Here We Come A-Caroling

Here we come a-caroling
among the leaves so green.
Here we come a-wandering,
So fair, to be seen

Love and joy come to you,
and to you glad Christmas, too,
and God bless you and send you a Happy New Year,
and God send you a Happy New Year.

Santa Claus is Coming to Town

You’d better watch out! 1.
You’d better not cry.
Better not pout.
I'm telling you why.
Santa Claus is coming to town.
He's making a list,
and checking it twice;
Gonna find out who's naughty and nice. 2.
Santa Claus is coming to town

He sees you when you're sleeping.
He knows when you're awake.
He knows if you've been bad or good,
so be good for goodness sake! 3.

O! You’d better watch out!
You’d better not cry.
Better not pout. 4.
I'm telling you why.
Santa Claus is coming to town.

VOCABULARY

1. “watch out” means a. be careful b. tell the time c. walk outside
2. What does “gonna” mean? _____________________________

3. “for goodness sake” is a nice way to say “for God’s/Christ/Pete’s sake meaning
“I am surprised” or “annoyed” or in this case “for a good reason –
For example, A: I just won the lottery.
B: For goodness sake.

C: I lost my keys again.
D: You lost your keys again? For goodness sake!

E: Don’t lose your keys again.
F: I know. It’s a bad idea.
E: For goodness sake, put them in your pocket.

4. “pout” (verb) means a. to shout b. to pound your fists on the table
c. to show displeasure by thrusting out the lips
GRAMMAR

A. Use a command with BETTER, meaning MUST or SHOULD.
For example, I’m tired. I’d better go home now.
I’m going to school. I’d better not be late.
She had better do her homework or the teacher will be angry.
You’d better not drive without insurance.

You try your own sentence with HAD BETTER.
1. __________________________________________________________________

B. Present Progressive tense is used to say what is happening NOW. It is also used to tell what is happening in the FUTURE.
For example, a. “Santa Claus is coming to town.” [This will happen soon.]
Can you find any other Present Progressive tense verbs?
b.
c.
d.
e.

Now you write your own present progressive sentences
f. (NOW) ____________________________________________________
g. (FUTURE) ____________________________________________________

C. Present Perfect tense tells about something that started in the past and continues to the present (and may even continue on into the future). It’s a past tense and gives you the feeling of SINCE or ALREADY or NOT YET or FOR (a certain period of time.
For example, You have been bad for a whole week.
You have been a good girl since yesterday.
I have not eaten lunch yet.
He has taken level 5 already.
Now you try to writing a present perfect sentence.
1. (has/have been) _______________________________________________
2. (has/have + another verb’s past participle)
__________________________________________________________________

CONVERSATION
1. Who is Santa Claus?

2. What kind of list is he making?

________________________________________________________________________
3. What do you want Santa to bring you for Christmas?

© Gati 2008

Silver Bells

1.
City sidewalks, busy sidewalks, dressed in holiday style.
In the air, there’s a feeling of Christmas.
Children laughing, people passing, meeting smile after smile,
And on every street corner you hear:

chorus
Silver bells, silver bells.
It’s Christmas time in the city.
Ring-a-ling, hear them ring.
Soon it will be Christmas day.

2.
Strings of street lights, even stop lights
Blink a bright red and green
As the shoppers rush home with their treasures.
Hear the snow crunch. See the kids bunch.
This is Santa’s big scene.
And above all this bustle you hear.

chorus
Silver bells, silver bells.
It’s Christmas time in the city.
Ring-a-ling, hear them ring.
Soon it will be Christmas day.

VOCABULARY
1. When is Christmas Day? _____________________

2. There are two verses and one chorus in this Christmas song.
In the first verse, two words rhyme.
a. What word rhymes with “style”? ____________________

What words rhyme in the second verse?
b. _____________ rhymes with “green.
c. _____________ rhymes with “bunch”

In the chorus, there’s only one rhyme.
d. What words rhyme? _______ and _________
What’s another word that you can think of that rhymes with “d”? __________

3. What are the colors of Christmas? ___________ and ______________

4. The street lights “blink”. What does “blink” mean? ______________________
5. What does “Hear the snow crunch” mean?
_______________________________________________________________
6. What does it mean when it says, “See the kids bunch”?
________________________________________________________________
7. What’s a synonym for a “stop light”? ________________________________
8. Who is Santa? __________________________________________________

9. What does “bustle” mean? _____________________________________

GRAMMAR

There is a There’s a feeling of Christmas in the air.
1. What is the singular subject that goes with “is”? __________
2. Write your own “There is” sentence.
_______________________________________________________________________

There are There are Christmas lights everywhere.
What is the plural subject that goes with “are”? __________
4. Write your own “There are” sentence.
___________________________________________________

One rule. . . whatever subject is closest to THERE, determines the IS or ARE.
For example, There is a pencil and some pens on the desk.
There are some pens and a pencil on the desk.

