Yesterday, we decided to hit the library before lunch. We did so well! Until we pulled up to the library and realized (again) that it's closed on Mondays. *sigh* Ok, so off to Foodland for some, well, food. *snort* We're so original. And then to the feed store (we have a ROCKING feed store in town!) for more bird seed, a chicken book (let's call this, "Facing Your Fears Through Immersion", shall we?), and to look at seeds for planting some early crops - namely, the salad garden in the windmill box.
We ended up buying a candy bar in lieu of seeds, since the guy at the feed store said we're still likely to have some nasty freezes between now and Spring and recommended waiting until late Feb. to put in the cool weather crops. (He couldn't bring himself to use my cute little term, "Salad Garden", though. No, he's a man's man and he plants "Crops", not "leafy things", not "stuff in the windmill box", and most certainly not "salad gardens".) That's cool. Someday I won't have to ask whether they have "chicken stuff", either. I'll know what I'm looking for. Plus, he carried the bag of bird seed to the car for me. *swoon* I end up hauling the 50# bag of dog food myself at the grocery story, but at the feed store, the nice man will carry the wee 25# bag for the pregnant lady with the small children. He also made a point of telling the kids that they were very well behaved and welcome in his store anytime, and then he thanked me for that! Ha! Wow, if they carried groceries or bras, I'd do ALL my shopping there!
We got home and dove back into the books we were going to have to renew, anyway. Spent the afternoon reading and playing. I was just thinking I'd snuggle in for a nice nap when the phone rang. It was Zorak calling on his way home. from. work. ACK! Where did the day GO?!?! We did nothing - no Latin, no Math, no Science. We did History at breakfast, but that was it. Perhaps we'll call it a Literature Appreciation Day?
James made a loaf of the Soda-Bread-in-an-hour recipe we got from the homies. I threw together some turkey vegetable barley soup and it was just about done when Zorak got in. (And to think I'd cursed the store for carrying only quick-cooking barley! I really should apologize, even if it was only a good internal cursing. Like I'll ever have it together enough to cook regular barley? No. No, I won't. But thanks to quick-cooking barley, we had a delicious, non-crunchy soup.) We ate before midnight, and had time to play a few rounds of Boggle before bed. Yeah, I may not have it together for the marathon bits, but boy, can I sprint!
So today, in spite of the fact that it's nine and we're all just now getting warmed up and mobile, we'll need to double-tap a few subjects and get some work done. But that's okay. We have leftovers for lunch, and I think the library is open this afternoon! WOOHOO! OK, ok, I'm off to feed the masses. Kiss those babies, and have a lovely day, even if it doesn't go as planned.
~Dy
Tuesday, January 29
Monday, January 28
Has it been that long?
Four days?!? Whoops.
It's the new format on the WTM forums. It's killing me. The time I spend online is short enough as it is, but I've got to remember to change my order of operations now: email, blog, then boards. Otherwise, I'll disappear into cyberspace and never be heard from again. I'll get the hang of it. Eventually.
Anyway, this was a great weekend, in general. On Thursday night, the boys earned their first Cub Scout badges. The ceremony for that is very sweet, and the boys didn't wash their faces for two days afterword. (The ceremony involves face paint. I can't find the camera, or I'd post pictures.)
Their first cars (practice blocks from scraps here at the house) are done now, and they're ready to make their official cars for the Derby. Melissa's right, that is some Pretty Serious Stuff. Heh. Zorak's been fantastic about letting it be all about the boys. From design to construction to the little details like determining where to place weight and how it ought to be finished, he's let them lead the way and do it all. It shows in their cars. James' has a distinctive Batmobile/Jetsons look to it, and John's is reminiscent of the early-20th Century open road racers. They've had an absolute blast doing all the work, learning more about woodworking and physics, and spending time with Dad. They made the practice cars so they'll have something to play with and won't be tempted to take their derby cars outside for a demolition course before the race.
