VALENTINE'S DAY AT I.E.S LOS ÁLAMOS

On 14 February lovers celebrate Valentine's Day. People in love give each other cards and presents: flowers-especially roses- chocolates or jewellery. In the evening there are special parties, and couples sometimes go to restaurants for a romantic dinner. In New York City on the top of the Empire State Building there are red lights on Valentine's Day.
The ancient Roman festival of Lupercalia was on 15 February. On this day young men took the names of young women out of a vase. The couples formed in this way, stayed together until the next Lupercalia. As usual, the Christian Church wanted to replace pagan festivals with Christian festivals. So, at the end of the fifth century Pope Gelasius created St Valentine's Day on 14 February.
Nobody knows exactly who Valentine was. There are three possibilities:

1. Some people think he was a Christian priest when Claudius II was the Roman emperor. When he needed a lot of soldiers for his army, Claudius did not permit marriages, but Valentine performed marriages secretly.The authorities discovered this, and executed him in AD 270.
2. There were another two Valentines in the third century: the Romans executed them because they were Christians.
3. A legend says that one of them fell in love with the daughter of the prison keeper. before his execution he wrote a letter to her: he signed it "from your Valentine".

In the United States, young schoolchildren take to school the same number of Valentine's cards as the number of children in the class. There is no name on the envelope, but each child writes their name inside the cards. On Valentine's Day children make colourful red and pink decorations for their classroom, and the teacher gives the cards and some sweets to every child.

MARTHIN LUTHER KING DAY

On the third Monday in January America celebrates Martin Luther King Day. This is quite a new public holiday in the United States: it started in 1983. Doctor Martin Luther King,Jr. was an important person in the American Civil Rights movement. He believed in non-violence. He was born in Atlanta, Georgia and became a Baptist minister. At that time there was segregation in the southern states of America. Black people could not use certain types of public transport and go to the same schools and churches as white people. Doctor King didn't agree with this and he protested in public. The police arrested him several times. On one occasion John F. Kennedy asked the police to free King.
In many southern towns and cities, black people sat at the back of the bus and white people at the front. In 1955 in Alabama, one lady, Rosa Parks, refused to give her seat to a white person. The police came and arrested her. Dr. King organized a boycott of the bus system in her village. No black person used a bus in Montgomery for 382 days. In the end the Supreme Court decided to stop segregation on public transport. After this victory Dr King was famous. Later he campaigned against segregations and inequality in other cities in the South. In 1963 in Birmingham, Alabama he organised another peaceful protest. He invited children and young adults to march with him.
The police commissioner ordered his policemen to attack them with dogs and water cannons. Televisions and newspapers all over the world showed these pictures of police brutality. In August 1963 he helped to organise the Civil Rights march on Washington,DC. On that day he gave his most famous speech:

"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation
where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the
content of their character. I have a dream today".

More than 200,000 people listened to his speech. In 1964 America passed the Civil Rights Act. This changed the lives of African-American forever. In this year he won the Noble Prize Prize. On 4 April 1968 a man called James Earl Ray assassinated him in Memphis.
Every year Americans remember his work by celebrating this national holiday. All the schools close for the day. People try to help someone on this day. It is not a day for rest but a day to think about how we can help people.

NEW YEAR!!!!!!

The last day of the year,New Year' s Eve on 31 December. In America and Great Britain many people go to parties, restaurants or nightclubs. For some parties people wear costumes and masks. At midnight it is traditional to sing the old Scottish song "Auld Lang Syne". This song celebrates friendship. In London lots of people go to Trafalgar Square and wait for the famous bell Big Ben to strike midnight.Some people jump into the fountains! In New York City lots of people go to Times Square. At midnight the words Happy New Year appear on an electronic sign. People cheer and there is a lot of noise. In some American cities office workers throw their old calendars out of the windows on 31 December. They are throwing the old year away. By the evening there is lots of paper in the streets!!!
In Scotland New Year' s Eve is called Hogmanay. It is the most important celebration of the year for Scottish people. In Edinburgh and other cities people celebrate in the streets,and there are concerts and fireworks. This is the time when people make "New Yearś Resolutions". They are promises people make to change habits during the new year. Some typical ones are:"I am going to clean room regularly" or " I am going to do more sport". Most people don not keep their resolutions, but some do !!

FATHER CHRISTMAS OR SANTA CLAUS

Father Christmas or Santa Claus is based on St. Nicholas, who was a Christian bishop in the fourth century. He was famous because he was generous and kind. People started giving presents on his day in the Christian calendar,6 December. Gradually this custom of giving presents moved to Christmas. But in England it was Father Christmas. In the 18th century Dutch settlers took the tradition of Sinterlaaas ("saint Nicholas" in Dutch) to New York. The pronunciation of "Sinterlass" gradually became "Santa Claus", and Santa Claus and Father Christmas became the same person.
The American cartoonist Thomas Nast created the modern image of Santa Claus in 1863. He is a happy old man with a white beard, wearing a red suit. He drives a sleigh pulled by reindeer, and comes down the chimney with toys for children.Before American and British children go to bed on Christmas Eve, they leave mince pies,biscuits and something to drink for Father Christmas. They also leave a Christmas stocking, where Father Christmas puts their presents.

GAME ON EUROPE. DO NOT MISS IT!!!

it is very entertaining and funny.!!!!

THANKSGIVING DAY AT IES LOS ALAMOS

Yesterday the High School I.E.S. Los Álamos celebrated The Thanksgiving's Day in the playground of our school. Students from 1º and 2 º ESO prepared delicious chocolate cakes and everybody enjoyed them .Our language assistant, Elizabeth, explained to us the traditions of North America and we had a very good time!!!!!!
Americans of all religions celebrate Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday of November. Thanksgiving is a special day for families, and people travel great distances to be with their families for this occasion.
The tradition started when some pilgrims left England because of religious persecution. They wanted to start a new life in a new country, so they left England on a ship called The Mayflower. They landed on the north-east coast of North America. It was winter and there wasn't much food. They immediately built small houses, but with the help of the native Americans who taught them to grow corn and how to hunt and fish. Soon the pilgrims and the natives became friends. The Pilgrims grew crops and the summer harvest was excellent. By November 1621 everyone had food and a home. They decided to celebrate it with a dinner to thank God. This was the first Thanksgiving dinner, and it continued for three days.