Homeschool Wrap-Up Week 15

We wrapped up another week of homeschool getting a fair amount done considering Joe was sick most of the week and Jack got sick midway through.  No appointments or classes this week, just a regular week at home and it was very nice to finally have one of these.  This weekend we have Jesse’s 1st birthday party, and then next week zoo class and dentist appointments depending on who’s well.  Now for our week…

TOT SCHOOL-Jack
Jack was content to do nothing but play with play-doh every.single.day this week—seriously.  I had a whole week of Itty Bitty Bookworm curriculum printed out, bagged up and ready for him, but each morning all he demanded  asked for was play-doh.  Ok, truthfully I have been dog tired all week long, Joe is sick and cranky, so I took the easy way out and just let him play with his play-doh and trucks each time he asked.  Hopefully I’ll get all that I’d wanted to do with him this week done next week. 

I did manage to get him involved in a Fall art project along with Hanna and Joe.  My plan was to have him make leaf prints with maple leaves and paint on brown cardstock.  He started out making the leaf prints and there were some very pretty ones on his paper.  I turned my back for two seconds to help Joe with his art, and when I turned back to Jack I found him like this:
He’d decided to fingerpaint and smeared all of the leaf prints into a fingerpaint blob.  Oh well, he had fun.  Fingerpainting is his thing right now, so that’s pretty much art for him:-).  Here is his finished picture, bless his heart:

KINDERGARTEN-Joe
I continued to reinforce silent “E” with Joe in reading.  We didn’t move on to phonograms as I’d planned.  I’ll wait until he’s well to do this.  He did enjoy playing our silent “E” games from Happy Phonics, playing on Starfall.com, and reading to me from his BOB Books—there really is a giveaway for these coming, I’m just moving slower than usual these days with my posts:-). 

For handwriting I used ETC Book 2 and printables from Progressive Phonics. 

In math we played a few math games, completed pages in Abeka K5 workbook and Joe continued to enjoy playing Dreambox.  He’s been trying it out now for about two months and I really think it is a good supplement to a solid math curriculum.  I do not think it is suitable for stand alone math, but do think it is excellent for reinforcement and extra practice. 

SCIENCE
We all enjoyed reading aloud together in Botany.  We read about the parts of a tree branch and found one in our own yard to identify specific parts we read about.  We also learned how to identify trees and went on a walk through our neighborhood using what we’d read to identify trees we saw.  We learned about the parts of a tree’s trunk and what purpose they each serve. 

Below on the small branch we observed you can see the terminal bud at the very end, a couple auxillary buds, as well as the nodes and the amount of growth the tree had in one year between the old terminal bud scars.



We have a couple more lessons to complete and then will move on to Apologia Zoology 2. 

HISTORY and BIBLE
We continued to read and love Story of the World Volume 2.  We read about the invasion of barbarians, fall of the Roman Empire, the Celts,  Angles and Saxons, and enjoyed some Celtic stories such as Craith and Beowulf. 
Hanna and Joe labeled two maps, Hanna recorded several events/people on her timeline, made lapbook pieces for the first two chapters, and took Chapter tests 1 and 2.

The kids made crumbling Roman pillars (out of sugar cookie dough) and then finished them off barbarian style:-).


I was amazed at the history behind Roman gladiators.  I never knew how they came to be or how they were recruited.  I was also very surprised at the “entertainment” that went on and was enjoyed at the Coliseum by spectators.  The book Gladiator, by Richard Watkins, was fascinating to me.  Hanna and I both read it alone during the week.  It was not suitable for Joe.  Jamie and I are going to watch the movie Gladiator starring Russell Crowe this weekend for a little more on this subject:-).  The kids watched some educational videos on the Romans from our SC Streamline account membership.  I don’t know if each state has this option through their public TV station, but it would be well worth checking into.  I got a free membership with my homeschool association number, as well as free training on how to use it by one of their instructor’s at the SCETV building.

We read about The Tower of Babel and Abraham this week in the Old Testament.  However, next week we are going to go ahead and begin the New Testament since it correlates with our Middle Ages history study this school year.  We will be using Acts of the Apostles from Discover the Scriptures.

ART
I had Hanna and Joe choose from several different Fall art projects I found online.  They both did a very good job and their pictures turned out pretty.  Our bulletin board is almost full of new Fall pictures. 

Joe chose a fall watercolor tree collage. 


Hanna chose a fall pastel landscape using chalks.


