In today's session, Yanuell continued reading the fourth book in the Harry Potter series. In addition to reading, he analyzed vocabulary words and worked on character development for Hedwig, Harry's owl. Yanuell faced many unknown words today including sycophantically and surreptitiously. He used the online Cobuild Dictionary to look up the words. Cobuild revolutionized dictionaries for learners. It was the first of a new generation of dictionaries that were based on real examples of English rather than on compilers’ intuition, the type of English that people speak and write every day. This dictionary is an amazing resource and one that is especially helpful for Yanuell. He was able to read that if you describe someone as sycophantic, you disapprove of them because they flatter people who are more important and powerful than they are in order to gain an advantage for themselves. This was easy for him to understand and apply to the situation in the book. In addition to reading, comprehension, and vocabulary work, Yanuell analyzed the character development of Hedwig. He immediately recognized that the movies are unable to really develop certain characters, especially those who don't speak. Yanuell took her character and listed traits that apply based upon her actions, body movements, and attitude. He really enjoyed today's session.