You write two sentences like the examples above.
____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

Teacher Held World Record

Edna Parker, 1893-2008

VOCABULARY
1. certified a. officially recognized b. jailed c. insured

2. a nursing home
a. a hospital
b. a huge house
c. a place where people live who need constant care

3. centenarian
a. a pet doctor b. a 100-year-0ld person c. 100 cents

4. childhood sweetheart
a. a boyfriend or girlfriend you had when you were very young
b. a valentine
c. a husband or wife

5. hired hands
a. dirty fingers
b. employees on a farm
c. factory workers

6. chores a. breakfast b. shouting c. household jobs

7. outlived (past tense)
a. lived longer than others b. lived outside c. died

8. survivors
a. pizza
b. a small portion of food
c. family members who live after the person dies

9. the meeting “took place” a. was at b. sat down c. led

10. lofty age a. left turn b. very old c. young

11. move in with “relatives”
a. family members b. friends c. teachers

12. “convalescent” center
a. a place to recover, for people who need constant care, before going back home
b. b. a cemetery
c. c. a school

13. a “fellow” resident
a. an apartment house
b. a person who lives in the same place
c. a saleswoman

14. Guinness World Records
a. the world series
b. a book that lists things or people that are the biggest/the longest/the strangest/
. . . that did the most unusual things in the world
c. music Cds

15. another “feat”
a. your other foot
b. something else you are able to do
c. a pair of shoes

16. aggregate age
a. the combined number b. a young person c. an old person

17. commended (past tense) a. remembered b. praised c. forgotten

18. starch
a. food such as rice or potatoes
b. soap to wash clothes
c. a strong smell

19. lard a. fat from pork b. to give money c. a lovely dinner

20. quipped (past tense)
a. put on a costume b. said as a joke c. questioned

21. her diet a. weight loss b. coke c. the food she eats

22. credited (past tense)
a. gave money b. got a loan c. gave the reason for

23. longevity a. a long life b. a long road c. a long time

24. retained a. returned b. threw out c. kept

25. a sense of humor
a. the ability to smell
b. the ability to make people laugh
c. the ability to sense danger

26. evident a. doubtful b. finished c. obvious
GRAMMAR
SUPERLATIVES are comparisons that use “THE” plus an adjective + EST
e.g. He is THE BEST dancer in the show.
She is THE PRETTIEST girl in the class.
This is THE MOST EXPENSIVE dress I have ever bought.

1. Can you find 7 superlatives in the article?
A .___________________________________________________________________
B .___________________________________________________________________
C .___________________________________________________________________
D .___________________________________________________________________
E .___________________________________________________________________
F .___________________________________________________________________
G .___________________________________________________________________

Now you write a sentence using ANOTHER superlative. (Don’t use any superlative that is an example or A-G.)

H .___________________________________________________________________

2. The verbs in this article are mainly in the past tense.
How many can you find? ______
How many present-tense verbs can you find? ________
How many verbs use modals? _________
How many future tenses can you find? ___________

CONVERSATION
Talk to your partner. Then write your answers in complete sentences.
1. Who was Edna Parker? _____________________________________________

2. Where did she live? ______________________________________________

3. How old was she when she died? _______________________________________

4. What are “supercentenarians?” ________________________________________

5. How many children did she have? Tell me about her family? Who are her survivors?

6. Benjamin Franklin said, “EARLY TO BED, EARLY TO RISE, MAKES A MAN HEALTHY, WEALTHY, AND WISE.” What do you think this saying means?





________________________________________________________________________

Thanksgiving Day

Thanksgiving Defined - Thanksgiving: thanks-giv-ing (thanks'giv'ing) n. 1. a) a giving of thanks b) an expression of this; esp., a formal, public expression of thanks to God 2. [T-] a) a U.S. holiday on the fourth Thursday of November: it commemorates the Pilgrims' celebration of the good harvest of 1621 b) a similar Canadian holiday on the second Monday of October .

