Black Friday!

Black Friday

            

          So every year I tell myself I will not be involved in the Black Friday shopping mess, yet every year I find myself waiting on the ridiculously long lines with handful of gifts in my hands.  I love to shop like most women however; I tend to enjoy shopping more when I am not looking for anything in particular.  It is times like that when I seem to buy numerous amounts of things.  Every time I go in search for something I am looking for I never seem to come out with a single item!  I went Black Friday shopping for the past few years and even though I get excited about the days leading up to it I still catch myself asking “why” while I am standing in line for hours.  People take this shopping day way too serious.  Like last year at the Green Acres Mall, a man died because he got trampled on when they opened the doors to the store and the crowds bombard the store.  This not what the holiday season is about.  It is not about getting gifts and getting every item on your wish list.  It is about spending time with your family and friends.  It is about giving gifts to others especially those who do not have a lot.  It is not about getting gifts in return of giving gifts.  I believe the stores are wrong for opening at 8 pm on Thanksgiving Day because it makes people rush through family time to go shopping.  If the stores would wait until at least midnight, like some stores do, then at least people could spend quality time with their family and friends.  Overall, the holiday shopping season is here and it is stressful however, we always seem to make the best of it each year.    

Vocabulary:

Ridiculously- unreasonable and not acceptable

Particular- one out of several      

Numerous- many

Trampled- to cause damage or injury

Bombard- to attack, to hit somebody

Vocabulary Cloze Exercise: Put the correct vocabulary words in the blank.

1. There was one __________ item Sam was shopping for at Best Buys and they did not carry it.

2. The kids were excited to go into the jungle gym that they all _____________ the birthday

    decorations.

3. During Black Friday shopping the lines are ______________ long.

4. There are __________ activities that can be done with students around the holiday time that

    are not only fun, but educational as well.

5. When the kids heard there was going to be free candy they ___________ the line.

                                                                                                               

Grammar Point:  This passage has many verbs in the present tense.  List those verbs and any other words that indicate the present tense.

Grammar Exercise:  Write a paragraph explaining how you feel about Black Friday shopping or shopping in general.  Be sure to use present tense verbs and any vocabulary words.   

              

Thanksgiving!

                                                                       

                                                                      Thanksgiving 

          Thanksgiving is approaching and it is one of my favorite times of the year!  I always prepare Thanksgiving dinner every year with my grandma.  This year unfortunately, I am preparing Thanksgiving dinner alone due to my grandma’s passing earlier on in the year.  This holiday is bittersweet for my family and I however, we are trying to make the best of it.  My family and I host Thanksgiving every year including all the other holidays.  One of our family traditions is to watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade together and the movie March of the Wooden Soldiers while we set up for the day.  Another family tradition we have is to grab the wishbone at the end of dinner and make a wish while tearing it apart.  No matter how old I get this tradition will never die!  Being s teacher for the first time around this holiday is a great experience in itself.  I get to see how many students know about the holiday, their traditions, which students don’t know about the holiday, and some personal stories students share.  I believe this is a great way to get to know your students better and also to intertwine a fun activity such as; word cloud and word art.  My students absolutely loved the activities and shared such touching stories.  I can’t wait for Christmas to approach and intertwine more great activities with my students while learning more about them! 

Vocabulary:

Thanksgiving- A celebration of giving thanks

Bittersweet- A feeling of happiness and sadness at the same time

Traditions- A handing down of practices and beliefs that are valued by a culture

Parade- A long moving line of people and/or things being displayed

Wishbone- A V-shaped bone that is found in a turkey which is believed to bring good luck 

Intertwine- To become closely linked with something

Vocabulary Cloze Exercise: Put the correct vocabulary words in the blank.

1. My sister and I fight over the ______________ every Thanksgiving dinner!

2. As a teacher it is important to ______________ activities and current events together.

3. While we watch the Thanksgiving Day ______________ I help my mother make breakfast.

4. During the holidays families usually use their  __________ to make recipes and to celebrate   

    the holidays.

5. Sammy felt ___________ when she came in second place during the race and her friend came    

    in first place.   

6. _____________ is a holiday when you celebrate all that you are thankful for.

Grammar Point: This passage has many verbs in the present tense.  List those verbs and any other words that indicate the present tense.

Grammar Exercise:  Write a paragraph explaining how you feel about Thanksgiving.  Be sure to use present tense verbs and any vocabulary words.   

