This afternoon we began with a review of her Latin vocabulary for Lessons 11-15. I gave Baylie the definition and she gave the Latin root word with the spelling. Next, we read a portion of chapter 5, "Wandering" in our biography, Who Was Leonardo da Vinci by Roberta Edwards. In this chapter, we read about how Leonardo was no longer working with the Duke in Milan. He spent the next 16 years without a true home. He continued to draw and document his thoughts in notebooks. About 6,000 pages of his work are known to exist today. Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft owns a collection of his da Vinci's work all pertaining to water.

This morning I completed a consistency follow up test of the Geography test Morgan took last Friday. She was tested orally and again scored a 100%. We then finished reading Arthur Meets the President by Marc Brown in a shared reading task. We saw some of America's famous landmarks in this story. Additionally, we watched the Brain Pop Jr. learning video about Presidents. We learned the basic responsibilities and qualifications for the job. We saw that he lives in The White House. Finally, we read a nonfiction selection entitled, The White House. We discovered how it has evolved over the years and discussed how long it took to be built.

Bobby continued utilizing the three solid sources he found to compile information in chronological order to highlight key events during Ali's life. He is almost ready to transition to focal questions that will target higher level thinking skills. The questions will allow Bobby to analyze information, evaluate and make judgments as to whether the content applies to what is being asked. He gains more confidence each day related to searching for relevant information and rephrasing the information in his own words while maintaining its true intent. That's a great sign and a valuable skill.

Today, we read aloud biographical information about one of the main characters, William H. Gleason. In particular, Stephen was very interested in the political information about Gleason. The conversation allowed Stephen to ask questions about similarities and differences between national, state, and local governments. He expressed interest in learning more about government and politics following the conclusion the Barefoot Mailman and a short unit on the 50 states of the USA. Stephen asked very thoughtful and insightful questions today.

This morning we reviewed lessons 11-15 of her Latin vocabulary. I provided the English meaning and she stated and spelled the Latin root words. She will need additional practice in preparation for her exam. We continued reading the biography, Who Was Leonardo da Vinci by Roberta Edwards. We completed shared reading of chapters three and four. In chapter 3, "The Wider World", we read about Leonardo's thirteen years in Verrocchio's workshop in Florence. The text explained how he loved to read and was always buying books. We saw how his studies of math helped him create more three-dimensional work with focus on his painting, The Annunciation. Next, in chapter 4, "Moving On", da Vinci moved from Florence to Milan in order to serve as a patron for Duke Sforza. Here he put on pageants with elaborate stage creations as well as painted his famous, The Last Supper. It was interesting to learn that he explored the streets of Milan to find the faces for the subjects in his painting.

This afternoon, Morgan completed her Geography test of the seven continents, the five oceans, and some general information about her home state of Georgia. Our daily practice has paid off! Morgan scored a 100% on her assessment and remembered to capitalize all of the proper nouns independently. We then continued to study America by learning more about its government. We watched a Brain Pop Jr. learning video about Branches of Government. We completed an accompanying flip book to expand on the information in the video as we wrote down basic information about each branch (legislative, judicial, and executive). Additionally, we learned about the checks and balances of the system as well as about the terms veto and override. She scored a 4/5 on the follow up easy quiz.

We read aloud p.117-123 from The Barefoot Mailman. Ethan tried to label a blank map of the United States. Overall, he was able to identify the locations of over 30 of 50 states. We will continue to read, as well as, work on map skills.

We looked at a clip from a Vice video about El Chapa Guzman. Then, we discussed possible presentation formats for Jackson's Haiti project. Jackson decided to use iMovie. I showed him two examples of student's work that I have saved. I wanted Jackson to use the movie as a model to help him complete his work.

As we continue to review for her test, Morgan did a great job recalling the seven continents and five oceans. She enjoys using the songs to help name them. She wrote them down and she remembered on her own that these proper nouns must begin with a capital letter. She corrected her error of the ocean on Georgia's coast as the Atlantic, not "Lantik". She continues to need some minimal prompting with the five border states of Georgia, only needing help with Alabama. She now recalls that the USA has 50 states. Additionally, we continued to study more about our country with a Brain Pop Jr. learning video about U.S. Symbols. We learned that symbols stand for something. We learned that some symbols are items like the Liberty Bell, Statue of Liberty, and the Bald Eagle; while others are buildings such as The Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial. Morgan then worked on a mini-booklet by labeling some of America's symbols to match the pictures. We looked at real photos of some of the items discussed.

Craig took a short quiz today and we reviewed it together. We finished our unit, discussing modern history and recent terrorist attacks on the U.S. and how the threat of terrorism has changed our world. We watched a short video explaining what terrorism is. We looked specifically to September 11th and the Oklahoma bombings. We discussed the fact that terrorism evokes fear and usually has a political goal. We began a new unit, Craig's request, to learn more about U.S. history, World War I and II. We began today discussing alliances and learning the acronym M-A-I-N to remember the four major causes of WWI and discussing why a small event in a small country could set up a string of reactions that led to a world war.