![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Incredible!
I'm still behind and overwhelmed by my English classes, but I'm very excited by the Latin classes. The students in Latin 1 are studying without me asking them to, itching for homework and more to do. HOW BIZARRE IS THAT? I think I've died and gone to teacher heaven!!!!
The Latin classes are small; Latin 1 has 13-14 kids (can't remember if another added or not), and Latin 2 has 13. There was one sole Latin 3 in the Latin 2 class at the beginning of the week, but by the end of the week I had FIVE! Word got out that I seemed not only reasonable but actually knowledgable.
So I've zoomed through initial basics with the Latin 1's (greetings, dialog, numbers 1-20) and gone over the same plus a bit more with the 2/3 class. On Friday they had to bring a blank cootie-catcher (If you don't know what I'm talking about, go here: http://www.girlpower.gov/GIRLAREA/gamespuz/cootiecatcher.htm) to class. I taught them the alphabet in Latin and then I taught them some basic colors for their cootie catcher. They had to spell the names of the colors on the outside, then put Roman numerals as well as the number spelled out on the inside. Underneath they put Latin mottoes, and it had to include veni vidi vici under one. To play, they had to spell out the color to move the cootie catcher (caeruleus = cE A E er U el E U es). Then when a number was chosen the first time, they had to spell the number (duo = dE U O); the second time they just counted in Latin. I gave out some of my mini-buttons for prizes. Not as cheap as hershey chocolates, but popular.
Then we discussed Latin club. They're a game group, and they want more from a Latin club. HOW COOL IS THAT???? So, I asked whether we had officers. They said we needed to elect new ones. So I said, "Fine. But we'll run this Roman style." I need to get graffiti paper up on a wall somewhere AND QUICK!!!
The 2's and 3's report that they did not get through the book. At first glance I thought that surely it would be easier to get through Ecce than CLC, but what do I know? I haven't taught it. I don't even have materials for it! (Need to get some FAST.) I reassured the 3's that if we needed to start in book 2 that we would. I will take a day this week to determine where both groups truly are.
I haven't decided about doing my intensive pronunciation sheets from last year, but maybe I should. I should revise them, that's for certain. They were full with these ambitious ideas for doing more oral Latin in the classroom. Then again, this group is game. Maybe I should just see what they'd do.
I have homework already to grade/look at. I can enter grades from home. It is weird, not having a gradebook. Unnerving, really. I think I better staple rosters, at least, into my lesson plan book. But I'm going to let go of one more thing to drag around (the grade book) since the software we use is so efficient and convenient. Even the parents can look at grades.
well, I need to go play with kids. And I need to get up in the morning and work on making my email list of parents. Of course part of me knows there are other things I need to be doing, but taking the time to set up these lists will be infinitely worthwhile. I will be set to email parents about upcoming assignments and such.
Projects....I need to consider projects/find where I was brainstorming on projects. I'm thinking of just having a list to choose from each 6 weeks, but if I'm doing that, I better get my act together, shouldn't I? And I have lots of lesson plans to write. Perhaps I better set the alarm.... (and I'm just rambling)
I'm still behind and overwhelmed by my English classes, but I'm very excited by the Latin classes. The students in Latin 1 are studying without me asking them to, itching for homework and more to do. HOW BIZARRE IS THAT? I think I've died and gone to teacher heaven!!!!
The Latin classes are small; Latin 1 has 13-14 kids (can't remember if another added or not), and Latin 2 has 13. There was one sole Latin 3 in the Latin 2 class at the beginning of the week, but by the end of the week I had FIVE! Word got out that I seemed not only reasonable but actually knowledgable.
So I've zoomed through initial basics with the Latin 1's (greetings, dialog, numbers 1-20) and gone over the same plus a bit more with the 2/3 class. On Friday they had to bring a blank cootie-catcher (If you don't know what I'm talking about, go here: http://www.girlpower.gov/GIRLAREA/gamespuz/cootiecatcher.htm) to class. I taught them the alphabet in Latin and then I taught them some basic colors for their cootie catcher. They had to spell the names of the colors on the outside, then put Roman numerals as well as the number spelled out on the inside. Underneath they put Latin mottoes, and it had to include veni vidi vici under one. To play, they had to spell out the color to move the cootie catcher (caeruleus = cE A E er U el E U es). Then when a number was chosen the first time, they had to spell the number (duo = dE U O); the second time they just counted in Latin. I gave out some of my mini-buttons for prizes. Not as cheap as hershey chocolates, but popular.
Then we discussed Latin club. They're a game group, and they want more from a Latin club. HOW COOL IS THAT???? So, I asked whether we had officers. They said we needed to elect new ones. So I said, "Fine. But we'll run this Roman style." I need to get graffiti paper up on a wall somewhere AND QUICK!!!
The 2's and 3's report that they did not get through the book. At first glance I thought that surely it would be easier to get through Ecce than CLC, but what do I know? I haven't taught it. I don't even have materials for it! (Need to get some FAST.) I reassured the 3's that if we needed to start in book 2 that we would. I will take a day this week to determine where both groups truly are.
I haven't decided about doing my intensive pronunciation sheets from last year, but maybe I should. I should revise them, that's for certain. They were full with these ambitious ideas for doing more oral Latin in the classroom. Then again, this group is game. Maybe I should just see what they'd do.
I have homework already to grade/look at. I can enter grades from home. It is weird, not having a gradebook. Unnerving, really. I think I better staple rosters, at least, into my lesson plan book. But I'm going to let go of one more thing to drag around (the grade book) since the software we use is so efficient and convenient. Even the parents can look at grades.
Projects....I need to consider projects/find where I was brainstorming on projects. I'm thinking of just having a list to choose from each 6 weeks, but if I'm doing that, I better get my act together, shouldn't I? And I have lots of lesson plans to write. Perhaps I better set the alarm.... (and I'm just rambling)
