Free Lessons

Catfish: When someone creates a fake profile/personal identity to target someone romantically. Examples of things people do when they are catfishing. A person doesn’t use real pictures of themselves. A person alters (edits) their pictures to look very different than they are. A person pies about themselves, their job, etc.   Practice this new phrase. He went to meet her for a date ad she didn’t look anything like her photos. He totally got catfished. She saw him and instantly realized she got catfished.

A play date is a date and time that is set by parents for their children to play together. Typically, parents use the term play date for babies, toddlers, and children in kindergarten. It is sometimes used with children in 1st– 4th grade, However, after 5th it is not used, because it is arranged by parents. As children grow older, they arrange their own time with friends and they refer to it as “hanging out”. Play dates for young children are often 1-2 hours. As children get older, they can from 2 hours to 4 or more. How to ask for a play date. In-person Hello, my name is (your name). I am (your child’s name) mom/dad. My son/daughter would like to invite your son/daughter to have a play date. If he/she would like that, please let me know. You are both welcome to come to our home, or we can meet at the park, or the library during story time. In writing Dear (the other child’s name) parent, My son/daughter (your child’s name) is in the same class as your child. We would like to invite your son/daughter to have a play date. If he/she would like that, please let me know. You are both welcome to come to our home, or we can meet at the park, or the library during story time. My cell phone number is 123-456-7890. Sincerely,   Your name (Your child’s name)’s mom/dad   How to respond to a playdate invite/request. Thank you, that is very nice of you. I will ask my son/daughter and get back to you about it. Either way, let’s exchange phone numbers. Practice Reading Hey Maggie, would your daughter like to come over for a play date with my daughter? Ben said he wants to invite Kevin from his…

Passover is a festival that is celebrated by people of the Jewish faith.  Passover is also called Pesach. The holiday lasts for eight days. Passover is typically during March or April. Passover is a holiday that celebrates God freeing the Israelites from Egyptian slavery.  Passover remembers the journey of the ancient Hebrews leaving slavery in Egypt and going to the “Promise Land” of Israel. On the first or second night of Passover, most families gather (come) together for a Seder; a ritual meal. For the Seder, Jewish people eat specific foods, do specific rituals, and say specific prayers. For tradition, the Seder will include matzah, unleavened bread, Also, maror, which is bitter herbs. In addition, a lamb or shank bone is used, but no lamb is eaten. Another important part of the Seder, is the wine. Typically, there will also be matzah ball soup, gefilte fish, brisket, roasted chicken, sweet potatoes, or potato kugel for dinner. During Passover, children play a game called afikoman. A piece of matzah is broken in half, one half of the matzah is put on the table, and the other half is hidden somewhere in the house. Then, the children search for the hidden piece of matzah, the person who finds the matzah receives a prize.

To ghost someone is when a person “cuts off” (ends) all communication abruptly without any warning or explanation and does respond to any calls, messages and/or texts. Practice this phrase by reading the following sentences. He ghosted her after their date. Have you ever been ghosted? It is not nice to ghost people, but it happens often. He thinks she is ghosting him. He totally got ghosted.  

There are many ways to talk about a person’s “looks” (their attractiveness or unattractiveness). For this lesson, we will be focusing on reviewing ways to talk about how attractive a person is. Cute: commonly used for children or to say someone looks nice Pretty: used to say a female looks nicer than cute or describe something Beautiful: used for females or to describe a place or thing that is more than pretty.   Handsome: used to describe when a male is attractive   Formal ways to talk about how attractive a person is   Informal ways to talk about how attractive a person isYou will hear these words/phrases, be care how you use them. In the wrong context, they can be seen as disrespectful.

Alcohols Anonymous is a fellowship (meeting of people) who come together to solve their drinking problem. The meetings are FREE and are in every state. There is NO age requirement. You are NOT asked for your personal information.   You don’t’ have to join or do anything, you can walk into any meeting. You can walk into the meeting and sit down. You can participate or choose only to listen.   There are different meeting places, meetings are held at all different times. You can go to multiple meetings a day, week, etc. AA usually has some meetings in other languages and also some online.   To find a meeting or additional information go aa.org to find the AAs in your state.   **DISCLAIMER:** This in general information used for the purpose of teaching English. This is general information. I was not paid or given anything to write this. Please contact your local AA if you need help.

