We were going to start Conflict and Connection, but Dr. Mary said that Cam was to take his test that he missed this morning during this class time period. Conflict and Connection can be covered next class meeting.

Today's reading passage was non-fiction, "A Prairie Guard Dog." I read the passage, pausing to ask questions, make predictions, or explain unfamiliar vocabulary. We found a ruler and a three-pound weight from the PE supplies to approximate a prairie dog's height and weight. I drew a graphic organizer on the board, and Remington helped to fill in the main idea and three key details from the text. I taught the suffix -ly as a new concept, meaning "in a certain way." For example, the prairie dog chirped loudly to warn his family. We brainstormed other words with -ly (angrily, happily, etc.) I put several sentences on the board for Remington to edit, with capitalizing proper nouns (names) as a new concept. To conclude, we co-read several chapters of Dog Man by Dav Pilkey.

First, Remington syllabicated and read five VCCV words on the board (Angling for Words, p. 16). We sequenced the alphabet and identified the vowels. I conducted a one-minute phonological awareness exercise (Kilpatrick, D2#4) followed by visual, auditory, and blending drills. I reviewed the digraph qu and taught ph and tch as new concepts.

After a brief review of triangles we will begin a study of quadrilaterals. The relationship between triangels and quadrilaterals will enable us to connect many concepts that have already been learned. We will define the term quadrilateral and identify specific types. The first type will be a trapezoid and the second type will be a parallelogram.

I began with a one-minute phonological awareness exercise (Kilpatrick, D2#4). Libby and I sequenced the alphabet and identified the vowels. I conducted visual, auditory, and blending drills. I taught the spelling rule ck at the end of a short word and dictated the following words: pick, tick, thick. I taught and dictated the following irregular words: the, is. I dictated a sentence for Libby to write and edit using the acronym CAPS (I will pick up the dog.)

As a class, we made the letter A shape with our arms. We put on our smocks and created an apple basket by gluing burlap strips onto an outline of a basket on paper to recreate the weave of the basket. Then I gave each student an outline of a tree on paper, and we painted the top of the tree green. They enjoyed using paints and brushes. Then we mixed red and green paint to make brown for the tree trunk. I gave each student a red pom pom apple to glue onto their trees. They did a super job with the art materials!

The teacher reviewed the verbs ser and estar with the student. Then, the student completed two worksheets to practice using these verbs.

The student completed two reading comprehension activities and then began a new grammar worksheet, where she demonstrated her knowledge of regular verbs.

The student completed two reading comprehension activities and then began a new grammar worksheet, where she demonstrated her knowledge of regular verbs.

Aiden has read up to page 63 in the book Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. We had a very informative discussion about the main characters: who they are and what they represent. First, we discussed the setting of the Great Depression and the economic and social repercussions wrought by this historic event.

I asked Aiden to name and describe the two main characters: Lennie and George. He has a good understanding of Lennie and George's relationship. The questions Aiden raised are important and thoughtful: 1) What do you do if a special needs person is a threat to herself/himself or society? 2) If you are the caretaker of a special needs person, how much can you help that person before he/she cannot be helped? We discussed how George cares for Lennie and often complains about it, but the two friends are devoted to one another. Lennie loves to pet soft things, but does not know his own strength and often accidentally kills the very thing he's petting.

We discussed the relationship between Candy and his old dog. We talked about Candy feeling older and worrying about his position on the ranch and Candy's dog being put down because he was suffering. We talked about Slim, Curley, and Curley's wife. Aiden then asked to keep reading for the remainder of the class. I told Aiden that he is very intelligent and look forward to discussing more of the book with him!