What we are using

30 January 2009

WR17 - Making progress



Slow and steady. Consistent. Groovy. That was our week.
Art - CC started her class at the art school this week. She loved it. Her teacher is teaching her how to use the material and not telling her what to do. She is very aware of the difference.
Science - Did you know you can make gears with paper and brads? CC discovered how they work. We also spent a wonderful two hours at our local nature trail with friends.
Math - CC filled out a multiplication grid this week. She discovered some wonderful patterns in the numbers and enjoyed the process. We also practiced some four digit addition and subtraction.
Spelling - Our words this week all ended in -tion like creation and pollution. We learned that the SH sound doesn't come from the -tion ending and that -tion isn't actually an ending. It is -ion and -i changes the sound of the t which it captures from the word it is attached to. The SH sound is another example of a sound that was simplified over time. Try saying create-y-on slowly several times and then faster. You'll see where the SH sound came from. BTW - We love The ABC's and All Their Tricks.
Poetry - We learned Singing Time by Rose Fyleman and picked Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening by Robert Frost as our next poem.
Stories - This week I read Three Billy Goats Gruff to the girls. They each took turns retelling the story. They also made costumes for some of their toys and had the toys act out a play. It was very cute to see a toy bunny dressed as a troll. I think I will definitely keep classic stories as part of our school week. I think learning to retell stories is a great addition to our education.
History - We came to the chapters in Story of the World 2 that covered the beginnings of Islam. The girls were very intrigued. We found the Arabian Peninsula on our maps and talked about Mecca and Medina and Baghdad. CC appreciated how Muhammad's concern for the poor became integral parts of the religion - not just in charity but also in fasting. She also liked that memorization of the holy text was considered important.
Literature - The chapters we read from 1001 Arabian Nights went perfectly with our history study this week. There were several references to "Allah and his prophet" and a couple of stories about people named Abdallah which means "servant of God."
Writing - CC doesn't hate IEW this week. Actually, she enjoyed the lessons which covered adding interesting adjectives and strong verbs to the writing. She has decided that she likes doing key-word outlines then retelling the stories. I am glad that I didn't give up after the initial resistance.

This was another good week. We are almost to the half-way mark, and I like where we are and the progress we are making.

3 comments:

laughinglioness.lisa@gmail.com said...

I love your intro! I love the gears pic. You got so much done this week = )I love that groove too.

Wee Pip said...

The paper gears are awesome! Who knew you could do that? We're using SOTW2, also. My kids were confused by Islam, LOL. They've understood everything else, but that one throws them for a loop.

Jenny said...

Oh, I love the image of the bunny acting as a troll! It sounds like a full, fun week.