Second and Third Form Latin update - week 14 - December 15

Second Form: Today we reviewed the present system of first and second conjugation verbs in preparation for learning third and fourth conjugation. So - there was no new material today - but a lot for students to review over the break.

Third Form - Today we reviewed pronouns - they are very confusing in any language - there are 8 different kinds, overlapping forms, they can function as both pronouns and adjectives, they have antecedents, and there are two different agreement rules!  Then we moved to the next chapter (last time to double up!) and learned the 3rd person pronouns - is, ea, id - as well as the 3rd person possessive adjective -suus, sua, suum.

Homework for Second Form: 

• Re read pages 38-41
• review, review, review the vocabulary listed in chapter 12 (70 verbs, adverbs from last year, and the Latin sayings!).
• workbook pages for chapter 12 - pages 72-76
• Have a Merry Christmas - see you on January 5!

Homework for Third Form:

• Re read pages 46-51
• Notecards and derivatives for vocabulary in lessons 14 and 15
• workbook pages 105-117
• Have a Merry Christmas - see you on January 5!

First Form Latin update - week 14 - December 15

Today we learned how to decline 2nd declension nouns.

The students need to be sure that their notecards reflect the correct information.  On the Latin side, there should be the nominative singular, genitive singular, and the gender:

equus, equi, m 

Then on the English side - the meaning and derivatives:

horse

equine, equestrian

The students worked on declining in the 2nd declension and quickly memorized the endings.  

Homework:

• Read the text book pages 42-43
• Workbook for lesson 15: 80-83 (you may skip questions, 4, 5, and 7 on page 80 as this follows a different pronunciation guide than what we are using.)
•  Make notecards for your new vocabulary words.  Find an additional derivative for the words in the vocabulary list that already list a derivative.  Be sure to correct your notecards from last week if they were not done in the format noted above.
• Have a Merry Christmas - see you on January 5!

Second and Third Form Latin class update - week 13 - December 8

In today's class we reviewed the unit material by working on translating sentences.  The students are getting much better at paying attention to the endings of words so that they know how to place them in a Latin sentence.  They do need to be cautious with nouns and adjective pairs - checking to see that they truly belong together.

In third Form latin - there was no new grammar - just a review of the formation of adjectives and of numbers.  With the numbers, we did learn to decline the irregular forms of two and three - and added new vocabulary for the numbers 11 - 20.

Homework:

• Do the unit review in the workbook
• Study your vocabulary
• Third Form Latin: re read pages 40-41; workbook pages 96-101
• Complete the take home test when you are prepared (do not use assistance of any kind!) - it has been emailed - please let me know if you did not receive the attachment

First Form Latin Update - week 13 - December 8

Today we began a new unit and had our first taste of Latin nouns.  There are four parts to memorize (and to have a proper dictionary entry): nominative singular, genitive singular, gender, and meaning.  We spent a lot of time in class declining nouns to get used to the system and the students quickly were able to decline nouns without having to consult their books to see the endings!  We even declined nouns that they haven't learned yet because they are all done the same way.  They had fun trying to guess what the words might mean.

Homework:

• Read the text book pages 38 and 40-41
• Workbook pages for lesson 14: pages 77-79 (you may skip question 17 on page 77)
• Make note cards for your new vocabulary words + derivatives
• Last day of class for this semester is Monday December 15

Second and Third Form Latin - week 12 update - December 1

Our grammar lesson today was to learn about prepositions that are governed by the accusative case.  There are a few prepositions (in and sub for example) that can take either case but the meaning is slightly changed.  In + ablative means in or on.  But in + accusative means into.  Typically prepositions that take the accusative case have some sort of movement involved.

Third Form Latin - In the third declension, there are adjectives with one, two, or three terminations.  There are no new endings to learn - just vocabulary!  Also, in order to finish the text by the end of the year, we will not be covering the unit reviews in class any longer.  Also, today we combined two chapters as one of the chapters is review.  We will also combine chapters on December 15th - and then the rest of the year should be single lessons.

Homework:

• Re-read the text book pages 34-35; Third Form - 36-39
• Workbook pages 61-65; Third Form - 78-89
• Notecards + derivatives
• Second and Third Form: Write two English sentences with accusative phrases and then translate them into Latin.  (try to include personal pronouns, newer vocabulary, and have them be complex sentences that might also include genitive and dative forms)
• Translate the following sentence into Latin: We will have dinner around the table.
• Review, review, review!

