the world through our eyes

IES Manuel de Falla 3ºA, 2013-2014

º


EDITORIAL 3

MY EXPERIENCE IN GLOBAL CLASSROOMS 4

MY EXPERIENCE IN NEW YORK 6

TEACHER ASSISTANTS 8

ENGLAND EXCHANGE ´14 9

SCIENCE WEEK FAIR 10

REAL MADRID WINS THEIR TENTH CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 11

GLOBAL CLASSROOMS 12

ENGLAND EXCHANGE 13

EUROPEAN ELECTIONS 14

ENGLAND – SPAIN EXCHANGE 16

THE VAMPS IN SPAIN 17

TRIP TO ANDORRA 18

THE GREAT SPANISH FILM 19

EUROVISION 2014 20

AN AMAZING TRIP TO ANDORRA 21


Editorial

This year the students of 3ºA have had the opportunity to participate in some important

events. They’ve done an international exchange, some of them with German students and

others with English students. They’ve also gone on a trip to Andorra called “La Semana

Blanca”. And finally, seven students participated in Global Classrooms, one of whom won a

trip to New York.

Carmen, our English teacher, organized some

incredible exchanges. The first was with

Germans students and then later with English

ones. The German students came to Spain on

the 30th of October. They did several activities:

visited museums, explored Madrid, took a short

trip to Toledo, and went to the European Park

(Parque Europa). Now, some Spanish students

will complete the exchange and go to Germany

on the 16th of June. English students came on the 22nd of April and they did the same

activities as the Germans. At the weekend, both the Germans and English spent time with

their host families. The Spanish students will travel to England on the 18th of June and will

meet them again.

On the 30th of March many students went to

Andorra and had a great time skiing. Felipe

and Gregorio, our two technology teachers,

and Jorge, our physics and chemistry teacher,

organized this trip. They stayed in Andorra for

a week, and had the opportunity to ski, go to

a spa, go to a disco and do some other things.

They went with some students from 4th year

and from 1st and 2nd of bachillerato.

Pilar, María, Antonio, Andrés, Ángel, Adrián, and Dani went to the Global Classroom

Conference. At the conference, they represented different countries as if they were

politicians and discussed with others students from different schools in Madrid about a

general topic, “Migration”. In the end, Ángel won a seven day trip to New York, where he

attended a conference and was able to visit New York City.

-Dana Senande Martín


My Experience in Global Classrooms

“Global Classrooms is an experience that has changed me.”

Since my cousin told me about global classrooms when I was 12, I have waited excitedly and patiently until the moment I would have an opportunity to demonstrate my skills in Global Classrooms. When my teacher started to talk about this bilingual project I began to work hard on it. I have to point out the huge competitiveness in my class. I worked very hard and finally I became one of the delegates from the United Kingdom. Since that moment I continued working even harder. I became more enthusiastic and I came to the first conference prepared to take advantage of the opportunity. Earlier than I expected, the day of the conference was in front of our faces. It was finally the day that we had been preparing for. When my partner

and I came into the room, we were no longer Spanish; we became delegates from the United Kingdom. We raised our placard, I was very nervous but we went to the stage and we amazed other people with our opening speech. Strangely, after the opening speech I became calmer and more relaxed and I supported my country with the best ideas I had. Finally, our resolution was passed. When our leader, Michael, told us that we had passed to the next conference, I was a bit surprised but not too much because I knew that my classmates did a great job. We only had a month to prepare for the second conference, but personally I think that we took advantage of the time we had. Our new country was Nigeria, which I believed to be a big challenge, but it didn’t take me


long to realize that it was a good country. As I started working with my new country, I put a huge effort into my position paper and later into my opening speech. The day before the conference we went to the Assembly of Madrid, I was amazed to be in this huge and formal place. I felt very excited and that I was a privileged person. Again, the day of the conference arrived quickly. When we went into the building, it was almost the same, but something had changed. I wasn’t nervous, it was completely the opposite; I felt confident and comfortable from the moment we entered the room. The chair opened the speakers’ list. We were sitting in the back of the room and the chair didn’t call our names, so I started to feel nervous. Finally, the chair said the magic word, “Nigeria”. We were in the tenth position on the speakers list and I prayed that we wouldn´t move to a caucus until we had given our speech. We had the luck of giving our speech; we went to the front of the room and we did it even better than the last time. As time passed, our delegation became more competitive. It wasn’t easy, and I felt that every single person in the room was worthy of respect. They were huge and incredible opponents. After a long time debating and discussing our ideas, it was time to vote on our resolutions. Ours was one of the finalists, but finally it didn’t pass by two votes. The other resolution passed, and I personally think it was excellent.

