Current Events

Intro class and assessing balance, strength, flexibility and alignment. We did standing, seated and floor postures. We began and ended with guided imagery body scan and meditation.

Today we learned about the island of Guam in the Pacific. It is a U.S. possession and somewhat close to the Mariana Trench (the deepest location in the Pacific Ocean.) Guam was also where the U. S. fought some intense battles against Japan during WWII. We also saw a short and fascinating National Geographic documentary on the success of film director James Cameron's efforts to reach the bottom of the Mariana Trench. This was the culmination of a 7-year project and James Cameron made exploratory history.

I took a step back today from integers, and taught Amira the Order of Operations. She remembered PEMDAS (Parenthesis, Exponents, Multiplication/Division from left to right, Addition/Subtraction from left to right). I told her the way I learned it was "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally". She has an Aunt Sania, so we renamed the mnemonic "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sania."
I worked 10 examples of simplifying expressions by the order of operations on the board, and had Amira take notes. She does a great job of listening and following along. As she works through arithmetic, she will run into bumps with multiplication and division. I am encouraging her to take the time to think about the math, rather than turning to a calculator for a crutch.
After the lesson, I had her work on some of the harder exercises. Her homework is to do the first page of the practice sheet.

Amira and I spent time getting to know each other. I gave her some introductory info about my teaching expectations, and tried to start gauging the level of her math knowledge.
I asked her to add integers with opposite signs. She is a bit familiar with this, but reteaching is necessary. I drew a number line and had her work out several addition problems - adding a positive to a negative. I then showed her the same problems as subtraction. We identified the rule a - b = a + (-b).

Amira carefully read through English grade 8 - 9 textbooks selected for her perusal to determine which books we will work with to complete her grade requirements. We will work with Vocabulary Level F, Prentice Hall Writing and Grammar Silver Level, and Prentice Hall Literature, Gold Level. Our main reading will be Life of Pi. Amira will have a binder devoted to English beginning tomorrow with dividers in which to keep notes, handouts, assignments, quizzes, exams, and essays.

Amira had her first English session with me today. I asked about her educational background and we discussed some of her school experiences and some things she had learned. I'm creating a syllabus with the primary pieces needed to show completedness of 8th grade in accord with the N.Y. Standards. To assess Amira's present level, I printed a diagnostic reading and short writing test that she began. The three readings and multiple choice was completed (not yet graded) but the writing prompts required extra instruction. We did some close reading together, and I showed her how to annotate text. We will continue on Wednesday. Amira is to read/annotate Reading A.

I met Amira for the first time. We talked briefly about what topics she's covered and I started to talk about cells and types of cells. We looked at types of cells and what makes them similar and different.

Today we researched areas in FL that are committed to the preservation of sea turtles and manatees. Sadly, there are only 5 habitat locations for manatees in FL. Amira's passion for marine life and oceanic geography is phenomenal. It is easy to see that she has devoted time and research to so many issues re: marine biology, history and geography. We also discussed the Mariana Trench today. This is the deepest place in any ocean on Earth and also where two tectonic plates meet in the Pacific Ocean. It is not too far off the coast of the U.S. territory of Guam. We will learn more about Guam tomorrow.

What a pleasure it was to begin the day with Amira today! We taught each other in a reciprocal lesson. Amira provided me with her background on previous social studies learning - from time spent in Scottsdale, Cincinnati and Miami. I explained to Amira that 8th grade social studies curriculum is American History. I will get Amira a book ASAP. Amira shared that she wants to be a marine biologist and we discussed how her new home is perfect for her aspirations! Amira has already visited Loggerhead Marine Center and loved learning how they rehabilitate injured turtles. Amira tought me about megaladons who resided in FL waters millions of years ago. She was excited to learn that Juno Beach has the 2nd largest turtle nesting area in the world. Amira also learned about manatees today and that they are a special, protected FL marine life species. We looked at local turtle nesting areas on line. It will be wonderful for Amira to learn about the history of our area. Not only is the oldest city in the US in eastern FL, there is incredible history re: Native Americans, the Civil War and so much more here. Welcome to history class at the Batt School, Amira! I look forward to working with you!