March Madness

The craziest time of the sports year has once again come upon us. You may be thinking: The Super Bowl already passed, The Olympics finished a couple weeks ago, and Hockey and basketball have been going for a while now…..what could it be? It’s March Madness! For those of you who don’t know, it’s a college basketball tournament that runs from the beginning of March to the beginning of April in which 68 teams compete to be the champion. The 68 teams are chosen based on certain criteria like the caliber of the teams they beat, their strength of schedule, how well they did in their conference during the regular season, and if they won their conference tournament. The teams that win their conference get an automatic bid to the tournament and the other teams who believe they have a chance to go to the tournament wait to see if their names are called on Selection Sunday. Selection Sunday is the day where the teams that will play in the tournament are announced on a prime time TV special. The teams are placed in a bracket with 4 regions and are ranked 1-16 with 1 being the highest rank and 16 being the lowest. The teams play single elimination games and the team that wins 6-7 games is the champion.

It is considered to be the most unpredictable time in the college basketball season because an underdog can rise up throughout the tournament and knock off teams favored to win the game or even the whole tournament. Fans never quite know what to expect. With the exception of football playoffs and the Super Bowl it’s my favorite sports season. I love the weeks leading up to the main tournament where teams play in conference tournaments for a change to go to the main tournament because there’s so much excitement. Teams play their hearts out and those who win have a chance, some for the first time, to play in the main tournament. There are always surprises, shocks, and some heartbreak, but the tournament is always unforgettable. I can’t wait to what March Madness has in store this year!

Vocabulary

1.      Caliber (noun) – ability; strength; talent.

2.      Strength of Schedule (noun) – how difficult the teams are that one team has to play during basketball season.

3.      Conference (noun) – smaller league in a bigger league (generally in sports).

4.      Automatic Bid (noun) – guaranteed spot in the tournament.

5.      Prime Time (adjective) – time when popular television shows are broadcast.

6.      Bracket (noun) – way teams are organized in the tournament; punctuation mark ([ ]).

7.      Underdog (noun) – team or person not favored to win.

8.      Rise up (verb) – to meet a challenge; to win.

9.      Knock off (verb) – to defeat.

10.  Has (Have in store) (verb) – what will happen.

Vocabulary Exercise

1.      All my favorite television shows are on during the hours of ________ ________ TV.

2.      The ___________ _____________ the best team in the tournament!

3.      Kansas played some high __________ teams this year, they must have the greatest __________ ___ __________.

4.      Since the Dayton University basketball team won their _____________ tournament, it gets an ____________ _______.

5.      I wonder what the day _________ _____ _________ for me?

6.      Warren Buffet promised he would give a billion dollars to anyone with a perfect _________!

7.      The team _______ ____ against adversity and won the game.

Grammar Point

The phrase “March Madness” is an alliteration, the repetition of the same sound at the beginning of each word. Alliteration is used to make words or phrases stand out.

Grammar Exercise

Think of a few (2-3) alliterations you’ve heard on TV or read in a work literature. Create a few (2-3) of your own alliterations. 

I love language!

I’m a language geek. Thus far, I have studied French, Spanish, Italian, and Chinese and don’t plan to stop learning new languages until I’ve study as many as I can remember! There’s nothing that fascinates me more than the words people choose, the intonation with which they say them, and in turn the meaning behind the words. I also enjoy the grammatical and linguistic nuances that each language has to offer. Even languages in the same branch can vary greatly in sound, vocabulary, grammar, structure, etc. Also, countries and/or provinces/states in the same region have different cultures and traditions.

While studying these various languages, especially French, I developed a greater awareness and understanding of different aspects of English language and grammar. For instance, the past tense of French uses two forms of the verb: a past participle (-ed ending in English) and an auxiliary verb (to be or to have). I had no idea what an auxiliary verb was or when/how to use it in any language before my French class; however, through French I learned its function in French and English.

Language does not have to be studied in a school setting, though many people are first introduced to language in school. It can be studied at home using an interactive language program such as Rosetta Stone, in a foreign country during a vacation or a study abroad program, or at a library or other public place that offers a language program, to name a few. In these settings people can learn the language at their own pace and in the manner in which they want.

Language learning is not simply academic, it is social and cultural as well. In the process of learning a new language, I learned about the food, music, history, art, etc of the countries in which that language was spoken. By learning about another culture I started to reflect on and compare cultural practices in America and in my family to those in France and discovered that despite the differences, there are many similarities between cultures (i.e. Bastille Day and Independence Day, All Souls Day and Dia de los muertos, etc.).

