So many good things are happening in Room 15!  It speaks volumes about  the great group of kids we have this year that they’re able to accomplish so much despite our four-day schedule.

The students concluded our Nepal Project by generating $86 in contributions this month, for a grand total of $161. Thanks to their help I was able to write a $280 check to the ANSWER charity supporting a Nepalese child’s education.

The students completed their Book Club reading projects with a literary elements exam on Friday. At first glance it looks as though students did a great job. Even more telling, though, was their response to the books themselves. Numerous students reported they cried at the end of Where the Red Fern Grows (one even said her mom and dad cried with her). The tears suggest the readers were able to relate to the main character, a basic indicator of true comprehension. Students will be joining new Book Clubs in a couple weeks. In the meantime, they’re working on their play scripts. They’re also expected to read each night from a book of choice. Their homework, which is now recorded inside their vocabulary journals, includes identifying one interesting or challenging vocabulary word from their reading, summarizing the section read, and getting a parent’s signature. This week they’re also supposed to be making daily entries into their “Lewis & Clark Journals.” These entries can be fictional or real, but the process is to be modeled after the explorers themselves.

Students are, of course, doing much more: The Checkbook Project, Spanish, DARE, completing their “Shoes” four-paragraph essay, starting the Room 15 Sportsmanship Floor Hockey Tourney, and attending the 21st Annual Josephine County Tree Plant on Friday. Be sure to watch the Rogue Valley Mall for Room 15 artwork, too!