Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Day is a harvest festival. Traditionally, it is a time to give thanks for the harvest and express gratitude in general. It is primarily a North American holiday which has generally become a national secular holiday with religious origins.

The dates and whereabouts of the first Thanksgiving celebration are a topic of modest contention. Though the earliest attested Thanksgiving celebration was on September 8, 1565 in what is now Saint Augustine, Florida, the traditional "first Thanksgiving" is venerated as having occurred at the site of Plymouth Plantation, in 1621.

Today, Thanksgiving is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States. Thanksgiving dinner is held on this day, usually as a gathering of family members.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

You know, they said this day would never come. They said our sights were set too high. They said this country was too divided; too disillusioned to ever come together around a common purpose.

President Elect Barack Hussein Obama II

LAUGHTER'S THE BEST MEDICINE

Bush's Postage Stamp

George W Bush wanted a special postage stamp issued, with his picture on it. He so instructed his Postmaster General, stressing that it should be of international quality.

The stamps were duly released, as he began hearing complaints that the stamps were not sticking properly, and become furious.

He called the chief of the Secret Service and ordered him to investigate the matter.

The chief checked the matter out at several post offices, and then reported on the problem to Bush. He said,

- "Sir, the stamp is really of international quality. The problem is, our citizens are spitting on the wrong side!"

WORD OF THE DAY

YOU-KNOW-WHO

Function: noun (noncount)

Status: informal

Meaning:

You-know-who is used in speech to refer to someone who is not named but is known to both the hearer and speaker.

e.g. We’re planning to throw a party for you-know-who.

DO YOU THINK YOU CAN READ ENGLISH?

Try this tongue-twister!

Mr. See and Mr. Soar were old friends. See owned a saw and Soar owned a seesaw. Now See's saw sawed Soar's seesaw before Soar saw See, which made Soar sore. Had Soar seen See's saw before See saw Soar's seesaw, then See's saw would not have sawed Soar's seesaw. But See saw Soar and Soar's seesaw before Soar saw See's saw, so See's saw sawed Soar's seesaw. It was a shame to let See see Soar so sore just because See's saw sawed Soar’s seesaw.

Teaching Tips & Ideas

SEVERE LINGUISTICS DIFFICULTIES – TH – Sounds – Silent Letters


Many students use to substitute an “S sound”, a “D sound” or a “Z sound” for the TH sound. Though there are all kinds of exercises for the TH sounds, here’s my favorite. “Three –Thousand –Three – Hundred –Thirty –Three -Trees”. If every student can say this sentence correctly, we feel that they have more or less mastered TH sounds and are able to go to other subjects.


Another common error is the pronunciation of silent letters: The L in Walk, Talk, Chalk, the T in Listen, and Castle, the B in Climb and Lamb are frequent but the silent letter which is most usually pronounced is the W in the word ANSWER. Here’s what I believe to be the cure for that sort of error. The drill is a conversation between two people and it should be read first by the teacher then by the class - divided into two groups - then, by two students then by individuals. If repeated a great many times it will sound kind of stupid but on the other hand it is quite presumable that the “W sound” will be gone forever. H.C.


Here’s The Drill:


A – Will you come to the movies, Sir? What is your answer, Sir?
B – Yes, I will come to the movies, Sir! That’s my answer, Sir!
A – There’s “Singin’ in the Rain” on screen and, Sir!
B – Sandwiches and Popcorn and ice cold Coke, Sir ? Yes, I will come
to the movies, Sir!
A – Is this your final answer, Sir?
B - Yes, this is my answer, Sir! My very final answer, Sir!

Logic and the English language

Have you ever wondered why foreigners have trouble with the English Language? Let’s face it English is a stupid language.

There is no egg in the eggplant
No ham in the hamburger
And neither pine nor apple in the pineapple.
English muffins were not invented in England.
French fries were not invented in France.

We sometimes take English for granted, but if we examine its paradoxes we find that:

Quicksand takes you down slowly
Boxing rings are square
And a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig
If writers write, how come fingers don’t fing?
If the plural of tooth is teeth Shouldn’t the plural of phone booth be phone beeth?
If the teacher taught, why didn’t the preacher praught?

