And So They Learn

I forget to do educational roundups on the blog. Mostly, we go. We learn. We study. Sometimes we (they) (ok, I) filibuster a bit here and there. But here's where they are, as of this morning:

James:
Latin - LP Ch.3 - finishing this up this week. I'd hoped to finish Ch. 5 by Christmas break, and I'm sure we will, so that's good. We really enjoy this program. Sometimes the sentences for translation are so wacky that even though we have it correct, we aren't sure we do, because well, it's wacky. His gut is good on translation, though, and his confidence has increased. Unfortunately, he rattles things off now, then asks me if that was right, and I'm torn between 'fessing up that I didn't follow, or just smiling and nodding. Time for Mama to pick up that dropped ball and get back in the game.
Math - Epsilon Ch. 11 test today. Weeee! How is it that the child who had such a rough time with housekeeping on multiple digit multiplication can handle working so easily with fractions?
Logic - This is so informal, I'm hesitant to include it. (Yet I'm going to, anyway.) He plays Set, he works Sudoku, and he does logic puzzles. They make my eyes bleed, but he love them.
Writing - Imitations in Writing. I'm tempted to say this is so easy, it can't be working. But it is working. And his writing has improved already. I *heart* Imitations in Writing!
Handwriting - Italic Handwriting has pushed my need for bifocals back another five years! His legibility has increased beyond my wildest, weirdest dreams.
Spelling - I'm still not thinking this is a stellar program, but it's not doing any harm, and he likes workbooks. Jury will reonvene at the end of the term.
Reading - The list is not coming toether as easily as I'd hoped. Right now, he is reading Robinson Crusoe with me (and he's hating it - I'm not sure if it's the book, the child, or the mother), reading Parables of Nature (this was supposed to be a summertime read, but we all got distracted), and reading random stories from Howard Pyle's Tales of Robin Hood. I'm working on something with a bit more direction.

John:
Latin - Ch. 4 - *argh* I don't know if this child needs more fish oil, more sleep, more exercize, or electric shock therapy. Whatever it is, he's evidently not getting it because his memorization and retention have been deplorable this month. He's also having trouble remaining upright while he works, which may have something to do with it.
Math - Ch. 5 - he's plugging along and doing well. It took us a week to really convince him that estimation is not just some weird, random thing to learn. Now that he's got that under his belt, he's gung-ho and doing beautifully. Yay for real life!
Writing/Handwriting - The one-two punch of doing the handwriting improvement alongside the writing assignments seems to have freed up his creativity. Again, with the love of Imitations in Writing. We did switch the boys around, so he's doing Aesop, which is a great fit for 3rd grade writing. I'm enjoying his stories, and he's enjoying writing them. John's handwriting has also improved already. Slope is troubling him, but size and shape are now almost always uniform. We're focusing this month on using capitalization appropriately. (Tied in with writing - for him, it's even more of an integrated system than for James, who has two years' more experience on that front.)
Spelling Workout - Jury's still out. He likes the editing marks.
Reading - He's currently reading Owls in the Family; One Horse, One Day, One Hundred Miles (on recommendation of his brother, who just finished and said it's fantastic); Tales of Deltora (he'd started it and then lost it); Howard Pyle's Tales of Robin Hood.

History - we are nearly through the Middle Ages, and it's going well. We keep getting distracted with how things tie together. The People's Crusade led to a lengthy discussion about mob mentality, and the power of charismatic people to sway crowds. We talked about the importance of being not only capable, but willing to maintain your power of reason when in such a situation, of being willing and able to speak up and stand firm in what you know is right. That is why I am thankful we are not tied to fifty minute blocks of time to cover what's on the test. This stuff may not be on the blackline master test, but it's going to be on the Big Test, and that's the one we want them to pass with flying colors.

All:
Art - I need to take photos of the work they've done. So far, so good, with the Artistic Pursuits. I'm still mildly craft-phobic, but the trauma is less with this program, and the results are better, all around, than the willy-nilly craft-n-cry method we were using. Another thumb's up from us!

Music - coming along, doing our thing. I have no idea how to critique this. Meet the Great Composers is interesting, and we're willing to do it - those two things, alone, are of value to us. The boys are still doing piano, and progressing nicely on that front.

Science - I'll have to post separately on that because JT is up and it's time to go!

Have a lovely day, learn something new, and Kiss those babies!
~Dy