May 23-27

The 4th grade class turned in their homework (an article on Costa  
Rica-China relations) and then took quiz #1 on Tuesday, which covered  
Early China civilizations.

They then made a trip back around the globe, learning about early man  
in America and the first civilizations here. Learning that nobody is  
"really" a Native American--that until between 30,000 B.C. and 13,000  
B.C., there was nobody here--students saw a timeline and also a  
fill-in-the-blank imagining students' trip from Asia, across the  
Bering Strait land bridge, and to what was then a nameless land.  
Students also had to come up with four questions and four answers,  
using important information from the lesson.

Using the services of students to help review the material in front of  
the class, the teacher then moved on to the first American  
Civilizations (the Olmecs and Caral people), reviewing the key points  
before having students review them on their own.

Also during the week the teacher introduced procedures to maximize  
class learning time (including making a "thumbs up" to go the bathroom  
instead of having to interrupt to ask to go).