These posts are written for learners of English themselves. Find learning tips and ideas for learning English.

For Students

This post is in our For Students category and was written for English learners. If you are an English teacher, you can share a link and invite students to take Ellii&#39;s Grammar Day challenge.

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National Grammar Day is on March 4 (pronounced March fourth). Ellii&#39;s (formerly ESL Library&#39;s) writers and editors have been celebrating National&nbsp;Grammar Day for several years!&nbsp;

On Grammar Day, we&nbsp;honor English learners like you who work hard to improve your communication skills, one grammar target at a time!&nbsp;Understanding the rules of grammar will help you speak and write more clearly and effectively.

<blockquote>
&ldquo;Language is something to be celebrated, and March 4 is the perfect day to do it. It&rsquo;s not only a date, it&rsquo;s an imperative: March forth on March 4 to speak well, write well, and help others do the same!&rdquo;

&mdash;National Grammar Day website
</blockquote>

<h2>6 Common English Errors</h2>

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March 4* was chosen for National Grammar Day because the words &quot;forth&quot; (forward) and &quot;fourth&quot; (the number four in a series) are often confused.

March forth on the fourth (4th) of March.

*When using ordinal numbers (e.g., 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th) as part of a&nbsp;date in a&nbsp;sentence, most grammar gurus&nbsp;recommend leaving the short forms out and just writing the number after the calendar month. For example: March 4, National Grammar Day, is on&nbsp;Saturday.&nbsp;

To celebrate National Grammar Day this year, we&#39;ve collected six more sets of words&nbsp;that are often confused (even&nbsp;writers and speakers whose first language is English confuse&nbsp;these). Do you know the difference between the words in this list? Click on the links for Tanya&#39;s&nbsp;tips on getting these right.

<ul class="resources">
	<li class="correct"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/so-vs-too">So Vs. Too</a></li>
	<li class="correct"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/look-like-vs-like">Look Like Vs. Like</a></li>
	<li class="correct"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/affect-vs-effect">Affect Vs. Effect</a></li>
	<li class="correct"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/make-vs-do">Make Vs. Do</a></li>
	<li class="correct"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/aw-vs-awe">Aw Vs. Awe</a></li>
	<li class="correct"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/teaching-tips-on-its-and-its">Its Vs. It&#39;s</a></li>
</ul>

Speaking of grammar...Did you know that <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@ellii">Ellii&#39;s YouTube</a> channel has free grammar videos for English learners to review the most common grammar targets? Here is just one example of a video from this playlist.&nbsp;

<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-s1gu725tA4" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe>

<blockquote>
Grammar Day Challenge: Choose one of the word pairs above and write an example sentence that contains both words. Or, if you really want a challenge, write a paragraph or dialogue using all 12 words! As a bonus, try using &quot;forth&quot; and &quot;fourth&quot; too.
</blockquote>

6 Common English Errors to Review for National Grammar Day

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Listen &amp; Read

With Valentine&rsquo;s Day coming up on February 14th, there&rsquo;s no better time to get into a romantic mood. Is there someone you have your eye on? Or maybe you want to show your long-term partner some appreciation&nbsp;or even send some warm vibes to your friends and family? If so, I&rsquo;ve got you covered.

In this post, you&rsquo;ll find three ways to celebrate&nbsp;Valentine&rsquo;s Day.

<h2>A classic card</h2>

Offering your loved one a card on Valentine&rsquo;s Day, along with a box of chocolates, is never a bad idea. Include a few lines of verse to get your message across. This&nbsp;timeless Valentine&rsquo;s Day poem can do the trick:

<blockquote>
Roses are red.

Violets are blue.

Sugar is sweet,

And so are you!
</blockquote>

But why not make your own variation? Notice how the second and fourth line rhyme. It is easy to substitute these two lines with your own rhyming lines, like this:

<blockquote>
Roses are red.

Your eyes are brown.

You are the cutest&nbsp;

Girl in this town!
</blockquote>

Of course, Valentine&rsquo;s Day cards don&rsquo;t have to follow a formula. Any personal sentiment is sure to make your loved one swoon! And if you want to get things just right, check out this post on <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/valentines-day-capitalization-and-punctuation-rules">Valentine&#39;s Day Capitalization &amp; Punctuation Rules</a>.

<h2>A home-cooked meal</h2>

It&rsquo;s no secret that restaurants tend to be very busy on Valentine&rsquo;s Day. So why not re-create the restaurant experience at home? Bring out your best tablecloth and light some candles.&nbsp;Then serve your loved one their favorite home-cooked meal.&nbsp;Or, even better, cook the meal together!

<h2>A treasure hunt</h2>

If you&rsquo;re looking for something a little more unique, you might want to try a treasure hunt. Grab a stack of notecards&nbsp;and number them from 1 to 10. On each card, write a clue about where to find the next card. Hide all the cards in your house, except the first one, which should be somewhere obvious. Your loved one will have a blast searching for each clue! And if you&rsquo;re feeling especially romantic, why not hide a gift along with the last card?

<h3>Glossary</h3>

<ul>
	<li>appreciation:&nbsp;a feeling of thankfulness</li>
	<li>vibes: feelings</li>
	<li>verse:&nbsp;poetry</li>
	<li>timeless:&nbsp;always relevant</li>
	<li>variation: version</li>
	<li>substitute: to put one thing in the place of another</li>
	<li>formula:&nbsp;a standard plan&nbsp;</li>
	<li>sentiment:&nbsp;expressed emotion</li>
	<li>swoon:&nbsp;to feel an emotion, such as romantic love, so strongly that you almost faint</li>
	<li>tend to:&nbsp;to usually do or have</li>
	<li>obvious:&nbsp;clear, not hard to figure out</li>
	<li>have a blast: to&nbsp;have fun</li>
</ul>

<blockquote>
Do you have any fun Valentine&rsquo;s Day tips or stories? Spread the love in the comments below! (Try to use a word or phrase from the glossary.)
</blockquote>

<ul>
</ul>

Share the Love with These Valentine's Day Ideas

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Do you like poetry? Personally, I have never had much interest in it. But as a writer and lover of words, I knew that one day I would need to give poetry a chance. And that day has arrived!

