A lesson on Columbia and some figures in European World History
Lesson Outline
We had a lesson on the history of modern day Columbia. Amira is a pleasure to Skype with because her curiosity remains astute - even when we are remote learning. She asked questions about kings and queens who were good and bad in history. We discussed King Solomon as an example of a good king and Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth I as good queens. Amira had some questions about the present day royal family in Great Britain, as well. Keep asking those great questions, Amira!!!
Amira and I communicated initially via I.M. and then we got to connect via Skype today during last period. She is going to research the Manatee Lagoon Center in Riviera Beach this week so she will be familiar with the location. We discussed manatees and facts about them during this remote lesson. We are going to focus our next lesson on the South American nation of Columbia where her Dad is this week visiting family.
Today we spent our session settling into her new room and picking out things to order to make the room more comfortable for learning. Amira will discuss her order list with Judie for approval.
Reviewed previous lesson... Gave 5 examples of types of cells... She colored some of the parts of each cell reinforcing the similarities and differences. I gave her a few more vocabulary words to learn. She is using quizlet as a technique to learning and remembering important vocabulary words. She will have a quiz on this material Wednesday, Jan. 30th.
Amira got 75% correct on last night's homework (simplifying expressions with order of operations). We made corrections on the 4 that were incorrect. I then extended her learning to show her variable expressions. I showed her how to substitute values for the given variables in the expressions, and then simplify the expression using the order of operations. Particularly important was to teach her that 7x means "7 times x", so that if we evaluate for when x=3, then we are supposed to simplify "7 times 3" and get 21. She completed 1-14 on p. 16 of the Pre-Algebra book in class. She did an EXCELLENT job of paying attention and staying focused and working hard, particularly given that it was a 2 hour class (with a break) at the end of the day on Friday!
Amira read a brief text that is an excerpt from A TedTalk by Matt Cutts about the advantages of consistently doing 30-day challenges. This was both to test her reading comprehension and her writing skills in a low-stakes manner. After reading, Amira had to write two paragraphs -- one a summary of the article, and the second to describe and explain what she will do for the next 30 days. I will review her writing and teach skills for improvement in the next class. Amira's 30-day challenge is to learn two words of Arabic each day -- that will be 60 words. We looked a few up words on a translator online. She wrote her name on her white book in Arabic. Another thing we accomplished was critically thinking with Socratic questioning for about ten minutes for Amira to come up with a pithy clever motto for herself. Her motto (also on her board): Don't Dream: Do. Amira took home (and gave me today, Friday) some assessment work involving a reading and multiple choice questions. She is assigned to read the beginning of Life of Pi.
Amira got to meet Dr. Barbara, a marine biologist on the Batt School faculty at the start of class today. She shared some fascinating info. with Amira. We began a lesson on the amazing and tragic history of the HMS Titanic that shockingly and tragically sank in the North Atlantic in April, 1912. The real story and history of this ship is much more interesting and phenomenal than the motion picture. We will continue learning more about the Titanic in our next class.
Session Minutes
60
Minutes Student Attended
60
Lesson Comments
The beginning of second period was hysterical and we all had so much fun. Once we settled into the lesson, Dr. Barbara came in to meet Amira. She told us that we should plan a trip to the Manatee Center in WPB within the next month, before the water temps change and the manatees migrate. She also told us to view them from the 2nd floor - most people don't know that and it's a great place from where to spot them. Amira and I continued to watch the film, "The Meg," at lunch. She's got me hooked! She shared with me that she may not be here next week. Her Dad informed her yesterday that she may be going to Ohio for the week to be with her Mom because Dad is traveling to Columbia next week. Amira says she is really hoping that she won't have to go to Ohio and that she may remain in FL next week. She said she will know for sure what the plan is this weekend.
Amira did a great job on her homework. I helped her make corrections on 2 of the problems. She worked on the board to complete more complicated expressions in class today. Overall, she has the procedure down. Practice with her arithmetic is necessary. For homework, she has 16 questions to complete (order of operations) on practice sheet 1-2.
