English Recordings

History of Slavery in the United States
When did slavery begin in the Americas?
The first slaves in the American colonies arrived on a Dutch ship in Jamestown, Virginia in 1619. Over the next 200 years, around 600,000 more slaves were brought to the American colonies, most of them to work in the tobacco and cotton fields.
Where did the slaves come from?
Slaves were brought over from the continent of Africa. Most of them came from the west coast of Africa where the main ports for the slave trade existed. The conditions on the slave ships were terrible. Often slaves were "packed" tightly in the ship's hold where they were chained up and unable to move. Many slaves died during the trip due to disease and starvation.
Slave Codes
The colonies established laws regarding slaves called slave codes. Some of these laws detailed the punishment for slaves who tried to escape. Other slave codes made it illegal to teach a slave to read, to help a slave to hide, and to pay for a slave to work. Slaves were not allowed to have weapons, leave their owner's plantation, or lift their hand against a white person.
Abolitionism
After the American Revolution, many northern states outlawed slavery. By 1840 most slaves who lived north of the Mason-Dixon Line were set free. Many people in the north felt that slavery should be illegal in all the United States. These people were called abolitionists because they wanted to "abolish" slavery.

- Well, I'm not sure why they exactly call me like that, but I like to think it's because I'm the best at what I do. That title is just a term used to describe the assistant to the man who works with the camera team and the electricians on a film to make sure that the film is properly lit.

- Basically, what I do is work between the electrical department and production. I deal with the companies where the lights come from. And I'm also there on the film set, making sure that everything runs smoothly, that the lighting is set up when the camera crew arrives to shoot the film, and then I also help with the budget - we have to do timesheets, things like that. It's mostly paperwork.

- About fifteen years ago. I'd been an electrician and my first few film jobs were basic electrical ones, then I moved over to this.

- No, not really. I've never had to do anything out of the ordinary. But filming on location does make things more intense - there's less control than in the studio and you can have problems with the weather. On my latest film, we were working in the hills and it would take us ages to get the equipment up there. But I enjoyed it. It was a challenge.

- Well, you see some great places, but long working days and problems with production are far more common. There's a lot of responsibility with the job, because there's so much money involved. If all the lighting goes wrong on one day, then obviously there'll be trouble. The long hours are very unsociable, which is OK if you're single, but there's quite a lot of work abroad, which puts a lot pressure on the family. I went away for five months once. When I left, my son wasn't talking, and when I came back, he was. It varies though. Some years you don't go away at all.

- You need a good head for mathematics, plus knowing how to mend a fuse. So training as an electrician is the first step, then you need some experience on the production floor.

- I like it where I am. I like working behind the scenes and seeing how the production works. There are enough challenges in the present job for me. The more experience you get, the more you worry whether you've got things to the right stage at the right time or not. You can't just go home and switch off. But getting things right is a big satisfaction.

In our super-busy 21st-century lives, most of us try to do as
much as we can in 24 hours. However, we usually do things
whenever it suits us, and experts say that this is disrupting
our body’s natural cycle, making us feel tired at times when
we should feel awake, and vice versa. Science shows that
by doing things at the right time, we can be happier and
healthier.

Have breakfast at 8.00 a.m.
In a recent study, researchers found having breakfast at this
time is good for our blood sugar levels, so the food you eat
now will give you the energy you need. It’s also important
not to skip breakfast. Another research team, from Sweden,
suggested that people who ate a regular breakfast as
teenagers were 32% less likely to be at risk of heart disease
as adults.

Don’t drink coffee in the morning. Have one at 3.00 p.m.
Most coffee drinkers make a cup as soon as they wake up.
However, researchers have suggested that early morning
is the worst time to drink coffee, because it stops the body
from producing the stress hormone cortisol, which we
need at this time to help us to wake up. The best time to
drink coffee – or caffeine in general – is between 2.00 p.m.
and 5.00 p.m., when it can make us more mentally alert,
according to a study carried out by the University of Sheffield
a few years ago.

