Week 2

In my reading class, Read 056, we do a lot of reading of chapter books and many other things. Reading has always been a problem for me. I really never read in my own free time and I never really read when we had to in high school. So practice in reading was never really done for me. Now that I’m a freshman in college I see that reading is done all the time especially in a reading class. So whether or not I like it I’m always reading. The reason I have problems in reading is because I always have my mind somewhere else. Half way through the page I loose focus and don’t remember anything I read which causes misunderstanding throughout the whole story. That’s the reason I don’t do it on my free time. The only time this happens is when I read something I’m really interested in, that’s when I find myself really paying attention. My family isn’t much of a reader either so that’s probably why I struggle. Growing up as a kid the only person that has ever really pushed me to read was my grandpa but other then that no one ever really pushed me to read. Its either I read or I didn’t. I don’t really remember my parents reading to me either when I was little. I never had reading done in my house when I was younger which is why I struggle now. I’m a pretty good reader when I want to be but when I’m not interested in it I have trouble.

Week 1

In the reading class that I am taking this semester read 056 I have learned how to study vocabulary words better. This has a really big impact on me because I never studied before because I didn’t really know how and I used to do real poorly on the test. Now that I do study I find it easier on testing. Some words that I get in my vocabulary I never used to hear around me because I wouldn’t really catch them. Now that I know what they mean I hear them being said more and more and I catch them because I know the meaning. Now that I know a lot more words then I did before I find myself using them when I speak. I use the words I learned in my reading class when I talk because they are more proper in my conversations. Many other people don’t know what they mean because they aren’t used very often so I always end up explaining it to them. Some of the words I learned I remember but some of them I end up forgetting. I don’t really remember all of them. When I study only so many stick in my head because of the meaning of the words and the way I use them. If I use more then others those are the ones that stick. I think studying vocabulary helps tremendously when having a test or even speaking to another person in general and having a conversation with others

The word: Gendarmes

Part of speech: Noun

The source sentence and page number: (Funny in Farsi) page 133 "The gendarmes started sifting through the clothes and the myriad of gifts i had brought for my host family.

Context clues: "Started shifting through"

Definition: a police officer in any of several European countries, esp. a French police officer

Your original sentence: When i visited Europe i got searched before entering the hotel by gendarmes.

The word: Exempt

Part of speech: Verb

The source sentence and page number: (Funny in Farsi) page 105 " The Christian and Jewish children at my school were exempt from religion studies, a fact that caused much envy among the rest of us."

Context clues: "Christian and Jewish kids" "Envy among the rest."

Definition: to free from an obligation or liability to which others are subject; release

Your original sentence: Currently, the Government plans to exempt pubs that do not serve prepared food from the smokefree legislation.

The word: Olfactory



Part of speech: Adjective



The source sentence and page number:(Funny in Farsi) page 97 "Aunt Sedigeh also had a beautiful garden full of nasturtiums, roses, snapdragons, and sweet peas, a vertable Disneyland for the olfactory sense."

Context clues: "A vertable Disneyland"

Definition: Of or pertaining to the sense of smell.

Your original sentence: When driving past In n Out theres always that olfactory smell.

The word: Permutation

Part of speech: Noun

The source sentence and page number: (Funny in Farsi) page 66 "Every once in a while, though, somebody comes up with a new permutation and i am once again reminded that i am an immigrant with a foriegn name."

Context clues: "a new" "once again"

Definition: The act of permuting or permutating; alteration; transformation.

Your original sentence: The techer decided that she was going to rearrange the seats in a new permutation.

The word:Enviable

Part of speech: Adjective

The source sentence and page number: (funny in Farsi) page 98 "Even though their condominium has only a tiny garden, they have managed to cultivate an enviable cornucopia of figs, pomegranates, sweet lemons, and herbs.

Context clues: "Even though" "cultivate"

Definition: Worthy of envy, very desirable.

Your original sentence: The dinner last night was very warm and enviable, i had seconds which is something i never do.

The word: Vacillate

Part of speech: Verb

The source sentence and page numbers: (Connect)page 153 "We vacillate and flunctuate."

Context Clues: "Fluctuate"

Definition: To waver in mind or opinion; be indecisive or irresolute.

Your original sentence: Her tendency to vacillate makes her a poor leader.

Word: Impelling

Part of speech: Verb

The source sentence and page number: (Connect) Page 152 The single most significant factor, he realized, was a sense, of future vision- the impelling conviction of those who were to survive that they had a mission to perform, some important work left to do.

Context clues: "Future vision" "Those who were to survive"

Definition: To drive forward; propel

Your original sentence: When hearing the ambulance you have to resist impelling.

The word: bucolic (funny in farsi page 30)

Part of speech :adjective

The source sentence: “Or we’d try to be more bucolic mentioning being south of the beautiful Captain Sea.”

Context clues: “We’d try to be”

Definition: Of shepherds pastral, of country life; rustic

Your original sentence: Hannah Montanna is very bucolic because of the farmland she lives around.

elitetext context: connect pg 40sentence: "The elite may derive their culture from expensive theater shows or opera performances where tickets can cost $100 each."definition: the socially superior part of societysentence: "Michael Jackson's wealth and fame made him an elite member in our society."

The Word: innocuous
Part Of Speech: Adjective
The Source Sentence and (Page Number): Funny in Farsi (pg. 57) “The seemingly innocuous cut became infected.
Context Clues: seemingly/became infected. (Antonym)
Definition: harmless, not controversial
Your Original Sentence: The fly is an innocuous insect; it does not harm humans.