God is Our Keeper

I was happy to be back at OLL today after a lightning trip to Seattle to see a very ill friend.... and of course, had some granddaughter time. I am grateful for safe travel and safe keeping of all of our students and staff.

The ITBS tests are winding down.
English 6 spelling words this week are: dictionary, thesaurus, synonym, antonym, spooky, haunted, neighborhood, scream, gasp, costume. Be sure to follow the instructions as they are different this week. Rather than writing sentences, students are finishing a Halloween story and they will include AT LEAST 4 of the spelling words in the conclusion.

English 7/8: dictionary, syllable, synonym, antonym, thesaurus, pronounce, hyperbole, beckoning, eerie, weird, dilapidated, dread, colossal, spooky, haunted, frantic, costume, diabolic, laughter, neighborhood.

World History 6 students worked on early farmer models. U.S. History 7/8 read the interaction of Native Americans and White Settlers in the 1800's.

The quarter ends this Friday. Spelling is due Friday. Grade 6 will read story endings on Friday. Grades 7/8 will read story endings on Wed. Character cards are due today for Grade 8... Grade 7 cards are due Wednesday. Grade 6 students have the option to make cards on an outside reading book for an A.... (if done well). Stay strong to the end of the quarter. The first quarter goal line is in sight!

All Creatures Big and Small

Today after the prayer service, the 8th graders, myself and Brother Thinh went on a field trip to the Bichanich farm and the Koval farm. What a wonderful day to enjoy the beauty of creation and see such a wide variety of God's creatures. Marco was able to introduce us to his prize heifer and also let us hold the cats, pet the rabbits, feed the pigs, and see the other cattle. We also enjoyed seeing the prize-large pumpkins! Thank you Marco's Mom for a wonderful meal (including pumpkin pie) already prepared and waiting for our ever-ready appetites.

Then it was off to Kovals to see the Alpacas, the Great Pyrenees pups, and a trusty horse. You would be so proud of our Franciscan-school students; they love animals and treat them with such tenderness and respect.

Thank you host and hostesses for a wonderful day enjoying creation and "all creatures big and small." The 6 and 7th graders are hard at work with ITBS and we hope our absence provided some peace and quiet.

Most likely, I will not get back to this blog until early next week. Yes, I am making allowances for Grades 6 and 7 for assignments; they have had an intense week. I am off on a lightning trip to Seattle on Friday and will return Sunday eve. Thank you for your prayers as I visit a good friend and co-teacher who is waging a courageous battle against cancer. I also will get in a little grandma-time with Sophie... an added gift.

Test Our Faith

Our Monday started with announcements including Iowa Tests of Basic Skills for Grades 6 and 7 in the junior high. This is an opportunity for students to test their skills and show their best work. Be sure your students gets a good night of sleep and a hearty breakfast. Research shows this makes a measurable difference in the success of students.

Spelling Grade 6: servant, spiritual, discipline, stunned, abundant, glare, finicky, believe, adjective, language. No bonus words this week as it is a four-day week. NO School on Friday.

Spelling Grades 7/8: covenant, doubt, discipline, servant, spiritual, premonition, aerobic, persuasive, define, convince, lawyer, audience, commentrary, accent, aggressive, immerse, collision, allegiance, collapse, accessory. Due Thursday. Students also worked on book report "character" cards.

U.S. History students worked on legends and visuals. They will present on Thursday morning.

World History students work on early-farmer plans.

8th grade parents: Students are going to visit Marco Bichanich's farm on Wednesday at 10:30. Students MUST return a permission slip to go.

Thursday night, October 25th, there is an OLL Halloween party for grades 5-8.

Have a great week... and be in prayer for a long list of needs for our faith community, our country and our world.

That you may know the truth

Today is the Feast Day of St. Luke. I love how the Gospel of Luke starts out with Luke's description of his process to write this well-crafted book. He evens pushes the process to explain his purpose: that you may know the truth. This is great writing... and we embrace it as the Holy Word of God.

Students began the day with pledge and prayer. We are remembering the basketball season as students warm-up, develop, and fine-tune their skills. Welcome Coach Dan Bloss and Coach Mike Masterson- our awesome OLL coaching team!

English 6 students listened to Wayside School stories. Then students chose their 3 favorite similes from yesterday and wrote them in a poetic format that started with: Similes make us smile. Stop by and see our bulletin board. Later we read a chapter from Maniac Magee. Don't forget vocabulary due tomorrow and spelling test.

English 7/8 did a worksheet on The Outsiders. They are practicing good answers to questions that foster "thinking" - and this is good!
Vocabulary and spelling is due tomorrow.

U.S. History students will work individually or small groups to construct an Indian legend, draw a visual and tell their story to the class. Tomorrow we have the added bonus of Native American dancers here for an assembly.

Read the Gospel of Luke to know truth! Have a great day.

One Body in the Faith

We started with pledge and prayer remembering our class prayer list.

English 6 students listened Wayside School, practiced more similes as well as identify them in stories and also we read Maniac McGee.

English 8 students read "The Outsider" and had time to finish simile posters and Boarding School worksheet from yesterday. These are due today. Students are reminded that "A" work is complete and correct.

U.S. History students will respond to first "impression" posters and then we will talk about stereotyping groups of people. Students will watch Pocahontas to identify "marketing" of the Native American myth.

Don't forget, 7/8 students will begin book reports on Friday. English 6 students will do a book report to get an "A" in reading.

