Music from England

Wikipedia shares the fact that in popular music, English bands and solo artists have been cited as the most influential and best-selling musicians of all time. Acts such as The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Elton John, Queen, and The Rolling Stones are amongst the biggest selling in the world.^[59] England is also credited with being the birthplace of many musical genres and movements such as hard rock, British invasion, heavy metal, Britpop, glam rock, drum and bass, progressive rock, punk rock, gothic rock, shoegazing, acid house, UK garage, Trip Hop and Dubstep.
These are only a few examples of the brilliant culture that comes from England.

People of Britain

According to the Washington Post Website, the people of Great Britain are wonderfully welcoming...

Great Britain is the fourth most populous country in Europe. The English constitute more than 80% of the nation's inhabitants. The Scottish make up nearly 10%, and there are smaller groups of Irish and Welsh descent. Great Britain's population has shown increasing ethnic diversity since the 1970s, when people from the West Indies, India, Pakistan, Africa, and China began immigrating; in the late 1990s these groups accounted for close to 3% of the population. English is the universal language of Great Britain. In addition, about a quarter of the inhabitants of Wales speak Welsh and there are about 60,000 speakers of the Scottish form of Gaelic in Scotland.

The Church of England, also called the Anglican Church (see England, Church of), is the officially established church in England (it was disestablished in Wales in 1914); the monarch is its supreme governor. The Presbyterian Church of Scotland is legally established in Scotland. There is complete religious freedom throughout Great Britain. By far the greatest number of Britons (some 27 million) are Anglicans, followed by Roman Catholics and other Christians. There are smaller minorities of Muslims, Sikhs, Hindus, Jews, and Buddhists.

There are 88 universities in Great Britain, the most famous being those at Oxford, Cambridge, Edinburgh, London, and St. Andrews.

Prime Minister- Gordon Brown

With a new Prime Minister at hand, Britain may go through some changes. However, it is important to understand where Gordon Brown came from, and his life story, in order to understand what he believes best for the country.

Born: 20 February 1951

Educated: Kirkcaldy High School, Edinburgh University

Family: Married, two sons (daughter died shortly after birth)

1972: Rector, Edinburgh University

1975: Temporary lecturer

1976: Politics lecturer, Glasgow College of Technology

1980: Television journalist, STV current affairs

1983: Labour MP, Dunfermline East

1985: Opposition front bench trade and industry spokesman

1987: Shadow chief secretary to the Treasury

1989: Shadow trade and industry spokesman

1992: Shadow chancellor

1997: Chancellor

No-one has ever doubted the formidable intellect and iron determination of Britain's new prime minister.
He was marked out as gifted from an early age, although he resented it at the time, and seemed to excel at everything he tried, rising rapidly through the ranks of the Labour Party and inspiring fierce loyalty in those close to him.
Yet the abiding public image of Gordon Brown is of a dour, self-absorbed figure, a "control freak", who has spent more than a decade coveting the job of his more charismatic Downing Street neighbour.
This is entirely at odds with the warm generous and engaging character described by Mr Brown's family and friends.

To read more about Brown's life and how he became Prime Minister, CLICK HERE

Christmas in England

As we will be arriving January 6, I though to research the holiday that has just finished being celebrated...Christmas, and how it is done in England.

-Many English Christmas customs traveled to the United States with the English immigrants. Both countries share the hanging of stockings and mistletoe. People in both countries decorate with holly and ivy. While not as popular today, both the English and the Early Americans burned a Yule log,saving the remains for starting the next year's fire.
-There is no Santa Claus in England. Instead, children receive gifts from Father Christmas.
-At Christmas dinner, plum pudding is the dessert of choice. Coins are hidden in the pudding bringing good luck to those that find them.
- Actors known as Christmas mummers present plays during the Christmas season to the delight of persons both young and old.
- In some villages, churches "toll the Devil's knell" on Christmas Eve. The church bell is rung once for every year since Christ's birth; ending at midnight. The ringing is said to keep the Devil away from the village.
-The English celebrate Boxing Day on December 26. On this day they give gifts to persons in service jobs, such as shop clerks or maids.

Teaching In England

Working in a school for 10 straight days allows for many professional relationships to be built between myself and the teacher, or head teacher (principal). With the possibility of doing my student teaching, or more permanent than that... having my own classroom in England someday, I decided to look more in to the facts about teaching in England. The teachernet website had a lot of information about this, starting with...

Working in Schools
Schools in England vary considerably in terms of their size, priorities, strengths and needs. In whichever school you work those factors will influence your everyday professional life. You can expect however to encounter a high degree of consistency in term of the issues that all schools must address. The primary and secondary organisation and the role of school governors areas of this site are designed to give you an overview of how most schools work.

Preparing to teach in England
Overseas Trained Teachers (OTTs) are a feature of schools in England, particularly schools in London, other large cities and the south-east. Most schools welcome the fresh perspectives OTTs bring to the teaching staff, their professionalism and the opportunity they provide for students to meet someone with a different life experience.
If you are interested in coming to teach in England, this section will be helpful in providing information and advice on: your existing qualifications; how to obtain work permits, visas and Qualified Teacher Status; criminal records checks; how to apply for a post and what to bring with you.

This website is full of helpful information for anyone looking to potentially teach in England. Click here to reach the website.

Afternoon Tea

I think it's tea time...
Everyday the people of England take a break for tea, whether in the morning or afternoon. Here is what to expect... An English Afternoon Tea is a very special treat to prepare for your family and friends.
Tea is usual taken between 3 and 5 o' clock. This tradition is still kept up in all the fine Hotels in Britain and in little Tearooms all around the country, especially in Devon where the scones are a specialty.
In The Dorchester and The Ritz London, this is still a big event and one has to book well in advance for this.


You start with a selection of very thin sandwiches, like thinly sliced cucumber, smoked salmon and egg mayonnaise and mustered cress sandwiches. This is followed by scones with strawberry jam and clotted cream and a selection of cakes. Tea with cold milk or slices of lemon is served with this.

A variety of different fruits filled into light pastry tarts.

Thinly sliced cucumber sandwiches and smoked salmon sandwiches, crust removed cut into 4 triangles, decorated with watercress and lemon wedges.

Buttermilk scones with strawberry jam and clotted cream, a real treat from Devon. The recipe for scones you will find in the recipe file.

More Tea Information and Recipes Available HERE

British Literature <3

While in England, one may notice the fact that several wonderful writers are from Britain. I love English Literature and hope to maybe run into a few historical sites from these famous writers such as Chaucer, Shakespeare, Dickens, Morrissey, and a few modern English writers such as Peter Ackroyd, Martin Amis, Julian Barnes, AS Byatt, Margaret Drabble, Ian McEwan and Jeanette Winterson."To be, or not to be, that is the question:
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles
And by opposing end them. To die—to sleep,
No more; and by a sleep to say we end
The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to: 'tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wish'd. To die, to sleep;
To sleep, perchance to dream—ay, there's the rub:
For in that sleep of death what dreams may come,
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,
Must give us pause—there's the respect
That makes calamity of so long life."
-William Shakespeare

"A wonderful fact to reflect upon, that every human creature is constituted to be that profound secret and mystery to every other" -Charles Dickens