Because it's just Very Hard To Be Too Little sometimes, and not be in on the projects, (and also, I suspect, because it's fun to make stuff) Zorak made a Camaro for Smidge (who opted for the metallic gold paint - he has no idea how appropriate that is) and a '71 Chevy shortbed pickup for Em (a miniature of my first car, which we hope to haul out here from NM sometime soon!) The boys thought it should be pink, but we're going with the original blue and white. I may keep it for myself. It's really cute. Smidge has already "lowered" his car significantly with all the playtime it's received. And he decorated the hood with the requisite "hot chick and pit bull" paint job. (Actually, I think it's a googly-eyed boy and an army tank, but it's hard to tell. Could be anything, really. He's four, ya know. *grin*)
Zorak and I stayed up for a little date night Thursday. We just talked, hung out, ate a little late-night snack and watched a movie. Man, it's nice to have the coffee table back in the living room! We watched Mr. Woodcock. It's crude, so if you don't enjoy that kind of humor, skip it. But we laughed ourselves silly. It was much better than we'd anticipated. BillyBob Thornton has got astounding comedic timing and great delivery.
Saturday and Sunday were cold. That's about all I remember from those two days. I tried to get some sewing done, but that didn't pan out well. How do you sew with small children and no cupboard to lock yourself in while you work? (Ha - you thought I was going to say "lock them in", didn't you? No. There are four of them and only one of me. It'd be easier to fit just me in there. They're mostly free-range children, anyway.)
And now, it's Monday. January's nearly over. The high today should be just above 60, and soon it'll be Spring. I'm still grappling with how that all comes so quickly. (But I did find my calendar pen, so I think it'll be okay.) On that note, however, I'd best go update everything and get ready to feed the kids.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
It's the new format on the WTM forums. It's killing me. The time I spend online is short enough as it is, but I've got to remember to change my order of operations now: email, blog, then boards. Otherwise, I'll disappear into cyberspace and never be heard from again. I'll get the hang of it. Eventually.
Anyway, this was a great weekend, in general. On Thursday night, the boys earned their first Cub Scout badges. The ceremony for that is very sweet, and the boys didn't wash their faces for two days afterword. (The ceremony involves face paint. I can't find the camera, or I'd post pictures.)
Their first cars (practice blocks from scraps here at the house) are done now, and they're ready to make their official cars for the Derby. Melissa's right, that is some Pretty Serious Stuff. Heh. Zorak's been fantastic about letting it be all about the boys. From design to construction to the little details like determining where to place weight and how it ought to be finished, he's let them lead the way and do it all. It shows in their cars. James' has a distinctive Batmobile/Jetsons look to it, and John's is reminiscent of the early-20th Century open road racers. They've had an absolute blast doing all the work, learning more about woodworking and physics, and spending time with Dad. They made the practice cars so they'll have something to play with and won't be tempted to take their derby cars outside for a demolition course before the race.
Because it's just Very Hard To Be Too Little sometimes, and not be in on the projects, (and also, I suspect, because it's fun to make stuff) Zorak made a Camaro for Smidge (who opted for the metallic gold paint - he has no idea how appropriate that is) and a '71 Chevy shortbed pickup for Em (a miniature of my first car, which we hope to haul out here from NM sometime soon!) The boys thought it should be pink, but we're going with the original blue and white. I may keep it for myself. It's really cute. Smidge has already "lowered" his car significantly with all the playtime it's received. And he decorated the hood with the requisite "hot chick and pit bull" paint job. (Actually, I think it's a googly-eyed boy and an army tank, but it's hard to tell. Could be anything, really. He's four, ya know. *grin*)
Zorak and I stayed up for a little date night Thursday. We just talked, hung out, ate a little late-night snack and watched a movie. Man, it's nice to have the coffee table back in the living room! We watched Mr. Woodcock. It's crude, so if you don't enjoy that kind of humor, skip it. But we laughed ourselves silly. It was much better than we'd anticipated. BillyBob Thornton has got astounding comedic timing and great delivery.
Saturday and Sunday were cold. That's about all I remember from those two days. I tried to get some sewing done, but that didn't pan out well. How do you sew with small children and no cupboard to lock yourself in while you work? (Ha - you thought I was going to say "lock them in", didn't you? No. There are four of them and only one of me. It'd be easier to fit just me in there. They're mostly free-range children, anyway.)