Service to Others

Today we started the day with pledge and prayer remembering special prayer needs in our midst.
For English 6, students did a spelling pre-test. They used class time to do their spelling and also "think" about character book report cards they will do before Nov. 5 to get an "A" in reading. The spelling words this week are: condition, silence, flinched, official, afraid, rescue, survive, design, basic, saint BONUS: narrative, immediately, and intercepted. Spelling test is Friday and vocab. worksheets due on Friday. I appreciate that some parents are helping their students to practice the words. Thanks. Simile posters are due tomorrow (most were done in class).

English 7/8 students did a pre-test and then worked on vocab. for the week. Our second period today we read The Outsiders. We are reading this novel in class to practice critical reading skills and point out how the author's literary style beefs up the writing. The spelling words this week are: odyssey, czar, synonym, principle, principal, vacant, embarrassed, original, relief, impose, skeleton, provoke, conspiracy, gasp, sarcastic, tithe, evangelist, inspiration, martyr, saint.

U.S. History students read a short story related to Indian Boarding School and then they answered a worksheet to demonstrate reading comprehension.

World History students read about an early farm village (3500B.C.) on islands off the coast of Scotland. We are laying the groundwork for students constructing THEIR OWN early farm.

Thanks Knights of Columbus, students, Mrs. Marita and others for your good work at the pancake breakfast for our school. Your good work and cheerful spirit modeled a Christian attitude of "service to others."

Persistence

The Gospel lesson today was from Luke 11 where the friend knocks on the door of a neighbor during the night and asks for a loaf of bread to feed guests. At first the neighbor refuses to get out of bed as the whole family is asleep. But the friend does not give up and eventually the neighbor responds with a loaf of bread. One message of this text is that if a neighbor finally caves in and helps out a friend, just think how much more willing our Father in Heaven to help us out. Let us seek.... ask...knock.... and the door shall be opened.

English 7/8 students read The Outsiders.
U.S. History students will read a quick thought about the blurring of the past and present in N.A. history, and then view a DVD on The Sandy Lake Tragedy.

Don't forget tomorrow: SPELLING TEST, AND VOCAB. DUE.

Also this Sunday is the Knights of Columbus breakfast to support our school. Please come to dine with others.

Draw Near with a True Heart

Prayer is God's invitation to draw near and share the concerns of our heart. Each morning we begin with sharing collective prayer concerns and individual concerns. As we lean towards God, He also leans with a listening ear and a tender heart.

English 6 students listened to a Wayside School chapter. Student then drew two pictures: 1. a big tree 2. A tree that looked like a ladder to the moon. We compared our two drawings and talked about similies. Similies help our imaginations to create pictures when we read. Brother Thinh showed the students a good trick... of how to get close to heaven starting with a paper airplane. Ask your student to show you the secret!
We then read Maniac Magee and answered questions from the story.

English 7/8 students filled in a profile on main characters in The Outsiders as described in Chapter 1.

Later today, English 7/8 will type letters to Mr. McCarty to thank him for inviting us to his buffalo farm last Friday. For U.S. History we will begin our Native American unit and watch a DVD on the Sandy Lake Tragedy if we have time.

Don't forget NO SCHOOL TOMORROW.
Also when students are absent: I expect students to complete the assignments that they miss in a reasonable amount of time. Please don't pass up this opportunity to do the make-up work.

Thanks for your prayers for all of us as we travel to Rice Lake for our in-service day.

The Apple of His Eye

Keep me as the apple of your eye... Ps. 17: 8a

Hope you had a chance to take in some of the Apple Festival fun this past weekend. Our field trip on Friday was rained out as far as Bayfield goes (we did see the buffalo farm), but students had a great day doing lunch and fun activities together. Saturday I went to Bayfield with relatives and we enjoyed eating southshore diet food: deep-fried cheese curds, corn dogs, and apples served in many ways. Yum, yum!

So we begin another week.
Grade 6 spelling words: ordinary, breath, breathe, vanished, writing, sentence, grammar, simile, comparison, different (BONUS) enthusiasm, racism, ignorance. Thank you for helping your student study these words for the test Friday and also completing the vocab. work.

Grade 7/8 words: chord, cord, cymbal, symbol, aisle, isle, site, cite, pear, pair, phase, faze, homophone, compliment, scholarship, different, college, description, character, complete. Students need to list for how these words are used in a sentence when they take a spelling test on Friday. We also finished chapter 1 in The Outsiders today.

U.S. History students finished up the transcontinental railroad unit. We are now moving into Native-American-governmental relationships in the 1800's.

World History students are starting the unit of early farmers. Today we mostly talked about the shift from hunting wild plants and animals to now domesticating the food supply.

FYI: This Wednesday there is NO school. We are off to our annual Diocese workshop day in Rice Lake. Don't forget the Indian Taco sale at the church.

Follow Jesus

Today after pledge and morning prayers we celebrated Kourtney's birthday: Happy Birthday to a wonderful student!

Father Henry instructed us today to "follow Jesus." To put on our Jesus-caps and go out and share His love and peace with the world. How appropriate to end with the song "How can we be silent."

U.S. History students today will work on deluxe trains. They are considering how the needs of "people" inform how transportation is designed. The transcontinental railroad in the 1800's brought people together as Americans.

Looking ahead:
Photos tomorrow in the morning. St Francis Memorial Liturgy after lunch tomorrow.
8th graders: spelling test tomorrow, and vocab. due Friday am before we leave for Bayfield. We will be back by 2 p.m. for band and study hall.
7th graders: spelling and vocab. due Friday.

Have a wonderful day walking into the footprints of Jesus...