A River runs through it

The film "A River runs through it" (1992) was presented to all who wish to improve their language skills.
 
A River Runs Through It is an Academy Award winning 1992 American film directed by Robert Redford and starring Brad Pitt, Craig Sheffer, Tom Skerritt, Brenda Blethyn, and Emily Lloyd. It is a period drama based on Norman Maclean's semi-autobiographical novella of the same name (1976).
Set in and around the city of Missoula in western Montana, the story follows two sons of a Presbyterian minister — one studious and the other rebellious — as they come of age in the time period between World War I and the Great Depression.
The film won the Academy Award for Best Cinematography in 1993. It was also nominated for two other Academy Awards, including Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Music; Original Score. The film grossed $43,440,294 in US domestic returns.

A presentation “E-books and E-resources

The WOA Head Svitlana USENKO participated in the annual meeting of the Dnipropetrovsk oblast libraries’ directors.

She delivered a presentation “E-books and E-resources: challenges and opportunities for the libraries”.

The recently donated to the WOA centre gadgets were introduced to the local library professionals – iPad, Kindle. The useful resources   available at the WOA and presented to the librarians’ community  included  the Rosetta Stone  Language study program and  E-Library (EBSCO etc.).

The number of participants – 50 persons.

 Have a look at more pictures, please

Thanksgiving Day at school # 39

The head of Window on America center Dnipropetrovsk  Svitlana Usenko visited the secondary school # 39. The meeting was dedicated to the Thanksgiving Day in the USA.
The slide show reminded to the kids the basic historic facts about this holiday. The glass model of the “Mayflower” ship in a bottle caught everybody’s attention and enhanced the atmosphere.
The Americans are celebrated with lots of craft activities. Kids were making of a turkey with the inscription “Give Thanks” from color paper. On the feathers of the turkey the kids wrote everything for what they are thankful to the God and fortune.
The last donations by the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine  were also introduced –  electronic gadgets iPad and Kindle. They played the game Futaba and enjoyed it.
The number of participants – 35 persons (бібліотекар, вчитель, школярі – 33 чоловіка).
More pictures here 

Thanksgiving Day in the USA

Today’s session at Window on America center Dnipropetrovsk was dedicated to the Thanksgiving Day in the USA.

The slide show reminded to the club members the basic historic facts about this holiday. The glass model of the “Mayflower” ship in a bottle caught everybody’s attention and enhanced the atmosphere.

Our American guests Sam and Tondraya clarified some unclear situations about this holiday traditions in different states. The questions asked to the Peace Corp. volunteers about various aspects of the holiday - typical foodstuffs, menu, ceremonies, etc.

The video from You Tube illustrated the topic in more detail. We learned how to

·       save on buying food for the feast,

·       carve the roasted turkey

·       how to behave at the Thanksgiving table and keep up conversation.

 The American guests explained how the holiday is celebrated in school – with lots of craft activities.

This prompted the creation of the Club’s turkey – each person wrote on a feather shaped piece of paper for what he/she is grateful. The numerous feathers gave the Club’s turkey a nice tail.

On this day English Speaking Club speaker Tamara likes to meet the club members in the historic outfit of a Pilgrim lady.

This year she expressed the wish to have a Pilgrim gentleman at her side. So the club members formed two teams and started to create a hat for the pilgrim man.  Each team had its own designer. The Pilgrim model Vlad (also dressed in the historic outfit)   tried both hats on and made some funny photos with the Pilgrim lady.

The clubmembers voted for the best Pilgrim’s hat.

Once the official part was over we continued the tradition of the last year and had a collective dinner with turkey and traditional foods – pumpkin pie, Three sisters (beans), etc.

The session and the after party were enjoyed by all the participants and strengthened the Club’s team spirit.

The number of participants – 30 persons.
Have a look at more pictures, please 

Dances with Wolve

In honor of the Native American Heritage Month the film "Dances with Wolves" (1990) was presented to all who wish to improve their language skills.
Lt. John Dunbar, exiled to a remote western Civil War outpost, befriends wolves and Indians, making him an intolerable aberration in the military.

Dances with Wolves is a 1990 epic western film directed by and starring Kevin Costner. It is a film adaptation of the 1988 book of the same name by Michael Blake and tells the story of a Union Army Lieutenant who travels to the American frontier to find a military post, and his dealings with a group of Lakota Indians.
Costner developed the film over five years, with a budget of $22 million. Dances with Wolves had high production values and won seven Academy Awards including Best Picture and the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Drama. Much of the dialogue is in the Lakota language with English subtitles. It was shot in South Dakota and Wyoming.
It is credited as a leading influence for the revitalization of the Western genre of film-making in Hollywood. In 2007, Dances with Wolves was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.

