"The average dairy farmer gets up at dawn because he has to go to work in the cow yard. I get up at dawn, too. But it is because I want to find some leaf, hung with dew; or a spider web which the dew has made into the most delicate ropes of pearls...I take my camera with me, get down on my knees in the wet grass, and photograph these exquisite bits of nature. Because I do this I can show these lovely things to people who never would have seen them without my help. They will get their daily quart of milk, all right. Other farmers will attend to that. But I think I am giving them something which is just as important."
--W.A. Bentley
Wednesday, November 26, 2014
Monday, November 3, 2014
October in Retrospective: Travel, School, Soccer, Sewing and November Plans
The last month has absolutely flown past! I have not kept a journal at all, but we've been doing school and living life. Last week we took a 'fall break'--it was a week sandwiched between trips out of town!
But now the traveling is done, soccer is done, the Halloween sewing is done, so we're settling back into normal life.
Our initial second-grade schedule has definitely morphed as the fall has progressed. I've changed our initial plans, of course! In fact, I am not using my checklist at all! Some of the AO books have been interesting to us and some have not. My primary goal is to foster a love of learning and my secondary goal is to keep this whole process enjoyable for everyone. To that end, the books we're enjoying at the moment:
*Old Mother West Wind (our morning read-aloud)
*Little House on the Prairie (this is our bedtime read-aloud now)
*Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (I'd never read this book or seen the movie--we're just starting in on it as a family read-aloud)
*various picture books from the library
*Story of the World on CD
*Jim Weiss' reading of Midsummer Night's Dream
Our days right now basically involve the sweet little routine of short formal morning lessons: a little bit of handwriting, some low-pressure math, and reading aloud/phonics (right now we're reading Little Bear), followed by piano practice. Everything else mostly springs organically from what we're into: reading books, gardening, projects the children want to pursue, some memory work, music......
This month I would like to--
*write a letter or two to a couple of veterans for Veterans' Day
*try to find a few good books to look at on Thanksgiving, the Mayflower, the Pilgrims, Native Americans
*possibly finish up our Delta science kit.....
....academically, I think that's it. I am going to do my Christmas shopping and keep renovating the bathroom!
I'm trying to take an Internet break, too!
But now the traveling is done, soccer is done, the Halloween sewing is done, so we're settling back into normal life.
Our initial second-grade schedule has definitely morphed as the fall has progressed. I've changed our initial plans, of course! In fact, I am not using my checklist at all! Some of the AO books have been interesting to us and some have not. My primary goal is to foster a love of learning and my secondary goal is to keep this whole process enjoyable for everyone. To that end, the books we're enjoying at the moment:
*Old Mother West Wind (our morning read-aloud)
*Little House on the Prairie (this is our bedtime read-aloud now)
*Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (I'd never read this book or seen the movie--we're just starting in on it as a family read-aloud)
*various picture books from the library
*Story of the World on CD
*Jim Weiss' reading of Midsummer Night's Dream
Our days right now basically involve the sweet little routine of short formal morning lessons: a little bit of handwriting, some low-pressure math, and reading aloud/phonics (right now we're reading Little Bear), followed by piano practice. Everything else mostly springs organically from what we're into: reading books, gardening, projects the children want to pursue, some memory work, music......
This month I would like to--
*write a letter or two to a couple of veterans for Veterans' Day
*try to find a few good books to look at on Thanksgiving, the Mayflower, the Pilgrims, Native Americans
*possibly finish up our Delta science kit.....
....academically, I think that's it. I am going to do my Christmas shopping and keep renovating the bathroom!
I'm trying to take an Internet break, too!
Sunday, October 5, 2014
Autumn Plans
I have dropped the ball on the Journal of Days for the past three weeks! We devoted almost an entire week to caregiving (September 23-26), although we did spend three and a half hours in a waiting room and discussed anesthesia, worked on math flash cards, read James Herriott, did Explode the Code...in other words, portable school. That Monday we did regular school, Tuesday was 'portable school' and Wednesday, Thursday and Friday were all dedicated to caregiving.
