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Jul. 29, 2007

Week in review, 7/29/07 (week 16)

Posted in General
This week we finished up week 16 of SL's Core 3 Advanced program.  K and A are doing the Core together, for the most part, though they each have their own individual assignments.

For our Bible readings this week, we read from Acts 9:1 to 11:18.  We read about the Huron and Ottawa tribes in our American Indian Prayer Guide book, and the girls memorized John 1:3 for their verse this week. They have memorized John 1:1-2 these past few weeks so I think they will have a nice long passage memorized before long. 

For history, we're having a lot of fun reading about the events that led up to the American Revolutionary War.  We read the entire book And Then What Happened, Paul Revere?, and we read a couple of pages about the onset of the war in The Landmark History of the American People.  I was skeptical about this history book initially, but I'm really glad SL added it in its program.  I really like the perspective that it gives, and I also really like reading about historical events using a lot of different sources.  I am glad my kids are getting it this way from the beginning.  For all of the history we have learned thus far, it has been like a research project, where we are reading a lot of different resources about the same event, so that we can get as many perspectives as we can.  We also finished the book, Liberty!  How the Revolutionary War Began. 

We're still working on our Native American studies and finished up If You Lived with The Sioux Indians book this week.  Next week we'll start on the Iroquois. 

For our poetry readings this week, we read Walt Whitman's "O Captain!  My Captain!" and Emily Dickinson's "A Bird Came Down the Walk".  A. is really starting to pick up the meaning in these poems.  I am really impressed that she is doing well with remembering the details about the poems. 

We're continuing in our studies about the human body for science.  This week, we learned about how our bodies fit together, what with all those bones and muscles.  We also learned about blood and how it circulates.  Our readings come from The Usborne Book of Knowledge.  We did experiments about our circulatory system.  We found our pulses and we timed how many beats per minute.  We took our pulses resting and after activity.  We also looked at the tiny blood vessels in our eyes.  Our "experiments" come from The Usborne Book of Science Activities, volume 3. 

For our language studies, we watched Signing Time twice this week, and Plaza Sesamo once.  We're on a break for our Spanish classes, but we'll get plenty of Spanish when we go to Peru!!! 

Both girls were happy to resume their Mind Benders workbooks.  They both have really enjoyed those logic puzzles.  They did about 3 pages each this week.

Individually, K. worked on multiple digit multiplication.  She's doing the Gamma book of Math U See.  This is her 2nd week with this particular lesson, as I felt she needed a little more practice.   She is getting much better, making a lot fewer mistakes. 

For vocabulary, she's still using Wordly Wise C, and doing a review.  She wrote sentences using her vocab words.  She did her dictation this week without problems and worked on writing poetry.  I've already posted her poetry this week.

She read Bible passages from 1 Samuel 13:5 through 1 Sam 17: 51 this week.  She also read for her reaader, Mr. Revere and I.  She continues to work through the Sequential Spelling book 2 and is getting better at working out word families. 

We are reading Johnny Tremain together and enjoying it quite immensely!  I can't believe I didn't read this book when I was young.  It has been excellent.  K. looks forward to it every day.  Johnny is turning out to be quite a character, and the events leading up to the Revolutionary War is very exciting!  K. really enjoys historical fiction, and we love reading about Paul Revere, John Hancock, Sam Adams, etc., in fictional stories.  It definitely makes history come alive!

A. worked on place value this week--the thousands place.  I may have her work on this next week as well.  She seems to understand it but sometimes gets confused with the ten-thousands and hundred-thousands place. 

She continues to plug through her phonics workbook, and her Sequential Spelling book 1.  She's really quite a good speller--she seems to pick up on patterns quickly.  Her dictations went well this week, and her creative writing assignment I have already posted.  She is getting down handwriting basics using the Printing Power book from the Handwriting Without Tears series.  She is still working through SL's old LA 2 Intermediate grammar sheets and having no trouble.  I'm really impressed that she has picked up quite easily concepts such as synonyms, antonyms, and she is an ace at alphabetizing things. 

She finished her reader, The Littles, this week.  What a cute story!

L. is also doing well.  We are doing Five in a Row with her, in a very simple way.  Every day this week, we read Andy and the Lion for her FIAR book, and then she chose 3 more books from her Before Five in a Row library for fun reading.  Her books of choice this week were Angus Lost, Play with Me, Blueberries for Sal, and the ever popular The Big Green Pocketbook. 

She is reading SL's Kindergarten readers, and continues to strengthen her ability to read 3 and 4 letter words.  There were even a couple of 5 letter words that she managed to work out.

For "math" she is doing her dot-to-dot book.  Each dot-to-dot puzzle goes to 100, so she is working out how to count to 100.  She is using Handwriting without Tears' first book, Letters and Numbers for Me, and I must say, her handwriting is really very good.  We are also using a logic/puzzle book with her, called Can You Find Me, where we read a little poem that contains a simple puzzle and she works it out. 

Well that is it for our week.  K. resumed her dance classes this past week, while A. and L. had a gym and dance break.  We were happy that A. was able to take yoga this week.  We have had to miss these past weeks.

All girls had swim lessons this week but due to rain, only K. and L. had one lesson.  I signed them up for lessons at the Y starting next week.  The pool is an indoor one. 

FQ ran around the house during school time as usual.  However...he is getting better with his aim and the balls he throws don't hit us as much anymore.  Bravo for FQ!!!!

AH.
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Jul. 31, 2007 - Untitled Comment

Posted by jaminacema
I agree, yeah for FQ! Sounds like the girls are doing well too. It was like a trip down memory lane reading all this! Landmark is one of my favorite Sonlight books ever! Johnny Tremain I struggled with though. I am weird. Everyone else I have ever talked to loved JT and struggled with Landmark. I am just a rebel! LOL But, we already knew that!

J.
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