2nd Semester, Week 1

We had a great start to our second semester. I loved spending the day with you all, but we definitely missed Emma!

This is a late summary (sorry!), so let's get right down to it.

Research:
Ah, Science Fair. Let's put our noses to the grindstone and finish strong!  You should be finalizing your Results, Conclusion, Research Plan, Research Paper, and starting on an Abstract (if you choose to include one). Here is a break down of these final weeks leading up to Science Fair:

Week 2 (1/15): Science Fair Week 1  Science Fair Week 2

Week 3 (1/22): Science Fair Weeks 3-4

Week 4 (1/29): Science Fair Weeks 3-4

Week 5 (2/5): Present Science Fair Projects to Foundations/Essentials kids!

Tuesday, February 6th at 6:30 PM: SCIENCE FAIR!

The good news here? The due date for your Science Fair project is Week 4, but we won't have our actual Science Fair until the following week. This gives you a little extra time to prepare.

Grammar (Latin):
We reviewed nouns and verbs, focusing on the 1st conjunction verbs. As I was studying the week's lesson, I wrote out the information in a way that made sense to me...here are some screen shots of my notes in case they're helpful!

Verb Overview Document: Verbs - An Overview

Keep up the daily work, you all are doing really well.

Expo/Comp (LTW):
I enjoyed our discussion of The Secret Garden! This was Invention week, so I introduced the topic of Definition and we walked through the process using many different words. As we get further into this curriculum, it's imperative that you really take the time to go through each tool we have covered, following all of the steps. Remember, the 5 Common Topics are places we go to get ideas, and the more you visit these places and explore, the stronger your thinking skills will become. The goal is for these thought exercises to become almost second nature, until you no longer need the worksheets at all!

Once again - watch the LTW video! (Essay 5, Definition) Seriously.
Read through the Teacher's Manual!

This week was spent in Invention - ANI chart, 5CT, Comparison 1 & 2, and the new topic Definition.

Debate (Cartography):
We've moved on to ASIA! We broke down and highlighted all the locations and features week-by-week, so that at the end of 5 weeks you'll be ready to draw a complete map of Asia. Must I remind you the importance of daily, careful, detailed map drawing? And don't forget your geography notebook.

Logic (Math): 
We only went through one problem together as a class this week, so next week I expect you all to come prepared with one problem to share with the class. Looking forward to it.

Rhetoric: 
We are still working our way though It Couldn't Just Happen. Please make sure you've read the chapter and highlighted at least the blues and pinks. We will play catechism review games as well, so be prepared!