Homeschool room

I post pictures off and on of the changes in our homeschool room. I just took more tonight. These maps have been on this wall since shortly after we moved in. They continue to be useful and frequently used, so they stay.

Opposite the maps is my china cabinet. I have candy stashed on the bottom shelf. And my newspaper stash.


I have a few super messes that stick around- mostly the large stash of newspaper I save for floor protection, crafts, and cleaning. I could probably whittle it down, but it doesn't bother me too much. My bookcase also doesn't stay lined up well- as you can see things are jammed in chaotically. The blanket covered thing next to the book case is the dog kennel- I also need a prettier cover for that!


I really like these two cabinets- the corner where they meet provides a nice, out of sight place to store posters that aren't currently in use.


Finally- this is the room as a whole, as seen from the kitchen doorway.
And that's where all the magic happens. :)

Field trip week

Last week we drove down to Omaha, Nebraska, to meet my parents. They live in Texas, so it's more of a central place to meet.

It also gives us a chance to take the kids to do a lot of things that normally we don't have a chance to do.

We went to the Mallory Kountze Planetarium and saw a show about stars and the universe. We went as a private group during the day, so it was $40. However, this allowed the kids to ask as many questions as they wanted without us worrying about keeping them quiet. They also have quite a few neat displays that the kids really liked.

We also went to Pioneer Trail Orchard and Pumpkin Patch. This is actually across the river in Council Bluffs, Iowa. I can not say enough good things about this place- the people who run it are sweet, accommodating, and you can really tell that they are running this because they love it and they love kids. They have been operating the pumpkin patch for sixteen years. Highlights for my kids were a hay ride (sans hay which was actually excellent since multiple members of our party have allergies), picking out their very own pumpkins (very reasonably priced), going through a corn maze, a "haunted" barn that is extremely age appropriate (they also have a more intense one for the older and braver crowd), and the playground. They also sell refreshments and have some small rides. It's a short drive from central Omaha and really worth the trip if you are looking for fun, seasonal activities that feature fall and Halloween.

The kids were also pleased to go to the Henry Doorly Zoo again. This was a favorite from last year, as well. I like the combination of indoor and outdoor exhibits. I was also really impressed with the Skyfari- at $4 a person it is a really long ride that takes you all the way across the park and back. I do wish that the zoo had coupons and more eating choices, but otherwise it's a great time.

Little Bird was under the weather, so she went to the doctor with grandma, little Moose, and myself while Sweet Pea went to the Omaha Children's Museum with her grandpa and father. The doctor was nice, but I think that Sweet Pea got the better end of that deal. She was a little less impressed with the museum and I heard that some of the exhibits were not working properly.

A high point of the trip for me was visiting Adoremus Bookstore. This is a Catholic bookstore with a large homeschool book selection and a nice staff that features at least one homeschooling mother. I was pleased to pick up the next level of Singapore math (although it is US Ed. not Standards, so we'll see how we like it) as well as the Explode the Code primers for Little Bird. Sweet Pea is pleased about the new math as well as her new coloring books.

This was a great trip and gave us some neat opportunities. I think it was a week well spent.

This upcoming week we will be studying Martin Luther and the Reformation all week in preparation for Reformation Day.

Weekly report, sick week

Mostly the mother, not the kids.

Language Arts

Sweet Pea

We have done the first 6 lessons of Maxwell's Primary Language Lessons and Composition. So far we have covered: copywork (daily), picture study (daily), and grammar (daily). This program feels very similar to me to Classical Writing from the scope and sequence and samples that I have seen. It's about 10-15 sentences per lesson. Every lesson also has an oral component to be done with the parent or teacher at the beginning- this is where the concepts and grammar are introduced.

We are also still using Rod and Staff's English 2, only we are now doing the lessons orally. I really like the amount of grammar in this, and we already have it, so we'll complete it orally and then switch to something else next year for just grammar.

Sweet Pea has done 14 lessons in her spelling program. She continues to be a good speller and is good and visualizing words in her head and being able to put that accurately on paper.

She is currently rereading Mary Pope Osbourne's retelling of the Odyssey for her personal, fun reading. We are reading Charlotte's Wed out loud together- Little Bird and baby Moose also listen to this to varying degrees.

Little Bird

Little Bird knows all of her capital letters! Well, usually. She's now working on her lower case ones and letter sounds. We are also working on dot to dots, coloring, properly holding a pencil, and enunciating the sounds she still struggles with- namely f, th, and v.

Math
Sweet Pea

We did the review of numbers 0-20, addition and subtraction, this week. Next is shapes and measuring and money- so more review. That's good, though- when we move on to the next book it's a big jump in skills!

Little Bird

Little Bird can count to 20 (both in English and French) and can now recognize the numbers 1-5.