The other two weeks were more typical, with piano practice, read-alouds, math flash cards, working through a science kit, handwriting, chores, and many other activities filling our days. I simply have not taken the time to sit and write about any of it! Life-school is such a great thing, too.....the children learn about chrysanthemums, transplanting peonies, pet care, et cetera.
The only day I actually recorded was September 15--here's what we did!
Monday, September 15: Finn slept in until 8:45 or so; I wrote while Annie sat on my lap. We had a quick breakfast and an abbreviated morning time before chores and piano. The children sat at the table enchanted by Bruce Corville's illustrated version of Midsummer Night's Dream. "When can we act this out?" I figured I'd strike while the iron is hot, so I told them after our initial, formal schoolwork we could start on Midsummer. Piano practice, a page of Miquon, a quick phonics review lesson and Frog and Toad story, and a little handwriting began the day. We did a spelling lesson, and seeing as how Finn knows how to spell the words already--I tested him--we're on to the next lesson on Wednesday! More sentences v. phrases in grammar, and then he narrated "Damon and Pythias" and we read his health lesson. The rest of the day was spent swinging outside (for about 1.5 hours!) and drawing backdrops and choosing Playmobil characters for Midsummer Night's Dream. At bedtime we read about Bach as part of Finn's piano homework.
*********************************
I've been revising our year as we go. I always do this! I find it fascinating that I spend so much time at the start of the year planning in great detail only to change directions, tweak, drop, add and adjust throughout the year. Right now I am planning some school based on topics Finn has been asking about lately. For October we will (in addition to the normal skills subjects and poetry, music, art)-
*continue some read-alouds that we've been enjoying, such as Old Mother West Wind and the Little House books, and finishing James Herriott's stories
*finish Midsummer Night's Dream
*read about squirrels
*learn about New York City (anyone have any great resources on this to toss at me? I'm figuring it out....)
*read a little bit about how and why the leaves change color in autumn
*discuss Columbus Day (Finn already read a book on Columbus this fall and one of our Classical Conversation history sentences was about him; I want to discuss him a bit more)
*read a book on the Boston Tea Party
*finish our readings on India!!
*I'd also like to read a little bit about the origins of Halloween, but I am not sure I will get around to this. We hope to celebrate All Saints' Day, too.
In November I hope to add in:
*additional read-alouds
*writing letters to a few veterans for Veterans' Day
*specific readings about Thanksgiving, the Mayflower, the Pilgrims, the Native Americans, etc.
*begin readings on another country (I haven't decided which just yet)
....& I am not sure what else! I will fill in near the end of October when I get a feel for what Finn is interested in doing.
For December I hope to concentrate our readings more on Advent and Christmas-related things (St. Nicholas Day!), and maybe throw a little Civil War history in there since we will be in Charleston at New Year's. Of course, December is also quite busy with the wonderful and homey aspects of the holidays--baking delicious foods, decorating the house, wrapping gifts and enjoying the end of the year together. I adore Advent and Christmas and my adoration of this season only gets more intense every year.
I also want to work a bit here and there on specific skills. Tying shoes, making phone calls, telling time, playing store (learning about coins and money!) are all things we are doing in tiny bites.
The other two weeks were more typical, with piano practice, read-alouds, math flash cards, working through a science kit, handwriting, chores, and many other activities filling our days. I simply have not taken the time to sit and write about any of it! Life-school is such a great thing, too.....the children learn about chrysanthemums, transplanting peonies, pet care, et cetera.
The only day I actually recorded was September 15--here's what we did!
Monday, September 15: Finn slept in until 8:45 or so; I wrote while Annie sat on my lap. We had a quick breakfast and an abbreviated morning time before chores and piano. The children sat at the table enchanted by Bruce Corville's illustrated version of Midsummer Night's Dream. "When can we act this out?" I figured I'd strike while the iron is hot, so I told them after our initial, formal schoolwork we could start on Midsummer. Piano practice, a page of Miquon, a quick phonics review lesson and Frog and Toad story, and a little handwriting began the day. We did a spelling lesson, and seeing as how Finn knows how to spell the words already--I tested him--we're on to the next lesson on Wednesday! More sentences v. phrases in grammar, and then he narrated "Damon and Pythias" and we read his health lesson. The rest of the day was spent swinging outside (for about 1.5 hours!) and drawing backdrops and choosing Playmobil characters for Midsummer Night's Dream. At bedtime we read about Bach as part of Finn's piano homework.
