SPAIN!

Spain. A country located on the right of the Atlantic Ocean in Europe. It is a peninsula sharing its land with Portugal. Its history is endless and its a divine country to visit. That is why I decided to study abroad one summer while in college. I wanted to travel and visit a new place and therefore I did.  Its beauty was breathtaking and I experienced it for myself.  I studied in the University of Leon, in the center of Languages where I took classes and was enriched in the culture and history of Spain. I was immersed into the culture immediately. I stayed with a welcoming family that treated me like one of their own and learned all great new things. I traveled to different cities such as Madrid, Barcelona, Leon, Galicia, Salamanca, and much more. I learned that in Spain many different customs were practiced in smaller cities rather than in the larger cities.

It was evident that this place was rich in culture and unique in itself. I knew that one day I would want to return for pleasure. It reminded me of the beautiful poems and stories I read in my college years and I was able to experience the country and picturesque views for myself. One day I will return Spain! 

Vocabulary:

peninsula - land that has water around its sides

breathtaking - something that is very beautiful

enriched - filled with great things

evident  - clear

immersed - included in

customs-a practice that is repeated

picturesque - a beautiful image

Vocabulary Activity:

Across
4. included in
5. something that is very beautiful
6. a practice that is repeated
7. filled with great things
Down
1. a beautiful image
2. land that has water around its sides
3. clear

 

Grammar Point:

 The past tense is a grammatical tense whose principal function is to place an action or situation in past time. The past tense has its regular verbs and irregular verbs. In English, it can become confusing in knowing which verbs are conjugated regularly or irregularly. Notice the different uses of the past tense above. 

Grammar Activity: 

Write a short diary entry about a place in your native country that you truly miss. Write it using at least 10 past tense verbs. Include your favorite locations. Include a picture or drawing.

A different spin at Sushi

Have you ever tried sushi? If you have, have you ever wondered what it would taste like if it had different ingredients in it? Well, in uptown Manhattan, there is a location called Mama Sushi, these chefs really put a different spin in their sushi. I am a huge fan of sushi and I am always trying new types of sushi. Every time I go to a sushi restaurant I order something old and something new but of course fresh! I am usually into the tempura, spicy tuna with avocado, smoked salmon, and yellow tail.  I came across this restaurant while visiting Fort Tryon Park and the cloisters in the city.  My family and I strolled around the streets looking for somewhere to dine and we found this cute little place. It was very small in size but rich in flavor because after I tasted their sushi rolls, I was immediately impressed and obsessed. I wanted more.
The thing that is so different about this place is that they mix the Japanese traditional flavors of sushi with the latin flavors.  The name of the rolls were something to get kick out of, because they were name of cities from the Dominican Republic. While in the city after visiting central park, take a train to uptown to try this!

Vocabulary:
Japanese - a person or thing that is from the country Japan; located in Asia
ingredients - food items
spin - a turn around
sushi - a Japanese dish made of rice and seafood
impressed - to be surprised 
obsessed - have a lot of love/like for something
traditional - something that is repeated in the culture/family

Vocabulary Activity:

J	I	N	C	K	X	B	V	F	M	S	G
A	P	M	I	D	J	B	D	R	T	L	X
P	K	V	P	P	J	L	I	N	P	O	J
A	Y	T	J	R	S	G	E	Q	W	R	O
N	Q	V	N	H	E	I	M	T	W	B	H
E	S	N	J	V	D	S	I	H	S	U	S
S	H	K	V	E	A	F	S	E	Q	S	D
E	W	X	R	N	C	U	S	E	R	T	F
O	L	G	Q	A	T	S	H	U	D	N	P
V	N	J	U	K	E	B	Y	J	O	W	S
I	T	R	A	D	I	T	I	O	N	A	L
P	R	Q	M	L	W	X	I	G	O	O	J

Japanese
Ingredients
Spin
Sushi
Impressed
Obsessed
Traditional

Grammar Point:

A proper noun is the special word (or name) that we use for a person, place or organization, like John, Marie, London, France or Sony. A name is a noun, but a very special noun - a proper noun. Proper nouns have special rules. 

Grammar Activity:

Circle the proper noun in each sentence.

1. John went to the store.

2. She went to Paris for her vacation. 

3. On Sunday we go to church.

4. My teacher, Ms. DeLarosa has returned.

5. Those Italians live at the end of the block. 

6. In China, there are many people. 

7. California is a beautiful place. 

8. Tom loves his cat. 

New York City!

Let's take a visit to CENTRAL PARK!! Stretching from Midtown to Harlem, Central Park's green hills, and dense woodlands always have free diversions, from concerts and protests to tai chi and tennis.  You can visit is Central Park in Manhattan also known as New York City. This location is a little farther and pricier, but if you are willing to see what New York city has to offer, this place is well worth it! This park has something else to offer rather than skyscrapers and busy streets.  You will discover that there is something for everyone in Central Park. It has beautiful landscapes and long beautiful pathways that you can simple just enjoy by strolling through them. This park is known to be the most visited urban park in the United States, once you are in the park, you will forget that you are in the worlds liveliest city, the city that never sleeps.  

