See You on Monday, January 4th, at our new blog

A new blog for the New Year, yay! Let's just hop over there: http://linc4-5.blogspot.com/!

See you there: Click here!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Here are the pictures from today's Christmas celebration and potluck:

Some had to leave early, but here are Janice, Fiona, Winnie, Amy, Jade, Christina, Aidin, Tina, and Lisa.

Aww, lovebirds Aidin and Ehsan

Crazy Grant-led singing

 

Crazy teachers wish everybody a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Yum, what a potluck!

May we all remember to give thanks to the Giver or the amazing Gift of Christmas!

Editing Checklist

 

EDITING CHECKLIST—Check for the following:

PREP (Preposition)
Last week of April, he finally arrived Montreal. She likes to listen rock music. So she never searches Beethoven on the Internet.

CS (Comma Splice)
Tom went to the store, although she was tired, Sue went with him, they took a bus there.

FRAG (Fragment)
When they opened the door. It was raining.
Even though we were hungry.

RUN-ON SENTENCE
When they opened the door it was raining even though we were hungry we decided not to go to McDonalds.

TENSE
Yesterday we went to the mall and I feel very tired after two hours.
Tom was fall down last week. He breaking his leg.

PERIODS/COMMAS/CAPS/SPACES
Tom went to the no frills . Although she was tired ,Sue went with him.They took a bus there. When they arrived,the mall was    closing .

PROPER NOUNS
After attending Micro Skill link, Pushpa moved to niagra fall and worked at basic food and McDonald.

SPELLING
Sutdents msut leanr hwo two spelr correctley, especialy sins the hav spelcheck no they're compter.

Today's Field Trip: Just the Pictures

Okay, folks, we had a great field trip today. So, here are the pictures. Can you remember the who, where, what, and when of these pictures?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some helpful vocabulary:

food court, fur trade, escalator, five-star hotel, snow flurries, converted hotel, student hostel, meal plan, cafeteria, Laura, panoramic view, carrels, scramble crossing, skate rentals/sharpening, tourist bureau, get in line, amphitheatre, programs, ushers, violinist, cellist, choreographer

Let's see some great blogs!

Tuesday's Field Trip to a Free Concert

Welcome to our final field trip for the year!

As usual, we'll meet on the Southbound Platform of Sheppard-Yonge Subway Station. We'll leave at 9:45AM for one of the stations downtown that are linked to the PATH Underground City.


View Larger Map

Click on "View Larger Map." The plan is to get off the subway and walk underground as much as possible to either the Roy Thompson Hall or the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, where a free concert awaits at each location, beginning at 12 noon.

Bring good walking shoes, water, snacks, a bribe, and an expectation for a great time together. See you there!

In a Ladies' World: Ceramics and Shoes

Tina, Janice Amy, Angel, Winnie, Aidin's mom, Yuri, Joan, and Aidin miss out on the ROM and the Dead Sea Scrolls ... again. But ...

Minus 18 degree Celsius windchill and the disappointment of again being denied ROM tickets notwithstanding, ten of us from LINC 4-5, including Aidin's mom and Winnie's daughter, Angel, made our way to the Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art and the Bata Shoe Museum today. Hey, where were the men?

A former tennis court belonging to the University of Toronto, the Gardiner did not seem terribly impressive at first. But we kept an open mind.

Within fifteen minutes of visiting the coat room and washrooms, checking out the second floor, and me trying to make up stories about each exhibit, we were greeted by Carol Shaw, a gracious museum volunteer who took us through the history of the museum, Mr and Mrs Gardiner's role in learning about, accumulating, and then gifting the ceramics to the people of Ontario, as well as developments since their passing.

It was quite an eyeopener into the world of porcelains, tureens, snuff boxes, English tea services in period boxes, cobalt pigments, King Augustine the Strong of Poland, private collectors, art auctions, and hilarious Western imitations of Chinese art. We were also fortunate to catch the eye-catching works of American sculptor Viola Frey before they are returned to Los Angeles next month.

 

Quite unexpectedly, we were out of time before long and hungry and so bundled up and started out for the McDonalds across from the ROM.

After a quick bite at Tim Hortons (the McDonalds was closed for renovation), it was over to the Bata Shoe Museum for a quick tour.

Another four floors of education followed, with heavy-duty vocabulary like moccasins, stilettos, pointe shoes, stirrup heels, skeleton and luge shoes, and chopines. It was great listening in on several guided groups; seeing the footwear of Rudolf Nureyev, Marilyn Monroe, and Goh Chan Hon; feeling the influence of Rome and Persia on today's high-heeled shoes; and witnessing form following function for the Olympic winter sports. I guess we should be seeing a few nice blogs from the ladies in the next week.

This Friday's Field Trip: Plan B!!

Okay, guys ... Plan B it is.




Please dress real warm--cover your heads and necks, put on your gloves, wear extra layers of clothing and extra socks, and zip up your winter jackets! It feels like minus 18 C at 6:45 Friday morning. See you later in the subway station, brave ones!

You know the cellphone number.

