The Magic School House

Week 19 Dance by the light of the moon

2012-01-27T16:22:00.000-07:00

I've summarized by topic and day, and now I'll try by grade.

First Grade:
--LB did 3 pages of ETC4, 3 pages of handwriting, 10 pages of MiF 1, 3 lessons from Saxon 2, 5 pages from Spectrum First Grade Reading. Read Shampoodle three times. Started reading the directions for her worksheets. Has been practicing some words out of context using some sight word flashcards on my Kindle.

--Made a mummy and painted a sarcophagus.

--Enjoyed tap and jazz class.

--Used How to Draw Pets to draw lots of animals and habitats for them then play "paper pets."   Sometimes I wonder why we buy toys, but I'm also very happy that the girls are so imaginative and creative.

Books:
I read Mr.Brown Can Moo, Twelve Dancing Princesses, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Where the Wild Things Are, and The Owl and the Pussycat to her.
Gma read James Herriot's Treasury for Children to her.

Fifth Grade:
CC's been practicing cello for 45 minutes to an hour everyday, even the days she has cello class, and it is showing.

--Read another three Warrior books and has been relegated to non-fiction for a while. She's reading Untamed Leadership which is written by a local author.

--Is working her way through the second volume of the Cartoon History of the Universe which came in handy in her enrichment school where she used her new knowledge of Chinese dynasties to complete her time line without having to look up the names. Now I'm starting to think I might add a set of these to our collection when they are due back at the library.

--Is plugging away in AoPS pre-Algebra. She ran into some problems with higher exponents so I pulled and she pushed and we made it through. She's now in chapter 3 of AoPS Pre-Algebra and starting to work on some Number Theory which sounds cool, but right now looks a lot like divisibility tests.

--Started her new art class. This time she is taking a fashion design class instead of pottery.

--Worked for several hours on her writing.

--One day, she left home promptly at 7:15 to spend a morning at a classical school trying to picture herself learning in school instead of at home. Last time she went, I spent the morning at school with her, and this time she wanted her dad to go. The school is a perfect fit for me from the Socratic discussions to the reading list, but she'd be the one sitting in class so it needs to be right for her too. She is very excited. We should find out next week if she gets a spot in school for next year or if we have to be on the wait list.

Other:
Dad took both the girls downtown for lunch one afternoon. I gave them one morning to watch educational shows while I had a couple of meetings. They watched two episodes of Carmen Sandiego then ran off to play until I was done.

Science this week was amphibians. The kids used Uncover a Frog to study frog anatomy in depth. They took notes from their reading then gave a short presentation to me and my friend and to their little sisters about interesting facts about frogs and amphibians.

We took our last two hens to live with a friend today. A couple of weeks ago, the local bobcat mother took off with one of them during the middle of the day. We've been torn between the idea of putting up a camera to catch the beautiful creature in the act and getting rid of the chicken buffet. We finally decided that if she learns to troll backyards for food, it could limit her future as well as the future of some local small dogs.   We don't want her to get too accustomed to eating things from people's yards so the hens and fresh eggs had to go in favor of keeping wildlife wild.

Just me:
I read and highly recommend Alone: The Classic Polar Adventure by none other than Mr. Byrd himself. It was so beautifully written that I kept reading passages to the girls. LB sighed happily and said it sounded like poetry.   I'd been looking for some good nonfiction, and this was very satisfying.

I still cry when Bambi's mom gets shot.

Week 18 Ode to Joy

2012-01-20T14:38:00.004-07:00

Last week was by day so this week I'll summarize by subject.

Math:
CC is in chapter 2 of AoPS PreAlgebra. She's working hard on order of operations and exponents.
LB did 6 pages of MiF 1 and 3 lessons of Saxon 2. She has been working on shapes and patterns in MiF and doubles+1 addition and adding money in Saxon.

Philosophy and Logic:
We discussed the Allegory of the Cave this week along with the effect of knowledge on perception. We also talked a lot about the pre-Socratic philosopher's views of the four elements - air, water, fire and earth. CC is working her way through Sophie's World.

LB did 5 pages per day of Lollipop Logic 2. She's almost finished the book and is looking forward to a trip to the local teacher supply store to get a new logic book and look at the toys.

LA:
CC is working about an hour a day on writing a story. I love watching her think through her character's actions and how to use dialogue to advance her plot. She also worked 3 days on poetry memorization and copywork.

LB did 4 pages of ETC4 and got really excited about loopy words in cursive. She's decided she loves cursive and realized her name is fun to write. She did 3 pages of cursive practice besides making a whole page of her name plus some favorite words like cute.

Science:
LB started studying rocks and minerals.
In biology this week, we studied fish and fish scales with our friends. Here are some pictures of the fish slides we studied on our microscope.

Books:
CC read one of the Warriors books and started rereading Little Women again. She also read through the The Egyptian News and all 6 of the You Wouldn't Want to Be a.. books that I'd picked up at the library to read to LB this weekend and The Cartoon History of the Universe vol. 1 which is part of a series that BB had enjoyed during middle school.
Hubby read a Magic Treehouse book about knights to LB.
Gma read a couple of Jan Brett books to LB
I read Kitten's First Full Moon, Comet's Nine Lives, Blueberries for Sal and One Morning in Maine to LB, The Princess of Mars to CC and Sea Fairies to both.
At lunch I read How to Talk to Your Dog to everyone.
We all took turns reading Egyptology with LB.
LB read See How They Grow: Chick and Tiger is a Scaredy Cat.

Other:
I was off work on Monday so we went to the museum and spent some time in the rocks and minerals section and in the Egypt exhibit. Cello featured Ode to Joy this week which made CC very proud to finally be playing Beethoven although all of us are now humming it.

We had a terrific week.

Week 17 Day by Day

2012-01-10T16:44:00.138-07:00

Here is our week, day by day. We are easing back into schoolwork focusing on reading, writing and math. The enrichment programs are restarting, and we're getting used to being busy again.

Monday, I had two, one hour presentations for work. I was awesome which is good because I had spent most of the weekend going over my presentation. CC went to school where had she fun with her friends and learned that not everyone knows the name of the emperor that commissioned the building of the Great Wall of China or why it was built. She also had her cello lesson. LB spent the time while I was preparing for and giving my presentation watching way too many episodes of All Dogs Go To Heaven on Netflix. After my presentation, we did math (Saxon and Math in Focus), handwriting, and reading (A Fly Went By). She also played with her toys, made a "wild animal trap", cuddled for some stories, and went to tap dancing. My second presentation started at 10 pm for the office on the other side of the world. As I went to bed, I found that after CC had finished the last chapters of Fablehaven, she had started and nearly finished Esperanza Rising. Monday was a long day.

Tuesday started with a lovely sunrise. LB had a hard time getting out of her cozy bed for school today, but she made it out the door almost on time having eaten most of her oatmeal for breakfast. CC spent the morning building a castle with keva blocks then worked on presidents and multiplication instead of math. She also found the long lost Sugar Changed the World so she could read the last chapter and return it to the library only a month overdue. She is restricted from reading in bed tonight because she was up entirely too late for a school night last night. We had a discussion about the importance of sleep for cognitive function and making school a priority. LB had fun at school and made salt dough porcupines. Right now, dinner is cooking, there are gf chocolate cookies cooling on the counter that the girls made, they are playing in the living room, and I am sitting in between the two wondering if I am doing a good job of homeschooling.

Wednesday, CC was up bright and early so I helped her make tapioca pudding for breakfast while I prepared for my morning meeting. LB joined us and decided she couldn't wait for the pudding so she helped me make pancakes. Gma helped her finish the pancakes, and they all had breakfast while I worked for a few hours. After breakfast, the kids played while I worked. When I took a break from work, I helped LB get started with her Lollipop Logic pages and moved on to a few pages of math then I went back to work while CC spent a few hours writing. After my next meeting LB and I worked on Saxon and MiF then I checked on CC's math progress. We went over a few problems and worked on rules with exponents then I went downstairs to read with LB. After LB finished reading, CC explained a math problem to me that she had found interesting (I really love AoPS). The girls played some more before it was time for CC's cello practice. Afterwards, I made dinner and another day was done except for more reading before bed. Tonight I read The Twelve Dancing Princesses to LB then a chapter of A Princess of Mars to CC.

Thursday, LB was up before me and greeted me with coffee in bed. Hubby made her pancakes while I read to her and drank my coffee. CC slept in because she'd been up late reading (my fault, I was reading beside her). While I had breakfast and started work, LB used the kitchen scale to weigh her pancakes and figure out about how much a pancake weighs and about how many pancakes are in a pound then pulled out the Schleich animals and Keva blocks to build a zoo. I worked in the morning while the girls either read the newspaper or played. At lunch, LB read and did her logic and maths with me. After lunch she played in my office and created her own office. CC spent about four hours divided between working on her story, reading from Sophie's World and doing math. She was very pleased with the progress she made. Judo, dinner, and stories finished up the day.

Friday is usually a long day at work for me. I started early to get ready for my morning meetings. The girls watched Dirty Jobs (that's educational, right?) while they ate breakfast, and I had my first meeting. After both of my morning meetings, I took a break. CC started with Sophie's World, and I started working with LB on her logic and maths after we baked some gluten free muffins. All five of us made it to the table for muffins which was a nice break in our day. CC, Gma and I had a chat about Socrates, Plato and Aristotle plus the relationship between the early philosophers and science (muffins and philosophy are great together). Hubby is taking off a little early today to take them to the library, and I work late on Fridays. We'll do more reading and such later tonight, but that is most of Friday.

A couple of random notes. LB's non-fiction book this week is Calf. Our science lab friends were sick this week, so we didn't have science. Even though I didn't mention it, we did read every night. We also typically read more during the day, but we this was still a light school week for us. Next week we'll get back to a heavier workload. Even when we do have more work, our days are pretty much like this. Since hubby and I both work from home most days, our school day really stretches to match our work day. They're learning to keep busy when I'm busy and work when I'm not as busy. And that was our week.

Week 16 - Welcome to 2012

2012-01-06T14:07:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the new year.

We had a hard time getting back to school this week. BB left dark and early Wednesday morning for his flight back to Japan. He is now TWO semesters from graduating. Remember the first January he left? It doesn't seem like that long ago at all.

Other than skiing, mountains, snow, lovely weather, tubing, swimming, and BB going back to school, I finally got the cold that everyone else had during the holidays. While they had it, I enjoyed reading and peace and quiet. With their school, my work and my cold this week, they get to read for school. It only seems fair.

Wednesday, I started reading The Sea Fairies to the girls after breakfast then had LB read half of a Level 3 reader to me while CC read Extreme Scientists. We're starting a new book about the history and science of siege weapons which follows some catapult building we did over Christmas break. Once she learns more about it, we'll move from gravity to tension and torsion powered devices while adding some additional math to the fun - the quadratic equation will soon take center stage around here along with some very perfect parabolas. This is what happens when CC does most of the work I'd planned for the year before it is halfway finished. Yes, catapults aren't just for knocking over castle walls and annoying your sister; they are a fun way to use the quadratic equation!

Thursday, we started out the day reading The Sea Fairies in the comfy chairs at the coffee shop while waiting for GMa to get a blood test. After that, LB read more of her reader and CC read more of her Extreme Scientists book. Later, CC explained photosynthesis to LB - including "pulling apart water which is H20 to make oxygen" and making glucose. It was a pretty nice explanation.

Friday is actually science day. Our friends came over for our next lesson from ClassiQuest Biology in which we learned about insect legs. The girls did their reading, and I still have my cold. I am preparing a training session for 45 people for Monday - I'm more than ready for my cold to be gone.

Versatile Blogger

2012-01-05T12:44:00.000-07:00

Lisa at Golden Grasses has passed along the Versatile Blogger award. She is passionate about education and always inspires me to look deeply at what we use in our home school. Here is the info. on the award:

Thank the award-giver who nominated you and link back to them in your post. (Thank-you, Lisa!)
Share 7 random things about yourself.
Nominate 15 blogs you enjoy reading (not happening)
Inform the bloggers of their nomination.
Add the Versatile Blog Award picture on your blog post.

7 Random Things about me:

As a child, I could usually be found either in the library, hiding somewhere with a book, or exploring the swamp adjacent to my house.
I once took a large bunch of bananas into a tree, pretended to be a monkey, and ate enough of them to make myself violently ill. More than thirty years later, I still can't eat bananas.
I was the first person in my family on either side to go to college.
My very first vacation out of the country (and second time on a plane) was to Jamaica while I was in college. My friend and I couldn't afford to stay in a hotel so we spent the week sleeping on the beach. It was a wonderful vacation which still makes me smile when I think about it.
It took me about three years to read Moby Dick the first time, but I read it three more times the following year.
I dream of sailing a 37' catamaran around the Bahamas then through the Panama Canal and on to Fiji.
I read Meditations by Marcus Aurelius in high school and many times afterward. It has probably had more influence on me than any other book.
I am terrible at following directions and terrific and making lists.

Didn't I say I was terrible at following directions?

Week 15 Snowflakes

2011-12-16T10:07:00.001-07:00

It is so good the have BB home!
Other than that here is our week by school-age child:
CC: Christmas party, cello recital, reading, indoor sky diving, reading, math, party, reading, math, judo, square dancing, math, reading

LB: playing, math, reading, pajama day, about me poster, snowflakes, math, reading, singing, math, reading, judo, square dancing, playing, exploring, gingerbread people, math, playing, reading

We've reduced the week to our math+reading requirements which is a pretty good workload for the last two weeks of the year. We're doing lots of Christmas carol singing, decorating, present wrapping, baking, and enjoying each other.

I'm rethinking some of what we use for school for the new year. I'm looking to add some formal geography memorization to our week. I'd like the girls to learn the names, capitals, and locations of all of the countries in the world. If you have taught this and have a recommendation, please let me know.

My thought for this week is to stop and enjoy the right now without comparing it to what you think it should be and without trying to hold on to it or get more of it. Just enjoy it as it is, just like a snowflake.

Week 14 - Going to be a long weekend

2011-12-09T08:48:00.002-07:00

LB took this picture of a piece of sponge with our microscope

I will start my weekly wrap-up looking forward to the weekend instead of back into the past week. This Saturday, the girls are both testing for their next level in Judo Saturday morning. Saturday afternoon, LB has a rehearsal for her tap class. Sunday afternoon is LB's dance recital, and BB is coming home. LB is also the only kid in her class so her recital is a solo. I'm nervous and excited and anxious on so many levels. Did I mention that BB is coming home?!

CC has a case of what we call "Creeping Crud;" she started getting sick on Monday. Needless to say, she's done lots of lying around and reading. I think this week's reading reflects our lower standards for sick kids - she's read four books in the Warriors series and Anne of the Island. Nonfiction was nonsense to her fevered little head.

