Week 23 More Memory

Last week I realized that I probably won't make dramatic changes in my homeschool but will continue on the way I've grown to believe is best.  After pondering that for a few days, I starting thinking through the things that I believe are important.   I noticed that our memory work, which I consider to be very important, has dropped recently.   This week, memory is back to a prominent position.   The girls each picked a poem to work on this week, and I received a CC Foundations Curriculum Guide.  We're going to start learning the Cycle 2 memory work. 

This week Hubby was out of town on business so I spent a good part of the week appreciating how much he does around here. 

College Update:
BB is interviewing for internships again, and in addition to his normal school  and job,  he's volunteered to work at the foodex 2012 next week.    It should be a great experience for him. 


First Grade:
When I went over the memory work for the week with LB the first time, she looked at me very sincerely and asked, "Do you think I can learn all of this?"  I assured her that she could which won me a giant smile.  Now I need to make sure I reward that trust with my own commitment. 

I printed out a copy of The Tiger for LB which she read  with delight.  She's very excited to be memorizing poetry again and excited she could read it herself.

For science this week, she sorted small rocks into sand, gravel and pebbles.She also read her own CLP 1 Nature Reader story.
For art, she made a snowman cupcake, but she ate it before I could get a picture. 

We only had one meltdown this week.  I need to pick up the clues sooner because she woke up extra cuddly and declared that if Daddy stayed away one more day, her heart would burst from despair. It should have been a warning that things wouldn't go as planned.   We got the work done that day, but with much despair, some free-play outside, and an early arrival by Daddy to listen to her reading.

Fifth Grade:
"Quit the Shakespeare and do your math."  How's that for something you don't say to your fifth grader everyday.  CC chose Marc Antony's Friends, Romans, Countrymen monologue for her new memory piece.  We used the Shakespeare Monologue site to help choose it.   She loves Shakespeare so I had trouble getting her to quit practicing the monologue and do her math.

She made terracotta warriors and learned about philanthropy this week.  For her writing this week, she wrote two one-page newspaper articles about the beginning of the Crusades.


Me:
I think my subconscious is all mixed up.  I hear "Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me your tiger tiger burning bright in 800 A.D." played to the tune of Ode to Joy whenever I have a quiet moment.   The memory work has certainly enlivened  homeschool this week and didn't stop us from being able to complete our normal work.

The result:
At the end of the week, I'm happy to report that both girls learned their CC memory work for the week.  LB learned the first stanza of The Tiger plus most of the second stanza.  CC learned the whole monologue.

Buddy - the fluffy mutt