there.”

You place the blame for any problem squarely on someone else’s shoulders. After all, if you thought you were doing something wrong, you wouldn’t have done it in the first place, right?

3. “Wow – what a sight! I’m impressed!”

You accept criticism and even outbursts in a positive way, but that’s not to say you take them lightly. That sunny outlook is sure to make a favourable impression on superiors in the long run, after they’ve forgotten whatever it was they were yelling for.

4. “It’s in the nature of these things to blow up. Big deal.”

Strong words and harsh critiques leave you unimpressed, probably because you dont’ listen to them. Sure, that’s a low-stress way to get through a chewing-out, but you’re running the risk of never leanring from your own msitakes. Maybe you should start paying a little more attention to all that sound and fury; it might be signifying something after all.

(Taken from: Kokology: The Game of Self-Discovery, Tadahiko Nagao & Isamu Saito)

In case you get bored this week, there are some Geography games here for you to try:

http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/Geography.htm