*********************************
I've been revising our year as we go. I always do this! I find it fascinating that I spend so much time at the start of the year planning in great detail only to change directions, tweak, drop, add and adjust throughout the year. Right now I am planning some school based on topics Finn has been asking about lately. For October we will (in addition to the normal skills subjects and poetry, music, art)-
*continue some read-alouds that we've been enjoying, such as Old Mother West Wind and the Little House books, and finishing James Herriott's stories
*finish Midsummer Night's Dream
*read about squirrels
*learn about New York City (anyone have any great resources on this to toss at me? I'm figuring it out....)
*read a little bit about how and why the leaves change color in autumn
*discuss Columbus Day (Finn already read a book on Columbus this fall and one of our Classical Conversation history sentences was about him; I want to discuss him a bit more)
*read a book on the Boston Tea Party
*finish our readings on India!!
*I'd also like to read a little bit about the origins of Halloween, but I am not sure I will get around to this. We hope to celebrate All Saints' Day, too.
In November I hope to add in:
*additional read-alouds
*writing letters to a few veterans for Veterans' Day
*specific readings about Thanksgiving, the Mayflower, the Pilgrims, the Native Americans, etc.
*begin readings on another country (I haven't decided which just yet)
....& I am not sure what else! I will fill in near the end of October when I get a feel for what Finn is interested in doing.
For December I hope to concentrate our readings more on Advent and Christmas-related things (St. Nicholas Day!), and maybe throw a little Civil War history in there since we will be in Charleston at New Year's. Of course, December is also quite busy with the wonderful and homey aspects of the holidays--baking delicious foods, decorating the house, wrapping gifts and enjoying the end of the year together. I adore Advent and Christmas and my adoration of this season only gets more intense every year.
I also want to work a bit here and there on specific skills. Tying shoes, making phone calls, telling time, playing store (learning about coins and money!) are all things we are doing in tiny bites.
Friday, September 12, 2014
For Additional Scrutiny
Our first two weeks of school have gone very well. I have noticed several areas that need additional tweaking or scrutiny from me, and I'm tweaking and scrutinizing this weekend:
*afternoon chores. Morning chores run like a well-oiled machine, but when 5:00 rolls around, I have a hard time pulling the children from their play (play is SO important!) to do their chores. The afternoon chores also entail tidying up the spaces where they are usually making creative messes, so it's doubly difficult. I haven't decided on a solution here yet.
*piano practice! Last week I'd save piano for the afternoon, but see point #1 above--I hated pulling Finn away from his important play to practice. Then we'd end up practicing after dinner...not ideal. So this week I took my husband's advice and shifted our practice--after breakfast, morning time and chores we do piano (on the days we're home--Monday, Wednesday and Friday). We don't do piano on Thursdays right now. On Tuesdays we practice in the evening. Saturday and Sunday practice can occur either after breakfast or in the afternoon--they are flexible days. I think I've figured this out!
*my bedtime. I am trying to get to bed earlier!
*Spelling is annoying, but I haven't decided what to do about it yet. I'm going to give it a few more weeks!
*exercise. I made up our schedules and realized later that I had not built any exercise time into them. I've since revised them so I think I've got it figured out--but I haven't implemented the new routine yet. My husband has also just cut a 5'-wide path around the exterior of the pasture--a 0.6-mile track all the way around. So going out and doing a few laps is very appealing as the weather cools....
Some things in the schedule are naturally shifting or dropping as well, most notably the KONOS ideas I had for Annie in the afternoons. Play is just too important.....so we are shelving the already-simple plans I had for now. We haven't started Among the People yet--perhaps we will next week, but I'm not in a big rush.
On the whole, I think this year is starting off well. I am busy busy busy, but having a schedule for each day helps tremendously.
*afternoon chores. Morning chores run like a well-oiled machine, but when 5:00 rolls around, I have a hard time pulling the children from their play (play is SO important!) to do their chores. The afternoon chores also entail tidying up the spaces where they are usually making creative messes, so it's doubly difficult. I haven't decided on a solution here yet.
*piano practice! Last week I'd save piano for the afternoon, but see point #1 above--I hated pulling Finn away from his important play to practice. Then we'd end up practicing after dinner...not ideal. So this week I took my husband's advice and shifted our practice--after breakfast, morning time and chores we do piano (on the days we're home--Monday, Wednesday and Friday). We don't do piano on Thursdays right now. On Tuesdays we practice in the evening. Saturday and Sunday practice can occur either after breakfast or in the afternoon--they are flexible days. I think I've figured this out!
*my bedtime. I am trying to get to bed earlier!
*Spelling is annoying, but I haven't decided what to do about it yet. I'm going to give it a few more weeks!
*exercise. I made up our schedules and realized later that I had not built any exercise time into them. I've since revised them so I think I've got it figured out--but I haven't implemented the new routine yet. My husband has also just cut a 5'-wide path around the exterior of the pasture--a 0.6-mile track all the way around. So going out and doing a few laps is very appealing as the weather cools....
Some things in the schedule are naturally shifting or dropping as well, most notably the KONOS ideas I had for Annie in the afternoons. Play is just too important.....so we are shelving the already-simple plans I had for now. We haven't started Among the People yet--perhaps we will next week, but I'm not in a big rush.
On the whole, I think this year is starting off well. I am busy busy busy, but having a schedule for each day helps tremendously.
Journal of Days, September 8-12
Monday, September 8: After morning time and chores Finn whipped through a few pages of Explode the Code to finish the book. On to the next one! Math equations, spelling lesson, read-aloud Frog and Toad, a little handwriting. We read aloud from Our Island Story; Finn gives beautiful narrations. We read a few other picture books as well, primarily focused on India. Bedtime story continues to be Little House in the Big Woods.
Tuesday, September 9: We didn't do any formal schoolwork; instead, we did piano lesson, piano practice, chores, art lesson, visiting a friend in a nursing home, natural foods store, and farmers' market. I think visiting friends in nursing homes is like a history lesson, though!
Wednesday, September 10: We did our morning time. Our piano tuner came and spent 5 hours tuning. My son dearly loves the piano tuner and his helper, and so Finn spent the entire time in the adjacent room listening to the tuning process and creating a very long "preschool workbook" for Annie. He did many pages of matching, tracing shapes, etc for her to do. It was very sweet. At the same time, Annie and I worked upstairs at making a big pot of soup and pan of gingerbread for our visitors. We served them the warm food and a little dish of cheeses and peanuts for lunch, then sat and visited and told stories about relatives who were at Pearl Harbor, interesting genealogical finds, and music in general. Finn read aloud at some point during the day, and I may have done some math with him--I don't remember!
Thursday, September 11: Homeschool group until 1pm. Finn's presentation was the animated movie he made with his daddy a few weekends ago. After that we hit the library and the bulk foods store, then came home. The children got deeply involved in playing with toy animals outside. When I took a snack out to them with a stack of books, Finn patiently (and, if I do say so, beautifully) narrated an Aesop's Fable, finished Albion and Brutus, and listened to me read a little from an Usborne Science book. A few pages into the science book he said "could I go play now?" Play, that hallmark of childhood. Seeing as how he'd spent all morning in his class, I couldn't blame him! Freedom until soccer practice.
Friday, September 12: We had our morning time together after excellent gluten-free waffles. Everyone loves Old Mother West Wind, but I think I might love it best of all. So charming. Finn practice piano for 20 minutes or so and then we started school. He sailed through the phonics lessons (two of them); I guess I will continue with phonics even though he's basically becoming a confident reader! Then he read a Frog and Toad story to me, no problems there--they're easy for him now. Then we did most of a Miquon math page. I have not figured out how to do 2-3 pages each day without wearing Finn out. One page, maybe two, is definitely our limit. After that--half a page of Handwriting without Tears, finishing up our spelling lesson, and we learned about what a sentence is--a complete thought. I made up hilarious sentences and non-sentences and put them on the whiteboard. Finn's favorite was the tricky "The tooth fairy is a purple dinosaur who lives under the sea." Tricky because yes, it was a sentence, but it is nonsense!
