Friday, August 31, 2007
Friday, Week 2
Today was a difficult day. The boys were ornery and I am tired. L hasn't been sleeping well this week, and I let this morning get away from me. Usually the boys do their morning duties, eat breakfast and then start their schooling at the kitchen island. Unfortunately, I didn't clean the kitchen last night after dinner -- and I was too tired to press things this morning -- so the boys played on the computer AND with their DS's before even getting dressed. Since I was still behind in basic household stuff -- I let them watch the shark dvd while I breastfed L, and then let them start their workbooks in my bedroom.
C complained about subtraction and N threw a fit over copywork. They both yelled and complained and I'm not proud to say that I did the same. I told N to get me the phone so I could just enroll them in regular school because I didn't want to argue over schoolwork! Not a good day :(
We did get some things accomplished however when all is said & done.
Both boys:
In the end, we accomplished all that needed to be done today. But the boys & I are frustrated at each other and in lousy moods. This is NOT what I want our days to be like.
C complained about subtraction and N threw a fit over copywork. They both yelled and complained and I'm not proud to say that I did the same. I told N to get me the phone so I could just enroll them in regular school because I didn't want to argue over schoolwork! Not a good day :(
We did get some things accomplished however when all is said & done.
Both boys:
- completed math workbook pages (C one page of addition & one page of subtraction; N 3 pages about the number 12.)
- copywork (family names)
- Ninja Turtle coloring page
- watched "One Night with a Queen" with me. Great movie about the story of Esther!
- word search puzzle
- one page in his word journal
- read Chapter 2 of the beginning reader of "Around the World in 80 Days"
- matched upper & lower case letters worksheet
- orally spelled and sounded out each word on his copywork page
In the end, we accomplished all that needed to be done today. But the boys & I are frustrated at each other and in lousy moods. This is NOT what I want our days to be like.
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Thursday, Week 2
Yesterday was "enrichment" day. Both boys took the leap and are now buying milk from the cafeteria. (if only I can now convince them to also buy their lunches?!) Both had a good day, and are excited about a planned field trip in a couple weeks to see a stage version of Charlotte's Web with their classes. The evening was full of fall ball practice. I got to meet a friend for lunch, and then do a little shopping. I was excited to find 2 pairs of shark pajamas for the boys (especially since they need pajamas.)
Today, both boys:
copywork about sharks
math workbook pages (C - 3 subtraction pages, N - 4 pages about numbers 11 & 12)
Ninja Turtle coloring page
watched a dvd from Netflix: Island of the Sharks
Colin read Daniel and the Lions to me and N. We discussed the story and the fact it was from the Bible.
played a card game of SNAP
C:
word search and then found "secret" word with uncircled letters
1 page from spelling workbook
oral spelling test. He missed 2 words, so he copied those words 5 times each
read (out loud) first chapter of Around the World in 80 Days (beginning reader)
N:
worksheet matching upper & lower case letters
Their dad was able to come home this afternoon, so both boys ran some errands with him while I took L to run errands I needed to do. Extra time with their father is definitely one reason we homeschool. If they were in traditional school, they would have missed seeing their dad at all today, since he headed back out for a late sales call after errands.
Today, both boys:
copywork about sharks
math workbook pages (C - 3 subtraction pages, N - 4 pages about numbers 11 & 12)
Ninja Turtle coloring page
watched a dvd from Netflix: Island of the Sharks
Colin read Daniel and the Lions to me and N. We discussed the story and the fact it was from the Bible.
played a card game of SNAP
C:
word search and then found "secret" word with uncircled letters
1 page from spelling workbook
oral spelling test. He missed 2 words, so he copied those words 5 times each
read (out loud) first chapter of Around the World in 80 Days (beginning reader)
N:
worksheet matching upper & lower case letters
Their dad was able to come home this afternoon, so both boys ran some errands with him while I took L to run errands I needed to do. Extra time with their father is definitely one reason we homeschool. If they were in traditional school, they would have missed seeing their dad at all today, since he headed back out for a late sales call after errands.
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
ugh, need to figure out how to title these!
Yes, I need to figure out how to title these. The date is already there . . . need to think on this.
ANYWAY, today the boys:
Drew in their nature journals, while I wrote their entries. Both boys drew a barrel cactus in our backyard. Nate drew the roots going down into the earth as well. Colin drew a cloud in the sky that looked like a castle. Colin was writing his own entries last spring; I need to get him back to doing that.
Completed math workbook pages. Colin did 2, Nate did 2.
Completed copywork page. Both practiced our phone number and their full names.
Colored a shark coloring page.
Listened to me read some basic info about sharks. (It's a shark unit this week.)
Colin also did:
1 page in his spelling workbook.
Read one story from an early reader book to me.
A worksheet about the /sh/ sound.
Nate also did:
A worksheet matching uppercase and lowercase letters from A - E. He will complete the rest of the alphabet throughout this week.
Sat with me and sounded out the words in the 1st book of Set 1 of Bob Books. He was so very pleased with himself! He can't wait for his dad to come home so he can read to him. I honestly wasn't sure he was ready, but he proved me wrong! I love when that happens :)
We're headed off to the Arizona Natural History Museum because they have a display of a prehistoric shark mouth, as well as some prehistoric ocean displays. DH had a morning and evening call, so he was able to join us this afternoon!
ANYWAY, today the boys:
Drew in their nature journals, while I wrote their entries. Both boys drew a barrel cactus in our backyard. Nate drew the roots going down into the earth as well. Colin drew a cloud in the sky that looked like a castle. Colin was writing his own entries last spring; I need to get him back to doing that.
Completed math workbook pages. Colin did 2, Nate did 2.
Completed copywork page. Both practiced our phone number and their full names.
Colored a shark coloring page.
Listened to me read some basic info about sharks. (It's a shark unit this week.)
Colin also did:
1 page in his spelling workbook.
Read one story from an early reader book to me.
A worksheet about the /sh/ sound.
Nate also did:
A worksheet matching uppercase and lowercase letters from A - E. He will complete the rest of the alphabet throughout this week.
Sat with me and sounded out the words in the 1st book of Set 1 of Bob Books. He was so very pleased with himself! He can't wait for his dad to come home so he can read to him. I honestly wasn't sure he was ready, but he proved me wrong! I love when that happens :)
We're headed off to the Arizona Natural History Museum because they have a display of a prehistoric shark mouth, as well as some prehistoric ocean displays. DH had a morning and evening call, so he was able to join us this afternoon!
Friday, August 24, 2007
August 24 - End of First Week
Most weeks we'll be schooling Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. This week, however, since we have guests arriving tomorrow and L's baptism on Sunday, I decided to make it a 4 day week (counting their Wednesday enrichment day as a schooling day.)
Both Boys:
Math pages (C did the chapter 3 review test and scored 100%, so we're moving on to Chapter 4 next week. N did the last 3 pages of his Chapter 3, so he'll move on to Chapter 4 next week.)
Copywork (C wrote 2 sentences about L's baptism, N copied Lydia, baptism, Sunday and church.)
Worksheet (both completed the same worksheet about circling the beginning letter of various sea animals pictured.)
Read through a tongue twister, Susie sells seashells . . .
Read a book about oceans
Finished reading the coloring book about mass. Went over this week's Magnifikids.
C also completed 2 pages of a picture/word journal and read to me from an early reader.
A good friend came to help me shop for food for Sunday, and so we did that this afternoon. There's a bunch of cleaning to do around here, as well as laundry, and then food prep tomorrow for L's big day on Sunday. I think we had a pretty good week and other than some discipline issues with N (which we'll continue to work on) I'm ready for another week!
Both Boys:
Math pages (C did the chapter 3 review test and scored 100%, so we're moving on to Chapter 4 next week. N did the last 3 pages of his Chapter 3, so he'll move on to Chapter 4 next week.)
Copywork (C wrote 2 sentences about L's baptism, N copied Lydia, baptism, Sunday and church.)
