Taking a Breather

Can you relate to the above video? As a teacher and a mother, I am noticing that stress is becoming more and more prevalent in the lives of not only adults, but of young students. I can list all the catalysts, but I would like you to take a minute to list the top three stressors in your present day life. Can we control the stress? No. However, we can control the way that we react to the stressors. Breathing is a normal function of the human body and a way that we continue to bring oxygen into our lungs, brain, and blood flow. Breathing is also the gateway to releasing the stress and bringing tranquility into our lives. Simple and short breathing activities, like the one presented in the above video, are all it takes to get started in taking control of your reaction to the outside world stressors. By telling our body how to breathe, will send the positive message to our brain that we are not stressed. There are breathing techniques that you can do without anybody knowing that you are using the technique at the present moment. At first, make sure that you focus on your belly when you breathe. Your belly should fill with air as you inhale air through your nose. As you exhale, your belly should go in, as you bring your navel in towards your spine. Other breathing techniques that you may be interested in are: Alternate Nasal Breathing, Vritta (equal breathing-good for asthma patients), and breathing with hand mudras (Sa, Ta, Na, Ma).  Change is not always bad. Speaking to other people and even to yourself with full integrity, including speaking to your brain is a positive change that you can embed into your life. Keep your mind open and remember the famous words of Mahatma Gandhi,

"You must be the change you wish to see in the world."

VOCABULARY:
prevalent (adjective) - common, widespread
catalysts (noun) - a person or event that quickly causes a reaction
stressors (noun) - something that makes you worried or anxious
function (noun) - the specific purpose of why something or someone exists
gateway (noun) - a passage into or out of a place or condition
tranquility (noun) - the state of being calm or quiet
navel (noun) - the central point of your abdomen, your belly button
mudras (noun) - a symbolic hand gesture used in yoga
integrity (noun) - the quality of being honest and fair
embed (verb) - to place or set something in something else

VOCABULARY EXERCISE:
Match the vocabulary word to the best use of the word in context.
1. function ________                             a. The fuzzy kittens were a _______ to Kim's smiles.
2. embed _______                                 b. He is a man of great knowledge and ____________.
3. prevalent ________                       c. When you exhale, you should bring your _____ to your spine.
4. gateway _______                    d. Did you properly _______ the vocabulary words into your article?
5. catalysts _______                      e. After the accident, he was lucky to have full brain _________.
6. integrity _______          f. Touching your thumb to the tip of each finger tip is a known hand _____.
7. navel ______                           g. Anxiety is becoming very __________ in my classes this year.
8. stressors _______                       h. Drinking hot tea at night brings Carol some __________.
9. mudras ________                         i. Learning languages is the ____________ to the world!
10. tranquility _________                  j. Money can be a huge ___________ in a marriage.

GRAMMAR POINT:
In the English language, nouns are either singular or plural. Singular nouns refer to one person, place, or thing. Plural nouns refer to more than one person, place, or thing. In order to make nouns plural, we often see an "s" at the end of a noun that ends in a consonant. For example, dog becomes dogs in the plural form. Please go through the above blog post and highlight all the plural nouns. Then, circle all the singular nouns.

Music to my ears

   

"It is music to my ears." Have you ever heard somebody use that idiom when they are happy to hear something positive? Have you ever used the idiom that I've mentioned? Well, if something that you hear is music to your ears, then music must be a good thing, right? I love music! There is a genre for every one of my emotions, which are usually based on the moment. If I'm happy, I may like to listen to something more upbeat, like "Happy" by Pharrell Williams. If I have a headache or need some peace, I may listen to some classical music, or sounds of nature. When I'm relaxing, but still doing activities, like housework or grading, I like to listen to some French Jazz music or love listening to Billie Holiday!!!  When I'm running, I find that I like inspirational songs with a good beat that isn't too fast, or else my running pace will become too fast for me to keep up with and affect my workout. You may think that songs with a fast beat will inspire and push me. Yes, but you need to train your body for certain paces and distances. It comes with practice and patience. When I'm mad or have a moment that I would like to rock out, I find that I can never go wrong with some Metallica or Linkin Park. Now, some people may disagree with me and find that Metallica or Linkin Park is their "zen". I totally respect that and understand it as well. That is why I write this blog. What music genre do you listen to when you are sad, happy, mad, relaxed, sick, working out? Not only is music used to go alongside someone's emotion, but it is used in therapy treatments. Recently, I heard about a finding on NPR news on the radio, while driving to work, that playing familiar music for Alzheimer's patients, stimulates their minds and sometimes triggers memories that the patients can recall and even discuss. Music is "music to our ears" in many ways as we discover the many positive attributes that exist in music and its uses.

