March 20, 2025 Skills

Hi, everyone! We have more skills and new idioms to continue our quest to make Spring our most successful season so far! Be sure to read each set of directions carefully before forming an answer! As always, enjoy the process!!

Part One
Idiom of the Day
The ball is in your court!
Directions: Please read the following sentence that contains our idiom today, and think about what it means. Be sure to use context clues from the sentence that will help you figure out the meaning of this wonderful twist of language!

Shaun, a Social Studies teacher, taught his students many skills, had them practice every day, and gave them frequent assessments to be sure they understood the material. He told his students "The ball is in your court now," as he realized he had done all he could to help them reach their goals.

Questions you should ask yourself to figure out this idiom:

1. Can you think of a time when "the ball was in your court"? Describe what happened to you and why you realized the true meaning of this idiom!

2. Write a sentence that uses this idiom correctly!

Part Two
Vocabulary Review
Chapter 16 Words

Directions: Decide which of the following words from Chapter Sixteen fits best in each sentence below! You may write the answer in the blank space or after the entire sentence.

adept                        encompass                     entrepreneur                  eradicate                 homogeneous            presumptuous
sordid                       standardize                     stint                                stringent

1. The milk we drink nowadays is _____________________________________; this means the contents of the liquid are the same throughout.
2. Are you ______________________ at sports? It's great to be so flexible and skilled as an athlete!
3. This classroom  will continue to ____________________________________________ all learning styles; everyone learns in a different way, and we are respectful of everyone's needs at all times!
4. The ______________________________________ was excited about how well his business was doing. He had tried so hard to create a plan that he knew would appeal to people of all ages.
5. It would be great to __________________________________________ COVID once and for all; in this way, we would never again have to worry about catching this unpleasant sickness.
6. Most tests that are given per grade level are ________________________________(e)d; in this way, everyone can be sure the tests are measuring the same skills across each group of students.
7. Did you ever have a ______________________________ working in a job you did not particularly like?
8. Some bosses are _____________________________________ about how well their employees follow every rule the company has set. They will not stand for their employees coming in late every day or not completing all tasks required!
9. We did not need to hear the _______________________ details about the kidnapping; sometimes the news can offer too much information that we may not enjoy hearing.
10. Is it ___________________________________ of me to think that everyone will reach their goals during this school year? I hope it happens and that it becomes a reality for all of you!

Part Three
Writing
Directions: It is now your turn to use each vocabulary word above in a sentence of your own! Be sure that you underline or highlight the word you have used, and remember to use each of the ten words (resulting in ten original sentences)! Enjoy!

Part Four
Grammar Challenge
Parallel Sentence Structure
Directions: Please look at each sentence listed below and decide if it is parallel in structure. If it is, simply write the word YES after that sentence. If it is not, please correct it in the space below each one!

1. Tom is a musician, an artist, and he enjoys cooking.

2. Ella sings, dances, works on various types of crafts, and draws.

3. I realized I should create a new document, present it to my students, and complete it with them in class

4. No one knows better than you do what you want, how you will achieve it, and what plans you have made!

5. Riding a bike, swimming in a pool, and running on the beach are all fun workouts you can take part in this summer!

Part Five
Literary Terms
Paraphrase

Directions: In order to review this term, let's first discuss what it is in class. Then you will be asked to paraphrase a few sentences I will select from this very resource!