And now, it's Monday. January's nearly over. The high today should be just above 60, and soon it'll be Spring. I'm still grappling with how that all comes so quickly. (But I did find my calendar pen, so I think it'll be okay.) On that note, however, I'd best go update everything and get ready to feed the kids.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Thursday, January 24
"33', feels like 25'," & School Math Challenges
And no, that's not just me being peevish, folks. That's what the weather channel actually says! Wowsa! The kids are outside doing a nature scavenger hunt. I've got water boiling for hot chocolate (THANK YOU, AUNT B - the box arrived yesterday afternoon!!), and the oven is heating up for chocolate chip cookies. I think we need a little refresher before we head to the library. (It helps if your hands aren't frozen stiff when you're trying to pick up your books.)
The new math routine is working really well with the whole Major Tom thing James has been experiencing. After breakfast, he drills just one or two review facts at the Math-U-See site. When he gets one under 40 seconds, he moves on to the next. If he doesn't get under 40 seconds, that's okay, too. He just starts with that one the next day. No more than five minutes per day. Short. And. Simple. Some are so simple, he flies through them. Some take a little warming up, but that's the point. This is our warm up exercise.
Then, he moves on to another lesson - usually reading or Latin - something to take his mind off the math. (I know it seems counter-intuitive to get warmed up and then move on to something else, but I'll get to that in a minute.) When he's done with that, we take two problems (only two - we're going with the *one arrow*, Zen-type approach to this - focus, make it count, make it work) of the sort that keep tripping him up. In his case, it's multiple digit multiplication, but this might work with any sticking point. We work them together on the white board. Actually, he works them. I stand there and try to spot errors in his vulnerable spots (for him, it's the housekeeping). Two problems. Quick and simple.
He then moves on to whichever lesson is next (Reading or Latin - whichever he didn't do before), and winds up before lunch with the day's actual math lesson. It's like a whole new brain! Well, not really. That last portion still takes an inordinately long amount of time. But (a) it's long division, which takes a while, anyway, and (b) he's still nine and still easily distractable. But, I'm okay with this, as he has no problem with division. That comes flowing from his mind as easily as questions I can't answer, and funny jokes.
The trouble comes from a combination of housekeeping and distractability. Plus, once he's gotten bogged down, he panics and just. can't. think. The whole system shuts down at that point. That's why I split the math lesson into three distinct segments, separated by Something Completely Different. He gets a taste of success, then moves on while he's feeling capable. He comes to the next segment still feeling pretty good, and ready to take on the next thing. He doesn't get overwhelmed. He doesn't have to sit and wait and stare at something that's troubling him while I have to stop and work with another child (as he sits there, staring at it, the tension builds, the panic rises, and by the time I come back, he's in full-on shut-down mode). As he internalizes the ability to take each step as it comes, he'll be able to wait without hovering over an Insurmountable Problem. For now, though, the first step isn't internalized, so this works quite well.
I'm so thankful we can individualize the approaches we take to tackle the hurdles. This one-two-punch of short-short lessons and an eagle eye on housekeeping seems to be workin' the magic. Our school days are a little longer this way, but they don't feel nearly as long - for him, or for me. That's worth it. There is nothing better I could be doing with my time than helping him learn how to learn!
What helps you help your little ones over the hurdles?
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
The new math routine is working really well with the whole Major Tom thing James has been experiencing. After breakfast, he drills just one or two review facts at the Math-U-See site. When he gets one under 40 seconds, he moves on to the next. If he doesn't get under 40 seconds, that's okay, too. He just starts with that one the next day. No more than five minutes per day. Short. And. Simple. Some are so simple, he flies through them. Some take a little warming up, but that's the point. This is our warm up exercise.
Then, he moves on to another lesson - usually reading or Latin - something to take his mind off the math. (I know it seems counter-intuitive to get warmed up and then move on to something else, but I'll get to that in a minute.) When he's done with that, we take two problems (only two - we're going with the *one arrow*, Zen-type approach to this - focus, make it count, make it work) of the sort that keep tripping him up. In his case, it's multiple digit multiplication, but this might work with any sticking point. We work them together on the white board. Actually, he works them. I stand there and try to spot errors in his vulnerable spots (for him, it's the housekeeping). Two problems. Quick and simple.
