SPRING SEMESTER WEEK 8

It's official! Twenty-three weeks of Challenge A down and only seven to go. I can hardly believe that it will be time to start thinking about final exams in just a few short weeks!

BIBLE

Our biblical virtue for today was WISDOM. What a treasure! We explored the 22nd and 23rd chapters of Proverbs, looking at what the Bible has to say about seeking and acquiring wisdom. We learned that wisdom begins with the fear of the Lord and that we should desire wisdom more than silver or gold.

I found two excellent articles which I will be using during the week to discuss wisdom in our home:

GET WISDOM

10 Characteristics of Wisdom

BONUS POINT: While reading your Bible this week, find one verse that talks about the importance of wisdom and bring it to share with the class next week.


GRAMMAR/LATIN

We are moving right along in our Latin curriculum. Henle Latin doesn't waste any time, does it? This week I introduced 2nd conjugation verbs. Here's the good news: the 2nd conjugation is NOT THAT DIFFICULT...mainly because it follows the exact same pattern that we use for verbs in the 1st conjugation. Here's the slightly less good news: the 2nd conjugation comes with 4 new principal parts and a new identifying letter, all of which must be memorized. First off, we learned how to identify 2nd conjugation verbs by memorizing and following this rule:

ALL VERBS WHOSE PRESENT INFINITIVE ACTIVE (better known as the 2nd principal part) ENDS IN "-ERE" BELONG TO THE SECOND CONJUGATION.

Then, we discussed the two major differences between the first conjugation and the second conjugation. The first difference is recognizing the 4 principal parts. As a refresher, the 1st conjugation principal parts 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")

In the 2nd conjugation, the principal parts are:

1st: PRESENT (uses the ending "-o")
2nd: INFINITIVE (uses the ending "-ere")
3rd: PAST (uses the ending "-ui")*
4th: PARTICIPLE (uses the ending "-us")*

*Truth in advertising: The 3rd and 4th principal parts are a bit unpredictable in the 2nd conjugation. They do not always follow this pattern, but for the purposes of our study this week, please help your children memorize these endings. 

As you can see, the difference is minimal...but significant. The second difference to note is that the identifying letter  of the 2nd conjugation is "-E."  So, when conjugating verbs in the 2nd conjugation, we will use the exact same "formula" that we have been using in the 1st conjugation, but we will use an "-E" as our identifier, instead of an "-A."

STEM + IDENTIFIER + TENSE + ENDING = CONJUGATED VERB  

The best news of all is that the tense endings we have already learned DO NOT CHANGE. That will certainly make it easier for your student to conjugate their new vocabulary words this week!

If you need more clarification, here are two videos that help further explain 2nd conjugation verbs:

If your child needs interactive practice at home, feel free to utilize this Quizlet set:

2nd Conjugation Verbs on Quizlet

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 and conjugations - sing the songs & work those charts! It's a good idea to write the endings out - like copying mastery charts in Essentials.

BONUS POINT: Find one English word or product that is derived from a Latin root.

LOGIC/MATH
Just a few new math terms today: permutation and combination. 

Permutations represent a particular arrangement of numbers or items. The important thing to remember is that with permutations ORDER MATTERS. For example, if I were to ask you for directions to your house and you told me that you address was 257 Main Street, and yet I mistakenly drove to 527 Main Street, I would not arrive at your house. Obviously, even though the numbers in both addresses are the same, the OUTCOME is different because the order of the numbers is critical to a correct understanding of the issue.

Combinations are slightly different because they represent a selection of items where ORDER DOES NOT MATTER. For example, if we were to meet at a restaurant for lunch and I ordered a cheeseburger, french fries, and a soda, but you ordered french fries, a soda, and a cheeseburger, we would still receive the SAME food, just in different combinations.

I did not teach the formulas that accompany these two math concepts, as we will most definitely tackle them in the higher levels of algebra. No need to rush. :)

Each week we will continue to review previous week's concepts through dialectic discussion with the problems that the students bring in.  In each problem we work, we will ask the same questions  based on the common topics. 

BONUS POINT: Bring in one problem from this week's math work to share with your classmates. 

LTW/COMPOSITION

This week, we discussed the canon of Arrangement. There is no new material this week...they have already learned all the arrangement elements necessary to organize the information from their ANI charts into an outline. Using the student ANI charts, we reviewed sorting & discussed how to make those "labels" that will serve as the main proofs.  We reviewed amplification & talked about how to make our amplification more eloquent by not using the words "it matters to", and instead replacing it with something like "this affects.." or "this is important to...".

