Yesterday was the first full day of school work we've had since we've been in Florida (meaning we included math with our daily reading).
Part of me feels like a slacker mom, but part of me knows that the two weeks we've been here so far have been full. We've seen dolphins, manatees, crane, seagulls, all kinds of fish, shrimp, crabs, lobsters, and a raccoon. All have been in their own natural setting right around us! We've looked up weird looking bugs and we've gotten books on sea animals.
Oh, and I signed the big kids up for their first year ever of Summer Reading at the library! They're getting so old already!
IW really likes math. Yesterday we began doing addition on the abacus. I say uh-back-us. Jeff corrects me every time. : )
I also taught him how to write the number 8. This is a hard number to write my friends! IW has a pretty short frustration fuse, so we took it slow. That's a heart issue, and one we've been working on a long time. I feel confident that we'll be working on it a whole lot longer.
As for QL, she can now read the first 4 Bob books fluently, except for that word HAD. She always says HAS, and when I say 'try again' she starts guessing the wildest words! THE, AND, PRETTY.
What?!?!?!?!
She has the ability to sound out, she just like to guess, I....guess. I think she's at a point that formal phonics lessons would do her some good. I was going to wait until she was older, but she has already started to read on her own, and she really wants to read. She's just so lacking in confidence. The Bob Books have really helped in this area, and I'm going to make up some sight word flashcards today, starting with the word HAD!
What have ya'll got planned today????
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Sunday, June 13, 2010
our homeschool curriculum
I've been meaning to list this for quite a while now, but haven't seemed to get around to it.
We're doing a kind-of, sort-of modified version of Ambleside's Year 0.5, which is an unofficial year. This is a literary curriculum, except for math. Also, I haven't done a phonics program with IW. He taught himself to read when he was 3 so I don't really see a need. If he has a question or an area of concern, we address it when it comes up, and this seems to be working.
Here's our reading list: (all but Character Building are available online for FREE)
Stories of Great Americans for Little Americans
The Eskimo Twins
The Seven Sisters Who Live on the Round Ball that Floats in the Air
Old Mother West Wind
A Child’s Book of Character Building, Book 1
We read MANY books for literature. The two chapter books we're reading right now are Stuart Little and Raggedy Ann Stories. We also read picture books during quiet time and pretty much all day long.
For math we are using RightStart Math Level A.
For science we were using 106 Days of Creation Studies before we left for Florida, but since we've been here it seems a little silly to continue doing that and ignore all the natural science going on around us. So for now we're doing a lot of nature study, and we're going to make a nature notebook using some scrapbook stuff (wish me luck with that!).
Oh, and we also do a memory verse to correspond with the character trait we're working on. We read a bible story every morning during breakfast, and IW does copywork, which right now is writing 3 perfect capital and lowercase letters. They also watch a Spanish video once a week or so.
QL is reading Dick and Jane, and the Bob books. Other than that she sits in on our readings and that's about it. She'll begin formal work after she turns 5 next spring.
I don't do the poetry, art or music appreciation stuff that Ambleside has, mostly because I haven't quite figured out how to work it all in yet. We do read poetry, but not in an organized, planned out way, and we don't do any memorizing yet.
Soooo, this is what we've got going on in our little school right now. We school year round, so it's not like we have a beginning and ending date for our curriculum; when we finish this, we'll move onto other things. With all the traveling we do, it always seemed like we were behind, but working year-round gives us flexibility to relax a little. When QL turns 5 we'll add her into the mix, and I'll probably do a kind-of, sort-of mash-up of Ambleside Online, Old Fashioned Education, and Ruth Beechick type of curriculum. I'm hoping to keep them together in as many as the readings as possible, and work with them separately on the 3 Rs. It's fun to learn together!
We're doing a kind-of, sort-of modified version of Ambleside's Year 0.5, which is an unofficial year. This is a literary curriculum, except for math. Also, I haven't done a phonics program with IW. He taught himself to read when he was 3 so I don't really see a need. If he has a question or an area of concern, we address it when it comes up, and this seems to be working.
Here's our reading list: (all but Character Building are available online for FREE)
Stories of Great Americans for Little Americans
The Eskimo Twins
The Seven Sisters Who Live on the Round Ball that Floats in the Air
Old Mother West Wind
A Child’s Book of Character Building, Book 1
We read MANY books for literature. The two chapter books we're reading right now are Stuart Little and Raggedy Ann Stories. We also read picture books during quiet time and pretty much all day long.
For math we are using RightStart Math Level A.
For science we were using 106 Days of Creation Studies before we left for Florida, but since we've been here it seems a little silly to continue doing that and ignore all the natural science going on around us. So for now we're doing a lot of nature study, and we're going to make a nature notebook using some scrapbook stuff (wish me luck with that!).
Oh, and we also do a memory verse to correspond with the character trait we're working on. We read a bible story every morning during breakfast, and IW does copywork, which right now is writing 3 perfect capital and lowercase letters. They also watch a Spanish video once a week or so.
QL is reading Dick and Jane, and the Bob books. Other than that she sits in on our readings and that's about it. She'll begin formal work after she turns 5 next spring.
I don't do the poetry, art or music appreciation stuff that Ambleside has, mostly because I haven't quite figured out how to work it all in yet. We do read poetry, but not in an organized, planned out way, and we don't do any memorizing yet.
Soooo, this is what we've got going on in our little school right now. We school year round, so it's not like we have a beginning and ending date for our curriculum; when we finish this, we'll move onto other things. With all the traveling we do, it always seemed like we were behind, but working year-round gives us flexibility to relax a little. When QL turns 5 we'll add her into the mix, and I'll probably do a kind-of, sort-of mash-up of Ambleside Online, Old Fashioned Education, and Ruth Beechick type of curriculum. I'm hoping to keep them together in as many as the readings as possible, and work with them separately on the 3 Rs. It's fun to learn together!
BOOKS!!!
Do you love the new layout?!?!?!?! My heart skipped a beat when I first saw it! I thought is was especially fitting as I got to go scour a thrift shop and a used book shop this Friday and found some real gems!
This particular book was my favorite find. It has a 1925 copyright date, and a $2.00 price tag. I really, really, REALLY love books, but old books have a tendency to make me feel all warm and fuzzy. I LOVE the inscription written inside:
I love that it was a gift from a teacher to her student! And I can't help but take note of the fact that if a teacher gave this book to her student as a gift today, there would be an outrage. But not in our little school! : )
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