BIBLE
We opened with prayer and spent some time searching Proverbs 22 for biblical wisdom that applied to our character quality of the week: VISION.
BONUS POINT: I asked everyone to bring in their vision for themselves in 10 years. Where do they see themselves? What are they doing? Where are they living?
GRAMMAR/LATIN
Today, we continued our study of verbs, and we added a new tense - the future Indicative Active Tense. For simplicity's sake, we just called it the "Future Tense." This tense expresses action going on in the future. For example: I will study Latin vocabulary tonight. We reviewed grammar rule #164 which models the endings for our new tense. In a nutshell, we use the same exact "formula" that we used last week: stem + 1st conjugation "a" + our future tense sign "bi" + our personal ending = future tense verb (i.e. laudabit - 3rd person singular future indicative tense). Here are the new endings:
I forgot to share our "cue" for remembering the endings: In the FUTURE, you may have to wear a BOW tie. So, when they hear "future tense" they automatically know that it begins with "bo."
I also gave them a worksheet that was modeled after a baseball diamond. It's purpose is to help them memorize the four principal parts of a Latin verb, as these are CRITICAL for learning how to conjugate verbs quickly. Just as a noun or adjective belongs to a family called a 'declension', a verb also has a family that is called a 'conjugation.' In the first conjugation, the four principal parts of a verb are:
1st: PRESENT (uses the ending "-o")
2nd: INFINITIVE (uses the ending "-are")
3rd: PAST (uses the ending "-avi")
4th: PARTICIPLE (uses the ending "-atus")
Here's what that looks like using the Latin verb "amo", which means "to love."
There will be a quiz on this material next week, and to be proficient, your child should be able to identify the principal parts of the verb (1st, 2nd, 3rd, or 4th), the name of each principal part (present, infinitive, past, participle) and the endings (-o, -are, -avi, -atus.)
I modeled how to complete our homework exercises (124-126, 129, 131, and 132)) & we reviewed all the new vocabulary words. There are quite a few of them this week!
As a review game, we translated Latin verbs and identified their meaning. For each correct verb, they received one chance to fling a stick chicken onto our whiteboard target. They did GREAT!For additional at-home practice this week, you can download the future tense worksheets from Family Style Schooling:
http://familystyleschooling.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/1st-Conjugation-Future-Tense.pdf
Also, here is an EXCELLENT resource that explains Latin verbs and ways you can "play" with them at home:
http://familystyleschooling.com/2015/06/06/playing-with-latin-verbs/
BONUS POINT: Find one English word derived from a Latin stem and bring it next week to share with the class.
****It is important that the students parse/label each sentence so that they can clearly identify the parts of speech in order to translate it properly.
Suggestions for parents @ home: Make sure you and your student preview the next week's lesson as stated in the guide so that they are prepared to discuss it in class. Drill student on vocabulary & grammar rules. Check daily assignments (or have students check). Continue to have students focus on memorizing endings for the declensions - sing the songs & work those charts, as well as memorize vocab & rules. It's a good idea to write the endings out - like copying mastery charts in Essentials.
LOGIC/MATH
We had no new math vocabulary today. However, each week we will continue to review all of our previously studied concepts through dialectic discussion using the problems the students bring in. In each problem we work, we will ask the same questions based on the 5 common topics: definition, comparison, relationship, testimony, and circumstance. For example, if a student writes 5 + x = 24 on the board, I might ask:
What do you see? (circumstance)
What does 24 mean? or What is a variable? (definition)
What do we need to know to solve this problem? (relationship)
What law or laws will we use to solve this problem? (testimony)
How are 5 and 24 similar? How are they different? (comparison)
Their answers drive the conversation, and they are getting more and more adept at leading the discussions themselves. :) If this is something you would like to try at home, you can use these questions to start a conversation:
BONUS POINT: Bring in a math problem from their homework to explain to the class.
EXPO/COMP
Today, instead of presenting our papers aloud, I reviewed each paper individually. They did a great job adding alliteration to their essays, however I did notice that a few elements (refutation, division, antithesis) were missing in some papers. I reminded everyone that there are NINE very specific checklists (one tailored to each essay) located at the back of their student workbook. During the week in which your student is focused on writing his/her essay, please make sure that they are referring to appropriate checklist to ensure that they have all the required elements. During Challenge B, we will be re-using our LTW Level I text, so your children will have many more opportunities to master the skills they are learning now. However, the more practice they get now, the more prepared they will be for the workload next year in Challenge B.
