Ch- Ch-Ch- Changes

In the past, we have been laid back about our school schedule.  We basically had a routine that frankly often degenerated into chaos. Eventually everyone would get their work done but it took a lot of coaching from Mom in order to "get r done" Imagine that! : ) 

My dh and I decided that since this fall we would only be homeschooling our 3 youngest (dd18 started college Monday!) that it would be a good time to make some changes.

Change # 1 - We have purposefully planned our days. We have come up with a wonderful schedule that includes "EVERYTHING".  Chores, laundry, reading, schoolwork, reading, play time, did I mention reading?   We began implementing the "bare bones" at the beginning of August so that the girls would get used to the schedule before fall. For the girls it means that they have to get up at the same time each day AND go to bed at the same time each night.

It may sound silly but our children have never had a definite bed time or wake-up time.  When the girls were younger, dh often had evening appointments at his office and for one whole year the family didn't eat dinner until 9pm!  So the girls have been used to staying  up late and sleeping in.  Now that my youngest is 5yo, sticking to a schedule is much easier!  After a few grumpy mornings the girls seem to enjoy the new schedule.

"Therefore, brothers, stand firm and hold fast to the traditions that you were taught, either by an oral statement or by a letter of ours." 2 Thess. 2:15

3:40 PM - Aug. 27, 2008 - comments {1} - post comment

Transferring posts

We began our Summer Term on Monday.  Since it IS summer (!), I decided to make Wednesdays a fun day.  We are up early on both Saturdays (it takes almost all day to do yard work and our weekly cleaning chores) and Sundays (we usually go to the 8am Mass at our Church)  so I thought it would be great to make this our "sleep in" day.  I didn't tell the girls about it till they woke up this morning.  The oldest two got up at 9:30 and the littlest one woke up at 10am!!

My 9yodd made biscuits for breakfast and then we all sat around eating her delicious biscuits and drinking chocolate milk.  Then I told them our plan - we would play this morning and do our school work after lunch!  They loved the idea! 

**************

"Therefore, brothers, stand firm and hold fast to the traditions that you were taught, either by an oral statement or by a letter of ours." 2 Thessalonians 2:15

12:21 PM - Jun. 4, 2008 - comments {3} - post comment

"Pick-a-Stick" or 1001 Ways to use a Jumbo Craft Stick

In the past few years, we have used the zone method of keeping our house clean.  Each daughter (as soon as she was old enough) was responsible for a zone.  Our house is VERY small (1400 sq. ft) so we only have three zones:   Kitchen, Living Room/Dining Room and Bathrooms.  Each girl was responsible for one zone for one week.  They traded every Sunday morning.  This has worked very well in our home but the girls and I were ready for a change.  Our oldest is often travelling and the constant disruption of "who's going to do this zone"  was making a shambles of the whole system. 

After spotting an unused box of Jumbo Craft Sticks on our school shelf,  the beginnings of an idea started to emerge. 

Instead of the girls being responsible for a whole room,  they would just be responsible for individual tasks.  That way when DD18 was out of town, the housework would still be done.   I compiled a list of  individual chores and wrote them on Jumbo Craft Sticks.  I put the lot of them into a cup and the girls pick their chores, one at a time, from the cup.  It is a great way to get them to do their chores AND it is not overwhelming to the younger ones. 

Now that we have started Summer School, I have added a new twist to the Pick-a-Stick Program : )  It is linked to the way we "do school".   I like to work through our school day by Subjects instead of working through it by Grade.  Everyone does Religion at the same time, then Math and so on.  It helps me to stay focused and I don't have to constantly switch gears. 

Basically, the girls work independently until I am ready for them.  After their teaching time with Mom, each girl  picks-a-stick and does the chore listed on it.  After she finishes that specific chore, she has a few minutes to go to the bathroom, get a drink or a snack, or read a few pages from a book while I am working with one of the other girls or until I am ready to start the next subject.  They are NOT allowed to take off and play.  The first few times we did this, they immediately went to their room and started building an elaborate Barbie City.  They were VERY disappointed when I called them back and were not as cooperative in their studies.  Imagine that! : ) 

At the end of the day, we have a general tidy time before Daddy comes home from work.  Everyone just grabs one of the left-over sticks and does that chore.  We keep working until all of the sticks have been chosen.  That way all the chores are done each day.  The girls love the system and I do NOT have to nag them about getting their zones done!