VOCABULARY:

idiom (noun) - an expression that cannot be understood from the meanings of its words, but has a separate meaning of its own

genre (noun) - a particular type or category of literature or art

upbeat (adjective) - lively, positive, happy

inspirational (adjective) - someone or something that makes a person want to do something or gives someone an idea to create or do something

pace (pace) - the speed that something or someone moves

affect (verb & noun) - to produce an effect on someone or something

zen (noun) - a Japanese form of Buddhism that emphasizes meditation; a moment of peace

finding (noun) - the results of an inquiry or investigation

trigger  (verb) - something that causes something else to happen

attributes  (noun) - a good quality that someone or something has

VOCABULARY EXERCISE:

Choose the correct word that completes each sentence.

1. Slow down, Paul! I can't keep up with your ____________.

a. feet          b. pace         c. music

2. There are so many __________ of films, but my favorite are comedies!

a. genres     b. uses         c. tickets

3. The candidate that has the best _________________ for the job, is the one that you should vote for this year.       a. power             b. attributes               c. people

4. Many acupuncture patients say that the hour of treatment is their __________ moment.

a.  only              b. work           c. zen

5. Many ENL students have trouble understanding _____________, because most of the time they are translated for their literal meaning. 

a. idioms          b. insects                c. planes

6. I like this song, because it is very ____________. It makes me want to dance!

a.  depressing             b. calm                  c. upbeat

7. What _________________ your dad to become angry?

a. triggers               b. feels               c. can

8. After a thorough investigation, the police department released their __________________.

a. answers            b. findings           c. dogs

9. That quote is very __________________! It makes me want to never give up in my studies.

a. inspirational         b. incorrect                   c. difficult

10. The student's behavior ___________________ the teacher for the remainder of the day.

a.  made            b. affecting             c. affected

GRAMMAR POINT:

Transition words and phrases are important devices for essays and papers that you will write in your classes. They improve the connections and transitions between sentences and paragraphs. Also, they give your writing assignment structure and organization. Some transition words that are used in this blog are now, also, and well. Please research 5 more transition words and compose a sentence for each transition word. Highlight your transition word in each sentence as well.

The joys of cooking

When I was a young girl, my mother and father prepared a dinner most every night.  In my youthful opinion, the meals were delicious, except for the nights of liver and mako.  My maternal grandmother always prepared a wonderful meal.  Nobody could make a salad the way that my grandmother made a salad.  She had a particular way of slicing the onions and the make of her salad dressing ingredients.  My Aunt Paula makes anything amazing! Her baked clams are out of this world! How lucky am I?!?! Ok, so you think that I am a great cook. No way! I have grown in my cooking abilities and do impress myself and family at times. For me, cooking is one activity that will forever hold a goal for me to attain. I have some cooking goals on my personal list. My top three cooking goals are cutting down the amount of sodium(salt) in my meals, increasing my fresh ingredients over the processed ingredients, and preparing meals that contain more protein, especially dinner recipes. I say dinner recipes because I like to snack before I go to bed. If my belly is full, then I am happy and most likely will not grab that extra chocolate cookie or piece of candy before I go to bed. Do you have a favorite meal? Who prepares it for you? Do you pay close attention to what and why you eat a certain meal?

VOCABULARY:
youthful (adjective) - young or seeming young
opinion (noun) - a view or judgement about something or someone, not based off of facts
mako (noun) - shark that can be bought and prepared to eat
maternal (adjective) - relating to the mother's side of the family; motherlike
particular (adjective) - a specific item/person
impress (impress) - to make someone feel admired or respected; to affect someone in a respectable and positive manner
attain (verb) - to succeed in achieving
processed (adjective) - prepared by an artificial/not fresh process
protein (noun) - builds, maintains, and replaces the tissues in your body

VOCABULARY EXERCISE:
Please select the word that best completes each sentence.
1. In order to _____________ (buy/attain) a high school diploma, you need to come to school and participate so teachers can help you move on to the next level.
2. Paul wanted to __________________ (impress/like) his teacher, so he brought in a fresh apple from his family's apple orchard.
3. Can I ask you your _____________ (opinion/look) regarding my essay?
4. Why are you eating Taco Bell and not the tacos that I made for you last night? The tacos at Taco Bell are _____________________ (fake/processed).
5. I thought that the lady that answered the phone was a young girl because of her ____________(beautiful/youthful) voice.
6. Would you prefer to have shrimp or ______________ (mako/maker) for dinner tonight?
7. My coach told me to drink chocolate milk after my 3 mile run because it has _____________ (cold/protein), which will help my body recover after exercise.
8. Are you interested in a __________________ (particular/nothing) movie?
9. He has blonde hair because his ________________ (mother/maternal) grandparents have blonde hair as well as his own parents.

GRAMMAR POINT:
An exclamation, also known as an interjection, is a word or phrase that expresses strong emotion, such as surprise, pleasure, or anger. Exclamations often stand on their own, and in writing they are usually followed by an exclamation mark rather than a full stop. In my blog entry that you just read, you can find an exclamation, such as, "No way!". Please think of 5 situations where you may use an exclamation. What is the exclamation that you would use in each situation?