     

Vocabulary

1.      Fascinates (verb) – interest, intrigue

2.      Intonation (noun) – the way someone says something, the tone

3.      Branch (noun) – group of languages with similar origins; part of a tree that has leaves or loses them in the winter

4.      Linguistic (adj) – related to language

5.      Nuances (noun) – subtle difference

6.      Function (noun) – purpose or use; (verb) fulfill daily activities

7.      Auxiliary (verb) – helping verb used in the past tense

8.      Geek (noun) – someone obsessed with something (when used with an adjective); someone deemed “uncool”

Vocabulary Exercise

1.      Your ____________ choices in this paper were far more advanced than in previous papers.

2.      I cannot __________ in the morning before I drink my coffee.

3.      __________ verbs in the French past tense are “être” and “avoir”.

4.      He was ___________ by the hot dog eating contest.

5.      The __________ of his voice told me that he was very excited about something.

6.      English and German are in the Germanic language __________.

7.      He loved video games so much that his friends called him a video game ________.

8.      A __________  of Spanish dialects is that the letter y can be pronounced with a “yuh” or a “juh” sound depending on the region in which the speaker lives.

Grammar Point and Exercise

Throughout its history, the English language has adopted words from other languages (the reverse is also true.).

How many English words can you name that were adopted from another language? List at least 5. 

Crocheting

One of my favorite activities to do in my spare time is crocheting. I’ve been crocheting for about 5 years and learned how to crochet from my mom. She tried to teach me while I was still in high school; however, I found the learning process very frustrating and difficult so I was not successful in my first attempt to learn how to crochet. My freshman year of college I was inspired to attempt to learn again by my suitemate who had a real knack for crocheting. She created animals, food, Christmas trees, scarves, blankets and various other projects without the use of a pattern. I used to ball the skeins of yarn she had for projects and watch in amazement as new creations came to life. I decided that year that I wanted to try crocheting again and on my second attempt I was successful despite some difficulties along the way. I enjoy crocheting because I find it relaxing and I can do repetitive, less complex projects while watching TV or listening to music. It’s also a novel activity and great way to make a gift for someone or to make something for yourself. My family and friends love the homemade crocheted gifts I’ve given them. I’ve made wallets, scarves, blankets, animals, food, potholders and other various creations. I also feel a great sense of accomplishment when I finish a new project or learn a new stitch.

Vocabulary

Crochet(-ing) (noun)/ Crochet (verb)/Crocheted (adj): a craft that uses yarn and a metal or plastic tool (a needle) of various sizes with a hook.

Introduction to Crocheting - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbZIQ0TKIo8

Suitemate (noun): someone who lives in the same general space but in a different room, generally in a college dorm

Knack (noun): talent, skill for an activity      

Pattern (noun): repetition, directions for creating something

Ball (verb): to form a circular shape out of yarn; (noun) item made of plastic, rubber or various other materials that is generally circular and is commonly used in sports and games

Skein (noun): yarn in an oblong shape; the shape in which yarn is sold in a craft store

Stitch (noun): loops created by a crochet/knitting needle; a closure for a bad wound

Vocabulary Exercise:

1.      She has a ________ for soccer.

2.      Crocheting uses a number of ___________ for different projects.

3.      Do you like the solid colored dress or the dress with the ________ better?

4.      My grandma _________ a blanket for the new baby.

5.      While watching my favorite show I _________ some new yarn.

6.      I have _________ of yarn in various colors.

7.      Her __________ doesn’t go to sleep until 3 in the morning.

Grammar Point: Pronouns

Words that replace nouns. Limited number of pronouns. Help vary writing.  

Singular – I, You, He, Him, She, Her, It

Plural – We, Us, You (All), They, Them

Grammar Exercise:

Rewrite the sentence and replace the word in bold with the appropriate pronoun.

1.      I went to the movies with my friends.

I went to the movies with ___________.

2.      Joe bought 4 bottles of soda and 3 bags of chips for the party.

_____ bought 4 bottles of soda and 3 bags of chips for the party.

3.      Katherine met with the professor after class.

Katherine met with ______ after class.