Vocabulary: 

skyscrapers - a very tall building

landscapes - big land of nature such as trees, grass, flowers, etc.

liveliest- something very loud or with a lot of energy

strolling- walking around

discover - find out something new

diversions- events or activities

dense- crowded, contains many objects

Vocabulary Activity:

1. The empire state building is an example of a _____________________ because it is a very tall building. 

2. The beautiful grass and flowers make a wonderful ____________________ for a painting. 

3. The children ______________________ something new and they find out new things. 

4. The person that had the most energy was the ____________________.

5. While walking through the park, the family ____________________ slowly and enjoyed the beautiful scenery. 

6.  The school provided the students with different events and ________________ to keep the students entertained. 

7. The forest was very ______________ with all the trees and bushes all over the place. 

Grammar Point:

The Present Tense describes the things you do every day. Note the use of an "s" at the end of the verb when describing a man, a woman, or a thing. Notice the different uses of the present tense in the paragraph.

Grammar Activity:

Write a journal entry about a place that you would like for me to visit one day using the present tense.  Describe the different things I can do at this place. It could be anywhere! 

Things to do this summer in Long Island!

Summer in New York is very short and we have to take advantage of the nice weather and places it has to offer. Whether its a stroll through a nice park, a swim at the beach, or a visit to our wonderful city, there are always things to do in New York and you do not need to spend so much money! Summer is only two months away, so why not start thinking about some activities you may do after work or on your free time? Here on Long Island, there are some great places you can go just to relax and get a different scenery. During the month of July, Jones Beach has free concerts right on the beach!! The local bus has a route that goes straight there and it is very convenient. You can spend a whole day at the beach soaking up some sun and swimming in the beaches of the Atlantic ocean and right after that, you can enjoy a concert right on the boardwalk. These concerts start around 7 p.m. The concerts offer a variety of music and the best part is that they also have the audience participate. They offer dance lessons to learn different steps to Latin Music, Line dancing and much more. The entertainment at Jones beach is endless!

Vocabulary: 
advantage -  a benefit, something that is in your favor
scenery - a view of a place or surroundings 
convenient - easy, useful
soaking - to take in
variety - different things
participate - to take part in
entertainment - a fun activity

Vocabulary Activity: 

Across
5. easy, useful
7. a benefit, something that is in your favor
Down
1. to take part in
2. to take in
3. a fun activity
4. a view of a place or surroundings
6. different things

Grammar Point:
A preposition describes a relationship between other words in a sentence. In itself, a word like "in" or "after" is rather meaningless and hard to define in mere words. For instance, when you do try to define a preposition like "in" or "between" or "on," you invariably use your hands to show how something is situated in relationship to something else. Notice the different prepositional words in the story. 

Grammar Activity: 
Create a short poem with at least 6 different prepositions. Be creative! 

Check out the Video below to see what the concerts are all about ! 

Jones Beach Sunday Latin Concerts

My Voki

Batter up!

                    And The trophy goes to the Dominican Republic, beating Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic championship game! 

                   The well know country for its passion and dedicated baseball players strut their skills in the games of the classic baseball competition.  After years of trying to gain the name of the worlds championships, finally in 2013, Dominican Republic takes the victory. They are the first team to go undefeated through out the whole competition. Now that is impressive! 

                   Dominican Republic has been a country that has many young men who dream of one day playing in the major league baseball of the united states.  They train hard and dedicate many hours to this game, their passion is demonstrated in the time they put into this all time american favorite sport.

                  One might wonder why the players are so well trained and the reason is that many companies from Major League Baseball have invested in several training programs around the Dominican Republic to help the young boys reach their dreams.  

                 Dominicans are know for their unity and pride and they mentioned in interviews after winning the game that they did it for the Dominican people back home. They kept insinuating that it is all about the team and the people. 

Vocabulary:

Championship- a title in a sport when one team wins

competition- an event where teams play each other

victory- to win a game 

passion- a strong emotion or feeling for something

insinuating- to give someone a hint or let someone know something

undefeated- a team that has not lost a game

impressive- something that makes you surprised in a happy way

Vocabulary Activity:

W T W S H U E X F H W Z Q N M I X I I L W N M T Q W C I O V B K B Y V C I D Y M S I E I K U S M E V I S S E R P M I S J G K F A H W Q Q Z F O K G S B W K S X I J U S O Q E T G A X N O I T I T E P M O C A C P P I N S I N U A T I N G A T I E L N V A B H F B O I R K R E V C H A M P I O N S H I P S R D

CHAMPIONSHIP	COMPETITION	IMPRESSIVE
INSINUATING	PASSION	UNDEFEATED
VICTORY

Grammar Point: Adjectives are describing words. Adjectives are added to nouns to make them descriptive. They make the story more interesting and add more visuals in your mind. Notice the different adjectives in the post above.   

Grammar Activity: Write five sentences using a an adjective in each sentence.  After writing the sentences, provide a picture/drawing for each sentence.