St. Patrick's Day

     St. Patrick's Day is coming soon!  This holiday is celebrated every year on March 17 as national holiday in Ireland.  St. Patrick's Day is also celebrated in other parts of the world, too, including the United States.  On St. Patrick's Day there will be a big parade in New York City.  Bands from around the country are going to march and play traditional Irish songs.  Many people will wear green in celebration of this day!  Two symbols that are known for being related to St. Patrick's Day are the lucky four-leaved clover, which is shown in the photo above, and the leprechaun. According to Irish belief, there is a leprechaun who knows where there is a pot of gold located. Everyone wants a pot of gold!


Vocabulary:

including: (prep) containing part of a whole

parade: (n) a public event in which people march, possibly with bands or floats

traditional: (adj) describing something that has been passed down from generation to generation based on customs or beliefs

symbols: (n) things used to represent an object or belief

related: (adj) describing something that is connected to something else

belief: (n) trust or faith in someone or something


Vocabulary Exercise:
Please write your own sentence for each of the words above.   Use the definitions and the examples of the use of the words in the paragraph above.

1. including ________________________________________________________
2. parade __________________________________________________________
3. traditional _______________________________________________________
4. symbols _________________________________________________________
5. related __________________________________________________________
6. belief ____________________________________________________________


Grammar Point: Simple Future Verbs
The simple future tense refers to an action that is in the future and has not occurred.  Here are three examples of sentences from the paragraph above that use the simple future tense:

1. On St. Patrick's Day there will be a big parade in New York City.
2. Bands from around the country are going to march and play traditional Irish songs.
3. Many people will wear green in celebration of this day!

The simple future tense uses the helping verbs "will" or "shall" and the base form of the verb. (See examples 1 and 3.)  It can also be used with a form of the verb "go" and the infinitive of the verb. (See example 2.)


Grammar Activity: 
Please fill in the blanks with the future tense of the verb in parentheses.  You may use the helping verbs "will" or "shall" with the base form of the verb, or you may use a form of the verb "go" with the infinitive of the verb.

1.  I ______________________ (shop) at the mall for a dress.
2.  He _____________________ (eat) all of his dinner, because he is so hungry.
3.  She ______________________ (buy) a cake for the party.
4.  They ___________________ (travel) the world together.
5.  We __________________ (miss) our friends when they move to South Carolina.