Connect laptop to Airport Express via ethernet

I searched all over and haven't been able to find a solution to my problem so hopefully I can get some advice. I am temporarily away from home and the house I am at has a Verizon FIOS wireless router. I have an Airport Express that I brought with me to extend the network to the far end of the house where there is little to no wifi signal. I was able to wirelessly join the active network, but internet speeds were little improved. I tried plugging my laptop into the Express via an ethernet cable but there shows no sign of activity that way. While the Express is extending the network, is there a way I can use its LAN port to make a wired connection to my laptop? Any other suggestions?

Thanks