If a vegetarian eats vegetables what the heck does a humanitarian eat?

Why do people recite at a play yet play at a recital?

Park on driveways and drive on parkways.

You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language where a house can burn up as it burns down?

And in which you fill in a form by filling it out?
And a bell is only heard once it goes?

English was invented by people, not computers and it reflects the creativity of the human race.
Which of course isn’t a race at all.

That is why

When the stars are out they are visible but when the lights are out they are invisible.

And why it is that when I wind up my watch it starts.

But when I wind up this observation it ends.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"The secret of creativity is knowing how to hide your sources." Albert Einstein

LAUGHTER'S THE BEST MEDICINE

One Sunny Day In 2009

One sunny day in 2009, an old man approached the White House from across Pennsylvania Ave, where he’d been sitting on a park bench. He spoke to the US Marine standing guard and said,

- “I would like to go in and meet with President Bush.”

The Marine looked at the man and said,

- “Sir, Mr. Bush is no longer president and no longer resides here.”

The old man said,

- “Okay” and walked away.

The following day, the same man approached the White House and said to the same Marine,

- “I would like to go in and meet with President Bush.”

The Marine again told the man,

- “Sir, as I said yesterday, Mr. Bush is no longer president and no longer resides here.”

The man thanked him and, again just walked away

The third day, the same man approached the White House and spoke to the very same US Marine, saying,

- “I would like to go in and meet with President Bush.”

The Marine, understandably agitated at this point, looked at the man and said,

- “Sir, this is the third day in a row you have been here asking to speak to Mr. Bush. I’ve told you already that Mr. Bush is no longer the president and no longer resides here. Don’t you understand?”

The old man looked at the Marine and said,

- “Oh, I understand. I just love hearing it.”

The Marine snapped to attention, saluted, and said,

- “See you tomorrow, Sir.”

' MEMBER???

WORD OF THE DAY

LEVELHEADED

Function: Adjective

Comparative and superlative forms: more levelheaded: most levelheaded

Meaning:
Having or showing an ability to think clearly and to make good decisions

e.g. She is levelheaded about her chances for success as an actress.
He provided a levelheaded assessment of the problem.

Derived form:
levelheadedness noun (noncount)

IMAGE OF THE DAY

'This guy misplaced his heart?!

Basic Rules of Flying

Planing to be a pilot? Here are some basic rules that should always be followed while flying.

1. Always try to keep the number of landings you make equal to the number of take offs you've made.

2. Every takeoff is optional. Every landing is mandatory.

3. Flying isn't dangerous. Crashing is what's dangerous.

4. It s always better to be down here wishing you were up there than up there wishing you were down here.

5. There are three simple rules for making a smooth landing. Unfortunately no one knows what they are.

6. The propeller is just a big fan in front of the plane used to keep the pilot cool. When it stops, you can actually watch the pilot start sweating.

7. When in doubt, hold on to your altitude. No one has ever collided with the sky.

8. A good landing is one from which you can walk away. A great landing is one after which they can use the plane again.

9. Learn from the mistakes of others. You won't live long enough to make all of them yourself.

10. You know you ve landed with the wheels up if it takes full power to taxi to the ramp.

11. The probability of survival is inversely proportional to the angle of arrival. Large angle of arrival, small probability of survival and vice versa.

12. Good judgment comes from experience. Unfortunately, the experience usually comes from bad judgment.

14. There are old pilots and there are bold pilots. There are, however, no old, bold pilots.

15. In the ongoing battle between objects made of aluminum going hundreds of miles per hour and the ground going zero miles per hour, the ground has yet to lose.

LAUGHTER'S THE BEST MEDICINE

WAR TIMES JOKES

A squad of American soldiers was patrolling the Iraqi border, when they came across a badly mangled Iraqi soldier in a ditch struggling to breathe.

A short distance up the road, they found a badly mangled American soldier in a ditch on the other side of the road, struggling to breathe. They ran to him, cradled his bruised head and asked him what had happened.