LB has been working steadily through her math and phonics. Her new nonfiction book this week was See How They Grow: Duck. She made a lovely orange/clove ornament to give to our neighbor. She said that she'd never felt so happy or so proud as when our neighbor smiled when she opened the gift.

BB sent me a sweet one-line email letting me know he's in the middle of finals.

I heard the phrase "happily translating Ovid couplets" this week. It made me feel good.

Week 13

2011-12-03T08:57:00.000-07:00

This week's report includes some from last week since we were off the end of the week. We've been to the natural history museum, riding go-carts, the aquarium, cello practice, our normal schools, a shadow day at a classical school, art school, dance and judo.

School work has varied from the normal and routine to field trips and also to late-night reading through gardening books (gotta love library trips). What kind of person stays up to the wee hours to read a gardening book?

The girls both enjoy non-fiction books. This week, LB is reading See How They Grow: Fox and Eye Wonder: Ocean. She loves these books because they are visually appealing. CC has been reading Sugar Changed the World which is a mix of two of her favorite topics: science and history. Some other single topic science/history books she's read lately are Dr. Jenner and the Speckled Monster and The Quest for the Tree Kangaroo. She's allocated a new shelf in the library to single-topic science books in hopes of filling it with more books like this. I've found that as she's gotten older, she prefers books like this that go deeper into one topic instead of books that give a bigger view.

CC trying to avoid the camera

We're seriously looking at a classical school for next year for CC. It has everything I'd want in a school from Latin to Socratic discussion. We spent a day this week observing classes. CC was excited to see other girls excited by math, history and ideas. I could see her happily picturing herself there although I'm having trouble picturing myself not homeschooling her.

LB and her friend at the museum

LB is making steady and terrific progress in math and reading. She's also becoming a wonderful artist and storyteller. She's right on track for how I'd like her schooling to be, except that maybe we spend too much time cuddling on the couch, but I can't complain much about that. Her first grade is very different from CC's, but the basic ideal of tailored learned, family, stories, and free-play is all there even if it is all different.

Week 11 - Cello Recital

2011-11-18T10:19:00.001-07:00

Here is a short sample from this week's cello recital. The kids have been playing since September. There are kids from three groups in the recital and they've only had one practice together. I think they're phenomenal. CC is in the third row of cellos in the middle wearing red like everyone else.

CC spent the early part of the week worrying about the performance and having those stressful anxiety dreams - turning into a banana on stage and not being able to play or the cello blowing up. However, she learned that once she sat down with her cello that the anxiety went away and she wasn't nervous anymore. All those hours of practice let her relax into the music. When people discuss how to build self-esteem in kids, I turn to examples like this. Actually doing real things that are a real challenge builds self- esteem much better than reading books or talking about it.

The rest of the week was wondrously routine. CC is still loving AoPS Prealgebra. LB is getting very confident with her two math programs (Saxon and Math in Focus) and is turning out to be quite good at math. Phonics, writing, reading, history, logic, poetry and science are plodding along too. The girls are both enjoying their enrichment schools. It was a very good week.

Week 10 - Catching up

2011-11-11T09:37:00.003-07:00

Last week was hard. The previous week was very hard. My mom's surgery went well. ICU was a hard place to spend a couple of days and so was the cardiac unit. We brought her home on a Tuesday after a triple bypass on a Friday which was also really hard. There were so many people watching her and taking care of her in the hospital that bringing her home was intimidating. My brother was here from Michigan. It was amazing to have him here. I always think of him as my baby brother, but he was strong and steady. All of us worked hard to make things as normal as possible around here.

After we came home, Mom got worse instead of better. She started having irregular heartbeats so I took her back to the hospital. They found a blood clot in her lungs and in her leg so she spent another 4 days in the cardiac unit.

We've spent a lot of time in the hospital over the past couple of weeks. The girls have learned a lot about doctors, surgeons, nurses, cardiologists, hospitals, hearts, blood, IVs, heart rhythm -- things I really hadn't planned to teach this year. We also got a good lesson in taking care of each other and rolling with what life throws your way.

My sister is here this weekend helping to get mom settled again and get all of her cardiac rehab, medications, followup appointments and such straightened. I could probably do it alone, but it is so nice to have her here. She makes me smile.

Through it all, we've mostly done our essential school work - phonics, reading, math, writing, music, dance, pottery. The girls have picked up more chores to help out. --Notice I managed to put some school content in here. We are getting back to school and life.

A picture of LB's work done for one day, between visits to the hospital.

Week 8 - The only thing that matters

2011-10-28T08:18:00.001-06:00

I usually summarize my school week mixed with our life because homeschooling is part of our life, but sometimes that life overshadows the school. This morning it doesn't really matter that CC likes her new math program or that LB loves writing sentences in cursive. This morning what matters is what Missy the OR nurse will say when she comes in over the next few hours.

My mom, aka, Grandma around here, started having trouble breathing last week when we took a beautiful fall walk. She sat, rested, and dismissed it. The same thing happened the next day. Monday, she was sure she might be coming down with something because she felt achy and couldn't sleep. Tuesday, she woke up with pressure in her chest but finally went back to sleep. Wednesday, I noticed she looked pale and was rubbing her chest certain she'd pulled a muscle. Thursday, I finally convinced her to go to the doctor, and took her to the emergency room instead of a doctor. She'd had a heart attack.

Right now, she is having bypass surgery and that's the only thing that matters.

Week 7

2011-10-21T12:52:00.005-06:00

I'm really deliciously happy right now. I finished Anna Karenina which I've been reading for a couple of weeks. I can't believe that I'd never read this book. I remember those other Russian authors, and I've even read War & Peace which is good, but it isn't Anna Karenina good.

This week was hard for me with a mix of migraines and a birthday.

Monday, we managed to do school which went well except for a problem with LoF.

Tuesday was LB's birthday, and she had a terrific field trip with school. CC and I spent a good part of the day learning that NEM will not work for us in any way shape or form. She'd already been betrayed by Fred on Monday which made this worse. Fred will randomly add in a problem with no context, and CC HATES that.

Wednesday..... I am pretty sure the kids spent the day watching Mythbusters and Popular Mechanics for Kids. The house was dark, and the kids were quiet so that was all good with my head.

Thursday was better. We did our work and our friends came over for school. I loved our science unit which covered worms. Lets just say that a kid might read about worm anatomy for an hour, but it only takes a minute of holding an earthworm to learn which end is the posterior. Also, reading that worms have nerve bundles in each segment isn't nearly as memorable as seeing that a worm can smell with its posterior end as well as with his middle and his head.

I went to bed before the kids Thursday night, but not before reading Midsummer Night's Dream from Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare to LB and putting Charlotte's Web on for her to listen to. She told me she loves E.B. White. I skipped reading to CC because she had started reading The Throne of Fire and was already lost in it.

Friday, CC woke up very tired because she'd stayed up to read all of The Throne of Fire. She did her schoolwork quickly and was done before lunch. LB woke up early, enjoyed her breakfast and watched a Japanese video while I was in a meeting. We all went for a walk and played in the leaves.

Wordless Wednesday - Guess who is 7?

2011-10-19T12:02:00.000-06:00

Week 6 - Focus on Fifth Grade

2011-10-14T14:25:00.001-06:00

Fifth grade is starting to smooth out. We've rearranged things and settled on what is important. CC has quit trying to do everything everyday so she can focus more. Here is how we are currently doing fifth grade.

Our core subjects that get done everyday are math, left-hand handwriting (she's right handed), poetry memorization, and rune memorization. Right now she is learning the Elder Futhark alphabet. With our core work, we're focusing on exercising her brain.

After her core subjects, she does some physical stretching and strength work then practices cello.

Next she works on her combination of mythology and art. Each week she draws a mythological creature and writes a one page paper about it.

For history, she is writing summaries from SoTW twice a week. She is also doing one level outlines once a week from a book on natural history.

Once a week she works on a section from Ellen McHenry's The Brain. And we're still working through ClassiQuest Biology with friends once a week.

We've moved her additional reading to night so that she has more free time during the day. She's alternating Every Bone Tells a Story which is a book about anthropology, Sophie's World which is philosophy, and Aristotle Leads the Way which is the history of science. After she reads from one of these, she does her free reading. Right now she is reading Swiss Family Robinson. She's already read The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, Anna and the King , The River, and something else this week. A library card and a large selection of books from when BB was homeschooled are indispensable.

Other than school work, she takes cello twice a week with a strings group, does pottery at the art school with her dad, and takes judo once a week. She still seems to have plenty of time to play, go for walks, and enjoy being 10. We have found that her work is easier for her to keep organized if she keeps each subject in a separate composition book. I've been attempting to try to balance her education into equal parts artistic, physical and mental work.

Nothing better than snow

For once

2011-10-13T20:44:00.000-06:00

For once I'd like a miracle
I can't take much more than this
I'm looking for something stronger than a wish
Something better than a present
I'm looking for a miracle
It seems like every night we get all fussy and frustrated

This is the song LB made up while she was supposed to be brushing her teeth. Apparently, she can't take much more than this - being asked to brush her teeth before bed.

She sang it before brushing, while brushing, after brushing, while getting her jammies, and picking out her story. Really. I only told her to get ready for bed twice. Hubby and I smiled because she is the least dramatic of our three kids.

Week 5 No Focus this Week

2011-10-07T12:50:00.003-06:00

This week started with me planning a change of direction. Well, I did have a change of direction, but I think I moved from overwhelmed to completely lost then headed back on a path.

Monday was good. We did our work, added in some more reading and had some time leftover.

Tuesday was good. LB went to her school and had a terrific day. CC worked hard on her work and a productive day.

Wednesday, which is my hard day, started off in a different direction. The girls started with their work, but after our friends came over for science, we weren't able to get back to work. The weather was clear with that first touch of fall coolness. They spent the rest of the day playing outside.

Thursday turned out to be more of the same. They played in the morning while I was working on a big project for work. I spent the rest of the day either distracted myself or watching them enjoy playing outside in the wind. I marked it as a day off.

How could we work on a day like this?

Friday, we finally made it through our work again just in time to reassure myself that we're doing okay. Although, you would not believe how many times I had to say things like, "No whistling while your sister is doing phonics" and "No whistling during phonics!" and "No singing during math" and "Wait until after she reads to start reciting your poetry, PLEASE!" and "Let her sound out her own words."
Goodness. However, it is noonish, and CC is in the library reading and has completed her written work for the day. LB has finished her work except for some stories and is upstairs playing.

Highlights:
I did decide that CC would do more of a WTM writing plan integrated with our other subjects. She's already writing summaries, but we've formalized that she'll do two history summaries per week. We added one-level outlines which I have realized are brilliant. Her current problem in writing is figuring out what belongs in a paragraph, and the outlines are forcing her to look at a paragraph as a unit. Additionally, she does a science write-up from our lab each week and writes a one-page paper on a topic of her choice using at least two sources for reference.

CC enjoying a day off instead of doing school.

LB's reading is getting smooth. She's only on the fourth McRuffy First Grade reader, but she's making wonderful progress. The stories are funny, the length is just right, and they do a great job of making a story using a phonics rule and reviewing rules that were previously covered. This week's story had -ice words and included silent e words and ai words. She is also starting to spot words instead of strings of letters that need to be sounded out. It is such a big improvement from last year when her letters wouldn't stay still on a page, and she saw them upside down or backwards just as often as she saw them the correct way. She's also lost her midline jump. I was very skeptical when our eye doctor said she's outgrow it before she was seven, but he was exactly right.

LB made this dress for her doll after we read Kaya.

Mostly Wordless Wednesday - How to ride a train

2011-10-05T07:05:00.001-06:00

No Eating on the train

Really, no eating

Please remain seated

Keep your arms in the train

Keep your HEAD inside the train

Smile

Enjoy your Ride

More books and things or taking a new path

2011-10-03T10:56:00.004-06:00

I spent part of the weekend trying to get my inspiration back after our recent change of direction. I listened to a few SWB audio lectures and read some CM. I also spent a morning reading to LB and took both of the girls to the mountains to glory in the change of seasons. Here is my CM inspiration:

Children can be most fitly educated on Things and Books. Things, e.g.–– 
i. Natural obstacles for physical contention, climbing, swimming, walking, etc. 
ii. Material to work in––wood, leather, clay, etc. 
iii. Natural objects in situ––birds, plants, streams, stones, etc,
v. Scientific apparatus, etc.
The value of this education by Things is receiving wide recognition, but intellectual education to be derived from Books is still for the most part to seek.
Every scholar of six years old and upwards should study with 'delight' his own, living, books on every subject in a pretty wide curriculum. Children between six and eight must for the most part have their books read to them.

I had a good talk with CC then inquired about a different enrichment program. This one is in a different district that is designed mostly for group-learning and social time (which means it is for fun not strictly educational). We're planning to visit it in a couple of weeks, but for now, we'll work on filling in the holes left from the last one.

This morning I began school with a story for LB before her breakfast, and we all enjoyed some poetry together. I'm happy with the new direction we're taking.

Week 4 - A focus on first grade

2011-09-30T13:43:00.000-06:00

This week, I'm showing a peek into how we do first grade. I took apart all of the workbooks that I had chosen and put the pages into a big, expandable folder. LB has a folder for each day of the week which I stuff on Sunday night. Easy peasy.

I put the work that requires me on the left side and work she can do alone or with someone other than me on the right side. I added in some busy work to what I had originally planned so that she could have things to do on her own when the rest of us were busy. The busy work includes Lollipop Logic and reading mazes. I put the reading book for the week in the Monday folder then pass it to the next day. The other things in the folder are a page from Artistic Pursuits, the ETC lesson for the day, the Saxon sheet for the day, a page for Math In Focus, and two copies of her handwriting sheet. On the occasional day when everything in the folder isn't finished, the leftover work gets put into the next day's folder. This only happened twice so far, and she didn't balk at the "extra" work.

It all works pretty well unless we don't get started first thing after breakfast. If I let her wander off and do something else before her work is done, she's a bear.

Daily Folders, the Pencil Box, and my folder

The contents of Wednesday's folder

LB's folders contain the written work for the day. Not included in the folder is my Saxon teacher book, the Saxon meeting book, the book we're reading for history, the poem she's working on, a myth, and a story. Those are stored on the bookshelf with her folders for the week. In her pencil box are two pencils, a pair of scissors, a red checking pencil for me, and a glue stick. I don't know why I never thought of using pencil boxes before, but this year each girl has one which has saved me from looking for pencils every day.

Where CC spent the week

This was a very strange week. Hubby put the new bookshelves in the basement corner that will become our library nook. CC spent most of the week moving, sorting, and shelving books plus reading, reading, and reading. It isn't her normal school work, but it was a terrific way for a bibliophile to spend a week of school. I'll post a picture of the finished space once she declares the library open for business. She did do her "core" work most days this week which includes math, cello practice, pottery class, poetry memorization, and a written report on a science topic.