I think that about covers the highlights of this past week.  All in all it was a good week even with Joe being sick.  Now, to get everyone well and figure out how to get my two littlest ones to nap in the afternoons again.  We’re going on week 4 of an afternoon nap strike and it is really, really taking it’s toll on mama…

Learning Links:

• Preschool Corner and 5K Too @ Homeschool Creations
• Tot School @ 1+1+1=1
• Weekly Wrap-Up at Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers

Homeschool Week 14

This was another busy week for us with a couple more appointments, too many late nights for the kids, a field trip, soccer practice, homeschool resource meeting for me, and capping it off with a slamming busy weekend!  I do see a light at the end of the tunnel for our upcoming week.  I am praying all will go smoothly and we will just be able to enjoy a couple weeks of nothing extra.  With that said, we did get a lot of school work done, and had fun, despite some grumpy kids and a grumpy teacher here and there:-).  Yeah, it was one of “those” weeks here…

Tot School-Jack

Everything from Jack’s week came from Itty Bitty Bookworm Bailey, Year Two, September.  The main book from Itty Bitty Bookworm for our week was Cat’s Colors.  We still focused on colors and shapes, and read lots of color and shape based books.

Jack enjoyed going on more color hunts, playing games of Cat and Mouse, Wake up Kitty and modified Simon Says.

His highlight of the week was fingerpainting.  Jack LOVES to fingerpaint, can you tell?

 

Out of all of the learning activities I had planned for Jack he enjoyed color sorting with his matchbox cars and Thomas trains the most.  I got out different colored sheets of construction paper, filled a bin with cars and trains and then had Jack pair the car/train with the matching construction paper.  He thought this was so much fun.  I am figuring out that Jack only likes to do something if it is themed according to his interests.  Books we read, games we play, crafts we make—they all have to interest him completely or I lose him pretty much from the start.  Hanna and Joe have not been like this, so it’s new for me, but I’m learning.

 

Jack had fun with play-doh too, of course trucks were involved.

 

He also made an orange kitty cat with black stripes on a red circle rug with red yarn.  Jack is the only one of my kids so far who loves to get messy and thinks the messier, the better.  He thought it was so fun to have sticky Elmer’s glue all over his hands while he glued yarn to his rug.

5K Reading/Writing/Math

Joe mainly worked on money and addition in Math.  We used workbook pages from Abeka 5K, money worksheet generator, our calendar board, homemade geoboard and pattern blocks this week.

 

 

For the pattern blocks, I had Joe look at animals in the book Color Farm (I’ve been reading it with Jack), by Lois Ehlert, and make animals of his choice.  I thought this would be something more challenging than using the templates, but a bit more structured than creating freely with them.

 

I used handwriting sheets from Progressive Phonics for practice along with the writing he does in the ETC books.  I was beginning to think something had gone drastically wrong with Joe’s handwriting abilities over the last couple months.  It has been looking so sloppy, and last school year it was so pretty.  I finally figured out he just doesn’t like writing that much right now so he is rushing.  I talked with him about this all week.  Finally by the end of the week he gave it his all and produced some very nice handwriting:-).  I hope he will take pride in his handwriting without so much cajoling on my part in the weeks to come.

In Happy Phonics we continued to practice silent “E”, and the games that go along with it—The Reading House, Silent “E” game, and a new one—Climb the “E” Tree.  We will move on to phonograms next week.  This step will take us awhile since there are so many to learn.  Joe also read to me daily from our BOB Books (giveaway for those coming next week) that we are both thoroughly enjoying.

6th Grade Math and Grammar/ELA

Hanna moved along with Teaching Textbooks Math.  This math still continues to be a lifesaver for me, and fun for Hanna.  When your child is learning and having fun, you know you’ve found something worth sticking with. 

She completed the next lesson in Wordly Wise, and completed Unit 8 in Jr. Analytical Grammar.

History 

Our Story of the World Volume 2 arrived Wednesday.  We worked on it Thursday and Friday.  It is written in a way that easily holds your attention.  I love reading it aloud to the kids, and they enjoy listening.  We are reading about the Roman Empire right now—gladiators, Emperors, customs, events in the Coliseum, and so forth.  Next week we will finish reading Chapter 1, Hanna will take her chapter test and complete timeline events.  Joe and Hanna will both do narrations/review questons, mapping exercises, and we’ll complete a couple Rome themed projects together.  All that to come in next week’s wrap-up.

