Ugh. Where does the time go? I can't believe I haven't posted here in almost a year! It's not because I haven't had a lot to say, or that things aren't happening, it's just life. It tends to get in the way of all my really great plans. I don't know how it happens, but, there it is. What can I do?
We are at a real interesting time in our homeschool. Alicia is between 9th and 10th grade, Bailey is between 7th and 8th grade, and Christopher is plugging away in 5th grade in most subjects, but, is flying through 7th grade math. How do I keep up? I don't really know!
Right now I'm learning Chemistry, Latin, and Geometry. I'm reading classic literature I either haven't read before, or I haven't read in a long, long time. I'm re-learning Algebra and Physical Science. I'm putting together a science curriculum for a little boy who is super-science and math oriented. I'm making transcripts for kids who already know where they want to go to college, which helps a lot because then I can make sure we are hitting the things that need to be done for admissions. I can't believe I'm thinking about college, but, here it is, staring me in the face. My babies will be leaving before I know it and then what?
I often talk to friends who worry about what will happen to me when I face the empty nest. It seems that they are concerned that I will just be lost. Like all I am is a mom and a home schooler and what will I do when that is through?
Well, I have a few ideas! Will I be sad? Yup! Will I be a little lonely for my kids? Absolutely! But, I still have all the goals and dreams I had before I had kids. God-willing, I will still be a wife to a really terrific husband! I will be able to pursue things that I have a passion for. I am passionate about so much and I am so blessed that right now I am purusuing one of those passions--raising and discipling my kids! I have a sneaking suspicion that motherhood doesn't end the minute they reach 18. I still talk to my mom and ask her advice about things. I know that our relationship will change, but, I'm looking forward to seeing the people they are becoming come to life! It will be a blessing!!!
So, I'm growing, changing, and experiencing so many new things right now. And, if I'm lucky, I'll never stop.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Why Do I Do What I Do?
I want to thank Tracy in KY at the Well Trained Mind boards who wrote this. It's beautiful! And it's how I feel about being a mom, home educator, and woman of God.
I am training my children in the way they should go. I am teaching them when I rise up and when I lay down and when I walk. I am teaching them that everything they do must be honorable to God and to His glory. I am training them to think biblically and to memorize scripture and to analyze culture in the light of scripture. I am teaching them that they must prefer God, and that taking the gospel to the nations is glorifying to God. I am teaching them that the glory of God is the point of the universe.
I teach them that they must master grammar because language is the medium through which God gave us His word. If they are to correctly understand the Word of God, they must understand grammar. The Word of God is comprised of words and phrases and clauses and nouns and verbs and indirect objects and past tense verbs and present tense verbs and modifiers. They must master this so that they know what God has said. Further, in order to take the gospel to others we must be able to articulate it in the language we are speaking. Grammar exists for God. I teach them that they must become good spellers so that they can communicate the gospel clearly when writing. Spelling exists for God.
I teach them Greek so that they can read God's word in the language He communicated it so that they do not have to rely on other people to tell them what it says. I want them to read it for themselves in the original language, understanding all the subtle and not-so-subtle nuances in syntax and grammar and word meaning and logic so that they know what it says for themselves, because they have seen it for themselves in the language given by God. Therefore they can worship over God s Word and communicate clearly and with confidence to others what God has said. Greek exists for God.
I teach them history as God's working out of his plan in the universe, to His glory and for His purposes, thereby teaching them about their awesome God who frustrates the plans of the nations and sets up kings and deposes kings and wages war and determines history. My children are being taught that God rules sovereignly over history that nothing in history happens apart from the sovereign rule and purpose of God. As they see their God more clearly, they love Him more dearly and become jealous to see His name proclaimed among the nations. History exists for God.
I teach them logic as God's design for correct thinking and reasoning, so they can think clearly and reason well. If they are trained in correct thinking and reasoning then they can see better the beauty of the mind of their God as it is revealed in scripture. And then, as they take the gospel to others, they will not be mislead by false doctrine. They will see through the humanistic mechanisms of our culture. They will understand better how to explain the truth of God in the face of the depraved and distorted thinking that so characterizes the world we live in. By teaching them logic, I am teaching them to protect themselves AND to better reason with those who are deceived. Logic exists for the glory of God.