First Form Latin Update - week 12 - December 1

In today's class we reviewed unit II - working on vocabulary plus the perfect, pluperfect, and future perfect tenses.  The students worked on writing a synopsis for each verb.

Homework:

• Practice your vocabulary by recitation (be sure you know ALL the vocabulary - not just the words from this unit - don't forget about the adverbs!).
• Do the workbook pages for lessons 12 and 13 (pages 64-74)
• Complete the take home test that was emailed to you after you have studied.  It should be completed without assistance/books/notes. 
• Presentations: Meghan: Roman house and family - Dec 8

Second and Third Form Latin update - week 11 - November 17

In today's class we learned about prepositions that take the ablative case.  The students need to be sure to memorize not only the meaning of the preposition but the governing case.

In Third form Latin we learned irregular adjectives - affectionately called "The Naughty Nine" - these are irregular in the genitive and dative singular forms.

Homework:

• Re-read the text book pages 30-31; Third Form pages 34-35
• Workbook pages 50-55; Third Form - 73-77
• Notecards + derivatives
• Second Form: Write five English sentences with ablative phrases and then translate them into Latin.  (try to include personal pronouns, newer vocabulary, and have them be complex sentences that might also include genitive and dative forms)
• Translate the following sentence into Latin: Your sisters had given a letter to the man in front of the gate. (Second and Third Form!)
• Review, review, review!

First Form Latin update - week 11 - November 17

In today's class we learned how to conjugate the irregular verb sum in the perfect, pluperfect, and future perfect tenses.  It's interesting to find that the irregular verb is actually perfectly regular in the perfect system!

Homework:

• Reread the text book lesson - page 32-22
•  Practice your vocabulary by recitation - be sure you know words and sayings from each lesson.
• Add the third and fourth principal part to your "sum" note card.  You may also want to add the conjugations of each tense on separate note cards.
• Do the workbook pages for lesson 11 (page 60-63)
• Presentations: Meghan- Roman house and family - due December 8
• Remember no class next week - Have a Happy Thanksgiving!!

Second and Third From Latin update - week 10 - November 10

In today's lesson we continued our work with pronouns - this week focusing on possessive adjectives. These pronouns are possessive by definition rather than by case.

In Third form, we continued our review of vocabulary focusing on adjectives.  We also discussed the common occurrence in Latin of using adjectives as nouns. 

Homework:

1. Re-read the text book pages 30-31; Third Form pages 32-33
2. Workbook pages 50-55; Third Form - pages 60-66
3. Notecards + derivatives
4. Review, review, review!

First Form Latin update - week 10 - November 10

In today's lesson we learned about the future perfect tense. This is a tense that describes a future action that will happen before another future action.

"By the end of the day, I will have eaten my weight in snickers bars."

The key to future perfect tense is the helping verb pair "will have."

Homework:

1. Read the text book pages 30-31
2. Workbook for lesson 10: 55-59
3. Add the vocabulary words to your note cards + derivatives
4. Presentation - Carson - "Science in Ancient Rome" due November 17; Meghan - Roman house and Family - due Dec 8

Second and Third Form Latin update - week 9 - November 3

In today's class we reviewed the eight different types of pronouns - and then learned how decline the second person personal pronoun.  We also discussed how pronouns refer to or take the place of the antecedent and the need to be careful when using pronouns in writing so that the meaning is clear.

In Third form Latin we continued our review of nouns - focusing on 3rd, 4th, and 5th declension.  Again, mastery is key!  If there is any hesitation in the review of meanings, do make note cards to study those words a little more.  We also discussed indeclinable nouns and appositives.

Homework:
1. Re read the text book pages: 28-29; Rachel - pages 30-31
2. Workbook pages 46-49; Rachel - pages 60-66
3. Notecards + derivatives
4. Review, review, review!
5. Rachel - write a sentence in English and translate into Latin using an appositive. 

First Form Latin update - week 9 - November 3

Our grammar lesson today focused on the pluperfect tense.  This tense refers to actions in the past that happened before another action in the past.  For example: I had eaten my snack before my friend arrived.  The key marker of pluperfect in English is the helping verb "had."

