11 January, 2007

Back to classes!

We're all in an uproar (a good one!) here at the Booksncoffeehaus, preparing for our first co-op day of the winter semester. We are gathering our bookbags and teacher bags and supplies for various classes. I am printing out Syllabi and lesson plans, and making copies of the next Spanish test and copies of word games.

I've been given a break from Jr. High Spanish, as the Jr. highers needed to take two semesters of Science. However, I get to take on two new classes in its place.

Word Feud:
This class is mostly freshmen. We'll learn Greek and Latin word roots and play word rummy, roots bingo, then work up to family feud, and roots jeopardy and "who wants to be a winner." I'm also going to teach them tidbits of quotes that reflect either put-downs or insults given in a gentlemanly or gentlewomanly fashion and work up to funny-worded put-downs. Think Shakespeare and Jane Austen, even Will Rogers and Mark Twain. Here is a nice site I found to help build my own Word Bingo game boards. We'll use smarties or skittles for markers.

Book Club class:
We'll be reading Laddie by Gene Stratton Porter the first five weeks and The Chosen by Chaim Potok the second five weeks.

I'll still have High School Spanish 1 (second semester continuation)

I'll be helping in Performance choir for 4th-6th graders (should be fun!)

And I'll have second hour grading period.

I'll post the kids' schedules for this semester next.

I hope my readers are having a smooth January transition out of the holidays and back to their regularly scheduled lives :-)

Javamom

2 comments:

Javamom said...

Sherry,

Mine seem to be enegized by it. The drive home, however, exhausts me, and I just want to sit and watch a good movie in the evening.
Our dc, somehow, are ready for more social interaction in the evening!

What ages do you have reading Huckleberry Finn? I enjoy Twain so much, and finally read Huck Finn for the first time
-believeitornot!- Last year! I've been a Twain fan for a long time, though. I thought about teaching Huck Finn in our book club, but I have mostly 7th graders.

What classes are your kids enjoying in your co-op? Ours goes all day, not just the morning, so that's up to five hours (or 45-50 minute "hours) of classes.

J

Javamom said...

I agree with you about Huck Finn. I taught it to a few 9-12th graders last year for American Lit.

We aren't so lucky to have instrumental music opportunities in our co-op. There is a home school band around the metroplex that formed recently, though we have not looked into it.