Introduction
English is spoken in different ways on both sides of the Atlantic. Over the years, the differences between British English and American raised debates and discussions. The modern British English is heavily influenced by American English, causing many contrasts disappear. Pronunciation is, in some cases, very different, but the vast majority of American and British citizens easily understand each other. Although it is the same language there are very important lexical differences between the two variants. Let's search and learn more about these curiosities?
Task
Consider the following situation: you have studied English in two different schools. The first has taught British English and other school teaches American English. So without delving into any of them you have many doubts and want to clarify them as soon as possible, because you'll travel to the United States next month. Look for differences in vocabulary, pronunciation spelling and eventually in culture, that exists between the two countries and could help you on this journey.
Process
Task 1: You will take this quiz to measure your knowledge about the topic:
http://www.jetpunk.com/quizzes/british-words-quiz-2.php. Share your results.
Task 2 : Make a comparison between the UK and US. You should make list these differences in a word document, Power Point or another programme you like. In order to complete this Webquest and to collect information, visit these websites:
http://www.bigstockphoto.com/blog/20-british-words-that-mean-something-…
http://www.antimoon.com/how/pronunc-american-british.htm
http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/words/ae-be.htm
http://resources.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/customs/questions/america…
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/difference-between-british-and-american-…
http://www.hintsandthings.co.uk/library/WORDS2.htm
You can include other interestings websites.
Task 3: Watch these three videos and add a comment about it to our facebook group. Then seach for more interestings videos and share it there.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmHcJnd5j9U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=waZy08wvPKU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scx2wh4jFY8
Task 4: To present your task you should create a digital poster using Padlet.com, create comics or videos and then share it with the whole class, in our facebook group. It must include different examples of spoken and writing English for both countries or present a cultural curiosity. You have to present this orally to the teacher and to the whole class.
Include as many examples as possible.To make the video you should use:
Windows Movie Maker
Digital camera
Mobile phone
Evaluation
5 - All information is correct. Presentation has no spelling or grammar errors. It is creative and colorful.
4 - All information is correct. Presentation has some spelling or grammatical errors. It is creative and colorful.
3 - Most information is correct. Presentation has some spelling or grammatical errors.
2 - Most information is correct. Presentation has lots of spelling or grammatical errors.
1 - Some information is correct. Presentation has lots of spelling or grammatical errors.
0 - Student did not complete a presentation.
Conclusion
The English language has many variations. In this webquest we were able to address only the English from England and US. We could see that there are many differences between them. But there is much more to be discovered. Probably you will mixture them all the time. The differences are huge and never stop growing.
