Yesterday was Ryleigh's first Easter! It was a pretty nice day out; just a little bit windy. The night before my sisters and I colored eggs that say, 'Ryleigh's 1st Easter 2015'. It was a lot of fun and I wanted Ryleigh to be involved, but she was too cranky and tired so she missed it this year. However, I'm sure that next year when she's over a year old she will definitely want to play and color the eggs with us. I was most excited about her adorable little dress and headband anyways. Also, the Easter Bunny brought her some goodies! She got an Elsa doll from the movie Frozen, some pajamas with characters from the movie Frozen on them, a stuffed Thumper from Bambi, and a board book featuring Thumper. We are going to read the book before bedtime tonight! Overall, Ryleigh's first Easter was a success!

Vocabulary

colored (verb): to give or apply color to something
involved (verb): to be included in something
cranky (adjective): grouchy; in a bad mood
adorable (adjective): very delightful or charming
goodies (noun): something that causes delight or happiness
featuring (verb): to give prominence or importance to

Vocabulary Exercise

Complete the word search to find each vocabulary word. Then, take each word and put it into a sentence.

Easter Festivities

S E B R L C A A V H X A D U J 
Y S P R B C P D T Y J G I T R 
M K P L L X L O V M F N R Z W 
K S N Z T F E R B I I P B A J 
N K R A M A K A M Z X V B X O 
Z R E U R R Y B T B Q O J C I 
M Z I O E C B L B W E R O S A 
D M I F Q S I E K C R K G K D 
X J U F G A V N O E E T J R W 
M Y X J R J R L V A Z E N E T 
N W I B L R O I Z O E I X W V 
Q K G F F R W Q A A L E W F E 
S J R S E I D O O G D V A A B 
X X C D B R P I Q P K N E Q Z 
H E Y F E A T U R I N G L D B 

ADORABLE
COLORED
CRANKY
FEATURING
GOODIES
INVOLVED

Grammar Point

 In my passage I included a lot of adjectives. Adjectives can describe a person, place, thing, or idea. They make your writing more interesting and allow for the reader to create a better picture in their mind. For example, instead of just saying 'the boy decided to fight the other boy that had been bothering him all week', by adding adjectives you can paint a better image. 'The short and scrawny boy decided to fight the other huge and scary boy that had been bothering him all week long.' In addition, the articles - a, an, and the - are adjectives too. 

Grammar Exercise

Take one of your previously written paragraphs from earlier in the year and add adjectives to the paragraph to make your writing more descriptive and interesting. 

Visit the following link for more help and practice with adjectives:

Adjectives   

 

My Life Has Changed

    

          Who knew that one little person could change your life so drastically? In a matter of seconds, my life went from being all about myself, to all about my little girl. At 8:42 on the morning of Friday, February the 13th, my life changed forever. The moment that I felt the doctor pull Ryleigh out of my stomach and she was placed in my arms, I knew that nothing mattered anymore except for the happiness of my little baby girl. Motherhood. You hear so much about it growing up and when you're pregnant so many people offer their advice on the subject, trying to describe how it changed their lives, but there really is no true way to describe the way it feels to be a mother. The joys, the worries, the hopes, and the dreams that surround your little one are truly indescribable. Then there's the sleepless nights, the million and one diaper changes, the constant loads of laundry, but of course all of these are completely worth it because it all comes back to your baby's happiness. As long as she is happy, I will be the happiest person alive!

Vocabulary

drastically (adverb): extremely extensive (a lot)
advice (noun): an opinion offered as a guide
surround (verb): to enclose on all sides
indescribable (adjective): too special to be able to describe
sleepless (adjective): without sleep
constant (adjective):  all of the time

Vocabulary Practice

Take your six vocabulary words and six index cards. Write the vocabulary word on one side of each index card and write the definition of the word on the other side. Use these flashcards to quiz yourself and your friends!

Grammar Point

  There are various forms of punctuation that can be used depending upon the purpose of the sentence. If someone is asking a question they must use a question mark (?). If you are simply stating something you use a period (.) and if you want to exclaim or shout something then you use an exclamation point (!). Using punctuation when we write allows for the reader to know when to stop and take a breath before continuing to read. This helps to prevent run-on sentences which don't allow for our writing to properly flow.

Grammar Exercise 

Using the information given in the grammar point, return to my paragraph and identify the various forms of punctuation and types of sentences. Then, write your own examples of each of the three types of sentences.   

 

Thirty Years From Now...

      In thirty years I will be fifty-four years old. At that point, I hope to be close to retirement. I also hope that I have at least two successful children by that point. I believe that I may even have a grandchild or two that far into the future. I would think that in thirty years I will definitely look a bit older, but hopefully I will still look great, stay fit, and be in good health. I would hope that I have accomplished many different things in thirty years time including: receiving my masters degree, getting an extra certificate in another educational area, raising my beautiful children to be great people, going on many family vacations, and owning the house of our dreams that our children and grandchildren will be able to call home (or grandma and grandpa's home). I would also dream of going on many vacations with my husband, perhaps to European and tropical locations, after retirement. I also dream of my daughter, Ryleigh, falling in love with dance the same way that I have and possibly one day attending Molloy College and continuing my legacy there on the dance team as a member and perhaps a coach. 