Every year, instead of making a New Year&#39;s resolution, I choose one word to focus on for the entire year.&nbsp;I encourage friends and family (and Ellii staff) to choose a <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/word-of-the-year-2022">Word of the Year</a> too. This year, my Word of the Year is poetry.&nbsp;

<img alt="word of the year 2023 on Tara's office wall" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/2996/content_Tara-Benwell-poetry-words-2023_Ellii.jpg" />

Tara&#39;s Word of the Year wall for 2023, featuring her word (poetry) as well as words chosen by&nbsp;those who accepted her challenge. In case you&#39;re wondering if the word <a href="https://theconversation.com/five-life-affirming-words-we-should-bring-back-into-use-174848" target="_blank">respair</a>&nbsp;is a mistake, it&#39;s not!&nbsp;

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Though we&#39;re&nbsp;only a few weeks into 2023,&nbsp;I&rsquo;m embracing poetry like I never thought I would!&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

<blockquote>
Did you know? The word poetry&nbsp;comes from the Greek word poiein,&nbsp;meaning &quot;to make.&quot;
</blockquote>

<h2>4 delicious reasons poetry is good for language learning</h2>

As the head of the Publishing team here at Ellii, one thing I&#39;ve been thinking about a lot&nbsp;is how poetry could&nbsp;be used for language learning. 
 
As a teacher, it would be&nbsp;easy for me to try to convince you that when you study poetry, you use the four&nbsp;macro skills (Reading, Writing, Listening, and Speaking) as well as the three&nbsp;micro skills (Vocabulary, Grammar, and Pronunciation), but that&rsquo;s not very poetic! Instead, let&#39;s think about the deliciousness of a poem.

<h3>1. Poetry is digestible</h3>

Unlike an article, a short story, or a novel, most poems can be read in a minute or two. You can enjoy the surface level of a poem or you can choose to go deeper and study it more fully.&nbsp;Think of a poem as just a moment in time. After you read or listen to a poem (and I hope you do both), try to have just one takeaway.

<blockquote>
Challenge: How did the poem make you feel?
</blockquote>

<h3>2. Poetry is full of delectable words</h3>

Poets are word lovers! They find the best words to describe exactly how they are thinking or feeling in a moment. When you start studying poetry, you&rsquo;ll recognize many words, but you&rsquo;ll also find delicious words you don&rsquo;t know.

<blockquote>
Challenge: Try to learn at least one new word from every poem you read. Make a list. (I do this myself!)
</blockquote>

<h3>3. Poetry comes in every flavor</h3>

You might think you don&rsquo;t like poetry because you associate poems with love. But there&rsquo;s so much more to poetry than sappy sonnets! There are poems about growing up, being in nature, leaving home, and getting a new job. Poems come in all shapes and sizes and can be about anything&nbsp;and everything (including AI).

<img alt="Chat GPT Limerick" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/2997/content_Blog-ChatGPTLimerick.jpg" />

Screenshot from <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/chatgpt-bot-passes-law-school-exam/" target="_blank">CBC video ChatGPT Bot Passes Law Exam</a>

<blockquote>
Challenge: Search the internet for &ldquo;a poem about&nbsp;(word of your choice).&quot; You could also search for&nbsp;lyrics, which can be a form of poetry.&nbsp;
</blockquote>

<h3>4. Poetry can make you hungry for more</h3>

When you&rsquo;re learning a new language (or anything new), it is easy to get sidetracked (in other words, you&nbsp;fall off the wagon). At times, language&nbsp;learning feels&nbsp;like just another thing on your to-do list. But what if you felt a hunger for learning English? If you give it a chance, poetry can actually entice you to keep learning.&nbsp;Instead of feeling like a chore, you&#39;ll start to&nbsp;crave a new poem!

<blockquote>
Challenge: Try reading a poem a day for a week. I hope you&nbsp;find 365 poems you love this year! (That&#39;s my goal.)
</blockquote>

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<h2>4 things to do with a poem</h2>

If you aren&#39;t sure what to do with a poem, here are four things to try:

<ol>
	<li>Listen to the poem. (This is my favorite part of studying poetry so far.)</li>
	<li>Read the poem silently to your self. (Circle words you don&rsquo;t know and add at least one to your notebook.)</li>
	<li>Write a few lines in a notebook. (How was the poet feeling in this moment? How does the poem make me feel?)</li>
	<li>Recite the poem. (Look up words you don&rsquo;t know how to pronounce.)</li>
</ol>

Did you notice&nbsp;all the skills you used?

<h2>4 places to find poetry</h2>

Here are some places I&#39;ve been going to find poetry.&nbsp;

<ol>
	<li><a href="https://onbeing.org/series/poetry-unbound/">Poetry Unbound</a> (a delicious podcast hosted by Irish poet P&aacute;draig &Oacute; Tuama)</li>
	<li><a href="https://poets.org/">Poets.org</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/poem-of-the-day">Poetry Foundation&#39;s Poem of the Day</a></li>
	<li>The Poetry section of my local library and&nbsp;bookstore</li>
</ol>

Please share a tip if you have some suggestions of your own!

<h3>Glossary</h3>

<ul>
	<li>macro: large, main</li>
	<li>micro: small, minor</li>
	<li>digestable: easy to consume</li>
	<li>surface level: just the basics</li>
	<li>takeaway: an important thing or detail&nbsp;that you liked or learned</li>
	<li>delectable: delicious, attractive</li>
	<li>sappy: overly emotional&nbsp;</li>
	<li>lyrics: words in songs</li>
	<li>crave: to feel like you really want to eat (or have)</li>
	<li>recite: to&nbsp;say out loud, especially from memory</li>
</ul>

<blockquote>
Will you give poetry a chance? Share your thoughts in the comments.
</blockquote>

<h2>Related tips for English learners</h2>

<ul class="resources">
	<li class="blog-post"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/4-goals-to-help-you-focus" target="_blank">Struggling to Focus? 4 Types of Goals to Get Your Language Learning Back on Track</a></li>
	<li class="blog-post"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/improve-your-listening-with-true-stories" target="_blank">Improve Your Listening Skills with True Stories</a></li>
</ul>

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<h2>Looking for more language learning fun?</h2>

Subscribe to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@Ellii">Ellii&#39;s YouTube channel</a>&nbsp;and enjoy free video content, including grammar videos and more!
</div>

4 Delicious Reasons to Learn English with Poetry

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It&#39;s that time of year again!

People around the world are celebrating a variety of holidays, including <a href="https://ellii.com/courses/93/lessons/1853" target="_blank">Christmas</a>, <a href="https://www.ellii.com/courses/93/lessons/1857" target="_blank">Chanukah</a>, <a href="https://www.ellii.com/courses/93/lessons/1856" target="_blank">Kwanzaa</a>, and even <a href="https://www.ellii.com/courses/93/lessons/1913" target="_blank">Festivus</a>.

At this time, you might be thinking about writing holiday greeting cards to friends or coworkers. But as an English learner, finding the right words for a holiday card or an <a href="https://ellii.com/lessons/writing-in-english/1829-how-to-write-an-email" target="_blank">email</a> can be a challenge.&nbsp;

In this post, we&rsquo;ve compiled a list of our favorite English holiday greetings and some useful writing tips to help you add a personal touch to your holiday messages.&nbsp;

<h2>English holiday greetings for everyone on your list</h2>

Whether you want heart-warming messages for friends and family or more formal messages to share with your team at work, these holiday greetings are the perfect way to spread the joy this holiday season.

