Sigrid explains how a spelling bee normally proceeds. There are fixed rules and there are options.

Ever year, the winter solstice comes on December 21 in the Northern Hemisphere. Not only is it the first day of winter, it's a turning point, as the days will then get longer.

Sigrid talks about "The Elementary Spelling Book" by Noah Webster, which was the basis for the American English dictionary and a big part of the development of spelling bees in the United States.

Let's find out more about an American activity aimed at school kids: the spelling bee. What is it and how does it work?

Inauguration Day was special this year. In this video, Sigrid recalls some of the highlights and what was particularly striking to her as she watched it. Best of all, you can watch Amanda Gorman recite "The Hill We Climb" right here on Yabla!

In the United States, a presidential inauguration takes place every four years. The US now has a new president, Joe Biden, and Kamala Harris was sworn in as the first woman vice president. Part 1 of this video takes a look at the day before the inauguration.

Lots of English words can serve as nouns, verbs, or adjectives depending on the context. Sometimes even the pronunciation changes. Let's look at the slogan "Black Lives Matter" in both a grammatical and historical context.

We keep seeing the "Black Lives Matter" slogan all around — what's it all about? Well, it's a long story. Here's part of the story in a nutshell.

What a time to be learning English! Things are happening quickly in the United States and history is being made right now, so don't miss out on the words and expressions you need to know.

Everyone should stay home as much as possible to keep the coronavirus from spreading, but sometimes we have to go out for essential errands. What are some items to have on hand when we go out? Sigrid talks about five of them.

For so many of us, life has changed radically. We've had to learn new habits because of the coronavirus pandemic. Here are some of the changes we are having to make.

Nursery rhymes are for children. The rhyme about Humpty Dumpty, however, is so famous that it's been used in literary and cinematic contexts as well.

Sigrid finishes carving her pumpkin and places the candle inside so we can see the final effect of the jack o' lantern. Happy Halloween!

The pumpkin is ready to carve out. Sigrid explains that pumpkins are indeed an edible type of squash and not just for making into jack o' lanterns. In fact, one pumpkin can become both a pumpkin pie and a jack o' lantern.

One way to prepare for Halloween is to make a jack o' lantern. In this segment, Sigrid explains what a jack o' lantern is, and how kids and adults celebrate Halloween.