Dear children Since you have more time than usual at your hand, why don’t you use that to build a new skill, improve in weak areas or just to try new things. Here’s one of you, trying out blogging. Do have a look and share your feedback with her. Click here to access Anaisha’s blog…
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How to Write a Character Sketch (For Beginners)
A character sketch is description of a person’s qualities or traits. It tells you what makes a person who he/she/it is. Here’s a video describing how to find character traits. It will also talk about character development. The image below sums up what the video is trying to tell you about character traits. Here’s an…
Read MoreSubject- verb Agreement Exercises
Here are some practice exercises on subject- verb agreement. Exercise 1: Based on the use of “or”/ “nor” Exercise 2: Use of “each”, “every”, “neither”, “either” etc. Exercise 3: With collective nouns
Read MoreThe Basics of Punctuation Marks
Punctuation marks matter! Yes, they do. Just read the following sentences given in the image: The two sentences mean completely different things. The first one means that we should eat grandma like food whereas the second one tells us that someone is talking to grandma and telling her that they should eat something. See, punctuation…
Read MoreThe Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Alice in Wonderland- The Cartoon Movie
” Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet.” Just today Videh of 5-B asked me to post three stories as that’s how many stories were due. You all know how busy your teachers have been this past month. And as much as most of you would like it, I can’t upload three stories in…
Read More200 Followers!
Another milestone crossed! October truly has been a great month for me in many ways. Thank you to everyone who is a part of this blog! Much love! Have a great day!
Read MoreThe North Wind and the Sun
A fable is a short story that teaches a lesson or has a moral. The main characters in fables may be animals, legendary creatures and people. Aesop was a Greek fabulist and storyteller who wrote many fables. His fables are collectively known as “Aesop’s Fables”. Here is one of his fables for you. It’s called…
Read MoreA Proverb a Week: Persuasion is Better Than Force
Proverbs are well-known sayings that give us some advice or state a truth. Here’s a proverb related to a story based on the text “The Milkman’s Cow”. Do you think this proverb fits in well with the story? Give reasons for your response. Happy learning!
Read MoreMy Donkey Won’t Move
This story reminds me of something I am about to teach in the coming days. What do you think is happening in the video? Why do you think the donkey isn’t moving? Can the man try something else to make the donkey move? If yes, what can it be? Do share your thoughts below.
Read MoreSubject-Verb Agreement: Best Friends with a Twist- Video
I still remember the day I introduced my grade 4 students to The Grammar Family. I told them about how each member of the family has its own place without which everything would be topsy-turvy in the Grammar family’s household. But, there are some words that are naughty and keep breaking the rules. And how…
Read MoreBambi- Story of the Week
Here’s the story of the week. It’s called “Bambi”. It was a very famous cartoon movie.The film received three Academy Award nominations: Best Sound (Sam Slyfield), Best Song (for “Love Is a Song” sung by Donald Novis) and Original Music Score. Click the links below to watch the complete movie:Part- I Part- II So what was your favourite part of the story? What…
Read MoreA Book Review By a 5th Grader!
I cannot begin to tell you how excited I am feeling to be sharing this- to see my students following in my footsteps and taking forward what was started many months back. A couple of weeks ago, as India was celebrating its Independence Day, I had urged some of my students to free themselves of…
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Exercises on Commas- II
Comma is an extremely important member of the punctuation family. But it is slightly confused too. It is like the young siblings of the full stop for it doesn’t know whether it should end the sentence or let it go on. So it kind of does both and neither of these things completely. Here are…
Read MoreAdverbs and Its Kinds
Whenever I teach adverbs to my grade 4 and 5 students, these resources prove to be really useful. Here’s a look at some of them. Video 1: Adverbs and Its Kinds Video 2: Adverbs of Frequency Video 3: Adverbs of Frequency- Description of Different Words Happy learning! Do like, share, follow and comment if you…
Read MoreAlice in Wonderland- Story of the Week
Alice is a little girl who finds herself in an unusual world. She sees things she had never dreamt in this topsy-tuvry land. Find out more about her adventures in the story below. Do pay special attention to the diction, voice modulation and sentence structure. When I speak to my students, many of them tell…
Read MoreThe Lazy Girl
Here’s the story of the week. Here are some things to ponder on: 1. Were you able to make any connections with any story that you have already read? 2. What were the similarities and dissimilarities between the two sisters? 3. Do you think the mother was fair to her step daughter? Why or why…
Read MoreReblog: It’s All in the Mind: Phrases with ‘mind’- Cambridge Dictionaries
Adding idioms and phrases to our speech or writing helps us to sound more like a native speaker of English. Here are some interesting phrases with the word “mind” to help you with this. Remember, remembering phrases or vocabulary can be challenging for most people. So, a way that I use to help me with…
Read More18 Grammatical Errors Even Smart People Make
Language can be a tricky business sometimes, especially when we have been hearing and watching the wrong thing without someone correcting it. Fortunately, with a little caution, we can always undo the mistakes that have become a part of our learning. Therefore, here’s a list of some common errors even adults make. Article Do try…
Read MoreWinner of the Micro Story Competition!