A Brief History of Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is a national holiday in the United States. It is celebrated each year on the fourth Thursday in November. On this day, families gather together, and many people say prayers of thanks for the year’s blessings. In many homes, a big dinner of roast turkey and dressing is served. Thanksgiving is traditionally a harvest festival. Similar festivals are celebrated in many parts of the world to give thanks after the year’s crops have been safely harvested.
A small ship called the Mayflower set sail from Plymouth, England, on September 16, 1620. The passengers spent 66 days in the hold of the ship arriving on November 21.

Most of them were Puritans who had been persecuted for their religious beliefs in England. One month later, on December 26, all 102 passengers set foot on land and began to establish the colony of Plymouth. The Pilgrims, as these people came to be called, had borrowed money from a group of English merchants to cross the Atlantic Ocean. They planned to start a settlement in the Virginia Colony in America, but during the long voyage, storms blew their crowded little vessel off course.

After sailing for more than two months, the Mayflower finally reached land near what is now Provincetown on Cape Cod. This part of the American coast, called New England, had been explored several years earlier by an Englishman named Capt. John Smith. The Pilgrims followed Smith's maps and sailed across Cape Cod Bay to the mainland coast of Massachusetts.
They founded the Colony of Plymouth in December 1620. Most of the Pilgrims had suffered terribly from the long voyage. They immediately began to build shelters, but soon they were overcome by a general sickness. Through the course of the winter 46 died, nearly half their original number. Some who became ill on the voyage and who were too sick to be moved stayed on the Mayflower, which was anchored in Plymouth Harbor for the winter.

The Mayflower had been a cargo ship and had to be refitted to handle the Pilgrim passengers. It had three masts and a double deck. No one is sure of what happened to the original Mayflower after it returned to England the following April. A replica of the original Mayflower was built in England in the mid-1950's. This ship, Mayflower II, sailed across the Atlantic in 1957 to commemorate the Pilgrims’ voyage. It is now anchored in Plymouth Harbor, Massachusetts.
The first American Thanksgiving probably took place in New England. It was celebrated by the Pilgrim settlers, who established Plymouth Colony in Massachusetts in 1620. The Pilgrims had struggled bravely through a grim winter with a great deal of sickness and very little food.
The following spring, friendly Indians helped the settlers plant corn; and in the autumn, the first crop was harvested. Governor William Bradford proclaimed three days of prayer and thanksgiving. The Pilgrims gave a huge feast and invited the Indian Chief, Massosoit, and 90 of his people.

The custom of observing a special harvest thanksgiving day spread throughout the other colonies in the following years. After the American Revolution, the various states continued the custom, each one naming its own day for giving thanks. In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed the first national Thanksgiving Day on the last Thursday in November. The present date was established by Congress in 1941.
http://www.celebratelove.com/thanxhistory.htm

VOCABULARY

1. A brief history -- “brief” means a. long b. short c. interesting
2. “national” is a word that refers to a. the world b. the state c. the nation/country
3. “blessings” are
a. good luck b. good food c. good things you have or have gotten
4. “dressing” (as used in this reading) means
a. clothing b. dresses
c. a side dish (food) usually made from bread and herbs and baked in the oven
5. “traditions” are
a. things that people in the culture consider important and that they do year after year
b. something new we do c. something we trade for something else
6. a “harvest” is a. a time when food is picked from trees or taken from the ground
b. a big supermarket c. a big university
7. “in the hold of a ship” “in the hold” is
a. in a jail
b. the space in a ship below the lower deck, in which cargo is stowed [put] c. the lifeboats of a ship
8. “Puritans” were a small sect [group] of Protestants [Christians] who were “persecuted” [didn’t feel they could practice their religion freely]
9. What’s a synonym for “vessel” in this reading?
a. a dish b. a ship c. a part of the body that blood flows through
10. a “colony” was a settlement where the people came to live
11. “shelters” are a. places to live b. cars c. trees
12. a “replica” is a. a copy of something b. something to eat c. an answer to someone
13. “to commemorate the Pilgrims’ voyage” is
a. to remember the trip b. to write about the trip c. to stop the trip
A PILGRIM is a person who goes on a pilgrimage. A “pilgrimage” is a trip someone takes usually for religious reasons.
14. the “settlers” means a. people who make a place their home
b. Indians c. businessmen
15. “a grim winter” “grim” means a. good b. difficult/terrible c. hot
16. “a great deal” means a. a bargain b. a big purchase c. a lot of
17. a “custom” is a. something we do very rarely b. something we never do
c. something special we do in our culture; a holiday tradition

CONVERSATION
[First give short answers to your partner. Then write your answers in complete sentences.]