We have 95% decided to drop CC's enrichment school. It isn't meeting our expectations. We'll need to replace the Spanish and the writing, but I think enrichment school is more clutter in our lives than an important part of our school.

I still need serious work on my Wednesday. It just isn't working out for us. I have three work meetings that day and for the last two weeks, we've had first grade tears on Wednesday. I think this week I will add more stories and poetry and less written work to Wednesday to see if that is better.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-09-28T01:56:00.001-06:00

Week 3 -- Writing Problems

2011-09-23T12:36:00.001-06:00

CC books completed: The Wee Free Men, Behind the Lines, The War Within, I, Juan de Pareja, Zenda and the Gazing Ball

LB - books received: How Do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight, Judy Moody The Doctor Is In, The Three Little Dassies, Purplicious, If You Give a Moose a Muffin, If You Give a Pig a Pancake, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, Kitten's First Full Moon, Rapunzel

LB working on a newspaper

CC starting her day's work with left hand practice

Kids grinding corn during LB's field trip

LB making her way into an Anasazi cliff dwelling

CC's work this week -
Cello, Math, poetry, handwriting (left hand), poetry copywork, The Story of Science, Sophie's World, Creation myths, Every Bone Tells a Story, The Brain, ClassiQuest Biology, Shurley Grammar, 3 writing prompts, Spanish, vocabulary, Greek Roots, Story of the World written summaries, a dozen pages from Logic Liftoff, a one page paper on a topic of choice.

LB's work this week:
Tap, Gymnastics, Saxon Math, Math in Focus, ETC, a McRuffy reader, Logic Liftoff, cursive handwriting practice for both hands, Jan Brett coloring pages, a field trip to a local historical site, and cave painting.

Challenges:
We have a writing problem. CC is working on a new story which is turning out to be beautiful. She spends long hours researching, writing, revising, planning, and writing some more. She has over a thousand words for this story so far.

Now, you might wonder what my problem is. It is writing assignments from her enrichment school such as, "Write an 8 sentence accordion paragraph about your favorite tv show." She spent a lot of time this week balking at this writing prompt and ended up very dissatisfied with the results of her work although her paragraph was interesting and well-written. That type of writing makes her feel like a failure. How do I get her to be more comfortable with this type of writing? My best argument so far involves something that amounts to learning to write well withing constraints or learn to conform. I'm not even convinced by my own arguments. Is this type of writing important? I have specifically avoided writing programs that try to teach that stuff so why am I inflicting it her now?

We added cello lessons and pottery to CC's schedule this week. She's had trouble keeping up with everything she had scheduled for herself with the additional activities and the burden of the dreaded writing assignments. However, by the end of the week she had completed her self-assigned work.

As for challenges with LB, I just need more time. I chose the Saxon math with it's long "math meeting" just so that I would not resort to having her only do workbook pages for math. There are times when I regret that I made that choice. She loves the time we spend together with the math, but I often feel like I don't have enough time to spare for it. We normally spend 45 minutes to an hour doing math, but this is a subject that I don't want to hurry. For her age, reading and math are most important to me so I'm trying to make sure that that is where I spend the most time and energy.

Good Points.
I really like Ellen McHenry's The Brain. CC is learning and excited about what she's learned. She's asked to do another unit from her once she's done with this one. We'll probably do the chemistry units next.

LB finished ETC3 this week, and it has consistently been a terrific part of our school day. We'll start book 4 next week.

Week 2

2011-09-16T13:32:00.002-06:00

CC's books completed: The Land of the Blue Flowers, Hatchet, Holes, The Westing Game, and The Phantom Tollbooth

LB stories received: The Owl and the Pussycat, Meet Kaya, First Dog, Madeline, Encyclopedia Prehistorica , Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, Stink, Sleeping Beauty

Poetry from Classic Poems to Read Aloud

The girls made pie

CC decided this week that she should be busy "morning, noon and night" so she dismissed my lovely school plans that spaced the work out in various subjects onto different days and has been doing an assignment from each of her books everyday plus reading for a couple of hours every night. Here's what she did this week
-- 3 lessons from LoF and a bridge
-- 4 written summaries from SoTW
-- 4 full pages of poetry copywork
-- 4 sections from The Brain
-- 4 sections of The Story of Science
-- 4 creation myths
-- 4 sections from an anthropology book
-- 4 chapters from Sophie's world
-- drew 4 animals freehand from an animal encyclopedia
-- read 4 stories to her sister
-- practised handwriting with her left hand
-- did a ClassiQuest Biology lab with her friend
--plus - did a 20 minute timed writing assignment, vocabulary, a short paragraph literature response, a page of Shurley grammar and a daily review of Spanish vocabulary for her enrichment school homework, plus spent a full day in school.

The girl makes me tired, and she wants me to grade all of her work so that she can compare herself and know where she needs to improve.

Setting the mantis free

LB completed --
-- 4 Saxon lessons and her very first timed facts test, which she loved
-- 4 pages from Math in Focus
-- 6 pages of ETC
-- 1 Lollypop Logic
-- 1 McRuffy Reader
-- made more dinosaurs
-- Colored many, many pages printed from Jan Brett
-- listened to lots of stories
-- played with her prehistory timeline and sorted her dinosaurs into the correct time periods
-- 4 more letters in cursive with each hand
-- had tap and judo class
-- drew pictures of her state, learned some more local history, learned a song and taught it to us, played some games, had pe, made colorful drawings of her state, and had fun with her friends at her enrichment school

This week mostly seemed better than last week. LB noticed the difference in the amount of time her sister was working and missed the extra playing. There were more instances of shushing around the table than usual. My Wednesday schedule is a bit off because I have an early meeting that day and have trouble getting into a good rhythm. I also need to figure out how I'm going to grade CC.

Remembered

2011-09-11T10:26:00.000-06:00

2011-2012 Week 1 of School

2011-09-09T08:49:00.000-06:00

We had a terrific first day of school, but I was tired and feeling rundown by Wednesday (or was it Tuesday night).

This week CC
-- Completed Four lessons of Life of Fred
-- Did One chapter from The Brain by Ellen McHenry
-- Read and discussed Two chapters from Sophie's World
-- Started reading about Creation Myths from around the world
-- Finished reading Night of the Twisters and A Little Princess, started reading a big collection of Mark Twain.
-- Summarized a chapter from SToW
-- Read and discussed the first chapter of the Story of Science
-- Did copywork from IEW poetry everyday to refresh her memory of the poems she learned last year
-- Did two pages of Shurley Grammar homework, started learning her grammar jingles, wrote a newsletter about herself, reread the first four chapters of A Secret Garden for Literature and worked on some vocabulary and word roots.
-- Reviewed the Spanish vocabulary she learned last week
-- Started working on a barn for her sister's horses
-- Made a map of an amusement park then spent two hours with her sister visiting it.
-- Did a lesson from Classiquest Biology wither her friend
-- Spent a day at her enrichment school learning language arts, Spanish, art, and music.

This week LB
-- Did 3 lessons of Saxon
-- One lesson from Singapore's Math in Focus
-- Did 6 pages of ETC3
-- Worked on cursive handwriting
-- Read the first McRuffy reader
-- Drew, colored, named, and laminated a lot of dinosaurs
-- Excavated a dinosaur skeleton
-- Taught Daddy how to pronounce dinosaur names
-- Listened to some fairy tales
-- Retold a fairy tale
-- Went to tap class and Judo
-- Started learning about our state history, learned a new song, made some art, learned a new p.e. game, and played with her friends at her enrichment school
-- Went to the dentist

Together
-- Wow, I had always imagined that I'd be able to conveniently combine them in some subjects and spend a wonderful time learning together but at different levels. That just isn't happening. LB spent so much time tagging along with CC when she was younger that she doesn't want anything like that anymore. She wants her own learning that is just hers. I spent a lot of my time just trying to keep them from annoying each other while they were doing their work. I decided that I'll put the effort into keeping their work separate so that when they are done with school, they'll feel like playing together.

I learned this week that I need to make sure school happens first thing in the day. I also learned that this is HARD. I think I should have known this by now. In case you were wondering, Wednesday we worked on finishing CC's writing assignment until almost 10 pm; I just couldn't get all of their and my work into a normal sized day. I am grateful that I spent so much time planning things so I can be mostly "do the next thing" in all of my subjects, or I would not have survived this week. I am also grateful that my mom and hubby are home to help me juggle work and homeschooling, or it would never work.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-09-08T14:44:00.000-06:00

2011-2012 First Day of School

2011-09-05T16:57:00.004-06:00

Today is the first official day of the new school year.
We started at 9am talking about the September poem, what tokens we associate with September, and what September fells like to us.

LB started with handwriting. We're working through Jan Brett's Cursive pages before we begin the McRuffy Handwriting. She did two pages, one for her left hand and one for her right hand (we're all working towards being able to write with both hands). Next, she read and colored the two pages from her McRuffy reading book. We did the first lesson of Saxon math which went pretty well. She liked the morning meeting, and the first day didn't have any written work. I had planned to finish all of the seat work before we did history, but I forgot to do the ETC. She enjoyed excavating her dinosaur bones from the dinosaur kit. She had done her seatwork and found her first bone by 11am. She worked on her dinosaurs until around noon then did her phonics. Afterward, she ran errands with me and bought new shoes for school along with some snacks.

CC started with a cursive page for her left hand then started on a summary for history. By 11am, she had finished her summary. Apparently this is a skill that you can forget over the summer. She kept getting distracted by her sister, Grandma, me, the dog, the wind..... After she finished her summary, she took a break to help her sister dig for dino bones then dove into the first chapter of Life of Fred Decimals & Percents. Next she read the papers from the doctor about patellofemoral pain and worked on a section of poetry copywork. She was done with her work around 2pm.

Our first day of school went really well. I had planned less work for this week than we will typically do so that we can ease into our full schedule. I don't think I'd change a thing about the day. Next, I'll have to see how it works when I'm working and trying to do all of this. Oh well. At least today was nice and smooth.

Weekly Report - Shh Don't tell them

2011-09-02T09:33:00.002-06:00

By all these lovely tokens
September days are here,
With summer’s best of weather
And autumn’s best of cheer.
- Helen Hunt Jackson, September

I am trying to get a good, workable daily schedule for our school year. I made a spreadsheet and broke down every day into 30 minute chunks and listed what each of us did. It was enlightening. After this week of watching, next week will be our first official week of school.

Some thoughts from the week:
1/7 * 1/8 = 1/7 - 1/8 Did you know that not only this is true, but it is true for a whole set of numbers? CC discovered that this week courtesy of Singapore NEM.

In Jotunheim, the steps to the favorite dance is a Stomp, Shuffle, Stomp, Shuffle which was explained to me by LB.

LB told Grandma (and a group of Schleich children) the whole story of Rapunzel with beautiful detail and terrific pacing. It was wonderful. I'm so proud.

We had our first science experiment from ClassicQuest Biology that didn't work. We reviewed the procedures and decided to change a few things then redo the experiment. A failed experiment is still a good learning opportunity.

CC finished reading The Secret Garden which she loved even though she never warmed up to the main character. She read The Little Princess, Night of the Twisters, and started Around the World in 80 Days (again).

CC loved her enrichment school again and came home with homework in grammar, vocabulary, literature, writing, and Spanish. Goodness. She's very excited.

CC is learning to crochet and taught LB to spool knit.

I spent three days with a migraine this week. It made everything harder.

BB started classes in Japan. It is his last year. He's preparing for an internship, working, taking classes, and still loves Tokyo.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-08-31T01:00:00.003-06:00

Last Report for summer 2011

2011-08-26T15:33:00.000-06:00

This week CC read A Winter's Tale, The Tempest, and A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Secret Garden, Stories from Ireland, and a couple more Max Axioms. She's having trouble with the Secret Garden because she doesn't like the main character which is new for her. She's doing math and reading daily along with using some iPad apps to play with geography and presidents. She loved her first day of her new enrichment school.

I started reading A Treasury of Children's Literature to LB. She restarted her tap dancing class. She's still doing phonics daily and enjoying lots of free play and stories.

We went to the pool, judo, mini-golf, and many nature walks. The girls spent a hot day playing in the shade of our big tree. LB woke up before me one morning to do her phonics (seriously, I hadn't even turned on the coffee pot yet). We had Friday science with our friends.

Nothing really says "End of Summer" like buying those school supplies. Picture me at 8pm on Tuesday night at Staples trying to find the last two items on our extremely ridiculous school supply list for the one-day-a-week ps school. I need 1 Red 1/2 inch binder with two inside pockets and 200 lined 3 1/2 x 5 inch index cards. I start with the nearly empty school supply bins. Where are those index cards? I give up and move to the binders. There are no red binders left. None. Zero. Zilch. Ten minutes later, I find a 1 inch red binder with inside pockets dumped on the bottom of a clearance rack and grab it then start checking the upper shelves where they keep the extras. I finally find a red half inch binder under a stack of tabs (I needed 8 of those too). I choose to go with the red half inch with no inside pockets and abandon my red one inch with the inside pockets. After 30 minutes, I am halfway done with my list. I decide to check the other side of the store to see what's there because I am boring myself with school supplies, and there they are. The ruled index cards. I actually feel a momentary feeling of victory then laugh at myself and return home. Summer must be over by now.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-08-24T14:15:00.000-06:00

Summer Report 7

2011-08-19T10:28:00.001-06:00

Momma bear enjoyed our cottonwood tree before she took the cubs further away

Summer is starting to look more like school around here. I finally pressed "Buy" on my Rainbow Resource order. One thing was on backorder so it will be maybe two weeks before we get the last of the school books. CC went back to fencing. LB will start back to tap dancing next week. We had our last summer park day with our friends. I've ordered an extra inhaler for CC to leave at her enrichment school and printed out the forms so she can carry one. We also bought new shoes for school and started choosing fall clothes. There's just been a bit more hustle and bustle around here.

Before the haircut and before BB went back to Japan

CC spent most of the summer reading Jules Verne books, but has switched over to Heidi for a change of pace and also read Stories from Scotland this week. I picked up some Max Axiom books to see what level they would be around here. CC likes them, but I think the science content level is a little low for 5th grade. She started reading a brain book that I bought to accompany our science unit and really enjoyed it. She's almost finished with the MM geometry book that I'd printed out for her to use during the summer. She wants to continue doing geometry alongside LoF Decimals when school starts. She also tried on her uniform and met her new teachers.

I had counted the lessons in LB's ETC 3 book and marked when she'd start the school year so I could put the lesson numbers in my weekly plans. When she saw the marks in her book, she decided that she should be doing the first grade work now and caught herself up to those lessons. It is really good that she's ahead of my plan, but it kind of ruins my plan. I guess I'll just remove the lesson numbers from my spreadsheet instead of trying to keep ahead of her.