He then moves on to whichever lesson is next (Reading or Latin - whichever he didn't do before), and winds up before lunch with the day's actual math lesson. It's like a whole new brain! Well, not really. That last portion still takes an inordinately long amount of time. But (a) it's long division, which takes a while, anyway, and (b) he's still nine and still easily distractable. But, I'm okay with this, as he has no problem with division. That comes flowing from his mind as easily as questions I can't answer, and funny jokes.
The trouble comes from a combination of housekeeping and distractability. Plus, once he's gotten bogged down, he panics and just. can't. think. The whole system shuts down at that point. That's why I split the math lesson into three distinct segments, separated by Something Completely Different. He gets a taste of success, then moves on while he's feeling capable. He comes to the next segment still feeling pretty good, and ready to take on the next thing. He doesn't get overwhelmed. He doesn't have to sit and wait and stare at something that's troubling him while I have to stop and work with another child (as he sits there, staring at it, the tension builds, the panic rises, and by the time I come back, he's in full-on shut-down mode). As he internalizes the ability to take each step as it comes, he'll be able to wait without hovering over an Insurmountable Problem. For now, though, the first step isn't internalized, so this works quite well.
I'm so thankful we can individualize the approaches we take to tackle the hurdles. This one-two-punch of short-short lessons and an eagle eye on housekeeping seems to be workin' the magic. Our school days are a little longer this way, but they don't feel nearly as long - for him, or for me. That's worth it. There is nothing better I could be doing with my time than helping him learn how to learn!
What helps you help your little ones over the hurdles?
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Wednesday, January 23
Pardon the glazed expression...
I'm digging out from beneath the stacks of Vicks-imbued Puffs tissues. That's some stout aromatherapy, there, folks! Sam's had them mixed in with their regular Puff's Plus, and I didn't realize it until we were loading things onto the conveyor at checkout. (If you haven't ever shopped in a warehouse with four children, it may not seem obvious that that's not the time to say, "Oh! I grabbed the wrong thing! I'll just go switch this out!" No, that's the time to say, "Uh... yeah, I, uh, thought we'd give that a try. Just stick it on the conveyor and let's go. *smile*" We do end up with some odd purchases, but I'm also not yet criminally insane, and that is a definite win-win, in my book.)
Zorak has been unconscious for the most part since Monday evening. He woke up and ate last night, then collapsed again. I don't know what he had, but if I get a choice, I'll take what the kids have, thanks. Eesh. He's tough! He is also feeling much better, now, and even braved into the Outside World today to do work and such. Good man, that Zorak.
I feel like 2008 is careening out of control right now. Not in a bad way, really. Just in a I-can't-quite-keep-up way. It's a wild kind of excitement, but... where'd January go? And where'd my matching ink pen for my planner go? The Christmas cards, I can find (they're still on the breakfast bar). But then, that's probably not a good sign, either, is it? When I start feeling a little panicky, I get to step back and think of Zorak, this March - two boys in a very active Cub Scout pack, three boys in some form of ball-playing activity (in three different leagues and schedules, no less), and a convalescing wife with the newborn and toddler at home. And I realize... I get to be the one at home! I am sympathetic to his pending plight. Really, I am. But that doesn't quell the little chirp of relief that escapes my lips every time I think about it. For now, we've got it easy. And quiet. And if I can just find that pen, I'll be all set.
And if we make it to the library tomorrow, that will be THREE - count 'em, 1, 2, 3 - trips without late fees! How cool is that? Very cool, indeed.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Zorak has been unconscious for the most part since Monday evening. He woke up and ate last night, then collapsed again. I don't know what he had, but if I get a choice, I'll take what the kids have, thanks. Eesh. He's tough! He is also feeling much better, now, and even braved into the Outside World today to do work and such. Good man, that Zorak.
I feel like 2008 is careening out of control right now. Not in a bad way, really. Just in a I-can't-quite-keep-up way. It's a wild kind of excitement, but... where'd January go? And where'd my matching ink pen for my planner go? The Christmas cards, I can find (they're still on the breakfast bar). But then, that's probably not a good sign, either, is it? When I start feeling a little panicky, I get to step back and think of Zorak, this March - two boys in a very active Cub Scout pack, three boys in some form of ball-playing activity (in three different leagues and schedules, no less), and a convalescing wife with the newborn and toddler at home. And I realize... I get to be the one at home! I am sympathetic to his pending plight. Really, I am. But that doesn't quell the little chirp of relief that escapes my lips every time I think about it. For now, we've got it easy. And quiet. And if I can just find that pen, I'll be all set.