Homework:
1. Re-read the text book lessons - pages 28-29
2. Practice your vocabulary by recitation.  Make sure you not only know this week's vocabulary - but all previous weeks!
3. Create notecards for each new vocabulary word + derivatives
4.  Do the workbook pages for Lesson 9 (pages 50-54)
5. Project presentations for November 17: Carson (Science in Ancient Rome) 

Second and Third form update - week 8 - October 27

In today's class we learned about the eight different types of pronouns - and then learned how decline the first person personal pronoun.  We also discussed how pronouns refer to or take the place of the antecedent and the need to be careful when using pronouns in writing so that the meaning is clear.

In third form, the next few lessons focus on old vocabulary.  The key is to have mastery over these words so that time is not used looking for the meanings.  Our grammar lesson for today was on the VOCATIVE case.  This case is used when someone is directly addressed - often in conjunction with an imperative: Rachel, clean your room.  The subject of this sentence is the understood you - with Rachel being in the Vocative.

Homework:
1. Re read the text book pages: 24, 26-27; Third form: 26, 28, and 29
2. Workbook pages 42-45; Third Form: 52-59
3. Notecards + derivatives
4. Review, review, review!
5. Upcoming projects: Caleb - Nov 10 - Trojan War; Stephen - Nov 17 - Leonidas; Rachel - Dec 1 - Sisyphus.

First Form Latin update - week 8 - October 27

In today's lesson we learned how to conjugate verbs in the perfect tense.  The perfect tense is for one time actions completed in the past: I walked to school yesterday.  I have lived in Europe.  I did scare that cat.

Homework:
1. Re-read the text book lesson - pages 26-27
2. Practice your vocabulary by recitation (be sure that you know words from previous lessons!)
3.  Create notecards for the new vocabulary words.  You do not need to do derivatives this week.
4. Workbook pages for lesson 8 - pages 45-49
5. Presentation - Grant - Roman Gladiators and the Colosseum - due November 4; Carson - Science in Ancient Rome - due Nov 17

Second and Third Form Latin update - week 7 - October 20

Today's class period focused on review before our Unit I test.  We worked together on parsing a sentence and then translating it from English into Latin.  The students also worked on form drills - and need to do a little more review on 3rd declension nouns and adjectives (including -i stems!).

Homework:
1.  Workbook review pages 35 - 40; Rachel pages 45-49
2. Review grammar and vocabulary!
3.  After studying, do the take home test.  It should be done without assistance of any kind.  The test should not take more than 30 - 45 minutes - but it does not need to be timed.
4. Upcoming presentations - Caleb - Nov 10 - Trojan War; Stephen - Nov 17 - Leonidas

First Form Latin update - week 7 - October 20

Unit II begins with learning the four principal parts for all the verbs we've covered thus far - and recognizing the four irregular verbs we've learned.  We also discussed complementary infinitives (specifically when used as direct objects: I love to travel; I want to wash the dog.)

Homework:
1.  Re-read the text book lessons - pages 22 - 25
2. Practice your vocabulary by recitation - be sure that you know all the words thus far.
3.  Add the third and fourth principal parts of each Latin verb to your notecards.  Be sure to check the spelling!
4.  Do the workbook pages for lesson 7 (pages 41 - 44)
5.  Presentations: Dylan - Roman Army due Oct 27; Grant - Roman Gladiators and Colosseum - Nov 3

Second and Third Form Latin update - week 6 - October 13

Second Form: In today's lesson we learned about third declension adjectives.  The endings for theses adjectives are very similar to what we saw last week with third declension -i stem nouns.

Third Form: We have now finished the perfect passive system by learning the future perfect passive tense.

Homework:
Next week will be review before our unit test.  The students especially need to work on the third declension noun endings - review, review, review!!

1.  Review all the grammar and vocabulary
2.  Re read the text book pages 20-21
3.  Workbook pages 29 - 34; Rachel: page 40-44
4.  Create and English sentence with the following: at least one genitive, a dative, a 3rd declension adjective, and an accusative.  Then translate it into Latin.  (Second Form only)

First Form Latin update - week 6 - October 13

Today was a review day.  We talked about all the grammar and terms that we have learned so far.  To study that, the students need to read their text - and then in the back of the workbook there is the entire list of grammar questions I ask the students each week in class (begin with question #10).

Here is a "trick" to translating verbs: translate them backwards.  So - if we look at the Latin word OCCUPABAS.  From the last letter of "S" - you know it's second person singular - you; from the next two letters "BA" - you know it's imperfect tense and was/were; and then you have the stem.  So...you were seizing.  