Then we returned to the Assembly of Madrid and when they started given the awards, the delegation of Nigeria won two of them: The best position paper and the honorable mention. I have to give thanks to my teachers because they have noticed all my effort and they picked me to go to the interview. If the judges who are choosing the delegates choose me, I will meet other people from all over the world and I’ll be sharing my ideas with them. In regards to their ideas, personally I don’t think there’s any wrong opinion, only different ones. Listening to other people also will open my mind and my way of thinking. Understanding other people’s points of view is a great way to gain wisdom. My dream is to travel all around the world and I think that I can begin with a brilliant city such as New York and a great country such as the USA. Also it would be an interesting point in my education because when I am older I would like to work in international relations. It would be an honor to represent to Spain outside our borders and also to represent my country in global classrooms. I’m doing this not only for myself, but also for my school and the other delegates from my school, who are great. I am really honored to have been chosen to represent them in the interview.

-Ángel Polo Huelves


MY EXPERIENCE IN NEW YORK

“This trip has been an experience that I won’t forget.”

The trip to New York passed in the blink

of an eye. The days ran off the calendar at

the speed of light. This trip has been a

life-changing experience for me. From the

day my teachers told me that I had been

chosen until the day my trip finished, I

didn’t think about anything except New

York. Thinking about going to this city was

unbelievable when we started Global

Classrooms. When we passed to the

second conference I only thought about

how well my mates and I had done to

pass. I still think they did great and all of

them deserved to go to “the city that

doesn’t sleep”, their competitiveness was

extraordinary.

Then after the two conferences, the

teachers called us and told us that I would

go to the interview to represent our high

school. I was totally amazed and I

couldn’t believe it, I was the chosen one.

One of the best feelings I could ever have

was when I saw all my friends and mates

supporting me. At the interview I knew

that all of us were one, and they helped

me to reach my goal. Since the first

moment they said to me that I was going

to the interview they believed in me, and

they were totally sure that I would go to

New York. I am 100% sure that they are

the best friends that I could have. My

family has also been a great support and I

think that without them this wouldn’t

have happened. All the people I am

surrounded by are awesome. Also I have

to give special thanks to our teaching

assistant, Michael Caldwell, who prepared

us perfectly.


The day of the flight was very tiring, but

when we went to Manhattan, it was

spectacular. We saw Times Square and

the Empire State Building, which were the

two places I liked the most. All the lights

from Times Square and the beautiful

views from the Empire State Building

made a huge impact on me. Even the

hotel rose to the occasion. The hotel was

located between the Chrysler building

and Grand Central Station. The second

day we went to Central Park, the huge

and incredible park of New York. We also

saw the Metropolitan Museum and the

Natural History Museum of Central Park.

Afterwards, in the evening, we went to

have dinner in Grand Central Station. The

next day, we went to the Rockefeller

Center where we saw an enormous

building with a statue in front. There was

also a huge Lego shop. We visited the

library of New York and last but not least

we went to the opening ceremony in the

United Nations building. It was incredible

to be in the same place as so many

important people from different countries

and with other students from all over the

world. The following day we went to the

conference in the hotel. It was exciting to

compete with older (and many of them

native) students from all parts of the

world. Also, we visited 5th Avenue, where

all the famous shops are located. After

the conference we visited the Museum of

Modern Art, or the “MOMA”. The next

day we continued with the conference

and our resolution passed successfully.

That same day, we went to see the

Brooklyn Bridge and Chinatown at night,

and it was marvelous. Finally, the last day

we took a boat and we went to Liberty

Island to see the Statue of Liberty and we

took photos of the views of the city from

there. After that, we went to the airport

and we came back to Madrid. It was a trip

that I’ll never forget.