Worksheet (both completed the same worksheet about circling the beginning letter of various sea animals pictured.)
Read through a tongue twister, Susie sells seashells . . .
Read a book about oceans
Finished reading the coloring book about mass. Went over this week's Magnifikids.
C also completed 2 pages of a picture/word journal and read to me from an early reader.
A good friend came to help me shop for food for Sunday, and so we did that this afternoon. There's a bunch of cleaning to do around here, as well as laundry, and then food prep tomorrow for L's big day on Sunday. I think we had a pretty good week and other than some discipline issues with N (which we'll continue to work on) I'm ready for another week!
Thursday, August 23, 2007
checklist
I'm still trying to decide the best way to proceed with this blog. I think I'm going to keep checklists of daily work, with the occasional extra post with something special that we do.
Today, both boys completed:
copy work about the names of the 5 oceans of the world
a search and find puzzle about things on the bottom of the ocean
math workbook pages (N completed 3, C completed 2)
listened to me read from the mass coloring book and then colored a bit in the book
completed a baseball maze
watched a dvd from Netflix: Ocean Oasis
While the work is similar, more is expected of C. For example, his copywork is both upper and lower case letters and complete sentences while N has only upper case at this point, and just individual words.
In addition to the work above, the boys completed the following work on their own.
C:
1 page from his spelling workbook
oral spelling test (100%)
read an easy reader out loud in the van while running errands
N:
recited his ABC's
orally practiced the sound of each letter in the alphabet
reviewed vowels vs. consonants
Yesterday, the boys attended their enrichment program and came home to play fall ball.
Today, both boys completed:
copy work about the names of the 5 oceans of the world
a search and find puzzle about things on the bottom of the ocean
math workbook pages (N completed 3, C completed 2)
listened to me read from the mass coloring book and then colored a bit in the book
completed a baseball maze
watched a dvd from Netflix: Ocean Oasis
While the work is similar, more is expected of C. For example, his copywork is both upper and lower case letters and complete sentences while N has only upper case at this point, and just individual words.
In addition to the work above, the boys completed the following work on their own.
C:
1 page from his spelling workbook
oral spelling test (100%)
read an easy reader out loud in the van while running errands
N:
recited his ABC's
orally practiced the sound of each letter in the alphabet
reviewed vowels vs. consonants
Yesterday, the boys attended their enrichment program and came home to play fall ball.
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
First Day, New Year
I have 2 posts in draft mode right now about why we homeschool and our plans for this year -- but I just don't have the time to finalize them right now! I did want to post about our first day, and will get the other 2 posts up as soon as I'm able.
We had a wonderful first day :)
Started the day as usual -- the boys got up, brushed teeth, ate breakfast, got dressed and made their beds. I'm so glad we started this routine months ago so it is considered normal and basic now.
We pulled out their nature journals and went into the front yard so they could make their first entries of the year. N drew a bird flying over a neighbor's home and C drew a fly on a tree. They both dictated to me their entries, but I know that C will soon get back to writing his own. I popped L in a sling and she was content to hang out in the front yard with the boys.
We came back in to math workbooks. C completed one page and N completed 3. We started the 1st grade and K workbooks last March, so we're continuing in those books. C did a page of subtraction facts, while N practiced writing the numbers 8, 9 and zero as well as circling sets of zero.
After math was completed, the boys did a page of copywork. Something simple today -- they copied their full names and our address.
I read from a coloring book about mass, and they colored a few of the pages. We'll continue reading this throughout the week, plan to be completed by Friday.
They colored a coloring page of a dragon. Their dad is currently reading Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher as a bedtime story, so this was appropriate. We decided to mail their completed drawings to their uncle in WI.
It was time for a snack, so I put out the ingredients for ants on a log and they made their own snack. They were both thrilled at making it themselves, and were eager to tell Daddy when he came home how they were learning to cook! I definitely plan to incorporate more "life skills" into our school year.