To practice in class we worked on doing a synopsis.  For this, instead of writing out the conjugation of "give" in present, imperfect, and future tenses - you just pick a person and number and then write it in the three tenses (for example: to give = dare, and in 1st person plural, it would be: damus, dabamus, and dabimus).  The students also made sure that they could translate each form.

Homework:
1. Re read the text book lessons - pages 8-21
2. Practice your vocabulary by recitation
3. Be sure you know all the Latin sayings (in English and Latin) and how to spell them correctly.
4. Workbook pages for lesson 6: pages 34-39 - you may skip questions 3 and 16 (note it's AND not THROUGH! :-) ).
5. Take home test.  The test should be taken when the student is prepared - as long as it's before class next week.  It should be monitored and taken without assistance of any kind.  The exam should not take more than 30-45 minutes - but it does not need to be timed.  If you come across any issues/questions - please don't hesitate to contact me!
6.  Project presentations: October 27: Dylan (Roman Army); November 3: Grant (Gladiators and the Colosseum;

Second and Third Form Latin update - week 5 - October 6

Today's Second Form lesson focused on two elements of Latin grammar.  The first one is 3rd declension -i stem nouns (looking at them in both genders) - and the rules that go with determining if they are -i stems or exceptions.  Secondly, we talked about the genitive case.  The genitive case is used to show possession in Latin.

In Third Form, we continued with the perfect passive system, focusing on the pluperfect passive.  The vocabulary for this week is conjunctions - but some of them function quite differently in Latin than they do in English.

Homework: 

• Review the grammar and vocabulary! 
• Re-read the text book pages 18-19 
• Workbook pages 20-23; Rachel - pages 34-39
• Notecards + derivatives 
• Second Form: Create an English sentence with a subject and verb and at least 1 genitive, a dative, an adjective, and an accusative.  Translate into Latin 
• Review, review, review!
• Upcoming projects: Elizabeth - Oct 13 - Roman Baths; Caleb - Nov 10 - Trojan War 

First Form Latin update - week 5 - October 6

"Civis Romanus sum"

In English, the verb "to be" is irregular.  It is also irregular in Latin.  We learned the infinitive and present, imperfect, and future tenses of the verb.  It is important for the students to understand that there are not helping verbs in Latin - but you will need them to translate from Latin to English.

Review wise - the students need to review lesson 4 about the infinitive form.  Especially pay attention to how the infinitive is used to find the stem of a Latin verb (drop the -re from the infinitive and what is left is the present stem - this is what you use to add all the personal endings!).

Homework:
1. Re-read the text book pages 18-19
2. Practice your vocabulary words by recitation (be sure to go over ALL words that we've learned!)
3.  Be sure that you know the Latin sayings (and how to spell them correctly)
4. Do notecards for each tense of sum – include both the Latin and the English.  Also be sure to do a “regular” notecard for sum that includes the infinitive and translation.
5. Workbook pages for lesson 5 - pages 30-33
6. Upcoming projects: Oct 27 - Dylan - Roman Army; Nov 3 - Grant - Roman Gladiators and the Colosseum

Second and Third Form Latin update - week 4

Second Form - Today's lesson focused on review - specifically that of third, fourth, and fifth declension nouns - and these are ones that typically give students troubles.  Time really needs to be spent on reviewing these - going over not only the vocabulary but also the declension forms.

Third Form - Today we learned about participles - verbal adjectives.  Examples: The conquered Gauls retreated to the mountains.   The written words are meaningful. The collected flowers are now in a vase.  In Latin, this participle comes from the fourth principal of the verb.  This form is also used to create a compound verbal form of the perfect passive system.

Homework:

·        Review the grammar and vocabulary from First Form!

·        Workbook pages 14- 19; Rachel – pages 20 - 26

·        Notecards + derivatives for your vocab

·        Review, review, review!

First Form Latin update - week 4

Today's lesson focused on the second principal part of Latin verbs - the infinitive.  To translate this form into English, the students will use to + the verb (to love, to shout, to pray are all infinitives).  Students need to be sure that they know ALL the vocabulary words presented thus far - and be able to conjugate them in the present, imperfect, and future tenses.

We talked a little more about the Spartans and the meaning behind our saying from last week - "And then we will fight in the shade."  We also learned a little about Roman roads - including its most famous - the Appian Way (Via Appia).