"Therefore, brothers, stand firm and hold fast to the traditions that you were taught, either by an oral statement or by a letter of ours." 2 Thessalonians 2:15

3:36 PM - Aug. 27, 2008 - comments {0} - post comment

Summer Reading

DD7's reading ability has really taken off.  She has read the following books "all by her own"

*The Tree House Mystery by Gertrude Chandler Warner

*The One-Eyed Giant (Book 1 of Tales from the Odyssey) by Mary Pope Osborne

*Little  House in the Big Woods (she is currently reading this one)

I am amazed at how her reading just clicked! 

DD9 could not bring herself to finish Mary Poppins so she laid it aside.  She has been reading non-stop!

She has read the following:

Betsy-Tacy by Maud Hart Lovelace (another book I read to her when she was smaller, she LOVED it)

Bety-Tacy and Tib

The Mouse of Amherst

Victoria: May Blossom of Brittania (The Royal Diaries Series) by Anna Kirwan (in progress)

3:20 PM - Aug. 27, 2008 - comments {0} - post comment

The Upside of TV

Now, I am the first one to want to get rid of our TV in our family.  But sometimes, mind you ONLY sometimes, it does work itself out into a nice educational side trip that we might not otherwise have taken! 

A week or two ago we were watching a documentary on the Titanic.  It was called Titanic's Final Moments: Missing Pieces.  Maggie, our 9yodd, watched the entire episode. 

Now here is the great part, she walked over to our bookshelves (without any suggestion from me) and found a book on the Titanic.  It belonged to her great-grandfather Grundy.  The Story of the Wreck of the Titanic:  The Ocean's Greatest Disaster - Memorial Edition.  It was actually published the same year the Titanic sank.  He bought it from a door-to-door salesman.  In four more years that book will be 100 years old!!!!

Anyway, she spent the next hour pouring over it, reading bits here and there and sharing the information and showing the pictures to the family. 

Yesterday, when we went to the library, I told the girls that needed to pick out a subject that they would like to learn more about.  Maggie checked out several books on the Titanic and is going to do a short presentation about it to the family on Sunday.

Hooray for TV!  Words I didn't think I would ever say.

3:26 PM - Mar. 11, 2008 - comments {0} - post comment

Changes

I have been reading and researching Classical Conversations and I am really pleased with the program.  We ordered the Foundations Curriculum guide and I love the way the program is laid out from K4 to 6th grade.  We are going to finish our school work for this semester and I hope to be up and running with the Foundations program by the fall.  There is a CC Community about an hour and a half away from here (one way) but DH thinks it is too far me to travel with 3 little girls plus gas prices etc.  We are still praying about this. 

Thanks so much to Kerry @ The Ten O'Clock Scholar for answering my questions! 

10:56 AM - Mar. 6, 2008 - comments {1} - post comment

Classical Conversations Anyone?

For the better part of two years we have been using the curriculum outlined in The Latin-Centered Curriculum.  We have enjoyed it but during our 3 week bout with the 'flu I did some research on other classical education models and (re)discovered Classical Conversations.  I really like the format of the Foundations program K4 - 6th grade.  I found out that a CC Community is fairly close to us (an hour and a half away) and have emailed the Director for information. 

I would like to hear both the pros and cons from moms who have/are using it.  Please leave any info you have in the comments section. 

Thanks so much!

Have a blessed day!

Debbie

Mom to 4 girls!

6:44 PM - Feb. 28, 2008 - comments {2} - post comment

3 Week "Vacation" . . .

NOT!!!!!

We have all been laid low by the 'flu bug for the past 3 (YES 3!!) weeks.  Poor DH had a week's vacation scheduled during this time and the only thing he was able to do was help me with the children.  Now he is in bed with the bug!