Hubby and I took a day off this week to celebrate our birthdays and anniversary. It was terrific to spend most of day with just the man I love.

A view from our hike this week

Where we stopped for a birthday lunch

Happy Birthday

Summer Report 6

2011-08-12T17:03:00.000-06:00

Our Favorite Spot for Dinner

I guess we aren't the only ones that like this shady spot behind our house

No need for the book to identify those tracks, but it is good to double check

A lovely new path

A beautiful place to hike

It is hard to try to tell a story from this week because it was long and strange. Bears moved into the wonderful woody area behind our house. We hiked a wonderful trail that we'd never tried before. BB went back to Japan. CC went from long hair to a pixie cut. LB was sick most of the week. I managed to get a migraine the day I was getting over a migraine so I had the joy of two in a row. My BIG meeting at work was wonderful even though the migraines kept me from feeling as prepared as I would have liked. The weather changed from 90's to 60's then settled into the 80's.

We're still continuing our small bits of school work through the summer which have included math, reading, and phonics. This week, we started up science again with Mendelian genetics. I replaced the ClassicQuest lab which used hair color with a Dragon Genetics Lab I had found. The kids had a lot of fun with it.

It is always hard to get into a rhythm after BB goes back to school. It takes a while for a the old/new normal to settle in.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-08-10T13:33:00.000-06:00

Summer Report 5 - Packing up summer

2011-08-05T09:03:00.002-06:00

The girls with their battle gear

I have always loved swings since I was little. The one at the Ren. Fest. was HUGE.

Taking a break for a cold treat

Can you imagine him telling his parents about his career plans?

Triumphant

LB teaching BB how to play the board game she created

CC creating with clay


We played Boggle last night with cookies. BB taught LB how to play.

This week we've enjoyed the beginning of the end of summer. I finally made the last decisions on school stuff, ordered some clothes for BB to replace clothes he's just worn through while at school, ordered the material required for CC's enrichment school, made decisions on sports schedules for fall, and enjoyed the last of the Renaissance Festival for the year. In the next week, we'll buy BB a suit to wear for internship interviews and send him back to Japan for his last year of college.

This week at work, my boss told me that I had done a good job. I was told that I'm a valuable member of his team which made me feel good. And just because life is wonderful, I also received an evaluation of my job as homeschool headmistress. Last night before we played Boggle, BB sat down with LB and showed her how to play and helped her to start learning how to find words. We have special rules for early readers so she ended up outscoring me. It was wonderful to have BB initiate LB into a family game. Looking at them, I knew I have been doing a good job.

Summer report 4 - Things to do that aren't school

2011-07-29T09:29:00.002-06:00

Climb down a tree?

Do a little research

Color with the baby

Make a water slide

Spray your sister

Walk the dog

Chase Rainbows

CC's favorite word this week is hyperbole.
LB's favorite word is hypothesis (or hypoposis as she says it).

Summer Report 3 - Reflecting on a Day and a Plan

2011-07-22T09:19:00.001-06:00

One morning this week, CC read American Fairy Tales while she was eating breakfast. After she finished the book, she did a couple of Perplexors then worked on her MM math. LB copied graphics from a doggie supply website into a document as part of a game the girls have created. When she was done, she did a page of phonics with G-Ma. They made and ate lunch then went to a pool party with friends. It occurred to me today that this was a terrific day of learning even if it wasn't school.

I always encourage new homeschooling mothers to picture the kind of school they would want their kids to attend then work towards that. The atmosphere here was of learning that was authentic and relaxed. I want to keep that feeling in mind when I'm making plans for next year. I don't want the good things I have in mind for school to crowd out the best things.

Summer report 2

2011-07-15T15:19:00.003-06:00

CC with Lacey and LB with Apple

Buddy, the Mutt

We are slowly getting back into the swing of summer after being gone for a couple of weeks. When we got back, the kids spent the first day doing art projects because they had missed art. The next day back, we restarted our daily math, logic, and phonics. CC declared, "I just love geometry!" I guess two weeks isn't too long to go without math (we're working through MM Blue sets over the summer to keep things fresh until we start Fred Decimals in the fall). LB read one of her phonics readers and realized that she was really good at reading still.

One of the series of hands and feet by LB, the kitchen floor was nice too

Part of the playset CC is making for small toys she's also making

The girls spent the day yesterday playing outside all day and guarding the new chickens in case our mutt, Buddy, decided that the new chickens are fair game. Today, CC is off to watch Harry Potter with hubby while LB is making a treasure map and planning a treasure hunt in the yard. BB stayed behind in FL to visit more family.

As for me, next time I go on vacation, I should really make room for a day to rest when I get back before I start work. I have suitcases to unpack. But if I planned an extra day, I'd just decide to spend it on vacation too. Oh well. At least I know what I'm doing this weekend.

Beach trip, Home

2011-07-11T16:27:00.001-06:00

After two weeks and 3000 miles, we are home.

I'll miss the beach

Beach trip - the homecoming and 4th of July

2011-07-06T17:06:00.004-06:00

After a week at the beach, we turned left and headed inland to the land of my youth and my family's family.

The Woods where I spent my youth

My Old House

Berries

Flowers

A Parade

Fireworks

Home

Beach Trip Day 5

2011-06-28T12:46:00.002-06:00

BB being washed ashore

CC getting ready for more boogie boarding

My sister riding a wave ashore

BB carrying CC past the waves.

Thanks Surf Rescue

It was a good day at the beach. Now time for a swim in the pool.

Beach Trip Days 1-4

2011-06-27T15:33:00.000-06:00

After 1500 Miles and a detour through New Orleans for lunch, we're at the beach.

Gumbo and Po'Boys. Yum

New Orleans


That is LB and my sister (she's the one holding LB above the waves)			my niece is there too

Summer

2011-06-17T10:26:00.001-06:00

I have always loved summer. I remember long, hot summer days from growing up in a small town in the deep South. Now I'm trying to figure out how to give some summer memories to my kids while working full-time and with the mind of home school teacher.

This week we've been to the pool twice, the park with friends, and the zoo. We've also played in the yard, waited for the ice cream truck, played in sprinklers, and enjoyed some warmth, sunshine and each other. To balance this, we've been doing math, reading, phonics, and memory work for a few minutes most days.

That water is COLD

BB has a sprained ankle

Mr. Moose was very thirsty after running around and bellowing

A very handsome peacock


Pony rides

I love that BB is home, but I know it is probably the last summer he will be here. I think that makes me want to hold on tighter to the girls (and him).

Wordless Wednesday

2011-06-08T07:10:00.000-06:00

2011-2012 Plans for Fifth Grade and First Grade

2011-06-05T16:28:00.026-06:00

Here are my plans for this year.

The Framework:
The girls will each go to a one-day-per-week enrichment school and take judo. LB takes dance classes. CC takes pottery classes at the local art school and is also learning the cello in a local strings orchestra program. Hubby and I work full-time mostly from home. I don't include reading here, but we read voraciously from a wide variety of fiction and non-fiction. Both of the girls are working through the IEW poetry memorization book.

Fifth Grade:
Math - Art of Problem Solving Prealgebra
English - IEW poetry, WTM writing, and still looking for grammar
Philosophy - Sophie's World, Philosophy for Kids, and Philosophy 101 by Socrates
History - Aristotle Leads the Way (science as history this year)
Science - finishing ClassiQuest Biology along with Ellen McHenry's Brain which will be followed by ClassiQuest Physics (we're doing science year 'round)
Spanish - need this again

First Grade:
Math - Saxon Math 2, Math in Focus 1, and CWP1
English - WWE, FLL, ETC, McRuffy readers and handwriting
History - Three unit studies that she chose - Ancient Egypt, Dinosaurs, Medieval Times
Tales - first grade story list from LCC and a collection of Greek and Roman myths
Other - art, music, science, and pe from the enrichment school

These are the plans. It is good to have them.

Week 35 - School's Out for Summer

2011-05-27T11:15:00.003-06:00

School is out for summer. We had a good year. Here is our year in review post.

Out last day of school

Finally time to play

Apparently summer is time to catch up on reading

Over the summer we'll read, practice math and do our weekly science with friends when we're both in town. We're also planning park days, mini-golf Mondays, pool days, lazy days, camping, gardening, hiking, and a long road trip to the beach and distant family.

Have a terrific summer.

2010/11 Year in Review

2011-05-26T11:26:00.009-06:00

This year turned out to be a big challenge for me. I changed jobs mid-year and have had to learn a new way to home school. Until this year, I've had the whole week to dedicate to the kids and then work on the weekends. This year, I was squeezing math lessons and reading lessons in between work meetings and conference calls. Sitting at our school/dinner table with a kid on either side and my work computer in front of me is not the mental picture I have of homeschooling.

We cut out extra things, moved other things to being more independent and all worked to be more flexible. Here is what we've accomplished.

Math

BJU K
Halfway into Miquon Orange
She can see a problem like 5 + __ = 10 - 3 and know that she needs to move the 3 to the other side to solve the problem and can do these without pausing.

English
ETC 1, 2, and is halfway into 3
Her eye tracking problems and letter reversals and flipping are almost completely gone. She read Green Eggs and Ham on her last day of school without losing her place on the line as she read.
IEW Poetry

Science
Studied animals, the solar system, and trees. Her favorite thing she learned this year was how to make paper.

Art
Her favorite thing she did this year was learn to make origami frogs.

Math
Saxon 7/6
LoF Fractions
Her favorite thing she learned this year was canceling fractions.

English
She wrote 3 fictional stories and won a writing competition in her enrichment school.
IEW Poetry

Science
Still working through ClassiQuest Biology
Completed almost half of the projects in Mini Weapons of Mass Destruction which was heavily supplemented with MythBusters and Beakman's World.
Her favorite thing she learned this year was a real understanding of the speed of sound and what happens when you "break" the sound barrier.

History
Studied Iliad, Odyssey, and Aeneid. She compared the hero quest model in the three, and we had wonderful discussions about how these stories reflected the people and times in which they were written.
Read and summarized SoTW 2 & 3

Art
Her pottery is progressing wonderfully. She can now make a round bowl about the size of a cereal bowl. As she grows, her work gets better.

What worked

Miquon and Life of Fred are working wonderfully for the girls for math. ETC helped CC progress in her reading while waiting for her vision to mature.

This year I tried to put equal emphasis on art, physical movement, and academics which has worked well for us. Each one challenges the girls differently so that they are growing in a balanced way. It is an idea I picked up last summer while reading The Great Tradition.

What didn't work

I started the year with plans to read classics slowly and deeply with CC. This didn't work for us. She is a voracious reader with a great memory and a natural ability to synthesize information. She needed more reading and more ideas.

I also tried scheduled reading. She hated it. She preferred to have a set of books to choose from then to read in her own time. She ended up reading not only more books than I had planned, but also her choices were often loftier than I had chosen.

I started the year with a particular reading goal in mind for LB (Little Bear books). My older two were early and natural readers. I learned to be patient and let LB develop at her own rate. She has made amazing progress, but all of the pressure in the world would not have made her vision mature any faster than it did.

Overall

LB lost her first baby tooth, and CC lost her last baby tooth. We've worried about BB in Japan and celebrated wonderful joys with friends and family. LB can now get on the merry-go-round on her own; CC can manage most of her day's work without me; BB has shown tremendous strength of character in the face of disaster. At times I wasn't sure we could make it through the school year. Looking back, it was a wonderful year of growth and change.

Week 34 Almost done

2011-05-20T11:26:00.000-06:00

Yes, 11am and haven't started school yet

Three more days of school after today.

I guess that doesn't really qualify as a weekly report. Hmm, we did math, reading, writing, phonics, poetry, history and science in small bits this week. We have a pretty good schedule going which means that it is almost time for the year to be done. It seems like it takes us most of the year to get comfortable, then we're done.

We're looking forward to dropping some of our outside commitments and having park days with friends. It will be nice.

Baby Geese in one of our favorite parks

What's on my mind

Biology slides from this week

2011-05-14T09:49:00.001-06:00

This week CC and her lab partner plus LB made slides of onion skin and scrapings from their cheeks. These are pictures from our microscope.

Cheek scrapings showing human cells

Onion skin showing plant cells


From the same onion skin slide

Another view in of the cheek scraping slides. The kids were eating mango before making the slides and we think we found some

More information about the slides as requested..
These pictures came straight from our microscope, it takes digital pictures and video and has a mini-USB port so I can connect it straight to my computer to copy the pictures. It is a Celestron 44340 LCD Digital LDM Biological Microscope. It only does up to 400x magnification, but it is enough for this age. We used a slide make kit from Home Science tools and followed directions from ClassiQuest Biology.

Last week, the kids learned to make slides and stain them using methylene blue (to stain acidic cell parts) and eosin Y (to stain alkaline cell parts). This week they were comparing plant and animal cells. We have prepared slides as a backup and for extra viewing, but the kids really prefer to make their own. It seems more real and more interesting if the slides are their own creations.

Week 33 - Uh oh - I see myself sliding into summer weeks too soon.

2011-05-13T11:10:00.001-06:00

On Mother's Day, we had perfect weather so I spent the day relaxing in the shade after working in the garden with hubby. Now I feel summer. I want those lazy, quiet days. I don't want to juggle school and work and home and everything else. I just want to sit in the shade with a book listening to the kids play.

Books this week:
The Color Kittens, Around the World in Eighty Days, Encyclopedia of Horses, The Islands of the Blessed, Burgess Seashore Book, William Blake, Coral Kingdom, Happily Ever After Stories, Cinderella, Peter Pan

Pictures:

LB doing Math

CC doing Math

BB chatting with me

School Work:
I found that CC had been balking about finishing LoF Fractions because she didn't know we had Decimals waiting for her. Now she's looking forward to graduating from Fractions as soon as I make a copy of the certificate.

CC daily did math, history reading plus written summary, perplexors, poetry practice plus copywork, reading for at least an hour both fiction and non fiction. She also does a chapter from ClassiQuest Biology each week with a friend.

LB daily did Miquon, ETC, Phonics Pathways and had a story of her choice read to her. Now that she's lost a couple of teeth, we've started Peter Pan again. I wonder if she'll identify more with Wendy this time.