4.      My cousins and I love to watch sports together.

_________ love to watch sports together. 

Slopestyle: My New Favorite Olympic Event

Every two to two and a half years, most of us are glued to our televisions for two to three weeks watching sporting events we wouldn’t ordinarily watch or don’t have access to on a regular basis. I personally enjoy the Summer and Winter Olympics because I get a chance to see and learn about sports outside the mainstream and have the opportunity to find a new sport to enjoy. During the Winter Olympics I’ll watch hockey, curling, figure skating, ice skating, speeding skating and maybe some luge and bobsledding events, but I don’t generally watch any snow-related events such as skiing or snowboarding because I’ve never been interested in them. However, this past weekend, I stumbled upon the Men’s Slopestyle event and I decided to watch it because it was a new Olympic event. I was glad I did because it was awesome. I’ve seen few things cooler in Olympic sports than snowboarders rotating in the air doing 1080s, 1260s, 1440s (higher numbers of degrees than I ever learned in math class). It’s an incredible experience to watch the snowboarders do different tricks off the railings and mini ramps then watch them spin around in the air and stick their landings. The experience is also a bit nerve-racking because the snowboarders could easily fall and hurt themselves. The Men’s Slopestyle event was especially fun to watch because the dark horse of the competition, American snowboarder, Sage Kotsenburg, won the gold medal.

Vocabulary

Glued to (verb): unable to take yourself away from something

Mainstream (noun, adj): most popular within a culture or country

Slopestyle (noun): a snowboarding event in which snowboarders do tricks on railings and make flips off different sized ramps

Rotating/Rotate (verb): to spin around in a circle; to change position or place (i.e. rotate a shift at a job, rotate turns in a science lab)

1080 – spin in 3 complete circles

1260 – spin in 3.5 circles

1440 – spin in 4 complete circles

Nerve-racking (adj): anxious; nervous; worry

Dark horse (noun) – not favored to win; underdog

Vocabulary Exercises

1.      Nowadays it is ____________ for elementary school children to own a cell phone.

2.      She was the _____________ of the figure skating competition because this was the first Olympics in which she participated.

3.      Walking on stage to receive my diploma was ____________.

4.      In ____________ it is difficult to complete a _________.

5.      After 5 minutes each group ____________ and goes to a different station.

6.      He was ____________ to his Xbox 360 once he bought Super Smash Brothers Brawl.

Grammar Point

To capitalize or not to capitalize? We know that proper nouns such as names of people, places, months, days, pets and so on should be capitalized, but what about words that are only capitalized in certain circumstances? The rule is that if you refer to a specific person, region, thing the word is capitalized, otherwise it is plural. For example, in the phrase “president of the United States” the word “president is not capitalized because it does not refer to someone or something specific; however, “president” is capitalized in the phrase “President Obama” because “president” refers to a specific person.

Grammar Exercise

State whether the sentence is correct or incorrect and change the mistake(s) if the sentence is incorrect.

1.      I live in southeastern New York.

2.      The next summer Olympics will be in Rio.

3.      The English monarch who has reigned the longest is queen Elizabeth II.

4.      My uncle’s birthday is on Valentine’s Day. 

My Best Experience

The characteristics for what qualifies an experience as good or bad can depend on the perspective of the person, the outcome of the experience, and the person’s culture and/or beliefs. A situation that one person may perceive as bad or negative, someone else could see as good or positive. Though some people views experiences at a past or current job as negative because of the circumstances or people surrounding them at that job, I found that overall my first job was a rewarding experience.

My first real job was as a sandwich maker at Stony Brook University during my senior year of my undergraduate career. I also worked as a camp counselor for two summers but I consider that to be strictly a summer job as opposed to a part-time or full-time job that lasts throughout the year. At first I was intimidated by the job because I had no experience as a food service worker. I also knew how busy and crazy the dining hall could be as well as how unfriendly, college students could be sometimes. However, I had very understanding managers who let me east my way in and see how everything worked before they made me do anything. I was also fortunate to have a patient, kind co-worker who taught me what I needed to know about making sandwiches and helped me when necessary. Over time, I became more and more comfortable making sandwiches and got to know my co-workers well.

The people I worked with came from various Hispanic and Asian backgrounds which was unfamiliar and refreshing to me since I live in a town that lacks diversity. I learned about the difficulties my co-workers faced coming to America as a student and/or worker and how much they appreciated the opportunity to come to this country and make a better life for themselves and/or their children. I also learned about the sacrifices my co-workers made so their children would be able to experience the best life possible. I taught my co-workers some English words and phrases which at times were difficult to explain, practiced my Spanish and even learned some words in Chinese. The most rewarding experience outside of my job itself was helping one of my co-workers study for the U.S. Citizenship Test because she trusted me enough to help her.