We're all on the mend (except DH) and are very disappointed because we had planned a trip to Nashville TN to see the replica of the Parthenon in Centennial Park.  We are definitely going when every one is better.  Here is the website with great pictures - the statue of Athena is 41 ft high and the goddess Nike she is holding in her hand is 6' 4"!!! 

God Bless!

Debbie

Mom to 4 girls!

5:38 PM - Feb. 26, 2008 - comments {0} - post comment

Homemade Knitting Needles

Our homeschool co-op started today and I am helping a friend teach a knitting class.  Today we helped the girls make homemade knitting needles!  She bought wooden dowels from hobby lobby and used a knitting gauge to measure the size needles (8) we needed for our project.  The girls cut the dowels into 14 inch lengths and then sanded down the ends with a coarse sandpaper.  Next, they sharpened one end of each needle in a pencil sharpener.  Then the girls used 3 different grades of sandpaper to smooth the needles.  By the end of the period they were well on their way to having a nifty set of number 8 knitting needles!  She brought rubber bands to place around the end for the knobs.  The girls were very pleased with themselves!  Next week we start working on our project - a Garter Stitch Doll.  It should be fun!

8:46 PM - Feb. 4, 2008 - comments {0} - post comment

Our Morning Schedule

9:56 AM - Feb. 1, 2008 - comments {2} - post comment

The Pixie Spring Collection

Made from wrapping paper, leftover bulletin board border and LOTS of Scotch tape . . . Pixie's first fashion design! 

10:57 AM - Jan. 30, 2008 - comments {1} - post comment

Tales from the Odyssey

For Classical Studies this semester, we are reading our way through D'Aulaire's Greek Myths.  I also wanted to read a children's version of the Iliad or the Odyssey with the girls too.  Only I was afraid it might be too  boring, or scary or they might be unable to connect with the story.  I checked the first two books out from the library any way. Just to give it a try.  

Yesterday, we began reading Book One:  The One-Eyed Giant in the Tales from the Odyssey series by Mary Pope Osborne.  The girls were captivated!  After each chapter they wanted to read "just one more!"  We stopped just before Odysseus and his men escaped from Polyphemus' cave.  They didn't want to but Daddy came home for lunch.

Odysseus in the Cave of Polyphemus

Today, we finished Book One.  We looked at the map (in the front papers of the book) and traced Odysseus' route from Troy to the Land of the Lotus Eaters to the Cyclop's cave.  At the end of the first book - I was amazed at the girls response.  They weren't bored or scared.  They were moved by  Odysseus' love for his family - so close to home . . .

"As Odysseus stared at the hazy horizon, grief threatened to break his spirit.  But each time he thought of Penelope and Telemachus, the fire of his determination to return to Ithaca was rekindled.

I will find my way back to my family again, he promised himself.  And he leaned toward the horizon, yearning for home."

12:55 PM - Jan. 29, 2008 - comments {3} - post comment

Fairy School

My four year old Pixie flits in and out of our school activities.  Today, she was sitting in the living room floor surrounded by colored paper, scissors, crayons and tape.  She created a whole family of (almost life-size) paper dolls!  At the same time she was chanting, "amo, amas, amat . . .".  When she saw me looking at her she said she was doing her Latin too.   (Most of the time she is playing somewhere nearby when we are "doing school".)

For her "formal" schooling, we are singing poems about flower fairies, reading "Letters from Heaven" and studying beautiful works of art.  She is learning to write the letters of the alphabet and a little bit about numbers from the "Gnumber Gnomes".  She calls it her fairy school -- a perfect fit for my little Pixie.  This incredible unit study (Along the Alphabet Path) is being created by a  fantastic homeschool mom who is using it with her children too!   Check it out!

6:12 PM - Jan. 23, 2008 - comments {1} - post comment

The Labyrinth

After we read  "Theseus and the Minotaur", my oldest daughter and I created a "labyrinth" for the youngest 3 girls.  We used a couple of skeins of yarn and strung it throughout the house.  The girls had to climb up, over, under and around furniture and obstacles to find the "Minotaur".  Big sister was decked out in a furry blanket and horns waiting to pop out at them!  They didn't know where they would find her -- their quest led to Mommy and Daddy's closet --- but (WOW!) lots of screams when they finally did!  I was laughing so hard I forgot to take pictures!