And if we make it to the library tomorrow, that will be THREE - count 'em, 1, 2, 3 - trips without late fees! How cool is that? Very cool, indeed.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Monday, January 21
Homebound
The official high yesterday was 29'. Suddenly, I don't feel like such a wimp! Nor do I feel bad about not making the kids go outside to play. We aren't geared up for that kind of weather, at all!
It's been a lazy long weekend here at the Forever Home. EmBaby still has her birthday cold. But now, so does Smidge... and Zorak. They're all miserable. Fortunately, only EmBaby is whiny. The boys are starting to sound a bit snuffly tonight, too. I hate to sound un-nurturing, but if I had a firepit and a hammock, I'd be camped out on the front porch until this passed!
Zorak did get one more completed storm window put up today. I can't believe the difference they make! Nor can I wait until they're all completed and back up! I got another one stripped and steel-wooled, so it's ready for priming and painting (which we can't do until it warms up just a wee bit). Between laundry, sanitizing, and holding the angry, fussy baby, that's about all we accomplished this weekend.
The boys have been industrious. They have the Cub Scouts Pinewood Derby coming up, so they've been planning their car designs, and putting their wicked power tool skills to use. We've been taking pictures along the way, and I hope to tie this in with school by printing out the photos and having them make their own documentation for the work they've done. (They will write! Oh, yes, they will write! Muaa haaahaaaaa! Or, this will backfire horribly, and they'll glue the pictures into their notebooks and draw funny faces around the margins. Truly, only time will tell.)
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
It's been a lazy long weekend here at the Forever Home. EmBaby still has her birthday cold. But now, so does Smidge... and Zorak. They're all miserable. Fortunately, only EmBaby is whiny. The boys are starting to sound a bit snuffly tonight, too. I hate to sound un-nurturing, but if I had a firepit and a hammock, I'd be camped out on the front porch until this passed!
Zorak did get one more completed storm window put up today. I can't believe the difference they make! Nor can I wait until they're all completed and back up! I got another one stripped and steel-wooled, so it's ready for priming and painting (which we can't do until it warms up just a wee bit). Between laundry, sanitizing, and holding the angry, fussy baby, that's about all we accomplished this weekend.
The boys have been industrious. They have the Cub Scouts Pinewood Derby coming up, so they've been planning their car designs, and putting their wicked power tool skills to use. We've been taking pictures along the way, and I hope to tie this in with school by printing out the photos and having them make their own documentation for the work they've done. (They will write! Oh, yes, they will write! Muaa haaahaaaaa! Or, this will backfire horribly, and they'll glue the pictures into their notebooks and draw funny faces around the margins. Truly, only time will tell.)
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Saturday, January 19
Calling All Organizational Gurus!
I seek your guidance, oh wise ones!
With the baby coming, and the overall plan to switch to a predominately literature-based course of study for a couple of months after little Heinie's arrival, I'm contemplating using a worksheet-based approach to the new binders, which will be designed to carry us through the next ten weeks. Something supplemental to add a little... a little... I have no idea what (paper trail? clutter? life is just getting too tidy? What, exactly, am I thinking, here?)
Anyway, I've seen some gorgeous binders. Spinneretta puts together a simply stunning homekeeping book, for example. But something for the kids - anybody do that? Anybody who does that want to share? If you'll share what you do, I will take pictures and 'fess up to what we've been doing (it'll be sort of a What Not To Do expose' on binder systems, if you will).
Yep, that'd be awesome. Right now, I've wasted four hours digging up clipart and making cover pages for various sections. All printed out on brightly colored paper for each child. And somewhere around the third printing of some stoopid calendar page, I realized several things:
I have no idea what I'm doing.
I should probably ask the pros on this one.
And I'm rapidly slipping into an unhealthy condition over the clipart, alone.
(Admitting you have a problem is the first step, right? *ahem* Right...)