Old Testament

We finished up Adam and Eve, read about Enoch and the city of Zion, and Noah in our Old Testament studies.  I am learning so much through our scripture studies.  I had no idea that Noah was Methuselah's son, or that Enoch was also related to them.  I am enjoying studying the scriptures so much right now.  The kids are too, this enthusiasm from all of us is a breath of fresh air.

Joe helped me make a Noah’s ark craft for our bulletin board.

Hanna completed a letter writing assignment from our Old Testament curriculum.

Science

We read about trees in Apologia Botany.  How they grow, how they bend and twist toward the sunlight, their root systems, how old they can grow to be, why they are so important to the Earth’s landscape/stability, our breathing, and many more of their purposes. 

We learned about different types of trees, one being the oak and it’s production of acorns.  We also learned about acorn weevils—how they hatch inside an acorn, and then eat the inside of the acorn, make a hole in it and crawl out leaving an empty acorn shell behind.  While Hanna and I were exercising one morning this week I spotted this acorn—you can see the whole made by an acorn weevil.  I thought it was pretty neat.  I’ve seen acorns with holes like this for years, but never knew why or how they got there. 

Since we were already learning about trees, I thought it would be a good time to do a bit about apple trees with Joe and Jack.  I had Joe watch a video about the lifecycle of an apple tree, we read books about apple trees, and Jack made a handprint apple tree and an apple wreath from brown lunch sacks.

 Art

Hanna and Joe made Textured Fall leaves using paper towels, watercolors, oil pastels, glue/water as described *here* for art this week.  They turned out pretty, and they enjoyed the process involved.

 

Field Trip

We attended a homeschool class with friends at our State Museum—the starlab, and afterward spent some time exploring, reading and having fun.

    

Soccer

Joe began Fall soccer practice and had his first game.  He had fun, and played really well!  This is his 4th season playing.

 

I am enjoying school more this quarter than any other yet.  What is making this difference for me is the way I’ve combined Hanna’s and Joe’s Science and History, and the fact that we are all reading it together.  I love this for two reasons—we get to spend time together, and I am learning along with them.  It’s like going to school all over again, but way more fun!  It’s wonderful.  I am much more hands-on and involved in our homeschool this school year and I’m thankful for this.  We had a busy week, but a good one.

Learning Links:

• Preschool Corner and 5K Too @ Homeschool Creations
• Tot School @ 1+1+1=1
• Weekly Wrap-Up @ Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers

Homeschool Week 14

This was another busy week for us with a couple more appointments, too many late nights for the kids, a field trip, soccer practice, homeschool resource meeting for me, and capping it off with a slamming busy weekend!  I do see a light at the end of the tunnel for our upcoming week.  I am praying all will go smoothly and we will just be able to enjoy a couple weeks of nothing extra.  With that said, we did get a lot of school work done, and had fun, despite some grumpy kids and a grumpy teacher here and there:-).  Yeah, it was one of “those” weeks here…

Tot School-Jack

Everything from Jack’s week came from Itty Bitty Bookworm Bailey, Year Two, September.  The main book from Itty Bitty Bookworm for our week was Cat’s Colors.  We still focused on colors and shapes, and read lots of color and shape based books.

Jack enjoyed going on more color hunts, playing games of Cat and Mouse, Wake up Kitty and modified Simon Says.

His highlight of the week was fingerpainting.  Jack LOVES to fingerpaint, can you tell?

 

Out of all of the learning activities I had planned for Jack he enjoyed color sorting with his matchbox cars and Thomas trains the most.  I got out different colored sheets of construction paper, filled a bin with cars and trains and then had Jack pair the car/train with the matching construction paper.  He thought this was so much fun.  I am figuring out that Jack only likes to do something if it is themed according to his interests.  Books we read, games we play, crafts we make—they all have to interest him completely or I lose him pretty much from the start.  Hanna and Joe have not been like this, so it’s new for me, but I’m learning.

 

Jack had fun with play-doh too, of course trucks were involved.

 

He also made an orange kitty cat with black stripes on a red circle rug with red yarn.  Jack is the only one of my kids so far who loves to get messy and thinks the messier, the better.  He thought it was so fun to have sticky Elmer’s glue all over his hands while he glued yarn to his rug.

5K Reading/Writing/Math

Joe mainly worked on money and addition in Math.  We used workbook pages from Abeka 5K, money worksheet generator, our calendar board, homemade geoboard and pattern blocks this week.