The entire time I was working with Finn I was also working with Annie. She was working through an Usborne sticker book, matching words to stickers (with my help; she can't read yet). Then I gave her a puzzle to do. She seems to love 'school' and sails through everything so quickly that I am going to have to start thinking up fresh things for her to do!
This afternoon it's free time for the little people and housework for the grown-up. The Polly of tomorrow will thank me for getting plenty done today--refrigerator, I'm talking about you!
Notes:
Spelling. Oh, spelling. We're one lesson down. I can't figure out why the book publisher chose the words it chose. Right alongside 'hat' and 'cap' and 'yes' (easy for Finn) are 'sick' and 'rain' and 'word' (challenging but not impossible). Is there a method to this madness? I keep feeling tempted to shelve spelling altogether for another year; it seems sort of banal and pointless until a child is very fluent at reading. And Finn toler-hates it--a phrase I just coined, and a perfect description of his attitude.
This weekend my father is coming to visit, we have a soccer game, we'll practice piano, and Finn is urging me to help him build the 443-piece 3D puzzle of the White House he got at the library on Thursday. Yikes!
Tuesday, September 9: We didn't do any formal schoolwork; instead, we did piano lesson, piano practice, chores, art lesson, visiting a friend in a nursing home, natural foods store, and farmers' market. I think visiting friends in nursing homes is like a history lesson, though!
Wednesday, September 10: We did our morning time. Our piano tuner came and spent 5 hours tuning. My son dearly loves the piano tuner and his helper, and so Finn spent the entire time in the adjacent room listening to the tuning process and creating a very long "preschool workbook" for Annie. He did many pages of matching, tracing shapes, etc for her to do. It was very sweet. At the same time, Annie and I worked upstairs at making a big pot of soup and pan of gingerbread for our visitors. We served them the warm food and a little dish of cheeses and peanuts for lunch, then sat and visited and told stories about relatives who were at Pearl Harbor, interesting genealogical finds, and music in general. Finn read aloud at some point during the day, and I may have done some math with him--I don't remember!
Thursday, September 11: Homeschool group until 1pm. Finn's presentation was the animated movie he made with his daddy a few weekends ago. After that we hit the library and the bulk foods store, then came home. The children got deeply involved in playing with toy animals outside. When I took a snack out to them with a stack of books, Finn patiently (and, if I do say so, beautifully) narrated an Aesop's Fable, finished Albion and Brutus, and listened to me read a little from an Usborne Science book. A few pages into the science book he said "could I go play now?" Play, that hallmark of childhood. Seeing as how he'd spent all morning in his class, I couldn't blame him! Freedom until soccer practice.
Friday, September 12: We had our morning time together after excellent gluten-free waffles. Everyone loves Old Mother West Wind, but I think I might love it best of all. So charming. Finn practice piano for 20 minutes or so and then we started school. He sailed through the phonics lessons (two of them); I guess I will continue with phonics even though he's basically becoming a confident reader! Then he read a Frog and Toad story to me, no problems there--they're easy for him now. Then we did most of a Miquon math page. I have not figured out how to do 2-3 pages each day without wearing Finn out. One page, maybe two, is definitely our limit. After that--half a page of Handwriting without Tears, finishing up our spelling lesson, and we learned about what a sentence is--a complete thought. I made up hilarious sentences and non-sentences and put them on the whiteboard. Finn's favorite was the tricky "The tooth fairy is a purple dinosaur who lives under the sea." Tricky because yes, it was a sentence, but it is nonsense!
The entire time I was working with Finn I was also working with Annie. She was working through an Usborne sticker book, matching words to stickers (with my help; she can't read yet). Then I gave her a puzzle to do. She seems to love 'school' and sails through everything so quickly that I am going to have to start thinking up fresh things for her to do!
This afternoon it's free time for the little people and housework for the grown-up. The Polly of tomorrow will thank me for getting plenty done today--refrigerator, I'm talking about you!
