ENA9

ENA9

Express yourself (ENA9)

Soveltava kurssi.

Arviointi: suoritusmerkintä. Kurssia ei voi suorittaa itsenäisesti.

Kurssilla harjoitellaan suullisia ja kirjallisia viestintätaitoja sanaston harjaannuttamiseksi. Kurssin aikana voidaan työskennellä projektinomaisesti opiskelijan oman mielenkiinnon kohteiden mukaan. Aiheina voivat olla esimerkiksi musiikki, kirjallisuus, urheilu, vapaa-aika, tiede.

ENA9 2021-2022 Video Activity

During the course each student showed an interesting video in English and also planned an activity related to it. One example was watching a video on a bluntnose sixgill shark and drawing a picture of it.

ENA9 2020-2021 Outdoor Activity

Because of the pandemic the course was carried out as distance learning. Therefore one activity took place outdoors in everyone's own neighborhood. Here are some of the pictures taken on a beautiful winter's day in January 2021.

2021 Projects: A book analysis by Milma Kauppinen

A book analysis on Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, written by Milma Kauppinen 

 

Pride and Prejudice, a classic novel by Jane Austen, tells the story of a complicated love that develops between complete opposites. The main character, Elizabeth Bennet, misjudges a man based on rumors and lies, thus creating hatred for someone she doesn’t even know. Social status and pride in family had a major influence during the early 19th century, when this novel takes place. The novel has been described as a classic love story, but truly, it is so much more than that.  

  

Elizabeth Bennet is the protagonist of the novel, and the story is told upon her view of the world. The major conflict of the book is based on Elizabeth’s struggle in finding a fit husband for herself. Elizabeth’s character is extremely stubborn, and she lacks self-awareness and manners. She is always ready to try and outwit others, forgetting that she might not always be right. She tends to speak her mind before she even thinks twice. Her character is a straight example of how bad prejudices can get. During the first chapters of the novel, Elizabeth meets Mr. Darcy, a wealthy, but overly arrogant aristocrat. Mr. Darcy is inconsiderate of other people’s feelings and tends to think of himself as better than anyone else. His character has so much pride, that Elizabeth begins to despise him. The two characters hate each other so much, that it starts to develop into some kind of sick romance. The tension between the two is intense, but somehow, they cannot let go of their ill attitudes. Truly, the two cannot fall in love until they let go of their pride, and prejudice.  

  

Pride and Prejudice has been praised as a great example of a perfect love story. I don’t agree with that at all. The love story that takes between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy contains so much evilness that I don’t see anything perfect about it. Mr. Darcy uses his wealth and entitlements to try and win Elizabeth over, and in the end, succeeding. However, Mr. Darcy forgets to truly consider Elizabeth’s feelings, and mostly just ends up gaslighting her. Of course, there were some very sweet sequences between the two, but Mr. Darcy has been written as this controlling and simply mean character. His character does develop onto the better side in the end, but not as much as Elizabeth. Elizabeth seems to be ready to risk it all for Mr. Darcy, even though he had done so much evil to her family. This is just my view of his character, and there are some positive traits to Mr. Darcy’s character, too. He might be awful in some ways, but he can be worthy of loving Elizabeth. I just think that when people call the novel a smart portrayal of love, it is straight disrespectful to Austen. The book tackles themes such as the importance of social class, women’s rights during the time, and the evilness of some people. I think that what Austen is trying to say with the book is that, truly, never judge anyone before you get to know them. People need to learn to let go of their evilness and learn to appreciate the feelings of other people.  

  

The plot of the book develops fairly slow and is well structured. Austen is known for her use of irony and comedy in her novels, which was also noticeable in this one. Everything happens very chronologically and not once does anyone think of the past nor the future. Truly, for the most part, nothing happens in the book. Once in a while Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy meet, creating some sort of a plot into the novel. Mostly the novel describes the day-to-day life in the English countryside. I’m not usually a fan of such slow and uneventful novels, but somehow it worked in this one. Austen has a way with her words, and even though the plot might be boring, something in it still captures the reader. There were times when I was ready to take a break on reading, but just a small added detail in a chapter kept me going. Now that I think of the events of the novel, I just think of fancy and rich people going to one another’s houses and judging everyone. Most of the characters were super negative, which threw me off at first. Maybe showing these judging characters was how Austen wanted to portray pride and prejudice. The working title of the novel was First impressions which is a straight reference to the acts of the characters. Truly, the book is more about how humans get along, and not just about love.  

  

My thoughts about Pride and Prejudice are all over the place. I did enjoy reading it, but at some points, the language used was way too much for me. I understood everything well but reading that many words in this context was quite hard. The plot was interesting, and I enjoyed reading about how life was in the 1800’s England. I have never read a novel of this sort, so it was a great first experience. The way Austen puts little details about important matters into the novel was fascinating to me. I love how her writing seemed so effortless, and all sentences had some kind of meaning to them. The portrayal of flaws of the society at that time was also a great way of education. The book made me question myself, am I too quick to judge other people? Do I have too much pride in myself? That truly shows how great of an author Jane Austen truly is. This might not have been my favorite book to read, but it was worth the read. I now know so much more about pride, prejudice, and self-importance. 

2021 Projects: A story by Katriina Klén

The giant of the sea 

The shadows grew longer, as the tavern door opened. A young man walked in and approached the bartender. 

  • Hello mate, do you happen to know any ships that go to Burningbay?  

The bartender looked at him like he had seen the biggest idiot. 

  • There is not much I can tell you, most of the chips departed already. See that old man? 
  • Yes? 

Looking at the old sailor sitting in an armchair next to the fireplace. He seemed like he had seen better days. 

  • Ask him, he knows all the ships like his own pockets. 

Hesitant, but he had nothing to lose here, was there? The young man walked to the old man. Getting closer he noticed the smell of sea. Did this old man bathe? 

  • Hello sir, I may I sit here? 
  • Go ahead lad. What bring you to these parts? You don’t seem like a sailor to me? 
  • I have not been to the sea for a long time, I am looking for a ship that would go to Burningbay. Do you know anyone who would be willing to take me onboard? 
  • That is a dangerous place you are trying to reach. You one of those who search for the treasure? 
  • Yeah, what else? It is the legendary treasure of the burningbay tale! 
  • Listen closely here lad. Do you absolutely want to go to Burningbay? 
  • Yes, I am certain. Just tell me what you know. 

The old man was silent for a moment. He looked at the young man with a sharp gaze, like deciding his fate, and said: 

  • Then, the only ship that can take you is The Howling Giant 
  • I have never heard of that ship. 
  • I wonder not. Most are too scared to even say the name out loud, in fear of it appearing in front of them during their voyage.  

Chills went down his back, but he brushed it off as his body warming up by the fireplace. There was no way he would fear some shady tale. The old man began to tell a story about The Howling Giant.  

 

It was a ship that sailed these seas. Everybody knew it as the singing ship. Jolly sailors, and their captain, Morren. A massive ship that you could recognize from miles ahead as no other ship compared to it. Bringing joy! People would wait for its arrival to their hometown port. Until there was no sight of it ever again. For many long years, people looked for it, but in vain. It was accepted that the ship was long gone, along with its crew.  

The fire cracked in the fireplace. The old man was silent. Leaning slowly forward as the fire made shadows to his face. 

And on night, there it was. From midst of a thick mist. Getting closer and filling the air with cold. Every breath you took felt like tar. Sticking to your throat. You felt powerless as it slowly closed in, covering the light of a full moon. The wood in its hull was dark from decay and full of holes, it is a miracle it stayed on float. Some climbed on board of the ship.  And the singing began. Even if it was only one person who boarded, the sounds of tens of people were heard. Singing and mobing around. It sounded like merry time, but soon the voices would change. Changing to howling and then to screaming and bloody screeching. No one else dared to board the Howling Giant. After a while it would sail away. Disappear as fast as it had appeared. Those who boarded were never found and those who saved are left to tell the tale. 

  • Hah, really nice story old man. But there is no way something like that is real. That is just some old tale! 

