Twas the WEEK before Christmas...

English classes: Last Thursday each class broke into reading groups. We did this so that each group could read and cover a different chapter. When we read individually or as a class (which we do sometimes) it takes a long time to get through a book. This way we can cover a lot in a short amount of time.  Each group was given 4-5 different tasks and they had to create a summary of their chapter.  Their summary and individual work was presented.

After presentations, we are diving into vocabulary. Students will be using the book to develop a good comphrehension of context clues. Their vocabulary organizer has been designed this time to make them use context clues to write the definition instead of using a dictionary. Not only will this skill be tested on their benchmarks and standardized tests but it is also an important life skill. Context clues help everyone figure out words they don't know the meaning to. Here is a website that explains it well.
http://scc.losrios.edu/~langlit/reading/contextclues/intro1.htm

HOMEWORK: Read and log 30 minutes twice this week. You MUST have a parent signature for me to count it.

Morning SSR: We just finished Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie. It was a hit with most of the class. :) Since we only have a week before break we are spending it on Twas the Night Before Christmas. We looked at the original and now we are going to read the Gullah and Hillbilly versions. After break we will start a new novel on tape.