tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-145904802024-03-13T09:42:55.327-07:00Home Educating with GraceUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-59491820601048835502011-02-03T13:15:00.000-08:002011-02-03T14:07:44.652-08:00The House<div align="center">When once I took a sorry stroll,</div><div align="center">Sadd(e)ned by a tale untold,</div><div align="center">that dreary night in mid-November,</div><div align="center">(Why I was there I can't remember),</div><div align="center">While I stood there watching, waiting,</div><div align="center">Waiting, watching, while debating,</div><div align="center">Dabating whether I should or not,</div><div align="center">go home for a bun all nice and hot.</div><div align="center"></div><div align="center">(new stanza)</div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center">I decided no and proceeded on, </div><div align="center">proceeding to a place now gone;</div><div align="center">to find the house still there intact,</div><div align="center">was quite a shock for me, alack!</div><div align="center">I had hoped and pleaded with all my soul,</div><div align="center">Pleading it still be not there my goal,</div><div align="center">To see it there was troubling to my mind,</div><div align="center">a mind that needed saneness, and things kind.</div><div align="center"></div><div align="center">(new stanza)</div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center">'Shall I proceed?' I asked myself,</div><div align="center">'Should I proceed into this place of stealth,</div><div align="center">Or turn back and attempt to forget?</div><div align="center">But before my mind was set,</div><div align="center">I heard a hoot from an owl.</div><div align="center">Looking up I saw the feathered fowl and scowled,</div><div align="center">scowled at that annoying bird.</div><div align="center">And there am I still, breathing not a word.</div><div align="center"></div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">-Hi, I'm Bookworm.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">Something like 15 days ago was Edgar Allen Poe's birthday. So for class 2 weeks ago my mom talked about Edgar Allen Poe and read <u>The Raven . </u>Our homework was to read it again 2-3 times at least. In class we also talked about the elements of the poem. Alliteration, rhyming, and onomatopoiea(I just spent something like 8 minutes trying to find the correct spelling). So after we read the poem again our assignment was to write poem at least 3 stanzas long, or if poetry didn't quite work out we could write a short story. It had to have the mysterious 'mood' of<u> The Raven.</u> <u>The House</u> was the poem I wrote.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">The paranthetical marks surrounding the 'e' in 'Saddened' was because I accidentally typed it 'Saddned' wothout the first 'e'. Mommy pointed it out in class.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">Mommy wants me to do writing every day to be able to grasp my writing voice and style, which is what I will do so there will probably be more poetry.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">They would not seperate the stanzas like I had done so that are what the '(new stanza)'s are for.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">I did not change any spellings or words, add, or do anything than copy the original. I also did not change punctuation or capitalization in the poem.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">Signing off,</div><div align="left">Bookworm</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-74067084496507083632011-01-12T12:51:00.000-08:002011-01-12T13:18:27.795-08:00The Theory of EvolutionThe Theory of Evolution states that all life forms can trace their origins all the way to a single common ancestor that existed long ago. Put simply, that means that fish evolved into frogs and so on, except all creatures are evolutions of one creature. Uniformitarians believe in Evolution and the geological column. It is hard to believe that God created all creatures individually, though.<br /><br />The geological column shows the time periods in earth history and how complicated the life forms became. It starts with simple life forms like bacteria and goes to trilobites, sea life, then dinosaurs and mammals.<br /><br />To explain how creatures might evolve, let's look at humans. There are small differences between parent and offspring. We know that two right-handed parents can have a left-handed child, for example. Imagine these slight differences piling up until you have a totally different creature. This is how evolution might occur.<br /><br />If the Theory of Evolution is true, we would expect to find intermediate links in the fossil record between animals, like a creature that is half-fish half-frog. This isn't the case. The very few links that have been found are highly questionable. Take the archaeopteryx. It is a bird with teeth - reptiles have teeth, but birds do not; and claws on it's wings - reptiles have claws, but birds don't have them on their wings. There are a few other unusual features, but the creature seems nothing more than a bird with a few special differences. This can be said about all intermediate links found in the fossil record. These links are fossils; we can't see evolution today because it takes millions, if not billions, of years. <br /><br />If evolution were true, some creatures would no longer exist, like fish and frogs. Even though we can't see them changing we still would expect to see things that are half one creature and half another. However, we do not. This, to me, is the biggest problem with Uniformitarianism.<br /><br />Written by Bookworm<br />December 14, 2010<br />punctuation edited by momUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-51922407603565900182011-01-12T12:31:00.000-08:002011-01-12T12:51:29.951-08:00Advent<div align="justify">Advent is the season which prepares our hearts for Christmas and starts the liturgical year. It aids in preparing us by giving us a time in the middle of the frenziness of getting ready for the holidays to just calm down and straighten our lives out for the coming of our Savior. If we just jumped right into Christmas it would have no meaning for us whatsoever.</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">During Advent the priest wears purple except on Gaudete Sunday, the third Sunday, of Advent. On Gaudete Sunday the priest wears rose, or pink, because it is a more joyful color. This makes sense because "Gaudete" means "joyful" or "rejoicing" in Latin. The reason for all this is because Gaudete Sunday marks the halfway point in Advent.</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">The four Sundays in Advent begin according to when Christmas is. If Christmas is on Monday, the fourth week is a full 7 days, if it's on a Tuesday it's barely nothing.</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">My favorite part about Advent is the increasing suspense and preparation as we prepare our hearts for the coming of our Savior.</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">Written by Bookworm</div><div align="justify">December 14, 2010</div><div align="justify">unedited by mom</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-74506141378439460052010-09-30T15:17:00.000-07:002010-09-30T15:28:29.474-07:00A Place of MagicStrolling outside on a wintry evening, it is always pleasant to pass by a bakery shop window. Outside on the cold street, it seems that you are already inside this wonderfully warm, red brick structure. Watching the baker take the fresh-from-the-oven baguettes out of the large steaming oven, you feel the warm breads on your tongue, tasting the deliciousness of the loaves before you even walk inside. The pastries are good too, but never forget the most lucious and scrumptious of them all. The magnificent meringues are a sight to behold, dazzling, making all other pastries look as lifeless and hard as rocks. The large swirled delicacies melt in your mouth as soon as you take a bite. As large as they are, they disappear in moments, as if in a magic show. A baker's shop is truly a wonderful place of magic.