I teach them science and math so that they can see the hand of God in the order and precision by which He has created the universe. The heavens proclaim the glory of God, but it is so easily suppressed. Naturalistic thinking pervades even the Christian church and God is ignored. By teaching science and math as a glorious picture of the stunning capability of the mind of God, His glory stands forth to my children. We rejoice over our God, and they are thereby more bold in proclaiming his name to their friends and family. This is glorifying to God. Science and Math cannot be correctly understood apart from their relationship to God. Science and math exist for God.
I teach them Bible. We read the Bible, we ask questions of the Bible, we memorize Bible, we write about Bible--outlining, dictation, etc., we read commentaries and look at maps and check atlases of Bible lands and compare scripture with scripture and interpret our lessons through the Bible. We learn about missionaries and other countries and understand why we need to take the gospel to the nations. We apply Bible to our own culture and try to understand our culture in the light of scripture. The Bible is the backbone of what we do. Children who are biblically saturated are salt and light. Bible exists for the glory of God.
I teach them literature--lots of different stories, biographies, missionary stories, fantasies, etc. Much of this is secular in nature. Why is this important? Because they need to be able to filter everything through the lens of scripture. We take the books that don't mention God, and point out God's absence in the book. This is so crucial God is absent in our culture. This is one of the major sins of Romans 1--they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer. He is simply pushed aside from virtually all television, radio, movies, books, cartoons, children's books, our schools, the work place--He is absent. And this is horrifying and God-belittling and is the epitome of sin. But most people hardly realize it. I want my children to see it and thereby be inoculated against it. I want them to acknowledge God. So, we look at God's absence and talk about it, and we bring God into it. Take Pippi Longstocking--God is absent in Pippi-Longstocking. I do not want my daughter thinking that it is ever okay to conceive of God being absent anywhere, so we bring scriptural truths to bear on stories about Pippi-Longstocking, for example. Literature exists for God.
The Bible tells us to fix our eyes on Jesus. We are to look at what is not seen. I want to train my children to look at Jesus--all the time. I want to train them to see God, to be passionate for His glory, and to permeate their lives with Christ and His truths. Children who prefer God are salt and light. Children who prefer God are beacons testifying to His glory. So that is what I am doing to cause my children to be salt and light to a dark world. I want them to be articulate, God-centered, Bible-saturated, Christ-minded, Spirit-led, highly-educated people who are willing to go to the hardest places on earth and lay down their lives for the nations who have not heard. I want them to treasure Christ more than they treasure their own lives, and in doing so bring glory to God as the world looks on and considers Jesus as valuable because they see my children preferring Him over life itself. And I am pouring out my life to that end--in raising and training the children that God has entrusted to me, for His glory. I will answer to Him for my stewardship of the children He has given me. More than anything I want Him to say, Well done.
I am training my children in the way they should go. I am teaching them when I rise up and when I lay down and when I walk. I am teaching them that everything they do must be honorable to God and to His glory. I am training them to think biblically and to memorize scripture and to analyze culture in the light of scripture. I am teaching them that they must prefer God, and that taking the gospel to the nations is glorifying to God. I am teaching them that the glory of God is the point of the universe.
I teach them that they must master grammar because language is the medium through which God gave us His word. If they are to correctly understand the Word of God, they must understand grammar. The Word of God is comprised of words and phrases and clauses and nouns and verbs and indirect objects and past tense verbs and present tense verbs and modifiers. They must master this so that they know what God has said. Further, in order to take the gospel to others we must be able to articulate it in the language we are speaking. Grammar exists for God. I teach them that they must become good spellers so that they can communicate the gospel clearly when writing. Spelling exists for God.
I teach them Greek so that they can read God's word in the language He communicated it so that they do not have to rely on other people to tell them what it says. I want them to read it for themselves in the original language, understanding all the subtle and not-so-subtle nuances in syntax and grammar and word meaning and logic so that they know what it says for themselves, because they have seen it for themselves in the language given by God. Therefore they can worship over God s Word and communicate clearly and with confidence to others what God has said. Greek exists for God.
I teach them history as God's working out of his plan in the universe, to His glory and for His purposes, thereby teaching them about their awesome God who frustrates the plans of the nations and sets up kings and deposes kings and wages war and determines history. My children are being taught that God rules sovereignly over history that nothing in history happens apart from the sovereign rule and purpose of God. As they see their God more clearly, they love Him more dearly and become jealous to see His name proclaimed among the nations. History exists for God.