<h3>Holiday greetings for family or friends</h3>

The holidays are a great time to reconnect with family and friends.&nbsp;

Here are some ideas for English holiday-inspired messages you can send to friends or loved ones:

<ul>
	<li>&ldquo;So thankful to have a friend like you at Christmas and all year long.&rdquo;</li>
	<li>&ldquo;Happy Chanukah! Wishing you love and joy during the Festival of Lights.&rdquo;</li>
	<li>&ldquo;Happy holidays to you and your loved&nbsp;ones!&rdquo;</li>
	<li>&ldquo;Knowing people like you makes this wonderful time of year even more&nbsp;meaningful.&rdquo;</li>
	<li>&ldquo;Our family is so lucky to have you in our lives. Hope you have a fabulous holiday&nbsp;season!&rdquo;</li>
	<li>&ldquo;Hoping you have a lovely holiday season filled with moments you&rsquo;ll always&nbsp;remember.&rdquo;</li>
	<li>&ldquo;May the magic and the wonder of the holiday season stay with you throughout the coming&nbsp;year.&rdquo;</li>
</ul>

<h3>Holiday greetings for colleagues or clients</h3>

As the year winds down, the holidays are the perfect time to thank your colleagues or clients for making your work a success.&nbsp;

Here is a list of festive greetings you could use for your coworkers or customers:

<ul>
	<li>&ldquo;Hoping that 2023&nbsp;brings you many wonderful&nbsp;opportunities!&rdquo;</li>
	<li>&ldquo;Wishing you a joyful holiday season and a successful new&nbsp;year!&rdquo;</li>
	<li>&ldquo;Best wishes for a new year filled with joy and spectacular&nbsp;success.&rdquo;</li>
	<li>&ldquo;Doing business with you is a pleasure! Hope you have a lovely&nbsp;Christmas.&rdquo;</li>
	<li>&ldquo;We truly appreciate your business and wish you the best in the coming&nbsp;year.&rdquo;</li>
	<li>&ldquo;Thanks for a great year, and we wish you all the best as you embark on&nbsp;2023.&rdquo;</li>
	<li>&ldquo;Thank you for being a part of the [company name] family. Hope you have a joyous holiday and new&nbsp;year!&rdquo;</li>
</ul>

<a href="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/post/blog_printable/Printable-Holiday-Cards_Ellii.pdf" target="_blank"><img alt="Four holiday greeting cards to print." src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/2889/content_Printable-Holiday-Cards_Ellii.jpg" /></a>

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Do you teach young learners? Here are <a href="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/attachments/3538/Printable-BW-Holiday-Cards_Ellii.pdf" target="_blank">black-and-white versions</a> you can print out for your students to color! Adults might appreciate adding their own flair to these cards as well.
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Write your holiday-inspired messages in these <a href="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/post/blog_printable/Printable-Holiday-Cards_Ellii.pdf" target="_blank">printable holiday greeting cards</a>.

<h2>5 tips for writing holiday greeting cards in English</h2>

These five writing tips are all you need to write a memorable holiday message in English.

<h3>1. Find a writing buddy</h3>

Writing holiday greetings is always more enjoyable with a friend. You can bounce ideas off each other and proofread each other&rsquo;s drafts before writing the final message in your card.&nbsp;

<h3>2. Remember to be sensitive to people&#39;s beliefs</h3>

People might be celebrating a variety of holidays during this season. So, if you&rsquo;re not certain if a colleague or acquaintance celebrates Christmas, choose a neutral greeting such as &ldquo;Happy Holidays,&rdquo; &ldquo;Season&rsquo;s Greetings,&rdquo; or &ldquo;Festive Wishes.&rdquo; You can also ask if they have a holiday preference.

<h3>3. Keep it brief</h3>

This is especially true when writing to clients or coworkers. Try to avoid adding personal details, and keep the message short and professional.

<h3>4. Consider adding an adjective</h3>

Even if your message is short, you can make it more personable by choosing an <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/adjectives" target="_blank">adjective</a> that expresses your friend&rsquo;s taste or style.

For example, if your friend is a lover of food, you could say, &ldquo;Wishing you a delicious holiday&nbsp;season!&rdquo;

<h3>5. Choose an appropriate closing</h3>

Ending your message with &ldquo;Love,&rdquo; or &ldquo;With love,&rdquo; should be kept for friends and family. For colleagues and clients, &ldquo;Best wishes,&rdquo; or&nbsp;&ldquo;Warm regards,&rdquo; might be a better alternative.

<h2><a href="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/post/blog_printable/Tips-for-Writing-Holiday-Greeting-Cards-in-English_Ellii.pdf" target="_blank"><img alt="" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/2888/content_Tips-for-Writing-Holiday-Greeting-Cards-in-English_Ellii.jpg" /></a></h2>

<div class="white-box">
<h5>Share your thoughts</h5>

Do you have any ideas you&rsquo;d like to add to this list? Share them with us in the comments. Thanks for reading, and happy holidays!
</div>

Editor&#39;s note:&nbsp;This post was originally published in December 2019&nbsp;and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

How to Write Holiday Greeting Cards in English

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What do you think of when you hear &ldquo;California&rdquo;? Probably palm trees, surfers, and movie&nbsp;stars.

But what if I told you there were two different&nbsp;Californias?

It&rsquo;s true! While Southern California (SoCal) and Northern California (NorCal) might be part of the same state, they have completely different climates, landscapes, and&nbsp;reputations.

Though it&rsquo;s important not to believe all stereotypes, many&nbsp;Californians&nbsp;still love to debate these&nbsp;differences.

Here are a few of the biggest differences&nbsp;between NorCal and&nbsp;SoCal:

<h2>Climate</h2>

If your idea of California is all sunshine and T-shirt weather, you must be thinking of SoCal. There, even in December, the average weather ranges from 58 to 79 degrees Fahrenheit or 14 to 26 degrees&nbsp;Celsius.

NorCal is a different story.

Though it can still be warm inland, coastal cities like San Francisco are known for their rainy, foggy&nbsp;weather.

In fact, the fog is so famous in San Francisco&nbsp;that locals have even given it a nickname: Karl the Fog.&nbsp;Karl has his own <a href="https://mobile.twitter.com/karlthefog?lang=en" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Twitter account</a>&nbsp;and is even the star of his very own <a href="https://www.chroniclebooks.com/products/karl-the-fog" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">children&rsquo;s&nbsp;book</a>!

