Richard took his spelling test and wrote sentences. He read books with words he can read. He practiced reading words ending with ce when I used letter tiles to spell them.
To begin, we co-read a chapter from the book "Who Was Dr. Seuss?" Pierce learned that his first paying job was as an advertiser. He wrote advertisements and illustrated them. I challenged Pierce to pick a product (honest or imagined) and write an ad about it. He chose to write about a game called Geometry Dash World. We brainstormed why someone should play this game and wrote a paragraph outline. Pierce then independently wrote a paragraph. His details and use of transitional phrases were terrific. Great work, Pierce.
Quinn was given a choice of writing prompts and selected the one that most resonated with him. It was "What athlete do you especially admire? Write and editorial persuading readers that the athlete you admire is a good role model for kids. Quin brainstormed his ideas first and then flushed them out in the development process. He initiated good thoughts that were relevant to the topic and asked for help spelling a few words. Quinn was responsive and respectful when corrected or offered suggestions to develop his writing. He was encouraged to think of a good closing sentence and to bear in mind using adjectives to make his writing more descriptive and interesting. Quinn was elated to receive a poster showing three of his favorite athletes in a spirit of camaraderie. I had inserted it in his binder and he was excited to take it home and show his family.
We began with a round of Crazy Moose (all syllable types) at Reid's request. Next, Reid syllabicated his spelling words and wrote them three times (which is part of his homework). Reid will need to pay attention to the syllables as the words get more complex (most of the list was three-syllable words). To conclude, we co-read Chapter 25 of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Reid read with excellent fluency and comprehension.
First, I looked through Sasha's folder to assess her work for the week. Her spelling words include words with aw, au, all, all, and alt. Sasha wrote the words three times while I made flashcards. Sasha then highlighted the vowel team in each word, noting where the vowel team occurs in the word, and illustrated the cards. She enjoys this process (and said she got 100% on her last three spelling tests!) She wrote sentences with each word and then edited using the COPS acronym. I notice that Sasha doesn't have the -tch and -dge spelling rule to automaticity; I will work on that skill next session.
To conclude, we logged in to Sasha's school website, RazzKids. She chose a reading passage about birds. She read with reasonable fluency and excellent comprehension. She was thrilled to accrue 150 points for her classroom rewards.
David and I began discussing the regions of the United States and what defines a region. We discussed the significance of knowing this because people's jobs and lifestyles are closely connected to the region of the country in which they live. We reviewed subject-specific vocabulary including the terms, urban (thickly settled), trade, (the buying and selling of goods and services) and service sector, which we defined as the part of the economy that does not produce things to sell , but rather performs work that helps others in some way. David examined a map showing the different regions of the United States and noted the geographical features that occur near many of the cities. He was encouraged to use his critical thinking skills to make inferences regarding why the Northeast be the most densely populated region.
