September 22 and 23, 2025 Skills

Hi, everyone!
I hope you all had a wonderful weekend and are looking forward to our week ahead! I know I am! Tonight's class will have the infamous Chapter One Vocabulary Quiz to look forward to (it's not that bad:)), as well as new pen pal letters to answer upon your arrival. Since we have so many people in our morning group, some of the evening class students may actually have two pen pals (lucky you--the more, the merrier!). This can only serve to help you in reading, writing, and ultimately, being clear in all forms of communication! I hope you enjoy the process!

We will begin Chapter Two Vocabulary as soon as I am convinced everyone has a good understanding of Chapter One! This is why we give you assessments--to check on what you have retained, and to see what I may need to teach again! There is never a need to worry about any quiz or test we may have this year. It should always be your very best work, but if you have not mastered a skill, it is my job as your teacher to know this and to remedy it by approaching the subject in a different way! I would hope that no one in our classes would look for outside help during any assessments because you would only be cheating yourself out of an opportunity to learn it more thoroughly the second time around!

​With this in mind, let's add it to our list of agreements we will put in writing and display in our classroom: Each student's work will always be their own during any class assessments.

Now, let's begin our new page of skills! 

Part One
Idiom of the Day
Directions: Read the following sentence twice, with the second time through meant for a deeper understanding of what is being said.

Sal's wife kept asking him different questions about what he would do if he lost his job, but Sal chose to say that he would cross that bridge when he came to it.

My Meaning of the Idiom:

Have you ever had this experience before? Describe it in the space provided.

Part Two
Grammar Challenge
Nouns!
Directions: Since we were speaking about nouns and subjects of sentences last week, let's take a moment to review both skills. Please circle or highlight all nouns in the sentences that follow AND write the subject of each sentence on the line that follows. 

Example: Lia enjoyed playing tennis on the weekends at a YMCA court.
 Nouns you would circle or highlight would be: Lia, tennis, weekends, court (or YMCA court, if used as a two-part noun). The subject would be Lia because she is doing the main action in the sentence.

1. After class, students decided to read books more often to improve reading skills. _______________________
2. Have you ever seen a more beautiful fall day? ____________________________________________________
3. Do you celebrate any holidays in October? _______________________________________________________
4. Did you think the Vocabulary Test was difficult? __________________________________________________
5. My dog Abby enjoys the treats we give her every day. _____________________________________________
6. Before deciding which college is for you, look into several different ones to see if they have courses you will enjoy! ________________________________________________________________________________________
7. My sister Joan went to the Cape for a much-needed vacation. _______________________________________
8. This website is a good place to find skills of every type! ___________________________________________
9. My daughter Laura and her husband Andrew celebrated their sixth anniversary yesterday. _____________________________________________________________________________________________
10. Soon we will be putting the heat on and drinking hot beverages to keep warm! ______________________

Part Three
Writing
Directions: Please select one of the sentences above, and use it to begin a creative writing piece. Find one that is most interesting to you, and continue to create a story around it. Please be sure your writing piece contains at least five sentences, and that after you have written it, you have edited it carefully!  I can't wait to read your work!

Note: Your writing can be in a notebook or passed in on a sheet of looseleaf paper. Please put your name and date on either one. Notebooks will be checked at a later date!

Part Four
Literary Terms
Paraphrase and Inference
Directions: To review, we paraphrase when we take someone else's words and simply say them a different way without adding meaning of any kind! An inference is made when we do add meaning to those words.

Example: The doctor's office calls and tells you the following: "You have an appointment to see Dr. Brown on Friday, September 26, at 9AM sharp."

Your Paraphrase: I have a doctor's visit on Friday at 9.

Your Inference: I have a doctor's visit on Friday at 9; I wonder if they are checking to see if my leg sprain has improved.

What is the difference between a paraphrase and an inference in the above example? Write your answer in the space that follows.

Directions: Decide if the following sentences are paraphrases or inferences based on the language used.

1.  Drake Maye is a quarterback who plays for the New England Patriots.   Paraphrase     Inference
2. Mike Vrabel is a great coach.     Paraphrase     Inference
3. The talk show hosts talked about the actor in an angry way. I bet they know him personally, and he's not the nicest person.     Paraphrase     Inference
4. Classes will start at 6PM this evening.     Paraphrase     Inference
5. Everyone will learn every single thing the teacher teaches tonight.     Paraphrase     Inference
6. The teacher will go over paraphrases and inferences in class.     Paraphrase     Inference
7. Swimming is a great activity.     Paraphrase     Inference
8. Shopping at the mall on the weekends can be a relaxing way to spend time.     Paraphrase     Inference
9. The director of the movie asked the actors to speak more clearly.     Paraphrase     Inference
10. There was a white mountain bike for sale at the store.     Paraphrase     Inference


Now it's your turn!! Create four sentences below that could either sound like a paraphrased thought or an inference. Do not label your sentences. You will trade with a partner to see if they select the correct response!