It’s time for the next reveal! I know most of you have been asking for this. I got a higher number of entries this time as many children from various sections took part. Some of them came quite close to winning. However, the one that stood out was this one. Any guesses who it was…
Read MorePinocchio- The Story
We have heard the above statement so many times in our life. Let’s find out what happened with a puppet named Pinocchio who would always lie. Could you make any connections? Have you experienced the ill-effects of lying in your life? What do you think about the story? Do leave your comments below. And don’t…
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Tenderquill: A Blog by a Nine Year Old Plus India’s Independence Day!
Happy Independence Day, everyone! Before we get into this blog post, here’s the inspiration I was talking about in my last blog post. Click here to read the last blog. I teach grade 4 and 5 students. Today India is celebrating its Independence Day. We generally discuss about what freedom truly means to them. They…
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100 Followers!
This seemed surreal when it happened! It sure took its time. But to be quite honest, I did leave blogging for a couple of months after initially starting. Thank you to everyone who has been part of this amazing journey! I can’t thank you enough for the support. I firstly want to thank my school…
Read More5 Phrasal Verbs with the Verb “Take”
Here’s something interesting I found which will help you speak and write better English. Click here to view it. Do let me know what you think about this. Use them in sentences so that they stay with you. You can leave your sentences in the comments section for your friends to see. Happy learning!
Read More20 Children’s Book That Redefine Gender Roles
Children are exposed to gender roles sometimes in very obvious ways, but sometimes very subtly. One of the subtle ways was the fairytales and story books we read while growing up where the girl was always the damsel in distress in need of being saved by a handsome and strong boy. Ugh! There were many…
Read MoreRobinson Crusoe- Video
Robinson Crusoe sure is an interesting story. Here’s a summary of the text “Robinson Crusoe”. Good readers are always visualizing while they read. After watching the video, ask yourself these questions: Did the visuals in the video match with the visuals I had in my mind while I was reading the text? What was different…
Read MorePresent, Past and Future Continuous Tenses
The continuous tense shows an action that is, was, or will be in progress at a certain time. The continuous tense is formed with the verb ‘be’ + -ing form of the verb. Questions to guide your thinking: What are continuous tenses? Give two examples of each of the following by writing complete sentences: Present…
Read MorePeter Pan
Stories take us to a different world. Let’s see what happen in the world of Peter Pan. Here’s the story. So, how did you find the story? Any connections that you made? Any predictions that you came up with as you were listening? Do share your thoughts below. Happy learning!
Read MoreWord of the Day- August 7, 2019 and Special Mention
Don’t you collaborate almost everyday in school? So do you have any interesting stories to share of the time you collaborated? How did the work turn out to be? Do you like collaborating? Do you think it’s important? I think we must congratulate the person who contributed this word. It’s none other than… Ananya Goel…
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Change with Time (Short Poem)
It’s not always a lack of money and resources that can bring a place down. Time wrecks havoc on a place in many ways. Don’t you think it’s important to adapt to changing times? Yes, we need to preserve cultural heritage, but that does not mean we can’t move ahead with the new and positive…
Read MoreWinner: Word of the Day- July 13, 2019
A while back we had tried something new on the blog. We decided to start a short story competition with the “Word of the Day” blog posts. The word we started this with was – enrol. Click here to view that blog post. There were quite a few good sentences I got and some short…
Read MoreExercises on Direct and Indirect Speech (Declarative Sentences)
Practice makes perfect. Here are some exercises on Direct- Indirect Speech (Declarative Sentences) for you to practice for your test. The exercises are of different levels of difficulty. In case you want to revise the concepts before you attempt the exercises, watch the videos n Direct and Indirect Speech by clicking here. Exercise -1 Exercise–…
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Easy Goal-setting Tips and Activities for Children
Many a time students don’t do well in school because they don’t know where to go or what to aim for. They wander aimlessly through their curriculum without identifying weakness and setting SMART goals for themselves. This is especially true for the age group I teach which comprises of 9 and 10 year olds. However,…
Read MoreDirect and Indirect Speech (Declarative Sentences) – Videos
Direct Speech is when the exact words of the speaker are used in a conversation. The exact words of the speaker are enclosed in quotation marks. Indirect Speech is when we convey the words/ message of the speaker in our own words. Therefore, it is also called Reported Speech. Here the quotation marks are not…
Read MoreWord of the Day- July 13, 2019 and Special Mention
Are any of you enrolled in any after school classes? Isn’t it a wonderful word that we can use instead of the word “join”? Like many a time we say – I joined skating classes. Instead, we can use- enrolled. Eager to know who gave this word? It’s Aditya Shaw of class IV- B! Well…
Read MoreHow to Find the Main Idea of a Text
Finding the “Main Idea”is one the most important skills a reader must have. Without this skill, a reader cannot understand what the text is mainly about. There are various places in the text which tell us about its main idea. Watch these two videos to find out WHAT a main idea is and HOW to…