The old man stood up. Seaweed splatting on the floor.  

  • It is up to you to decide what you believe in. Now go and look for your legendary treasure. 

The clacking of a wooden leg echoed in the tavern. He walked past the young man. The air flow felt heavy, sticking to his throat. The lad turned around to ask the old man: 

  • Right, I do not know yet what is your name? 

There was no one there. only a sound echoing in the tavern. 

  • Tilmman Morren... 

Salo Irish Festival 2018

Our group ENA9 attended the main concert of Salo Irish Festival 2018 instead of having an exam during the exam week. The concert was opened by the Ambassador of Ireland, mrs Maeve Collins. She mentioned the many festivities taking place in Finland around the Saint Patrick's Day in her welcoming speech. The Mayor of Salo, Lauri Inna also gave a speech at the beginning of the concert.
Irish music and dances are popular and famous all over the world and so in Finland too. Dragún Irish Dancers from Turku performed traditional Irish dances and also some parts of their upcoming show called Metsänpeitto. The dance was followed by a local band called The Green Hope from Salo. A great show was performed by Isara, a band from Tampere playing both Irish and Scottish music. The concert was finished by Irish Finn from Fiskars that played traditional Irish songs.
We all enjoyed the concert very much and Isara became our favourite of the bands!
Pictures of the performers can be seen below.

A project by Nilton Neto: Halu Goes International

Halikon Lukio International day

The exchange students arrived at school about 8:30 and went to the English classroom to present themselves and talk a little bit about their countries, after that we all went to another room to play Kahoot with the students.

After the Kahoot we went out to have lunch, and then we joined an English speaking course. At the end of the day Analia and Nilton went to Geography class while Naomi and Alice stayed with the English teacher in her room having coffee and some snack.

=Analia (Argentina)

=Nilton (Brazil)

=Naomi (Canada)

=Alice (Italy)

A project by Niina Kaski: Meeting and seeing people

English course 9

Project: Meeting and seeing people

Meeting new people is awesome but at the same time it can be the worst experience in your life. Staring in the other persons eyes for too long or not knowing what to say is so frustrating. Or when you see someone you kind of know but you don’t talk so much so do you say hello or nod a bit so they notice you or just stay quiet and walk fast away from them. The situation becomes really weird and stressful. Worst that can happen is after running away you see them again a little later. That is terrible.

Good things about seeing people you kind of know is that you can get to know them better and have new good friends. Or then you find out some rumours about you and the conversation becomes even more awkward and weird than it already is. And then you want to run away.

The best thing about meeting a whole new person you have never heard is that you have a lot to talk about. Basic facts about you and the other person is a good way to continue after the small talk. You can continue with your interests if you have some in common. Maybe your interests don’t have to be the same but listening to someone explaining some things close to them is a good way to get to know them. You will know how they act when they are happy and excited or feeling any other emotion. It is way easier to get to know a person with a friend that both of you know. Then you can know things about the other person that you can or can’t do around them. If your chemistries match then it’s of course easier to continue alone without a third friend.

Bad things about seeing new people is of course not knowing anything about them. Saying one wrong word and they will think all bad of you or then they are hurt about something you do or say and the friendship ends before it even started. The first impression is important so the person wants to see you again some time.

People come and go in your life. That’s normal. But the question is why it has to be so hard. Every time someone leaves, it hurts. Every time someone comes to your life, it takes a lot of effort to make things work. Things are easier if you have a few good friends that stand by your side no matter what. Meeting people will become easier. The more you meet people the more experience you get and after a while you learn to read people before talking to them. That will help a lot in a situation where you need to work with other people.

 

A project by Helmi Lipiäinen: Writing and giving an impressive speech

Helmi Lipiäinen

Dear teacher and fellow students,

I am Helmi Lipiäinen and I’m here today to tell you why fur farming should be banned. And first let’s hear a story from a fur farm.

