1º British: Historical model-making

It's time of the funniest activity of the year! Model-making! :) Yes, you have to do a manual work: a model, mockup or diorama of any historical age studied this year!

Of course, you will have a mark for this work. And, as you will do it very well, that mark will be very high... Do not worry, you have enough time: the delivery date is Tuesday, 30 April.

Instructions:

1. The model can be done individually or in groups (maximum, 3 people).

2. The item must be obligatorily related to one of the historical topics studied this year. You can add some figures and landscape items, but remember that the main part must be a building.

3. Do NOT expend money, do it with reusable materials: paper, cardboard, clay ... even those Playmobiles you have in a drawer :)

4. Be original: it is a creative work, to show off your imagination.

5. They should be harmless (no volcanoes to explode, please)

There are many options: Paleolithic hunters, the neolithic city of Catal Huyuck, a Mesopotamian ziggurat, Egyptian pyramids and sphinxes, the Parthenon of Athens, the Lighthouse of Alexandria, the war between the Greeks and Persians, the Roman Forum, the Colosseum with gladiators, the Circus with a chariot race, Pompeii and Mount Vesuvius, a Vetton's castro...

Get to work and enjoy it! 

Cover photo:

Aesclick 

4º British: Filming an historical movie

Your new task this term will be: filming an historical short movie! Today, with the daily-use technology is quite easy to became a film director, and that could be a great educational activity, don’t you think so? J

You can do it individually, in pairs or in groups. These are the basic requirements:

• The main issue must be one of the topics from this year’s syllabus.
• The story should be historically correct: you can be creative about secondary things (locations, music, clothes, etc.) but the characters should do real historical facts, specially if you choose the option of a documentary movie (maybe you should check for primary sources before preparing the dialogues and speeches...).
• The final product should last between 5 and 9 minutes
• After those minutes, you should include the author’s credits
• The video must be in .avi or .mp4 format

Let’s start with some help... In the following document you can learn about the steps of filming a movie and its technical aspects, such as types of shoots (planos) and camera’s angles.

When finish, send the video by wetransfer.com (and any extra material that you have created) to acarriles@educa.jcyl.es. The deadline will be 13 May. After the revisions and qualifications, we will have our own Film Festival (Friday, 17 May). This activity is mandatory; remember that, as usual, if you don’t do it, or you do it out of time, the mark for this activity will be 0.

Be creative and enjoy the activity. Good luck!

2ºBritish: Women on Modern Art

Throughout the centuries, women have been involved in making art, whether as creators and innovators of new forms of artistic expression, patrons, collectors, sources of inspiration, or significant contributors as art historians and critics.

But despite being engaged with the art world in every way, many women artists have found opposition in the traditional narrative of art history. They have faced challenges due to gender biases, from finding difficulty in training to selling their work and gaining recognition.

Finally this year, Museo de El Prado is opening a special exhibition about two of the greatest female painters of the Italian Renaissance (Sofonisba Anguissola and Lavinia Fontana) who, despite the historical difficulties, managed to be proudly included into Vasari’s book about the most prominent artist of his time.

But there were not the only ones. And now it is your opportunity of learn more about them: prepare a complete presentation (ppt) about one of the artist from this list: brief biography and complete/detailed study about her art works (3 minimum). You can also visit the artcyclopedia.

This work can be done individually or in groups (maximun 3 people). When finish,  as usual, send it as attached file to acarriles@educa.jcyl.es . After the revision, you will do a public speaking at class. All members of the team have to talk. Cooperation and the use of appropiate vocabulary would be also keep in mind.

As usual, this work is mandatory. If you fail to finish it, send it out of date or just copy&paste from a webpage, your mark will be a 0.

Ready? Steady?... go!  

2ºBritish: G.O.S.T.: Final score

Congratulations to all the winners! Thank you for your constant effort and the lovely DIY you have created :) Hope that you have learnt many things during the process...

2ºBritish: G.O.S.T.- Stage 6: Emperor Charles and the Habsburg dynasty (“Los Austrias")

The "Revolt of the Comuneros" was a key event in the early reign of Charles I, grandson of the Catholic Monarchs and new king of both Castilla & Aragón (1517). Firstly, read this complete article by Geografía Infinita explaining the causes of the revolt, the battle and its consequences: 

You can also watch the following historical performance video of the battle (in Spanish). We will discus it at class and I will release the final mission for those who still need another opportunity... 

Some useful links for studying the Revolt of Comuneros are the Fundation Villalar web, the Battle development and a Historical review. 

Charles I was crowned emperor in 1519, named Charles V. Here you have a terrific video by AcademiaPlay about his life (11 minutes, in Spanish).

After Charles I, his son Philip II became king and fixed the capital city in Madrid, building the religious and palatial complex of "El Escorial". Philip II, the most powerful king in the whole world in that century, had to deal with many problems; one of the most famous episodes was the Anglo-Spanish War. That video (13 minutes) will teach you the events. 

As a curious historical event, it would be quite interesting to do some online research about the two Japanese diplomatic embassy that include the Iberian Peninsula in their official route.

Both Charles I and Philip II were also called "Austrias Mayores", because of the power and strengh. Meanwhile their heirs (Philip III, Philip IV and Charles II) were called "Austrias Menores" because, although Spain was still the largest empire in the world, things had started to change into society and the international scenario...