<br /><br />-This post was written by Bookworm for her creative writing class at our co-op. The assignment was to choose one of six items on a list and write a descriptive paper/paragraph. I teach this class, so maybe you'd be surprised to hear that I was floored when Bookworm read her paper in class. But I was - her mastery of language far surpasses anything that I could have taught her myself. Dare I say that she has a gift with words? <br /><br />The reality is this homeschooling gig is getting more exciting every day. I see how both girls are learning things that I don't even realize. Their memories are sharp and while one is much more driven to succeed than her sister, they are both rather intelligent. <br /><br />I'd love feedback on Bookworm's papers. I think it'd be great for her to know how others respond to her writing and learn ways to make it even better. I have a feeling she'll be posting here herself before too long. Stay tuned!<br /><br /><br />I did not alter her spelling or grammar usage in reproducing her work for the purposes of this blog. <br />September 29, 2010Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-88886125240418568102009-09-21T09:31:00.000-07:002009-09-21T09:51:19.373-07:00Another School Year<div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">I have been remiss posting on any blog in many months. But we are on day 1 of week 4 of the 2009-10 school year and I have had a request or two to post some things on this blog. </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">We are once again using Seton materials. Bookworm is technically in fourth grade, but all of her books say Grade 5, so she's adjusting badly to calling herself a fourth-grader for the second year in a row. I think I'll do a post on why we made this decision. And Silly Sally is in second grade this year, but her language arts books are all grade 3.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">One of the things that has been easy about this school year, so far, is how independent the girls are in completing their work. Having used Seton for several years, they are familiar with the program and about what they need to do each day. I answer questions and I do some subjects with them, but they are doing most of their reading for history, reading and religion on their own. </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">Someone asked them yesterday after mass how the new school year is going and they both responded "I love it!", so clearly we're in a good groove.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">For those who wonder what our schedule looks like, we get up in the morning and if we are all up in time, we go to 8:15 mass (I'd like to do this more regularly, but the last couple weeks, I've not been sleeping well and thus have dragged in the morning to the point where leaving the house that early just isn't easy enough.). Breakfast, then school work. The girls frequently start their work while they're eating because they've figured out they can do what they want (within reason, of course), only after work is done. So far, I haven't had to tell them which subjects to do when, as long as everything is getting done each day, I don't mind in which order they complete it. By noon, we're winding down and having lunch.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">After lunch, we have a variety of things along with daily piano practice and finishing any schoolwork for the day:</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">Monday: schola (children's homeschool latin choir)</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">Tuesday: art class</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">Wednesday: piano lessons</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">Thursday: blissfully free afternoon, parish children's choir in the evening</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">Friday: finish up work for the week, take math tests, if necessary and free day for field trips and other activities like First Friday Homeschool Mass and Monthly Children's Adoration</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">One of the things I like about Seton is the set up for work. Most of the subjects are completed Monday-Thursday, so you can work on projects and field trips on Fridays. It gives us a flexibility to take lots of field trips and that will be extra fun this year because Bookworm's history is getting much more interesting and since we live in Maryland, we are close to lots of sites that were key in the formation of our government.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">Both girls are playing soccer again this fall and we are blessed that they are in the same age group/on the same team this year. Games are any night of the week and on Saturday afternoons - usually two games/week. </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">If you have specific questions, please let me know. Otherwise, I think I'd like to start writing more about some of the things we are finding most fun and interesting. I also think I'll have Bookworm write a bit here for some of her assignments.</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-27912013401617685532007-09-06T07:23:00.000-07:002007-09-06T07:42:04.675-07:00Still Excited<div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">We're still enjoying our lessons each day. I love that Seton sets it up so Fridays are a light day - that's when we can review what we learned for the week and I've scheduled art for Fridays, so we can take as long as we'd like on our projects. Not to mention, that is when the majority of our field trips are scheduled.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">Silly Sally continues to amaze me - she wants to do her work each day and is even doing more than one lesson at a time most days. [I have a feeling we'll be starting first grade at some point during this school-year.]</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">Bookworm cried harder on the second day of handwriting, so I ordered Handwriting 2 for her. It came this week, so she's catching up. She is not allowed to complain about handwriting now, since she is using the 2nd grade book. Believe it or not, she is concerned that she is always going to be one year behind in handwriting. I encouraged her to keep in mind that the level doesn't matter - everything else she is doing more than a year ahead. </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">Speaking of being ahead, I want to wish a successful start to her college career to </span><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070902/ap_on_re_us/young_ivy_leaguer;_ylt=ArMAFI7nprE1Q2GFXHb219Ws0NUE"><span style="color:#ffffff;">this amazing girl</span></a><span style="color:#ffffff;">, beginning her Ivy League career at 15 years old.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">We are really enjoying Seton's curriculum and though the pace in the lesson plans is a bit slow for us, it's a great balance and variety of activities. On Monday, Dad was home, so Bookworm requested that he teach her for the day, "since he's smarter and knows more things". [I was offended that she thought he knows more things, but the reality is he does have a bachelor's degree and I do not. However, I do know a lot of stuff and we are about as equally matched as they come - but with widely different interests.] I was pleased when after an hour, he got antsy and was trying to come up with other things to do, while Bookworm encouraged him to sit back down and explain something to her. After a couple hours, he stood up and hugged me and whispered in my ear, "I appreciate you so much." </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">God has surely blessed us. </span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-76378483106984156292007-08-27T19:50:00.001-07:002007-08-27T19:55:38.217-07:00First Day of School<div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">We started out the morning with mass - absolutely wonderful way to start the day. I'm setting my alarm for early tomorrow so I can head to the wee hours mass before the girls even wake. </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">The school day went well. Some subjects, it was just an intro - no real lesson today. And others, Bookworm pushed to do some work, so I let her jump right in. </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">I don't know what to do about the crying, though. The kid cannot handle handwriting and it doesn't matter what kind of attitude I have, she cries. It is the weirdest thing. I thought for sure this year would be different, since her handwriting has improved leaps and bounds in the past few months. But, no go. She cried through half an hour of copying a poem about writing. </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">Other than that, the day was an absolute success. Even Silly Sally loved all her school work and didn't want to stop when the lessons were over. :) Maybe she'll surprise me this year!</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">If you are starting school now too, bless you. I'm thankful not to put my kids on a bus each morning for one new reason today - the bus was 45 minutes late picking up the elementary kids on our block. Those kids were standing outside for nearly an hour waiting (in 90 degree heat at 9 am)!</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#ffffff;">God Bless you.</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-78870208506756408532007-08-08T09:50:00.000-07:002007-08-08T10:11:52.675-07:00Getting Excited!We have had our best summer ever. Seriously. We have had so much fun and since we didn't move this summer (can I get an "Amen!"?), we have been able to really just enjoy the school break.<br /><br />Bookworm did complete the B&N Summer Reading Challenge and both girls are finished with the state Reading Program (we still need to turn in their last slips and get their prizes). Bookworm finished The Chronicles of Narnia, The Spiderwick Chronicles, The Princess Tales and about 30 other books this summer. Those three I listed are all series and she has been reading the Narnia books since the spring. She's also re-read Charlotte's Web and some of the Little House books. <br /><br />With one of her B&N coupons, she got A Wrinkle in Time and she read that rather quickly, in spite of being on another vacation. She wants to go to the library and get more books, but we leave soon to go out of town again. :)<br /><br />I am formulating my plan for the school year and actually have spent some time in the past couple days on the phone with Seton getting things squared away. (The testing department didn't mark Bookworm's results as part of an enrollment, so she hadn't been processed!) Luckily, it's all been taken care of and we should have her materials tomorrow. Gotta love it when businesses take care of their customers. <br /><br />I am getting really excited to start and the girls have been counting down the days until school starts. It's a neat thing to have together. And I am really looking forward to the change this year. We are also going to try something new: a couple days/week, we will get ready early and have breakfast, head to mass and then go to the library. I am going to see if we can use a small meeting room or if they have a place where the librarian can stick us for a few hours. It'd be great to have no interruptions and be able to knock out our schoolwork. I will see how it works out and I hope it will help us stay better on track. I know the one thing I am worried about is making sure we stay on track this year - particularly since I have to submit work to Seton each quarter for grades and records.<br /><br />Well, the kids are asking for lunch, so I am going to sign off for now. I have every intention of writing more on here about how we're doing with school and what we find works for us. So, for Beth, the only reader here, you can certainly check this space occasionally and expect to see an update once in a blue moon. :)<br /><br />Until next time, God Bless you.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-28665648260793635922007-06-15T07:12:00.000-07:002007-06-15T07:25:21.742-07:00See How Good I Am At This?Okay, I haven't exactly taken advantage of this place here. I haven't been recording our school adventures as I'd like to. <br /><br />Truth be told, we had a long winter break, due to Christmas and then moving. In February, though, we got into a groove for about a month and then fizzled again during the spring break season. The weather improved and it became more difficult to stay on track. But, as I type this, Bookworm is at the kitchen island taking an end-of-the-year 2nd grade assessment. After completing the first 3 (of 29) pages, she's testing at least into first grade. haha I'm hoping she'll score at the beginning of third grade so we can be done with school for the summer. I need to regroup and come up with a new plan.<br /><br />Which, coincidentally, I have. Both girls are enrolled in the Seton Home Study program for next school year. I attended the Immaculate Heart of Mary Homeschool Conference last week and it was confirmed that this is the direction we want our homeschool to head.<br /><br />Yesterday, I received in the mail the entrance evaluation for Bookworm (Silly Sally is going to be starting Kindergarten). She isn't doing that evaluation until next week, since we really had a goal of doing the end-of-year evaluation this week.<br /><br />She's doing great, though. She is reading the 7th book in the Chronicles of Narnia series and she has started 2 other series from our last couple trips to the library. I did increase the number of books she can check out to 10 from 5 and I wish I had a photograph of her face when I told her. She's an incredible reader. She has joined the B&N summer reading challenge (I have a feeling she'll max out and turn in 2 sheets in order to earn 2 books). And yesterday, I signed them both up for Maryland's summer reading program through the library. <br /><br />We are looking forward to vacation next weekend (a whole week! at the beach!) and in anticipation, we checked out a book on one of the islands nearby. I'd like to also get a book on the Wright Brothers and see if we can make a trip to Kitty Hawk during our vacation. I'm starting to feel like we can incorporate school into daily lives in a more fun (and less sit-at-the-table-with-books-and-paper) way. Even Husband thought the extra trip to Kitty Hawk and the island would be a great idea. So, we'll see.<br /><br />I am planning on writing here more - I'd like to really make this a place where others can see that homeschooling can work even when you have no clue how to do it (that's me!). That the right tools are out there and you can find something that works for you and your family. It's been a fantastic blessing to have my girls learn with me and I am really looking forward to the next school year when we get even better.<br /><br />Until next time, God Bless you.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-43137579679777579832006-11-18T21:22:00.000-08:002006-11-18T21:23:16.193-08:00Geography Club - November<div align="justify">The girls are in a Geography Club with some other kids from the local homeschool group. <br />.<br />It's fantastic - once a month, we get together and each family (each child, for families with older kids) presents a short report about a country. After all the reports are presented, we have lunch, a sampling of foods from each country. Thanks to Nino's cheesy help [bad pun, I know], I was able to make arroz con queso. It was a hit!<br />.<br />The last two months, we did South American countries. In October, we shared a country with another family, since my girls are preK and 2nd grade. This month, because that other family is out of town, the girls and I did the research on Bolivia on our own. The girls had a great time finding pictures of the crops grown in the country and pictures of the patron saints. Bookworm labeled a map and Silly Sally colored the flag. Bookworm dictated her report, while I typed it for easy reading. It was really fun to do this project together. They pasted all their pictures along with the map and flag onto a cardboard display. <br />.<br />I was getting a little emotional, watching how confidently Bookworm read the report in front of the other kids. Sally kept dropping the display of their cut out pictures, but in general, they did a great job. I was feeling particularly proud of my girls as they went back to their seats.<br />.<br />As Sally sat down, she looked at me and with an incredulous look, she said to me, "That was TERRIBLE!" </div><div align="justify">.