10:17.9!!!!

Ten minutes and 17.9 seconds is all it took for the JFK Bellmore girls to finish first in the 4 x 800 meter relay event Tuesday afternoon. Tuesday was the last league meet of spring track and they ran their fastest relay time of the season by almost 30 seconds. Their time ranks them as one of the best relay times in school history. With five meets left these four girls will have a handful of opportunities to run faster and hopefully break 10 minutes. With ideal weather conditions and competition, sub 10 minutes should be attainable.
When I first started coaching at this high school in 2008, the team was small in numbers and ability. Since that year, we have grown to become larger and faster each year. I have a strong passion for track and field and that passion has been distributed over to the athletes that I have coached. The current team would demolish that team from the 2008-2009 school year.  

Word Bank

Ranks - Being positioned or stationed, usually on a list

Handful - A few or a couple

Hopefully - A positive feeling,

Ideal - Best possible situation

Sub - Under

Attainable - Something within reach

Passion - A powerful feeling towards something

Distributed - To divide or give out

Demolish - Destroy; easily beat

Using the word bank listed above, fill in the sentences with the correct word.

The pizza was ______ in eight even slices. 

________ I will graduate within two years and get a job right away.
Coach at the same school where I teach would be the _______ situation.
Molloy College _______ as one of the best Nursing schools in America.
There are only a _______ of schools that are better than Molloy.
The test results came in and there were only five students ______ 60.
If you have ________ for your job, then you will never work a day in your life.
Even though the Miami Heat beat the New York Knicks in the first two games, I hope the Heat won't ______ the Knicks in Game three.
The trees ________ to remarkable height.

Using the word bank listed above, use these words (or phrases) to find the antonyms from column B listed below. Antonyms are words that mean the opposite. For example, cold and hot are antonyms because they are opposites. Good luck!

Column A                                                                               Column B
Ranks                                                                                     Above
Handful                                                                                  Doesn't care
Hopefully                                                                               Randomized list
Ideal                                                                                      Out of reach
Sub                                                                                        To build
Attainbale                                                                               Negative outlook
Passion                                                                                   Worst case scenario

Distributed                                                                              Keep together

Demolish                                                                                 Many

 

Grammar Assignment
Now it’s your turn! See if you can write a paragraph using the vocabulary words listed above. Your story can be about anything at all, just have fun and be creative with it!

Wrestling - my guilty pleasure

We meet Shawn Michaels at the airport in Texas.

Okay, I know everybody (or all five people who read this) must be thinking wrestling is fake and how can I watch it? Well it's not fake, the outcome of each match is pre-determined; there is a difference. The wrestlers actually get hit with  moves but it's obviously not with the type of force that it is intended to have. When I was younger I was obsessed with wrestling; I had wrestling sheets, curtains, blankets, and many different wrestling toys. Since then I have matured and I got rid of some of the wrestling toys. In 2005 I met a wrestler at an airport and little by little I started watching wrestling again. Every Monday night a small group of friends all meet up to watch. It is extremely entertaining and secretly, I think we all want to be wrestlers. Over the past year I have attended two different wrestling events and this June I will witness another one.

Word Bank
Outcome - The end result

Pre-determined -  When the future of something is decided before it actually happens

Obviously - Something that is very clear and apparent

Intended - To have in mind; aimed at something or somebody

Obsessed -  To be in awe of something but to the highest degree

Extremely - A high degree of very

Attended - Went to

Witness - Watch or see

Vocabulary Exercise: 
There are eight sentences listed below that explain each vocabulary word listed above. The sentence will not include the vocabulary word, but it will help explain what each word means. Your task is  to write the vocabulary word next to each sentence in order to show what each sentence means.

The Giants lost to the Raiders by a score of 24-17. _______________________
The quarterback attempted to throw the ball to his receiver but the defense made an interception and then scored a touchdown. ______________ 
Many people believe horse racing is not a true sport because you know who will win before the race even starts. ______________
That boy has such a crush on the girl that he bought her 100 roses. _____________________
It was more then just hot today, it was 113 degrees outside! __________________
I graduated from Valley Stream South High School in 2001. ________________________
My cousin saw the robber escape the store after taking all the money. ___________________
It snowed two feet last night meaning we will not have school today. _____________________

Grammar Assignment
Wrestling is a sport that I watch almost every week. Is there a sport that watch all the time? If not, is there another activity that you do all the time? I meet my friends every Monday night to watch, when do you watch your sport or participate in your activity? Write one paragraph about your activity and be sure to include how long you have been doing it for as well as any other important details.

Here's to the summer of 2012

Hayward Field, the site of the Track and Field Olympic Trials held in Eugene, Oregon.

