February 28th

We first put our samples together for our student-led conference portfolios. The students then collected their sewing supplies for the upcoming sewing unit and learned about the rules and expectations of their behavior in the sewing lab, as well as how they will be graded and what assignments/projects they will complete during the rest of this unit.

February 25th

Students watched a video on how to care for fabrics and fibers titled "Gone with the wash." They also had a few questions they had to answer using the information in the video.

February 24th

The students took their vocabulary test for the family and independent living skills unit. It was 25 terms and definitions to match up and they were worth 2 points a piece. There is no redo tests offered on this since we had discussed it so much and told them exactly what would be on the test.

February 23rd

Students learned about and defined social skills, acceptable and unacceptable behavior and manners. They discussed what each one meant and gave examples of each. They were also reminded about their upcoming unit test on Thursday.

February 22nd

Students learned about the "Keys to Caregiving" which included physical, emotional and guidance needs. We also discussed their unit vocabulary test, which included specific terms and definitions, which they will take on Thursday which students need to start studying for tonight.

February 21st

We went through the 5 steps of problem solving, which the students had to write down. We then gave some examples of how the problem solving process could be used. We also discussed family traditions, why we have them and what they are, shared some examples of our own family traditions and watched a clip from "Fiddler on the Roof" about traditions.

February 18th

We discussed what a family is, as well as identifying different family types. They also watched a video about the functions of a family, no matter what type of family they have.

February 17th

The classes learned the definition of the term self-concept and we discussed ways that we can raise others self-concept as well as our own. Students then discussed how advertisers come up with packaging for products and how the way we present ourselves to others is like packaging ourselves for others. Students then created a package from a lunch sack that represents themselves and uses positive labels instead of negative. These are due at the start of class tomorrow (Friday, February 18th).

February 16th

Students had a sub, so they played the "Game of Life," the board game, seeing some of the things that may happen in real life. They answered questions on a sheet about some of the things that happened to them during the game and turned it in at the end of class for points.

February 15th

Today we focused on non-verbal body language and listening skills. Students discussed why they have to be observant when watching for body language and we discused the importance of attentive listening, which is using their hearts, heads and eyes, as well as ears to listen.

February 14th

Students learned about six different poor communication techniques and six good communication techniques to help create effective communication with others. The students need to keep these notes with them for the end of unit test.

February 11th

Today, students learned about stress reducers. I provided a number of different stress reducers and the class shared ways they prefer to reduce their stress. The class also practiced visual relaxation techniques during the last few minutes of class using a prerecorded relaxation tape.

February 10th

Today, students learned about stress, stressors, distress and stress reducers. All of the terms were defined, explained and discussed as a group.

February 9th

Students learned about the three types of communication; written, verbal and non-verbal. They also watched a video clip of each type of communication to help them remember the three types. We also discussed the importance of listening to others and watching their body language.

February 8th

We finished discussing food safety today by reviewing the top ten mistakes people make when preparing food at home and what the students can do to prevent these mistakes from occurring. These notes were not turned in, since we did this as a class.

February 7th

Students had a sub today. They learned about Career Pathways and did an activity to learn which pathway most interests them right now. They should have turn this into the basket before they left class.