We are very busy in the adolescent classroom.  We have multiple projects going on at once.  This morning we began defining words from the most recent chapter in L.T.A.Y.M.  Students decided to read the next few chapters of Flatland for this week’s vocabulary.  We then discussed the word problems assigned over the weekend.  It took us the entire morning to go through 6 problems.  Students will need more time tonight to look back at a few of the questions, so they are more prepared tomorrow to discuss their thought processes.  Students may have had an answer, but they had trouble explaining how they found the answer.  This is a skill we are working on in the classroom.  How? Why?  Can you set up an equation?  The class has been assigned more puzzling problems for Friday.  After lunch, we had a writing workshop on informative/explanatory essays.  Students examined their own writing closely, identifying the key components of a well-written informative/explanatory essay.  We looked specifically at other papers, peers their age have written, to help us examine our writing.  On going projects include; chickens, micro-economy, field guide, community lunch, place-base education.