</div><div align="justify">She couldn't have been more wrong, but she sure made all the adults laugh. </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-1161101726709530682006-10-17T08:59:00.000-07:002006-11-09T03:21:59.218-08:00Playing Catch Up<div align="justify">Technically, I don't have to "catch up" to a certain point after we took a few weeks off from schooling. (I was sick, then Roni had pneumonia, then she was at science/history camp for a week). But I don't like the idea of year-round schooling for us (I need the break and the kids like being able to play with their friends in the summer). I have a feeling that we will end up doing some amount of schooling through the summer months, maybe two days/week?, but I don't want to <em>need</em> to.</div><div align="justify">.</div><div align="justify">So, we are having a marathon schooling week. Yesterday, we did over 4 hours of math (completed 5 lessons) plus we made pumpkin pies from scratch, an idea I got from <a href="http://owlhaven.wordpress.com/2006/10/05/pie-from-an-actual-pumpkin-is-she-for-real/">Owlhaven</a>. We even used her recipes. The pies turned out fantastic, but I think I would have liked a more pumpkin-y taste. The girls did great making the crust and pressing them into the pie plates. We look forward to sharing the pies with friends and neighbors. </div><div align="justify">.</div><div align="justify">Today, we are going to do two language arts lessons and one math lesson, in addition to getting started on First Reconciliation stuff. I think I'd also like to see what's in store for Little Flowers this month, so we can do some of that as well. It sounds ambitious, considering we just spent 2 hours doing ONE language arts lesson, but I think if we plow into the second lesson, she'll get it in no time. </div><div align="justify">.</div><div align="justify">We started a few weeks ago printing stuff from Crayola.com and Enchanted Learning for Sally. We are doing two letters per day (usually), with handwriting sheets and coloring pages related to the letters. She is enjoying it and she's even doing some other things to help prepare for Geography Club and Little Flowers. I don't know why I didn't do this stuff for her sooner (maybe she just wasn't as interested in sitting with us?). We've instituted a new rule of no tv during the day and it's made a huge difference in how much Sally wants to do school-wise. </div><div align="justify">.</div><div align="justify">We do need to be more consistent with piano practice and I think when we return from our trip next week, I'll be searching out someone to come tune the piano.</div><div align="justify">.</div><div align="justify">I was on a conference for our core curriculum a few weeks ago and learned of this concept of block-teaching. And I think it will be a great help to know that if they want to keep going in a certain subject one day, that's okay and one of the wonderful things about homeschooling. Also, with this curriculum, if she has mastered the skill, she doesn't HAVE to complete each component of a lesson. What a concept! It's good to have them practice, but it doesn't have to be boring for them, even if the lesson is a good one. Practice doesn't always make perfect, sometimes it just creates boredom. What a concept! </div><div align="justify">.</div><div align="justify">So, what kind of things have you found make your homeschooling day go more smoothly?</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-1158068168650102062006-09-12T06:16:00.000-07:002006-11-09T03:21:58.923-08:00We've Begun<div align="justify">I had a hard time starting last week. Probably because our school stuff was still in boxes and needed to be unpacked and organized. I think there must be another box in the garage with school things, since I know we're missing a few things from the school cabinet. </div><div align="justify">.</div><div align="justify">I think I will finish today, putting things into the cabinet (after having my laundry room - for a an entire week - look like a bomb went off in there). I went through everything in the boxes and purged a lot of unnecessary old papers and scads of 3 year old drawings. What's in the cabinet now looks neat and it's organized by subject. I'd like to get a few more plastic boxes that stack to sort some of the smaller things like stickers and other art supplies. I'd also like to attach some clips to the front of the chalkboard so I can clip a big map or other thing without hanging things directly on the wall in the family room over the school table.</div><div align="justify">.</div><div align="justify">We did start core subjects last week on Wednesday - we did the math lesson and it took an extra quarter hour to get through an hour lesson. When we tried to get started on the language arts lesson, I found that we were missing some supplies needed for the lesson. Argh! So, we didn't start Lang Arts until Thursday. And then I guess Friday we were crazy. I woke up sick, but we also have spanish class and then piano lessons on Friday. In addition, we were taking the girls to Atlanta to see the Broadway production of Beauty & The Beast. So, I only managed to get through math. </div><div align="justify">.</div><div align="justify">Roni loves school so much, though, that as soon as we returned from Atlanta on Saturday afternoon, she was begging to do her language arts lessons. And so we did one and a half on Saturday and finished lesson 3 on Sunday after church. So, now she's caught up. Until the attitude yesterday dampened the learning spirit. (When I'm not feeling well, I don't have endless patience. Since she was getting frustrated with simple tasks and I was losing my ability to talk gently to her, I sent her to the other room. The intention was we would come back to the lesson after we both had a chance to snap out of the funk. We never did come back to the lesson yesterday, due to my pounding head and desire to be curled up under a blanket.)</div><div align="justify">.</div><div align="justify">So, we are one day behind this week and it's only Tuesday. Fortunately, Roni seems really excited about doing school lessons on the weekends (she actually said, "It's great that I can do math and language arts seven days a week!"). This is not a habit I want to continue. However, I don't mind doing some work on the weekends with her if it means I can take care of myself when I'm sick.</div><div align="justify">.</div><div align="justify">So, that's it for now. We're LOVING the K12 stuff. I don't have to plan the lessons, just follow the directions. Every time we sit down for a lesson, we are surprised to finish and realize we've spent an hour or more. And it's great when Roni's reaction is "I was having so much fun I didn't even realize we've been working for more than an hour!"</div><div align="justify">.</div><div align="justify">And the good news? That's how I feel too. </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-1154965087856039302006-08-07T08:06:00.000-07:002006-11-09T03:21:58.678-08:00A New Year, A New Plan<div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">Not that anyone else is reading this, but for my own reflection later, here is the plan for the 06-07 school year.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">First, I have to say the state of Georgia has very laid-back requirements for homeschooling families. I called the board of education in my county this morning, to get the registration process started. I was told I have to file a letter of intent to homeschool, then send in monthly attendance records (which they send me). No review of our portfolio, no end-of-year evaluations... Strange, I say. I think I shall follow Sunshine State standards, though, and have the girls evaluated at the end of each school year by a "real" teacher, just for our own peace of minds.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">So, this year: We initially talked about using the entire curriculum from </span><a href="http://k12.com"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">K12</span></a><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">, since we really looked into it when we were planning on enrolling in FLVA. We realized it was quite an expense for the online support and planning in addition to the curriculum and manipulatives. But we figured it was still considerably less than private school, plus Roni could go at her own pace. </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">But after we moved, I found a homeschool group here that has a co-op. And I really like the group. And I think a co-op would help keep me on task (at least with a couple subjects, which leads to better scheduling all around) and give the girls an opportunity for social/classroom interaction they wouldn't have by learning completely at home. And I'm glad that we hadn't yet ordered the curriculum from K12. </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">As I was online ordering the book for Geography (</span><a href="http://www.rodandstaffbooks.