We are 1 week away from Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving is a U.S. holiday that celebrates and remembers the Pilgrims and the Native Americans.   First, a little history lesson… The Pilgrims were a group of about 100 people that left England because of religious persecution. The Pilgrims sailed to the New World (United States of America) in their boat called the Mayflower. They planned to go to Virginia, but they went off course and landed at Plymouth Rock in 1620. The Pilgrims were starving and did not know how to grow food in the new land. A group of Native American Indians called the Wampanoag Indians taught the Pilgrims how to grow food. In the fall of 1621, the Pilgrims held (had) a three-day feast called Thanksgiving and invited the Native American Indians to give thanks for a successful harvest with plenty (lots) of food to survive the winter. The Pilgrims and the Native Americans did not share the same religious views, but they celebrated the harvest they had. Thanksgiving is an interfaith holiday; a holiday that people of all different faiths celebrate. Thanksgiving is about being thankful for what we have.   Thanksgiving is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November. It is a federal holiday; all banks, schools, and federal offices are closed. Most businesses are closed for Thanksgiving.   How do people celebrate Thanksgiving? (What do people do on Thanksgiving?)   The most common tradition is for family and friends gather for a big meal. Most often turkey is severed, with many different side dishes. Typical side dishes are, stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes or yams, corn, carrots, broccoli, brussels sprouts, green beans, cornbread or rolls. For dessert, there is often pie. The most common pie is apple pie, pumpkin pie, and pecan pie. However, there can…

Veterans Day is a day to remember all of our servicemen and women. Veteran’s Day is celebrated on November 11th. It is a federal holiday; therefore, all banks and federal offices are closed. However, some schools remain open to teach students about history, and veterans. Schools sometimes invite veterans to honor them. There are parades on Veteran’s Day. Also, many restaurants thank veterans with free things on Veteran’s Day as long as they show their military ID.

When is Election Day? Election Day Election Day is the day that U.S. citizens vote their elected officials into office. Election Day is always the first Tuesday in November. Schools are often closed on Election Day. Many schools are closed on election day because schools are used as polling places (places people vote). Who can vote? Almost all U.S. citizens that are above the age of 18 can vote. Citizens must be a registered voter to vote on election day. It costs nothing to vote. Where do people go to vote? Where you go to vote depends on where you live. It is usually at your local school or church. Depending on the state, there are different options for people to vote before election day. Absentee Ballot? If a person is not going to be in the area or unable to vote on election day, they can request to complete an absentee ballot and vote ahead of time. In some places, the lines to vote can be very long. Therefore, many people vote early, going in person to vote during a specific time period before election day. How do you vote? On Election Day, you go to your local “polling place”, where you are supposed to vote. This usually goes by your address. Polling places are usually open 6am-8pm. People use a ballot to vote. A ballot is the piece of paper where you mark your vote. What is a term? Each elected official position has a specific term. A term is the number of years that the elected position allows someone to serve. After a term is up (finished), a new election is held. For example, the term for the U.S. presidency is 4 years. What is an incumbent? The incumbent (person who currently holds the elected official position)…

There are many different terms to use when saying that a person was terminated/fired (dismissed from their job). When discussing a person being terminated/fired due to employee performance:   Formal: In a “work/office” environment. A company will use the phrase “terminated”. This is an H.R. (Human Resources) term that is used within the company.   In the “workplace” environment, in order to remain professional people may say, a person “was let go” or he/she “no longer works” there.   Informal: You will commonly hear people say someone “got fired”. This is a neutral phrase. It isn’t the most professional thing to say. However, it isn’t the worst thing to say.   You may also here the terms, a person “got sacked” or “got canned”. These phrases, are very negative.     Being “laid off” is NOT the same as being fired. When a company has made changes and needs to reduce the number of employees, they downsize. Therefore, the employees are laid off.   When a person is laid off, it is due to changes in the company, not the person’s performance. A person who is laid off will say, “I was laid off.”