<h2>Nature</h2>

California is a long state bordered to the west by the Pacific Ocean. There are beaches all along the coast, so you&nbsp;can surf pretty much anywhere. But&nbsp;if you&rsquo;re planning on surfing up north, you better wear a wetsuit&nbsp;because that water is&nbsp;cold!

If you&rsquo;re looking for palm trees, you&rsquo;re better off sticking to SoCal&nbsp;where most of the landscape is&nbsp;desert.

Because NorCal gets much more rain, it tends to be&nbsp;greener.

In fact, Northern California is covered in a vast forest, which is home to the world&rsquo;s tallest trees: redwoods (also known as sequoias). Redwood trees generally grow between 250 and 300 feet tall (72 and 91 meters)&nbsp;and some are wide enough to drive&nbsp;through!

<blockquote>
<h3>Fun Fact</h3>

Some redwoods can live to be 1,500 years&nbsp;old!
</blockquote>

<h2>Industry</h2>

SoCal is the home of Hollywood. People all over the world move to SoCal hoping to become famous and &ldquo;make it big&rdquo; in the film industry.

NorCal, on the other hand, is the home of Silicon&nbsp;Valley.

If you&rsquo;d rather develop the next big app than star in the next big movie, the San Francisco Bay Area is the place for you. This area of NorCal is home to all the big tech giants, from Facebook to Apple to&nbsp;Google.

<h2>Attitude</h2>

Since California is a diverse place,&nbsp;it&rsquo;s impossible to generalize everyone. There&#39;s a huge Hispanic community in California since it used to be part of&nbsp;Mexico.

The building of the Transcontinental Railroad in the 1860s and the California Gold Rush of 1849 also brought many Asian workers to&nbsp;California.

But despite all this fabulous state-wide diversity, Californians will still try to convince you why their region is the&nbsp;best.

As a whole, California has a reputation for being one of the more politically liberal states in the US, though there are certainly conservative&nbsp;areas.&nbsp;

People from NorCal will tell you that people from SoCal are superficial, thanks to Hollywood. Meanwhile, people from SoCal will say that people from NorCal are a bunch of liberal&nbsp;hippies.

<div class="white-box">
<h5>Are you more NorCal or SoCal?</h5>

Now that you&rsquo;ve heard about some of the big differences between SoCal and NorCal, where would you rather visit? Which part of California seems more like your scene? Tell us in the&nbsp;comments!
</div>

<h2>Glossary</h2>

<ul>
	<li>climate: the weather of a specific region averaged over a long period of&nbsp;time</li>
	<li>landscape: the&nbsp;nature in&nbsp;a specific&nbsp;region</li>
	<li>inland: the interior of a country normally far away from the&nbsp;coast</li>
	<li>wetsuit: a tight outfit used to keep people warm in the&nbsp;water</li>
	<li>diverse: composed of many different types of&nbsp;people</li>
	<li>liberal: believing more in political progress or change than in tradition</li>
	<li>conservative: believing more in political tradition than in progress or&nbsp;change</li>
	<li>superficial: caring too much about&nbsp;appearances</li>
	<li>hippy: a group of people in the 1960s and 1970s who cared about social and environmental issues and believed in love instead of&nbsp;war</li>
</ul>

NorCal Vs. SoCal: The Two Sides of California

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Are you struggling to focus?

I&#39;ve noticed many people complaining that they can&#39;t focus like they used to. They struggle to finish a book, pay attention during&nbsp;a meeting, or watch&nbsp;a full movie (without checking their news&nbsp;feed). 
 
I attended an online writing class this week, and the teacher started by asking us&nbsp;to eliminate all distractions. She reminded us that we&#39;d learn a lot more if we focused on the one thing we were supposed to be doing: watching her class (and maybe taking a few notes). It&nbsp;worked!

<blockquote>
Tip: Good ol&#39; note-taking&nbsp;(by hand) can help you&nbsp;maintain&nbsp;focus during class because you aren&#39;t just sitting still. If&nbsp;you prefer to use a device&nbsp;to take notes, turn off your notifications and&nbsp;go offline (or on airplane mode).&nbsp;
</blockquote>

<h2>Improve your focus one goal at a time</h2>

I listened to&nbsp;<a href="http://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/johann-hari-stolen-focus-pt-1/id1264843400?i=1000555669267" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Oprah&#39;s Super Soul&nbsp;podcast</a> last weekend where&nbsp;Johann Hari summarized his research on distractions from&nbsp;his book Stolen Focus: Why You Can&#39;t Pay Attention and How to Think Deeply&nbsp;Again.

He reminded us of something important too: &quot;Your attention didn&#39;t collapse. Your attention has been stolen from you by some really big and powerful&nbsp;forces.&quot;

In the podcast, Hari recommended&nbsp;focusing on one goal at a time. In addition to being&nbsp;meaningful, a&nbsp;goal should be set&nbsp;just&nbsp;outside of your comfort&nbsp;zone.

<blockquote>
Did you know? The average college student switches tasks every&nbsp;65&nbsp;seconds.&nbsp;&nbsp;

&mdash;Johann Hari,&nbsp;Stolen Focus
</blockquote>

<h2>4 types of goals to help language learners regain focus</h2>

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Johann Hari described&nbsp;four&nbsp;types of goals. (You can use these as inspiration to get your language learning back on track.)

<h3>1. Spotlight goals</h3>

A spotlight goal is an immediate goal. You want to get something done right now (e.g., writing or reading this blog post). If we don&#39;t put a task like this into the spotlight, we&#39;ll undoubtedly&nbsp;get distracted by another shiny thing (or&nbsp;ping). 
 
For example, last week, my daughter asked me to print something for her. I went upstairs to my office, turned on my computer, and noticed a message from a colleague. I answered the message&nbsp;and then&nbsp;checked my LinkedIn updates. Then I turned off my computer and grabbed some dirty laundry and went back&nbsp;downstairs. 
 
&quot;Did you print my essay, Mom?&quot; 
&quot;No. I&#39;ll do that. Can you bring down your laundry?&quot;&nbsp;

Clearly, I need to work on eliminating&nbsp;distractions when it comes to immediate tasks. I could also work on not&nbsp;distracting others who have an immediate task of their own to&nbsp;complete.&nbsp;

Challenge yourself: Your immediate language learning goal is to listen to and read this post without getting distracted. (Let&#39;s see if you can get all the way to the&nbsp;end.)

<h3>2. Daylight goals</h3>

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Hari described&nbsp;a daylight goal as the ability to simply know what your goals&nbsp;are.

One of my favorite ways to prioritize my&nbsp;goals is&nbsp;with Jennifer Louden&#39;s <a href="https://medium.com/@jenlouden/how-one-metaphor-can-change-everything-85a480b120be" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Pots on the Stove metaphor</a>.

