Encyclopedia Update

I am adding some of the stories we wrote about the third graders. So far I have added stories by;

Jihad
Rawya
Sarah
Nooooooooooor
Ahmed K.
Iyad (This was a really excellent story!)
Dianna

I also added a story by Bilal. This is Bilal's first solo Encyclopedia story. Great Job Bilal!!

Five More Words

1. Passive - Not doing anything. Letting things happen. You are being passive when you sit in class and do nothing.

2. Irate - Extremely mad.

3. Breeze - A little wind

4. Daily - Something you do ever day is a daily job. Daily means every day.

5. Lotion - Lotion is the cream you put on your skin to make it soft.

Words to Study

1. Recalcitrant - Doesn't want to do what he is told.

The recalcitrant student got zero break.

2. Transparent - Something that you can see through is transparent.

3. Aggressive - Someone doesn't wait to do something is aggressive.

Be aggressive on the football field. Don't wait for the ball.

4. Chilly - A little bit cold.

5. Support - To help or hold something up.

A chair supports you, your parents support you.

No Questions Today

I want every student to figure out what calorie means before school starts.

We are going to be doing a lot of work with calories in the second semester. (Hint ask your mother)

More Questions

1. Have you ever eaten pigs?
2. Where do you usually go after school?
3. Who is your best friend who does not go to Pioneers School?
4. What have you done this week?
5. Where have you gone on this vacation?
6. Why didn't you do your questions yesterday?
7. What did you do just before you started this?

















1. No I haven't.
2. I usually go to ________.
3. My best friend, who does not go to Pioneers School, is __________.
4. This week I have ____________,____________, and ____________.
5. I have gone to ________ and _________ this vacation.
6. I didn't do my questions yesterday because I was _________ing.
7. Just before I started this I _____________.

Questions to Practice

1. Have you ever been to Jordan?
2. How many games have you played since school finished?
3. Tell me three things you used to do when you were a baby that you don't do now.
4. Where have you been going on weekends this year?
5. How many sisters do you have that are older than you?
6. Where was the first place you went after school ended?
7. What is your favorite thing to do with your best friend?











1. Yes I have.
2. I have played __________ games since school finished.
3. I used to ______________ but now I don't.
I used to _______________ but now I ______________.
I used to _______________ but now I ______________.

4. I have been going to ____________ on weekends this year.
5. I have _______ sisters that are older than you.
6. The first place I went after school ended was _______________.
7. My favorite thing to do with my best friend is _______________.

Today's Questions

1. Where was the last place you visited?
2. When did you visit that place?
3. Why did you visit that place?
4. How did you get there?
5. Did your parents take you or did someone else take you?
6. What kind of food do you like to eat for dinner?
7. Have you been out of school for a long time?









1. The last place I visited was ______________.
2. I visted __________ on ________________.
3. I visited ___________ because ____________________.
4. I got there by ______________ (bus, taxi, plane)
5. My parents took me. or __________ took me.
6. I like to eat ___________ for dinner.
7. No I haven't. I have been out of school for ________ days.

Today's Questions

1. Ten years ago, had you met Mr. Canavan?
2. When was the first time you came to Pioneers school?
3. Who is the olderst person you know?
4. Where were you when you met Mr. Canavan?
5. Were you a good baby or a bad baby?
6. In four years, where will you be living?
7. In five years, will Mr. Canavan be your teacher?







1. No I had not.
2. The first time I came to Pioneers School was ______________-
3. The oldest person I know is ______________.
4. When I met Mr. Canavan, I was at Pioneers School.
5. I was a ________ baby.
6. In four years, I will be living _______________.
7. No he won't.

I am in Amman

Here are the questions to practice for today. Write down the answers and then change the screen so you can only see the questions. Practice them 3-6 times per day.

Any student who took less than a 92 has to practice the questions. All other students should but don't have to. They seem easy but work on answering them quickly and correctly.


1. How many countries have you been to?
2. What are you going to do tomorrow?
3. Where did you go last week?
4. Who has more Barbies, Ms. Jess or Ms. Kaitlin?
5. Why do you want to visit America?
6. I know that you used to play with toy cars, but what do you play with now?
7. How long have you lived in Nablus?
8. Where do you sit in Arabic class?
9. What's the biggest difference between you and Rawya?
10. How are you similar to Omar?











1. I have been to ______ countries.
2. Tomorrow I am going to ____________.
3. Last week, I went to _____________.
4. Ms. Jess has more Barbies than Ms. Kaitlin.
5. I want to visit America because I ____________________-
6. I play with _____________ now.
7. I have lived in Nablus for _________ years.
8. In Arabic class I sit _________________
9. The biggest difference between me and Rawya is that I am ___________ and Rawya is ___________.
10. I am similar to Omar because we are both _________________.
8.

The Mountain Trip

We finally got to take our mountain trip today. We raced up a mountain in the neighborhood behind the school. Mr. Ahmed and Abu Ahmed went with us and worked hard to make sure all the children were safe.

We had contests to see who could climb the fastest. We climbed in two man teams. The boys champions were Abdallah and Iyad. They won the final race against Dawood and Bilal. Dawood and Bilal had already won two races and they were very tired.

The girls champions were Karma and Dianna. Sarah and Noor finished second and Safa and Rawya were pretty fast too.

I was really happy with the way all the students behaved on the mountain and stayed safe. This is the first year for the mountain trip and, like the water fight, each year it will get bigger, longer and more fun.

Homework for Students That Need It

Write an essay describing your house. Include details about each room and how your house has changed in the last ten years.

We're Short on Classes This Week

We won't have all our regularly scheduled classes but we will still get a lot done. We will continue planning our community service project.

We will film the rest of the Vampire Show Episode 1

We will have something very special on Wednesday, but only if the weather is good.

I was writing your grades this weekend and, once again, it brought home for me what a special group of kids you are. I am very lucky to be your teacher.

Update

We have done a lot of reading and writing this week. I added some stories to the Encyclopedia today. I added Rawya's story about the Superhero Girls. I added Khaled's story about the girls beating the Hippos on Saturday and I added Mr. Curtis stories by Omar and Waleed Titi. This is Omar's first story to make the encyclopedia.

Good work Omar. I also added Waleed Anibtawi's "If I Were the President" story.

I have finished the grades but I will give students a few more chances to make a last minute impression tomorrow and next week. Mr. Curtis has done a nice job helping us out this week and tomorrow he will be with us again.

Last Week's Tests

These are a little late but I finally finished grading them. The scores were good.

A+ (perfect score)

Sindi
Sarah

A (-1)
Karma
Khaled
Iyad
Imad
Sami

A (-2 or -3)
Rawya
Waleed
Anibtawi
Noor

A- (-4)
Safa
Ahmed

This Week in 5A

Our students are busy studying for Arabic finals so our schedule in 5A is very light this week. There will be homework each night but students who have already completed the 25 assignments don't have to do it, unless I told them differently.

This week and next Mr. Curtis will be spending a lot of time in 5A. Its nice to occasionally have a different voice for the students and Mr. Curtis has been nice enough to provide it.

My laptop could not be fixed so the blog will still be a little slow but there won't be that much news anyway. Students in the 3.2 book group should complete "Rocks in His Head," "America's Champion Swimmer," and three of the minor stories around them. That will take us just past page 100, which is a little bit ahead of where I thought we would be by this time.