Engrade: All grades are posted through www.engrade.com.  On the first day of classes your student was given an access code.  If you have not registered and you need this code, please let me know and I'll email it to you.  Grades are typically entered within 24 hours of the class so that progress can be monitored at anytime. 

Tuition: If you are on the monthly payment plan, tuition for October is due next week.
 

Homework:

1. Re-read the text book lessons – pages 8-17 
2. Practice your vocabulary by recitation (practice words from Lessons 1 -3!)
3. Add the infinitive form to each of your note cards. (Be sure to add it to the Latin side.  Remember that we will eventually learn the 3rd and 4th principal parts so you will want to leave room for those to be added later as well) 
4. Do the workbook pages for Lesson 4 (pages 25-29)

Second and Third form update - Week three

"Ad astra per aspera"

"Tolle et Lege"

Today's Second Form lesson focused on 1st/2nd declension adjectives that end in -r.  The students have learned the method to determine if the vowel before the -r is dropped or retained.  Next we discussed the dative case and how to determine if a noun is the direct or indirect object in an English sentence.

For Third Form the lesson today covered how to create the imperative mood in all four conjugations.






Homework:

1. Review vocabulary and grammar from First Form
2. Workbook pages 14-19; Third Form - 20 - 26
3. Write a sentence in English using an adjective from this week's vocabulary, a direct object, and an indirect object.  Then translate the sentence into Latin using correct word order.  (Be sure to use words we have learned - do not use words from future lessons!) (Third form students do not need to do this!)
4. Notecards + derivatives
5. Keep reviewing previous lessons and vocabulary!

First Form Latin - week 3 update

"In umbra, igitur, pugnabimus."






Many thanks to Mrs. Jones for subbing today!

We began class today with oral drill work, a quiz, and then recitation and review.  In the back of the workbooks are both vocabulary and grammar review sheets - the students can work on quizzing themselves as part of their studying each day.  Repetition - especially in the form of chanting out loud - will really help to cement the vocabulary and forms to memory.

Our grammar lesson today was how to form the future tense for first conjugation verbs.

Homework:

•1. Make flash cards for each of your Latin words.  On one side write the Latin, on the other the English meaning + derivative found the book + one more found in a dictionary.

•2. Re-read the text book lesson – pages 14 – 15

•3. Practice your vocabulary by recitation (practice words from both Lesson 1, 2, and 3!)

•4. Do the workbook pages for Lesson 3 (pages 20-24) (NOTE BENE: you may skip questions 5 - 8 on page 20)

Second and Third form class update - week 2

Salvete!

Second Form:
In today's class we reviewed a little and then moved on to our new grammar of the day - 2nd declension nouns ending in -er and -ir.  The students need to pay attention to the stem to see if the vowel before the -r remains or is dropped.

Third Form:
We continue with review of First and Second form vocabulary and grammar. It is very important that the 3rd and 4th conjugation verbs are mastered as we move forward.  Also work a little on reviewing the passive endings.

Homework:
1. Review grammar and vocabulary from First Form
2. Workbook pages 10 -13 (Third form: 13-19)
3. Re read the text book lesson from today
4. Notecards and derivatives for new vocabulary words

First Form Latin - week 2 update

Salvete!

We began class with a quick review and oral drill over the vocabulary and grammar from last week and then the students took their first quiz.

Our lesson from today was learning about the imperfect tense.  Imperfect means a past action that is either repeated or interrupted.  For example:

I was walking the dog.  The students used to study French.  The key is in the helping verbs - imperfect is always translated with either was/were or used to.

Homework:
1.  Make notecards (including derivatives) for each of your new vocabulary words.
2.  Reread the text book lesson for this week: pages 12 -13
3.  Practice your vocabulary by recitation (be sure to go over the words from both lessons).
4.  Do the workbook pages for lesson 2 - pages 14-19.  If you have never diagrammed sentences before, you will need to read pages 93-98 in the text book.  You may skip question 8 on page 14.

Third Form Latin - week 1 update

Salvete!

Today we began class by looking over the syllabus:
1.  All grades will be on engrade.com and the students were given access codes for you to sign up so that you can see how your student is doing.
2.  We will take the National Latin exam in March.  The cost for the exam is $10 - this can be sent in anytime before we break for Christmas
3.  We will have two grading periods this year - and the students will do one project for each semester.  The guidelines are the same - but the students really need to work on their presentations and be sure to not read their projects but tell the class about what they have learned.

