Memorial Day Posted by Gabriele on May 28, 2012
Today is Memorial Day in the United States. Memorial Day is a holiday that is observed every year in the USA on the last Monday of May. This is a major federal holiday, which means that all government workers as well as most other people have the day off from work, leading to all…
Graduation Traditions Posted by Gabriele on May 27, 2012
It is college graduation season in the United States. (High school graduation season will be coming up in June.) As many of you already know, graduation is the ceremony associated with receiving an academic degree. In a previous post I spoke about the various college degrees that are conferred* in the United States, which you…
English Fruit Words: Do You Know These Fruits? Posted by heather on May 26, 2012
Happy Saturday everyone!I don’t know what the weather is like where you are but here in the Netherlands it is hot and sunny – the perfect type of weather, in my opinion, to eat some fresh fruit. And since I have fruit on the brain, I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to provide…
What is prom? Posted by Gabriele on May 25, 2012
In the United States, and parts of Canada, a prom* is a formal dance for high school students held a few weeks before high school graduation (usually around this time of year). Proms are often a major event among high school students and a cultural even most Americans have experienced in their life. Proms…
Glacier National Park Posted by Gabriele on May 24, 2012
Here is another post in my series looking at America’s National Parks. Glacier National Park is found in the state of Montana, bordering Canada. This park is very large encompassing over 1,000,000 acres (4,000 km2). There are over 130 lakes within the park and more than 1,000 different species of plants and hundreds of species…
That versus Which Posted by heather on May 23, 2012
Have you ever struggled with knowing when to use that and when to use which? Well struggle no longer! Restrictive Clauses The first thing we need to discuss is something called a restrictive clause. A restrictive clause is a part of the sentence that you can’t get rid of because it specifically restricts the noun…
The Sounds That Animals Make in English Posted by Gabriele on May 22, 2012
It is amazing how different people around the world hear the sounds of the same animals. I always find this fascinating at least. Since I have been talking about onomatopoeia in the last few posts I thought I would share with you the way the sounds of some different animals are heard and written…