Two years ago, I probably had the most amazing summer of my life. I accomplished many things that summer but still managed to have fun doing what I wanted. That summer I grew very close with three friends and we did  a lot that summer. We took two mini road trips as well as a lot of entertaining things locally. As great as that summer was, I have a feeling that this summer will be even better and here's a few reasons to help explain.
In the middle of June my brother will be getting married. I had a great time at his engagement party and can only guess that his wedding will be better. As a track coach and fan of the sport of track and field, the Olympics is the highest level you can get in the sport. The Olympic Trials will be showcased in Eugene, Oregon and I will be going there with two of my friends. The entire trip will last for about two weeks and it will kickoff the summer of 2012. Four years ago I lived in Eugene, so it will be fun for me to go back home.

Word Bank

Accomplished - Completed, finished
Managed - To handle or direct something
Entertaining- Something fun
Locally - Nearby; your current area or neighborhood
Engagement - An arrangement, usually with marriage
Showcased - To display something
Entire - All of something
Kickoff - To jump start or being




Using the word bank listed above, fill in the sentences with the correct word.
__________ there are 12 new restaurants near my house that I would like to try.
By the summer of 2014 I hope to have ________ the task  of earning my teaching degree.
When I receive my diploma, it will be __________ in a beautiful looking case. 
In (American) football, the game starts by having one team ___________ to the other team.
I can't believe you ate the __________ chocolate cake!
My brother's _________ took place in December of 2011.
Although running may be boring, watching track and field is very  __________ to me.
Yesterday I _______ to do all my school work before lunch. 

Grammar: Antonyms
Antonyms is a fancy way of saying opposites. Using the words in Column A, use them to match the antonyms listed in Column B. For example, if the word HOT is listed in Column A then it will match with the word COLD listed in Column B because these words are opposites.

Column A                                                                                Column B

Accomplished                                                                           Finale               

Managed                                                                                  Partial        
Entertaining                                                                               Hide          
Locally                                                                                     Far   
Engagement                                                                              Boring            
Showcased                                                                               Separate          
Entire                                                                                        Failure  
Kickoff                                                                                     Misguide   

The Cougar Invite is BACK!!

Last Thursday at JFK Bellmore High School, the boys and girls track team hosted a big invitational. There were 26 teams total that competed consisting of boys and girls. The last time the school hosted a meet was in the spring of 2006. We had a concession stand available as well as an area for people to sell t-shirts. The shirts were gray with a logo printed in the middle (logo is seen pictured above). The meet earned a reputation of being a medal galore meet. Although the weather was beautiful, there were many gusts of gale force wind. That's the tricky part about being at a school right near the water.

Word Bank
Hosted - To entertain people/teams
Consisting - Made up of
Concession stand -  Area where food and/or drinks can be sold
Earned - Something gained based on previous actions
Reputation - How something is seen or believed to be
Galore - Having many or a lot of something
Gale - Strong force

Vocabulary Exercise: 

Using the word bank listed above, fill in the sentences with the correct word.
Last year for my birthday, I _________ a big party with over 100 people.
Since there were so many people, the party ________ the name the Century Crowd.
My birthday cake was __________ of chocolate filling.
The cake was from Stella's Bakery which has the __________ of being the best bakery in New York.
I walked to my car yesterday and I almost was blown away in the _____ force winds.
They had to move the ______________ stand inside because it started to rain.
It was pigeon _______ in Central Park yesterday. 

 Free writing activity
As the person in charge for everything relating to the track meet, I was the meet director and definitely had a lot of tasks. As I spent weeks planning for this event, I realized that it was similar to planning a party. I had a list of invited teams, some teams told me they were coming while others didn't. Have you ever planned a party before? Have you ever been to a party before? In one paragraph, describe the tasks needed to be completed in order to have a successful party. A guest list and RSVP date are two ideas that I mentioned that can help you start. Good luck and be creative!!

Is spring really here?

The past week we've experienced some unusual weather in New York. It has been very warm, almost hot on some days. It was 70 degrees this past Wednesday! In March it's mostly cold and having some snow would be common. Last year at this time, we still had snow covering most of the streets and making it a difficult commute to work and/or school. On average March has a temperature of around 45 degrees. March is mostly cold and sometimes the most brutal month of winter. We had a few flurries of snow about a month ago and no real cold weather. We had more snow on Halloween than we did during the typical snowy months of the year. This has been a very warm winter and I'm unsure if the winter was actually here. Will we have snow in June or did we just luck out and have an amazing winter? Hopefully the second thought is the correct statement, if not just remember that you saw it here first!

