Jan. 27, 2007 - Books on tape
We are trying to make time for more read alouds, especially classics that I want the kids to experience. But it has been hard to fit it into the hectic, busy weeks. Books on CD have been a God-Sent! We are currently listening to Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery. We are huge fans of Anne of Green Gables. It gives us "scope for the imagination" as Anne Shurley says. We love listening to books on CD. I think we are going to listen to Little Woman next. Can't wait.
I are finally getting back into the swing of things from the holidays. We have had bouts of sickness and other things that have hindered our school time. But know we are on track again, and are working hard.
On Thursday we went grocery shopping and had lunch at Romano's Macaroni Grill. We received a gift certificate for Christmas and decided to use it. Todd and I like the food there, but the kids didn't care for it. It was nice spending time together.
The kids have enjoyed all the snow we received on Sunday. Ethan ripped his snow pants while outside, so I hope I can find another pair.
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Dec. 31, 2006 - Another Year Almost Upon Us!
Well this is the last day of 2006! What a year it has been. We are halfway done with our school year, and with the New Year it is a good time to evaluate our goals.
Goals for Kayla:
Work on Spelling
Math
Writing
Goals for Ethan:
Work on Fine Motor Skills
Spend more one on one with him during the day
I started MFW Kindergarten in September, but Ethan isn't getting blending and his writing skills are not ready yet. So I am putting it aside for now and am going to work on reading readiness/preschool things with him. I will start the formal K program when he turns 6. Boys tend to be a little behind on school readiness. I would rather him be older instead of rushing him through material and having him struggle with the work.
I am loving MFW Adventures this year. We are learning alot, and we are retaining it! It has been a good fit. We plan on using Exploring Countries and Cultures from MFW next year. It will be a year long geography/cultures study. We are excited to start this also. Kayla says after completing Adventures in May she wants to start ECC. She doesn't want to take a summer break. That is a great testimony to homeschooling!
Hope the New Year brings you happiness !
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Oct. 29, 2006 - Children Surprise You
At the age of 5, my dear son Ethan has learned to ride his bycycle by himself. He would not let me help him, he wanted to do it by himself. And he did. My kids surprise me everyday! They really are a blessing from the Lord!
We learned alot this week. In history we are still learning about the Revolutionary War and George Washington. We tried Johny Cakes, which were a common food. They were quick to make and were good to take along during travel. We didn't care for them to much.
For science we did quite a few science experiments regarding water. We built a sugar tower and pour colored water under it to see what would happen. We saw the water climb up the sugar tower, and when the tower became soggy, crash. We liked this so much, we did it again. We alos put one dried piece of bread and one wet piece of bread into baggies and put in a warm place. After a couple days, we observed which one had the least amount of mold.
We had a wonderful blessing this week. We had to pay for Kayla's dance custom this week, and we found out someone had paid for it! We do not know who, but we praise the Lord for such a blessing.
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Oct. 22, 2006 - Jesus the Living Water
This week we memorized John 7:37-"If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink." We also learned alot about water during science. We studied evaporation and did several expirements.
For history, we have been studying the American Revolution. We learned about the Declaration of Independence, The Liberty Bell, and why we celebrate the 4th of July. We have been learning alot about this time period. We ate hasy pudding and we actually liked it! We made berry ink and quill pens and wrote like the colonists. We read a great book called Toliver's Secret. It is a story about a ten yer old girl taking a secret message to General George Washington in a loaf of bread. It was a good, excitiong book!
Ethan has learned about the Letter U and the five senses. He learned that God made us wonderful and in a very unique way.
We are really enjoying our studies, and I have been learning alot about History. I am enjoying it as much as the kids. I wish I learned history like this when I was in school.
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Oct. 14, 2006 -
For history this week we studied George Washington. We are reading about his early years, during the time as a General. We will be spending several weeks on the life of George Washington.
We also made tricornered hats that were very popular in that time. We learned about the story behind Yankee Doodle. It isn't just a silly song, but in reality was making fun of the Americans during this time period.
In art, we are learning about color theory and blending.
We are starting to see improvement on Kayla's spelling. She has been working hard this week and received a 88% on her spelling test. That is the best score she has had so far this year.
Ethan learned about the letter Tt and Turtles. He made a turtle craft and learned to never quite, persevere.
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Oct. 14, 2006 -
I finally uploaded some pictures during our vacation. We drove to Osceola, WI and rode on a train. Ethan loves trains so he enjoyed the ride. The St Croix river is beautiful. We enjoyed the fall colors.
This is a picture of the kids before the ride.
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Oct. 6, 2006 - Jesus the Rock
Every couple of weeks we learn a new bible verse about the names of Jesus. This week we are learning Mathew 7:24, " Therefore everyone that hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who builds his house on the rock." We also have a names of Jesus poster and put the verses we have learned unto the poster.
We also learned about the layers of the earth, and rocks and minerals.
This week we learned some interesting things about Benjamin Franklin for History. He was such a remarkable man. He was a printer, a scientist, an inventor, and helped write the Declaration of Independance. He was also homeschooled. We learned that he wrote a Poor Richard's Almanac that was very popular. We made our own almanac. Kayla liked reading all the clever sayings. She also made a page about Benjamin Franklin for her notebook.
We have enjoyed reading the book Sign of the Beaver. We love sitting together as a family and reading. Precious memories.
Each week Ethan learns a new letter and a theme. He learned the letter N and the theme was Nests. We read books about animal habitats, birds and nests. We also made a nest from mud, straw, and twigs. I can't believe that birds search and carry the items to make a nest. We learned that God takes good care of us.
Ethan is doing well with learning his letters and the sounds. We are also working on handwriting, but it is difficult for him
.
Ethan said something very cute today that I thought I would share. Earlier in the year we had a geography lesson about the continents and the United States. I pointed out that Mexico was not part of the U.S. Well, today I had the U.S. map out an Ethan pointed to Mexico and said that it wasn't a part of the United States. I could not believe that he remembered that! What a wonderful reminder for me as to why I am dedicating my life and time to educate my children at home!
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Oct. 1, 2006 - Vacation
We took time off from school this week to do things together as a family. Todd had vacation time so we did some fun things. We went bike riding, the Science Museum, and went on a train ride along the St Croix River. Not all on one day!
The weather was nice and we had fun.
The Science Museum was very fun. The Exhibit Hall was great. It had alot of hands on stuff and great displays. The kids had fun and we learned alot. We also went to the Omnitheatre and saw a film about the Vikings. We studied the Vikings earlier in the year so it was a good review.
I am ready to start school again on Monday. We will be learning about Benjamin Franklin, and have lots of good books from the library ready to read. We will be reading Sign of the Beaver and several about Benjamin Franklin.
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Sep. 15, 2006 -
Well another week behind us! Our school days just keep getting better and better. This week we are learning about colonial times. We are currently reading The Courage Of Sarah Noble. We have also read some great books about the period:how they lived, what they wore, what they ate. A fun activity this week was making butter. It took alot of patience, but the reward was great. We enjoyed our homemade butter on toast.
We also learned that our milk is different than the colonial time. We learned that in the colonial days they milked by hand, and the milk would seperate into layers. The cream would rise to the top. Farmers today use machines to milk their cows and the milk goes into a homodenizer that breaks up the cream and spreads it throughout the milk. Thus our milk does not have layers. We also watched a video about dairy farms.
This week for science we did 2 expirements about yeast. The first expirement we did was mix yeast with sugar and put in a glass soda bottle. We put a balloon over the opening and put it in a warm, dark place. We periodically checked the bottle, and saw that the balloon expanded. We learned that the yeast uses sugar as food, and it produces carbon dioxide.
The second expirement was almost the same as the first. This time, instead of using sugar, we used salt. Nothing happened. We learned that the yeast didn't have any sugar to grow. No carbon dioxide was produced so the balloon did not expand. We had alot of fun with the expirements. Kayla also made illustrations in her notebook about what she learned.
Kayla is doing very well in Math now. I think Math U See has really helped it click in her mind. We are liking it alot.
This Wendesday was my last double shift at work. I am so thankful that I am able to cut back on my hours. Todd is such a sweatheart. He is picking up some extra hours to justify me cutting back. We might not have alot of the things everybody else has, but atleast we have the basics covered. I am thankful that we have a nice apartment, clothes, and we never go hungry. God is good!
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Sep. 8, 2006 - Pilgrims
Well we have completed five weeks of school. It has gone so fast. This week we studied the Pilgrims. They were very resourceful and worked very hard to establish a home in the New World. We made a oiled paper window, just like the ones the Pilgrims made since they had no glass. The paper window was so clear we could read a newspaper through it. We also tested to see if rain would go through it or not. It just beaded right off. We all thought it was very neat.
We are changing some curriculum choices that were not working. We are going to use Spelling by Sound and Structure for spelling and for creative writing. Writing Strands. Hopefully these will be a better fit.
