November 1st marks the day that Americans put away their Halloween decorations (and costumes!) and turn their focus to the next exciting holiday: Thanksgiving! Many Americans consider this to be their favorite holiday because of the warm traditions surrounding it: dinner with friends and family, lots of delicious home-cooked food, and a holiday focused on spending time with loved ones and being thankful for our blessings.
A Thanksgiving tradition is to say what you are thankful for as you eat traditional Thanksgiving dishes. This is an excellent way to practice gratitude . . . and it is also a great way to practice a common grammatical construction in English: saying you are thankful for something uses the construction adjective + preposition + noun (gerund).
Here are some examples of this construction.
- I am thankful for having dinner with my family. (gerund)
- I am thankful for spending time with my friends and family. (gerund)
- I am thankful for being healthy. (gerund)
- I am thankful for not working on this holiday. (gerund)
- I am thankful for my job. (noun)
- I am thankful for my Mom’s delicious pie! (noun)
Note that with the negative example, we use the construction adjective + preposition + not + gerund.
Adjective + preposition + gerund combinations
Here are just a few of the many adjective + preposition + gerund combinations we have in English. Can you think of example sentences? Some suggestions are below.
- afraid of
- bored of
- committed to
- excited about
- famous for
- guilty of
- happy about
Here are some examples using these combinations.
- Afraid of. She was afraid of taking public transportation when she first arrived. But then she read our Guide to Public Transport in SD and SF and now she’s a pro!
- Bored of. He was bored of doing grammar lessons and not speaking much in class. Then he switched to our school, CISL, and now he’s much happier.
- Committed to. Our teachers are committed to providing our students with the best educational experience possible as an international student in California!
- Excited about. I’m excited about celebrating the upcoming holidays. I just read the Guide for Shopping in SD and now I know exactly where to go!
- Famous for. San Diego is famous for having beautiful weather all year, but did you know that it also has some great skiing just a few hours away?
- Guilty of. We went to the SD Courthouse to watch a court hearing, and the man was found guilty of violating parole.
- Happy about. He was happy about scoring so high on the CAE exam.
Things a CISL student can be thankful for
As an international student learning English at CISL San Diego or CISL San Francisco, you have so much to be thankful for! Here are just some of the things our students said they most appreciate.
Great classmates and friends
With such a diverse student population (check out our nationality mixes for SD and SF!), CISL students have a diverse classroom of students. At break and after school, it’s not uncommon to mingle with students from around the world. What an exciting and unique opportunity!
Quality instruction
CISL teachers have advanced degrees and years of experience teaching English to international students. In addition, many have also lived and worked or studied abroad, so they understand what life is like for an international student!
A beautiful city
How can you not be thankful when you are surrounded by the beauty of San Diego or San Francisco? From the unique neighborhoods like Little Italy, Chinatown, the Mission, or Gaslamp to places like Dolores Park or Balboa Park, there is always something new to explore.
New experiences daily
Speaking of exploring, both San Diego and San Francisco provide students with the most exciting events, festivals, and activities. Check out a local happy hour, attend the next film or music festival, or check out CISL’s Activities Calendar to see what fun events CISL has planned for you. Of course, there’s always the beach!
Real-life English practice
Living in the U.S. is a priceless opportunity to meet and mingle with native speakers. Learning doesn’t end when class is over each day: with your new friends from around the world and your after-school and weekend social activities, you are continually practicing your English while a student at CISL. Fun AND learning at the same time, in beautiful places and with wonderful people? That’s a lot to be thankful for!