International Men’s Day

The English Club session started with the introduction of the new comers.
Today’s session was dedicated to the International Men’s Day which is celebrated on November, 19.
The theme of 2011 is “GIVING BOYS THE BEST POSSIBLE START IN LIFE”.
We have read and translated an article about the actions that give boys the best possible start in life.
After that the following 5 challenges to the boys were introduced and discussed:
•    HEALTH AND LIFE EXPECTANCY
What are the reasons for boy’s higher likelihood of suicide?
•    EDUCATIONAL FOCUS
Why are boys in richer countries underperforming girls and also less likely to be in education, and why are tens of millions of boys in poorer countries still not completing a primary education?
•    TOLERANCE OF VIOLENCE
Why are we so tolerant of violence and abuse against men and boys ?
•    RIGHTS TO FATHERHOOD
How can we give boys a right to family life that gives them an equal opportunity to know and experience both their father and mother
•    REAL LIFE CHOICES

The number of participants – 20 persons.

Unforgiven

Today the Dnipropetrovsk  WOA  “Wednesday Movie Club”
The film "Unforgiven" (1992) was presented to all who wish to improve their language skills.

Retired Old West gunslinger William Munny reluctantly takes on one last job, with the help of his old partner and a young man.
 

Director: Clint Eastwood
Writer: David Webb Peoples
Stars: Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman and Morgan Freeman.

...

As both director and star, Clint Eastwood strips away decades of Hollywood varnish applied to the Wild West, and emerges with a series of harshly eloquent statements about the nature of violence.
Dedicated to his mentors Sergio Leone and Don Siegel, Clint Eastwood's 1992 Oscar-winner examines the mythic violence of the Western, taking on the ghosts of his own star past. Disgusted by Sheriff "Little Bill" Daggett's decree that several ponies make up for a cowhand's slashing a whore's face, Big Whiskey prostitutes, led by fierce Strawberry Alice (Frances Fisher), take justice into their own hands and put a $1000 bounty on the lives of the perpetrators. Notorious outlaw-turned-hog farmer William Munny (Eastwood) is sought out by neophyte gunslinger the Schofield Kid (Jaimz Woolvett) to go with him to Big Whiskey and collect the bounty. While Munny insists, "I ain't like that no more," he needs the bounty money for his children, and the two men convince Munny's clean-living comrade Ned Logan (Morgan Freeman) to join them in righting a wrong done to a woman. Little Bill (Oscar-winner Gene Hackman), however, has no intention of letting any bounty hunters impinge on his iron-clad authority. When pompous gunman English Bob (Richard Harris) arrives in Big Whiskey with pulp biographer W.W. Beauchamp (Saul Rubinek) in tow, Little Bill beats Bob senseless and promises to tell Beauchamp the real story about violent frontier life and justice. But when Munny, the true unwritten legend, comes to town, everyone soon learns a harsh lesson about the price of vindictive bloodshed and the malleability of ideas like "justice." "I don't deserve this," pleads Little Bill. "Deserve's got nothin' to do with it," growls Munny, simultaneously summing up the insanity of western violence and the legacy of Eastwood's Man With No Name. 

~ Lucia Bozzola, Rovi

...

"Chemistry - the Queen of Sciences"

Today’s session at Window on America center Dnipropetrovsk was dedicated to the World Science Day for Peace and Development.
This year is also the International Year of Chemistry 2011 to commemorate the achievements of chemistry and its contributions to humankind.
The scientific atmosphere was enhanced by the scientific book display.
The comprehensive collection of colorful books emphasized the fact that “Chemistry: the Queen of Sciences”.

Club’s newcomer Valerij Shkuropat

Other exhibits represented the impressive collection of volumes about numerous scientific subjects – math, physics, geometry, biology, anthropology, environment, etc. Besides the textbooks and encyclopedia the biographical books about renowned scientists were displayed.
This amazingly colorful display evoked massive interest of the club members.

The theme of this year’s Science Day is ‘Towards green societies: equity, inclusiveness, participation’ and focuses on the role of science.
“Green Societies” means equity in science within all sectors of society, equity between men and women; equity between countries participating in and contributing to the global stock of knowledge.
In this context, inclusiveness means creative inclusive policy integrating the vision of people in science, including traditional knowledge systems in scientific processes while participation refers to creating opportunities for people to be involved in science and to participate in decision making in science.

Together with our American friends Mr. Joseph B. and Ms. Samantha S. we have watched videos and discussed the question of sustainable chemistry in the USA and Ukraine. The comparison was rather educational to all the participants.
The favorite activity – an on-line quiz about domestic chemicals – unexpectedly showed that the collective knowledge   scored a high 80% result – 8 correct answers out of 10. 