Word Bank
Experienced -Take note of something that happened

Unusual - Something that does not occur everyday
Common - Something that happens a lot

Commute - The travel (by car, bus, train etc.) to get somewhere

Average - The middle of two or more items
Brutal - Very tough or harsh

Flurries - Snowing but very little snowflakes

Typical - Something that can happen everyday

Statement - A comment

Using the word bank listed above, fill in the sentences with the correct word.

It is ____________ for boys to grow one or two inches over the summer.
It is ____________ for boys to grow one or two feet over the summer.
I wake up at 7 for a _______ day of work.
Since it takes me two hours to drive to work, I must leave enough time for my ___________.
I have been lucky enough to have ___________ many great moments in my life. 
Although I've driven to work in one hour and 45 minutes, on ________ it will take two hours.
A snowstorm may cause work to be cancelled but snow ________ can cause a longer commute.
I disagree with the Mayor's _________ about having a curfew.
Some places of the world have ________ temperatures where it can be over 100 degrees during the day and under 30 degrees at night. 

Vocabulary Exercise: 
Some of the words listed above have similar meanings, but if you use the wrong word in a sentence it won't make sense. Below are nine sentences with the wrong vocabulary being used. Can you change the word to make it a correct sentence? Good luck!

On commute, the education field has more females than males.
The snow common was making it hard to see out the window.
As I was on my daily typical, there was more traffic than normal.
The snow was coming down in an flurries way because it was snowing sideways.
The baseball player had a batting experience of .324 in the 2011 season.
The unusual temperature in a New York winter is probably around 35 degrees.

The statement college student takes five years to graduate a four year college in America.
That is not an average statement, it actually takes students a year longer to graduate.
On brutal, students change their major at least once which causes them to be in school longer.

 Free writing activity
We are having great weather in New York in March. In one paragraph, describe the weather in your hometown. Are you having a regular winter or is it very warm or very cold? Explain the usual weather for your town at this time.

The Voice

The four judges in their seats and the host standing in the middle.

I was at the college earlier today attending a religion workshop. Since I am a graduate student I must fulfill the obligation of going to one workshop per semester. Undergraduate students have to do two per semester, so I guess I escaped that burden. After the workshop, I was craving baked ziti but didn't feel like cooking. So I did the next best thing and stopped at a pizza place and had a baked ziti slice. As I devoured the delicious slice of pizza, I was watching a television show called The Voice. I never saw it before but it was pretty entertaining. There are four judges who listen to a person sing, if one or any of the judges like the singer they hit a button of approval. Each judge then has 12 singers on each team and then each team competes against each other. The thought of the show always sounded very intriguing but up until today, I never saw it before.

Word Bank
Attending - Going to

Fulfill - Complete

Workshop - A place or activity to go to for learning

Escaped- Leave

Burden - Having to do something, usually something that you don't want to

Craving -  In the mood for something

Devoured - Quickly eat

Delicious - Something very tasty

Entertaining - Amusing

Approval - Okay; allowed

Intriguing -  Appeal or grab

Using the word bank listed above, fill in the sentences with the correct word.

Last week I attended a ___________ about how to use the computer.
The Rolling Stones made a famous song called "Beast of ________."

I was so hungry, I ______ the meal in just 10 seconds!

Maybe I ate so quickly because the food was ___________.

Will you be _____________ the prom this year?

I think going to the circus is very __________.

After I smelled smoke I _______ through the rescue window. 

I will not give you my ________ to date that person.

In order to go to college, you must ________ all of your high school requirements.

Red cars are very ___________ to me. 

I always have a ________ for soda after I exercise. 

Grammar: Synonyms
There are many words that can be used to describe something, but they basically all mean the same thing.  For example, if somebody described a cold day he or she could say it was frigid or freezing. Although it is two different words, the meaning is the same. Using the words below in column A, match the synonym in column B to the correct word.

Column A                                                                                Column B

Attending - Going to                                                                 Attract

Fulfill                                                                                        Exit

Workshop                                                                                Permission

Escaped                                                                                   Accomplish

Burden                                                                                     Urge                                       

Craving                                                                                    Anxious                       

Devoured                                                                                 Interest Delicious                                                                                  Appear
Entertaining                                                                              Meeting
Approval                                                                                 Scrumptious

Intriguing                                                                                  Gobble
 Free writing activity (pick one) 
Have you ever watched The Voice television show? Even if you don't watch The Voice, write a short story about your favorite show. What day/time is it on? Do you always watch it at your house or with friends?  
I can't stop thinking about the baked ziti pizza I had for dinner! Write a short story about your favorite food. Who makes this food the best? Do you only eat it on special occasions?