Notes:
Spelling. Oh, spelling. We're one lesson down. I can't figure out why the book publisher chose the words it chose. Right alongside 'hat' and 'cap' and 'yes' (easy for Finn) are 'sick' and 'rain' and 'word' (challenging but not impossible). Is there a method to this madness? I keep feeling tempted to shelve spelling altogether for another year; it seems sort of banal and pointless until a child is very fluent at reading. And Finn toler-hates it--a phrase I just coined, and a perfect description of his attitude.
This weekend my father is coming to visit, we have a soccer game, we'll practice piano, and Finn is urging me to help him build the 443-piece 3D puzzle of the White House he got at the library on Thursday. Yikes!
Saturday, September 6, 2014
We are Real
My Pollyanna personality tends to always focus on the positives of every situation; it's how I was raised. I am an eternal optimist. My parents both strove to raise optimistic and positive children and I think they were successful.
As a result most of what I post is pretty optimistic! But that does not mean that every day homeschooling is easy. There are challenges! Some days flow smoothly, but some days are rocky and difficult. There are toddler tantrums, preschoolers getting in my bizness, reluctant pupils, lolligagging, bickering and petulance, resistance, et cetera. I just don't write about those days because of my bright-side-of-life attitude and because I don't want to over-focus on the negatives. Life *is* hard, but that *is* life.
If something isn't working during schooltime, I try to be proactive, to think about it and troubleshoot, problem-solve and be creative about how to resolve the issue. If a book isn't working for us, I shelve it--there's always next year (this happened last year with This Country of Ours--reading it was torture! so I saved it). I also utilize some audio-resources; for instance, I hate reading Just So Stories. I enjoy their humor and the elegance of Kipling's language, but reading them to my not-quite-comprehending-them-and-auditory-processing-challenged 6 year old was *not* working for me. Fortunately, Jim Weiss has a wonderful recording of Just So Stories. I shelved the whole thing last year and picked back up with it this year--letting Weiss do the work. We'll see how that goes!
My house is not always neat, even though I work diligently at housekeeping; my children don't always behave (although they are good children, they are Very Real Children); *I* don't always behave, even though I wish I did (I'm Very Real), et cetera. This is life and the more mature I get the less I am bothered by the fact that I am living a very real life! I'm grateful for all the opportunities real life provides for growth, faith, and depending on the One who orchestrates the whole thing.
I think of our memory verse for this week: "Be joyful always, pray continually, and give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." -1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
And: "I have learned to be content, whatever the circumstances....I can do all this through Him who gives me strength." -Philippians 4:11, 13
If something isn't working with school, the best thing to do is to regroup, say a prayer, think about how to solve the problem, maintain optimism, and be okay with being real!
As a result most of what I post is pretty optimistic! But that does not mean that every day homeschooling is easy. There are challenges! Some days flow smoothly, but some days are rocky and difficult. There are toddler tantrums, preschoolers getting in my bizness, reluctant pupils, lolligagging, bickering and petulance, resistance, et cetera. I just don't write about those days because of my bright-side-of-life attitude and because I don't want to over-focus on the negatives. Life *is* hard, but that *is* life.
If something isn't working during schooltime, I try to be proactive, to think about it and troubleshoot, problem-solve and be creative about how to resolve the issue. If a book isn't working for us, I shelve it--there's always next year (this happened last year with This Country of Ours--reading it was torture! so I saved it). I also utilize some audio-resources; for instance, I hate reading Just So Stories. I enjoy their humor and the elegance of Kipling's language, but reading them to my not-quite-comprehending-them-and-auditory-processing-challenged 6 year old was *not* working for me. Fortunately, Jim Weiss has a wonderful recording of Just So Stories. I shelved the whole thing last year and picked back up with it this year--letting Weiss do the work. We'll see how that goes!
My house is not always neat, even though I work diligently at housekeeping; my children don't always behave (although they are good children, they are Very Real Children); *I* don't always behave, even though I wish I did (I'm Very Real), et cetera. This is life and the more mature I get the less I am bothered by the fact that I am living a very real life! I'm grateful for all the opportunities real life provides for growth, faith, and depending on the One who orchestrates the whole thing.