History
Sweet Pea and Little Bird

We finished Egypt, meandered through the Israelites , and then dissected the Phoenicians. I think that Sweet Pea liked the chapter on the Phoenicians the best, but she liked the Israelite crafts better. I highly suggest the Activity Guide for anyone doing SOTW!

Science
Sweet Pea and Little Bird

Review on mammals. I think that they've retained a pretty good amount about what makes mammals unique and how to identify them.

French
Sweet Pea and Little Bird

We did Lesson 9 this week. We are not doing any of the writing anymore, we are just working on vocab and usage, as well as listening for accent. The girls watched some movies in French and listened to some children's songs in French.

Bible
Sweet Pea and Little Bird

This week was Jacob's Ladder. Sweet Pea has a little bit of catch up to do- she still needs to draw a picture for this week as well as last week.

Catechism
Sweet Pea and Little Bird

We are now working on the Apostle's Creed. Sweet Pea knows all 10 of the commandments, in order, and can easily recite them. She can say the Creed if someone else is saying it with her, but we are working on having her do it solo.

Poetry
Sweet Pea

Sweet Pea has been practicing reciting, "Wynken, Blynken, and Nod." I'm going to have her read it and say it more this next week, then she can illustrate a picture of it and we'll add it to her binder.

Family Fun

Our fun this week was kind of lame since I was sick. We made Jello in funny shapes and baked brownies. We got stickers and made sticker pages and colored them. Both girls spent time working on puzzles, and helped little Moose perfect the art of getting into a sitting position.

What to do with babies/toddlers

I chat a lot with friends about this- what to do with a toddler or baby during homeschool time. Toddlers can be fun and sweet, but they can also be really distracting during school time!

Some things that I have found to help, in no particular order:
-sink full of bubbles with cups to pour
-dry beans/rice to sort
-crayons
-play-doh
-movies
-snacks
-naps
-safety scissors and old magazines
-stickers

Mostly, it is training the toddler to be quiet and to play solo for short periods of time.


I think babies are easier- they can sit on mom's lap, sleep, or nurse.


Anyone else have useful tips?

Day's work and curricula review

Today happened to work well for doing a daily report again, so here it is!

We have done all the worksheets for our Bible story already this week, so today we read an Arch book about Abraham. This is our third week talking about Abraham, so by the end of this week I think the girls will know his story pretty well!


We did the First Article of the Apostles Creed today. I am so proud of how well Sweet Pea knows the 10 Commandments now!


Next was a math attack. I printed a worksheet off for review of math facts 0-20, then we did a Singapore lesson, and then a Math Mammoth page. This is more math then usual in a day and took about 45 minutes. We did so much because Sweet Pea needs quicker recall on some math facts before we can move on.


Sweet Pea did the first part of lesson 12 in spelling. This week is a big review week of all the spelling words we have already done and I'm very pleased by her retention.


We did the first lesson in that vintage LA book I linked to a few posts back- Primary Lessons in Language and Composition by William Henry Maxwell. I really, really like it! I received it a few days ago and spent quite a bit of my time in the evening reading through it and checking out the lessons. I really like how this follows the more traditional and classical model of writing.
Today in Sweet Pea's lesson we did picture study, narration, and copywork. All easily and concisely laid out for me.


I think we will either continue to do Rod and Staff, switching to doing the lessons orally or return to First Language Lessons for Grammar, eventually switching to something like Growing with Grammar. This is so perfect for writing, though, that I'm thrilled! Some warnings- it is not for reluctant writers. It assumes your child can read and write in cursive. Otherwise, it's awesome, and if those things don't bother you check it out!

Next Sweet Pea read chapter 12 of SOTW- more about Egyptians. Reading these selections have been great practical phonics review for her. ;)


And no, she isn't making a naughty finger gesture- she was tapping her fingers as she read.


While Sweet Pea was working on all this, Little Bird and I colored and cut out a paper doll and some clothes, then pretended to be the mom and family of the doll. Little Moose slept, army crawled around the room, and caused mischief.


After this was lunch and now the two littles are sleeping and Sweet Pea is reading.

Preparing to leap back in

This last week was nice. It was really nice. My children are still really young in the scheme of things so we aren't homeschooling really heavily or anything, but it was still a breath of fresh air to just relax and NOT have anything specific to do on any one day. No getting behind, no deadlines.

No more relaxation! Just kidding. :)

This week we are back to our regular program. I really hope to add art back in- Sweet Pea really likes it. The only reason it has been hard to do is that the younger kids really like the art supplies, as well.

So, here we go! Wish us luck!

Fall Break

We spent this last week on fall break. It was wonderful! We began the week at a conference for my husband and spent time with friends. The girls had a wonderful time playing and I had a good time, as well.

We've spent our time coloring, crafting, cooking, and taking walks to enjoy the outside before the weather really gets chilly.

Next week we are back to our regular schedule.