W grupach lektoratowych korzystających z podręcznika Speakout Upper-Intermediate, które prowadzi nasza koleżanka Kasia Kurek odbył się konkurs na najciekawsze opowiadanie w języku angielskim. Pomysł zrodził się podczas zajęć kiedy omawiane były czasy narracyjne oraz powiedzenia i przysłowia angielskie. W opowiadaniu należało uwzględnić następujące kryteria:
- opowiadanie musi zawierać od 150-220 słów,
- musi odzwierciedlać powiedzenie angielskie,
- powinno pobudzać kreatywność czytelnika poprzez użyte zwroty oraz wyrażenia odnoszące się do zmysłów,
- powinno zawierać co najmniej kilka przysłówków,
- mile widziany zwrot akcji,
- opowiadanie musi być gramatycznie poprawne,
Ze wszystkich napisanych opowiadań komisja złożona z nauczycieli języka angielskiego w SJO wyłoniła zwycięzców, czyli autorów najlepszych i najbardziej poprawnych opowiadań. Publikujemy najciekawsze z nich. A wszystkim, którzy przystąpili do konkursu gratulujemy zapału w realizacji pisarskiego talentu, wrażliwości twórczej oraz zachęcamy do wytrwałości w doskonaleniu tego jakże trudnego rzemiosła.
‘THE STRESSFUL TASK’ (Magdalena Borycka, 2 BS-DI)
Kate sat on her comforable sofa with a cup of hot, flavoured tea. She was looking around her small, cosy flat. She was a typical business woman, with creativity like nobody elses. She had never had any problems with socializing, but she had one big disadvantage which was harmful especially for her career – Kate wasn’t able to speak in front of the public. She had always felt the panic fear acuted her body every time she was supposed to present a project at school or sing a song in a karaoke club. Her reflections were interrupted by a ringing phone. ‘Hi, Kate.’ It was her boss, and the fact he was calling her in the evening didn’t mean anything good. ‘I have a task for you. Our company’s branch from New York will arrive next week. You need to make a presentation on the summary of our business affairs. Then you’ll have to present it in public. Do you understand?’ ‘I can’t do it’ she thought blue, but inspite of that she agreed.
One week later Kate was standing with her perfectly written presentation in a lecture hall and she literally wished the Earth would swallow her up. Her hands were shaking and she forgot every word of the speech she had been practising all week. ‘Calm down, you’ll be great’ the boss cheered her up. She started speaking hesitantly but every next word came easier. At the end everyone was delighted and told her she had been amazing despite stress. When the meeting finished her boss told her ‘I could see how much stressed you were, but you did a great presentation, you’ve deserved for promotion. Congratulations!’
Kate couldn’t belive she made it and inspite of feeling so nervous for the whole week she beated her fear and even got a promotion. ‘Every cloud has a silver linning’ she thought.
What goes around comes around (Weronika Cieśla, 2 ML-DI)
Ever since I can remember I was a big fan of Beyonce. When I think about her I see myself sitting in my room as a teenager, looking at the walls full of posters, humming the phrase “What goes around comes around” of her song. It was not surprising that as soon as I heard that she and Rihanna will be performing in my city I started planning how to take part in this event. As a poor student, I couldn’t afford the ticket, but as people say “where there is a will, there is a way” so I decided to find a job in the Arena, where the show was taking place. Then the big day came and I was feeling more alive than I’d ever been. While helping my colleague, I saw the two of them going on stage. It took my breath away. Then suddenly I saw Beyonce disconnecting one of the cables. From this moment on everything was happening so fast. The music started playing and both of them started singing but everyone in the Arena could only hear Rihanna. I immediately realized that Beyonce and Rihanna had released their new songs the same day, and they were competing for the audience award. Everything became clear to me. The disconnected microphone shoul’ve been a surprise for Rihanna but it turned out to be a surprise for Beyonce. My only thought was” Well Beyonce, what goes around comes around”.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained, (Szymon Augustyn, 2MM-DI)
It was an usual meeting between a couple of friends. They used to go together every weekend. But that day something extraordinary happened.
The only person who was single among the group of friends was Jim, but there was something in the air… At the bar of the bowling club there were two girls sitting and chatting. One of them was a beautiful blonde and Jim spotted her immediately. Luckily Jim was a friend of a waiter. He had told Jim that the girl with the face of an angel is a young doctor and she had been visiting this place recently.