5:47 PM - Jan. 23, 2008 - comments {1} - post comment

Spelling City

A lady on my homeschool email list sent me the link to this site.  It's great!  You can type in your own spelling words for the week and then the kids can work independently in one of three areas:  Teach Me, Play a Game, or Test Me. 

The "Teach Me" section lists the words, spells them for the child and uses the word in a sentence.  At the end of the section a child can use the "Test Me" function to see how much they have learned.

In the "Play a Game" section, the child can choose either a Word Search (which can be done online or printed off), Hang Mouse, or Unscramble. 

The Hang Mouse is great!  A mouse is trying to take cheese from a bowl next to a sleeping cat.  Each time you guess a correct letter, the mouse gets a piece of cheese.  When you miss a letter the cat begins to wake up - if you don't guess the word the cat catches the mouse by the tail.  I had a great time playing with it!   I think the girls will enjoy it too!

Have a blessed day!

Debbie

Mom of 4 girls!

3:10 PM - Jan. 17, 2008 - comments {1} - post comment

Fun with Latin!

How can you make Latin fun?  The truth is that there is alot of material that simply needs to be memorized in order for the student to be able to read it without constantly referring to a dictionary.  I learned to read Latin and Greek in my 30s and it was tough!  I wanted it to be easier for my girls so I started them in Latin when they were very little.  We sang songs with familiar tunes such as Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star (Mica, Mica parva stella) and we also used the Lingua Angelica CD and song book by Memoria Press.  We sang and prayed our way through the CD over the last few years.  They developed an "ear" for the language and now we are settling into the nitty gritty of memorizing pesky paradigms and vocabulary.

One of the fun things that I try to incorporate is Practical Latin.  I found a list of Latin names and each one of us picked one.  Each morning we greet each other using our Latin names, then we say a prayer or sing a song in Latin (learned in previous years).  Sometimes I read a section from Minimus. Then we get down to the business of the lesson. 

When I introduce new vocabulary, I use the technique of the "disappearing line".  (It is used in almost all of the materials developed by Memoria Press) For example, we are on Lesson IV of Latina Christiana I.  We are memorizing the Latin numbers.  So on my whiteboard I wrote the first five in a column:

unus

duo

tres

quattuor

quinque

I said them first, then they repeated them.  We did this a couple of times and then I asked them if they were ready.  Then I simply erased the first line and they repeated the entire list including the missing word.  We just went down the list, erasing each word in turn until they have all been erased and they were able to say them from memory. (We eventually did all of them from the lesson)  It was a hoot watching them! 

On Friday, they did the word search puzzle in Ludere Latine (also published by Memoria Press) and the vocabulary words are (hopefully!) memorized.  I guess we'll find out on Monday!

The girls love to play Latin Hangman to review their vocabulary words and I'm in the process of making a deck of cards using the vocabulary so we can play Go Fish.

It is such a simple thing to do but it really helps them remember their vocabulary.  We also use this technique for memorizing Scripture and poetry.

Have a blessed day!

Debbie

Mom of 4 girls!

6:03 PM - Jan. 12, 2008 - comments {0} - post comment

Saturday Morning Surprise!

It was an unusual Saturday morning to begin with.  First, dh had to go to work early this morning.  Then, my three little ones let me sleep until 10am!!!  Before I could even get out of bed, here they came with a breakfast tray for mommy!  Maggie had made a pot of coffee and cinnamon toast for me!  The coffee and toast were delicious and it was a fantastic way to begin the day! 

3:32 PM - Jan. 12, 2008 - comments {1} - post comment

How We Start Our Day

The girls wake up around 7:30 and then do their morning chores (bed, dress, hygiene).  We make breakfast together most days - our resident chef Maggie, who is 9 years old - can make great biscuits!  Kathleen - who is 7 years old - is the "official toast maker" when we don't have biscuits.  Yum! 

School starts around 8:30 with our Morning Meeting.  It usually has 3 parts.  Morning Prayers and Bible Story, Singing, and Poetry. 