I teach them logic as God's design for correct thinking and reasoning, so they can think clearly and reason well. If they are trained in correct thinking and reasoning then they can see better the beauty of the mind of their God as it is revealed in scripture. And then, as they take the gospel to others, they will not be mislead by false doctrine. They will see through the humanistic mechanisms of our culture. They will understand better how to explain the truth of God in the face of the depraved and distorted thinking that so characterizes the world we live in. By teaching them logic, I am teaching them to protect themselves AND to better reason with those who are deceived. Logic exists for the glory of God.
I teach them science and math so that they can see the hand of God in the order and precision by which He has created the universe. The heavens proclaim the glory of God, but it is so easily suppressed. Naturalistic thinking pervades even the Christian church and God is ignored. By teaching science and math as a glorious picture of the stunning capability of the mind of God, His glory stands forth to my children. We rejoice over our God, and they are thereby more bold in proclaiming his name to their friends and family. This is glorifying to God. Science and Math cannot be correctly understood apart from their relationship to God. Science and math exist for God.
I teach them Bible. We read the Bible, we ask questions of the Bible, we memorize Bible, we write about Bible--outlining, dictation, etc., we read commentaries and look at maps and check atlases of Bible lands and compare scripture with scripture and interpret our lessons through the Bible. We learn about missionaries and other countries and understand why we need to take the gospel to the nations. We apply Bible to our own culture and try to understand our culture in the light of scripture. The Bible is the backbone of what we do. Children who are biblically saturated are salt and light. Bible exists for the glory of God.
I teach them literature--lots of different stories, biographies, missionary stories, fantasies, etc. Much of this is secular in nature. Why is this important? Because they need to be able to filter everything through the lens of scripture. We take the books that don't mention God, and point out God's absence in the book. This is so crucial God is absent in our culture. This is one of the major sins of Romans 1--they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer. He is simply pushed aside from virtually all television, radio, movies, books, cartoons, children's books, our schools, the work place--He is absent. And this is horrifying and God-belittling and is the epitome of sin. But most people hardly realize it. I want my children to see it and thereby be inoculated against it. I want them to acknowledge God. So, we look at God's absence and talk about it, and we bring God into it. Take Pippi Longstocking--God is absent in Pippi-Longstocking. I do not want my daughter thinking that it is ever okay to conceive of God being absent anywhere, so we bring scriptural truths to bear on stories about Pippi-Longstocking, for example. Literature exists for God.
The Bible tells us to fix our eyes on Jesus. We are to look at what is not seen. I want to train my children to look at Jesus--all the time. I want to train them to see God, to be passionate for His glory, and to permeate their lives with Christ and His truths. Children who prefer God are salt and light. Children who prefer God are beacons testifying to His glory. So that is what I am doing to cause my children to be salt and light to a dark world. I want them to be articulate, God-centered, Bible-saturated, Christ-minded, Spirit-led, highly-educated people who are willing to go to the hardest places on earth and lay down their lives for the nations who have not heard. I want them to treasure Christ more than they treasure their own lives, and in doing so bring glory to God as the world looks on and considers Jesus as valuable because they see my children preferring Him over life itself. And I am pouring out my life to that end--in raising and training the children that God has entrusted to me, for His glory. I will answer to Him for my stewardship of the children He has given me. More than anything I want Him to say, Well done.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Wordless Wednesday--July 16, 2008
This is some pictures of the children's VBS we helped our church here to do in a neighboring village. My dc did the puppets and helped to translate for the team from the US that came down to minister.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Some Really Good Writing Resources
I have been able to find some really great resources online to help with writing. Here are some links:
http://www.canteach.ca/elementary/prompts.html
http://www.tooter4kids.com/journal_writing.htm
http://www.writingfix.com/WritingFix_for_kids.htm --really great interactive games and more prompts!
http://www.canteach.ca/elementary/prompts.html
http://www.tooter4kids.com/journal_writing.htm
http://www.writingfix.com/WritingFix_for_kids.htm --really great interactive games and more prompts!
My Thoughts on Teaching Writing
Recently, I've been asked by friends and on a board I frequent how do I go about teaching writing. I guess it's not a topic I really gave much thought to, it just kind of happened in a way that was natural for me and my kids!
