Our character trait for the week is THANKFULNESS and I opened by asking the kids to ponder this question:
After we read and discussed several of the (many) scripture verses about being thankful, we chose
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 as our focus verse for this week.
LATIN:
We are continuing our study of present tense Latin verbs. This week we covered 1st conjugation Imperfect Tense endings.
It's easy to see how memorizing those endings during Cycle 2 is finally starting to pay off! As a reminder, conjugating verbs in the imperfect tense uses a "formula" almost identical to what we learned last week.
STEM + IDENTIFIER + TENSE + ENDING = CONJUGATED VERB
STEP 1: IDENTIFY YOUR VERB STEM. EVERY VERB HAS 4 PRINCIPLE PARTS - The Imperfect Tense is built off of the present stem which can be found
in the 2nd principle part. The 1st Conjugation always has “-āre” at the end of the 2nd principle part. Drop that
ending to find the present stem. You can ignore the 1st, 3rd and 4th principle parts in the imperfect tense.
STEP 2: EVERY CONJUGATION HAS A CONJUGATION IDENTIFIER - The 1st conjugation is the “a” conjugation. You use
the letter “a” as a connector between the stem and the ending when building your verbs.
STEP 3: ADD THE TENSE SIGN - The imperfect tense is identified with “ba”. If you see those letters in a verb, you know
it is in the imperfect tense.
STEP 4: ADD THE ENDING - The person/number identifiers are the same for every verb: “m” - 1st singular, “s”-2nd
singular, “t” - 3rd singular, “mus” - 1st plural, “tis” - 2nd plural, “nt” - 3rd plural. Add them to the stem, the conjugation
sign, and the tense sign, and you’ve built your verb!
The amazing family behind Family Style Schooling has created a series of free worksheets to help practice conjugating these imperfect tense verbs. Follow the link below to download and print your free copy!
BONUS POINTS: Find one word this week that is derived from a Latin root and bring it to class next week to share.
Just for giggles, check out this "Let It Go" video. It's been translated into LATIN.
LOGIC/MATH:
Today's new math vocabulary word:
TERM: (1) A number that serves as a numerator or denominator of a fraction.
(2) One of the numbers in a sequence Ex: 1,2,3,4...
(3) A constant or variable expression composed of one or more factors in an algebraic expression.
As a reminder, these terms do not need to be memorized verbatim, they simply need to be understood by your child in such a manner that they can use the term(s) correctly during our math discussions.
Each week we will continue to review previous week's concepts through dialectic discussion with the problems the students bring in. In each problem we work, we will ask the same questions (based on the Five Common Topics) to expand our understanding of how math works and how it always points us back to our Creator. Again this week, we focused on "showing our work" - talking about "math sentences" and each individual step in solving/evaluating a problem.
For a fun review, we played the National Number Knockout Game (N2K) individually & in teams. We'll continue playing this on a weekly basis to help hone our mental math skills.
LITERATURE/COMPOSITION:
This week, we wrapped up our discussion and study of The Door in the Wall. I reviewed each student's outline, as well as last week's Arrangement element: NARRATIO. Great work!
Our newest Elocution element for this week is: ALLITERATION. Simply put, alliteration is a single consonant sound that is repeated (usually at the beginning) of adjacent words in a single sentence. It's the basis of every tongue twister that has ever been written. I shared a few with the class today, and we had a lot of fun trying to say them as fast as humanly possible. Give it a shot. You know you want to.
Alliteration can occur anywhere in the finished essay, but should only be used ONCE, much like a decoration in IEW. If your child needs a reminder for how to implement this into their work this week, you may consider sharing the Essay Seven: Elocution video with them: https://vimeo.com/album/3199449.
BONUS POINTS: Bring in an alliteration-filled tongue twister to share with the class next week.
As a reminder, next week we will begin our discussion of A Gathering of Days. It is a short book and an enjoyable read, so you should have no trouble finishing it before Wednesday.
Finally, if YOU as the teacher need some encouragement, sign up for the free LTW Support Newsletter. You'll be notified of any upcoming LTW Training/Equipping Events, provided with helpful hints and tips, sent updates and answers to parent-submitted questions.
GEOGRAPHY:
Today, we finally waved goodbye to Asia. After 5 weeks of intense study and numerous silly sentences, your children drew and labeled by hand and from memory a complete map of Asia. I am so pleased with their work!
Having completed our study of Asia, we moved on to Africa. It was obvious today that several of our students have a deep affection for the continent and the people of Africa. It is so sweet to hear them share about the things that God has laid on their hearts.