Week 32 Carrot Stew and Responsible Adults

2011-05-06T14:18:00.001-06:00

Books:
The Burgess Seashore Book, I Am Quaker, Islands of the Blessed, Little Golden Books Treasury, The Ancient Near Eastern World, Pyramid, Winnie the Pooh, Cinderella, Poetry for Young People, WIlliam Blake

Food:
This week I made one of our new favorites, Tawny Scrawny Lion soup which was inspired by the little rabbits.
4-5 medium carrots
1-2 small sweet potatoes
1 medium turnip
1 medium onion
2-3 stalks celery
handful of flavorful mushrooms
fresh herbs
salt to taste
1/2 stick of butter
water or broth

Have your darling husband dice everything into small pieces and put in large pot. Saute in butter until tender. Fill the pot with water or broth and simmer covered for 4 or more hours. Either process in a food processor or with a stick blender until smooth. Test for seasoning. Simmer a few more minutes. Serve with steamed white fish and a drop of heavy cream. The ingredients vary with the veggies I have on hand, and if I were being more diligent, I'd saute the mushrooms and some onions in butter and add to the soup after it was blended.

Pictures:

Commentary:
CC started out the week sick with LB's sore throat from last week so I gave the girls lots of time to play and rest. We started reading The Seashore Book in preparation for a trip to the beach with family over the summer and as an antidote for the gray cold that has returned.

I helped chaperon a field trip this week. After more than 21 years of being a parent, I am still surprised when I get to be the responsible adult.    Me. I'm the one that eats ice cream before dinner and rides scooters barefoot down the road. I didn't lose any kids.

SchoolWork?
When I started my wrap-up this week, I realized that I couldn't remember what schoolwork we'd done. Where exactly did my week go? However, I'm relieved to remember that my oldest student was sick most of the week. She is one chapter shy of finishing LoF Fractions. She has decided that it doesn't have enough practice for her so we're going to spend some time working at the Khan Academy Exercise Dashboard.   She wants to spend a good part of the summer doing more practice with what she's learned instead of starting LoF Decimals or going back to Saxon.

LB has had a really good week. With her sister sick, I've cut her back to just phonics, math and stories. She loves all of that and has really been thriving in Miquon and ETC.   She has also started creating more imaginative stories. At the beginning of the year, she'd tell stories that basically went like this:
Once upon a time, a beautiful princess met a handsome price. They got married and had a beautiful baby girl and loved her very much. The End.
Her stories now have more characters and at least two scenes that are full of details and descriptions. She doesn't put in conflict yet, and her heroes never have an antagonist. But they are getting more details and better flow. She can also retell a fable or fairytale that she's knows getting the characters and the main plot correctly ordered.

For science this week, CC learned to make and stain wet-mount slides. Luckily, LB had a bloody nose just as CC was looking for something else to make a slide of.

Week 31

2011-04-29T09:50:00.006-06:00

LB was sick from Sunday through Wednesday, so I've only had one student for the week. I was super-busy the first of the week, and CC accomplished her work mostly alone. I was able to help her understand cross reduction when multiplying fractions which is supremely awesome since neither of us can ever remember me successfully helping her with math before. Ironically, I had to spend the first part of the week preparing a training session for work instead of teaching my kids. CC listened to me do the training, and I rocked it. I covered the material including answering questions without a single stumble.

CC is on lesson 27 of LoF Fractions, finishing chapter 3 of SoTW 2 with great written summaries 3 times a week and working through a perplexor daily; she read a section from the Kingfisher encyclopedia of science and performed The Spider and the Fly for her enrichment school talent show. She's been reading Asterix books all week for her free reading then looking up the historical references and anachronisms in each book. Our chapter this week in ClassiQuest Biology concerns living organisms. Her favorite things from the week were scoring a point on a point on a much larger opponent in fencing, playing with friends and getting a new chick.

LB was sick this week so she missed the talent show at her enrichment school but was able to join the show on her sister's school day and perform her poem, The Fifth of November. She's done no school this week until today but did pick up a chick from her enrichment school after the talent show. Today, she did 4 pages of ETC 3 and 2 pages of Miquon Orange plus took a nature walk with our friends and participated in CC's science experiment.

We have very dear family in Apison, TN that lost their homes to tornadoes this week. They survived mostly unharmed, but with nothing. Our hearts are heavy over their loss and the catastrophe that struck the area.

Week 30 Oh Frabjous Day

2011-04-22T09:49:00.000-06:00

The poem this week is Charge of the Light Brigade.

Books
The Story of Ferdinand, Harold and the Purple Crayon, Islands of the Blessed, A Grassland Habitat, Mister Dog, Winnie the Pooh, The Saggy Baggy Elephant,

Curriculum:
SOTW2, Life of Fred Fractions, IEW Poetry, Mini Weapons of Mass Destruction, Perplexors C, ClassiQuest Biology, Miquon Orange, Phonics Pathways, Explode the Code 2, Elemental Science Biology

Week
CC's daily work right now consists of a lesson of math, a perplexor, a review of poetry learned so far, copy from either the book or memory at least 8 lines of the poem being memorized, a page of grammar, a chapter of SOTW2 and a written summary of the chapter. After her daily work she is free to make weapons of mass destruction, program, read, research, or play. She has a weekly science class with her friend using Classiquest Biology.

LB's daily work right now is 2 pages of Miquon, 2 pages of ETC, and a lesson from Phonics Pathways. She and daddy do science a couple of times a week using Elemental Science Biology.

CC told me this week that sometimes she feels like she's teaching herself. We were sitting at the table; she was doing her work, and I was working. I'm not sure if this is a good thing or not, but it is what is working for us.

LB has been practicing her poem to perform at school next week, but she's also been picking up pieces of poems that CC has been working on. We've a good mix of Jabberwocky, The Duke of Plaza Torro, The Spider and the Fly, Trees, Shoes, and The Charge of the Light Brigade being recited around here all day, every day. Callooh! Callay! "Canons to the right of them" said the spider to the fly, but only God can make a tree.

At their enrichment school this week, LB made paper and CC cooked marshmallows in a solar oven.

We're taking the day off Friday. The girls are eating pancakes and watching episodes of Planet Earth. CC's science lab partner is out of town for a long weekend. I'm still working today, so we aren't in full holiday mode.

BB posted a lot of pictures on his blog from his trip to the Japanese countryside.

Pictures

BB in the countryside

CC and I took a long nature walk at lunch on Tuesday

CC made homemade pizza with a spelt crust on Wednesday
for dinner.

LB and I had school on the trampoline on Thursday.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-04-20T08:18:00.000-06:00

Week 29 Vignettes

2011-04-15T16:57:00.000-06:00

Snapshots:

LB's Rooster inspired by Pancakes! Pancakes! by Eric Carle

Mmm - Healthy Delivery to make my life easier

CC and her science lab partner

LB discovering the first blooms of spring in an April Shower

Vignettes:
When I heard the fencing coach yell, "Alright, everyone drop and give me 100 push-ups", I looked up to see CC starting her push-ups with a strong and determined expression on her face. Some of the other kids whined and complained or started out trying to do the push-ups on their knees, but she just kept on working her way through. I was proud. After a few minutes, the coach told them to get up and run sprints. When I asked her about it after practice, she said she'd done 28 and hoped the whole time that the coach wouldn't make them do them all.

Maybe minute 48 of being on hold with the IRS isn't the best time to decide that I need to put my kids in school next year.

Books:
Walter the Farting Dog, The Big Dipper, Five True Dog Stories, Mara, Daughter of the Nile, Islands of the Blessed, When will it be Spring?, The Many Adventure of Winnie the Pooh, Pancakes, Pancakes!

Curricula Used This Week:
Story of the World 2, Life of Fred Fractions, ClassiQuest Biology, Elemental Science Biology, Miquon Orange, Phonics Pathways, GD Italics B, ETC 2, IEW Poetry, Grammar, Invent Your Own Computer Games with Python, A Child's Book of Art, Mini Weapons of Mass Destruction

What I'm reading this week:
A Canticle for Leibowitz (my lighter read), Moby Dick (my bedtime story), Les Miserables (my two and half hours watching fencing read), New and Selected Poems 2 by Mary Oliver (because it's poetry)

Lessons Learned This Week:
After feeling frustrated this week about how our days have been unfolding, I listened to Homeschooling the Real Child by Susan Wise Bauer. In the first five minutes, I realized why I was having trouble. I have not been starting my day with a plan and then communicating that plan to the girls. I changed that by spending the first few cuddly minutes of the day talking about what we will be doing for the day, and it has made a world of difference. LB was finished with her work by 9:30 the first day I tried this. I just need to keep it up.

I need to reevaluate my relationship with french fries.

Week 28

2011-04-03T09:32:00.122-06:00

The week in books:
Alive, If Dogs Ruled the World, Kiss The Cow, Give Me Half, Islands of the Blessed, English and Grammar, Cheaper by the Dozen, Encyclopedia of Horses and Ponies, Indian Tales, Prince Caspian, The Westing Game, STOW2, The Nutcracker, LoF Fractions, Philosophy 101 by Socrates, Pinocchio, Mini Weapons of Mass Destruction, ClassiQuest Biology,

This week in pictures:

LB at the park with Daddy

CC loves the water.

LB surprised us when we started the science lab by
giving this definition, "A hypothesis is an idea you can test."

CC and her lab partner

I think she'd be able to take over the world if she had enough duck tape.

This week in random thoughts:

My top contender for the things-I-never-thought-I'd-say award is "Get dressed before you go out to fire your BB gun."

I need to change our school schedule. Wednesday at noon, both girls were in their jammies having done no school other than their science reading. From now on, they will be completing their schoolwork first thing in the day instead of putting it off until the end of the day. Of course after lunch, CC helped LB read Dogs then they did their math and went outside to fight trolls with wooden swords in their jammies. After that, they came inside to research Medieval jobs and artists and setup a village. Some weeks, I'm a very good home educator and some weeks my children are apparently unschooled. I'm blaming this week on a migraine (or two). I think that instead of feeling bad that I didn't educate well this week I will be proud of what my kids can accomplish alone when they need to.

LB has a new favorite artist, Rousseau.. We spent some time online looking at his paintings and found a terrific art game at the National Gallery of Art for Kids.

BB started back to class this week; they've been out of school since the earthquake. He's going to a cherry blossom festival this weekend and has promised me pictures.

Daily work this week:
CC did at least one chapter of LoF Fractions everyday, worked on her writing and poetry memorization, read either science or history, helped her sister with reading or math, cooked something, and read for pleasure.

LB did 2-4 pages of Miquon each day, read a page from Phonics Pathways, read two pages from an Usborne science book, and did a page from GD Italics.

Other work:
LB started Elemental Science Biology with daddy, learned about fractions from Give Me Half, cooked cornbread by herself, participated in CC'c science lab, and learned our recipe for chocolate chip cookies.

CC started ClassiQuest Biology with a friend, made a couple of catapults, taught her sister our recipe for chocolate chip cookies, and generally stepped up for more responsibility when I wasn't feeling well.

I did manage to read to them everyday this week - LB noticed a similarity between Pinocchio and Red Riding Hood.

It was overall a good week, especially for kilts.

Week 27 April is here

2011-04-01T11:32:00.003-06:00

The week in books:
Indian Tales, Prince Caspian, The Westing Game, STOW2, The Nutcracker, LoF Fractions, Philosophy 101 by Socrates, Pinocchio, Mini Weapons of Mass Destruction,

This week in pictures:

Geography - Twister style

LB's first comic strip - learning about story order

Playdough vegetables - yum

Making sentences and reading

CC's Keva racetrack

This week in random thoughts:
After way too much time researching, I decided that CC should read The Chronicles of Narnia in publication order and not in chronological order.

1950: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
1951: Prince Caspian
1952: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
1953: The Silver Chair
1954: The Horse and His Boy
1955: The Magician's Nephew
1956: The Last Battle

CC has finished SoTW3 and realized that she's never read SoTW2. She started that this week. She's also been loving The Westing Game from out SL ALT7 box. I remember BB was really engrossed in that book too.

LB spent Monday morning creating comics online while CC spent Monday morning designing an experiment with Keva blocks and ping-pong balls.

I've noticed that at least once a week my girls will play school. I'm trying to figure out what that means.

BB's classes are finally resuming next week. They've been canceled since the earthquake.

I've been listening to SWB's lectures on writing and history. It sounds so much more do able than what I had picked up from reading TWTM.

We've been playing with words this week - try having a conversation without verbs or without pronouns. It is lots of fun.

We're off to the park this afternoon with friends. I've missed park days this winter.

Daily work this week:

For LB daily : 2 pages of Miquon or two pages from BJU math, 3 pages from the Kumon book of numbers 1-70 (dot-to-dots are big this week), 2 pages from ETC2, and a page from McGuffy's Primer

For CC daily: a page of copywork from her memory (still doing poems she knows from IEW linguistic dev.), a lesson from Fred (one day she got "caught up" in the lessons and did 4 chapters), a chapter from SOTW2 (yes, we are going backwards in time), a weapon of mass destruction, reading from the SL ALT7 box, and free reading for at least an hour

They also have a spelling test at the end of the week, and I read to them daily for at least an hour.

135 days complete so far.

Week 26 - Better

2011-03-25T08:52:00.001-06:00

The week in books:
STOW3, Stories from India, Farm Flu, a Bob book a day (LB), LoF Fractions, Rattletrap Car, Fairytale Favorites, A Family Treasury of Little Golden Books, Happily Ever After Stories, Philosphy 101 by Socrates, Pinocchio, Mini Weapons of Mass Destruction, The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe,

This week in pictures:

Flying Turtles in the Basement

That's a really long hill

If you use cookies for catapult practice, Buddy will clean up for you.

Our Daily Work This Week:

LB does 2 pages of BJU Math, 1 page of Miquon, 2 pages of ETC, 1 page of GD Italic B, reads a Bob book, and reads two lessons from McGuffy's Primer. She also has a spelling list each week that I took from PR1. This takes her about an hour. I go over her lessons with her then watch as she completes them.

CC does at least one lesson from Fred, reads a chapter from SOTW3, writes a half page to a page, makes at least one weapon, reads at least an hour from one of the books from the old SL Alt. 7. Right now her writing assignments consist of writing down poems from memory then checking her spelling and punctuation. She has a spelling list each week that I took from Natural Speller. This takes her about three hours. We talk about her work after she does it, but she does the work independently.

I read to them daily and try for at least an hour of reading. Right now we are reading a book of tales from India.

This week in words:

Where did spring come from? I just realized Tuesday that it was sunny and kinda warm outside. The girls complained that its spring break so they shouldn't be doing school work although they did it anyway.

Thursday, the girls turned the basement into The Space Academy (TSA) which is "a classical school on the moon to prepare children to enter TSU (The Space University)."

BB is back working at his job in Tokyo and is worried about the future of his school semester. So far his school has delayed the start of school three times and sent all of the semester abroad students back home permanently.

I'm planning school for next year since I've had some extra quiet time. LB will do SoTW 1 with the AG and CC will get to return to her favorite time period but focusing on philosophers this time. I started reading Philosophy 101 by Socrates to brush up.

Week 25 - Flu and evacuations

2011-03-18T12:58:00.001-06:00

The week in books
People with the flu don't read.

The week in pictures
People with the flu don't want their pictures taken.

The week in words
Influenza and earthquakes are the keywords for the week. CC was diagnosed with the flu last Friday. I came down with it on Saturday. Sunday and Monday are a blur of sickness and worry about BB. Tuesday, CC felt better enough to "do school." She did a chapter of LoF, read a chapter of SoTW, and wrote a poem from memory (Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening) then checked her punctuation and spelling. After she did her work, she went back to bed for a four hour nap. I slept through the whole thing.

LB came down with our flu Wednesday so now she and I are in bed together. We had tried to give her Tamiflu to prevent this, but she had an allergic reaction to it. Thursday saw Hubby succumb.

CC continued to do her self-assigned work everyday in addition to helping around the house. We watched some educational dvd's that we hadn't had a chance to watch this year - America: The Story of US and Galapagos. LB filled up on princess movies, Rugrats and Dinosaur Train with lots of sleep in between.

BB has decided not to evacuate from Tokyo. He is safe in his apartment and has electricity and food.   I'm very worried, but I respect his decision. Next week he is planning to go back to work. The kindergarten he works at is opening again next week, but they are short of teachers because so many people have left. His college classes have been postponed until the end of the month. Even though his choice worries me, I'm very proud of him and how he is dealing with this. You never want your kids to be in situation like this, but his actions have proven that he is becoming a man of strong character.

Week 24 -" I'm Okay"

2011-03-10T21:56:00.004-07:00

BB emailed me right after the earthquake to say that he is okay. He said it was huge and lasted a long time, but he's okay. An email titled "I'm Okay" was the most important part of my week.

The week in books:
Mini Weapons of Mass Destruction, STOW3, Happily Ever After Stories, Stories from India, History: The Definitive Visual Guide, a Bob book a day (LB), LoF Fractions, Rattletrap Car, Fairytale Favorites, The Tawny Scrawny Lion, The Shakespeare Stealer (CC), The Color Kittens, A Family Treasury of Little Golden Books, Thomas Jefferson's America.

The Week in Pictures:

History - of course

Add a BB in one end and pull the string - make sure you're wearing safety goggles

Mango the puppy beat Ursa the bear 9-7 in the election. She won by two votes.

See - Mommy really does have spring fever.

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Ready to conquer the mountains

The Week in Words.

Why, yes, I am the parent at the ski slope having my daughter do phonics after she finished skiing. LB was done skiing for the day two hours before her sister. She did her phonics, handwriting and colored. It's horrid; I know. If that isn't bad enough, they both did math on the way up to the mountains.

"What's homework?"
"Its schoolwork that you do at home, if you didn't finish your work at school."
"But isn't all my schoolwork homework?"
"Nope. The work you do during school time is school work. The work you put off and don't finish during school time is homework. "

I fell victim to home school comparing this week. It was terrible. I had started working on LB's plans for first grade and was feeling very satisfied with our direction when it snuck up on me. Even though I am very confidant with what we are doing, I noticed it in the back of my head worming around. It's a bad feeling. I'm trying to get rid of it instead of question if we're "doing enough."

LB came home from school extremely excited about science because there was an inflatable planetarium in the cafeteria. She talked on and on about different star systems.

The spring fever is getting bad. Thursday, I hurried LB through her school work so that I could go to the park.

Friday is a sick day. Both the girls have a fever and a sore throat.

This week LB read 5 Bob books two times each. She did two pages of ETC each day along with handwriting (we've started GD book B). She also did two pages of math every day. She learned about space in school and worked on a diorama at home. She spent most of her free time playing with stuffed animals or Schleich animals.

CC did one lesson from Saxon, three lessons from LoF Fractions and practiced her facts. She read a chapter of STOW, a section from the history encyclopedia, finished the last HP, read The Shakespeare Stealer, was a cargo specialist on a space mission simulation, made a couple of dangerous weapons, added to her time line, worked on her handwriting (she's in GD book F), practiced her new poem (Charge of the Light Brigade) and made a diorama.

Together this week, we read more stories from India and spent a day skiing and snowboarding.

With Friday as a sick day, we have completed 122 days of school.

Part of BB's acceptance package for his college included an emergency evacuation plan for the students in case of a major disaster. I've been afraid every time there is an earthquake in the Ring of Fire. This morning was the first time the news made me cry even though I had read "I'm Okay" before I saw the news. I took off work today because the girls are sick; I think I'm going to spend a most of the day holding them tightly while I can.

Week 23 - Weekly Report

2011-03-04T12:23:00.004-07:00

The week in books:
Invent Your Own Computer Games with Python, Mini Weapons of Mass Destruction, STOW3, Kingfisher History (red), HP (CC, the last one finally), Happily Ever After Stories, Romeo and Juliet, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Roxaboxen, Stories from India, Harold and the Purple Crayon, History: The Definitive Visual Guide, a Bob book a day (LB), Our Island Story, The Pokey Little Puppy, LoF Fractions, Rattletrap Car, Fairytale Favorites.

This week in pictures:

School - what more can I say?

ETC is still awesome

The zoo is more fun when we're the only ones there

Together is better

Math in my office

This week in words:

I had a lot of fun playing hangman with LB this week over breakfast. We started with BB when he first learned to read and found that its a great way to pass time when you're waiting for something. I've now been playing hangman with my own kids for more than 16 years.

BB is taking a trip this weekend with his school to Kanazawa.

CC made a "Guess My Number" computer game this week and learned about random number generators and got more practice using functions.

CC and I took a good, hard look at history (again). She's dissatisfied with the Kingfisher history encyclopedia because it doesn't give enough detail for her. The History Odyssey assignment this week was supposed to be to research and write about the idea of the divine right of kings. She didn't find enough information to satisfy her own questions about it in Kingfisher. After she did additional research, we had a great discussion of it including how it contrasts with the Mandate of Heaven and how it related to Agamemnon from the Iliad. We decided to not do the history assignments from HO (glad I used the sample), but to go back to reading our other history encyclopedia, discussing as we go, and writing about a topic of choice from the assigned reading (2 pages, 3 times per week). She elected to continue from her spot in the beginning of the history book.   I decided that she'll also finish reading STOW3 and Our Island Story.   We're going to finish a round of history this year.

I had a hard time focusing on work Tuesday because the sun was shining. The kids did over an hour on fun math after they did their regular math (Rocket Math counts as practice, right?). After math, reading, phonics, and other things we went for a long walk at lunch.   I think we'll all come down with spring fever early this year if this weather holds.

Extracurricular: The girls tried out a Judo class this week which they loved. I think it will be a terrific addition to our week.   CC is competing in her first fencing tournament this weekend.  Her pottery is great - she's a bit bigger and stronger than last session, and she can see her own improvement. LB loves tap even though she complains every week before she gets to class that it's too hard.

I'm really satisfied with what we accomplished this week. I skipped PR phonics this week in favor of ETC and Bob, but I want to get back to it next week. We are comfortably doing all 3 of the 3R's plus LB is getting lots of stories and CC is being challenged by her history. We're in a much better place academically than we were even a few weeks ago. As they make these conceptual leaps in understanding, it is hard to get things back to being at the right level of challenge then get into a routine with the new material.

Week 22 - So, what is important?

2011-02-25T08:48:00.013-07:00

This week in books:
Mini Weapons of Mass Destruction , SOTW 3, Kingfisher History (red), Happily Ever After Stories, Cactus Hotel, Armadillo Rodeo, Hop On Pop (LB read), Go, Dog, Go, HP (CC read), Uncover a Cobra,
What Einstein Told his Cook, Romeo and Juliet, Enjoy Your Cells,

The week in Pictures

Romeo and Juliet acted out with animals.
This version is not a tragedy.

Morning routine

Science with Mini Weapons of Mass Destruction and a hammer
and roll caps and rocks with wet hair and sunglasses

LB helping out in CC's pottery class

CC getting the wheel ready

The Week in Words:
*Monday, we did a good amount of our work then found that fencing was canceled because of President's Day. It is the highlight of CC's day, and she was very disappointed.

*Tuesday as I dropped off LB at school, I stopped to give her one more big hug. Then as I drove home, a car passed me driving erratically, cutting corners on a curvy road and speeding. I wondered where she was going so fast and thought she was driving dangerously. Around the next curve, she had crashed into a truck. If I hadn't lingered for one more hug, I would have been on the other side of the curve when she sped around it.

*I had a terrific discussion Wednesday with CC about the difference between a civil war and a revolution. She was writing a summary of Charles I for history and thought the English Civil War should have been a called a revolution. We looked up several articles online about that conflict and found that it has been called by both and the name usually said something about the politics of people that named it. This is what I love about homeschooling.

*LB called hubby most nights to read him a bedtime story - he's outta town for the week.   btw - SHE's READING !!

*We packed up BB's birthday box to send to Japan. I think it made us all a little sad.

*Got another migraine this week. I seriously think its time to move to the middle of nowhere. At least to somewhere where there is no cinnamon and no one cooks with soy sauce.

* LB learned about evens and odds last week in math. This week she stretched into counting by twos then figured out counting by fives on her own.

*CC made the most delicious dinner for us while I was at tap dancing with LB. She started with a ravioli recipe then modified it since I can't eat wheat.   She made a super flavorful stuffing for it from meat and spices since LB can't eat dairy. It was amazingly awesome.

*CC's ps class is working through a e-Mission called Moon, Mars, and Beyond which simulates a space mission. She realized that more than half of her class of 4th and 5th grades don't know their multiplication facts.   She's decided to be a cargo specialist - she doesn't like decoding or navigation but loves the math for cargo.

*LB has graduated from "pancake mixer" to "pancake flipper" and is quite proud of her perfect pancakes.

*This week with hubby out of town has been hard.

This Book is All Phonics!

2011-02-20T09:51:00.002-07:00

We picked up Dr. Suess's Hop on Pop this week at the local used book store. Hubby gave it to LB to "read" in bed since her sister gets to read in bed after bedtime stories. She brought the book down to the living room about a 15 minutes later with a giant grin on her little face exclaiming that she could read it.

Then she curled up in my lap with the book to demonstrate her newly discovered skill. As she was sounding out the words and reading the pages, she realized, "This book is all phonics." I tried to tell her that reading is actually all about phonics, but she wasn't convinced.

The previous night she had been getting distracted while I read Go, Dog, Go to her because she kept reading the words unintentionally.

Week 21 - Tell Me

2011-02-18T14:05:00.003-07:00

Books for the week:
Abe's Fish, the next HP (I've apparently lost count, and she bought this one with her allowance at the local used book store), Kitchen Table Math 2, Town Mouse, Country Mouse and On Noah's Ark both by Jan Brett, Trumpet of the Swan, Story of the World 3, Chatterer the Red Squirrel, History Stories for Children, Vegetable, Moo Baa La La La, Go, Dog, Go,

LB's Solar System

Wow, Daddy's office is bright

CC's space picture in pen and watercolor

The art for the week is American Gothic. I found a terrific way to show our picture of the week - I use it as the wallpaper image for the main computer. Everyone in the house gets to see it.

New this week - History Odyssey Level Two Early Modern.   I printed the trail version, made a notebook, dug out my encyclopedias, and explained the process to CC. She's been wanting topics to research and more. Just more.

LB wandered in while I was watching the PR instructor video for the week. It isn't how its supposed to be taught, but after a few minutes of watching, she was inspired to write the words out herself. This is the fifth week so we are starting to spell and write instead of just practice the sounds.   I'm even more convinced that I need PR3 for CC, but we're starting biology soon so I need the money elsewhere.

Kitchen Table Math saved us from a fraction multiplication nightmare this week. CC was stuck; I had no ideas; KTM gave me a different way to look at the problems and helped me to narrow down what was her specific missing link. Saxon is usually so good at taking small steps, I was surprised that it seemed such a big leap for her.

I noticed something very odd this week. I gave CC the HO binder, showed her the assignments then went to a meeting. She was supposed to use STOW3 to research the list of people for summaries. After my meeting, I found her in Chapter 4 of STOW reading the book straight through. Its not that she doesn't know how to use an index, she just naturally starts books at the beginning.

LB made a solar system picture this week at school. When she was showing it to me she described it like this, "There's the sun in the middle. There's Mercury and Venus. Here's Earth up at the top then Mars.    Then there's the big one, the one with rings, the light blue one and the dark blue one, and another one". I seriously love the kindergarten age.

Ever feel like you just can't do it today? That was my Wednesday. LB was terrific with her phonics, and I read her a story, but that was all. I had another migraine Tuesday night and tried a new medicine which seems to wear off after about 4 hours. I decided to skip Wednesday. CC spent the day playing with her sister then playing with photoshop.

Thursday was better. The migraine lingered but was tolerable. CC went to school. LB played with G-ma, spelled her words like a champ and generally enjoyed being young. She spent some time in my office on the comfy carpet looking at her new ZooBooks on waterfowl. Thanks to E.B. White, she loves swans.   I was very proud to hear her on the floor sounding out "Tr Tru Trump Trumpeter Sw Sw Swan."

Friday, everyone did their seat work with a minimum of fuss then LB started brine shrimp with G-ma using a Young Scientist Kit while CC spent the afternoon lying on my office carpet reading SOTW3.

I read over CC's new Biology book and finished about half of Protecting the Gift. The biology book looks perfect for what I want to cover. I'm hoping to get at least one other kid to do the labs with us. It is great to have someone to plan and discuss the labs with. I won't start it until history is going along smoothly which gives me time to gather the supplies we need and find a deal on a good microscope.  For my bedtime reading, I'm still on my second time through Moby Dick.

I've also been reading Mary Oliver. I started looking for the poem that had a quote I love, "Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?"    It is from The Summer Day.

Who made the world?
Who made the swan, and the black bear?
Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean-
the one who has flung herself out of the grass,
the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down-
who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away.
I don't know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn't everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?

Wordless Wednesday

2011-02-13T18:28:00.001-07:00

Week 20 Hello World

2011-02-11T13:02:00.004-07:00

This week I started with a plan. I'm not sure if it helped or hurt...

Books this Week:
Trumpet of the Swan, Fox in Socks, Of Courage Undaunted, HP5, I Can Read with My Eyes Shut, If You Grew up with George Washington, Invent Your Own Computer Games with Python, Mini Weapons of Mass Destruction, What Happens to a Hamburger, On Noah's Ark, The Digging-est Dog

This week is a scorecard.

Poems Memorized by both girls!
Stopping by the Woods on A Snowy Evening

Computer programs written by CC: 1!!!! With a variable and some functions, CC was able to ask for a name and repeat it on the computer with a great big "Hello World!" She is now on a well-worn path to being a computer programmer. :) Python is a terrific language, and it is nice to remember that I am, in fact, a computer programmer, and I can teach my kids something that I am good at.