"Well," he whispered, "I was walking down this road, armed to the teeth when I came across this heavily armed Iraqi border guard. I looked him right in the eye and shouted, "Saddam Hussein is a moronic, deceitful, lying piece of trash!"

He looked me right in the eye and shouted back, "George Bush is a moronic, deceitful, lying piece of shit!" We were standing there shaking hands when this truck came and hit us."

QUOTE OF THE DAY

I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

(Martin Luther King on the steps at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC, on August 28, 1963.)

Happen to Know?

The Three R's

The three R's, as in the letter "R" is a phrase sometimes used to describe the foundations of a basic skills oriented education program within schools: reading, writing and arithmetic. The phrase "the three Rs" is used because each word has a strong "R" phoneme at the beginning, and, obviously, due to the spellings of each word.

It is widely believed that Sir William Curtis, an alderman who became Lord Mayor of London, once presented a toast to the three Rs "reading, riting, and rithmetic" thereby betraying his illiteracy. In any event, the term was picked up by others and so used from the early 1800s on.

IMAGE OF THE DAY

CONGRATULATIONS MR. PRESIDENT

Why turkey for Thanksgiving?

Although juicy and tender butterball turkeys are the main cuisine of today's Thanksgiving celebrations, these birds were NOT the most popular centerpieces on the first Thanksgiving tables.

In 1621 when the Plymouth colonists and Wampanoag Indians celebrated the first Thanksgiving, they were gobbling up many more foods than just turkey. Since lobster, goose, duck, seal, eel, and cod were plentiful during this time, these foods were most likely the main courses of this first feast. Deer meat and wild fowl are the only two items that historians know for sure were menu of this autumn celebration.

So how did the turkey become the main mascot of modern-day Thanksgiving if we don't know for certain that turkeys were at this first feast?

One story tells of how Queen Elizabeth of 16th century England was chowing down on roast goose during a harvest festival. When news was delivered to her that the Spanish Armada had sunk on it's way to attack her beloved England, the queen was so pleased that she order a second goose to celebrate the great news. Thus, the goose became the favorite bird at harvest time in England. When the Pilgrims arrived in America from England, roasted turkey replaced roasted goose as the main cuisine because wild turkeys were more abundant and easier to find than geese.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

It’s not that I’m afraid to die, I just don’t want to be there when it happens.
(Woody Allen)

WORD OF THE DAY

CONFECTION

Function: noun (count)

Plural: confections

Meaning:

a very sweet food
e.g.
an assortment of delicious cakes and other confections

Note: Confection is often followed by of.
e.g.
a confection of cream, chocolate, and nuts

Note: Confection is sometimes used figuratively.
e.g.
a delightful literary confection

Teaching Tips & Ideas

Prepositions

NEAR - Perto de. Indica proximidade. Empregado
antes do Particípio Presente equivale a “a ponto de”.
e.g.: - You were near falling into the pool.
He lives near the church.

OF - De. Caso genitivo. Posse.
e.g.: - A glass of water.
A couple of pigeons.
The pages of the book.
The privileges of the Royal Family.

OFF - Longe de. Fora. Indica separação. Distância etc.
e.g.: - Take off your hat.
She fell off the bike.
The stream is two miles off.

LAUGHTER'S THE BEST MEDICINE

Is It Going To Be Cold Winter?

The Indians asked their Chief in autumn if the winter was going to be cold or not. Not really knowing an answer, the chief replies that the winter was going to be cold and that the members of the village were to collect wood to be prepared.

Being a good leader, he then went to the next phone booth and called the National Weather Service and asked, "Is this winter to be cold?"

The man on the phone responded, "This winter is going to be quite cold indeed."

So the Chief went back to speed up his people to collect even more wood to be prepared. A week later he called the National Weather Service again, "Is it going to be a very cold winter?"

"Yes", the man replied, "it's going to be a very cold winter."

So the Chief goes back to his people and orders them to go and find every scrap of wood they can find. Two weeks later he calls the National Weather Service again: "Are you absolutely sure that the winter is going to be very cold?"

"Absolutely," the man replies, "the Indians are collecting wood like crazy!"