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=RS&Product_Code=192--&Category_Code=21c_G-2"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">Our Father's World</span></a><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">), I noted the prices of the other curricula. And I realized that we could save about a thousand dollars if I mixed and matched, rather than go with the entire program from K12. So, we are using </span><a href="http://www.rodandstaffbooks.com/"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">Rod & Staff </span></a><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">(and </span><a href="http://enchantedlearning.com"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">Enchanted Learning</span></a><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">) for Geography [with the co-op], Handwriting, Music & Art. I ordered music and art for both girls, so we can include the little one in our daily work.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">We are doing a couple other classes with the co-op as well. For History, we are using a lot of stuff from Enchanted Learning, as well as </span><a href="http://www.booksamillion.com/ncom/books?id=3549645428867&isbn=1561890898"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">The Complete Book of World History</span></a><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">. For Spanish, we are using </span><a href="http://www.booksamillion.com/ncom/books?id=3549645428867&isbn=0764174452"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">Spanish Everyday</span></a><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">. And I don't know if there is a particular book for Science because we haven't started yet. If Roni can't get into the (already full) Science class, then I think we can get by using Enchanted Learning for science all year.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">We are sticking with K12 for Language Arts and Math, since those two subjects are so important and we really liked the challenging lessons. We ordered 2nd grade for both subjects (figuring a strong basic foundation is most important, so some repetition is good), but we are willing to purchase the 3rd grade materials if she gets through it all quickly. I think, though, that it would be best to have her learning branch out a bit to keep her interested, and keep her on a steady schedule, rather than letting her rocket through the math and language arts, as she has been. </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">We are also going to sign Roni up for piano lessons and both girls up for dance/pre-ballet. Not to mention, their monthly </span><a href="http://hometown.aol.com/eccehomopr/lfgchome.htm"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">Little Flowers </span></a><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">meetings.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">So, we've got a full schedule starting up. But, I am excited! And the girls are enjoying making new friends. And best of all, I am certain that we are making the best decisions for our girls for right now. Which is a welcome change to my uncertainty of last year. </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">I think having some regular support is going to help me immensely and really make a world of difference for my children and their education. And well, that is an answer to prayer. </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-family:arial;color:#ffffff;">God Bless You.</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-1154388079618357132006-07-31T15:45:00.000-07:002006-11-09T03:21:58.172-08:00A Recap of the last school year<div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">What we did last year was more along the lines of "unschooling". It's a good thing Roni is self-motivated, or she and I might have fallen under the influence of my emotional shortcomings this past year. </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">About halfway through the school year, I discovered the children's museum has homeschool classes once/month. Since we have a membership there, I was quite surprised that I didn't know of these classes sooner. But, they were great! Science and art and they always gave supplemental materials, so there was plenty to do afterward to build on what they'd done in "class". <br />.<br />At some point during the year, her reading just took off and she ended the school year reading at about a sixth grade level. When she was tested, her math was on target to begin third grade. Quite an achievement for a five year old. </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">Daddy thought she needed more structure, but I was unwilling to put her in a setting that would hold her back - or expose her to some social things I find completely unacceptable for children. So, the hunt was on for an alternative to my laid-back approach that would not only encourage Roni's continued love for learning, but would give her some structure to appease her Daddy. </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">We found what we thought was the perfect solution: Florida Virtual Academy, which is a public school, but taught at home. She would have a teacher leading her education, giving lesson plans and reviewing her work periodically. But, she would be at home, taught primarily by me. She would have to maintain all the Sunshine State standards, including standardized tests. This was okay with us. It isn't that we don't want her to be held to a standard, we just don't want her held back to a low/er standard. In spite of the state requiring her to be labeled as a first grader (due to her age - ugh!), they were going to start her with second grade curriculum and let her go at her own pace. I attended an information session and then we all went to another one. We completed the enrollment process, including hours of placement testing.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">Somehow, I'd gotten through a school year without much structure and Roni managed to learn an incredible amount of information that every teacher who evaluated her deemed her ready for second grade. Relax about her handwriting, they said. It will catch up as she gets older - the physical requirements of those fine motor skills don't come based on how quickly she's learning everything else. It's physical. (Wow! What a relief - I was freaking out over nothing. Of course it makes sense, which makes me just feel completely inadequate to teach these girls a thing.)</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">So, we made it through the school year. She thrived. She grew. She writes and reads and spells (one thing we really need to work on this year) and computes numbers. She's a bright girl. I'm amazed that she's doing so much at such a young age. </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">My methods weren't traditional: we went to the children's museum all the time, focusing on different sections and talking about weather and firefighters and newscasters and theater; we went to the zoo, reading every plaque in the bird sanctuary and then locating each species and watching them; we visited the other children's museums in the area, doing scavenger hunts and learning about the parts of the body; we walked around the lakes in our neighborhood and identified types of snakes and birds; we read books and played games; we painted and played with clay and made crafts; we wrote thank you notes and letters; we baked and cooked and went swimming; we played math table games while we were driving in the car; we prayed rosaries and sang songs; we started learning the basics of some other languages, learning together via compact discs; and a few times per week, we sat down with a workbook and did math drills and talked about sentences. </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">Yes, it was "unschooling", but it worked for us. I agree more structure would have benefited all three of us, but this unschedule helped me get through a rough year. And Roni thrived. But I know her sister wouldn't have if it had been a school year for her. So, we have a new plan for this year that I think will be perfect for us for this year. I'll post about it later. It's been requested that I share my reasons for my choice of curriculum this year, so that is next.