For the next five weeks, we will be drawing sections of Africa and memorizing the countries, capitals, and features. I gave each student a packet of maps to help with their studies. The full-color map is broken down into 5 colors. This week, we are studying the BLUE section (Northwest Africa.) Please help your child remember to BRING THE MAPS BACK EACH WEEK, as we will be adding information to them on a weekly basis. Don't forget to utilize the free Quizlet website and app to drill new countries and capitals:
For a change of pace, our review game this week involved laser pointers and a giant wall map of the world. Ask your kids about it...we had a blast!
In addition to their map work, your children should also be defining and illustrating in their geography dictionary their new geography terms for the week:
RIVER MOUTH
RIVER SOURCE
SANDBAR
SAVANNA
SEA
BONUS POINTS: Students will earn 1 point for each map drawn this week. If you are following the Ch A Guide plan of drawing 2 maps daily, a total of 8 points can be earned per student.
****Remember that at the end of the year we will be drawing the world - states, countries features - everything from memory. Students need to continue to draw areas they've been tested on. The more they draw the better they'll get - the more they will be able to remember.****
Suggestions for parents @ home: Drill student on provinces & capitals as well as geography terms. Check daily drawings for accuracy & labeling. Be sure students continue to draw previous geographic areas - adding them to new areas. Continue to drill previous states & capitals and/or countries & capitals. Flashcards are very helpful for this!
RESEARCH/SCIENCE:
Each student presented their research on the digestive system. I reminded them that their presentations should still be accompanied by a detailed drawing. They can choose to simply use their best drawing from their homework, or they can create a more detailed drawing (or model) to share with the class. We quickly reviewed the digestive system from memory and I reminded them that they will be tested on the digestive next week. I introduced the heart with a diagram and a list of vocabulary terms. We went over the first few definitions and labeled our drawing together in class. I found a tutorial that was extremely helpful to me this week as I was learning to draw the heart. However, when I attempted to log into that website today and share it with the class, the site was no longer public. The reason why? The gentleman who authored that blog and originally offered his content for free, has since complied that information into a Kindle e-book available for purchase on Amazon. Go figure.
As your children are drawing the heart this week, THEY NEED TO DRAW IT LARGE ENOUGH TO SEE ALL THE DETAIL. We referred back to the skills we learned in our Foundations art class - OILS: breaking down the drawing into circles, straight lines, dotes, angles & curved lines.
At home, students will need to define the new terms on the vocabulary sheets that I provided for them and choose one term to research more in-depth for their presentation. Your child should also draw, draw, draw! They need to be drawing the system at least twice daily and correctly labeling it. After the first few days of drawing, they need to "test" themselves by drawing & labeling it from memory. In addition to drawing the heart, the students will need to continue to draw the digestive system in preparation for the quiz next week. Try drawing from memory only and then checking to see what's missing.
Suggestions for parents @ home: Check students drawings daily. "Test" your child by having them draw from memory several times, ensuring that all elements are included and correctly labeled. Encourage your child to research the heart in depth this week. Get started with these links:
http://sciencewithme.com/learn-about-the-heart/
http://www.texasheart.org/ProjectHeart/Kids/Learn/Learn.cfm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H04d3rJCLCE
https://www.fi.edu/heart-engine-life
RHETORIC:
This week was slightly bittersweet for all of us. During class, we discussed the final chapter from our much-beloved book, It Couldn't Just Happen. This book has sparked so many interesting discussions during the past 20 weeks, and it has helped your children solidify their Christ-centered worldview. They have become such effective apologists, and I am beyond thrilled with the growth that I have seen in them so far this year. They continue to ask thoughtful and abstract questions, some of which are difficult to answer. While I will always answer their questions with truth straight from Scripture, I do encourage them to investigate the answers for themselves through reading what the Bible has to say and by consistently reminding them to ASK THEIR PARENTS. The discussions that we have during our rhetoric seminar can naturally overflow into your home. Some of today's questions were: Will there be animals in heaven? What happens to babies who die before they can become saved? What is the Rapture? Will Jesus return before or after the Tribulation? What is the Mark of the Beast?
Next week, we will be transitioning to our new book, The Fallacy Detective. You may notice that the Challenge Guide directs your child to read Lessons 6 and 7 in preparation for next week. While those are the lessons that we will be discussing in class, I can't help but emphasize that you AND your child's understanding and enjoyment of this book will be greatly increased if you take the time to read the introduction and Lessons 1-5 before we meet next week. There is some foundational knowledge in the beginning of the book, and I am surprised that we have been directed to skip over it.
Finally, even thought we are no longer learning any NEW catechism questions, please make sure your child is still studying them at home. They are crucial to our rhetoric discussions.
Suggestions for parents @ home: Drill all catechism questions. Remember they must be able to state every answer word for word.
Have a blessed week of study at home!
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