1. When do we celebrate Thanksgiving? ____________________________________
2. What do we call the people who came to this country who were looking for religious freedom? _____________________________________________________________
3. How long were these people on the ship called the Mayflower.

4. Where did they land? a. on the west coast in California b. on the east coast in New England c. in the south in Florida

5. What did they call the colony they settled in? ________________________________________________________________________
6. What year did they come here? ___________________________________________
7. What does “give thanks” mean? _________________________________________
8. How do you give thanks for the things you have?
_______________________________________________________________________

The Miser

Once there was a man who loved money more than anything else in the world. He hated spending it and was also afraid of losing it or having it stolen by thieves. One day he decided to change all his money into gold, but he was so afraid that somebody would find it that he buried it in his yard.
Every two or three days he would go out to his yard and dig up the gold so he could look at it. Then he would bury it again because he never intended to spend it. One day he came out to the yard and discovered that somebody had learned about his secret and had dug it up. His gold was gone and the hole was empty.
He moaned and groaned and began to tear his hair. A neighbor, seeing that he was overcome with grief came over and said, “You really haven’t lost anything. Why don’t you just bury a big rock and pretend it is gold? Since you never planned to spend it anyway, the rock will be as good as gold for you, and you can dig it up and bury it any time you want to.”
VOCABULARY
1. What is the definition of “a miser”?
A “miser” is a person who ________________________________________________.
2. Please pronounce these words with the sound of “ise” or “ize”
a. a high-rise building
b. a big prize
c. What size do you wear?
c. a wise woman
d. He’s a miserly man
3. f v + es

thief thieves
leaf leaves
knife knives
life lives
wife wives
half halves
self selves
shelf shelves
wolf wolves
but belief beliefs
chief chiefs

a. I thought I saw a thief steel the money. The police found two thieves.
Choose two singular “f” words and write a sentence with the singular and another sentence with the plural for both.
b. _______________________________________________________________
c. _______________________________________________________________
d. _______________________________________________________________
e. _______________________________________________________________
4. “to moan” is a verb. “to groan” is also a verb. Let’s hear you moan and groan.

5. He “began to tear his hair.” means
a. He got a haircut. b. He was very angry. c. He cried.
6. “He was overcome with grief.”
a. He was extremely sad. b. He came over and cried. c. He hates to be sad.

GRAMMAR
1. MORE THAN used with a noun or pronoun.
“He loved money more than anything else in the world.”
a. I love you more than anyone else in the world.
b. He ate more food than anyone else at the party.
c. He drank more [wine, beer, alcohol] than he should have.
d. I did more homework last night than I have done all semester.
Can you write a sentence with MORE THAN and a NOUN or PRONOUN
e. _______________________________________________________________
2. HATE and LOVE and LIKE and ENJOY
“He hated spending it.” [You can say, “He hated to spend it. or
She loves to spend her money on shoes.]
BUT. . . when LIKE or LOVE means ENJOY, use ____ING
a. I love eating chocolate.
b. I like studying English.
c. He enjoys reading.
d. My nephew hates doing his homework.
Please try to write a sentence with HATE and another with LOVE/LIKE/ or ENJOY.
e. _______________________________________________________________
f. _______________________________________________________________

3. SO + adjective (or adverb) + THAT clause
“He was so afraid (that) somebody would find it that he buried it in his yard.”
a. I was so tired that I couldn’t eat dinner.
b. The bus was so late that she decided to walk to school.
c. My friend walked so slowly that she missed thee bus.
Please try writing your own example:
d. _______________________________________________________________
4. ANYTHING, ANYWAY, ANY used with NEGATIVE ideas
“You really haven’t lost anything.”
“Since you never planned to spend it anyway.
a. I don’t have any sisters./ money. (plural or non-count nouns)
b. He doesn’t know anything about it.
Now, you try writing two sentences using ANYTHING, ANYWAY, or ANY
c. _______________________________________________________________
d. _______________________________________________________________
5. ANY TIME, ANY PLACE ANYWHERE, ANYONE
“You can bury it any time you want to.”
You try writing sentences using all four words from above.
a. ANY TIME ____________________________________________________
b. ANY PLACE _______________________________________________________
c. ANYWHERE ___________________________________________________
d. ANYONE _______________________________________________________
6. AS (ADJECTIVE) /or adverb AS means something is the same as the other thing
“as good as gold” “The rock will be as good as gold.”
a. as tall as He is as tall as his father.
b. as hungry as I am as hungry as a wolf.
c. as well as He drives as well as I do.
d. as slowly as He walks as slowly as a tortoise
Now, you write a sentence using as ________ as
e. _______________________________________________________________
7. Give me some advice like this: “Why don’t you just bury a big rock?
a. Why don’t you write a letter to your mom? b. Why don’t you get up earlier?
c. ________________________________________________________________
8. How many past-tense verbs can you find? (simple past, present perfect, past perfect)
Subjects verbs (infinitive)
1. a man was to be
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.