We had a good week We are enjoying the cooler weather and the leaves are starting to show the beautiful fall colors. It is hard to beleive summer is over.
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Sep. 5, 2006 -
This is a picture of the kids when we went to Wisconsin Dells last summer. We rode on a train and saw some old train cars. Ethan is a train fanatic, He had a blast!
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Sep. 4, 2006 - Our Timeline
Our timeline is huge, it covers 1 wall in our kitchen. We bought it from KONOS, it is very nice and durable. When we study a certain event or person in history we put up a timeline figure. It helps add a visual to the things we are studying. We also made our own family timeline figures to put on our timeline. We had fun making them of ourselves.
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Sep. 2, 2006 - Native Americans
We studied Native Americans this week. We read two wonderful books this week as a family. One was Squanto:Friend of the Pilgrims. The other was Naya Nuki: A Shoshoni Girl Who Ran. We learned alot about Native Americans-what they ate, shelters, family life, and beliefs.
We made some Indian homes, shown here. One is a wigwam and the other is a teepee. The kids had fun making them.
Wednesday I had a bad migraine at work and had to go home early. I keep getting migraines when I work 16 hour shifts.Todd decided that I wasn't going to work the long hours anymore, so at the end of September I will be cutting back on my hours. It will hurt us financially, but I want to be healthy. I am praying God will provide for our needs and that we can pay our bills.
Thursday we went to see a movie. My brother's girlfriend, Jude, gave us a bunch of movie passes. We also got free popcorn. Thanks Jude! We saw How To Eat Fried Worms. We all liked it alot.
Also on Thursday we received something we have been waiting for in the mail. We received our Pizza Hut Book It! materials. The kids will read so many books a month and if they meet the goal, they get a certificate to Pizza Hut for a personal pizza. Kayla is very excited about this. Hopefully it will get her to read without me prompting her to.
Alot has happened this week. I am excited to be able to post pictures finally! I will post more in the following weeks.
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Aug. 25, 2006 - Busy Days
Life seems as if it goes barreling along, taking you for a ride regardless of wanting to or not. Our week has been so busy. Schooling more than 1 child takes some getting used to. I am still trying to find our grove and tweaking our schedule. My dear daughter is still trying to get out of schooling on Saturdays. But with my work schedule we have to. She gets three days off, so she shouldn't be complaining. That is the nice thing about homeschooling, it is very flexible.
Ethan is in Kindergarten this year. We are using My Father's World Kindergarten program. The program is very hands on and alot of fun, yet he is reluctant to do any of it. This week he has been better, and he had alot of fun making a sun, moon and stars mobile. We are learning about the moon this week and the letter M. We have also read alot of books on the subject. He also sits in on Kayla's studies, especially the hands on stuff. Last week we were studying Christopher Columbus and we made the Santa Maria, Nina and the Pinta from aluminum foil and "sailed" them in the bathtub. He had a blast!
Life is busy with schooling and working 20 hours a week. Plus trying to spend time as a family and getting things done around the house is a challenge. I am learning to have lower standards in the household department. I actually leave the breakfast and lunch dishes undone until after school work is complete! I keep telling myself it's OK.
Maybe you can teach old dogs new tricks.
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Aug. 19, 2006 - Christopher Columbus
I learned alot about God's provision this week. And here I thought the kids were supposed to be the ones learning!
We are studying American History this year. The study of Christopher Columbus made me think about the courage it would take to discover new places. You would have to have a strong faith in God to get on a ship to travel at sea for 3 months-not knowing the outcome.
We take so much for granted. We can get in a car or plane and travel great distances in a short amount of time. I couldn't imagine taking 3 months to reach a destination. God provided the way for Christopher Columbus and all the hardships he faced.
In the face of our hardships, He always provides. He is always there with us, supporting us in the midst of our struggles.
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Aug. 17, 2006 - Our New School Year
Welcome to my homeschool blogger! I thought it would be nice for family and friends to come and visit and see inside our homeschooling journey.
We started our new school year last week. This is my 4th year homeschooling already! Time flies so quickly.
We have changed somethings this year. We are using an Unit Study called Adventures in My Father's World. It covers bible, history and geography, science, read alouds, music, and art. We are having alot of fun and learning alot. Last week we learned about the vikings and read alot of goods books. For science, we lerned what scientists are and did a fun egg expirement.
I am so thankful to God for his provision in our lives and giving us the oppurtunity to teach our kids at home.