Overall, my experiences at this job made me appreciate all the opportunities I have considering the struggles many people go through to have the same opportunities. The people I met inspired me to help others in a similar situation and made me realize I wanted to be a TESOL teacher. I also felt empowered and independent working at my job because I was able to make my own money and do something for myself.

Vocabulary

Undergraduate: first level of college at which you earn a Bachelor’s Degree upon graduating.

Career: “an individual’s journey through learning, work, and other aspects of life”*

Part-time [job]: one works under 40 hours and does not usually get medical benefits.

Full-time [job]: one works over 40 hours and generally receives medical benefits.

Refreshing: new; a good change; thirst-quenching; cool

TESOL: Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages.
*Career. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Career. (I know Wikipedia isn't the most reliable source but I thought the definition encompassed my thoughts best and was very clear and concise.)

Vocabulary Exercise
1. On a hot summer day, an ice cold drink is very ______________.
2. My friend has a _________________ job at Staples.
3. The retired soldier had a second _____________ as a teacher.
4. He works ________________ as an accountant.
5. I received my ____________ Degree in ______________. 

Grammar Point
When you quote something from a novel in APA or MLA format that is less than four lines the period always goes after the parenthesis. In MLA format, the in text citation includes the author's name and page number on which the quote was found whereas in APA format, the in text citation includes the author's name and the novel's year of publication. 
i.e. "All that is gold does not glitter, not all those who wander are lost" (Tolkien 168). or (Tolkien 1994). 

Grammar Exercise
Properly cite the following quote in MLA and APA format. 
This a quote from Suzanne Collins' novel Catching Fire found on page 178 and published in 2009: 
MLA -"You could live a hundred lifetimes and not deserve him, you know" 
APA - "You could live a hundred lifetimes and not deserve him, you know" 

Rain, Sleet or Hail Mary

"Rain, Sleet or Hail Mary"*

For the past several months this slogan has been plastered all over Super Bowl XLVIII ads and merchandise since this year, for the first time ever, the Super Bowl will take place in a cold weather climate – East Rutherford, New Jersey. This slogan is indicative of the tough, no nonsense, and determined attitude of football players as well as the fact that football is played whether it is sunny and 70 degrees or snowing and below 0. Fortunately, it seems that this year peoples’ concerns and the Farmer’s Almanac’s prediction of a massive snowstorm or bitterly cold temperatures on the day of the Super Bowl will not come to fruition. Instead those that celebrate the unofficial Super Bowl holiday will be able to enjoy it without fear of snow.

Whether you are a diehard football fan, a bandwagon football fan for the day, or you simply don’t enjoy football, the day of the Super Bowl has something for everyone. Many football fans, even if their team isn’t playing in the Super Bowl still get excited for the matchup and end up rooting for one team based on factors such as an emotional favorite (Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos, whom I’ll be rooting for), a team that really deserves to win, or a rival of your team. However, the Super Bowl encompasses so much more than football these days (even though that’s my favorite part). People throw big parties with great food like wings, heroes, chips, and beer and sometimes have a football pool where people can win cash prizes. There’s also the highly anticipated Halftime Show, featuring Bruno Mars this year, and Super Bowl commercials. It’s also a day or weekend to spend time with family and friends or go on a weekend getaway if you have no desire to be part of the Super Bowl festivities.

Vocabulary

Hail Mary (noun) - long throw used in American football when a team needs to score points to win at the end of a game.

Plastered (verb) – completely covering a surface. 

XLVIII – roman numeral for the number, 48; Super Bowls numbers have been written this way since the first Super Bowl. Roman numerals (noun) are the numbers used by the ancient Rome that look like capital letters in the American alphabet.

Indicative (adj.) – to reveal a side of someone or something.

Fruition (noun) – the completion of something

Diehard fan (noun) – someone

Bandwagon fan (noun) – someone who takes an interest in something because it is popular but not necessarily because they like it. Can also be used in the idiomatic expression: to jump on the bandwagon.

Encompasses (verb) - to be made up of different parts, pieces, aspects, etc.

