A Very Busy February

February is the shortest month of the year. There are holidays and many special events occurring in this short time. February has been an important month since 1926 when attention was given to the importance of the history of Black Americans in the United States. Today, we acknowledge all of their contributions by honoring Dr. Martin Luther King's birthday as a national holiday in January.

In the United States, we begin the festive month of February with Groundhog Day on February 2nd. On this day, many people gather in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania to await the predictions of Phil, the groundhog. If Phil sees his shadow, then we will have six more weeks of winter. I hope you have a heavy winter coat because Phil saw his shadow, therefore, we are having six more weeks of this very miserable cold winter. It is said that he is correct approximately 90 % of the time since he started making these predictions in 1887. So bundle up!

For the romantic at heart, February is the month of love. On February 14th , we celebrate St. Valentines Day. This is the day when we make special efforts to tell someone we love how important they are in our lives. Chocolate candies, red roses and greeting cards with poems are all ideal gifts to give the one you love. Don't forget to send a gift to your mother!


Shortly following this date, we celebrate President's Day on February 16th. We honor the birthday of two of our most famous presidents, George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. This is a national holiday, so many people do not work. Schools and universities usually schedule their week long winter recess following this holiday. Enjoy your day off and go shopping!

We end this active month with a very fun day, Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday) on February 24th. This is a day of celebration and carnival in New Orleans, Louisiana. It is a day where people dress in outrageous costumes and wear colorful masks, build lavish floats for the parade, famous bands play jazz and everyone has lots of fun. Be creative and make a mask and dance for hours!

Enjoy this busy time of the year because before you realize it the 28 days of February are gone!

*****************************************************

VOCABULARY:

• acknowledge: to recognize the value of someone
• lavish: too much of something, generous, exaggerated
• bands: a group of musicians
• contributions: to give something without expecting anything in return; to donate
• outrageous: something that is shocking
• festive: happy, cheerful
• bundle up: expression meaning to put several layers of clothing on because it is cold
• prediction: to see things before they happen
• ideal : best
• greeting cards: cards that have a special message inside
• recess: period of time when you relax

Fill in the blanks:

1. I need to buy a _____________for my friend's birthday.
2. We enjoyed listening to the _________ as we had dinner at the restaurant.
3. The children had a ______________after their math test.
4. There was a _________ crowd at the party.
5. The weather was ___________for a swim in the ocean.
6. The rich lady wore ___________jewelry to the lunch with her children.
7. The teacher _______________that the children had worked very hard on the project.
8. My grandmother's ______________was right. It rained all day on friday.
9. The Fire department's ________________of $500.00 helped the family buy new clothes for their children.
10. The kids were ______________ to go play in the wet snow.
11. The boys were punished for their_____________behavior.

Grammar point:

Adjectives: words that decribe nouns.

Example:

wet snow : wet is the adjective. It is decribing the quality of the snow.

new clothing: new is the adjective. It is decribing which clothing is being addressed.

Can you find 10 adjectives in this article and create a story using them.

Enjoy!