Here I am. When I look around me, I see all these cages piled up. I have my own one too. In every cage there is an animal like me inside it. I hear frustrated screaming all day long. It’s really getting on my nerves. I would like to run free even just for a while. I have only 0,8 square meters space so it’s impossible. I just go around and around and around…. Fast and faster. Trying to forget myself… And then I become angry because I can’t. I’m so overweight that I barely can move. I guess they fed me to this monster-size to get a bigger fur of me. Sometimes I’m so angry that I even bite my own tail. I think I’m becoming crazy. If I could, I would cry. Cry because of this pain that hurts me. Cry because seeing other animals being killed in front of my eyes. Cry because I know I’m going to be killed too. Cry because there is a beautiful world outside, but this cage is the only one I’m ever going to know. And cry because I don’t want to live anymore. But I’m an animal, I can’t cry. “It’s just an animal”, they say.

This story could be and is a daily life of many animals in fur industry. Their lives are just tools to get money. How far can we go just because of money? Can we really live our lives with our eyes closed of all the bad that is happening to these animals? Is it really necessary to have a dead animal’s fur on you?

In my opinion, fur farming should be banned. Furs are luxury products that people don’t even need. And I hope that you all share this same opinion with me, and if not yet, at least after this speech. But I know there are a lot of people who aren’t against fur farming and even tend to defend it. So first, let me tell you and all the defenders some facts about it.

In many European countries, fur farming has been restricted or it’s already banned. Some countries have also set the prohibition of importation for furs. Fur farming is banned for example in the UK, Austria, Slovenia and Croatia. Recently, in January 2018 Norway also made the decision to ban fur farming by 2025 and thus being the 14th country in Europe to ban fur farming.

European Commission’s Scientific Committee on Animal Health and Animal Welfare (SCAHAW) established a report in 2001 on the conditions of the animals in fur farming. SCAHAW stated that there are problems on the welfare of all species in fur industry. It proposed numerous measures to improve the living conditions of fur animals. However, during all these years, the conditions haven’t amended. At the same time the published photos and videos show the shocking reality in the fur farms.

I can sadly tell you that our country has been unwilling to improve the conditions of these animals even slightly. The animal welfare act does not secure the wellbeing of the animals. Adherence to the law is not regularly supervised, and when it is, problems show up in most farms.

It’s not a surprise that the common problems that appear are related to the health of the animals. The animals usually suffer from many physical and behavioral abnormalities. They are kept in small cages which means they are not able to express their basic natural behavior such as running, digging and predating. In zoos, the space requirement for foxes is at least 600 square meters but in fur farms it’s only under one square meter. The lack of being able to express their nature and inability to hide causes stress to the animals. And stress induces stereotypical behavior for example repetitive circling.

One reason, why fur farming isn’t already banned in Finland is money. And that is a reason, why some people and even politicians and state officials are for fur farming. Fur industry has been quite a big part of the economy. Fur farming produces significant annual income and is an important employer in some parts of the country-side. However, according to Pellervo’s economic research, fur farming employs directly and indirectly just 4500 person-years. 4500 person-years is a lot less than the 17 000 that some politicians have incorrectly stated. Even though fur farming employs people and is a productive source of livelihood, it’s very problematic. Securing money and jobs are very weak arguments in this kind of ethical situation. It’s impossible to make fur farming an ethical form of economy with any acts so that it’ll still be profitable. That is an absurd equation. However, time goes on and we should let fur farming, an old-fashioned source of livelihood, stay far behind. Industries change, and we should find new, no animals harming ways to earn money. I suggest that we ban fur farming with a transition period and make the conditions for the animals be the best possible ones during that time. That’s what many countries in Europe have already done.

One could ask what a single person can do to make a difference. There are actually many ways to influence. The most important thing is to boycott fur in fashion. We, the consumers are together a big group that makes the markets. You can also sign the petition for a new animal welfare act on www.elainlaki.fi. It is also important to raise awareness on the problems in fur industry. The next step one can do is to support animal rights’ associations such as Animalia and Oikeutta eläimille.

You might feel that one person’s actions don’t have much impact and that it is insignificant to do anything. We aren’t always aware of our power that seems only like one drop in the ocean. But all the little drops are the ones that form even the greatest oceans. That is why we should not give up. And for that reason, we should not be quiet of the grievances in this world. Making a difference is not easy but as long as we are being silent, nothing will ever change.

