Spring Semester Week 6 Seminar Recap & Notes

9 more weeks to go!!

REMINDERS FOR SPRING SEMESTER:
-Students will be leading rhetoric discussions.  I will email out ahead of time when you child will lead so they can prepare **THIS WILL START IN WEEK 5
***SIERRA WILL LEAD DISCUSSION IN WEEK 7
-Students will begin to track their own points (with your supervision).  They will need to keep a detailed "log" and turn that in to me at the end of the year (wk 14) for the awards.
-Students will also "teach" LTW cannons as we begin review

Here's the recap  (PLEASE SEE THE GUIDE FOR HOMEWORK DUE FOR SPRING SEMINAR - WEEK 7 )
   
Logic/Math
1 new math term this week (skew)

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 common topics) - see previous blog for detail on questions.  The students are beginning to lead the discussions.  
Again,  we focused on "showing our work" - talking about "math sentences" and each individual step in solving/evaluating a problem.  We are also learning how to "show our work".

We covered the concepts of finding the mixed number coefficients.

We played the N2K game individually & in teams.   We'll play this each week.

POINTS: Bring in a math problem from their homework to explain to the class -  5 points.

Be sure the students bring in the completed lessons you assign to class (even if they are not doing Saxon).

**Students should bring in a problem from their math lesson to share (can be one they struggled with; one they think will stump the class or anything they found interesting & would like to share & explain)  This will help them be rhetorical!!

Grammar/Latin
Today we reviewed adjectives that "govern cases" (still Lesson 8 - p88-98) & modeled how to complete exercises 101-103 (part of homework for this week).

This week is all about vocabulary review!!!! Students will be completing exercises 101-103 & the mass vocabulary review on p91-98.  We may have a pop quiz next week,

We played chariot races to review declension endings and charades to review vocab.

POINTS: Translate next "section" of The Giving Tree - 5 pts

****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.   I will be awarding candy for those who do!!! :)

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.

Research 

Today was our mouth/teeth test.  I'll return those next week.  We drew the brain from memory, traded w/ a neighbor & graded.  I introduced the heart, we went over the definitions and labeled our drawing together in class.  I modeled & gave suggestions on how to draw the system.  THEY NEED TO DRAW IT 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.

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.   I showed them samples of what their "test" in 2 weeks should look like.  In addition to drawing the heart, students will need to continue to draw the brain in preparation for the quiz next week.  Try drawing from memory only as if testing to see what's missing.  Quiz on brain will be next week.

STUDENTS SHOULD BRING IN THEIR DRAWINGS TO CLASS.

POINT REWARD: Atrium is Latin for ??; Ventricle is Latin for??? - 5 points  Find integration with the heart in scripture & history - 10 points

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. 

Expo/Comp

Today we reviewed the student's outlines, discussing whether our proofs & sub proofs support our thesis  We talked again about answering the "so what/why/how" questions.  We also learned a new trope - simile.  We compared the differences between good, strong similes with those that were weak & vague.  We also learned how to construct a simile by first choosing a term/noun (i.e house), then choosing a characteristic (i.e. cold), then finding something with a common characteristic (i.e South Pole or freezer).  We discussed that when someone agrees with our simile (The house is as cold as a freezer), they agree with "argument" (I agree that a freezer is cold, so I agree that the house is cold).

The students worked in teams to create similes from terms in the Door in the Wall.

At home, student work through p 81-86 in their workbook.  Then they will compose an essay from their outline using all the elocution elements we've learned so far - adding in a simile (exordium, parallelism, amplification and the simile).  Bring to class the book Door in the Wall and be prepared to share similes from the following pages 10, 15, 31, 48, 67, 68, 91, 106 & 107.

Bring essay's to class along with the outline.

Suggestions for parents @ home:    Review student's essay in that it follows outline; thesis is clearly supported by proofs & proofs supported by sub-proofs (they've answered the "so what/why/how" questions - does what they've written convince you??  Ensure they have included all elocution elements and stylistic techniques you've required.  

Debate/Geography

The students completed their Asia test.  I will return next week.

I introduced our first section of Africa & the students drew the continent & areas/features for this week.  Thank you for having the maps & breakdown in their folders!!!

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

DRAW FOR POINTS!!!  Students will earn 5 points for each map drawn each week (after they draw 8 which would be 2 per day for 4 days)  *****20 Points for each world map with everything they've learned so far labeled on the map (it doesn't have to all be from memory)

****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).

Rhetoric

Clayton was sick today, so hat's off to Christina for volunteering to lead our Rhetoric strand today on the fly!  She came up with 4 questions to review our IJCH book.  We read through DCYB and briefly discussed

Suggestions for parents @ home:  Discuss chapter 21-23 in DCYB.  Check that student is answering questions for DCYB.  Drill all catechism questions (remember they must be able to state word for word).