Spring Fête--2009 (May 8th)

I'd like to thank everyone who participated and everyone who attended what was perhaps one of our most successful editions of the annual CAFLI Spring Fête. The change in venue was certainly worthwhile and not only for the acoustics. Because the ESTV is smaller than our former auditorium it felt like there was a packed house, the atmosphere was cozier and things ran more smoothly and swiftly. I found it to be a truly pleasurable evening and experience.

I'd like to thank Drª Isabel Duarte, in particular, for her help in the arrangements and Eng.º Carlos Silva, who couldn't have done more to help make the evening a great success. In fact, we truly felt at home at the ESTV (Escola Superior de Tecnologia de Viseu)...so allow me to express our deepest gratitude and appreciation!

May next year's Spring Fête outshine even this one. Our students, their friends and families and the CAFLI staff deserve it!

Thank you all so very much from the bottom of my heart.
Fernando Almeida

Below are just a few pictures to commemorate the evening:

Video of the Week - Happy Easter w/ Easter Cupcakes!

This week I went out looking for a video connected to the Easter holiday. I found this one and liked it because one of the myriad things you can learn on Youtube is recipes. There are all kinds of recipes with video instructions. This week learn about an English tradistion: cupcakes! These cupcakes are no ordinary ones: they're themed on furry Easter animals!

Have a safe and happy Easter!

Video of the Week - Women's History Month

Well, March is nearly over. For your information March is Women's History Month in case you didn't know. Some might say, this video should have been posted at the beginning of the month and not at the end. However, this way we can celebrate Women's History all through April too! In fact, I would vote to celebrate women every minute of every day. I LOVE women in all of their complexities and intricacies. Vive les femmes!

Video of the Week--Fun with Monkeys

Hello Everyone!

How about some fun with monkeys this week? I very much enjoy children's videos and things aimed at teaching kids. They're fun and offer insights into how children learn--what matters to them rather than what WE think matters to them. How do I know this is the case? It's EASY--kids watch them...if they enjoy them, they watch them over and over again!!! Then we can see what goes in: the music, the words and the concepts. AND there's another thing; unlike adults kids are brutally honest. If they don't like something--they simply will not watch it! I hope you enjoy this week's video too!

Video of the Week

English is your link to knowledge in any area: science, history, economics and business studies, and even MATH!!! Take a look at this week's video:

A Promise Kept

This is to keep a promise I made to Tiago at the beginning of the year. I may take a long time but I ALWAYS keep my promises.

We were talking about braiding hair. Tiago braided his and I told him that I had done the same once way back in high school. My best friend, Mike, was a swimmer and he said that he would braid his hair for the first home swim meet. I immediately volunteered even though I was no swimmer...just a good friend with a good sense of humour.

As it turned out, each of us went to one of our classmates' houses. I went to Bethany's house and she spent hours braiding my hair. Well, after my promise to Mike and the effort put forth by Bethany, nothing would keep me from coming in to school the next day with my hair in braids (plats in British English). Mike, on the other hand, chickened out BUT I NEVER held it against him. It was his prerogative and one can only answer for one's own actions. Besides HE was the one actually swimming in the meet, I was just supporting the team and, above all, Mike.

It wasn't common for guys to go to school like that back in those pre-hip hop as the mainstream culture days! But I'm glad I did it and I'd do it again! Recently, I came across a couple of old photos of that episode and I promised Tiago I'd scan them and post them here. Tiago, you're a great guy and I ALWAYS keep a promise!



Have a wonderful day!

Video of the Week--See the World Through New Eyes

You may or may not know that we now have Spanish classes at CAFLI. Well that's pertinent to this week's video but it's not the main point. The main point is that HOW you perceive things is at least as important, perhaps more so, than the fact that you perceive them at all. This is a beautiful video and I hope you enjoy it. Many thanks to my brother, Dave, for sharing it with me, and in so doing, with all of us!