Math Lessons Done: 4 each
Outside Activities Canceled 2 + 1 day of school
Outside Activities Attended 2 + 1 day of school
New Bruises from Fencing - 2
Favorite Phonogram OO
Foreign Languages Studies :French 30 minutes
Migraines 1
Weapons built: 3
PR? Week 4 complete going to have to watch the videos again this weekend
Teacher Prep
Read CW Homer and decided that it would be perfect for CC, but decided to do Paragraph Book 1 first since I have it on the way, and I don't have Harvey's or the diagramming book.

Misc. Education things:
Modern Marvels: The Manhatten Project, History Detectives, Mythbusters, made and mailed Valentine origami frogs for cousins, made tools for a goldsmith out of Model Magic inspired by The Goldent Goblet,

It was a good week

Week 20 - The Plan

2011-02-07T09:46:00.003-07:00

When I worked weekends, I liked Monday because it was the first day of my four-day weekend. This morning I decided I like Monday's because they are fresh and full of possibilities.

I used to do a weekly plan, but haven't this year yet. Here is my school plan for the week.

The breakfast story is Of Courage Undaunted
Poetry memorization is Stoppying by the Woods on a Snowy Evening
K book for the week is If you lived in the time of George Washington
Picture of the week is Washington Crossing the Delaware by Leutze
Music of the week is "My Country, 'Tis of Thee"
Making tri-corner hats and talking about presidents for social studies
Talking about fruits and vegetables for science
Week 4 in PR1 for LB
CC will do copywork two days, writing 2 days and spelling two days.
Saxon 7/6 lessons 25-29 for CC
BJU 1 lessons 2 & 3 for LB
We Will play Dogopoly
CC needs to pick a new book from the book basket to start
CC to research the Alien and Sedition Acts for history, the idea of Serendipity and mitosis .
I'll start our programming in Python class (with CC)
Each girl will do 30 minutes of Rosetta Stone
We're watching America the Story of US from the History Channel, and we are going to watch a Discovery Channel show about the Manhatten Project.
For outside classes CC has fencing and pottery. LB has Tap. We might go snowboarding if the weather cooperates. Each girl has a day of school.

Week 19 - A list and a cold, cold week

2011-02-04T11:24:00.004-07:00

This week a list:

Books
Gregory's Shadow, The Reason for a Flower, Dr. Doolittle (Suess), A Girl Named Disaster, The Stones are Hatching, Golden Children's Bible, Story of the World, History: The Definitive Visual Guide, Puck of Pook's Hill, Magic School Bus Plants a Seed, The Land of the Silver Apples, The Golden Goblet, Otto of the Silver Hand, Animals in Winter, Exploring Our Solar System , Uncover Dog, Gus the Duck, Blueberries for Sal, Sunshine Makes the Seasons

LB

Helped screw in drywall, sorted the nails and screws into new containers, math, ETC, "Of course it has accessories, it's a Barbie car", Gregory's Shadow, The Reason for a Flower, played Dogopoly, put together a bookcase for G-ma with Daddy, had a snow day from school, played Calico Critters with Daddy in my cozy office floor, did the er,ur,ir,wor,ear phonograms, talked about planets (read Mercury and Earth based on the new phonograms!!! Love PR), sent a group of Calico Critters into space, played treasure hunt with the Calico Critters (hide 16 critters then count down until they are found (we found 6, there are 10 more to find etc.)), Animals in Winter, made a popcorn and cranberry string to feed the animals, explained doggie digestion to Daddy using Uncover Dog, read Gus the Duck, "I love you, and I love phonics!", made a picnic for inside for lunch, did our PR lesson, played veterinarian in my office while I worked, spent forever getting her snow clothes on to play outside, finished week 3 of PR1, did her math lesson, played Noah's Ark.

CC
Made Razzleberry Pie, had drywall dropped on her foot, A Girl Named Disaster, math, spelling, write a letter to a friend, "Your car has accessories?", Dogopoly, Story of the World 1, fencing complete with new bruises, Puck of Pook's Hill, talked me into reading Land of the Silver Apples to her again, watched History Detectives on the treadmill, then watched the HP3 movie on the treadmill almost 3 hours nonstop walking (the cold is starting to get to us all), found the box of SL Alt. 7 books I had saved from when BB was younger, started reading The Golden Goblet, pottery canceled, finished The Golden Goblet, researched the Suez Canal, helped hide critters to avoid math, started Otto of the Silver Hand, WON HER STORY CONTEST!!!!, took the day Friday to go snowboarding with Daddy.

Me (just the interesting parts)
Put up drywall, took a load of stuff to Goodwill, read the Logic section of TWTM, practiced my part of a training presentation so much that I could only talk in my "presentation voice", read some poetry aloud to try to get that voice out of my head, gave the first session of my training presentation to 150 people while still in my pajamas, need to remember to breathe more often, strategically placed the box of Alt. 7 books so CC could find them (snow days require more books), ran 2 miles on the treadmill, gave the training presentation to 50 people on the other side of the world in a clean set of jammies, hid lots of calico critters, did my training for a third time to 60+ people (not in jammies this time), ran 45 minutes on the treadmill, was happy I had gotten dressed early becaue I forgot to put the trash out and had to chase down our nice trash guy, decided I should probably read Noah's Ark to LB since she loves to pretend to be animals on the ark, debated whether any of this is acutally interesting.

I made this list this week as it was happening. It helped to highlight to me how much everyone works together around here to get things done. I left out things that were non-educational from the kid's lists. The weather canceled most of our outside commitments. I also didn't require as much from CC as I usually do for math and other skill subjects. She is in the middle of a restless and growing phase. Her mind is seeking more depth so I've been trying to focus on that and give her plenty of time and space to accomplish this growth.

It was a good week.

The first 2 1/2 miles is the easy part.

2011-01-29T21:40:00.002-07:00

This weekend the weather was warm so we decided to do my run on a trail together outside instead of sticking to the treadmill. Hubby dropped the girls and I off at the trail head then parked 5 miles away at the next trail head and rode his bike to meet us. I told the girls to stay ahead of me but where they could see me at least until their father caught up with us. :) It was a mile longer than I had run last week, but the trail and the weather were perfect for a run.

After we were finished, I asked CC if she had felt like she couldn't make it the whole way while we were going (she on her bike and me running). She said that it wouldn't have done any good to quit because she would have still had to cycle to the the truck.

It is easy to keep motivated when quitting isn't an option.

Week 18 - Choice

2011-01-28T19:25:00.005-07:00

Last weekend I had a crisis of confidence. I decided I am failing at the education of my children. Saturday, I put the girls on the waiting list for a local charter school. Sunday, I talked with CC and hubby then felt a bit better. Then I went to a Choice meeting for our local district to see some new offerings for home school enrichment. Friday, I am wavering, but still holding. I think I am more having a daily struggle with my confidence at this point. I am certain that homeschooling is the best choice for my kids - except maybe for that 40k per kid school which must be better because it is so expensive and so many of their kids are excepted into super cool colleges.

Read aloud - Land of the Silver Apples, Three Little Dassies, Redwood Coast, The Diggingest Dog, Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening, Are you My Mother, Where the Wild Things Are, Plants that Never Bloom

CC's reading list- A Girl Named Disaster, HP2, Celtic Tales, HP3

Monday -
I took CC to the office with me. LB hung out at home. I left her a stack of work which happily did. Her handwriting is awesome.

CC did her math, worked on bar graphs on my laptop, researched WWII and the Great Depression. She is researching the Y12 facility used for the Manhattan Project. She had fencing which was terrific, except the bruises which she is getting used to. I read The Lost Tools of Learning by Dorothy Sayers and found some of my inspiration.

Tuesday -
Took LB to school and promptly returned with her. She had a tummy ache. She played with her sister, did her phonics (PR still rocks!), listened to CC read Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening, did some Montessori math on the ipad, talked about mountain habitats in science, had a nice little camping trip in a red rock desert, and made a cardboard box car.

CC played with her sister, read with her sister, read Celtic Tales, started a crystals science kit, learned about crystals that can grow in space and how they might be a future food source for extra-terrestrial humans. Started a new session of pottery class with hubby.

I went to a choice program presentation by our district and learned about a new outdoor education hs enrichment program.

Wednesday -
LB made muffins and took me on a camping trip in her new car.
CC had trouble getting up.

It turned into one of those days. The girls played happily as a defense against doing any work. It started to go awry right before I had a big meeting (in which I got to be smart and was well-prepared). I unrolled butcher paper on the dining room table and kitchen floor then gave them art supplies. CC stacked the table with 3 feet of encyclopedias then started researching and illustrating. LB made a house.

I managed to catch LB for phonics - which she enjoyed. CC would rather have not done writing, but she did it with a timer and a threat of more work. She did great on her math then completely forgot how to do long division half way through her last problem. We went to a quieter room, redid the problem and then did a few more long division problems just to get her confidence back.
LB became interested in what she was playing and didn't want to go to tap dancing, but she got happy and motivated once she realized that I wouldn't stay home and play Calico Critters with her instead. CC took a book to my office and read until dinner.

Thursday -
CC had to commit to a choice for school for next year. She chose to not continue in her current ps enrichment program. She will either switch to a new program or go to the enrichment at the classical charter school in town. She went to school nervous about the results of the class writing contest. Her teacher told her she loved her story, but hadn't finished reading it yet. She's only on chapter 4; however, her daughter read the story and loved it.

LB didn't get a choice about next year, she's staying in her current program. She created creatures on Spore, made dragons in KidPix, matched states on the ipad, played with Calico Critters in my office and with G-ma and rocked her phonics again. We will have to review Y. It's the first letter she's had trouble with.

I decided to order PR 3 for CC next week. We're both ready for her spelling to improve.

CC and LB played together after school in G-ma's room. CC also received a gift from an old and dear friend that lives in Wisconsin.

Friday
LB played with Calico Critters, reviewed her phonics, got a story from Daddy.

CC worked on her spelling. She's been reading The ABC's and All Their Tricks and copying 25 words per day. Maybe I should hold off on that big PR buy. She also did her math quickly - ratio's are easy. She made delicious chocolate chip cookies from scratch without a recipe.

I packed all of my meetings into a big block so I could take off early. It is 66 and sunny today so the park is required. We listened to Pavarotti's Opera Made Easy on the way. They love opera - it is so much bigger than real life. BB originally got them interested. He has a big voice for opera and an ear for language.

BB said that they liked him the day he taught at the Japanese school, and they have scheduled him for a full day of teaching instead of just assisting in the class. Please pause for a moment to picture my 6'5" son teaching in a Japanese kindergarten. He said he and his friends are going out for Shabu Shabu this weekend. He loves the social food in Japan. I love how much he is learning in and out of school.

My crisis has abated for now. Maybe next week.
We've completed 96 days of school.

And btw - if you have a kid in college overseas, news like this bothers you although I usually think volcanic lightning is cool.

Week 17 - Mantras?

2011-01-21T13:53:00.001-07:00

Read Alouds -
Owl Moon, Rapunzel, Curious George at the Zoo, Richard Scary's Please and Thank You, Where the Wild Things Are, Pinkalicious, Uncover Dog, Uncover Horse
CC finished - HP1 and 2, reading A Girl Named Disaster
Reading to both - Land of the Silver Apples

Monday was a holiday. I worked on my Simplifying plan. I took two loads of stuff to Goodwill and the construction debris to the dump. The kids played with Keva and did origami.

I read an article in the running magazine about the power of mantras to help you keep going on long runs. It started me thinking that I need a homeschool mantra. Something to repeat like Dory's line, "Just keep swimming," but more directly related to my homeschooling goals.

Tuesday .....
LB was slow getting up for school and CC slept late. I want to work towards getting everyone up, dressed and fed by 8. I have some work to do. Hubby also expressed interest in helping with the homeschooling. We'll have to talk.
CC feeling healthy again. I spent an hour with her after my morning meetings. We did math, agreed on a set of poems to memorize, set her up with a science/mythology project to research the names of the terrestrial moons, dismissed MP Classical Studies and setup a history study plan using The Definitive Visual History of the World. She has almost finished making all the origami projects in her book . This afternoon she is walking with g-ma to the post office. It is sunny and 50 today so they need to enjoy it.

If you're wondering how I could dismiss something the first day we evaluated it, it was easy. I went over the schedule with her, then asked her some of the honor's questions from several weeks in the study. She not only gave terrific answers, but she also used references to other works in her answers. The girl quoted Thomas Paine when I asked her how the stories of Cain and Able and Romulus and Remus relate to the founding of America. Thomas Paine. I think maybe what we have been doing by letting her research and follow her own interests along with lots of discussion is working for us, and we'll stick with it.

LB came home from school singing a song about the planets set to the the tune of This Old Man.

Wednesday -Trying to conform to a plan..... Got the girls up early. Daddy read Owl Moon to LB. She came down to my office to cut out phonogram cards from Phonics Road while I was on a call. Then she did some painting. We did the first lesson of PR! It went well. She also practiced her six poems she is supposed to know. I cuddled on the carpet with her to read her a couple of stories too. After lunch, she dumped some Calico Critters in the floor to play with while I worked.

CC stayed up late reading last night and helped her sister after a bad dream so she was tired today. After breakfast she retreated to Daddy's office to read. At 10am, we did two chapters of math sitting on the carpet then she hurried away to read some more. We chatted about school choices for next year since its the Choice time in our district. We're thinking of switching her to a different hs enrichment choice next year then maybe enrolling her in a classical choice school for 6th grade. She wants more of something. We both agreed that their current school is still perfect for LB.

Thursday - CC went to school
LB spent most of the day in my office with me. We did phonics Road (it is still terrific). She taught me an art lesson and played teacher using Alki's Manners book.

Friday - I had a walk through of a presentation my team is doing so everyone in the house got to listen to me practicing. LB put herself down for a nap, and CC invented a game. CC started a research project on the Civil War and spent time doing her assigned reading in the visual history encyclopedia. She did three lessons in math. LB did her phonics. Hubby did a read-aloud.

Ongoing activity for the week includes Dragon Training.

Somewhere during this week I decided that the kids should each have a watch. I don't like that my life is going that way, but it will be easier to manage our juggled time if we are all synchronized.

I still don't have a mantra.

Week 16 - New Year, New Material, New Spaces and sick kids

2011-01-14T17:01:00.001-07:00

Read Alouds - The Land of the Silver Apples, Jan Brett 's The Owl and the Pussycat, Stellaluna, plus bedtime reads that I can't remember today.
CC's Reads - Harry Potter again - she finally checked #2 out from the library so she can quit rereading the first one. Bruce Coville's version of A Winter's Tale and The Tempest

I have great new material for both girls. I ended last semester knowing that things needed to change. I needed a more predicable work schedule, and I needed a set schedule of work for the kids. Looking at the books I already have, I choose MP K and MP Classical Studies. I'm also going to start RS A with LB, again.

Here's How it Worked.

