Monday, January 29, 2018
02:30 - 04:15; 105 min. -
AP Environmental Science:
Chernobyl part II -
Chase and I discussed the movie we watched last week. Chase was asked to express her understanding of nuclear energy, and we discussed the price vs. the cost of non-renewable sources of energy. To complete the story, and as an illustration on how human ingenuity can rise to the challenge, and triumph in the face of un-surmountable odds, I presented the story of the aftermath of the Chernobyl accident. We watched the NOVA special on the construction of the ‘arch’; designed to entomb the Chernobyl reactor before the post-disaster structure collapsed. The new building was constructed along side the site, and slowly slid over the existing building sealing the radioactive material. Inside the arch, robotic arms and cranes will allow the dismantling of the wreckage, making the containment of the contaminated material for the next 20,000 years more manageable. Homework: Chapter 12, module 34 and 35.
We started working on the concept of sequences. We found patterns of sequences and then wrote the explicit formula of some sequences and vice versa. We also wrote the first four terms of a sequence from a recursive formula.
Thursday, January 25, 2018
02:00 - 04:00; 120 min. -
AP Environmental Science:
Non-Renewable Energy -
Chase was tasked with listing the pros and cons of fossil fuels. We discussed the history of coal mining and reviewed the reasons it is a valuable source of energy, paying close attention to the price, as well as the cost. We did the same for oil and the watched a TED talk on the tar sands issue in relation to the boreal forest and temperate forest biomes in Canada. Finally I described the basic process of nuclear energy, and how it has few of the problems associated with other types of energy. We considered how much money it cost to create and maintain a nuclear reactor, and how much energy comes from that investment. We then watched the BBC movie: Chernobyl, surviving disaster, which dramatically presents the people and actions that were responsible for the largest nuclear disaster in the world history.
Chase was given a story called "El Robot". This story will utilize the reading, comprehension, writing and speaking components of the grammar and vocabulary of Spanish 2. The lesson was begun with a brief review of the 2 verbs (used throughout the story) "to be" - ser and estar" and when each is used. Chase then began reading the story in Spanish. I stopped her for mispronunciation only. She translated each sentence and attention was paid to new vocabulary words. I did a quick review of the formation of the present and past tense of the verbs in each sentence as she read them. Grammar was built into the story so I stopped when needed to explain the grammar presented. The story also contains a review of basic "ar, er and ir verbs" throughout. The story explains the life of a robot in the home of a family. The robot tells of his responsibilities, accomplishments and frustrations. In order to get free time, the robot creates another robot to do some of the housework which he feels is boring.
At the end of each reading section is a series of questions - some multiple choice, some fill in the blanks, some open ended. Chase did these questions with minimal assistance from me.
Assignment
To review what we read today.
Session Minutes
60
Minutes Student Attended
60
Lesson Comments
Chase did a nice job of reading in spanish, translating, and answering the questions at the end of each reading section. She encountered some vocabulary which we noted; and did not recognize some of the verbs which were in the past tense. Once I drew her attention to the grammar and the verbs, she caught on and was able to recognize them later in the story. She did well today.
Chase was given a story called "El Robot". We continued reading in Spanish, translating, explaining grammar, and answering questions. The grammar is built into the story. It is a mixture of the present and past tense. There is a review of basic "ar, er and ir verbs" used throughout the story. The 2 verbs for "to be" - ser and estar are also built into the story. The story explains the life of a robot in the home of a family. The robot tells of his responsibilities, accomplishments and frustrations. In order to get free time, the robot creates another robot to do some of the housework which he feels is boring. Chase did a nice job of reading in Spanish, translating, and answering the questions at the end of each reading section.
Assignment
Continue reading the last paragraph of section II, then answer the question of Exercise "F", in Spanish
Session Minutes
45
Minutes Student Attended
30
Lesson Comments
Chase read in Spanish, and I corrected only mispronounced words. She translated, and asked for only a few words which were new to her. She answered the questions at the end of each reading section, with only minimal mistakes. This reading project has proven to be a great review of vocabulary, grammar, comprehension and pronunciation of Spanish.
Today we read "Blues Ain't No Mocking Bird" as a close study of characterization and multi-layered conflict. We also discussed the use of dialect in detail. Next, Chase continued to draft her short story which will be her final project in our class.