Welcome to Canada!


======================

This Friday we will be going on a field trip to the Royal Ontario Museum.

We will be leaving at 9:30AM from the South-bound Platform of Sheppard-Yonge Subway Station.

Please arrive at the platform a little earlier, by 9:25AM. We will get off at Bay Subway Station and walk over to the museum.

Bring a snack, camera, warm clothing, water, and good walking shoes.


View Larger Map

Plan B: If we don't get our promised ROM tickets by 9:30AM on Friday, we could visit other museums for free.

Two Famous Carols This Christmas

O COME, ALL YE FAITHFUL

Focus on the following diphthongs/glides: /AU/ /AI/ /EI/ /OI/; then singalong with this video.

1. O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant,
O come ye, O come ye, to Bethlehem.
Come and behold Him, born the King of angels;


Refrain
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
Christ the Lord.




2. True God of true God, Light from Light Eternal,
Lo, He shuns not the Virgin’s womb;
Son of the Father, begotten, not created;


3. Sing, choirs of angels, sing in exultation;
O sing, all ye citizens of heaven above!
Glory to God, all glory in the highest;


4. See how the shepherds, summoned to His cradle,
Leaving their flocks, draw nigh to gaze;
We too will thither bend our joyful footsteps;


5. Lo! Star-led chieftains, Magi, Christ-adoring,
Offer Him incense, gold, and myrrh;
We to the Christ Child bring our hearts’ oblations.


6. Child, for us sinners poor and in the manger,
We would embrace Thee, with love and awe;
Who would not love Thee, loving us so dearly?


7. Yea, Lord, we greet Thee, born this happy morning;
Jesus, to Thee be glory given;
Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing.

SILENT NIGHT

Focus on these consonant clusters: /ntn/, /ndj/, /nts/; then singalong with this video:
 

1. Silent night, holy night

All is calm, all is bright

Round yon Virgin Mother and Child

Holy Infant so tender and mild

Sleep in heavenly peace

Sleep in heavenly peace

2. Silent night, holy night!

Shepherds quake at the sight

Glories stream from heaven afar

Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia!

Christ, the Saviour is born

Christ, the Saviour is born

3. Silent night, holy night

Son of God, love's pure light

Radiant beams from Thy holy face

With the dawn of redeeming grace

Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth

Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth

To read the historical background of these carols, check out these documents.

Blessing in Disguise: Stranded at IAD

Ever wondered what's the point of flying if you're going to be stuck for hours in the airport?

Well, that's exactly what happened to me today. There was no plane in sight when I checked in this morning to fly home from South Carolina, hoping to arrive at Pearson International Airport at 2 PM. An hour after departure time, the plane finally arrived, a United "Express" that needed to be refueled and checked before we could board. Quite sure I'd miss my next flight, from Washington, D.C., the airline people pre-booked me on a flight leaving 5 hours later than scheduled, at 5 PM. That done, we finally took off.

What beautiful snow greeted us on arrival when we poked south of the clouds and saw a totally whited-out airport! On landing at D.C.'s Dulles Airport (airport code IAD), the cabin crew optimistically asked us to "go for it," to catch our connecting flights. That's when the slow shuffle started, with the plane taxiing forever, looking to park at the terminal building. We were warned that we'd have to be careful going down steps to ground level as there would be no aerobridge. No kidding.

All parked, the plane had to wait another eternity for the ground crew to show up and shovel, scatter salt, unload plane-side checked baggage, and simply wrestle ye olde stair truck over, which also needed to be shoveled. To cut to the chase, my next plane had taken off. So what was there to do but to book myself onto the 5 PM flight at a kiosk, trudge over to the gate, and ask around for any free Wifi? And there was, thank God!

Right here, at the US capital's airport, I've cleared email, skyped home, and written my lesson plans (Hint: Merry Christmas!). About an hour ago, I decided to get off my behinds and look for some decent-priced food--that would be a worthy challenge at any airport! So I check out the pizza, coffee, sandwich, and convenience stores--no way, at four bucks per measly pack of nuts or chips!--and here's this fast food place, improbably named Five Guys, selling "Tiny Hamburgers" for US$3.50 each. Suspicious, I ask how big the "tiny" things were. Well, "tiny," I was told, means you get a single beef patty; "regular" means two patties. Oh.

So down went my tiny hamburger, loaded with raw and fried onions, tomatoes, fried mushrooms, and one patty of beef. Yum. I went back and offered to buy $2 more of fried onions and mushrooms: "Your vegetables were good! Can I buy two dollars worth of your fried onions and mushrooms?" The owner looked at me and then ordered one of his workers to get me a packet of them. Seeing me handing over my credit card, he says, "Don't worry about it."

"Thank you so much! That was very kind of you!"

Wow, this blessing in disguise simply had to be blogged! Okay ... it's 4:10PM ... seeya l8r, gotta plane ta catch!

Now, how'bout the CBC Open House Field Trip last Friday? Was it good?

(PS: Instead of arriving at 2PM, I finally got back to YYZ at 9:30PM on Saturday.)