I looked at his HW. He scribbled mostly non-sense on the HW sheets. I tried to review the concepts again, but he was half asleep ("I didn't get any sleep last night."). I reassigned the HW from Friday.

Today, Hunter and I read "To Be of Use" by Marge Piercy (poem), and "New Directions" by Maya Angelou (short story). We discussed the theme of employment, specifically comparing hard work versus lazy work, innovation, knowing customers, and making better life decisions. We compared both works of literature. We also began a study of business writing, first discussing the various types of business documents, and then focusing on the meeting agenda. After reviewing a sample, Hunter wrote his own meeting agenda for a Football Conference. We revised and edited the document together.

This 50 minute episode followed connections from William the Conqueror and his mounted soldiers use of stirrups at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 through the evolution of European knighthood, the development of a semi-modern socioeconomic system in Europe, the Chinese invention of gunpowder, discovery of magnetism and electricity, the telephone and finally to the ongoing search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI).

We covered 5-4 Point-Slope Form and 5-5 Standard Form. We did sample problems in class and I assigned HW for each section.

We did a writing exercise today. We began with Hunter reading two paragraphs from the text on the Maya and their stone construction--pyramid shaped temples and palaces--statuary and stele. Then I told Hunter we would go to the lab where he'd write a one-page, double-spaced summary of what he'd read. I gave him time to re-read the paragraphs and take notes before we went to the lab. He saved his first draft.

Hunter was motivated to work through all of the problems on the Ch. 5-2 and 5-3 HW. Since we didn't cover new material, I didn't assign HW.

Hunter began the session by reading words with open, closed and vowel-consonant-e syllables. We discussed the importance of dividing words into syllables to facilitate correct pronunciation. He charted 13/15 real words. Hunter practiced spelling dictated words on the white board. For the written part of the lesson Hunter spelled 7/10 real words correctly. Review words were dictated and he spelled 5/5 of these words correctly. Words from step 5.5 were briefly introduced.

We worked through material in the textbook on the peoples and civilizations of Mesoamerica--the Maya, Aztec and Inca. We surveyed history--much of it speculative--about how people originating in Asia might have arrived on the two American continents.

I subbed for Keith for the first part of their class together. Hunter and I talked a bit about the basics involving the 3 laws of motion, force due to gravity, forces due to friction, and free-body diagrams.

We explored the phenomena leading to the "fall of Rome:" military attacks, political turmoil, economic weakness and social decay. We then explored whether the same factors today could lead to America's fall as a world power. Finally, we started exploring America's "prehistory" with the Mayans.