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Once a week, I draw a stovetop in my journal&mdash;five circles of various sizes (some burners are bigger than others).&nbsp;Inside the circles, I write my main&nbsp;goals for the week, making sure to note which ones will require more attention. These&nbsp;may include work goals, personal goals, and other&nbsp;things&nbsp;that just need&nbsp;to get&nbsp;done.

Challenge yourself: What are your language learning goals for this week? (Try the pots on the stove exercise above.)&nbsp;

<h3>3. Starlight goals</h3>

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A starlight goal is&nbsp;a long-term goal. If we allow ourselves to be constantly distracted, we won&#39;t achieve any of&nbsp;these.

Every year, I encourage my family, friends, and colleagues to choose a <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/word-of-the-year-2022" target="_blank">Word of the Year</a>. Unlike a New Year&#39;s resolution, the word you choose&nbsp;acts as a guiding&nbsp;light.&nbsp; 
 
Challenge yourself: What&#39;s one long-term language learning goal that you have? (Make it meaningful and just outside your comfort&nbsp;zone.)

<h3>4. Stadium light goals</h3>

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A stadium light goal&nbsp;is a collective or group goal. This type of goal requires us to pay attention to each&nbsp;other.

For example, at work, we use roadmaps, objectives and key results (OKRs), and check-ins&nbsp;to keep us on track with annual and quarterly&nbsp;goals.&nbsp;

I share collective goals with some of my&nbsp;exercise club, such as meeting every week for a workout and meeting quarterly for a neighborhood fun&nbsp;run.

One goal I&#39;d like to set with my family is for everyone to remain at the dinner table until everyone else is finished eating. This time is important to me because it&#39;s when everyone shares a <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/improve-your-listening-with-true-stories" target="_blank">story</a> from their&nbsp;day.

Challenge yourself: What&#39;s one collective goal you could set with your language class? (If you aren&#39;t in a class, you could find&nbsp;a learning&nbsp;partner.)

<h2>Glossary</h2>

<ul>
	<li>switch: to quickly&nbsp;go from one thing or position to another</li>
	<li>feed: a constant stream of information or updates</li>
	<li>eliminate: to fully remove</li>
	<li>meaningful: having a real purpose</li>
	<li>outside one&#39;s comfort zone: in a place or situation where one feels a bit challenged or&nbsp;uncomfortable</li>
	<li>burner: the element on a stovetop where the heat comes&nbsp;through</li>
	<li>OKRs: objectives and key results, a goal-setting system for setting ambitious, measurable goals&nbsp;</li>
</ul>

<div class="white-box">
<h5>Complete your first spotlight goal in the comments</h5>

You made it to the end! Now, complete your spotlight&nbsp;goal.

Step outside your comfort zone and answer&nbsp;the following question in the comments: What distractions do you need to eliminate to achieve your long-term language learning&nbsp;goal?
</div>

Struggling to Focus? 4 Types of Goals to Get Your Language Learning Back on Track

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Do you want to improve your listening skills?

Listening to true stories is a great way to improve your listening skills. Storytellers are everywhere, but today&nbsp;I want to tell you about my favorite place to find them.

<h1>The Moth Radio Hour</h1>

<a href="https://themoth.org/radio-hour" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">The Moth Radio Hour</a> is a free storytelling radio show&nbsp;that you can listen to as a podcast. I listen to <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/5UKrcYdaGbq10z97yqi81N" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">The Moth on Spotify</a>, but there are lots of other places to find it.

The stories on The Moth are all true. Some stories make me laugh out loud. Others make me cry. I&#39;ve never been disappointed by a true story from The Moth.

Each week there are new true stories to listen to. Most episodes have three&nbsp;stories. Each story is about 15 minutes long. The stories in one episode&nbsp;all follow a certain theme.&nbsp;This week&#39;s theme was shoes.&nbsp;The theme is in the title of the episode, which is&nbsp;called &quot;If the Shoe Fits.&quot;&nbsp;If a theme&nbsp;doesn&#39;t appeal to you, you can always listen to past episodes. Some recent story themes at The Moth were&nbsp;siblings, love, and surprises.&nbsp;

<blockquote>
&quot;The Moth&nbsp;was founded by the novelist George Dawes Green, who wanted to recreate in New York the feeling of sultry summer evenings in his native Georgia, when moths were attracted to the light on the porch where he and his friends would gather to spin spellbinding tales.&quot;

&mdash;themoth.org
</blockquote>

<h1>How to Improve Your Listening Skills with The Moth</h1>

<h2>Make Listening a Habit&nbsp;</h2>

I listen to true stories from The Moth whenever I&#39;m&nbsp;preparing&nbsp;dinner. I can usually fit in&nbsp;at least two stories when I&#39;m prepping and cooking. Sometimes my teenagers hear a story playing in the kitchen and join me.&nbsp;

Try making a habit of&nbsp;listening to stories&nbsp;(e.g., listening on the train, listening on Sunday mornings, listening in the car).&nbsp;

<h2>Learn Some Idiomatic Language</h2>

The Moth&#39;s episode titles and descriptions often include everyday language and <a href="https://ellii.com/courses/88/lessons/2800" target="_blank">collocations</a> that you may find useful to learn, such as&nbsp;&quot;divine intervention,&quot; &quot;a loss for words,&quot;&nbsp;or &quot;letting go.&quot;

The true stories you listen to will&nbsp;help you remember these&nbsp;expressions.

If you don&#39;t understand some of the everyday&nbsp;expressions the storytellers use,&nbsp;you can always ask about them in English class or leave a question right at the bottom of this post!&nbsp;

<h2>Share the Stories&nbsp;</h2>

A friend told me about The Moth a few years ago, and I&#39;m so happy that she shared it.&nbsp;

I often retell bits of the stories I hear on The Moth to a friend or family member. Retelling stories is a great way to practice your speaking and vocabulary. You can practice important skills, such as <a href="https://ellii.com/courses/74/lessons/2465" target="_blank">paraphrasing</a>, <a href="https://ellii.com/courses/74/lessons/2718" target="_blank">summarizing</a>, and <a href="https://ellii.com/resource_categories/124/resources/2873" target="_blank">recounting</a>. <a href="https://ellii.com/courses/88/lessons/1618" target="_blank">Reported speech</a> is another important, yet tricky, language structure you can practice.&nbsp;

Unlike TED Talks or celebrity podcasts, the&nbsp;storytellers at The Moth are often just regular people like you and me. You can&#39;t help wanting to tell a related story after hearing their stories.

I hope The Moth inspires you to tell your stories too!