 

 

For the pattern blocks, I had Joe look at animals in the book Color Farm (I’ve been reading it with Jack), by Lois Ehlert, and make animals of his choice.  I thought this would be something more challenging than using the templates, but a bit more structured than creating freely with them.

 

I used handwriting sheets from Progressive Phonics for practice along with the writing he does in the ETC books.  I was beginning to think something had gone drastically wrong with Joe’s handwriting abilities over the last couple months.  It has been looking so sloppy, and last school year it was so pretty.  I finally figured out he just doesn’t like writing that much right now so he is rushing.  I talked with him about this all week.  Finally by the end of the week he gave it his all and produced some very nice handwriting:-).  I hope he will take pride in his handwriting without so much cajoling on my part in the weeks to come.

In Happy Phonics we continued to practice silent “E”, and the games that go along with it—The Reading House, Silent “E” game, and a new one—Climb the “E” Tree.  We will move on to phonograms next week.  This step will take us awhile since there are so many to learn.  Joe also read to me daily from our BOB Books (giveaway for those coming next week) that we are both thoroughly enjoying.

6th Grade Math and Grammar/ELA

Hanna moved along with Teaching Textbooks Math.  This math still continues to be a lifesaver for me, and fun for Hanna.  When your child is learning and having fun, you know you’ve found something worth sticking with. 

She completed the next lesson in Wordly Wise, and completed Unit 8 in Jr. Analytical Grammar.

History 

Our Story of the World Volume 2 arrived Wednesday.  We worked on it Thursday and Friday.  It is written in a way that easily holds your attention.  I love reading it aloud to the kids, and they enjoy listening.  We are reading about the Roman Empire right now—gladiators, Emperors, customs, events in the Coliseum, and so forth.  Next week we will finish reading Chapter 1, Hanna will take her chapter test and complete timeline events.  Joe and Hanna will both do narrations/review questons, mapping exercises, and we’ll complete a couple Rome themed projects together.  All that to come in next week’s wrap-up.

Old Testament

We finished up Adam and Eve, read about Enoch and the city of Zion, and Noah in our Old Testament studies.  I am learning so much through our scripture studies.  I had no idea that Noah was Methuselah's son, or that Enoch was also related to them.  I am enjoying studying the scriptures so much right now.  The kids are too, this enthusiasm from all of us is a breath of fresh air.

Joe helped me make a Noah’s ark craft for our bulletin board.

Hanna completed a letter writing assignment from our Old Testament curriculum.

Science

We read about trees in Apologia Botany.  How they grow, how they bend and twist toward the sunlight, their root systems, how old they can grow to be, why they are so important to the Earth’s landscape/stability, our breathing, and many more of their purposes. 

We learned about different types of trees, one being the oak and it’s production of acorns.  We also learned about acorn weevils—how they hatch inside an acorn, and then eat the inside of the acorn, make a hole in it and crawl out leaving an empty acorn shell behind.  While Hanna and I were exercising one morning this week I spotted this acorn—you can see the whole made by an acorn weevil.  I thought it was pretty neat.  I’ve seen acorns with holes like this for years, but never knew why or how they got there. 

Since we were already learning about trees, I thought it would be a good time to do a bit about apple trees with Joe and Jack.  I had Joe watch a video about the lifecycle of an apple tree, we read books about apple trees, and Jack made a handprint apple tree and an apple wreath from brown lunch sacks.

 Art

Hanna and Joe made Textured Fall leaves using paper towels, watercolors, oil pastels, glue/water as described *here* for art this week.  They turned out pretty, and they enjoyed the process involved.

 

Field Trip

We attended a homeschool class with friends at our State Museum—the starlab, and afterward spent some time exploring, reading and having fun.

    

Soccer

Joe began Fall soccer practice and had his first game.  He had fun, and played really well!  This is his 4th season playing.

 

I am enjoying school more this quarter than any other yet.  What is making this difference for me is the way I’ve combined Hanna’s and Joe’s Science and History, and the fact that we are all reading it together.  I love this for two reasons—we get to spend time together, and I am learning along with them.  It’s like going to school all over again, but way more fun!  It’s wonderful.  I am much more hands-on and involved in our homeschool this school year and I’m thankful for this.  We had a busy week, but a good one.

Learning Links:

• Preschool Corner and 5K Too @ Homeschool Creations
• Tot School @ 1+1+1=1
• Weekly Wrap-Up @ Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers