Kellan wrote his spelling words in his dictionary. In his journal, Kellan wrote what he knows about segregation. We finished reading about Jackie Robinson and started The Watsons Go to Birmingham.
Richard used Play Doh and chalk to practice his spelling words (bury, copy, egg, odd) and words that end with ve. He read books with words he can read.
Today we started by discussing his homework. Joshua ran into to a problem, but luckily it was the same thing each time. I showed him how to do the problems correctly, and then he re-worked each one himself. Next we covered how to solve various types of logarithmic and exponential equations. Some require using a calculator, and others the calculator is prohibited, so we are required to think creatively on how to rewrite numbers like 1/3 and 27 as the same exponential base. Joshua needs some more practices with these which we will do Monday.
Today PJ and I worked on factoring out he GCF of 2 terms. We discussed how this is the "opposite" of the distributive property. We practiced checking our solution by applying the distributive property back to make sure the result is what we intended it to be. PJ did a great job of checking his answers. Next we practiced substituting numerical values in for the variables and using the order of operations to simplify.
Richard was seen in his room for a 45-minute treatment session. His session focuses on improving his postural control, integration of retained reflexes, visual motor skills and integration, fine motor skills, dexterity, manipulation, ocular motor development and graphomotor development/keyboarding as an alternative means to written communication. Richard was seen after lunch and recess. Began session working on keyboarding skills via typing.com. Richard is slow and deliberate when typing making sure to use the correct fingers to type the individual keys. His typing speed at this time is about on average 4 to 6 words per minute with great accuracy. Continued with Michigan Tracking Program which works on ocular motor development. Richard was able to scan a jumbled paragraph to find 8 words with one error in 1 minute 22 seconds. For his second scanning attempt he was able to find 8 words in a jumbled paragraph in 48 seconds. Great session.
Assignment
Continue to practice writing in print and keyboarding
Luke was seen in his room for a 45 minute treatment session today. Focus of treatment was on improving fine motor skills (hand strength, grip strength, dexterity and manipulation), visual motor integration, ocular motor skills, and graphomotor skills/keyboarding as an alternate means to written communication. Began today's treatment with introducing Luke to a "storm starter cloud" activity/worksheet. This activity addresses anger and identification of "storm starters" which are things that make you angry. This helps the child idenify which things/situations bother them and trigger them and what things/situations do not. Luke was somewhat resistive to this activity but we will continue to work on this. Continued with working in I Spy book to find hidden pictures which addresses visual discrimination. Luke was made to work on his graphomotor skills while doing I Spy by having to write each object he needed to find in the hidden picture. He is able to find hidden objects well with minimum assistance provided. He continues to work on letter formations and line placement for print.
Luke was seen in his room for a 45 minute occupational therapy treatment session. Focus of treatment was on improving his bilateral integration/hand usage, fine motor development, graphomotor skills, postural control and sensory processing/organization for improved general performance in various environments. Began treatment playing Monopoly Junior but while playing went over Zones of Regulation and "Triggers". While playing concentrated on following rules, turn taking, expected versus unexpected behaviors. Luke did a better job with following rules today. He demonstrated overall better regulation while playing and did not get upset when other player did well or when he had to pay other player. Continued to focus on whole body listening for increased attention and focus on multiple step directions. Good session and slow and steady gains being observed.
Today Carson and I started in the computer lab working on the Smart Board. I had Carson draw 2 parallel lines with a transversal intersecting through them. I had him label each angle that was formed as 1, 2, 3,.... Then we discussed the relationships between the angles created. I pointed out to him the congruent angles and the supplementary angles. We then used the drawing to define corresponding angles, alternate interior angles, alternate exterior angles, and consecutive interior angles. Then I gave Carson some problems where he had to use the relationships of the angles to determine the missing measures. He did well. He made some mistakes which were expected as he's learning. But toward the end of the lesson he started to really pick up on the vocab and how to apply them.
Today Ben and I began a new Chapter on exponents. I looked at the material in the textbook and realized its far too advanced for where Ben is at right now. During his MAPs test I realized he did not have the basic understandings for exponents. So instead of using the text book as a guide, we are going to take a step back and scaffold the content so he can gain a proper foundation. We started with the rule that when you are multiplying like bases, you add the exponents. I explained to him that 3^2*3^3 (that's 3 squared and 3 cubed) really means (3*3)(3*3*3) so we can see that we have 3^5. Instead of writing it out each time, we use the property that we can add the powers. Then I gave Ben a series of problems with increasing difficulty. He made a few mistakes as he worked, but was able to make corrections. He did well on this new concept to him.