Vocabulary

retirement (noun): when you leave your job and never return to work

successful (adjective): having achieved certain goals having to do with honor, wealth, etc.

future (noun): something that will happen in time to come, but has not happened yet

accomplished (verb): to complete or carry out a goal

certificate (noun): a document that shows a person's qualifications or accomplishments

legacy (noun): anything handed down from the past

Vocabulary Practice

Go to this link and use the thesaurus to find synonyms (or words that share the same meaning) for each of your six vocabulary words. Then use each synonym in a sentence to demonstrate understanding of the meaning of the word. Switch sentences with a partner and see if you can determine which synonym matches with the original vocabulary word in eachother's sentences.

Grammar Point & Grammar Practice

 Read through the slides and choose one of the three activities at the end to complete for grammar practice.

Potential

      A woman walks into a train station and sees potential. She sees potential for a plethora of stories. In that old man with the yellow hat, in that young couple looking dangerously in love, even in the graffiti on the front of the restroom door. Perhaps that man just found out that he won the lottery and is taking a great vacation around the globe. Maybe that couple is running away to elope and start their new life together. Suppose that graffiti was drawn by a young man torn apart by his parents divorce. to her, everyone and everything has a story. Everyone and everything has a reason or explanation for their actions; for their existence. That is, everyone, but her.

Vocabulary

potential (noun)
plethora (adjective)
graffiti (noun)
elope (verb)
suppose (verb)
existence (noun)

Vocabulary Exercise

 

Grammar Point

  Pronouns are used to take the place of a noun. They allow for our writing to be less repetitive and to have a better flow. Instead of constantly saying, "Ms. Werther went to the supermarket. Ms. Werther bought some fruit. Ms. Werther used a credit card to pay for the food", we could say, "Ms. Werther went to the supermarket. She bought some fruit and she used a credit card to pay for it". In this case, she and it are pronouns taking place of the nouns 'Ms. Werther' and 'fruit'. 

 Grammar Practice

Use the following link to practice identifying pronouns. Then, write your own paragraph that includes at least five pronouns.

Pronoun Practice 

      The hills at the edge of the city were long and white. In the heart of the city on a hot summer's day, there was no shade and no trees and the station was filled with summer vacationers waiting to get on the train heading east. Lurking by the steps, there was the warm shadow of a long brimmed hat and a curtain, made of cotton, hung over the stroller, to keep out flies. The American and the girl of his dreams sat on the steps of 'The Garden' fawning over their beautiful new baby. It was very hot and the express to the Hamptons would come later that afternoon. It stopped at Pennsylvania Station and went all the way out to the very tip of their little universe, where all you could see was ocean for miles and miles.

 Vocabulary

vacationers (noun) people who travel to a different place for fun
lurking (verb) to be present, but hidden from plain sight
brimmed (adjective) to be full; the full part of the hat
stroller (noun) something that you can push to move a baby from place to place
fawning (verb) displaying affection or a lot of love
universe (noun) a special sphere of activity, interest, or experience

Vocabulary Exercise

 Complete the crossword puzzle by filling in the vocabulary words that each clue defines.

Summer in the City

Across
2. displaying affection or a lot of love
5. something that you can push to move a baby from place to place
Down
1. people who travel to a different place for fun
3. a special sphere of activity, interest, or experience
4. to be full; the full part of the hat
6. to be present, but hidden from plain sight

Grammar Point

Prepositional phrases typically begin with a preposition and end with a noun, pronoun, or clause, which is the object of the preposition. The object of the preposition may have one or more modifiers that describe it. Some examples of prepositional phrases are: at home, in time, with me, from my grandmother, under the warm blanket, and in the weedy, overgrown garden. Prepositional phrases function as adjectives in a sentence, essentially answering various questions such as where, when, how, with whom, etc.

Grammar Exercise 

There are many prepositional phrases throughout my post. Please re-read the post and identify all of the prepositional phrases as well as their purpose within each sentence. Then, write a short story of your own using as many prepositional phrases as you can. Remember to vary their purpose.

The Worst Experience of My Life

 

            It was a bright and sunny day in Sanford, North Carolina and I was just enjoying some quality family time with my newborn nephew, Joey, and the rest of my family when we got the alert. A major hurricane was about to hit the coast of Long Island in just two days time. We had only arrived one day earlier to welcome Joey into the world and already our trip was cut short. My sisters Erika, Sara, and I hurried to pack our belongings, purchased some flashlights and other “hurricane gear”, and sadly said our goodbyes as we headed out to drive the eight hours back home to New York.