Thank you for listening.

 

resources:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJTGC1KxWPE

The article about Norway banning fur farming:

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/01/18/norway-set-become-first-nordic-country-ban-fur-farming/ 

Fur Free Alliance:

https://www.furfreealliance.com/fur-farming/

https://www.furfreealliance.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Factsheet_Animal-welfare-problems-in-fur-farming.pdf

https://www.furfreealliance.com/fur-bans/

Animalia ry

Oikeutta Eläimille

European Green Party:

https://www.vihreat.fi/artikkeli/2010/03/euroopan-vihreat-turkistarhaus-kiellettava-koko-eu-alueella

Report of the Scientific Committee on Animal Health and Animal Welfare adopted on 12-13 December 2001:

https://ec.europa.eu/food/sites/food/files/safety/docs/sci-com_scah_out67_en.pdf

Luontoliitto’s article:

http://www.luontoliitto.fi/ajankohtaista/tiedotteet/turkistarhauksen-eettiset-ongelmat-tunnustetaan-myos-eduskunnassa

An essay by Helmi Lipiäinen

Marriage equality should be reality in church

The law that allows same-sex marriages in Finland entered into force on the 1st of January in 2017. Even though same-sex marriages are increasingly justifiable in societies, church still keeps teaching that marriage is only between a man and a woman. How can church discriminate people when the society should be equal for all? Why is love only for some people?

I’ve been told that God loves everyone and that the love of God is the greatest of power. For some people it seems obviously too hard to get.

Of course, there are people among church who are against this kind of discrimination and would allow same-sex marriages to happen in church. The ecclesiastical council decides on the doctrinal matters of church like the marriage. Significant issues, including marriage education, require ¾ majority of the votes. The problem is, that the ones who could make difference on this issue, are conservative middle-aged men and you might guess what their opinion is regarding to this matter.

Church is also scared that it will lose believers if they accept marriage equality. And I believe that it will probably happen. However, we should keep in mind that many people already have resigned themselves from church because its general opinion about marriage.

Church naturally bases its opinions on the Bible. According to the Bible marriage is only for a man and a woman. The Bible was written almost 2000 years ago by men. The world was very different back then and you can notice it when reading the Bible. For example: The Bible doesn’t judge slavery. Also, women are spoken in a degrading tone. That is why we can’t follow the Bible in a literal sense because many of its instructions are illegal and contradictory today.

Church should not cling to vanity. Instead, it should focus on the main message of Christianity: love towards each other and God. It is not church’s mission to judge anyone

A project by Johanna Sahlström and Aleksi Santanen: A letter to the Queen of England

Letter to the Queen of England

 

Dear Madam,

 

Greetings from Finland. How is your life going? We hope you're doing well. We are writing this letter to you to ask your opinion on some important matters. We want to know why England is a nice place to live. What is your favorite thing about England? Our favorite things about England are the landscapes, beautiful nature and great architecture.

How is it like to live in a palace? Buckingham Palace is very beautiful and seems like a great place to live. Also we would like to know how it feels like to be the Queen of England? Is it very stressful or is it enjoyable?

How does being also the Queen of Canada affect your work? Do you have to visit there often? What do you usually do in Canada?

We are worried about polar bears. What do you think should be done about global warming? This is a very important subject to us and we think that it is important to live sustainably and respect nature and animals.

We would like to know if you have some charities you always donate to or work with? If so, what were the main reasons for choosing exactly those ones?

Is there something you could do to make England the most environmentally friendly country in the world?

We think England seems like a good place to study in and perhaps even live in. Are foreign students and especially Finnish students a good thing? What about immigration in general?

There are many things we would like to change about the world, one of them being inequality. Inequality is a really discussed topic these days and that's amazing because it's very important to discuss these matters. We have understood that England has quite a lot of poor people and a big difference in wages. How are you fixing this problem or is it something that needs to be fixed in your opinion?

Thank you for taking the time to read this letter. We wish you all the best and take care.

Best regards,

Aleksi and Johanna from Finland

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