Is it Proper to Capitalize a Proper Noun?

The answer is YES! It IS PROPER to capitalize a PROPER NOUN! Today, as a group, we brainstormed lists of common and proper nouns. Common nouns refer to any person, place, thing, or idea, but proper nouns are special names of people, places, things, or ideas. For instance, the word principal doesn't need to be capitalized within a sentence, but Mr. Chambers does. Together, we corrected a paragraph with eleven capitalization mistakes, and our group did well. Many of us needed to review, as we do not take the time to capitalize when sending text messages on our phones. This has led to a few bad habits that have transferred to our daily writing.

Are you aware of the many important natural resources found in Latin America? Our team is! The people of Latin America have riches on land, in the sea, and under the sea! In addition, they have rich soil and a climate perfect for growing many important crops. Mrs. Mac's favorite is coffee, but a close second is cacao (used in making chocolate). Tomorrow, we'll continue to learn about the many minerals, precious metals, and fuels that are important to Latin America's economy. We will also continue the preliminary rounds of the National Geographic Geography Bee.

Mr. Barzan visited to present his third lesson! Today's lesson focused on decision making. He talked about what goes into decision making and how peers influence our decisions. Yes, for better or worse....our friends do influence our decisions. Mr. Barzan shared a video of students who were presented with situations that caused them to make decisions. The most important points that came from today's discussion and examples were: 1. A good decision hurts no one. (So, ask yourself...if I do this, and the worst happens, can I live with the choice?) 2. A good decision always lets you be who you are. (Ask yourself...is this decision consistent with my values?) Many decisions are not easy, especially when friends are trying to get you to go along with them. Today's lesson gave us some things to think about.

Homework:
Reading - Your Top Ten list is due Thursday. Also, be prepared for your final on Friday (Number the Stars)
Math - Divisibility sheet
Writing - Grammar p. 31