            My oldest sister Erika and I live together in a small ranch house in East Rockaway, New York. Little did I know, several canals on either side of our street are surrounding our house. Upon our arrival back home, we began to attempt to raise whatever belongings we could both in our house and in our garage. As we were doing that, men were coming through the streets with megaphones insisting that everyone must evacuate to higher ground.  While I was already panic stricken and quite upset, little rain droplets began to fall from the sky. I knew it was time to go; we had no more time to save our precious belongings. I grabbed my cat and some of my things and headed out to stay with my best friend in Franklin Square. Meanwhile, my sister sent her two cats to stay with a friend and she went to stay at her boyfriend’s house in Oceanside.

            I spent that entire night and the following two days at my friend’s house just worrying. Worrying about my house, worrying about my sister, worrying about what I would come home to when I was finally able to return. In the days following Hurricane Sandy I felt numb. My life as I knew it was about to change for quite some time. We went home a few days after the storm and discovered that our house and garage had been filled with about four feet of water. The damage was absolutely devastating. After crying and crying my sister and I began to sort through all of our stuff. Years of memories washed away in an instant. I didn’t know what to do.

            Hurricane Sandy hit us hard. It kept us out of our house for almost two whole years. It washed away years and years of memories that we had both collected throughout our lives. While I will never be able to retrieve those belongings, and while I felt pretty much homeless as I floated between friends’ homes until our house was rebuilt, I did learn a lot about myself from this storm. Hurricane Sandy taught me that stuff is just that, stuff. The memories are still ingrained in my mind and that is worth more than the “stuff” that I had collected. Also, Sandy showed me that I am a lot more resilient and strong than I ever thought I could be. My sister and I went through a lot because of Hurricane Sandy and I will never be the person that I was prior to the storm, but I am a better person and now I can be an even better mother to my baby when I teach her all about the power of resilience and fighting back.

Vocabulary

evacuate (verb) to leave or go away

damage (noun) something that has been physically harmed or changed in a bad way
devastating (verb) very damaging and causing a lot of sadness or despair
retrieve(verb) to get something
ingrained (verb) stuck deeply and hard to remove
resilient (adjective) able to bounce back or recover from a difficult problem

Vocabulary Exercise 

Match each vocabulary word to the phrase that best defines it.

1. resilient                                                       a. the act of leaving an area

2. retrieve                                                       b. to be difficult to get rid of 

3. evacuate                                                     c. the act of getting something

4. damage                                                      d. something that has been harmed or hurt

5. ingrained                                                   e. something that is extremely harmful; causes sadness

6. devastating                                                f. able to overcome a difficult situation

Grammar Point 

This particular blog post is talking about an event that happened in my past. Adding -ed to the ending of most words will make it past tense. For instance, let's look at the word evacuate. To make evacuate a verb in the past tense we simply add -ed to the end of the word, thus making it evacuated. However, there are times where this rule does not apply. For example, certain words are what we would consider exceptions to the rule, such as, begin. The verb begin becomes began when written in the past tense. Instead of adding -ed, you change the 'i' to an 'a'. Understanding these exceptions is a skill that will be learned with practice. 

Grammar Exercise 

Complete this worksheet for extra practice using simple past tense verbs

 Go to the following link to play a fun game and practice irregular past tense verbs!

Irregular Past Tense Jeopardy Quiz Game

 

 

 
 

Introduction

Welcome! My name is Alexandra Werther. I am currently an elementary school teacher in Forest Hills, New York. I work in a second grade ICT or inclusion classroom with a diverse population of students. I am also the coach for the dance team at Molloy College. Dance is my number one passion and it has been ever since I was nine years old. I started my dance career at Miss Edie's Dancin' Feet and fell in love with the art of dance immediately. Some of my favorite styles of dance are tap, hip hop, ballet, modern, and jazz. After many years of competing and performing at my studios, I joined the Molloy College Dance Team and performed at many events around campus for my four years as an undergraduate student. Now, while I really miss performing, I absolutely love coaching and choreographing for the team.

Vocabulary

elementary (adjective) young; beginning; early
diverse (adjective) different; variety 
coach (noun) leader; person in charge of a group

competing (verb-present participle) to try to win against other people

performing (verb-present participle) to present or show something to an audience

choreographing (verb-present participle) to plan or put together steps or moves for performance

Vocabulary Exercise 

 Please fill in the blanks with the correct vocabulary word. 
The ___________ was excited for the upcoming show when all of her little ____________ students would be _______________ on stage for a large audience. She had been ___________ dance routines for quite some time and could not wait for everyone to enjoy them! This showcase was going to be a great opportunity for her kids to practice and prepare themselves for when they would be ________ against many other dance teams in Florida later that month. The competition was going to have a very ______ group of performers and she was very excited. Let the show begin!

Grammar Point

The present participle, or the form of a verb ending in -ing in English is used to show that the action is continuous or does not have a clear end. Write two sentences using any verb with an -ing ending to show that the action has no clear ending. 

Grammar Exercise

 This link will allow you to play two fun games practicing the present participle in English.

Present participle practice