This morning we focused on note taking after reading an article on the Moche Indians. This topic is somewhat out of context since we have not yet covered this particular time period but Bobby is not yet in possession of the class textbook from the Pine School. We practiced identifying key factoids and learning about early rituals, polytheism and the migration of early man through mass America.

This afternoon we began studying history further by exploring “then” and “now”. We read a Florida Studies Weekly packet about changes in transportation. We reinforced the material with a Brain Pop Jr. video about transportation and the nonfiction book, Transportation Then and Now, by Robin Nelson. These items gave us nice visual images of each. Additionally, they expanded on the land, air, and water components of how we get around. We discussed how the “long ago” was in the past. We saw pictures of old street trolleys and compared them to the subway and train. We read about the bullet train in Japan that can travel at speeds of up to 175 mph! Most importantly, we learned that the engine was invented and now makes many things “go”! Danny scored a 4/5 on a modified version of the easy quiz and 16/18 on the follow-up activities. These included tasks such as sequencing stages of transportation progress, sorting pictures for land, air, and water modes, and lastly, writing three types of transportation he’s used this month (car, bike, and scooter). Finally, Danny began working on his interactive notebook activity in writing about the differences from long ago and now. We worked together to generate the sentence he wrote for long ago: People used to walk, ride wagons, or ride horses. For the enrichment portion of our session, we finished reading our book, The Knight at Dawn. We picked up with Jack and Annie in the moat. The knight arrived to save them and they got to ride on his black horse. They made it back to the treehouse and journeyed back home. We completed follow up questions for both chapters. We also discussed vocabulary concepts of bowed and ancient. We practiced bowing like the kids did to the knight. Lastly, we compared and contrasted the castle (dark and cold) and the kids’ home (safe and cozy). Danny is excited to read the next book in the series! We will first wrap up our research project in our next few sessions.

Today we looked at new site "Storyboard That". I thought this would be a great way for Charlie to use his creative talents to do a project about ancient civilizations in the form of a comic strip. I will plan an assignment that will require him to do that in the near future. We looked to many sources today to review and compare different ancient civilizations - Brittania, BBC, and a PowerPoint presentation about ancient Mesopatamia. We discussed homework which is due on Friday.

Today we looked at new site "Storyboard That". I thought this would be a great way for Craig to use his creative talents to do a project about ancient civilizations in the form of a comic strip. I will plan an assignment that will require him to do that in the near future. He and I reviewed vocabulary and concepts. We discussed new ways to remember important ideas. We will spend more time note-taking in our future classes. We llistened to the spoken Gettysburg Address. We also read about the crisis of secession and the start of the Civil War. We looked to lessons on www.civilwar.org and began watching a video "The Civil War". We also looked to the Gilda Lehrman Institute site for more information. We discussed Lincoln's beliefs and learned about Union strategies at the start of the War.

Henry did a lesson today on the expansion of America and how it went from 13 colonies to the Pacific Ocean. We discussed and watched a video on the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, taking control of Florida from the Spanish in 1821, Texas becoming a state in 1845, the British giving control of the Oregon Territory in 1846 and the war with Mexico that added Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. We read articles together and looked at maps from different years. He answered comprehension questions after reading.

