Inflation, Exclamation, and Pertrification

Independent study time seems to be going very well.  The kids are working very hard on their parent-assigned material, and are asking for help when they need it.  I am very proud of them for being so focused and quiet while they work!

Ms. Gail is back!  The class began reading the book, "The House of Dies Drear" by Virginia Hamilton.  They will be reading more at home, and working on vocabulary and comprehension questions that they will discuss next week.

In science class, the students learned about fossils.  Ms. Gail discussed different types of fossils, and ways that they form.  Ms. Gail brought in models of a trilobite and nautiloid, and brought more for the kids to make at home!  Also, they have a ball of soap to use at home... with a surprise fossil hidden inside!  Before working on their vocabulary, the class created their own plaster of Paris fossils. They will dry over the weekend, and the class will be finishing them up next week!

Social Studies- Mr. Dennis used today's class to step back and look at Germarn post-WWI.  (He also discussed the prefixes "pre" and "post".)  They took a look at the horrible inflation that Germany experienced at this time.  They completed a graph activity, which allowed students to focus on specific instances of price increase (for instance, the price of bread).  They also read different passages which illustrated the affects of inflation on individual German citizens.  They continued their overall lesson in the background of WWII with a discussion the legacy of WWI.  With this, they have officially surpassed what was expected of me in all of my years of history class.

Grammar & Writing-  Today was an introductory day, as we are all starting a new curriculum!  We had an overview of the different books, and an explanation of how our in class and at home lessons will flow.  Each week, the kids will be responsible for a dictation exercise.  They will read the passage, and study the spelling, punctuation, and other grammatical elements, and then write it down.  They will review this passage each at-home day, and it will be a dictation quiz when we return to class.  This will be an ongoing activity, so there will be a passage each week.  They are found at the end of the textbook, beginning on page 579.  The lessons in this year's grammar and writing class will be student-driven, meaning that they are going to learn to be responsible for reading the at-home lectures, and completing the practice questions.  If there is a tough lesson, then I will, of course, post a video!

Today was a full day that required a lot of brain power!  I explained to the kids that, even if their brains are wanting to explode and they want to whine and pout about having to work... it is NOTHING more than they did last year!  Hopefully, my pep-talk will help out at home!

(This year, the kids were assigned a job to help clean up the room at the end of class.  Why didn't I do this last year?  Awesome!)