-Ángel Polo Huelves


Teacher assistants are qualified English

speakers coming from different countries,

allowing us to have an exchange of

cultures. Among them, there are different

nationalities: the majority are American

and the rest of them Australian and

English. Our teacher assistants this year

were called Michael, Amanda, Liz, Shawn

and Chandler.

The responsibilities of the teacher

assistants are varied. This year, Michael

helped us in Social Science, Biology and

English classes. Amanda helped us only in

P.E classes. Liz helped in Technology

classes and Chandler sometimes helped

us during English classes. Unfortunately,

Shawn didn’t have any classes with 3rd of

ESO-A this year.

In our high school there are lot of

different activities. Among them there is

an activity called Global Classrooms,

where we were able to validate our hard

work and we created a very close

friendship with Michael, and in other

cases, with other teacher assistants.

These were very rewarding activities for

us.

Time after time we became very

confident with them, and now apart from

a teacher and student relationship, we

have developed a deep friendship and a

love for all of them. Each year new ones

come and the old ones return home,

although some stay with us another year.

That makes everyone very sad, but very

grateful for meeting such brilliant people.

I personally recommend all high schools

to participate in this wonderful

experience because it is really

worthwhile.

-María Vellisca Broncano

Michael Caldwell, Teacher Assistant


England Exchange ´14 “An Exciting and Refreshing Experience”

Every year 3rd of ESO students have

the opportunity to experience a new

culture, hosting an English boy/girl for

one week and then travelling to

England to stay with the family. Not

only is this fun, but it is also very useful

because you practice your English daily

and you learn new expressions and

vocabulary.

This year the English students arrived

at Madrid-Barajas airport on the 22nd

of April. The moment we met was very

confusing because we were all very

nervous and excited. During that night

we talked and got to know each other

better and after a few days we were

just like best friends. During their stay

here, we did a lot of different

activities, such as visiting Madrid,

visiting Toledo (which was a pity

because it rained), and going on a

zipline in Parque Europa (which was

very exciting).

All the exchange participants at the airport during our last hour together

This activity is very helpful in order to

learn how to live with a person from a

different country who speaks a

different language than you, and most

importantly, has a different cultural

background. I think that, my most

memorable moment here in Spain

would be when we were all together in

Parque Europa and we were laughing

and having fun together.

I hope that I can participate in more

exchanges during my life and meet

more people from different countries.

-Noelia Rosell Arispe


Science Week Fair “A funny and interesting learning period”

On November the 20th, the X

Science Week Fair of IES Manuel

de Falla took place.

This is a fair that showcases

science and technological projects

made by students and also

presented by them.

The students from 4th of ESO had

to present scientific projects and

3rd of ESO technological ones.

Technological projects consisted of

mechanisms, structures and

methods to obtain energy with

renewable sources of energy like

water, wind, and heat.

Students from 1st of ESO are

always very curious about the

projects because it is usually the

first time that they have seen them.

They were especially interested in

projects with water and hydraulics.

We believe that the science week is

a great opportunity to learn about

technology and to bring this

experience to everyone, either by

presenting them or by being

presented to. Everyone has an

opportunity to learn and to share

their knowledge about them with

other students. In addition,

presenting the projects in front of a

lot of students can help you to

overcome your shyness, practice

speaking in public, and allow you to

meet new people.

Another important point was that

teachers who helped us were very

thankful for our hard work and for

our success with the presentations

of the projects to other students.

We were also very thankful to them

because they made our learning

period a funny and interesting

period, and also because they gave

us a lot of advice and help.

This science week was very

rewarding for the students. I

recommend it to everyone.

-Sara Martínez and Irene de Nicolás


Real Madrid Wins Their Tenth Champions League

The team celebrating the title after the match

The UEFA Champions League is the most

important team-level competition in

Europe. It was created in 1955/1956 and

since 1992/1993, the league has been

called the Champions League. Since the

1999/2000 season, 32 teams have

participated in the competition. It is

played like a normal league: there are 8

groups with 4 teams in each one. There is

a rule that says that there can´t be two

teams from the same country in a group.