By the way, if you hear a great story on The Moth, be sure to stop by this post again and recommend an episode!&nbsp;I recommend <a href="https://themoth.org/radio-hour/put-to-the-test" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">&quot;Put to the Test&quot;</a> and&nbsp;<a href="https://themoth.org/radio-hour/where-we-belong" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">&quot;Where We Belong.&quot;</a>

<h2>Glossary</h2>

<ul>
	<li>podcast: a series of audio files that you can listen to online</li>
	<li>episode: one part in a series, such as a&nbsp;TV or film series</li>
	<li>theme: the main subject or topic&nbsp;</li>
	<li>appeal: to&nbsp;like the look, sound, or appearance of something</li>
	<li>sultry: hot and humid</li>
	<li>moth: an insect with feathery wings&nbsp;</li>
	<li>porch: an enclosed outdoor seating area</li>
	<li>spellbinding: holding one&#39;s attention, very interesting</li>
</ul>

<div class="white-box">
<h5>Question of the Month</h5>

Who is the best storyteller you know? What makes this person a good storyteller? Share your comments with me below!
</div>

Improve Your Listening Skills with True Stories

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<h2>Grade Levels</h2>

Do you know how to express&nbsp;grade levels in English? It depends on where you live! A grade level refers to a level of study that has its students grouped or classified into grades by age. 
&nbsp; 
Here are some common ways to describe school grade&nbsp;levels&nbsp;found in English-speaking countries:

<blockquote>
<ul>
	<li>She&#39;s in (the) first grade. (US)&nbsp;</li>
	<li>She&#39;s in (the) 11th grade. (US) *</li>
	<li>She&#39;s in Grade 4. (Canada)&nbsp;</li>
	<li>She&#39;s in grade 5. (Canada) **</li>
	<li>She&#39;s in Year 8. (England, Australia, New Zealand)</li>
	<li>She&#39;s in Primary 3. (Northern Ireland, Scotland)</li>
</ul>
</blockquote>

<h3>Note:</h3>

Year 1 and Grade 1 are not equivalent. A first-grade student in the US is a Year 2 student in the UK. This student may also be referred to as&nbsp;a first grader.&nbsp;

<h2>Education Stages</h2>

Some English speakers think it sounds odd or even wrong&nbsp;to hear a grade level expressed in a way that&#39;s not common in their own region. The way we describe different types of education stages (types of schools)&nbsp;also differs from region to region and can sound odd if it&#39;s not customary. For example, primary school&nbsp;may be referred to as&nbsp;grade school,&nbsp;elementary&nbsp;school, or even public school.***&nbsp;

In my region (Windsor, Ontario), elementary&nbsp;school starts in junior kindergarten (age 4&ndash;5). We also have senior kindergarten (age 5&ndash;6). Many other places in North America&nbsp;only have one year of kindergarten.&nbsp;

In many regions, elementary school goes to the eighth grade (Grade 8).&nbsp;Other regions&nbsp;have&nbsp;middle school and/or junior high school.&nbsp;Middle school usually ranges from the sixth grade to the eighth grade. Junior high school (&quot;junior high&quot;)&nbsp;is often synonymous with middle school, but it can also mean something different. In some regions, junior high&nbsp;includes the ninth&nbsp;grade.

High school is also known as secondary school. In my region, (public) high school goes from Grade 9 to Grade 12. In the US, the words freshman (9), sophomore (10), junior (11), and senior (12) are sometimes used to describe&nbsp;the high school years instead of grade numbers.

<blockquote>
<ul>
	<li>The word high school is always spelled as two words.</li>
	<li>The word kindergarten is spelled with a t&nbsp;(not a d&nbsp;as in garden,&nbsp;though it is often pronounced this way).</li>
	<li>The short form&nbsp;K&ndash;12 refers to primary and secondary school together.</li>
</ul>
</blockquote>

What about before and after K&ndash;12? Preschool is also called nursery school, playschool,&nbsp;or pre-K.&nbsp;Many parents put their young children in preschool for social reasons, though it&#39;s optional.&nbsp;

Post-secondary school refers to&nbsp;college or&nbsp;university.&nbsp;

<h2>Letter Grades</h2>

The word grade doesn&#39;t always refer to a school-age group. It can also mean the score you get on an assignment or in a class. These types of grades can be expressed in many ways too, such as&nbsp;letter grades&nbsp;(A+), proficiency levels (Level 4), or percentages (100%).

*In writing, it is recommended to use the numerical form for numbers over ten (11, 11th).&nbsp;

**When used after the word &quot;Grade&quot;&nbsp;or &quot;Year,&quot; most style guides recommend the numerical form for any number (Grade 5). It depends on the style guide whether you capitalize&nbsp;the word &quot;grade&quot; or not.&nbsp;

***Types of schools (high school, elementary school) are not capitalized unless it&#39;s part of a school name (Did you go to high school in Windsor? Yes, I went to&nbsp;Walkerville High School.) or at the beginning of a sentence.

Ask your teacher to assign the Functional English lesson called&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/courses/92/lessons/1957">Saying &amp; Writing Numbers</a>&nbsp;if you want to learn more about numbers.

<h2>Question of the Month&nbsp;</h2>

<h3>What was your most memorable (school-age) grade, and why?</h3>

Did you attend any type of preschool or post-secondary school? Try to use some vocabulary from this post in your response!

How to Say & Write Grade Levels & Education Stages

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<h2>Happy New Year!</h2>

Every year, instead of making a New Year&#39;s resolution, I choose a Word of the Year.&nbsp;This year, my word is &quot;journal.&quot;

Instead of waking up and immediately scrolling through&nbsp;my phone, I plan to reach for my notebook to do three&nbsp;pages of writing (longhand) before anything else.

I learned this practice of keeping &quot;morning pages&quot; many years ago from writing coach Julia Cameron (The Artist&#39;s Way). Based on past experience, starting my day off with morning pages almost always results in having a&nbsp;happier, more productive day.&nbsp;

<blockquote>
&quot;Pages clarify our yearnings. They keep an eye on our goals... They will point the way True North. Each morning, as we face the page, we meet ourselves. The pages give us a place to vent and a place to dream. They are intended for no eyes but our own.&quot;

&mdash;Julia Cameron
</blockquote>

<h2>New Year,&nbsp;New Wall</h2>

<a href="https://ellii.com/blog/word-of-the-year-2021">Last year</a>, I enthusiastically added all of our team members&#39; names to my office wall after choosing the word zeal as my Word of the Year. My wall&nbsp;became the background for my video calls throughout 2021 and was often the subject of <a href="https://ellii.com/courses/92/lessons/1749">small talk</a> before a meeting.&nbsp;

This year, I challenged everyone from the publishing team to think of their own Word of the Year. At the beginning of this week, my office wall was a blank slate. Today, it&#39;s full of inspirational words to help us keep our hearts, minds, and bodies on important goals throughout the year.&nbsp;

<img alt="Tara's Word Wall 2022" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/2021/content_Image_from_iOS__1_.jpg" />

Note: The Word of the Year challenge is also in our <a href="https://ellii.com/courses/74/lessons/2563">How to Write a Basic Paragraph</a> lesson.