I'm shooting for something simple, yet engaging for the boys. Somehow, their current binder system (lovingly slaved over and "perfected", with their input) has developed some kind of kryptonite-like residue on it. They can't use it. They can't put paper in it. They find a pencil in the pouch (or add the one they've been using all day). They can't even find the hole punch, if it's for the binder. (Though they can find it, use it, and then open the bottom of it, when it's for some project of theirs!)
Ok, I'm going to decompress a bit and find something to snack on. Talk amongst yourselves. And please, for the love of educational portfolios everywhere, throw me a line, here! Please?
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
And while I'm soliciting help - how can I get text to wrap around an object? You know, so the words can co-exist beside the photo. :-) Thanks.
Well, Thhbbtthhh
My favorite homeschool forum has changed formats. The change was coming, and that's okay. But, there are glitches (I know, glitches are normal, too. I just don't like change. There. I've said it. Hi, I'm Dy, and I don't like change.)
They've disabled the old board, and you can't post on the new board until you receive the registration confirmation email... it's Saturday... think TPTB are doing that this morning? It sounded like the email was generated automatically, but it's been over an hour, now, and no email.
You can read the threads. You just can't post to them.
I feel like the kid who isn't allowed on the playground, so he just stands at the chainlink fence and watches all the other kids play.
Zorak is sick and sleeping in a bit. Emily's sitting on his legs, watching Barney, and the boys are watching some kids-cards-monsters cartoon. I guess I could go clean the bathroom, but really, that doesn't sound like much fun. Hmpf.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
They've disabled the old board, and you can't post on the new board until you receive the registration confirmation email... it's Saturday... think TPTB are doing that this morning? It sounded like the email was generated automatically, but it's been over an hour, now, and no email.
You can read the threads. You just can't post to them.
I feel like the kid who isn't allowed on the playground, so he just stands at the chainlink fence and watches all the other kids play.
Zorak is sick and sleeping in a bit. Emily's sitting on his legs, watching Barney, and the boys are watching some kids-cards-monsters cartoon. I guess I could go clean the bathroom, but really, that doesn't sound like much fun. Hmpf.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Friday, January 18
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, EMBABY!!!
She's two, now. I... can't believe it. She's brought such joy, such laughter, to our home (not to mention she's revealed a completely squishy soft side to Zorak).
She hangs with the boys, talks better than any of them did at this age, excpet perhaps James. She laughs and shrieks and talks. And has absolutely no volume control. Or shame. She'll bat those great big eyes at anyone for a little cookie dough.
I went through photos to capture the past year, but one thing struck me the most as I wandered down digital memory lane...
This child has grown some serious HAIR this year! Look at it. Then...
Now...
Then...
Now...
Wow.
Once I hit on that, I wasted an hour and a half just perusing pictures, oohing and ahhing, completely forgetting I was supposed to be finding shots to blog. She does that to me. :-) I'll have to try later to find some that really sum up her year. For now, though, they're all up and hungry again. We've got memories to make rather than memories to remember, at the moment.
But still, she's two! Wow. Happy Birthday, Sweet Emily!
And Happy Birthday to her Birthday Buddy, SJ!!
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Wednesday, January 16
Quick Schooling Update
Howdy, all! It's not all construction and renovation around here, so today I thought I'd touch base on the schooling we've been doing. We're really finding a good groove for the winter term. Now if the children would just believe me when I tell them a schedule is a useful thing... *sigh* Maybe one day. Then again, maybe not. My poor mother tried for years to get me used to scheduling things, and to this day I still make dr's appointments for the morning, even though I *know better*. Perhaps I'll learn to think of it as a legacy instead of a struggle? It could happen.
So, there's this fun site: Robert Krampf's Science Videos. Oh, that's a lot of fun. I love that he explains why reactions happen, and that he uses things we might, possibly, if we think hard enough, find on hand. No depleted uranium, no corks (who keeps corks around the house???), no random weird things, really. We just pop in there for fun. For the rest, we've been following along with How To Teach Science's Periodic Table of the Elements newsletter. I'd signed up before Christmas, but that was only because I knew I'd forget about it by January. We just began this week, and are enjoying it. I'm enjoying the new perspective, and the boys are enjoying the supplemental work we do with it. You know, I didn't "get" isotopes until college. The boys are "getting" it now. That's good stuff. Good, good stuff.