The remainder of the class was a quick review of First and Second Form Latin.  The students need to review 3rd, 4th and 5th declension nouns, 3rd and 4th conjugation verb endings, and the passive voice.  We spent some time at the board going over 3rd declension nouns.

Homework:
1.  Read chapter one in the text book
2.  Work book pages 6-12
3.  Review, review, review (grammar and vocab from last year)!!
4.  Parent and student needs to sign that you have read the syllabus - this will count as a homework grade.

Second Form Latin update - Week 1

Salvete!

Today we began class by looking over the syllabus:
1.  All grades will be on engrade.com and the students were given access codes for you to sign up so that you can see how your student is doing.
2.  We will take the National Latin exam in March.  The cost for the exam is $10 - this can be sent in anytime before we break for Christmas
3.  We will have two grading periods this year - and the students will do one project for each semester.  The guidelines are the same - but the students really need to work on their presentations and be sure to not read their projects but tell the class about what they have learned.

The remainder of the class was a quick review of First Form Latin.  The students need to review 3rd, 4th and 5th declension nouns as well as 2nd conjugation verbs.  We spent some time at the board going over 3rd declension nouns.

Homework:
1.  Read chapter one in the text book
2.  Work book pages 6-9
3.  Review, review, review (grammar and vocab from last year)!!
4.  Parent and student needs to sign that you have read the syllabus - this will count as a homework grade.

First Form Latin - Week 1 update

Today we began class by looking over the syllabus - couple of things to note:
1.  All grades will be on engrade.com and the students were given access codes for you to sign up so that you can see how your student is doing.
2. We will take the National Latin exam in March.  The cost for the exam is $10 - this can be sent in anytime before we break for Christmas

We began class by learning the difference between ecclesiastical and Classical Latin - and then working on Classical Latin pronunciation.  The text book that we use prefers the church Latin - so we will ignore those sections of the text!

After some practice words, we delved right into Latin grammar regarding verbs and then learned how to conjugate a 1st conjugation verb in the present tense.

Homework
1.  One of the keys to doing well in Latin is to do homework DAILY.  Break up the weekly assignment into 4 sections with vocabulary and grammar review.  We will have a quiz each week at the beginning of class.
2.  Re-read the text book lesson - pages 8-11
3.  Practice your vocabulary words by recitation.  Make sure you know their meaning and how to conjugate them.
4.  Do the work book lesson for chapter 1 (pages 9-13)
5.  Be sure to have both a parent and student signature on your syllabus.  Will count as a homework grade!
6.  Create notecards/flash cards for each vocabulary word.  Remember what we discussed in class - leave room for 3 more words on the Latin side; on the English side: meaning and 2 derivatives

Summer Reading for World Literature/Composition

The key to being a great reader is to read extensively, and the key to being a great writer is exposure to great writing. Reading is not something to do just during the school year; life-long learners are also life-long readers. Summer provides time to enjoy uninterrupted reading and allows students to digest ideas prior to discussing and interpreting writing techniques in class.

For this World Literature class, the summer reading books explore a lot of big ideas that we’ll cover in this course: truth and fiction, heroes and villains, gods and monsters, journeys, storytelling, the human spirit, and more.  As you undoubtedly know, we encounter “tough” topics in today’s world, and some of the novels below address such issues (war, terrorism, child soldiers, prostitution). Parents may wish to preview or read reviews to help determine which books would be appropriate for your student’s interests and abilities.

Assignment:

1. Pick one book from the list below.  Read and enjoy!

2.  While reading, find three “significant moment” quotes.  What does that mean?!  What makes a moment significant? That’s up to you as a reader/interpreter/thinker. Consider moments that:

·reveal a truth about a character, the theme of the novel, or life in general.

·indicate a major change in the character, plot, tone, etc.

·demonstrate the writer’s craft (consider major literary devices).

·strike a chord in you or grab your attention

3.  Please type and format your significant moments as in the sample below.

4.  Schedule about 5 or 10 minutes to discuss your book with Mrs. Harris. 

5.  Moments are due by October 31, 2016.  Discussions with Mrs. Harris should be completed before Christmas break.

6. If you are an Honors student, please choose two books and find five significant moments in each book.  

Example:

Significant Moment (Life of Pi + page number):

“The sun was beginning to pull the curtains on the day. It was a placid explosion of orange and red, a great chromatic symphony, a colour canvas of supernatural proportions, truly a splendid Pacific sunset, quite wasted on me.”(124).