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">.</span></div><div align="justify"><span style="font-size:130%;">Until next time, God Bless you.</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-1134335607485212242005-12-11T13:00:00.000-08:002006-11-09T03:21:57.720-08:00Slacker<span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;color:#ffffff;">TRUE OR FALSE? </span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;color:#ffffff;">.</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;color:#ffffff;">1. When mommy is a slacker, homeschooled children don't learn anything.</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;color:#ffffff;">.</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;color:#ffffff;">2. When mommy is a slacker, homeschooled children get lazy too.</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;color:#ffffff;">.</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;color:#ffffff;">3. When mommy is a slacker, homeschooled children actually force her to do schoolwork with them.</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;color:#ffffff;">.</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;color:#ffffff;">If you answered false, false, then true - ding, ding ding!!!</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;color:#ffffff;">.</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;color:#ffffff;">I have to be honest. I am not the most organized person. I can't even take credit for being HALF organized. Do we get places on time? Sure. But to keep a regular daily schedule at home for school? I totally blow it. The good news is that Roni is reading up a storm and blowing us out of the water with her math skills. I'm not doing too bad. We have quite a ways to go to master spelling and handwriting, but she's making leaps and bounds just what she IS able to do without a set schedule of learning. After the holidays, I will be getting back to business FOR REAL and evaluating where she needs to be by the end of the school year and making a schedule that we will follow. I figure with all the other changes I am making right now, this is just one more step. I did it when she was completing kindergarten last year. I can do it for first grade too. And hopefully we'll both pick up some good habits that will allow us to have a more regular school schedule come next fall.</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;color:#ffffff;">.</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;color:#ffffff;">I'm very proud that if we go too many days, she gets an itch and just HAS to have some schoolwork to do. She's amazing. And Little A? She's picking up far more than I can take credit for! We've decided to start her Kindergarten program next fall. </span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;color:#ffffff;">.</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;color:#ffffff;">Sorry this journal has been sorely neglected. I did learn a few cool things recently that I will share when I have the chance.</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;color:#ffffff;">.</span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;color:#ffffff;">Merry Christmas and a Blessed and Healthy New Year!</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-1126224170474603472005-09-08T16:21:00.000-07:002006-11-09T03:21:57.504-08:00The Frustrations of Starting School<div align="justify">Well, we've started. The girls and I ran around this week gathering up last minute supplies. A world map which needed an extra day to laminate, 4x6 index cards for vocabulary words (I still need to get to the office supply to get a file box for those), and some anatomy information sheets (these were three-hole punched very detailed sheets and were only $.99 each). I figure the $3 I spent on those is much more worth it than the child-size posters for $15 that Big Daddy would be irritated to come home and find hanging on our kitchen wall. </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">So, we've started. I wanted to start with Madeline, even though the recommended start is The Story of Ping. Why change it up? Because I knew I'd need something good to get the girls interested in giving up their morning play time. And they LOVE Madeline. </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">The handwriting portion killed us, though. Roni absolutely hates handwriting. She isn't good at it and doesn't want to practice. She only wants to do the academic type stuff that comes more easily to her. It is frustrating to me to have her cry for almost an hour over writing her name, address and phone number. I wasn't forcing the issue, but told her that she could take breaks after each word. In the end, all she really did was play connect the dots over the spotty letters that I drew. But, it is a start. It made me realize we need to start at the beginning again and practice handwriting more than most everything else. She is good at the rest. I will be sitting down tonight to create some practice sheets for her with dotty letters for her to trace and space to write them on her own as well. </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">Little A isn't crazy about the idea of sitting with us even for reading the story each day, but I think she'll grow to like it more. She did get excited this morning when she was allowed to color with markers, so that's something. :)</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">Until next time, God Bless you.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-1125806720299854472005-09-03T20:46:00.000-07:002006-11-09T03:21:57.107-08:00Getting Started<div align="justify"><strong>Finally, we received the rest of Roni's curriculum just this Friday. I read through it last night and am rather excited about using this program. They even had examples showing how you would schedule in extra lessons if your child was ready for more advanced work. That made me happy because I had already decided that we would need to cover more math than what is included in the FIAR curriculum. </strong></div><div align="justify"><strong>.</strong></div><div align="justify"><strong>The books all sound great and I am really looking forward to including Little A in our daily lessons. She can sit through part of the lessons and participate minimally, but I think it will help all three of us for her to be included daily. Obviously, she won't sit with us the entire time and I hope she'll let me divide my time between her and Roni during our schooltime.</strong></div><div align="justify"><strong>.</strong></div><div align="justify"><strong>As I was reading through the parent/teacher information last night, I also realized there are some other things that the curriculum recommends, so I will be getting some 4x6 cards to use for vocabulary words and a box to store them in. They have a great idea about not only writing the word on the card, but having the student either draw or cut out a picture of something that illustrates the word, along with the definition. I thought I should get a children's dictionary, but then remembered that my grandma has bought one for the girls as part of their Christmas gifts. So, I'll have to just encourage her to actually send it at Christmas instead of waiting until next summer when they come to visit.<br />.</strong></div><div align="justify"><strong>Well, we were planning on starting school after Labor Day, but I think we'll actually start Monday morning with a short lesson. I spent an hour or more organizing our school cabinet and making a list of items I'd still like to get to use right away (only a few things). </strong></div><div align="justify"><strong>.