It could be a problem for a man to start a conversation with a girl. Fortunately Jim wasn’t a shy guy. However, he had his own plan. He fell down and pretended to be fainting. His heart was pounding quicker and quicker. Everyone in the club was shocked, but surprisingly the girl came to help him. He felt her sensitive touch on his body. When everything was going according to the plan, paramedics appeared in the building. They told Jim that he would have to go with them to the hospital for an observation. The guy was shocked by the situation. It made him shiver. His face was red. He felt that the situation was going out of control. “Who had phoned paramedics he thought?” But luck was Jim’s second name. Paramedics needed personal details of the girl for the report. He breathed a sigh of relief. Jim had had difficult day, but he achieved his goal-he got to know Jennifer’s personal details. A tiny smile appeared on his face when he analysed what had happened sitting on the bed in a hospital.
Next day was perfect. Jim contacted Jennifer and she agreed to meet him with pleasure. Finally Jim was proud of himself. He forgot about all the risk, he just thought about everything he had gained.
Every cloud has a silver lining, (Marcin Działo, 2 BS-DI)
Once upon a time I decided to drive to a restaurant with my girlfriend. It was our anniversary as a couple so we had planned to spend it in a special place. We were having a really good time and we met there a Hindu waiter, who was serving us very politely. We spent a few hours there. Then, we left at about 11 p.m. Later we decided to go for a walk to a nearby park. We were walking around the park during a calm and wonderful night. Suddenly, we heard some strange noises and we stood awkwardly. We started following them and we saw the men who were attacking the Hindu waiter. I ran towards them. Stupidly, I decided to fight against two muscled men but I wanted to save the poor guy. He managed to escape. The police was called by my girlfriend but it did not stop mad attackers to beat me unconscious. Unfortunately, I ended up in hospital for 2 weeks. During my hospitalization the waiter visited me. Eventually, when I left the hospital special gifts were waiting for me. The restaurant's owner gave me a special voucher enabling me to eat in his restaurant for free. But the biggest surprise was a grateful letter from India's president. Apparently, I can say that every cloud has a silver lining.
Krzysztof Ragan 2ML-DI
Once upon a time there was an incredibly fascinating university. Students in this university were always happy. They never had to rustle with piles of leaves written on the lectures. It was situated somewhere over the rainbow. Stars were always twinkle from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. Unfortunately it wasn’t a perfect utopia. There were problems with electricity and professors and students had to work with flickering candles. Once a month students were organizing a huge event with pounding rock festival, free beer and rallies all day. There were nothing like summer or winter examination session everybody pass the semester for nice smile and good word. There were also a huge open circus with clowns and roaring lions. This were the best university of technology situated somewhere over the rainbow.
A horrible notebook… (Kamil Barniak 2BS-DI)
I was very popular in my class because of my helpful nature. My father was a lawyer by profession. Unfortunately, he was always too busy to spend time with me. From my mother I had learned to be polite and always try to help other people. Everyone knew that I was supportive and I wouldn’t refuse to help.
One day a friend of mine wanted some help with his homework and asked me for my notebook. I helped him. He promised to give my notebook back next week before the next Maths class. Finally, he didn’t come to class that day. My teacher was very mad at me because I was unprepared and I got the worst possible grade – my first one! I was horribly sad.
Eventually, after a month I got my notebook back and the same guy asked for another notebook again. I had a bitter experience. I politely refused to help him. I couldn’t trust him anymore after what he had done last time. He felt sorry for his own mistake but what is done can’t be undone. And the moral is: Once bitten, twice shy.
Nothing ventured,nothing gained” Mateusz Brudz 2MM-DI
It was a rainy and cold night. I stood against her car and I waited impatiently until she finished her work. I was nervous but excited ,every rustling leaf or howl wind stimulated my feelings.
When I was thinking what I should say , I heard the heels tapping. I looked around and saw the woman I was waiting for. She approached me, I felt my heart pound and my breath slowly accelerating. When she stood by my side, we both knew that we only wanted each other. Our lips joined together. I felt her heart beating, blissful taste of her lips.
In spite of many bad moments in the past, I realized that I only wanted her. If I had not ventured, I would regret it now.