<h2>Glossary</h2>

<ul>
	<li>journal (noun): a personal notebook</li>
	<li>journal (verb): to&nbsp;record thoughts&nbsp;in writing</li>
	<li>longhand (noun): cursive handwriting</li>
	<li>scroll (verb): to browse content (especially on a touch screen) without much thought or care</li>
	<li>productive (adjective): getting a lot accomplished</li>
	<li>zeal (noun): great energy or enthusiasm</li>
	<li>background (noun): the scene&nbsp;behind a person or object</li>
	<li>a blank slate (expression): a fresh start, a new beginning</li>
</ul>

<h2>Question of the Month&nbsp;</h2>

<h3>What&#39;s your word of the year for 2022?</h3>

Please join us in choosing a Word of the Year for 2022! Tell us your word and&nbsp;explain the reason for your choice. Teachers, learners, and ESL Library staff are welcome to join!&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Word of the Year 2022

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<h2>Putting Up the Christmas Tree</h2>

Since I was a little girl, the 8th of December has always been the day when I knew Christmas was just around the corner. You might be wondering what is so special about this date.&nbsp;What does it have to do with Christmas? Well, it has everything to do with Christmas! In Argentina, the 8th of December is a national holiday called the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. It is also the official date when we put up the Christmas tree (or, as we call it, &quot;el arbolito de navidad&quot;). Having a day off to decorate for Christmas is as amazing and as magical as it sounds. But this date wasn&#39;t chosen at random.&nbsp;The story of why we do it on the 8th is so rich and full of myths and wonders that I have to share it with you.

According to&nbsp;legend, the actual tradition of putting up a Christmas tree in Argentina started in 1807, when an Irish immigrant decorated a pine tree on December 8 in a public park following the customs of his country. The Irish can trace this custom&nbsp;back to 1200 BC, when the Celtics would decorate a tree that represented the Yggdrasil (a mythical tree that holds up the universe) to honor&nbsp;Frey, the god of the sun and fertility. Another possible reason why we put up Christmas trees is attributed to Martin Luther. One day, while strolling through the forest, he was struck by the beauty of the lights reflected by the stars on the trees and decided to take a tree branch home.

In my family, putting up the Christmas tree has always been a time for us to come together and have fun. We like to mix it up every once in a while and make what we call &quot;arbolitos raros&quot; (weird trees). These Christmas trees are not real&nbsp;trees at all. Instead, we&nbsp;make them! In the pictures below, you can see how we made a tree out of a wooden staircase and some pieces of wood. This year&#39;s tree is made out of rusty wires. We added in some homemade decorations to keep up with the style.

<img alt="A Christmas tree made with a wooden staircase. " src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/1986/content_Christmas_Traditions_in_Argentina_4.jpg" />

Lucia&#39;s 2015 Christmas tree made with a wooden staircase. Photo by Lucia Padilla

<img alt="Christmas tree made out of rusty wire." src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/1987/content_Christmas_Traditions_in_Argentina_3.jpg" />

Lucia&#39;s 2021 Christmas tree made out of rusty wires. Photo by Lucia Padilla

<img alt="Closer look at Christmas tree made out of rusty wire." src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/1988/content_Christmas_Traditions_in_Argentina_5.jpg" />

A closer look at Lucia&#39;s 2021 Christmas tree and decorations made out of rusty wires. Photo by Lucia Padilla

<img alt="Christmas decorations made out of rusty wire." src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/1989/content_Christmas_Traditions_in_Argentina_1.jpg" />

Photo of the making&nbsp;of the Christmas decorations. Photo by Lucia Padilla

<h2>Celebrating Christmas</h2>

Another fun fact about Christmas celebrations here in Argentina&nbsp;is that we open&nbsp;presents at midnight on Christmas Eve. So, on the 24th, we make a huge family dinner that involves lots of delicious foods like &quot;pan dulce,&quot; a white bread filled with nuts and dried fruits, and &quot;vitel ton&eacute;&quot; or, in Italian, &quot;vitello tonnato,&quot; which is a cold meat dish&nbsp;with a mayonnaise and tuna sauce. This is always a Christmas favorite!&nbsp;

But it is when the clock strikes midnight that the real magic begins. The first magical moment is the Christmas toast, marked by the sound of champagne glasses clinking together. This is the perfect time to hug your family members and tell them how much you love them. The second magical moment occurs when we go outside to watch the fireworks that cover the skies with color and lights. And the last one is the&nbsp;moment that as a kid you fought to stay awake for (which let me tell you&nbsp;wasn&#39;t an easy task)&mdash;the opening of the Christmas presents! They suddenly and magically appear under the Christmas tree! When did that happen? How did I miss Santa? What a treat that was, and still is, watching all your family happily opening presents between laughs and screams of joy (especially from the little ones). This is the best feeling in the world.

<img alt="A firework." src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/1990/content_Christmas_Traditions_in_Argentina_2.jpg" />

Fireworks on Christmas Eve. Photo by Lucia Padilla

<h2>Taking Down the Christmas Tree</h2>

Now, you might be thinking that if we have a day to put up the Christmas tree, we might also have a day to take&nbsp;it down. And that is exactly correct! We put away&nbsp;the Christmas tree and all the decorations the day after January 6, which is &quot;El D&iacute;a de los Reyes Magos&quot; (Epiphany or Three Kings&#39; Day). I won&#39;t go into too much detail about what this holiday entails, but you must know it involves kings, camels, shoes, grass, water, and more presents!&nbsp;

Feliz Navidad!

Lula (Motion Designer, ESL Library)

<h2>Glossary</h2>

<ul>
	<li>put up: to build or set up</li>
	<li>attributed to: named or credited as the source</li>
	<li>rusty: covered in a reddish-brown coating (iron)&nbsp;due to air/moisture</li>
	<li>toast: to celebrate with words and a drink</li>
	<li>take down: to remove something that was previously on display</li>
	<li>put away: to put in a storage area for use at another time</li>
</ul>

<h2>Sources:</h2>

<ul class="resources">
	<li class="external-link"><a href="https://www.infobae.com/sociedad/2021/12/04/por-que-armamos-el-arbolito-de-navidad-el-8-de-diciembre-dia-de-la-virgen/">Por qu&eacute; armamos el arbolito de Navidad el 8 de diciembre, D&iacute;a de la Virgen</a></li>
	<li class="external-link"><a href="https://www.ambito.com/informacion-general/navidad/por-que-se-arma-el-arbolito-este-8-diciembre-n5330970" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Por qu&eacute; se arma el arbolito de Navidad este 8 de diciembre</a></li>
	<li class="external-link"><a href="https://www.infobae.com/tendencias/2017/12/08/tradiciones-de-navidad-por-que-armamos-el-arbolito-el-8-de-diciembre/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Tradiciones de Navidad: por qu&eacute; armamos el arbolito el 8 de diciembre</a></li>
	<li class="external-link"><a href="https://vamospanish.com/discover/spending-and-celebrating-christmas-in-buenos-aires-traditions-food-things-to-do/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spending and Celebrating Christmas in Buenos Aires</a></li>
	<li class="external-link"><a href="https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-history/celts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Who Were Celts</a></li>
</ul>