For the 2013/2014 season, the league

was won by Real Madrid 4-1 against

Atlético de Madrid. It was the first time

these two teams from the same country

had ever played against each other in the

Champions League final match. The last

time Real Madrid won this competition

was 12 years ago. Sergio Ramos, Gareth

Bale, Marcelo Vieira, and Cristiano

Ronaldo each scored goals for Real

Madrid and Diego Godín for Atlético de

Madrid. It was a very exciting match

because Atlético de Madrid scored in the

27th minute, and from that moment

onwards they played in a very defensive

way. Real Madrid finally scored in the last

minute. In extra time, Real Madrid scored

3 more goals because the Atlético de

Madrid players were very tired.

Real Madrid celebrated their tenth

Champions League victory in Plaza

Cibeles, where thousands of people were

gathered to see how Sergio Ramos would

put a Real Madrid scarf around Cibeles’

neck.

-Alejandro Álvarez


Global Classrooms is an educational

program that engages students from all

around the world in an exploration of

current world issues through interactive

simulations. This project is distinguished

by the developing of effective thinking,

conflict resolution and social skills that

the students involved in the program

learn. This program also offers valuable

insight into the growing influence of

globalization by making the students step

into the shoes of UN Ambassadors and

debate a range of varied issues, like

health or migration.

Since 2000, Model UN tried to involve

students in economically disadvantaged

public schools which rarely had the

opportunity to participate, helping to

reduce the gap between the different

communities.

Global Classrooms Madrid is now in its

sixth year. Students and teachers from

the 10 public bilingual secondary schools

operated by the Madrid regional

government and the British Council,

Fulbright Commission, and the US

Embassy in Madrid now participate in this

educative learning project.

Their slogan perfectly represents the

excellent and useful skills that the people

involved in this project acquire:

Learn. Live. Lead.

I have participated in this project and I

personally believe that if you work hard,

the results are worth it. Global

Classrooms has changed the way I think

about my studies and it has opened up

many windows to the current world for

me. I recommend that all students try to

participate in this program because it will

be extremely useful for their future.

-Andrés Tejeda Duque


ENGLAND EXCHANGE In our high school every year we have

the opportunity to participate in three

exchanges, with three different

countries. In the Bilingual Section we

are offered two exchanges, with

England and with Germany, and in the

Bilingual Program another one with

Holland.

The Dutch students came on April 22nd

and we were very excited.

We did a lot of activities with the high

school, for example, we all went

together to Toledo, and to the Europe

Park where we did a multi-adventure

activity and the ziplines. My favourite

moment was when they spent the day

with us in our high school. In English

class, we did an activity to meet each

other and it was really funny, and in

Maths we laughed a lot because they

didn’t understand anything since it

was in Spanish.

For me the most shocking part was

that they were very different than

Spanish people. They were more

reserved and they didn’t have any idea

how to speak another language.

In my opinion, living with an English

girl has been an amazing and

rewarding experience that is not

taught in school.

-Lucía Cánovas Riquelme


EUROPEAN ELECTIONS

The PP Won the European Elections in Spain Again

From the 22nd to the 25th of May,

European Elections were held in Spain.

The European Parliament is composed of

766 members, the largest parliament

after the parliament of India.

Only 54 seats in the European Parliament

were from Spain. In comparison with

Germany, which holds 94 seats, it shows

that Germany has the power in the

European Union. Germany has the

highest number of seats, both in the

Parliament and in the Commission.

Political parties which received the

most votes in each autonomous community

Elections were hard for both of the

strongest political parties. The PP party,

led by Arias Cañete, and the PSOE party,

led by Elena Valenciano, lost seats in

these elections, holding onto only 16

seats and 14 seats respectively.

The third most important political party in

this election was Izquierda Plural (IU),

winning 6 seats and led by Willy Meyer. It

was followed by “Podemos”, a new

political party led by Pablo Iglesias that

obtained 5 seats, making it the fourth

most powerful and certainly the most

shocking political party.

Number of votes per million for each

political party


This political party was new and it first

presented itself at the European

elections, but in a near future they will

also compete in the Spanish elections.

The rest of political parties only obtained

between 1 and 4 seats and they were

“UPyD”, “Coalicion por Europa”, “La

Izquierda por el Derecho a Decidir”,

“Partido de la Ciudadania”, “Los Pueblos

Deciden” and “Primavera Europea” and

they obtained their number of seats and

therefore political importance from

highest to lowest in the order listed here.