Danny and I began with a Florida Studies Weekly on Past, Present, Future. We read that past is everything before today, the present is what is happening right now, and the future is what will happen. Danny practiced using these terms as related to himself. He drew that he played soccer yesterday (past), drew himself at school (present), and drew that he might go to a playground soon (future). Additionally, we read about the calendar and how it helps keep things in order. We reviewed the days of the week and months of the year. Finally, we reviewed time-related sequence words used in writing and story-telling (first, next, then, and last). We read a short passage using these words and Danny had to recall the four items in sequence from the story. He needed me to read the story twice, but he got them all in order with ease after the second reading. Along with the tasks mentioned, Danny sequenced pictures for time, discriminated day names vs. month names, as well as identified statements as to past, present, and future. He scored 11/13 on these tasks. In continuing our studies on communities, we watched the Brain Pop Jr. learning video on Homes. We saw types of homes, materials used to build homes (some natural resources), and different rooms in a home. Danny scored 4/5 on the follow-up easy quiz. Danny studied redwood trees from California last week in one of his U.S. Facts and Fun activities. We reviewed these trees by looking at photographs of them. We looked at the U.S. map to see where California is located. We learned that you can count the rings inside a tree trunk to count its age and we counted a few examples. Next, we completed a fun positional words activity (pre-map skills) in which Danny had to state where the turkey is sitting in a reader booklet. He used a word bank to help him fill in the blanks to complete the sentences. For example, the turkey is (behind) the (pumpkins). We wrapped up the day with our historical fiction enrichment project. We read several chapters of our book, The Knight at Dawn by Mary Pope Osborne. We began with chapter 5. The children end up trapped in the armory. They encounter a row of standing suits of armor with no helmets on them. Jack ends up putting on a helmet and the visor slams shut. He couldn't get it open and then is grabbed by someone! We discussed vocabulary concepts such as: armory and visor. We then read chapter 6. Annie and Jack realize they have been captured by three huge men. Danny and I discussed the words squinty and where a mustache would be found on a person as these are descriptions used for the three huge men. Annie kicks and screams her way to the dungeon as the men just laugh at her. She then shines the flashlight in their eyes, which frightens them as they've never seen this technology! We analyzed why the men would be afraid of a flashlight by discussing our story takes place in the past and flashlights had not been invented. In chapter 7, Jack and Annie use their book to discover a way out of the dungeon through a secret passage and they fall out of the precipice. We continued on with chapter 9 in which Jack falls in the moat! Annie jumps in behind him and there were more splashes throughout. They are then saved by the knight on his black horse. We practiced inferential language skills throughout in which Danny was asked to make conclusions based on his own knowledge and experiences. For example, his “teeth were chattering” means that he is cold because my teeth chatter when I am cold. We answered follow-up questions after each chapter to assess recall and understanding. Finally, Danny spent some time completing a word search to go along with words from our story. He did a great job scanning the puzzle and searching to match up the letters to form the words.

Craig and I looked at an FYI from BrainPop about "Uncle Tom's Cabin". We also examined two different Civil War maps and posted them on his wall. We reviewed vocabulary and discussed - popular sovereignty. He will have a vocabulary quiz next week. Craig completed a bellringer activity where he examined photos and discussed them. We looked at the timeline and added events. We read about the Civil War and I gave him printed notes to use as an outline. He also completed a primary source analysis activity. Finally, we looked to BrainPop and internet sources to learn more about Lincoln. Craig was surprised to learn that he was assassinated when the Civil War ended. We discussed secession and the importance of knowing why the North and South were so different. To remember the major differences, we annotated the text together.

Kelcy did a lesson on nouns today. He watched a video and learned a song on how a noun is a person, place, or thing. He did two different picture sorts where he chose a picture and had to put it under the correct column of what type of noun it was. He also did a color by noun where he chose a picture and then had to look at the key to see what type of noun it was (person, place, or thing) and find the correct color to color the picture.

Henry chose a current event today on the first robot citizen of Saudi Arabia. The robot named Sophia was interviewed at the Future Investment initiative held in Saudi Arabia. She is very humanlike and can express emotions like happiness, sadness, anger, and frustration. She is being trained to help seniors in elderly care facilities and to assist visitors at parks and events. We read this article together and Henry answered comprehension questions after we were finished.

Craig and I resumed where we left off in our last class. We learned more about Harriet Tubman and the underground railroad. We also discussed the Kansas-Nebraska Act, the Compromise of 1850, and "Uncle Tom's Cabin". We watched a short video about the causes of the Civil War. We discussed the new term - popular sovereignty - as it related to the Kansas-Nebraska Act. We reviewed the case of Dred Scott, which we also learned of last year. I assigned HOMEWORK which will be due on Friday. Craig is to respond to a writing prompt about westward expansion and issues that created a divide between the North and South.