<h2>Leave a Comment</h2>

What about you? Do you have any traditions for putting up the Christmas tree? How do you decorate it? When do you take it down and put it away? Have you ever made an unconventional Christmas tree?&nbsp;

How do you celebrate Christmas Eve? Do you enjoy any traditional Christmas food? Please tell us where you are from and share your holiday traditions with us!&nbsp;

Christmas in Argentina

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<h2>What Makes You Cozy?</h2>

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I recently finished&nbsp;Isabel Gillies&#39;s book Cozy: The Art of Arranging Yourself in the World.&nbsp;While I was reading this book, I found myself asking everyone around me the same question: &quot;What makes you cozy?&quot;

What I discovered is that a lot of people had similar answers. Here are the ones that I heard the most. Can you spot a common denominator?

<ul>
	<li>a cup of tea</li>
	<li>a fireplace&nbsp;</li>
	<li>a warm blanket</li>
	<li>a snuggly pet&nbsp;</li>
	<li>fuzzy pajamas</li>
	<li>a bubble bath</li>
	<li>thick socks</li>
	<li>wool sweaters</li>
</ul>

It&#39;s plain to see&nbsp;that being&nbsp;cozy&nbsp;requires warmth, especially in a cold climate or season, which seems to be when we crave coziness&nbsp;the most.&nbsp;

Interestingly, the most common answer I heard to my cozy query was&nbsp;&quot;<a href="https://ellii.com/courses/82/lessons/3565">tea</a>.&quot; It makes perfect sense that the little sweater you put on a teapot to keep it&nbsp;warm is called a&nbsp;tea cozy. Isn&#39;t that&nbsp;the coziest word&nbsp;you&#39;ve&nbsp;ever learned?

<blockquote>
&quot;I can&#39;t know what everyone will think is cozy, but, in my late forties, if I&#39;ve learned anything, it&#39;s that we are all pretty much the same.&quot;

&mdash;Isabel Gillies, Cozy: The Art of Arranging Yourself in the World
</blockquote>

One of the most unique answers I heard was from a&nbsp;little boy from Winnipeg who said that his facemask makes him cozy!&nbsp;Even after a long day at&nbsp;school, he&#39;s not in a rush to take it off when he gets&nbsp;home.

<a href="https://ellii.com/blog/home-vs-house">Home</a> is another cozy word. Did you know that <a href="https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/52072939431288277/">an old&nbsp;teapot makes a cozy home for a bird</a>? You can also turn a teacup and saucer into a bird feeder. What comes to mind when you think of home?&nbsp;For me, it&#39;s all about <a href="https://ellii.com/flashcard_genres/13/flashcard_categories/458">baking</a> in a cozy kitchen!&nbsp;Isabel Gillies prides herself in having comfort foods available when her family gets home. She shares several recipes for foods like applesauce and muffin batter. What are your go-to comfort foods?

<img alt="cozy " src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/1969/content_christmas-muffins-with-holiday-mug-and-teapot-SBI-300754682.jpg" />

<h2>Glossary</h2>

<ul>
	<li>common denominator: a shared feature</li>
	<li>cozy: feeling comfortable, warm, and relaxed</li>
	<li>crave: to have a strong need or desire for</li>
	<li>query: a question</li>
	<li>tea cozy: a little sweater for a teapot that keeps the tea warm</li>
	<li>comfort foods: foods that make you feel good or at home</li>
	<li>batter: a mixture of flour and liquids for baking</li>
	<li>go-to:&nbsp;the ones you return to again and again</li>
</ul>

<h2>Question of the Month</h2>

<h3>What makes you cozy?</h3>

Share your own list in the comments below! You can include things&nbsp;(pencils), words (tea cozy), activities (making Christmas&nbsp;crafts), and of course comfort foods and hot drinks (banana bread, peppermint tea).&nbsp;

&nbsp;

What Makes You Cozy?

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October 14 was World Sight Day. Coincidentally, I went in for an eye exam that day. You can probably guess my optometrist&#39;s first question.&nbsp;

<blockquote>
On average, how many hours do you spend looking at a screen?
</blockquote>

As someone who has worked from home for about 20 years, you can probably guess what my answer was.

&quot;Too long!&quot;

With so many students and&nbsp;teachers&nbsp;participating in&nbsp;online or hybrid learning, screen time is really taking its toll on our eyes.

My eye doctor shared a useful tip for anyone who works or studies in front of a screen for several hours a day. She called it the 20-20-20 rule.&nbsp;

<h2>What is the 20-20-20 rule?&nbsp;</h2>

Unlike so many other health tips and tricks, this one is so simple.&nbsp;

<blockquote>
Every 20 minutes, look about 20 feet away from your screen for 20 seconds.&nbsp;
</blockquote>

That&#39;s it! Sometimes the smallest changes make the biggest difference. If you spend a lot of time staring at screens, I hope you&#39;ll give this trick a try.&nbsp;

<h2>Eye Break Activity</h2>

After your 20-second break, come back together and describe what you saw. You can do this orally or in writing.&nbsp;Try looking a different way each time you take a break.

<blockquote>
I looked out the window. I saw a lonely basketball hoop standing firm while the trees around it were blowing in the wind.&nbsp;
</blockquote>

You could also tell each other what you did NOT&nbsp;see.&nbsp;Or you could describe what colors, shapes, or movements you noticed.&nbsp;Alternatively, since you are giving your eyes a break, you&nbsp;could also focus on the sounds you heard in that 20-second break.&nbsp;

<h2>Glossary</h2>

<ul>
	<li>coincidentally: by chance, not planned</li>
	<li>optometrist: eye doctor</li>
	<li>hybrid: a mix of two elements</li>
	<li>take its toll:&nbsp;to cause damage or suffering over time</li>
</ul>

<h2>Leave a Comment</h2>

What is one small change you have made recently to improve your health?&nbsp;

<h2>Related</h2>

<ul class="resources">
	<li class="resource"><a href="https://ellii.com/resource_categories/107/resources/2148">Eye Idioms</a></li>
	<li class="lesson"><a href="https://ellii.com/courses/95/lessons/1844">Eye Health</a></li>
</ul>