Math is going well, in general. James is nearly finished with MUS Delta. Wow. Delta seemed so far away when we started. (Heh, when we started, they didn't have Delta, actually. But once they made it, it did seem so far away.) His housekeeping is a little shoddy, and that's been kicking him in the teeth - but that's the beauty of grid paper, dry erase boards, and unlimited time to stand there making throat clearing noises to redirect his attention. This morning, I think he grasped the importance of good housekeeping, and I also think it was one of those simple things that I never thought to point out. "It's okay to do it that way, just leave yourself enough room to do it that way." *POOF* Sudden improvement. I *heart* homeschooling. (I am also tremendously thankful that that was the problem! Because you know how one's mind wanders after a while...) John's nearly done with Alpha, too, and aside from an innate desire on his part to hold off on using the blocks until the end of the chapter (rather than initially, to cement the concepts), he's just soaking it all up.
Hopefully, the new math order won't hurt too badly, since Epsilon is the only full set we'll have to buy. John will just need the Beta student text, and Smidge is dying to start Primer, which we have and will just need a new student text for him, as well. (Talk about things that seemed so far away! Smidge, Primer. *sob*) For Smidge, for now, to keep him happy, though, I've been printing out worksheets from this site: Softschools They have oodles of fully customizable options, and once you figure out which end is up, it's fantastically useful.
Latin is... *happy sigh* My Favorite Subject. I love having something other than Zorak and I that asks the boys to t-h-i-n-k. It bleeds over into math, too, which is a beautiful thing (and gives me hope that one day it will bleed over into other aspects of their non-academic lives!) From what I've seen, Classical Academic Press has made more changes to their Latin program (such as now *actually* including Ecclesiastical Latin pronunciation, as they'd been advertising they did - always appreciated - as well as weeding out more of the myriad typos in the texts). If that is the case with Primer B, then we'll continue on with Latin for Children. If that's not the case, then, well, I'm not sure how long I'll spend in the closet, crying, before I try to figure out what to do next.
Reading is always fun around here. We have just a few more Celtic Fairy Tales (Jacobs) and then we'll have completed that book. We're working through the rest of the Yellow Fairy Book (Long), and then I'm not sure where I'd like to pick up in our reading and literature for school. I do like the idea of tying it to our history (Middle Ages/Early Renaissance), but haven't taken the time to compile a good list yet. On the boys' reading independently, John's enjoying his brain candy: Animorphs, Magic Tree House, and Henry and Ribsy. He's also still reading dutifully any of the other materials we put before him. Between the two, he's growing in his reading and also developing the habit of reading. I do love a good one-two punch! James will master reading comprehension. He will get it. He will not leave the house with this amazing ability to recall every detail of an appliance user's manual and yet not be able to recall a single thing about the biography he just read. I know this. I trust this. I will repeat this until I am vindicated in my faith. Until then, we will continue to read, talk, think, question, read, talk, question, think, read...
History is, as always, Story of the World. LOVE it. We've just wrapped up the introduction to the history of Islam, as a nation and an empire. Good stuff. We start the Chang Dynasty today, and then in no time at all we'll be up to the necks of our hauberks in knights and samurai! I plan to hit up the Baldwin Project and Project Gutenberg for some good reading to add to that. ClickBooks will make our springtime reading so much easier!
I think that's it. It doesn't look like much when it's all written out. Why does it feel like we're always so busy? Well, we do slip a lot in here and there. Sometimes we skip something, sometimes we add something, but there's always something to learn.
Oh, and we did decide to do Cub Scouts. The boys are enthusiastic and interested, the leaders are, at the very least, enthusiastic, and Zorak swears it'll be *his* thing to do with the boys (which gives me one evening a week with just the Littlest Littles, and that's quite enjoyable - enjoyable and guilt-free!) So, there's that, as well.
And now, I've spent most of my lunch preparation time writing this up. I'd best go find something to put together and call the boys in from their romping.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
So, there's this fun site: Robert Krampf's Science Videos. Oh, that's a lot of fun. I love that he explains why reactions happen, and that he uses things we might, possibly, if we think hard enough, find on hand. No depleted uranium, no corks (who keeps corks around the house???), no random weird things, really. We just pop in there for fun. For the rest, we've been following along with How To Teach Science's Periodic Table of the Elements newsletter. I'd signed up before Christmas, but that was only because I knew I'd forget about it by January. We just began this week, and are enjoying it. I'm enjoying the new perspective, and the boys are enjoying the supplemental work we do with it. You know, I didn't "get" isotopes until college. The boys are "getting" it now. That's good stuff. Good, good stuff.