Morning Prayers and Bible Story:  We pray for the LORD to bless our day and then we pray for whomever God puts on our hearts.  We are currently reading A Child's Bible History.  I like it because the stories are fairly short and have discussion questions at the end.  It takes anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes to do this. 

Singing:  Currently, we are singing songs from the Wee Sing America tape I mentioned in my previous post.  Tucked in between the songs are little memory gems or quotations.  So far we have learned to sing We Love the USA, Star Spangled Banner, You're a Grand Flag and Three Cheers for the Red, White and Blue.  The girls have alot of fun marching around first thing in the morning singing these patriotic songs at the top of their lungs!  The memory gems they have memorized so far are a quotation from JFK's Inaugural Address, "Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country."  Also the Pledge of Allegiance and the Preamble to the Constitution.  The memory gems can also be used for copywork.  This takes about 10 minutes.

Poetry:  I use The Harp and Laurel Wreath for selections to memorize.  This year Kathleen has memorized The Owl and the Pussycat, Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening, and is currently working on Psalm 100.

Maggie has also memorized The Owl and the Pussycat and is currently working on America for Me by Henry van Dyke.  We work on our poems for about 10 minutes as well working on only one stanza at a time.

After our morning meeting we go on to do Latin which takes about 20 - 30 minutes and one of the following:  Nature Study, Christian Studies, English Studies, or American Studies.  After that we have a 30 minute break.

I guess that's about it for today!  Hope I didn't bore you with the nitty gritty details but it helps me see it in writing and I pray that it may benefit you too.

Have a blessed day!

Debbie

Mom to 4 girls!

9:23 AM - Jan. 11, 2008 - comments {2} - post comment

Back to Blogging

I am glad to be back to blogging, finally!  We survived the "Nutcracker Season" for another year, had a wonderful and blessed Christmas and are settling nicely into the rhythm of the new year. 

This May we will have our first homeschool graduate!  Our oldest daughter will finish her homeschool studies at the end of April and celebrate with a cruise to Cozumel.  Guess who the lucky parent is who gets to go along?  Yep, that would be me!  Our homeschool co-op plans a trip each year for interested seniors and each student must be accompanied by a parent.  Dear husband has graciously volunteered to be "left behind" and entertain the younger set (We have 3 other daughters ages 9, 7 and 4).  I am looking forward to spending this time with my oldest girl before she begins a new chapter in her life.

This year's studies have gotten off to a very good start.  After 10 years of curriculum schizophrenia   I have finally found what works for US.  We have a core curriculum consisting of Latin, Spelling, Arithmetic, Music.  These are our "must-do" subjects and are done each day without exception (along with our Morning Meeting).   The resources for these subjects are:

Latin:  Latina Christiana I & Ludere Latine

Spelling:  Spelling through Copywork (I can't remember the exact title of the book but it is available through Queen Homeschool Supplies.

Arithmetic:  Rod & Staff Workbooks & Ray's Arithmetic (for mental math)

Music:  We are learning to play the recorder.  We use the Recorder Method for Young Beginners Book 1.   I saw this book mentioned on Linda Fay's fabulous blog  "Higher Up and Further In".  It is great!  It comes with a CD for independent practice.  I only do one lesson a week with them and then the rest of the week they practice their song with the CD.  The girls enjoy it very much.

We listen to and sing with our "Wee Sing America" tape (which I have had for years!)  I think it is important for the girls to learn patriotic songs and memory gems from our country's history.  We listen to this every day during our morning meeting time.

We also are doing a variation of "Composer Study".  Last year I bought the CD, "Classical Music for Children".  Included with the CD was a list of activities to go with each piece of music.  For example, last week we listened to Eine Kleine Nachtmusik by Mozart.  The girls had to walk to the time of the music with a beanbag on their head without dropping it!  Lots of fun and laughter. 

Wow! I've written alot!  Tomorrow I will post about our Morning Meeting and our weekly studies.

Have a blessed day!

Debbie

Mom to 4 girls!

11:20 AM - Jan. 10, 2008 - comments {2} - post comment