At home the students should sort their ANI and use all the Arrangement tools that we have learned during our previous 7 essays. I stressed to the students to ask "why" and/or  "so what" after creating their outline to be sure they've answered those questions.  Please have your students bring their outlines & all worksheets to class next week.

Suggestions for parents @ home:   Assist/review sorted ANI charts.  Review all worksheets as well as the outline.  Be sure to help them assess whether they have a "main proof" with 3 separate sub-proofs.

GEOGRAPHY

To start geography this week, the students assembled a 4' x 4' blank map of Africa. It was a bit like a puzzle for them, but everyone worked together as a team to finish. Now, we have a HUGE map of Africa to help us study and review. If you would like to print your own giant maps at home,  I would encourage you to visit the MEGA MAPS website. You can print world maps, country maps, or continent maps in an enormous variety of sizes FOR FREE!

 I introduced the next section of Africa (green on the color coded map) and helped the students add the newest section of Africa to our previously learned areas.  We will continue to add new countries, capitals, and features according to the "breakdown" each week.

We also continued our laser pointer review game to reinforce all the previous countries, capitals & even features that we have learned.

MEGA MAPS

Students should bring in maps that they've drawn.  They'll show the class their best map.

In addition to drawing their maps and drilling their memory work, your child should define and illustrate the new geography vocabulary words this week:


SLOPE

SNOWLINE

SOIL

SOUND

SPIT

DRAW FOR POINTS!!!  Students will earn 1 point for each map drawn each 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.   (They can draw on the large laminated maps I gave them at the beginning of the year).  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 (it is suggested that they make flashcards for review)

RESEARCH/SCIENCE

Today, everyone presented their presentations on the skin. I learned a lot! Please continue to proof your child's presentation and ensure that they are at least 1-3 minutes long. Over the past two weeks, some of the presentations seem to be shrinking, and I don't want it to become a lower standard in our class. :) 

I introduced the skeletal system, which is the most involved system this year. We went over the definitions and labeled our drawing together in class. I modeled & gave suggestions on how to draw the skeletal system. I told them that a stick figure skeleton is not what they should be drawing, but rather a detailed drawing that shows the shape of the bones. As a reminder,   THEY NEED TO DRAW THE SYSTEM  LARGE ENOUGH TO SEE ALL THE DETAIL.  We referred back to our Foundations art - OILS in breaking down the drawing into circles, straight lines, dotes, angles & curved lines.

 For a refresher, click on the link below for a step-by-step tutorial on how to draw a skeleton.

HOW TO DRAW A SKELETON

NOT OKAY

PERFECT

For my musical students, check out this song to help you remember the names of all our bones:

NAME THOSE BONES

At home, students will need to define the new terms, and DRAW, DRAW, DRAW!!  They need to be drawing the system every day - at least twice per day -  and labeling it.  The skeleton is our most difficult body system to draw so far this year, so it will require quite a bit of practice this week.  After the first few days of drawing, they need to "test" themselves by drawing & labeling it from memory.   In addition to drawing the skeleton, students will need to continue to draw the skin in preparation for the quiz next week.  Try drawing from memory only as if testing to see what's missing.  The quiz on the skin will be next week.

STUDENTS SHOULD BRING IN THEIR DRAWINGS TO CLASS.


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. Also, have them practice their presentations by reading their reports to you this week.

BONUS POINT: Find out how many bones are in the human body.


RHETORIC

The kids continue to really enjoy our discussion of The Fallacy Detective. I am thrilled that they seem to be grasping the material so quickly and so well. This week, we discussed Genetic Fallacies and Tu Quoque Fallacies. If you are unfamiliar with them (as I was), please encourage your child to explain them to you. 

Next week, we will be discussing Chapters 10 and 11. If you would like to provide more structured study in rhetoric for your child this week, follow the link below to download and print a chapter-by-chapter study guide.

FALLACY DETECTIVE STUDY GUIDE


Suggestions for parents @ home:  Discuss chapters 10 and 11 in The Fallacy Detective. Watch a presidential debate and try to identify the fallacies that any candidate uses while attempting to make their point. Drill all catechism questions (remember they must be able to state word for word).

BONUS POINT: Find one example of either a red herring, special pleading, ad hominem attack, tu quoque, or genetic fallacy and bring your example to class to share during our rhetoric discussion.

CONFESSION TIME:

 Please raise your hand if you, too, have been completely sucked into this black hole. In an effort to make myself feel better about the number of hours I waste  spend on Pinterest, I want to share the board that I created specifically for Challenge A. Check it out here: Challenge A Board  In it, you will find helpful links to many of the projects and documents that I have used throughout the year. I pray that it is an encouragement to you all. 

Have a blessed time learning together this week!