First day being a substitute teacher

On Thursday 10/18/12 I was called in as a substitute for my first time at Plainedge middle school, a school I once attended. I was excited but also nervous because I was sick and did not get a great deal of sleep. I decided to take the job anyway because I did not want to turn down my first offer. I got a call the first day I was on the list. I have been on the subbing list for Farmingdale since the beginning of  the school year and still no call. I was glad however that my first time was at Plainedge, somewhere I felt comfortable. It was a great experience. I subbed for my 7th grade social studies teacher. The students had to take a test for four of the periods and the other period they were working on a project on the computer. The students behaved pretty well for the most part, except for ninth period. The students were hyper and could not wait for the school day to be over. Like every other period the students finished the test early. They worked on the puzzle I gave them but did not want to quietly while other students were still taking a test. I had to quiet them down which was much more difficult then it was the other periods, but eventually they did listen. All in all I have to say even though I was sick and almost lost my voice, my first day subbing was better than I expected.


Vocabulary 

Substitute-  A temporary teacher teaching the class, while the teacher is out.
Attended - Regularly went to (school, church, class).
Sleep - To rest your mind and body by closing your eyes and becoming unconscious.
Beginning- The point at which something starts.
Comfortable - Feeling relaxed and happy, not worried and troubled.
Hyper - Very excited, nervous, or active.


Vocabulary Exercise

1. Yesterday I was very tired because I did get much ________________ the night before.
2. You have to indent the _________________ of every paragraph.
3. The other day I went to my friends house that I haven't seen in years, but I still felt very ________________ being there. It was like I saw them yesterday.
4. My teacher was sick today so we had a ________________ teach the class.
5. While I was babysitting the other night, the kids were very _____________, running all over the place.
6. When I was little I ______________ church every Sunday.


Grammar Point 

I used some words explaining how I or others felt (adjectives). For each of those words, write a sentence explaining a time you felt like that. If you can't think of a time, make it up.

Are reality shows really reality?

Reality shows seem to be taking over. They are very popular for a wide range of age groups. MTV known as MUSIC TV, even though it doesn’t seem to play music anymore, airs many reality shows. Some examples are The Jersey Shore, 16 and pregnant, and Teen Mom. There are also other reality shows on other channels such as Mobwives, Toddlers in Tiaras, and Honey Boo Boo, plus many more. Are these shows really reality? Majority of these kinds of shows are based on fighting, alcohol, and money, which is reality but not the way they advertise it. These kinds of reality shows today seem to be a bad influence on people, especially teenagers. TV shows already take people away from reality, but now these shows can make people think it is reality. One of the most popular shows called “The Jersey Shore”; a show I even watch has had many teenagers believing life is all about partying. Yes these stars also work at a shirt store, but they mainly party and get paid for it. The shows “16 and pregnant” and “Teen Mom” advertise pregnant teens and teen moms. They do show the hardships of being pregnant and a Mom at such a young age but they also can be influencing many young teenagers to get pregnant because then they can be on a TV show. Also some teenagers may look up to these girls and want to be like them. “Mobwives” is just a bunch of 40 and 50 year old women living rich lives while partying and fighting. Unless you are rich like them and do not work no one will live a life like that at that age. It in a way advertizes that women don’t have to work, that men make all the money, and the women just have fun. It’s pathetic watching women at that age act worse than the 20 year olds on The Jersey Shore.  “Toddlers in Tiaras” is about spoiled girls who get what they want and if they don’t, they throw a tantrum. Some of these young girls dress and act like teenagers at three years old. I am not saying all reality shows are bad, but most of them today should not be labeled reality TV. Of course most of this is my opinion but I am sure many people agree, even if they do watch them. There are some reality shows that do not fit under this category, like “American Idol,” “Dancing with the Stars,” and “Pawn Stars,” and “Tanked.” These reality shows are either contests or are somewhat educational, with little drama.

Vocabulary

Reality – Something that is true, a part of real life. 

Popular – Liked by many

Advertise – To show to the public, to call attention to

Influence – To change or create someone’s views or actions

Teenagers- Anybody that is under the age group of 13-19

Tantrum- A fit of bad temper

Vocabulary Cloze Exercise

1.     The book “Harry Potter” is fictional where as the book “Accept the Challenge” is based on __________________.

2.     It is known that many ______________ would rather spend time with their friends instead of their parents.

3.     My sister threw a ______________ when she found out that our family was not going on vacation this summer.

4.     Many parents believe that video games are a bad ________________ for their children.

5.     The Yankees are liked by many even by people who live outside of New York. They are very _______________.

6.     Commercials ______________ products, food, movies, and places to go.

Grammar Point

The verb “To Be” is used many times throughout this paragraph. How many times is it used? Is it ever used in the past tense? If so, write down those sentences that use it.

Yankees- How far can they make it this year?

Everyone keeps asking the same thing, will Yankees make it to the world series this year? They have been so on and off this year. But that is probably because of all the injured players. As a die hard Yankee fan I have the utmost faith that they will make it this year, especially after the last two games. They have not done their best this year but when it comes down to it, when they need to win they most likely will. The pitching has been somewhat of a problem. As for the hitting I think the Yankees are okay, especially since they hit the record of the most home runs in a year for the Yankees. I know some people are hoping the Yankees lose and that the underdogs like Baltimore Orioles, Washington National's, or the Cincinnati Reds win the world series. However,  as a Yankee fan I do not agree. They are the best baseball team America  has ever had and if they try hard they deserve it. Of course the other teams do too, but I hope the Yankees win. Now that everyone besides Mariano Rivera is pretty much off of the disabled list I think the Yankees will be doing what they do best from now on, and that's winning. If they don't I hope an underdog team wins.

Vocabulary 

Yankees- One of the two New York major league baseball teams.

Players- A person who plays a sport or game.

Fan-A person who likes and roots for a certain team or person.

Pitching- To throw a ball to the batter/hitter.

Lose- To  fail to win

Underdogs- A team that is expected to lose a game(s).


Vocabulary Exercise

        This little boy named Johnny lived in New York his whole life. His Dad always took him to sporting events but Johnny's favorite was baseball. He loved to watch the New York baseball team named the ______________. Johnny was their biggest __________, he went to almost every game. He also was a baseball ___________ at his school. He loved hitting and running, but he really loved __________ the most. He especially liked striking out the batters. Johnny always wanted to win and never wanted to ___________. He definitely did not root for any _____________.




Grammar Point 

Write down all the gerunds (words that end in Ing) used in this paragraph. Then put them in their finite forms.