Explanation of Significance:

This image captures a personified sun in the middle of a metaphor, “pull[ing] the curtains on the day” like one might end a play. It’s interesting that what is real, nature, is being compared to something imagined or make-believe –like actors on a stage. In fact, there are several contradictions in the passage. The imagery of a natural phenomenon, a sunset, is compared to man-made works of art like drama, music, and art. The “explosion of orange and red” is also described as “placid,” meaning calm. The narrator uses language to describe things merging together (curtains, symphony, a canvas on which brushstrokes exist together), while he is actually quite removed from the event. The layers of the metaphor all end with the abrupt phrase “quite wasted on me.” On some level he realizes what he is missing in life, but staying alive — survival —is his only reality.

Book List:

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Life of Pi by Yann Martel

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams 

Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt

A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah

Outcasts United: A Refugee Team, an American Town by Warren St. John

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini

Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys

Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie

The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yoko Ogawa

Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand

Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity by Katherine Boo

Word Crimes

This new Weird Al video will make the hearts of all language arts teachers go pitter pat!  Enjoy:

First Form Latin update - May 5th and 8th

In today's class we spent time reviewing our most recent unit covering 2nd conjugation verbs. 

Homework:
1. Read the text book pages 82-85
2. Workbook for lesson 33 and 34 (pages 170-180)
3. Study, study, study!!
4. Be sure to review previous vocabulary
5. Be sure to review declension endings and verb endings.
6. Be sure to review the grammar in the back of the workbook.
7. Next week - final exam in class.  Please be sure to bring something quiet to read/do when you have finished the exam.

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Geography class update

In today's class we finished our unit on South Africa and its neighbors.  We tried to watch a video so that the students could hear what the !San language (the people of the Kalahari desert) sounds like as it's quite unique with its sounds.  But, due to technical issues, it was difficult to hear - so you may watch/listen to it here:


Homework:
1.  If you want to do an extra credit project for this unit, it needs to be turned in by next Thursday.  (note there is a limit of one)
2. Don't forget that you need to do 2 cultural events this year - there are some students that need to complete one or both of these by next Thursday.  They each count as a test grade.  The event should be summarized and turned in - and be sure to contact me for approval for your event.
3. Next week the Africa projects are due - they will count as both a test grade and a project grade.  Don't forget to bring a food item to share with the class.

Second Form Latin class update - May 8th

Today we wrapped up the text book by reviewing the present system of the passive voice in all four conjugations.

Homework:
1. Read pages 78-79
2. Workbook pages for lesson 26 - 172-180
3. Be sure to go through the final review in the workbook to study for the test.
4. Be sure to review all vocabulary - especially prepositions
5. Be sure to review grammar - verb endings, declension endings, and ablative forms.
6. Next week the final exam will be given in class.  Please bring something to read/do after you have finished the exam.

Mythology class update - May 8

The students did a great job with their action figures - I love how creative they all were!

We finished our King Arthur unit by reading "The Return of the Misbegotten" and "The Death of Arthur."

Homework:
1. Finish reading "The Death of Arthur"
2. Review all the King Arthur plays and the two previous exams.
3. Final exam is next class - May 15th - please bring something to read/do after you have completed the exam.
4. King Arthur essays are due via email by May 19th at noon.  Late essays will not be accepted.

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First Form Latin class update - May 1

Well, we are really winding down.  Today was the last lesson for the school year - next week is review and then we'll have our final class with the final exam.

Today's lesson focused on the remaining 2nd conjugation verbs and their principal parts as well as covering the perfect system of 2nd conjugation verbs.

Homework:
1. Read the text book pages 80-81
2. Workbook pages for lesson 32 - pages 165-169
3. Add the remaining principal parts to your notecards
4. Be sure to review previous vocabulary.
5. Be sure to review declension endings and verb endings.
6. Be sure to review the grammar in the back of the workbook!

Geography class update - May 1

In today's class, we finished discussing chapter 19 and began chapter 21 over South Africa and its neighbors.

Next week we will finish this chapter, but it will not take the entire class period.  The students may bring laptops/tablets that they might need to work in their projects.  It will not be social hour but a time to get some Geography work done.  If the students have head phones, they could even begin watching one of the bonus movies on netflix or you tube.  If an electronic device is not an option, please come with a book to read. 