Club’s newcomer Valerij Shkuropat   continued the science topic of discussion with a presentation on “transhumanism”.

As proponents of self-improvement and body modification, transhumanists tend to use existing technologies and techniques that supposedly improve cognitive and physical performance, while engaging in routines and lifestyles designed to improve health and longevity. The facts presented by Valeriy were amusing and puzzling. His work was highly appreciated.

The number of participants – 30 persons.


Have a look at more pictures, please

Book display “Chemistry – the Queen of Sciences”

This year is also the International Year of Chemistry 2011 to commemorate the achievements of chemistry and its contributions to humankind.
The scientific atmosphere was enhanced by the scientific book display.
The comprehensive collection of colorful books emphasized the fact that “Chemistry is the Queen of Science”.
Other exhibits represented the impressive collection of volumes about numerous scientific subjects – math, physics, geometry, biology, anthropology, environment, etc. Besides the textbooks and encyclopedia the biographical books about renowned scientists were displayed.
This amazingly colorful display evoked massive interest of the club members.

An Affair to Remember

«On the Riviera...across the ocean...and all over New York!» 

The film «An Affair to Remember» was presented to all who wish to improve their  language skills.

A couple falls in love and agrees to meet in six months at the Empire State Building - but will it happen?

Plot:

Handsome playboy Nicky Ferrante and beautiful night club singer Terry McKay have a romance while on a cruise from Europe to New York. Despite being engaged to other people, both agree to reunite at the top of the Empire State Building in six months. However, an unfortunate accident keeps Terry from the reunion, and Nicky fears that she has married or does not love him anymore. Will he discover the truth behind her absence and reunite with his one true love, or has fate and destiny passed them by? 

World of American Fashion

Today’s English Speaking Club session was dedicated to the World of American Fashion.
Fashion today is a global industry, and most major countries have a fashion industry. Some countries are major manufacturing centers, notably Philippines, China, South Korea, Spain, Germany, Brazil, and India.
 Five countries have established an international reputation in fashion: France, Italy, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Japan.
The majority of American fashion houses are based in New York, although there are also a significant number in Los Angeles, where a substantial percentage of high fashion clothing manufactured in the US is actually made. There are also burgeoning industries in Miami, Chicago and especially San Francisco.
 American fashion design is dominated by a clean-cut, urban, casual style reflecting the athletic, health-conscious lifestyles of American city-dwellers.
A designer who helped to set the trend in the United States for sport-influenced day wear throughout the 1940s and 50's was Claire McCardell. Many of her designs have been revived in recent decades.
She is  known for designing functional, affordable, and stylish women’s sportswear within the constraints of mass-production, and is today acknowledged as the creator of the "American Look", a democratic and casual approach to fashion that rejected the formality of French couture.
Claire McCardell's creations are dedicated to the propositions that:
1) clothes should be made to be worn in comfort, and
2) only comfort can create sense-making style.
Her clothes are functional, simple and clean of line. She likes "buttons that button and bows that tie." She is, says Dallas Retailer Stanley Marcus, "the master of the line, never the slave of the sequin. She is one of the few creative designers this country has ever produced."
Anyone can wear them, but they look best on what countless ads have presented as the ideal American beauty—tall, slim, long-legged.
The top ten American designers were presented to the audience: Marc Jacobs, Vera Wang, Oscar de la Renta, Calvin Klein, Kate Spade, Ralph Lauren, Anna Sui, Donna Karan.Todd Oldham, Bill Blass, and Tommy Hilfiger. The video illustrations from YouTube included both interviews with the designers and their works.
To draw the bottom line  for the discussion we answered the questions of the on-line fashion quiz “What’s your fashion style?”.
Our today’s American guest – Ms. Kathryn Herrera, Peace Corp. volunteer – consulted us about the difficult fashion terms and shared her opinion about the fashion issue in the USA and Ukraine.
Once the fashion topic was over Kathryn answered a lot of questions about healthy lifestyle and diet, and how she manages to stick to her vegan diet in Dnipropetrovsk.
All the club members were encouraged to practice the new center’s equipment – iPad.

Have a look at more pictures, please 

The number of participants – 26 persons.

Sex and the city

http://ecx.images-amazon.com

Wednesday Movie Club.
Prior to the Saturday discussion about the slaves of fashion we decided to create the atmosphere of the American fashion world and watched the movie “Sex and the city”.
 
Plot: 
A New York writer on sex and love is finally getting married to her Mr. Big. But her three best girlfriends must console her after one of them inadvertently leads Mr. Big to jilt her.