</strong></div><div align="justify"><strong>My mom gave Roni a huge and beautiful wood-framed chalkboard for her birthday and we need to decide which wall it will hang on and then hang it. I have plans to get to the teacher supply on Tuesday to get a world map that we will also put on the wall during the week. The FIAR curriculum has little circles for each story that we are supposed to color and cut out and then place on the map to help teach geography. Like I said, I am really excited to use this curriculum! </strong></div><div align="justify"><strong>.</strong></div><div align="justify"><strong>So, we're getting started. I'm excited. Roni's excited. Little A is anxious (as much as a 3 year old can be) because she just found out today that she will be learning along with her sister. She wasn't planning on school starting so early for her. But the way I look at it, she should be doing preK stuff now to get ready for Kindergarten next year (if she is ready then). She has been surprising me lately by counting in Spanish spontaneously. She has also just figured out counting on her fingers - and that each number actually has an assigned number of fingers you hold up. Before, she was just counting and her fingers going up at random speed. </strong></div><div align="justify"><strong>.</strong></div><div align="justify"><strong>And she's been showing interest in knowing which letter is which. So, I think that is pretty exciting too, since she really wasn't very interested at all in learning anything academic. She doesn't even like to sit through an entire story. :)</strong></div><div align="justify"><strong></strong></div><div align="justify"><strong>.</strong></div><div align="justify"><strong>All in good time. For each of them. I'm looking forward to a good time with my girls. I think it will make a huge difference for our days to have a schedule again. And now that I have lesson plans laid out for the next month, I can start plugging in field trips and play dates. </strong></div><div align="justify"><strong>.</strong></div><div align="justify"><strong></strong></div><div align="justify"><strong>Until next time, God Bless you and your family. Don't forget to pray for those affected by Hurricane Katrina. If you can, please donate </strong><a href="http://www.redcross.org"><strong>here</strong></a><strong>.</strong></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-1124324761447672882005-08-17T17:15:00.000-07:002006-11-09T03:21:56.941-08:00Salvador Dali<div align="justify">Last Saturday, Big Daddy and Roni went to the museum for the family/children tour and breakfast. They had a wonderful time, in spite of the long drive to get there and home. Roni's favorite part of the tour was breakfast. However, when pressed, she said, "Well, what I liked about it.... there was something very funny - the one statue of a head in a little box, it was made out of stuff that, like, a Coca-Cola can for his head or something and he had chairs for earrings." </div><div align="justify">.</div><div align="justify">"Hearing the story that was kinda funny... One of the stories: Salvador Dali was going fishing with his cousin and he caught a fish, and with his eyes he saw a fish, but with his imagination he saw a cricket, so he smashed it. Because he was afraid of crickets. Then his cousin brought a real cricket and put in his shirt and then the cousin smashed the cricket in Salvador's shirt. And that was the gross part."</div><div align="justify">.</div><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify">The docent was an older woman in a wheelchair, which Big Daddy found to be perfect, since she was right at eye level with the children. (Side note, Big Daddy years ago was one class away from being "certified" to be a docent at this same museum. He dropped out once he met me and wanted to spend every waking/non-working moment with me.)</div><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify">.</div><div align="justify"><a href="http://salvadordalimuseum.org">Here is the information </a>if you're in the area and would like to go next time. It looks like they have one every month or every other month.</div><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify"><em>.</em></div><div align="justify"><em>Explore the DalĂ Museum galleries in a tour suitable for children ages 6 to 12, led by docent Jill Henaghen. The tour is interactive, and the paintings analyzed are especially chosen to appeal to children. The tour is followed by a delightful breakfast with the docent and staff members in attendance.Pre-registration is required. Limited to 20 children plus adult companions. General admission $20 per family of two, plus $10 for each additional immediate family member. Others $20. Members $15 per family of two, plus $10 for each additional person. Please contact Anna Otero at (727) 823.3767 ext. 3026; or e-mail: aotero@salvadorDalĂmuseum.org</em></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-1124280902832303942005-08-17T05:03:00.000-07:002006-11-09T03:21:56.662-08:00Finally Decided<div align="justify">Okay, I know it's been a few weeks since I posted over here about our homeschool journey.... With the move and some other stuff going on, I haven't forged forward with school stuff until this week.</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">I finally decided on curriculum for this school year. As a matter of fact, I ordered it the other day. <a href="http://www.fiveinarow.com/fiar/">Five In a Row</a> (FIAR) was recommended to me by the friend of a friend. It is a literature based program and it makes preparation incredibly simple. You get the bulk of the program from the library in the form of childrens' literature that is used each week. Then, each week you read a different book and go through the book using the lessons - covering one subject per day. Since Roni seems to be adept at math, this should be a perfect fit to go with our A Beka math program. She will have math with FIAR, but her core math will be A Beka.</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">I have a few projects that need to be finished for the house, since we will have our first overnight guests this Friday. But, I will be working next Monday and Tuesday organizing our school pantry and gathering the remaining supplies we'll need. I'd like to get a nice US map (approx. 2'x3') to hang on the wall in the kitchen.</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">I'm excited to be settled on what we'll use and Roni will start a review the remainder of this week and then next week of the things she learned in Kindergarten so I can assess where we need to start the school year after Labor Day.</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">Until next time, God Bless you.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-1121802105344601712005-07-19T12:38:00.000-07:002006-11-09T03:21:56.380-08:00Curriculum Fairs<div align="justify">Okay, so read the fine print before you go. I found a listing for a curriculum fair online. But, it was only ONE vendor. </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">Not to worry, I actually wanted to purchase the math curriculum from this vendor, so we are one step closer to prepared for the school year.</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">And to throw a wrench in preparations, we've decided to find a home to rent. We have had enough of apartment living. At least here anyway, where we just haven't had the best experience. </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">I really miss <a href="http://postapartmenthomes.com">Post.</a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-1121696202437400692005-07-18T06:23:00.000-07:002006-11-09T03:21:56.076-08:00Curriculum Search<div align="justify">Okay, now that I've written a little intro, I want to start documenting what I am currently doing to set up our home school.<br /><br />First, I talked to the first grade teacher at Roni's school in GA. I asked her about curricula and objectives and all that good stuff. She recommended some things and I have settled on a math curriculum: <a href="www.abeka.com/">Abeka</a><br /><br />I have no idea what else we will be using. I am considering <a href="http://www.epsbooks.com/dynamic/catalog/series.asp?subject=02S&subjectdesc=Phonics/Decoding++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++&series=1460M">Explode the Code</a> for phonics and reading, but am still open to other suggestions.