Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!  What are you doing?

What are you happy about?  What do you like to eat? 

Happy Hannukah!

Do you celebrate Hannukah?  What do you do?

חנוכה commemmorates the re-dedication of the holy temple in Jerusalem.  In the US, jewish people get together, light candles, and give gifts for eight days.

Is eating important to you? Is it important to your family?

Our Pimmit class is a lot of fun because people bring in delicious food.  I enjoy eating together.

Need Food Vocabulary?

Do you like to eat with your family?  Do you like to cook?  Are you a picky eater?  Are you going to celebrate Thanksgiving this year?  What are you going to eat?  Are there any foods that are special to you or to your family?

Grammar Post -- Comparative and Superlative

Explanation and song excerpts

Tutorial from eflnet.com--More explanation!

Comparative/Superlative drag and drop game -- may have to scroll down

(THE) Superlative vs. Comparative (than)

Comparative (compares 2) vs. Superlative (most distinctive in the group)

more practice!

A difficult multiple choice that I think you can do

Click on Ventures, Level 2, Unit 7

Can you use these adjectives to compare any people?

Practice/type comparatives and superlatives

Side by Side Video Comparing People

"Things Will Get Better" Music Video

Do you think the recommendations this website makes are good? I don't know...


These pictures are from Juan.  How do they compare?

This picture is from Mori.

These pictures are from Ester.

  

Should/Shouldn't

Explanation of should/shouldn't-- The grammar exercise is tricky-- we don't like to have more than one negative in English

Side by Side Video--should vs.must in conversations

This project looks like fun to me.  Would you enjoy taking similar pictures?

Ayda cracked me up when she decisively said, "GO, GO!"

after listening to the next song.

What should we do before the class ends?

Longer Than...

I hope this song helps you remember to always say "than" after longer, higher, etc...

Where can you get a good deal?

Where do you like to shop?  What do you like to buy?  Pick three things you often buy, and research where to get the best deal.  When you write about it, use English comparatives.

For example, the grapes at SPW are cheaper than the grapes at Safeway.
The package at __________ is bigger than the package at ____________.
Brand X is more expensive, but it's more delicious than Brand Y.

Here are some links with some grocery sales.

Giant Food Specials

Safeway Weekly Specials

http://www.shoppersfood.com/savings/view-ads/view-circular.html

Harris Teeter Specials

Walmart

Target

Costco

Thank You, Veterans

Today is a day to recognize everyone who joins the military and serves.

Juan suggested this next song.  I like it a lot.

Same song, but with lyrics rather than pictures from the military.  It's easier to read along, but not identifiable as for Veterans Day.

This next song is a great example of a south-eastern country accent.  Many soldiers come from small towns.  "Ain't" is an "uneducated" way to say "aren't."  Do you make XXXX to mean kisses, and OOO to mean hugs in your letters?

Tell me a real life example....

This week we spent a lot of time contrasting present tense with past tense.  Please listen to people and watch TV in English.  Tell me one example you hear of past tense and one example of present tense.

For example:  When I was at work, my manager asked me, "Did you finish that?" (PAST)

or
My neighbor said, "My husband always watches football on Sundays." (PRESENT)

or

I watched the news.  They said that the OMB reported that the Parks Service lost a lot of money because of the government shut down.  (PAST)

The woman in the commercial said that ________ always makes her happy.  (PRESENT)

Were you surprised?

Today, we talked about what we do when we feel different emotions.  Did any of your classmates surprise you?  (You don't need to say who.)  What did they say?  I was surprised when I heard that several people drink coffee when they feel worried.

What do you do when you feel bored?

First Student Photo!

I asked my Plum class to send me pictures for beautiful, autumn, and checked.  I just got the first one.   Thank you Hirsia!

She wrote:  The weather is beautiful today.

It really was.  My morning class had a fire drill, and I was actually happy to spend a little time outside!
Thanks for the picture!

Occupations

What job did you want when you were a child?  I wanted to be a doctor, a mother, a movie star, and a teacher.  Do you like the job you have now?

Happy Memory

Write about a time you felt really happy.  What happened?

Election Day!

I voted today!  Did you?  Can you tell me a story about voting in an election?

Grammar Practice--Past Tense

A Slideshow Review about Past Tense-Press the bottom right arrow for the next slide
(We don't have the boardgame.  Can you make one?)

Another Slideshow Review
("Did you play sport" should be "Did you play any sports?" or "Did you play a sport..."

We started practicing irregular past verbs.  Don't forget to use the base form with did or didn't.

Jeapardy Game for irregular verbs

Memory Game with Some Irregular Verb Forms

Monkey Game--Irregular Verbs

english.com quiz. Use the down arrow to choose your answer than check

was or were?

This video starts with a lot of present continuous/progressive questions.  If you can get past that segment, there are some slowly spoken conversational examples of past tense.

The following video is childish, but I think it's a relatively painless way to learn some irregular verbs.  I also like that it explains subject, noun, and predicate.

The next video has many easy verbs.  I like that you repeatedly hear the question, and that it has both regular and irregular verbs.  I think it's too long.  You can start three minutes into it without really missing anything.

How to pronounce the most common irregular verbs

Do you already know these?  I think most of you do....

A short video with some examples of past tense in song

Broken Down Car

Did your car or bus ever break down?  One time, I was on a bus that broke down next to a huge blueberry patch.  All the passengers enjoyed fresh blueberries while we waited for another bus to come.  I actually enjoyed it.  Do you have a story about a broken down car or bus?

All Saints Day

November 1 is All Saint's Day.  November 3 is All Saint's Sunday.  Many christians in the United States think about good, christian people.  In the Catholic Church, Saints must perform miracles and be confirmed by the leadership of the church.  Many catholic children choose a special saint's name when they get confirmed.  In the (protestant) methodist church, any real christian can be called 'saint.'

"When the Saints Go Marching In" is a very famous example of American Jazz music.  It's often played at funerals in New Orleans, LA.

Do you have a favorite saint?  Who do you think of when you want to think about good people?