Read MoreA Special Comment on the Word of the Day- July 3, 2019
The blog on July 3rd featured the word “exotic”. I received a lot of brilliant sentences on the word. (Click here in case you want to read that post again.) However, there was one comment that stood out for me. Here are the reasons why: 1. Due to the effort put in by the person.…
Read MoreWinner of the Word Hunt
Wow! What amazing sentences I got on the last Vocabulary post! Indeed all of you are becoming better at framing sentences. In case you don’t know what I am talking about, click here. The rules of the Word Hunt were: You had to find the synonym of “devour”. The child who would find the word…
Read MoreFlying Together- Audio and Questions (FBLD)
With summer break about to end, everyone is getting ready to come back to school in full swing. But for that to happen, here’s a simple preliminary exercise you have to do, so that your class time is more exciting than usual. You have to listen to the audio (given below) based on the chapter…
Read MorePrepositions- Explanation and Examples (FBLD)
Ever wondered what prepositions are? Here’s your answer. Prepositions are words that link nouns, pronouns and other words in a sentence. Here are some videos that will help you to understand Prepositions step-by-step. Video on- What are Prepositions? Video on- Position of Prepositions in a Sentence A video song on various examples of Prepositions: Watch…
Read MoreWord of the Day- July 4, 2019, Special Mention and Word Hunt
This word reminds me of the mouth watering food that I too am guilty of devouring sometimes! Does it remind you of anything? Leave your connections below. For contributing a word which brings back such delectable memories, let’s thank the person who contributed it. It’s none other than Saanvi Nautiyal of IV- E! Congratulations! Keep…
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Word of the Day- July 3, 2019 and the Special Mention
The word today is quite relatable, as some of you might have travelled to some exotic location sometime in life or seen someone tell you about such a place. There are many things that can be exotic- plants, animals, languages etc. List some exotic places, plants, animals or any other examples in the comments section…
Read MoreWord of the Day- June 29, 2019 and the Special Mention
Today’s word has been contributed by Poorvi Sarda of V- C. Well done Poorvi! To listen to the pronunciation of the word, click here. “Phenomenal” can be used to talk about many things. Find out what you can use it for and leave your sentences or connections in the comments section. Happy day to you!…
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Word of the Day: May 19, 2019 – Special Mention
Another word for you. Guess who gave this one.
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How Blogging is Helping Me to Become a Better Teacher
There are still some misconceptions about blogging as teachers. Here is a blog post to tell you how despite being an additional responsibility, blogging can be an aid to the teaching-learning process, rather than a chore or hinderance.
Read MoreGood Signs for Readers- Punctuation Marks
Using punctuation marks is essential while writing, for without them, the reader feels lost while reading. He/she wouldn’t know when a thought has ended or what the feeling behind the thought is, like whether it was a strong emotion or a normal one. Like look at this picture. Punctuation marks completely alter the meaning of…
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Word of the Day- May 5, 2019
The Word of the Day has been contributed by two children this time. Both of them gave the same word. The names of these two children are- Pragun of V-B and Nikunj Narang of V-C. Congratulations to the winners! Are you able to make any connections with this word? Think about it, we too practice…
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Word of the Day- May 2, 2019: Mini Stories Special
I know everyone’s been waiting to see whose word has been put up as “Word of the Day”. So here it is! Today’s word is by Laksh Nimesh of V-C. Well done, Laksh! However, I must mention how difficult it was for me to choose the winner today. Therefore, I have some other special mentions…
Read MoreWord of the Day- May 1, 2019
Yet another word to foster your understanding of vocabulary. The “Present: A Word Activity” seems to be working very well in my classes. So many children are coming up with new words each day that it is getting difficult to keep up with the pinning of new words to the Word Wall. The class I…
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Help! My Child Hates Reading! 10 Tips to Empower Parents
It has so happened in the past that some parents have expressed grief over their child not reading books. As all good or bad habits, reading is a habit that can be cultivated with a little effort. No doubt the Reading Strategies help with this (If you don’t know what I am talking about, click…
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Special Mention- Winner of the Word Hunt
The first person to find the synonym of “delicious” uploaded on the blog is Sreenath Sreekrishna of 5B. The synonym of the word is “delectable”. Kudos to the winner! You have won the word hunt!
Read MoreReading Strategies
A good reader is consciously or unconsciously always using these strategies while reading. Well, to be more precise, while learning, these strategies are consciously used, but once a person keeps reading using these strategies, it becomes an automated process. These strategies have proved beneficial in more than one way in the classes I teach. My…
Read MoreHow to Spell Well?
Here’s what I have to tell anyone who has trouble with spellings- please use the following: These are easy yet effective tools. When I am spelling, I am unconsciously using a combination of these or at least one of them. Another thing that helps me with spellings is that most words or similar words have…
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