9. What verbs are used with MODALS
Subjects verbs (infinitive)
a.
b.
c.
d.

CONVERSATION Work with a partner and talk about the answers to these questions.
a. Who are the characters in this story?
b. What did the man bury? and why?
c. What advice did the neighbor give the miser?
d. What does “the rock will be as good as gold for you.” mean? ________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

The Country Mouse and the City Mouse

One day, the city mouse went to visit his country cousin. The country mouse was very pleased to have his city cousin visit, and he gave his cousin the very best food – beans, cheese, and bread. But the city cousin turned up her nose and said, “My poor cousin, how simply you eat and live! Come to the city with me to see the good life.” So the two of them set off for the bright lights of the city.
They arrived in the evening, and immediately the city mouse took her country cousin to the dining room in the big house where she lived.
The room was empty, but the table was loaded with leftovers. The two
mice busily sampled the cakes and jam and all the other fine food.
Suddenly as they were eating, the door opened and in came the servants to clear the tables. With them came two huge dogs to eat the scraps. The mice barely escaped through a hole in the wall. The country mouse immediately asked his city cousin to show him the way home.
“Why are you going home so soon? asked the city mouse.
The country mouse answered, “Beans and bread in peace are better than cake and wine in fear.”
VOCABULARY
1. What’s the plural of “mouse”? _________________
2. “The city mouse went to visit his country cousin.” “country” means
a. a nation b. rural area; countryside c. the city
3. “The country mouse was very pleased. “pleased” means
a. pretty b. said “Please.” c. happy
4. “the city mouse turned up her nose. . .” “turned up her nose” means
a. smiled b. showed that she didn’t like something c. blew her nose
5. “the good life” means
a. poverty b. comfortable living c. good friends
6. “set off for the bright lights of the city.” “set off” means
a. began a journey b. turned off the lights c. sat down
7. “loaded with leftovers” “loaded” means
a. not very much b. loud c. filled with
8. “leftovers” means
a. lots of food
b. the food that remains after you’ve eaten
c. the best food
8. “to eat the scraps” “scraps” means a. leftovers b. the best food c. bread
9. “barely escaped”
a. almost didn’t; hardly; scarcely b. left with no clothes on c. left
GRAMMAR
1. “The country mouse was very pleased to have him visit.”
HAVE + PRONOUN/NOUN + BASE FORM OF THE VERB
e.g. a. Sally always has her students write sentences.
b. The candidates will have (or had) their supporters vote on November 4th.
Now, please write your own example of this grammatical construction.
c. _____________________________________________________
2. “how simply you eat and live”
ADVERBS MODIFY VERBS
e.g. a. She drives slowly. Her husband drives fast.
b. He writes beautifully.
c. She cooks very well.
d. The police carefully watched the criminals.
e Find three other adverbs used similarly in the story? Please write the sentence on the line. _______________________________________________
f. __________________________________________________________
g. ________________________________________________________ Now, please write your own sentence using an adverb modifying a verb.
h.


3. “How simply you eat and live!”
You can use HOW to show surprise. It is NOT a question, so the subject and verb are in regular order.
a. How nice you look.
b. How thin you are now!
Now, please write your own HOW sentence.
c. ______________________________________________________
4. “in the big house where she lived.”
WHERE can introduce a clause following a place.
WHERE is NOT a question word here.
a. I live in San Francisco where there are two beautiful bridges.
b. I’d like to go back to the place where I was born.
Now, please write your own sentence using a WHERE clause.
c. ___________________________________________________________
5. Write all the past tense verbs, the subjects and infinitives in this story (15)
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
i.
j.
k.
l.
m.
n.
o.

CONVERSATION
1. Who are the characters in this story?

2. Which mouse visited the other mouse?
_____________________________________________________________
3. What food did the country mouse feed his city cousin?


4. What made the country mouse want to go home? _____________________________________________________________
5. What did the country mouse mean when he said, “Beans and bread in peace are better than cake and wine in fear.”
____________________________________________________________