Math is going well, in general. James is nearly finished with MUS Delta. Wow. Delta seemed so far away when we started. (Heh, when we started, they didn't have Delta, actually. But once they made it, it did seem so far away.) His housekeeping is a little shoddy, and that's been kicking him in the teeth - but that's the beauty of grid paper, dry erase boards, and unlimited time to stand there making throat clearing noises to redirect his attention. This morning, I think he grasped the importance of good housekeeping, and I also think it was one of those simple things that I never thought to point out. "It's okay to do it that way, just leave yourself enough room to do it that way." *POOF* Sudden improvement. I *heart* homeschooling. (I am also tremendously thankful that that was the problem! Because you know how one's mind wanders after a while...) John's nearly done with Alpha, too, and aside from an innate desire on his part to hold off on using the blocks until the end of the chapter (rather than initially, to cement the concepts), he's just soaking it all up.
Hopefully, the new math order won't hurt too badly, since Epsilon is the only full set we'll have to buy. John will just need the Beta student text, and Smidge is dying to start Primer, which we have and will just need a new student text for him, as well. (Talk about things that seemed so far away! Smidge, Primer. *sob*) For Smidge, for now, to keep him happy, though, I've been printing out worksheets from this site: Softschools They have oodles of fully customizable options, and once you figure out which end is up, it's fantastically useful.
Latin is... *happy sigh* My Favorite Subject. I love having something other than Zorak and I that asks the boys to t-h-i-n-k. It bleeds over into math, too, which is a beautiful thing (and gives me hope that one day it will bleed over into other aspects of their non-academic lives!) From what I've seen, Classical Academic Press has made more changes to their Latin program (such as now *actually* including Ecclesiastical Latin pronunciation, as they'd been advertising they did - always appreciated - as well as weeding out more of the myriad typos in the texts). If that is the case with Primer B, then we'll continue on with Latin for Children. If that's not the case, then, well, I'm not sure how long I'll spend in the closet, crying, before I try to figure out what to do next.
Reading is always fun around here. We have just a few more Celtic Fairy Tales (Jacobs) and then we'll have completed that book. We're working through the rest of the Yellow Fairy Book (Long), and then I'm not sure where I'd like to pick up in our reading and literature for school. I do like the idea of tying it to our history (Middle Ages/Early Renaissance), but haven't taken the time to compile a good list yet. On the boys' reading independently, John's enjoying his brain candy: Animorphs, Magic Tree House, and Henry and Ribsy. He's also still reading dutifully any of the other materials we put before him. Between the two, he's growing in his reading and also developing the habit of reading. I do love a good one-two punch! James will master reading comprehension. He will get it. He will not leave the house with this amazing ability to recall every detail of an appliance user's manual and yet not be able to recall a single thing about the biography he just read. I know this. I trust this. I will repeat this until I am vindicated in my faith. Until then, we will continue to read, talk, think, question, read, talk, question, think, read...
History is, as always, Story of the World. LOVE it. We've just wrapped up the introduction to the history of Islam, as a nation and an empire. Good stuff. We start the Chang Dynasty today, and then in no time at all we'll be up to the necks of our hauberks in knights and samurai! I plan to hit up the Baldwin Project and Project Gutenberg for some good reading to add to that. ClickBooks will make our springtime reading so much easier!
I think that's it. It doesn't look like much when it's all written out. Why does it feel like we're always so busy? Well, we do slip a lot in here and there. Sometimes we skip something, sometimes we add something, but there's always something to learn.
Oh, and we did decide to do Cub Scouts. The boys are enthusiastic and interested, the leaders are, at the very least, enthusiastic, and Zorak swears it'll be *his* thing to do with the boys (which gives me one evening a week with just the Littlest Littles, and that's quite enjoyable - enjoyable and guilt-free!) So, there's that, as well.
And now, I've spent most of my lunch preparation time writing this up. I'd best go find something to put together and call the boys in from their romping.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
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