This election has shown that people are

disappointed with the two most

important political parties, PP and PSOE,

and no longer trust them. It also showed

that small parties such as “Podemos”,

“UPyD”, and others have increased their

importance due to frankness, promises,

and a new way of thinking. This new way

of thinking could change the EU and our

economic structure, improving

competitiveness and wealth here in

Spain.

-Antonio José Fernández Sobaberas


ENGLAND – SPAIN EXCHANGE

The English students arrived on April 22nd. They arrived in Spain, landing

at T2 (Terminal 2) at the Madrid – Barajas airport.

For the first few hours, each English student was going to experience

what life in Spain was like with their partners.

The second day after their arrival, we went to school and our English

partners had a meeting and were welcomed by the head teacher. We had

activities planned every day, like going to ‘Parque Europa’ or spending a

normal day in class all together.

At the weekend, families decided what to do. We all made an agreement

to meet up and do some of the activities we wanted to do. We went to

‘Parque Juan Carlos I’, went bowling, had dinner together, etc.

On the last day, we had to take our English partners to the airport so

that they could go back to their country. It was a sad moment because

we had to leave them and we didn’t want to. But, we also kept in mind

that on the 18 of June we would be travelling to England and would see

them again soon.

-Carlos Montes Fernández-Aguado


THE VAMPS IN SPAIN

On the 22nd and 23rd of May, The Vamps, a British boy band, came to Madrid and to

Barcelona, respectively.

The Vamps is a British boy band that

was started in 2012. The band is made

up of four members: Bradley is the

singer, James is the guitarist, Connor is

the bassist, and Tristan is the

drummer. They met on YouTube and

became famous by uploading covers of

famous singers. Now, they have an

album with their own original songs.

Their visit to Spain was amazing

because Spanish fans from all over

Spain went to welcome them to

Madrid.

In Madrid, they did a few interviews

with some radio presenters in the

morning and in the afternoon they

were in the Corte Inglés in San José de

Valderas to perform a concert and to

sign their CD for 500 people who had

bought it. Then, they were on a radio

program.

In Barcelona, they performed two of

their songs in the ‘Primavera Pop’ in

Paseo Marítimo.

“Spain was amazing, thank you for

your support. See you in October”,

said one of the members of The

Vamps.

-Isabel Sorando Esbrí


TRIP TO ANDORRA

It was very early the April 30th and we were very excited for this experience. We

arrived at the hotel, called Magic Massana, and became even more excited. Then,

we went to get the skiing equipment and finally we went to the hotel to finish this

long day.

The next day, we woke up early so that we could enjoy the whole day. We skied all

morning and in the evening we went to explore Andorra and to buy different

souvenirs. The following day, in the morning, some teachers tried to teach us how to

ski and in the evening we went to a health resort, which was very relaxing. We went

skiing all of the following mornings, but in the evenings we went to different places,

such as a disco, where we had a very good time, and also went into central Andorra.

Finally, the last day we skied as much as we could because it was the last day. Then

we went to Tobotron Naturlandia to go sledding, which we enjoyed very much, but

we were also sad because we knew that we had to return to Madrid.

-Marcos García García


THE GREAT SPANISH FILM Ocho Apellidos Vascos

Ocho Apellidos Vascos is one of the

most famous Spanish films ever that

was released in 2014. It’s a comedy

film in which you can see the conflicts

and prejudices between the Basques

and the Andalusians. The film lasts 98

minutes.

It has been one of Spain’s greatest

box-office successes; more than

9,082,000 people have seen it. The

film has made more than $53,890,000.

Directed by Emilio Martinez, the stars

of the cast were Dani Rovira (a famous

comedian) and Clara Lago (a really

well-known actress). The movie also

includes some other actors that are

less well-known, like Carmen Machi,

Alfonso Sánchez, and Alberto López.

Rafa is an Andalusian guy that has

never been outside of Andalusia, but

one night he falls in love with a Basque

girl. With the excuse of bringing her a

bag, he goes to the Vascongadas,

where he tries to seduce the girl. He

does this by changing his name and

surname to pretend he is Basque, so

that the girl’s father will approve of

him.

