The Royal Wedding

Okay, I know many of you are probably rolling your eyes at the title, but I had to go there.  I hope this topic isn’t too redundant!  The funny thing is that when I first got wind of the royal engagement, I thought it was ridiculous that people were making a big deal of the upcoming nuptials.  I cannot believe that only a few months later I was becoming such a huge sap and was DVR-ing every special on television. 

Luckily for me, I am already awake at 5 AM and was able to see Princess Kate’s walk down the aisle without having to set the alarm clock any earlier.  I was surprised with her dress choice because it was so simple, but she could not have looked more elegant in my opinion.  I admire how caring the young couple appears to be towards one another.  I thought it was so cute that Prince William mouthed, “Are you happy?” to Kate as they were departing Westminster Abbey in the coach.   

I also enjoyed gaining a little bit of insight into the history of England’s monarchy.  Even if the royal family does not hold any true political power in the UK, it was still interesting to hear about their years of reign in Britain.

The Line of Succession to the British Throne - Are you on this list?? ;-)

*Redundant – exceeding what is usual or natural

*Nuptials – a wedding or marriage

*Aisle - a walkway between or along sections of seats

*Elegant - tastefully fine or luxurious in dress, style, or design

*Admire – to regard with pleasure

*Insight - an instance of capturing the true nature of a thing

Vocabulary Practice

1. Many people ____________ their older siblings and try to live up to the expectations that they have set.

2. “Class, please make the ____________ wider between the desks so we can walk through the room.”

3. I would like to gain some ____________ into the way the administration works.

4. Did the couple have a long engagement before their ____________?

5. They live in a very ____________ home with fine décor and furniture.

6. It is frustrating to read a passage that is ____________ and simply says the same things over and over.

Homophones

Homophones are words that are pronounced or spoken the same way, but have different meanings.  Homophones can be words that are spelled exactly the same (as in bark the sound a dog makes, and the bark of a tree) or they can be spelled differently.  Homophones can be confusing to ELLs, especially in the area of encoding (spelling).  Frequent exposure to common homophones can be a helpful way for ELLs (and all students) to learn which homophones are associated with the proper definition.  Some of the most commonly confused homophones include their, there, and they’re (as seen in my writing) and to, two, and too, also present in my blog.  Using the description of each homophone in the chart below, create an original sentence using each homophone.

Homophone	Meaning	Sentence
Their	Possessive form; belonging to more than one person
There	Describes a relative location
They’re	Contraction – They are
Too	Also
To	Preposition showing relationship to words in a sentence
Two	The number (one, two, three…)