After their snack, they played a bit. N continued to play while C did a page from his spelling workbook. He then read to me from an Usborne early reader. He had absolutely no trouble reading the book, which helped me decide that he is ready for more writing and some grammar work.
While I was nursing L, we talked about oceans and they learned there are 5 oceans on earth. (did you know that? In 2000, they added the 5th, which was a surprise to me when I was preparing this lesson.) I have a few books and a few dvds on the way from Netflix to round out our ocean studies this week, as well as a few worksheets. They looked at a flattened globe worksheet and we identified where the different oceans were.
It was time for lunch and they helped prepare once again. We had hot dogs on bun, pretzels, grapes and chocolate milk.
After lunch, they completed their binder cover. I printed out a sheet that has "2007 - 2008 School Year" across the top, then a picture of each boy. Under the picture, I printed "Name, Age on 8/21/07, Weight on 8/21/07, Height on 8/21/07, Favorite Color, Favorite Food and Plans for this year." They filled in the blanks and I will put the page on the front of the binder where I keep samples of their work throughout the year. N enjoyed looking through last year's binder, even though I wasn't very good about keeping it updated :(
Our "official" schooling was complete and I was very happy with our day. In the afternoon, C read a book about robots to N and then a board book to L. They also helped around the house by cleaning the big hall mirror and the glass sliding back door. They emptied the dryer twice and carried the laundry to the laundry room.
We had a wonderful first day :)
Started the day as usual -- the boys got up, brushed teeth, ate breakfast, got dressed and made their beds. I'm so glad we started this routine months ago so it is considered normal and basic now.
We pulled out their nature journals and went into the front yard so they could make their first entries of the year. N drew a bird flying over a neighbor's home and C drew a fly on a tree. They both dictated to me their entries, but I know that C will soon get back to writing his own. I popped L in a sling and she was content to hang out in the front yard with the boys.
We came back in to math workbooks. C completed one page and N completed 3. We started the 1st grade and K workbooks last March, so we're continuing in those books. C did a page of subtraction facts, while N practiced writing the numbers 8, 9 and zero as well as circling sets of zero.
After math was completed, the boys did a page of copywork. Something simple today -- they copied their full names and our address.
I read from a coloring book about mass, and they colored a few of the pages. We'll continue reading this throughout the week, plan to be completed by Friday.
They colored a coloring page of a dragon. Their dad is currently reading Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher as a bedtime story, so this was appropriate. We decided to mail their completed drawings to their uncle in WI.
It was time for a snack, so I put out the ingredients for ants on a log and they made their own snack. They were both thrilled at making it themselves, and were eager to tell Daddy when he came home how they were learning to cook! I definitely plan to incorporate more "life skills" into our school year.
After their snack, they played a bit. N continued to play while C did a page from his spelling workbook. He then read to me from an Usborne early reader. He had absolutely no trouble reading the book, which helped me decide that he is ready for more writing and some grammar work.
While I was nursing L, we talked about oceans and they learned there are 5 oceans on earth. (did you know that? In 2000, they added the 5th, which was a surprise to me when I was preparing this lesson.) I have a few books and a few dvds on the way from Netflix to round out our ocean studies this week, as well as a few worksheets. They looked at a flattened globe worksheet and we identified where the different oceans were.
It was time for lunch and they helped prepare once again. We had hot dogs on bun, pretzels, grapes and chocolate milk.
After lunch, they completed their binder cover. I printed out a sheet that has "2007 - 2008 School Year" across the top, then a picture of each boy. Under the picture, I printed "Name, Age on 8/21/07, Weight on 8/21/07, Height on 8/21/07, Favorite Color, Favorite Food and Plans for this year." They filled in the blanks and I will put the page on the front of the binder where I keep samples of their work throughout the year. N enjoyed looking through last year's binder, even though I wasn't very good about keeping it updated :(
Our "official" schooling was complete and I was very happy with our day. In the afternoon, C read a book about robots to N and then a board book to L. They also helped around the house by cleaning the big hall mirror and the glass sliding back door. They emptied the dryer twice and carried the laundry to the laundry room.
