Some of you might be interested in basketball, and recently in the United States, the National Basketball Association, or NBA, has just started its regular season. From players like Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson to Shaquelle O’Neal and Lebron James, this league has always been home to the best basketball players in the world. This season, in particular, is very exciting because there are so many great teams and amazing players. Specifically, the Golden State Warriors are the team to watch right now. Their star player is the point guard, Stephen Curry, and he is the best 3-point shooter in NBA history. He has the record for most 3-point shots made in one season (402), and he is quickly approaching the record for most career 3-point shots made. The retired forward Ray Allen has the current record of 2,973, but Curry has 2,924 and is on track to break the record this season.
Curry's team, the Golden State Warriors, is also doing exceptionally well with a record so far of 16 wins and 2 losses. If they continue at this rate, they might break the NBA team record for most wins in a season. Interestingly, the record right now is held by the same Warriors team when they won 73 games and lost only 9 in the 2015-2016 season. Steph Curry was also leading the team at that time, but this season’s team features new faces who have been helping the team win. Therefore, if you enjoy basketball, please follow the Golden State Warriors and Stephen Curry this year to see if they will break these records and also follow the link below to see a video of Curry’s highlights.
Today is officially Thanksgiving in the United States. People usually celebrate this holiday by gathering with their families and eating a big feast. Essentially, Thanksgiving is the celebration of the fall harvest when all the fruit and vegetables that farmers have grown that year are finally ready to be picked and eaten. In America, people have had festivals to celebrate the harvest since 1609. However, the most famous example of this tradition happened in 1621 in the settlement known as Plymouth, and we often call this event “the first Thanksgiving.”
At this celebration, 93 Native Americans from the Wampanoag tribe enjoyed an enormous meal with 53 European settlers known as Pilgrims. The Pilgrims had arrived in America the previous year, but they suffered through a long winter because of a lack of food and other supplies. The Native Americans also had many problems with disease because of an epidemic, so the leader of the Wampanoag, Massasoit, decided to form an alliance with the Pilgrims in order for both groups to survive this difficult time. Through that winter and into the spring and summer, the Wampanoag people gave food and supplies to the Pilgrims and also taught them how to hunt, fish, and grow their own food like corn and potatoes. To say thank you and to celebrate their relationship, the Pilgrims invited the Wampanoag to a festival which celebrated their first harvest in America.
Although it was recorded that the Pilgrims and Wampanoag ate duck, deer, and fish at the event, historians are not sure whether turkey was also served. However, over the years, it became convenient for families to enjoy a turkey for this holiday because it could easily feed one family and there were so many wild turkeys in America at that time. These days, about 276 million Americans buy and roast a turkey for this holiday at their homes, and it is also traditional to serve mashed potatoes, green beans, corn, and other fall vegetables as well as pumpkin pie. Because of the huge size of this meal, this is the day of the year that Americans eat the most food. Thanksgiving is always held on the 4th Thursday of November in the United States, and because many people don’t have to work on the following Friday, they go shopping for Christmas presents on that day. Therefore, this is the day of the year when Americans spend the most money, and we call it Black Friday.
Does Japan have any special festivals or traditions for the fall harvest? If so, please share them with your teachers the next time you see them at BRIDGE.
One of the most exciting and helpful games to help students improve their vocabulary skills is Scattergories. Today, we will show you how to play the game and will even provide you with a table that you print out and use for your own games.
First of all, you need a pen, a timer (your smartphone is okay!), and a printed, paper copy of the table below. This is a game that you can play by yourself or with a group of people. After you are ready to play, set your timer for 3 minutes, say “three, two, one… go,” and start the timer.
Then, each person will try to write down a specific example of the categories that are on the far left.
However, for every round, you have to use the letter at the top of each column as the first letter of each answer that you write down. For example, in the table, the player used farmer for the category Jobs and flute for the category Musical Instruments because the column letter was F.
Also, if you use a phrase that has two words for your answer, you will get double the points if you use the column letter as the first letter of both words. For example, in the table, the player used french fries for the category Food / Drink, and as a result, this answer counts as 2 points, not just 1.
You are also free to write down as many words as you can remember for each category, and you can also skip a category if you don’t have an answer like this player did for the category of Colors. In the game below, the person received a total of 17 points including the double scores forfrench fries and Foo Fighters.
One final rule is that if another player has the same answer as you, both players must cancel that word from their list and nobody receives points for it. This rule encourages players to be creative and try harder to think of unique words and phrases.
Again, feel free to play this by yourself and with a group of friends, and you can play at least 5 rounds with the table below! It is very exciting, but if you find it too difficult, try using a dictionary while you play. Good luck and have fun!
