Kellan worked on reading several books about pirates. We started the lesson by writing down five questions Kellan had about pirates. He wanted to know how many pirates it took to sail the pirate ship. He wanted to know about the dangers of sinking that the pirate ship might encounter. Kellan wanted to know how the pirates were able to get their ships. Kellan learned about how to use the index of a book to look for specific information. Kellan had at least ten books about pirates to draw from. We researched jobs pirates had. Kellan learned about the kinds of supplies that sailors were expected to load on ships. Kellan learned about hoisting the mainsail and the yardarm where the sailor perched in order to raise the sail. Kellan learned that the job was very dangerous and that if a person fell from the yardarm to the deck, they would most likely break a leg and need it amputated. Kellan learned that sailors often fell off the ship and that the other sailors would never realize it or see them before they could ever be rescued. Kellan asked about how the ship would avoid sinking. By using the index, Kellan learned that the captain was very aware of the reefs and shoals near the coast. The captain also tried to stay away from storms. Kellan discussed how clouds can help predict the weather. We discussed cirrus clouds, cumulous clouds, and nimbus clouds. Kellan also learned that the captain could get clues about storms from the movement of the water, the behavior of animals, and the direction of the wind. Kellan looked at a map of the Caribbean and could see the trade winds marked that blow over the warm ocean waters from east to west. He learned that these winds bring storms with them. The balance of the period was used to watch a movie with the rest of the students.

Kellan did not arrive at school during the Pirate Festivities until 11:20. He participated in helping with pirate identification and worked on a pirate illustration page.

Kellan was absent from school today.

Kellan started his lesson by working on the analysis of the third sentence on his dictation test for 4.2. Kellan reviewed the spelling and markups for the word "trombone." He circled all the sight words and marked up the vowels. Then, Kellan read the story Complex Math. He read aloud and stopped along the way to paraphrase the story. Next, Kellan started the drill of vowels for his lesson on 4.3. He reviewed long and short vowels a, e, i, o, and u with their keywords. Kellan practiced the consonants and digraphs: f, v, g, r, n, l, s, sh, wh, and ch. He practiced the welded sounds old, ank, onk, ost, ind, ing, and ang. Kellan was introduced to the concept of three-syllable words using both closed vowel syllables and vowel-consonant-e syllables. Kellan read the word "postponement." He needed a word study on this word, so it was entered into his vocabulary list. Kellan heard the definition while it was written in his book. He discussed the word and scenarios where appointments are postponed, and Kellan drew a diagram to help remember the word. Next, Kellan read the word: "contemplate." A definition was entered into Kellan's notebook. Kellan worked on the meaning of the word to prepare a sentence. Kellan looked at the sculpture by Rodin of The Thinker. He drew a picture of himself contemplating. Kellan will work on more words next week.

Kellan started his lesson by practicing marking up two-syllable words with two syllable types, closed vowel and vowel-consonant-e. First, Kellan marked up the review words: shares, rules, and names. He underlined the base word and circled the suffix. Kellan marked the vowel sound with the v-e symbol. Next, Kellan marked up the words: clambake, caveman, manhole, fishline, and escape. Kellan practiced the sight words: Mr., Mrs., during, and before. Next, Kellan reviewed the dictation test he took on May 17th. Kellan marked up ten words from the 4.2 lesson, demonstrating that he could distinguish between a closed vowel sound which is "short" and a vowel-consonant-e sound which is "long." Kellan got all of the sight words spelled correctly. He then worked on the analysis of the sentence. Kellan has become independent in this activity and knows all of the symbols that he needs to show in order to successfully pass this lesson in Wilson. Next time we will read the story selection and do comprehension before moving on to the lesson 4.3.

Kellan was absent today.

Kellan worked on the last three stories in the reading comprehension portion of the standardized testing. He worked on the use of syllables, sound chart recitation to boost memory in order to decode unfamiliar words. Kellan used context clues. He worked very hard rereading questions and text four to five times in order to understand the question and the best answer.
After completing the reading test, Kellan began the first page of the science test.

Kellan worked on reading three new stories today on his Reading Comprehension Test. He worked on breaking words into syllables, reviewing vowel sounds, and suffixes in order to decode the words. Kellan read questions and answer choices at least four to five times until the meaning of the question became clear to him. Kellan referred back to the test as needed. Kellan worked on this test with good focus.

Kellan worked on the comprehension portion of his standardized test. Kellan was able to work on comprehension by drawing simple pictures, writing a few words, or making a diagram in order to retain the concept in his reading. Kellan read the questions and referred back to the text. He often did this intervention four or five times until he was able to decide on an appropriate answer. Kellan worked very patiently and tried very hard to focus. He used several of his Wilson skills and context clues to help him decode unfamiliar words. Kellan is making an excellent effort.

Kellan began his testing by listening to the directions on how to read a sentence with an underlined word and find a synonym or answer with a similar meaning in the answer choices. Kellan read the sentences aloud. He repeated the keyword aloud. Kellan rephrased the question to make sure he knew what he was looking for. Next, Kellan read each answer choice and referred back to the sentence with the keyword in order to test the answer's appropriateness. Kellan proceeded through all questions using this method. He also used Wilson techniques where possible to decode unfamiliar words. Kellan completed all three of the vocabulary sections.