Have lunch between 12.00 and 2.00
This is when our body digests food best, because this is
when the stomach produces most acid. So it’s the ideal
time to have your main meal of the day. An experiment by
nutritionists at the University of Surrey found that blood
glucose levels after an evening meal were much higher than
when people had the same meal earlier in the day, and high
levels of glucose can cause diabetes.

Have dinner at 7.00 p.m.
Have your evening meal early. It should be delicious –
our sense of smell and taste are at their best at this time
– but light. And if you want a small glass of wine, have it
before dinner, as 6.30 is when the liver is most efficient at
dealing with alcohol.

listening - watching - riding - playing - reading - jumping.

phoning - drawing - acting - visiting - discovering - travelling.

Hello, Irja,
I am Djakha(Jaka),
I am 10 years old,
I am from Amsterdam with Paul,
Are you Paul's girlfriend? ( Get Laughing at the end question, don't read the text in frames) )

Hi there !

My name is [ Sarah / Mike ] and I'm from the United States.

I lived in a state called Connecticut but I now live in New-York City and I study Chemistry and Biology.

I'm 21 years old, I've got light brown hair and blue eyes and lots of freckles. I'm neither tall nor short, I'm medium-sized.

I have two siblings, one sister, Jenny and one brother, Will.

Jenny has very red hair, and big blue eyes. Will looks like me, but he's taller.

I also have a little dog named Ginger. She lives with my parents back home in Connecticut.

I love swimming and hiking. I enjoy meeting new people and travelling to new places. I'm really fond of video games, too.

How it all began

Aged just 11, she joined the cast of Harry Potter and The Philosopher's Stone in 2001, as the loyal Hermione Granger. With Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint, she was catapulted to fame, thanks to the success of J. K. Rowling's books. Yet, her huge success didn't prevent her from attending university for five years in Rhode Island, where she graduated with a bachelor's degree in 2014. Her fellow students were starstruck when they saw her walking into the canteen for the first time!

She started acting on Broadway in High Society, in 1998, when she was 13. At 23 she was chosen for a role in a film which became her first success! She was discovered as Jessica Stanley, the high school friend of Bella Swan (played by Kristen Stewart), in The Twilight Saga. But she really became a huge star when she was cast to act in the worldwide famous comedy Pitch Perfect in 2012 She was sent to a camp with all the actors of the film, to practise singing and dancing. She revealed herself to be a marvellous a capella singer!

She was given a chance to act for the first time by her father in the movie Sandman when she was 11. She became really famous at the age of 20, when she was selected for a role in the CW series Gossip Girl from 2007 to 2012. She played the role of the blonde Serena, a teenage girl back in Manhattan after a mysterious absence. The actress was asked to live in the Big Apple for the film shoot, and she just loved it!

From The New Icons Magazine

Campers are directly exposed to industry professionals. Parents and children can learn from these professionals and interact with them. They are given the opportunity to speak to famous performers such as Drew Barrymore and Noah Centineo.

On the last day of the camp, the kids are asked to perform scenes on stage in front of their family, casting directors, agents and managers in TV and film. They're also helped by specialists to write their résumé and build their professional profile.

Animals.
Body parts.
Clothes.
Colors.
Family.
Fruits.
Holidays and celebrations.
Nature.
Numbers.
Objects.
Occupations.
Seasons and weather.
Vegetables.
Vehicles.

In 1692 many people in Salem, Massachusetts, believed that there were witches among them.

The witchcraft scare probably began when a woman named Tituba told a group of girls stories about African witchcraft. A few of the girls then claimed to be possessed by the devil.

They accused Tituba and two other women of witchcraft. Colonial officials believed the girls and arrested the women. Tituba confessed to being a witch.

The town panicked. Between May and September townspeople accused hundreds of men and women of witchcraft. The colony set up a special court to try them. Under pressure, many of the people on trial falsely accused others. About 150 people were put in prison. Nineteen people were found guilty and hanged.

By October the panic was over. The governor of Massachusetts stopped the trials and released the prisoners. The government later reversed the guilty decisions.