              

Jay Black

Jay Black

            Last night I went to Westbury music fair to see Jay Black.  He is known for many hits such as; Come A Little Bit Closer, Cara Mia, This Magic Moment, Some Enchanted Evening, Only In America and Let's Lock The Door plus many, many more.  I bought two tickets and I took my mother with me.  My mother loves him!  When I was little I remember listening to all of his songs with my entire family.  We would listen to his songs especially around the holidays.  We would listen to his songs while we would clean the house, decorate the house or when we would prep dinner.  His record would be playing in the background while the family and I were busy doing other things around the house.  I remember the first time I saw him in concert, it was my very first concert, and I couldn’t believe my eyes.  A singer I would listen to for years and who I would watch on the television I now saw in person.  It was a great memory.  Now that I am older, his songs are still very much alive in our house.  I feel I value his talent more and his songs because I can truly understand his lyrics now that I am older.  We were supposed to see him last weekend, but due to hurricane Sandy it was postponed until last night.  Bill Medley was originally supposed to open for Jay Black however; due to the postponed he had prior engagements.  Bill Medley is another singer who I grew up listening to.  He is known for his hit You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin and many other songs that were hits as well.  It was truly nice to share this special moment with my mother last night.  As we get older we reminisce on the past and we hold on to our memories and cherish them as we grow older.  I will never forget these moments with my mother.

Vocabulary:
1. Record – A disk that has musicians’ music on it that can be played

2. Concert- A place where musicians perform in front of people

3. Value – The importance or worth of something

4. Reminisce – To talk about events that happened in the past

5. Memories – The act of remembering

6. Cherish – Value something highly

Vocabulary Activity – Match the following related words:

Cherish                                    A. To talk about events, remembering the past

Record                                    B. Worth or importance

Memories                                C. Musicians songs that can be played

Value                                       D. The act of remembering

Concert                                    E. Value something highly

Reminisce                                 F. An event where musician(s) perform in front of an audience

Grammar Point: This passage has verbs both in the past and in the present tense.  Find them in the passage.  Write them and then write the past tense of the present verbs and write the present tense of the past verbs.    

Grammar Exercise: Write about a past memory that means a lot to you.  Explain how you continue to keep those memories alive.  Be sure to use the past tense as well as the present tense in your writing.

Hurricane Sandy

Sandy

            The hurricane Sandy brought such devastation and tragedy to New York as well as New Jersey and many other areas.  I luckily didn’t have any damage to my home and no one in my family got hurt however, we did lose power for well over a week.  I am so grateful that was my only issue.  There are so many people who lost everything!  My heart really goes out to the families who lost family members, friends, and their homes.  We know a lot of friends who lost their entire homes.  A family friend who lived in Breezy Point lost everything due to the fire.  We had him stay with us for a while and tried to help him get back on his feet, but how do you help someone start over?  It was and still is truly heart breaking.  I never thought I would see the day that I would have to wait on a gas line for hours just to fill up containers to put in my generator.  It was truly unreal and scary.  The attitudes people had and the fighting that occurred on the lines to get gas was unbelievable!  My mom told us stories from years ago about the gas rationing and how if your license plate ended in an odd number you were to only fill up your car on an odd day and if your license plate ended in an even number you were to only fill up your car on an even day.  She explained how scary it was back then and how she never thought she would see that day again and here we are doing it all over.  I think it is helping however, I think more needs to be done.  I think it is disgusting that people are trying to make money on gas by raising the price of it during a crisis like this.  I also personally don’t think the President election should have been held considering people are going through this tragedy and to be honest that was the last thing on their minds.  I also feel that once people got their power back and days have gone by that everyone is soon forgetting that there are a lot of people who are still in need and  have nothing.  We must not forget about them and do everything we can to help out until things are completely fixed.  We all must stay together at a time like this and help out where we can!

Vocabulary:

Devastation- To be in shock or upset somebody greatly

Tragedy-An event that brings feelings of sorrow or grief

Grateful-Feeling or expressing thanks

Unbelievable-Too unrealistic to be believed

Rationing-A fixed amount, limited

Disgusting-To repel, sicken people

Vocabulary Cloze Exercise: Put the correct vocabulary words in the blank.

1. September 11, 2001 brought _________to many of people.   

2. People who abuse innocent animals who can’t fight back to defend themselves are truly ___.  

3. Thanksgiving is a time people express how ________ they are for what they have. 

4. When a tragedy hits a community like hurricane Sandy a ________of gasoline is required.   

5. The Broadway show had ___________effects.  

6. The hurricane Sandy brought ________ to many of people. 

Grammar Point: The verbs in story about Sandy are in the past tense.  Find them in the passage.

Write them and then write the present tense form of each one.

Grammar Exercise:  Write a paragraph about a scary time in your life. Remember to use past tense.