The handout and current event have been emailed to the class - please complete and bring to class next week.  Please let me know if you did not receive the email and attachment.

Project presentations are due on May 15.

Second Form Latin class update - May 1

In today's class we finished our grammar lessons for the year by learning how to form 4th conjugation verbs and 3rd conjugation -io verbs in the present system passive voice.  The students need to be especially careful not to confuse many of the noun vocabulary words this week with passive verb forms.

Homework:

1.     Read pages 76-77

2.     workbook pages for lesson 26  – pages 165-171

3.     Note cards  and derivatives

Mythology class update - May 1

In today's class we read two more plays - "Du Lac and Le Fay" and "The Loves of Lancelot."

The students were given a fun project for homework - to create an action figure of a character from the King Arthur stories.  They need it to have three features, a vehicle, three accessories, and a list of other figures to collect.  The students have been given an example in the form of Action Launcelot.

Be reviewing the plays and previous tests to prepare for the final on May 15th. 

First Form Latin class update - April 28

Well, we are really winding down.  Today was the last lesson for the school year - next week is review and then we'll have our final class with the final exam.

Today's lesson focused on the remaining 2nd conjugation verbs and their principal parts as well as covering the perfect system of 2nd conjugation verbs.

Homework:
1. Read the text book pages 80-81
2. Workbook pages for lesson 32 - pages 165-169
3. Add the remaining principal parts to your notecards
4. Be sure to review previous vocabulary.
5. Be sure to review declension endings and verb endings.
6. Be sure to review the grammar in the back of the workbook!

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First Form Latin class update - April 24

Be sure to ask your student about the significance of April 21st!

In today's class we spent a lot of time reviewing and then we discussed the regular and irregular principal parts for the 2nd conjugation.

Homework:
1. Read the text book pages 78-79
2. Workbook pages for lesson 31pages 161-164
3. Add the principal parts to your notecards for the ones listed in lesson 31
4.  Be sure to review: previous vocabulary, declension endings, grammar at the back of the workbook, and verb endings

Geography class update - April 24

The students took their test covering Australia, Oceania, and Antarctica.

Next we picked projects for our unit on Central and South Africa.  These projects will perform double duty as they will count as a project grade and a test grade.

We watched an amazing video about a symphony in the Democratic Republic of Congo - the Kinshasa symphony.  I encourage the students to watch it again (with better sound than we had in the classroom) and to share with anyone who has a love of music.

Finally, we began talking about chapter 19.

Homework:
1.  I have emailed the handout of questions for chapter 19 - please print and complete and bring to class next week.  Part of the assignment is a current event article - this event needs to have taken place as recently as possible - no more than 4 weeks ago.
2. Projects/food items are due on May 15
3. Extra credit opportunities.  You may complete one of the following options - it will be worth 20 extra credit points for either the test or project section of your grades.

• 1.Watch “The Gods must be Crazy” – netflix dvd – write a summary and review

• 2.Watch “Invictus” – netflix dvd – write a summary and review

• 3.Watch National Geographic’s  “Diamonds of War – Africa’s Blood diamonds” – netflix streaming – write a summary

• 4.Watch National Geographic’s “Gabon – the Last Eden” – write a summary

Second Form Latin class update - April 24

In today's class we learned the present system, passive for the third conjugation verbs.  This conjugation continues to use the same passive endings as the other passive forms - and that 2nd person singular continues to be the one irregularity in the system.

Homework:
1. Read pages 74-75
2. Workbook pages for lesson 25 - pages 159-164
3. Notecards + derivatives

Mythology class update - April 24

In today's class, the students shared the shields they created - they did a fantastic job!

We reviewed the history and the play we read last week - and then read "A Tale of Two Swords" and "The Bride of the King."

Homework:
1. Begin reviewing previous plays and exams.
2. Final exam on May 15
3. King Arthur essay due via email by May 19th at noon.

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First Form Latin class update - April 21

Be sure to ask your student about the significance of April 21st!

In today's class we spent a lot of time reviewing and then we discussed the regular and irregular principal parts for the 2nd conjugation.

Homework:
1. Read the text book pages 78-79
2. Workbook pages for lesson 31pages 161-164
3. Add the principal parts to your notecards for the ones listed in lesson 31
4.  Be sure to review: previous vocabulary, declension endings, grammar at the back of the workbook, and verb endings
5. Projects: April 28 - Grace - Diocletian

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