I think of our memory verse for this week: "Be joyful always, pray continually, and give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." -1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
And: "I have learned to be content, whatever the circumstances....I can do all this through Him who gives me strength." -Philippians 4:11, 13
If something isn't working with school, the best thing to do is to regroup, say a prayer, think about how to solve the problem, maintain optimism, and be okay with being real!
Friday, September 5, 2014
Journal of Days, September 2-5
Now that we are back in school-mode, I will try to post a weekly Journal. This is as much for me as it is for anyone else, but I think that a journal is so helpful because it describes the atmosphere of a day more than seeing a straight lesson plan, and shows how a real day works.
Monday was Labor Day, and our last day of 'summer.' We spent the day with my son's best friend--he came over and played all day. So much fun.
Tuesday, September 2: Finn did two pages of Explode the Code independently. We did our Morning Time*, which included the first chapter of Old Mother West Wind--which we are liking!), then everyone completed their new morning chores. A certain amount of maternal guidance is necessary as we get into the swing of new chores, but they went very well. Finn is so helpful. Finn had his first piano lesson! Back at home he did a page of Calculadders and read a Frog and Toad story to me. Then we had art and listened to Just So Stories on the way (Finn is unimpressed). We ran our Tuesday errands in the city and then had free time, chores and piano practice before falling into bed. A successful first day!
Wednesday, September 3: We had our Morning Time after breakfast and Finn narrated an Aesop's fable beautifully. After chores he did 3 pages of Explode the Code on his own before we started school in the schoolroom. We did Handwriting Without Tears, some basic math review (the small dry erase board is a big help--it's *fun*), and our first spelling lesson. I worked with Annie on some preschool activities in her preschool book--she sat *on* the table, not *at* it, thankyouverymuch. I read "The Sword of Damocles" to Finn and he narrated it; he read a Frog and Toad story to me. We then read two tales from India. We finished by noon and by 2:00 I'd fed everyone lunch, cleaned the kitchen thoroughly, cleaned the bathroom and vacuumed the main floor....I love days at home! The children played all afternoon; I traced a new pattern to sew, did some organizing and also exercised. Piano practice and afternoon chores rounded out the day. Our bedtime story right now is Little House in the Big Woods. I. was. tired.
Thursday, September 4: First day back at Classical Conversations, our homeschool group. Fun was had by all. After CC we visited Lowe's to inspect faucets, Walmart, the chiropractor and the post office. A couple of hours of freetime at home preceded soccer and piano practice. Little House in the Big Woods at bedtime!
Friday, September 5: We skipped Morning Time due to a late-night with Annie giving me a late start--I was awake at 7:40 but didn't get up until 8:00. Instead we did chores and I drank coffee, Finn did 2 pages of Explode the Code, and then Annie did preschool on one side of me while Finn did his school on the other. We did some gentle math together (just concepts using c-rods and the dry erase board), a phonics lesson (from OPGTR, which included a read-aloud), a tiny bit of handwriting from HWOT, and some spelling. Then I let the children play for a few minutes before we did a Health lesson and read from Our Island Story (Albion and Brutus). I played Mozart at lunchtime and we did an abbreviated Morning Time: Bible story, poetry, and memory work. Piano practice and hymn-singing rounded out the day ("For the Beauty"--one of my favorites!). The rest of the day the children spent playing while I alternated relaxing and cleaning. I was tired due to 5 hours of sleep and a busy, productive week--and was ready to 'lay low' for an afternoon.
After examining Lamb's Shakespeare more closely, I have decided to table it for the time being; I'm going to purchase Jim Weiss' reading of "Midsummer Night's Dream" and start there before we read and narrate! I'm figuring out ways to make Shakespeare as accessible and enjoyable as possible for a fairly young child.
As an aside, Annie started the "About Three" preschool workbook from Rod and Staff on Wednesday. She didn't do any pages in it on Thursday. On Friday she completed page 29...and there are only 32 pages in the book. So. She's blazing through the thing...that's my Annie!
I am so grateful to be able to homeschool my children. I love it.