It has received a lot of mixed reviews.

In my opinion, it’s a great film, but it

could be offensive to some Basque or

Andalusian people.

-Paula Maldonado


Eurovision 2014

“A festival that surprises us more each year”

Like every year before, the Eurovision Song

Contest has been incredibly spectacular. It

was held in Copenhagen, Denmark. Full of

charm and innovation, it has provided us with

many different surprises. One of them was

the “absolutely amazing stage. One of the

ones I have most liked in these last years,

without a doubt”, the eurofan Miguel Ángel

Silgado stated. “The images of the cubes and

the 3D floor gave each performance a

personal and professional touch”. These

effects have helped participants make the

show much more astonishing and beautiful.

“There have been countries, such as Ukraine,

that have made the singer’s figure stand out,

but others, such as Azerbaijan, have done the

opposite, distracting the spectators from the

singer, who is the most important one

there”, our eurofan emphasizes.

But the most exciting news was the

announcement of the winner, Conchita

Wurst, the bearded woman from Austria.

This subject has been the topic of many

conversations. There’s a rumor that says she

won because of the voters’ mocking her. On

the other hand, many people believe “she

has won because she has been keen on

people because of the song and because of

the values she represents”, as Miguel Ángel

Silgado thinks.

Conchita Wurst’s real name is Thomas

Neuwirth, but, since 2011, she has worn

women’s clothes and a thick beard for her

concerts. Because of that, at first, her country

didn’t want to let her participate in

Eurovision, but finally they allowed her. And

it wasn’t for nothing: she rose up with the

award 48 years after the first time Austria

had won. Together, with her winning song,

“Rise like a Phoenix”, Conchita Wurst has

been a source of hope and inspiration not

only to the transvestite and gay communities,

but to people in general who are going

through difficult times. She has been a really

important figure for all these men and

women.

Next year it is Austria’s responsibility to

delight us with another unforgettable

Eurovision Song Contest, with a new stage

and a lot of new surprises. As the eurofan

Miguel Ángel Silgado has said, “It’s going to

be a very elegant festival because of how

committed Austria is in these types of things.

But about songs… Luckily, we don’t know

what we are going to witness. That is the

beautiful thing about Eurovision. I’m wishing

they surprise us.”

-Pilar Arcos Sánchez


An Amazing Trip to Andorra

This unique experience is a trip repeated every year for 3rd and 4th of ESO and baccalaureate

students to have the chance to learn to ski. Our journey began on the 30th of March of this year.

We were all excited about this great opportunity that we were finally going to experience.

We had to wake up early so that we could leave at 8:30. It was a long way by bus to reach

Andorra’s border. It took us eight hours to arrive in La Masana, where we were hosted at the

Magic Masana, a four-star hotel with great accommodations and a free buffet.

Each day of the week we did a different activity. The first day we settled in to the hotel and we

took all the equipment for the ski lessons. Then in the afternoon we visited the city of Andorra.

The next day, on Tuesday, we woke up early, we got prepared for skiing and at nine we had our

first lesson. It was quite fun the first time, even though those of us who had never skied before

didn’t even know how to move. In the afternoon that day, we went to Caldea, a seaside resort

where we spent 3 hours.

On Wednesday we had our ski lesson at nine, as the day before. It was an exciting experience

which most of us would like to repeat. So, as usual, we did another afternoon activity, this time we

went to a “disco” which was actually a pub (like ours) on the first floor of the hotel, where we

spent the night playing “futbolín” (table football), and were joined by other schools.

The next day was the day before we had to leave. As usual we had our ski lesson, where we

learned to ski on red and blue tracks. In the afternoon we had shopping time in Andorra where we

bought some souvenirs, including T-shirts, chocolate, and many other things.

Finally on Friday, the last day, we had our last lesson, and we spent almost all the morning skiing

wherever we wanted. After that, it was time to take back all the skiing equipment. In the

afternoon, we packed and we got on the bus. The trip back to Coslada was even longer than when

we went to Andorra. None of us wanted to leave the country, but we had to. During the ride we

started remembering good moments that we will never forget, and before we noticed, we were

back in Coslada, hugging our parents and telling them about this amazing experience.

-Daniel Hernández Arcos

the world through our eyes

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