WORD OF THE DAY
The keel of a boat is the beam that runs the length of the hull — the body of the boat — and can extend vertically into the water to provide stability.
A keel doesn't just refer to the stabilization of boats. When you're on "an even keel," you're stable and steady. On a bird, the keel (or breastbone) enables a bird to fly. On the other hand, if you keel over, you're quite the opposite, since you've just gone crashing to the floor.
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Vocabulary lists containing keel
International Talk Like A Pirate Day is celebrated on September 19. In the swashbuckling spirit, this list covers words every self-respecting pirate should know: parts of a ship, sailing jargon, terms for pirates, etc. With these words at your command, you can take the whole pirate thing way beyond "arrgh," eyepatches, and annoying birds that perch on your shoulder. For more, check out the full article: Buccaneer, Bilge and Booty: Words Every Self-respecting Pirate Should Know
Walt Whitman's famous "O Captain! My Captain!" is a tribute to Abraham Lincoln at the end of the Civil War and a mournful remembrance after the President's assassination. Read the full poem here.
This seven-part poem tells the story of a sailor who brings a curse on his ship after killing an albatross, a giant sea bird considered to be a good omen.
As you read Walt Whitman's "O Captain! My Captain!" learn this word list. Here are links to lists for texts in Grade 8's Collection 3: Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave, Harriet Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad, The Drummer Boy of Shiloh, Bloody Times, O Captain! My Captain!