Festivities (noun) – party or celebration

Vocabulary Exercises

1.      The posters for the dance were _____________ all over the hallway.

2.      MMXIV is 2014 written in ________________.

3.      The __________ pass was intercepted by the opposing team.

4.      The grade he received on his paper was ____________ of all the hours of work he put into it.

5.      The wedding __________ lasted until 2 a.m. the next morning.

6.      After all the research and writing she had done her paper finally came to ___________.

7.      Once Breaking Bad became popular, everyone jumped on the ___________.

8.      The portfolio ____________ all the artwork she completed throughout the year.

9.      He is such a ______________ that he goes to every Mets game whether or not they make it to the playoffs.

Grammar Point

When using numbers in a paper, the way you write them should be consistent. For instance, if you decide to spell out twenty instead of using its numeric form, 20, you should do that throughout your paper, especially in a sentence with several numbers. Also, numbers that "can be expressed as one or two words should be written out" (https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/593/01/) and numbers used in a date, address, percentages, time, and so on should be written numerically. 

Grammar Exercise
Correct sentences that use the wrong form of the number.
1. She lives at ninety seven Birch Street.
2. The results showed that 75% of girls preferred pink to purple.
3. My neighbor won fifty million dollars in the lottery.
4. He met her at the restaurant at 7:00 pm. 

*I wasn't sure how to cite the quote because there isn't technically a place where it can be found other than on Super Bowl merchandise, so I guess it belongs to the NFL. 

Do You Want to Build a Snowman?

This question pertains not only to the winter storm raging outside but to Disney’s newest chart-topping film: Frozen. Frozen is one of the most successful animated Disney films of all time in the United States, recently grossing over $700 million; currently, it is second to The Lion King in terms of total revenue. For the first time in animated film history a Disney movie (Frozen) earned more money than a Pixar movie (http://filmonic.com/international-box-office-frozen-slips-past-700-million).

Although I am a huge fan of Disney movies, I enjoy the pre-2000s movies more than the modern ones. Initially, I wasn’t sure what to think of Frozen, but after I heard so many good reviews I decided to see it for myself. I loved it! It had the typical elements of a Disney fairy tale: girl meets boy, they fall in love at first sight and want to get married with a modern twist. The heroine, Anna, is told to wait and get to know this new man, Hans, before she decides to marry him. Her sister, Elsa, is a sorceress who must hide her uncontrollable ice powers from everyone, including Anna, to avoid hurting her as well as others. Although it seems as if Elsa is villain once she accidentally reveals her ice powers to the entire kingdom, Hans shows himself as the villain when he refuses to save Anna from freezing and tries to kill Elsa to take the throne from her. Throughout the course of the movie, Anna realizes that she truly loves Kristoff who is by her side throughout her journey to bring Elsa back to their kingdom and does everything he can to help her. While I do believe in the kind of love found in Disney fairy tales – soul mates and fate, I truly appreciate the fact that Frozen shows that familial love is as important as romantic love. It also portrays true love as sacrificing your needs for someone else’s, as something that needs a lot of work and something that can only be true when you really know someone.

The Frozen frenzy is incredible. You can already pre-order the movie, which comes out in the middle of March, any merchandise related to Olaf the snowman or Sven the reindeer is considered rare, and other merchandise sells out in merely a few days. The most astounding thing of all is that Frozen is still going strong despite the fact that it has been in theatres for almost 2 months.

Vocabulary

Pertains (to pertain to) – has to do with (to have to do with)

Raging – wild, out of control              

Grossing (to gross) - earning (to earn)

Astounding – surprising

Going strong – doing well, continues to have success

Frenzy – craziness, obsession

Merely – only, just

Vocabulary Exercises

1.      After 20 years of marriage, their relationship was still __________________.

2.      The __________ party lasted until 6 a.m. the next morning.

3.      The number of fans at the team’s homecoming game was _______________.

4.      Her Broadway debut was __________ minutes away.

5.      Beanie Babies were a 90s _________.

6.      In only a week, his first novel __________ $100 million.

7.      The top number of a fraction _________ to a portion of the bottom number.

Grammar point
Punctuation: Italics
The title of a movie, book, magazine, newspaper, TV show and so on should be italicized. For example: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, To Kill a Mockingbird, People, Newsday, and Chopped. 

Grammar Exercise
Italicize the titles.
1. I found a great quote in Chapter 10, Strider, of The Fellowship of the Ring.
2. Every Sunday he reads the Sports section of The New York Times first. 
3. One of my favorite TV shows is Cake Boss.