For our EIGHTH essay, we are back to the cannon of Invention. I introduced the topic of TESTIMONY and we defined two types of witnesses who can testify to an event: eyewitnesses and character witnesses. Throughout this week your student should draft their own issue based on A Gathering of Days and create an ANI chart with 30 items in each column. They should use the Testimony pages from their student workbook to generate new information for their ANI chart, in addition to using the seven other Invention tools that they have already learned this year:
For our EIGHTH essay, we are back to the cannon of Invention. I introduced the topic of TESTIMONY and we defined two types of witnesses who can testify to an event: eyewitnesses and character witnesses. Throughout this week your student should draft their own issue based on A Gathering of Days and create an ANI chart with 30 items in each column. They should use the Testimony pages from their student workbook to generate new information for their ANI chart, in addition to using the seven other Invention tools that they have already learned this year:
- ANI Chart
- Five Common Topics
- Comparison Chart: Similarities
- Comparison Chart: Differences
- Definition
- Circumstance
- Relationship (cause-and-effect)
Suggestions for parents @ home: Assist/review all student worksheets & ANI charts.
DEBATE/GEOGRAPHY
We began with a laser pointer and world map review. They are all doing very well, though I noticed that some of their earliest memory work (Canada and Central America) is beginning to slip. Encourage them to continue reviewing ALL their previous map work in addition to what we are currently studying.
During class I introduced the section of Africa that we dubbed "The Western Blob." This is the yellow section of the map that I handed out last week, and it includes all of the tiniest countries in Africa. There are eleven new countries and capitals to focus on this week. Please be sure to continue drawing the Northwestern section of Africa that we learned last week and ADD this week's work to it. DRAW, DRAW, and then DRAW some more!!!
If your child would like some interactive practice memorizing Africa's capital cities, visit THIS site. It's a matching game where the computer provides the name of a capital, and you click on the correct black dot. If your first answer is wrong, you'll get two more tries before the game gives you the correct answer. Here's a sneak preview:
Students should bring in maps that they've drawn. They'll show the class their best map.
In addition to studying African geography, be sure to define and illustrate this week's new geography terms (located on page 63 of your Challenge Guide):
SEA LEVEL
SHORE
During class I introduced the section of Africa that we dubbed "The Western Blob." This is the yellow section of the map that I handed out last week, and it includes all of the tiniest countries in Africa. There are eleven new countries and capitals to focus on this week. Please be sure to continue drawing the Northwestern section of Africa that we learned last week and ADD this week's work to it. DRAW, DRAW, and then DRAW some more!!!
If your child would like some interactive practice memorizing Africa's capital cities, visit THIS site. It's a matching game where the computer provides the name of a capital, and you click on the correct black dot. If your first answer is wrong, you'll get two more tries before the game gives you the correct answer. Here's a sneak preview:
Students should bring in maps that they've drawn. They'll show the class their best map.
In addition to studying African geography, be sure to define and illustrate this week's new geography terms (located on page 63 of your Challenge Guide):
SEA LEVEL
SEAPORT
SHOAL
SHORE
SHORELINE
BONUS POINTS Students will earn 1 point for each map drawn this week (up to 8 points.)
****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 - and 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 make this easier!
RESEARCH
Today was our quiz on the digestive system. I had the students trade papers with one another and evaluate their work based solely on the accurate labeling of all 12 parts. They did so well!
I then introduced the skin with a few interesting facts before we and labeled our drawing together in class. I modeled & gave suggestions on how to draw the skin. It's surprisingly simple! I reminded them that they need to DRAW IT LARGE ENOUGH TO SEE ALL THE DETAIL!! I encouraged them to use the ENTIRE sheet of paper when they are practicing their drawings and I referred them back to our Foundations art skills - OILS (breaking down the drawing into circles, straight lines, dotes, angles & curved lines.)
Here's an example that is almost identical to what I sent home today:
At home, students will need to define the new terms, and draw, draw, draw. They need to be drawing the system every day (more than once a day) and labeling it. After the first few days of drawing, they need to "test" by drawing & labeling it from memory. In addition to drawing the skin , students will need to continue to draw the heart in preparation for the quiz next week. Try drawing from memory ONLY (as if you were taking a test) to see what's missing. There will be a quiz on heart will be next week.
Suggestions for parents @ home: Check students drawings daily. "Test" by having them draw from memory several times, ensuring they have all elements & it is correctly labeled.
RHETORIC
Though I thought everyone might be sad this week about discussing The Fallacy Detective instead of It Couldn't Just Happen, I was WRONG! Everyone was so excited to discuss the two fallacies we studied this week and to share real world examples that they discovered. I love the depth and breadth of our discussions! This week, we learned about Red Herring fallacies, namely Special Pleading and Ad Hominem attacks.
For this week, we will be reading Lessons 8 and 9. Please be prepared to discuss these new fallacies in class.
BONUS POINT: Bring an example of a fallacy to class and be ready to explain why the argument is faulty.
Suggestions for parents at home: Continue to drill your child on the catechism questions. These will continue to remain relevant throughout this year and next. Remember that the answers must be stated WORD-FOR-WORD!
FINALLY...
NEXT WEEK IS WILD HAT DAY AND
PIZZA DAY!!
Wear your wildest hat and be sure to email Mrs. Spake if you are interested in ordering pizza for lunch.
See you then and have a blessed week of study!
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