Snow Leopards

Besides being my favorite animal, snow leopards are fascinating animals. Snow leopards are the descendants of the wild cat and panther families.They have gorgeous smoky-grey coats patterned with black spots. These carnivorous animals are  widely spread over Central and South Asia in countries like Pakistan, Nepal, Afghanistan, India, Mongolia, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Bhutan, Russia and Kazakhstan. Snow leopards prefer living in ridges, cliffs and rock outcrops. These locations are convenient because they provide camouflage for sneaking up on prey. Snow leopards are very independent creatures, they live alone most of the time and only socialize during mating season. They live in very cold environments which is why they have a lot of fur. Unfortunately, this beautiful species is endangered.You can see these beautiful animals in various zoos and there are various websites and organizations where you can make donations to help keep these animals safe.

Vocabulary:

Descendants: a person, plant, or animal that is descended from a particular ancestor.

Carnivorous: animals eat other animals. Meat eaters.

Convenient: fitting in well with a person's needs, activities, and plans.

Camouflage: to hide or disguise

Prey: an animal that is hunted and killed by another for food.

Endangered: population decreasing. At risk for being extinct.

Vocabulary Exercise:

Complete the word-search below.

Grammar:

This blog entry is an informative piece on snow leopards. Informative writing involves using facts to describe what is being written about. Facts are A fact is something that is true and can be proven. It does not change, no matter who says it. Everything that was stated in this entry was factual. This entry is informative because the reader is now learning factual information about snow leopards.

Grammar Exercise:

Write an informative piece (one paragraph) about an animal of your choosing. Include as many facts as possible that describe what this animal is like!

A Letter to My Hero

February 18, 2017

Dear Papa,

Thank you. Those two words hold so much meaning when it comes to my appreciation for you. You taught me so many things about life that can’t be learned from a book. You taught me how precious life is, and how to never give up. I learned how to be assertive from you and how to strive for perfection. You taught me how to laugh and always look at the bright side of every situation, you are the reason I am an optimist.

I love you, thank you for everything!

Sincerely,

Your Granddaughter Maria

Vocabulary:

Appreciation: to admire

Precious: valuable

Assertive: confident

Strive: make great efforts to achieve or obtain something.

Optimist: someone who is always positive

Sincerely: genuinely

Vocabulary Exercise: Fill in the blanks with the vocabulary word that matches the definition

Genuninely _____________________________

Someone who is always positive _______________________________

To admire ______________________________

Valuable ___________________________

Confident ______________________________

To make great efforts to achieve or obtain something ____________________________

Grammar: Letter Writing

When writing a letter to someone you have to have a greeting. In the example above the greeting was “dear papa”. This shows who the letter is being written for. To write a greeting you could use the words “dear, to, hello, greetings etc” Next, you have the body. The body is where you write what you want to say to that person. After the body you have the complimentary close. The complimentary close is a short expression. In the example above the complimentary close was when I said “I love you, thank you for everything!” Finally, you end your letter with a signature. This is where you write your name. Before you write your name you close the letter by writing sincerely, from, love, love always, or any other closure word. In the example above my closure was sincerely.

Grammar Exercise:

• Use the example/format above to write a letter to someone who you appreciate/admire.

In 15 Years...

A few months ago I was blessed to be offered my first teaching position. Of course I accepted the offer and I now am a proud 5th grade teacher. The other day, after my students unpacked their belongings, I had them write an interesting journal entry after they settled down. I always try to make their journal entries engaging and fun. They were highly intrigued by this journal prompt. On the board I wrote “Where do you see yourself in 15 years?” Being the ambitious 5th grade students that they are, they wrote about their dreams of becoming rich, powerful, famous, and successful. I had students share their entries and they did so with pride and confidence.After they were done sharing, they asked me “Ms. Pulella, what about you? Where do you see your life in 15 years?” I was puzzled by the thought of the future. I couldn’t even think of a response, so instead I had them ask me more specific questions about my future. They asked me questions like “Is there a place you want to live?” “Will you still be a teacher?” “Will you be married and have children?” The last question one of my students asked me had me in awe, she asked me “Will you remember us?” I told them that they’re a special group of students and there will always be a place for them in my heart...even in 15 years.

Vocabulary:

Intrigued: very interested in

Ambitious: showing a strong determination to succeed

Confidence: believing in yourself

Puzzled: confused

Future: the time ahead

Specific: exact, clearly defined, particular, distinct, clear-cut.

Vocabulary Exercise: Complete the crossword puzzle below

Grammar: There, Their, and They’re

In this entry there were three forms of the word “there” used. These words are pronounced the same but they have a different spelling and meaning. There refers to a place, they’re is a contraction of “they are”, and their is a possessive pronoun.

Examples of when to use each version:

1. There is a library in the first building.
2. It is over there.
3. They’re going to the movies tonight.
4. They’re happy and in love.
5. Their dog is cute
6. Their house is big and beautiful.

Grammar exercise:

• Write 2 sentences using the word there.
• Write 2 sentences using the word they’re
• Write 2 sentences using the word their.

My dog Rambo!

When I was 15 years old, my family bought our first pet, a dog named Rambo! Rambo is a small purebred dog. Rambo is always full of energy. He loves to jump, walk, run, play, drink, eat, dance and sing (yes, he dances and sings). Rambo also loves attention, and hates when someone concentrates on anything other than him. Sometimes when people hear his name, they assume he will be hostile, but he is actually very lovable and amicable. When I take Rambo for walks, he loves to play with children who are walking by. Like every other dog, Rambo also enjoys receiving kisses and belly rubs, but he also loves to give kisses to the people that he loves!

Vocabulary Words:

Purebred: an animal who was made from parents who are the same breed (type of dog).

Hostile: not friendly

Assume: to suppose something without proof.

Receiving (receive): to be given something

Concentrate: to focus your attention on something

Amicable: Friendly

Vocabulary Exercise:

Directions: Unscramble the words based on the definitions

Scrambled Word	Definition	Unscrambled Word
Ingbrecei	To be given something
etartenconc	To focus your attention on something
Micalbe	friendly
Elstioh	Not friendly
Emusas	To suppose something without proof
Derpureb	an animal who was made from parents who are the same breed (type of dog).

Grammar:

In this blog entry two words were used (and bolded) that have opposite meanings: hostile and amicable. Hostile means unfriendly whereas amicable has the opposite meaning, it is used to describe someone who is warm, kind, and friendly. In grammar, these words are called antonyms.

An antonym is a word that has the opposite meaning of another. They are opposites!

For example:

• Bad is an antonym of good
• Sad is an antonym of happy
• Full is an antonym of empty

Grammar Exercise: Look at the bolded word in each question and pick ONE of the options that you think is an antonym of that word.

1. An antonym for hot is
1. Cold
2. Warm
3. Burning
4. Heat
2. An antonym for short is
1. Small
2. Tiny
3. Little
4. cold
3. An antonym for fast is
1. Speedy
2. Quick
3. Slow
4. Rapid
4. An antonym for strong is
1. Tough
2. Weak
3. Muscular
4. Built
5. An antonym for easy is
1. hard
2. Simple
3. Relaxed
4. straightforward