*The setup for Morning Time chez Trinity this year is as follows:
-opening prayer
-Bible story
-Poetry (we're still loving Robert Louis Stevenson)
-Lessons in Responsibility, Aesop's or Life of Fred, depending on the day
-Memory work
-Popsicle stick prayers
-Read-aloud (right now we're reading aloud Old Mother West Wind--one chapter per day)
Monday was Labor Day, and our last day of 'summer.' We spent the day with my son's best friend--he came over and played all day. So much fun.
Tuesday, September 2: Finn did two pages of Explode the Code independently. We did our Morning Time*, which included the first chapter of Old Mother West Wind--which we are liking!), then everyone completed their new morning chores. A certain amount of maternal guidance is necessary as we get into the swing of new chores, but they went very well. Finn is so helpful. Finn had his first piano lesson! Back at home he did a page of Calculadders and read a Frog and Toad story to me. Then we had art and listened to Just So Stories on the way (Finn is unimpressed). We ran our Tuesday errands in the city and then had free time, chores and piano practice before falling into bed. A successful first day!
Wednesday, September 3: We had our Morning Time after breakfast and Finn narrated an Aesop's fable beautifully. After chores he did 3 pages of Explode the Code on his own before we started school in the schoolroom. We did Handwriting Without Tears, some basic math review (the small dry erase board is a big help--it's *fun*), and our first spelling lesson. I worked with Annie on some preschool activities in her preschool book--she sat *on* the table, not *at* it, thankyouverymuch. I read "The Sword of Damocles" to Finn and he narrated it; he read a Frog and Toad story to me. We then read two tales from India. We finished by noon and by 2:00 I'd fed everyone lunch, cleaned the kitchen thoroughly, cleaned the bathroom and vacuumed the main floor....I love days at home! The children played all afternoon; I traced a new pattern to sew, did some organizing and also exercised. Piano practice and afternoon chores rounded out the day. Our bedtime story right now is Little House in the Big Woods. I. was. tired.
Thursday, September 4: First day back at Classical Conversations, our homeschool group. Fun was had by all. After CC we visited Lowe's to inspect faucets, Walmart, the chiropractor and the post office. A couple of hours of freetime at home preceded soccer and piano practice. Little House in the Big Woods at bedtime!
Friday, September 5: We skipped Morning Time due to a late-night with Annie giving me a late start--I was awake at 7:40 but didn't get up until 8:00. Instead we did chores and I drank coffee, Finn did 2 pages of Explode the Code, and then Annie did preschool on one side of me while Finn did his school on the other. We did some gentle math together (just concepts using c-rods and the dry erase board), a phonics lesson (from OPGTR, which included a read-aloud), a tiny bit of handwriting from HWOT, and some spelling. Then I let the children play for a few minutes before we did a Health lesson and read from Our Island Story (Albion and Brutus). I played Mozart at lunchtime and we did an abbreviated Morning Time: Bible story, poetry, and memory work. Piano practice and hymn-singing rounded out the day ("For the Beauty"--one of my favorites!). The rest of the day the children spent playing while I alternated relaxing and cleaning. I was tired due to 5 hours of sleep and a busy, productive week--and was ready to 'lay low' for an afternoon.
After examining Lamb's Shakespeare more closely, I have decided to table it for the time being; I'm going to purchase Jim Weiss' reading of "Midsummer Night's Dream" and start there before we read and narrate! I'm figuring out ways to make Shakespeare as accessible and enjoyable as possible for a fairly young child.
As an aside, Annie started the "About Three" preschool workbook from Rod and Staff on Wednesday. She didn't do any pages in it on Thursday. On Friday she completed page 29...and there are only 32 pages in the book. So. She's blazing through the thing...that's my Annie!
I am so grateful to be able to homeschool my children. I love it.
*The setup for Morning Time chez Trinity this year is as follows:
-opening prayer
-Bible story
-Poetry (we're still loving Robert Louis Stevenson)
-Lessons in Responsibility, Aesop's or Life of Fred, depending on the day
-Memory work
-Popsicle stick prayers
-Read-aloud (right now we're reading aloud Old Mother West Wind--one chapter per day)
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