*scheduled in MP
**replaces equivalent assignment in MP

Monday -
LB - ETC**, Stellaluna *, play in snow, watch Magic School Bus, make jello, play, recitation*, RS lesson**.
CC - sick - watched History Detectives (4 episodes), Harry Potter movie 1, napped, coughed, blew nose, had a headache.

Tuesday -
LB went to school then fell asleep on the way home. Maybe she's not all better yet.
CC finally emerged from her room. She was only up for a few hours, but that is an improvement. She did some art, played with keva blocks and watched mythbusters and Liberty's Kids.

I learned that running an extra 15 minutes and pushing the shower until after my next call is a bad idea especially if the calls run over. I ran at noon; it is now six. I still haven't showered. I need a better time to run.

Wednesday -
Glorious sunrise this morning. Now that I'm becoming a morning person, I love watching the sunrise while I have my coffee in the quiet of the day.
LB - woke up with an earache. She is sick again.
CC - feeling better, rested, did art and finished her story. 12 pages and over 3000 words.

Thursday -
LB is sick still.
CC went to school.

Friday -
LB went back to the doctor today - an ear infection and tonsillitis.
CC is under the weather and not fully recovered from her cough. I can't focus on trying to push her through work with LB feeling so bad. She read and played with keva blocks again.

Well. Week 16 was a bad, bad week. :) Nothing really worked well because the kids were sick. It is one of those weeks that make you question if you should be doing this at all. However, I know that the kids will get better. The new schedule and material might work, once I get a chance to try them. At least it is the weekend, and I can get some rest and put the finishing touches on my new office.

BB started a new job. He's working at an afterschool English school. He's teaching English to 7-8 yos who are just learning English. They sang BINGO and Head and Shoulders and played ring-around-the-rosie. I think it is pretty cool.

A test Run of the New Schedule - Pre-Week 16 weekly report

2011-01-07T10:53:00.002-07:00

LB and and Cousin G in the snow at Christmas

Made by CC in pottery last semester

Reading for the Week-
CC read Harry Potter twice- whatever the first one is.
LB - Sleeping Beauty, Puff the Magic Dragon, Who Wants a Dragon, A Good Day, and started Trumpet of the Swan
Read Aloud for both - Land of the Silver Apples - sequel to Sea of Trolls

I tried out my new schedule this week. I changed jobs right before Christmas. My last job was exciting and important and demanding, and I was VERY good at it. However, I often missed dinner and bedtime stories even though I was working at home. I didn't have predictable hours or a predictable schedule. Something had to change. I was offered another job in a related group so I jumped at it. Now, I am more involved in prevention of problems than in dealing with problems. It is a more predictable type of job.

Monday's plan included getting some work in while the kids were still asleep, breakfast with the kids, a long break for play, baking, uninterrupted work blocks of time. I couldn't get up early, but did manage to get up at my normal time. My work computer is dead so all I could do was read email and tell my boss that I'm not productive. I did get breakfast with the girls then get back to work. I also took the break for play, and we baked bread, cookies and CC made a Shoo-Fly Pie.

I had CC do a page of facts practice to start warming up her brain for school next week. She also installed and started the tutorial for Logo which is going to be a new thing in our school this semester.

LB played with stuffed animals, made cookies, helped with the bread, made a trap to catch me and tried on tap dancing shoes.

Tuesday - This will be my big meeting day - I have meetings scheduled for 3 hours every Tuesday. I have gone into my calendar and scheduled daily meeting blocks with my kids so that I have planned time with them each day.   I was able to use my time blocks as allocated so today.   The kids have learned to be pretty flexible because of my previous job. I think the scheduled time will be relaxing to them. They made a day spa, did some art, played with stuffed animals.

Wednesday - I managed to make all of my scheduled breaks with the kids, plus get my work done. LB is coming down with a cough. We put up a toy shelf over CC's bed for her beloved stuffed animals. We made boiled onions and a "traveling bread" for dinner based on descriptions from Land of the Silver Apples.

Thursday - Took LB to the doctor - fever+cough+clear breath sounds = virus. CC spent the morning perfecting her helicopter landings. LB and I spent most of the day cuddled up while I worked and she rested. I was able to stop for my scheduled breaks and complete my work for the day. CC spent some time with her telling her stories to help her feel better.

Friday - LB is still sick. She is looking at the Useborne Flip-Flap Body Book - she wanted me to read the part about getting sick.   She wants to watch Magic School Bus Inside Ralphie later this morning.    I also heard from BB, he is going to try to change jobs. He is currently waiting tables at a fancy Italian restaurant in Tokyo. He interviewed for a job at an English school. He would be singing songs and helping out in a kindergarten class a couple of days a week. He says his Japanese has improved greatly by having to use it at work. I think that he'll be terrific with little kids. CC is finishing her story which is due next Thursday. Right now she is staring blankly at the wall - probably trying to imagine her action sequence so she can write it. This part is harder for her than the descriptive sections were. She also typed up and printed out a flight school training plan for her helicopter. I guess the writing block continues in the story world, but her creativity hasn't slowed.

The week was very successful. I think the new schedule will work. I'm glad I planned to just test the schedule without adding the actual school work. It worked out well. Next week we will follow the same time schedule but with real work instead of play in my blocks. One thing I want is more outside time, but I think the weather and illness were more of a factor in that this week than anything else.

My Wishes for the New Year in Pictures

2011-01-03T19:24:00.003-07:00

I took these pictures last weekend. As I was going through them, I realized they are exactly what I want.

Joy

Affection

Hope

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Back to School - BB, not us

2011-01-02T16:03:00.002-07:00

Happy 2011.

We'll be starting the New Year fresh and new. BB is back to college in Japan. My brother and his family are back to Florida. My sister and her family are back to Texas. The house is suddenly quiet, except that the girls have turned the living room upside down as habitats for animals, pulled the stuffed animals into families and are playing very loudly together.

We have some big changes coming - new material, new schedules, new spaces and a new job for me.

Next week I'll demo my new work schedule with the kids not doing school, then we'll adjust and start the week after.

Happy New Year and New beginnings.

Week 15 And that wraps up school

2010-12-15T15:02:00.033-07:00

School is out for Christmas finally. I had planned it to be a short week, but I didn't plan it short enough. We started out the week with CC turning 10 - we enjoyed a sunny day hiking in our favorite local park. We managed a couple of days of almost school then took a snow day. LB has her first ballet recital this weekend. We will be off for two weeks (or three) for the holidays.

I'm making big changes for next year. Big changes.

Books Read
City by David MacAulay

Read Alouds
A Christmas Carol
Dr. Seuss' ABC
There's a Wocket in my Pocket by Dr. Suess
Cinderella by K. Y. Craft
Sleeping Beauty by K. Y. Craft

Activities
Made 4 kinds of shortbread bookies for a cookie exchange (CC and LB)
Play Spore (everyone)
Lots of games of Apples to Apples Jr. - everyone
Day off for CC's birthday - everyone
Animation - (CC working through the Klutz book of Animation she got for her birthday.)
Nature walk (everyone)
Hiking (everyone)
Fencing (CC)
Ballet (LB)
Adventure story - (CC) she's writing and we're editing together. She is on chapter 5 and ready to write the climax of the story.
ETC (LB)
Reading Pathways (LB)
Math (both)
Boggle (all)
Crazy Contraptions
Day off because it was Friday. We started Christmas vacation early.

Week 14 - BB is Home!

2010-12-11T10:03:00.005-07:00

This is how we typically see BB. Computers are terrific, but last night he stumbled in from the airport tired and hungry. I fed him pot roast and gravy and sent him to bed. He's home for Christmas for a couple of weeks before he flies back to Tokyo. I'm a happy momma today.

CC has read this week -
Common Sense - it's her second time reading. She's fascinated with idea that this was written for the "common" man at the time.
Rose in Bloom - I have an IRL friend that loves Alcott and is feeding CC's passion for these.
Still reading Tom Sawyer.
Augustus Caesar's World - started for school

Read Alouds
A Christmas Carol- the girls are really enjoying it, and I'm reading in small bits.
Fearless Girls, Wise Women & Beloved Sisters by Kathleen Ragan
Lily's Big Day and Kitten's First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes
The Hat, The Mitten, The Umbrella, Honey, Honey, Lion by Jan Brett
We're Going on a Bear Hunt illustrated by Helen Oxenbury
Rattletrap Car by Phyllis Root
Big Momma Makes the World by Phyllis Root and illustrated by Helen Oxenbury

Activities
Snap Circuits (both but at different times)
Noah's Ark Stickers (LB)
Ping Pong Animals (both, CC's invention made with ping pong balls, tissues, q-tips, hot glue gun and assorted supplies)
Nature Walk
Make gravy for dinner (CC)
Make cookies for desert (LB)
Chocolate chip Math game with dice - put chips in piles of 1 - 12 for each player. Take turns rolling the dice and pick up the pile of chips for each number rolled. Everybody wins a bowl of chips. (LB)
ETC2 (LB)
Math (both)
writing and editing her Adventure story (CC). She read a couple of articles on the structure of stories to help her get past a stuck plot point. We spent a lot of time working with punctuating conversations.
Vocabulary (CC - dis was our word root)
Make a microscope (CC)
Fencing (CC)
Ballet (LB)
one day of ps enrichment school each

CC also spent a lot of time designing a Norse village with Gma. They looked up names for places and things to create a more authentic environment. I'll take pictures when they are done. LB setup a day spa for me and did my hair and nails while I was on a long call.

We had a terrific week. I was busy with work and distracted by anticipation of BB coming home. The girls are learning and growing.

Week 13. Fresh and Happy and busy.

2010-12-03T14:32:00.002-07:00

Our Thanksgiving trip to Texas was terrific. Here is a picture of what the girls did in the car besides playing Stack the State and watching movies.

CC continued to work on her story this week. Her last word count was over 1600 words. She has divided the story into chapters, and I picked up a punctuation book that we started instead of the grammar we were doing. Here is the story beginning.

Red, orange, yellow and purple, those were the colors all around. She felt the cool breeze on her shoulders; life was good. They say nobody has seen a hyena in these parts for years. “Hey, Azana, come down from that rock; it's my turn for look out duty,” yelled Jamar.

She says she's following a "classic hero quest plot" so she knows where her story is going.

The new math book finally came in, and we've started that again. Her current reads are Tom Sawyer and this anatomy book.

She's also been watching Alton Brown on hulu.com then trying the recipies. Pottery is almost done, and we're planning a class on fiber spinning next.

LB was happy that it was warm enough to play with chalk for at least one day this week.

She drew some terrific pictures including this winged unicorn.

She did two pages a day from ETC2, listened to terrific versions of Rapunzel and Rumplestilskin, read Gus the Duck, worked on addition with in 20 with a dice game, spent some quality time being a veterinarian and a dog. She also worked with her sister on teaching the dog a new trick.

Other than that, we started A Christmas Carol. CC loves the character descriptions Dickens does. LB thinks its funny so far - because she was picturing the people from the descriptions. The girls both learned some string games and spent a lot of time, while I was working on a document, turning various rooms in my house to caves, hotels and bakeries.

I have a question for you? Do your kids know why boats float? CC's enrightment school did a science lesson on bouancy. This is a fourth and fifth grade combined class. Only two kids had a firm understanding of it. Both also exclaimed "Eureka!" in class.

Week 12 - And I thought last week didn't go well

2010-11-19T14:24:00.004-07:00

I may as well just summarize by saying we are now on Day 67 for fourth grade and Day 69 for Kindergarten which is a gain of one day for fourth grade and two days for Kindergarten. Illness reigns at The Magic School House.

I started this week keeping actual notes about our week. Here they are raw and unformatted.

CC Reading List

Read In Search of a Homeland: The Story of the Aeneid by Penelope Lively -Between Black Ships Before Troy, The Wanderings of Odysseus and this one, Odysseus was her favorite. She said the Roman story lacked a true hero like Odysseus . The Luck of Troy was her favorite stories from the three books because it showed how a true hero was willing to suffer to achieve his goal. We talked a lot about how the stories compared and what they said about the people who wrote them and the times in which they were written.

She started reading An Old Fashioned Girl.

LB Story List
The Little Mermaid by Andersen
Serendipity Stories
Always Room for One More
Fox in Sox
The Little Match Girl by Andersen

and lots of Jan Brett.

Monday -
CC
Sore throat is worse
Did Spelling Workout and Dot to Dots
Started new story - an adventure
missed Dental appointment and fencing

LB
ETC2 - 2 pages
1 page Math
Art - Picture - mixing colors
Little Mermaid
No Cavities
Mixed up agar for science project
Help peel potatoes for dinner

Tuesday
CC
Back to doctor for sore throat. Still not strep. Not mono either but will need to go back for a retest if still sick next Monday.
missed pottery
LB went to her enrichment School
I had a Very Important Document to publish

Wednesday
CC sick
LB played. Did Teach Me Kindergarten on my iphone.
played some more - making roller coasters for stuffed animals in the living room
Watched Kipper while I was on the phone all afternoon
Ballet
Didn't count as school.
Hubby tucked them in bed and I checked on them while I was still on the phone. Tucked hubby in too - he had to get up early on Thursday.

Thursday
uh-oh week is almost gone.
Starting to worry that homeschooling isn't going to work with my new job, but try to calm myself that half of my students are out of school so that explains why I haven't accomplished much. Resolve that LB will not watch so much tv today.

Picked out materials for next year. CC wants Asian history - but not all wars so we'll concentrate on history, geography and culture starting with a modified SL 5. LB is getting SL 1 modified or OM1. I think that since I haven't had much school this week I'm worried about their progress. Planning next year has helped me to relax. Of course plans are subject to change. I know I want some structure for LB since she'll be in first grade, and I have a history of just letting her play. CC is getting pretty independent and loves to follow trails. I will torture her with IEW B next year just for fun (mine not hers). Next year we will be more structured.

Hmm - I think I'm running a fever now.

CC made me some tea with fresh mint, lemon balm, vanilla and honey. She said it'd make me feel better. Then she put on a show for her sister and started working on her story.

CC Started reading Treasure Island before she went to bed . That is a mistake. She read all of part one, then called me. Her eyes were the size of saucers, and she was breathing heavily. She said it was the most amazing, dramatic, adventurous, story ever. It was like all the other adventure stories in the world with their boring parts squeezed out. She had a terrible time getting to sleep because she kept thinking about it and being tempted to read the rest. But the good news is that she maybe she's feeling better since she's reading.

But she did miss her school day. Canceled school for LB.
Friday - Here it is. The big day. Last chance to do something.

CC woke up with a fever and sore throat again. She is however feeling like working on her story - its in her mind and she wants it on paper.

Her energy quickly faded. She added another scene to her story. LB and I went for a two mile run and bike ride and had tea party. I guess this isn't school - again.