<br /><br />We have a pass for the zoo and I am also looking into a program at the local aquarium - these and a membership at a local children's hands-on museum should cover science. (We'll also check out things from the library to go over before and after we study things at the zoo or aquarium.)<br /><br />I am excited about reading. I was looking at some book lists for first grade and was thrilled to see <a href="http://print.google.com/print?id=LzDepXCqxoIC&dq=amelia+bedelia&oi=print&pg=6&sig=SuOvu_fmGXgq3IJtZ2E2riU6Vy8&prev=http://www.google.com/search%3Fhl%3Den%26lr%3D%26q%3Damelia%2Bbedelia">Amelia Bedelia </a>(sp?), which I loved as a child - and I can't believe that my daughter is at the age that I clearly remember reading this book! Of course, there are many other great books, so I am looking forward to sharing my love of the written word with my child on a more in depth level than we've had thus far. I think I will incorporate history into reading and also into science as much as she is wanting and ready.<br /><br />Oooh, I just thought of something so cool. I made reservations for Big Daddy to take Roni to a local art museum for a children/family tour and breakfast. Since his degree is in Art History, I figure he could be in charge of things like art (though, I will definitely be the one to do art projects with her, since I am the crafty one).<br /><br />And we (actually, I will be) will be putting a notice on a bulletin board at our local college to see if we could get a music student to teach her piano for inexpensive. Not to mention, she'll have religious education at church (and ongoing at home), which will be once/week with kids in her grade level. And I was thinking of Brownies/Girl Scouts... I was a Brownie and loved it....<br /><br />We have plans (hopefully this week), to move the TV that is in the playroom into the closet of that room - still hooked up, maybe without cable (we only have broadcast cable, which is local channels - but we don't get any reception without the cable) though. The girls will be able to occasionally watch a dvd or something, but the room is small and I'd much rather have the space for play and I need some wall space to use for school stuff, so the tv must be moved. I am also interested in figuring out the best way to organize our stuff - the school board here requires me to keep a portfolio they can have access to within a 15 day notice.<br /><br />Tomorrow, I am going to a curriculum open house thingy. I am hoping I will meet some other elementary homeschoolers in my area and that we can network and maybe form a group for field trips, etc. I think I am also going to purchase our math curriculum at the fair (I have a discount coupon I found online!).<br /><br />And in an hour or so, I have a phone date with a woman I formerly thought was out of her mind for homeschooling her children (and she thought I was out of my mind for not considering it a possibility). I need to pick her brain and she has quite a bit of experience, since her oldest is now in middle school.<br /><br />Oh, one other thing: I have been reading a book: <a href="http://icky.blogspot.com/">The Homeschooling Revolution</a> and it has me thinking this homeschooling setup may not be as temporary as we plan for our family. I wonder if God is calling me to do this long term? I do know he wants us to do it now. And we will continue to pray and discern and evaluate what is best for our children.<br /><br />I think I've got a good program in mind and I am trying to work it out so it is not an overwhelming schedule for her. I want to keep in mind that she doesn't have to be overscheduled to have a good home education experience. Maybe we should forego Brownies for this first year and just get the hang of it. And maybe she'll decide after 6 months she just doesn't like piano?<br /><br />But for now? I am excited. I am happy that my husband and I will still be the primary influences on her young mind (maybe that part is not ALWAYS best). I am happy I will know what she is being exposed to educationally and socially. I am happy I can continue to cultivate in her a love of our faith and appreciation for the sacrifice God made for us.<br /><br />And maybe, just maybe, my little sacrifices will improve the future of my own children. That they will grow up to appreciate life and all it has to offer - and be inspired to give to others the gifts of love and faith that I feel compelled to spread around like little seeds.<br /><br />In the meantime, please pray for us (and for me, especially), as we embark on this incredible educational and life experience.<br /><br />Until next time, God Bless You and Your Family.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14590480.post-1121692968754863092005-07-18T06:03:00.000-07:002006-11-09T03:21:55.832-08:00Welcome<div align="justify">Well, I know it must seem silly that I am starting a new blog, but I just feel compelled to keep track of this time in our family's life.<br /><br />To give background on why we've chosen to homeschool:<br /><br />Last year, we felt our oldest daughter (we'll call her Roni here) was ready for something more than what she was getting at home. We examined our options and felt we weren't really ready (though <em>she</em> would have no doubt been perfectly fine) to have her in a 5 day/week program. We found this wonderful private hybrid school where she would attend preK on Tuesday/Thursday and then be home M, W, F (presumably for homeschooling, though there aren't really requirements during preK). Not only was the school Catholic Christian, but it wasn't too far from where we lived at the time.<br /><br />Once the school year started, it became clear that Roni and a boy in her class were a bit more advanced academically (socially too) than their classmates. It also was clear that the class of 3 kindergarten students lacked in certain areas, so the decision was made to combine the two classes. It did make a larger class, with 7 students, but the younger/less advanced ones had play time while the ready students did things like math and handwriting. Roni flourished. She was a <strong>sponge</strong>.<br /><br />My husband had gotten a job back in Florida the month after school started, so after the first semester, the girls and I joined him. This meant, of course, that Roni would not be continuing the school year at her school. This was sad not only for her, but for me as well. I had no idea how we would educate her adequately to keep her on her current track.<br /><br />We decided that I would complete the Kindergarten objectives with her at home in FL and then have her evaluated by her school at the end of the school year (this way we'd have appropriate records for the school year and also have a better idea how we should proceed for the 05-06 school year). Our May trip to Atlanta was pushed up to April and I was a little concerned that it was too early to evaluate for end of year <em>(a whole month and half early).</em> Silly me. Roni blew away the evaluating teacher and proved to have gotten further ahead than her classmates, her math skills showing a near 2nd grade level and everything else on target or into first grade level.<br /><br />I had contacted some schools in our now local area about possibly entering her into first grade in the fall (she'll only turn 5 at the end of Aug.). <strong>Nobody</strong> in our COUNTY will allow her into first grade as a 5 year old, not even the Catholic school. So, we decided that one year at a time, I will homeschool - with the plan to eventually switch her over to mainstream school. I think if we stay in this county, she will require homeschooling at least through 2nd grade (age restrictions).<br /><br />So, that is how I got to where we are now. I am going to use this blog to document the <strong>joys</strong> and <em>struggles</em> and how I'm trying to educate my daughter in the best way for her right now. If you are reading this and you find it boring, <strong>that is okay</strong>. I am chronicling for us, but if you've got suggestions or questions, please feel free. If you are a naysayer, that is okay too, I would just appreciate respectful language and keep the accusations to a minimum. :)<br /><br />Until next time, God Bless.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0