I use Learning Language Arts Through Literature as my primary language arts curriculum. I thank God for that curriculum! It was something I picked because it had everything in one box! I, again, didn't think it through too much, it was easy for me to teach, so I bought it. I had no idea about Charlotte Mason, Ruth Beechick, or learning/teaching styles at the time. But God led me to the curriculum that "fit" our family to a T!
The thing about that curriculum is, it's gentle. It's thorough, but, it isn't "rammy" or it doesn't teach things before a natural progression occurs. It doesn't go into too much grammar until it first teaches reading thoroughly. It then works toward fluency in reading while using excerpts from good children's literature to teach the child to appreciate good writing, good grammar, and all that goes with that through copywork, narration, and dictation. I love that! It flows.
It starts getting more into grammar at about 4th grade and progresses in difficulty from there. But, it makes sense.
So, how do I teach writing when we haven't even covered much grammar until about 4th grade? Do I just wait until then to get them writing? NO WAY! We use that time wisely in fine-tuning their imaginations! We use daily journals.
In their journals I let them write whatever they want. When they are too young to write, they draw and narrate to me what they want written. I use writing prompts to help them with their creativity a few times a week or as needed if they can't think of anything to write. I don't worry about things like spelling, capitalization, or punctuation until we've covered those things.
Once we've covered a component of writing such as punctuation, I expect to start seeing it in their daily journals. If I notice they are still making mistakes, I reinforce that component using worksheets or drills. If after that they are still making those mistakes, I will then talk with them about it. I want to find out if they are just still not understanding that component, or, which most often happens, they are just writing too fast and not carefully to do it correctly. From that point on, if they make those mistakes, I make them write the page over. I try not to correct their journals too much. I want them to be freely creative and fun for them, not more schoolwork!
They continue to journal even after I may not require it . They love journaling! My oldest has three different journals going at once: her prayer/Bible reading journal, her journal for her feelings, and one with ideas for stories, books, and articles she wants to write. She loves writing! She's good at it.
I'm convinced that if I had pushed and pushed, it would have gone the other way with her. Some kids can handle it. My oldest won't and my youngest can't. They would have melted under the pressure! As it is, they have been able to grow naturally as writers. They've been able to use their creativity and imaginations in their writing.
I've read things written by kids who write mechanically perfect, but, unfortunately, somewhere along the line the creativity was not developed or encouraged. It's hard for them.
The way I approach writing is not for everyone. Everyone is so different. I don't approach writing exactly the same with each of MY kids. Each one has their own personal struggles and abilities. Each has had to overcome some challenge along the way and each have new challenges they will face. Our job, my job, is to find the best way for each child and encourage them in the journey to becoming a good communicator through writing.
I use Learning Language Arts Through Literature as my primary language arts curriculum. I thank God for that curriculum! It was something I picked because it had everything in one box! I, again, didn't think it through too much, it was easy for me to teach, so I bought it. I had no idea about Charlotte Mason, Ruth Beechick, or learning/teaching styles at the time. But God led me to the curriculum that "fit" our family to a T!
The thing about that curriculum is, it's gentle. It's thorough, but, it isn't "rammy" or it doesn't teach things before a natural progression occurs. It doesn't go into too much grammar until it first teaches reading thoroughly. It then works toward fluency in reading while using excerpts from good children's literature to teach the child to appreciate good writing, good grammar, and all that goes with that through copywork, narration, and dictation. I love that! It flows.
It starts getting more into grammar at about 4th grade and progresses in difficulty from there. But, it makes sense.
So, how do I teach writing when we haven't even covered much grammar until about 4th grade? Do I just wait until then to get them writing? NO WAY! We use that time wisely in fine-tuning their imaginations! We use daily journals.
In their journals I let them write whatever they want. When they are too young to write, they draw and narrate to me what they want written. I use writing prompts to help them with their creativity a few times a week or as needed if they can't think of anything to write. I don't worry about things like spelling, capitalization, or punctuation until we've covered those things.
Once we've covered a component of writing such as punctuation, I expect to start seeing it in their daily journals. If I notice they are still making mistakes, I reinforce that component using worksheets or drills. If after that they are still making those mistakes, I will then talk with them about it. I want to find out if they are just still not understanding that component, or, which most often happens, they are just writing too fast and not carefully to do it correctly. From that point on, if they make those mistakes, I make them write the page over. I try not to correct their journals too much. I want them to be freely creative and fun for them, not more schoolwork!
They continue to journal even after I may not require it . They love journaling! My oldest has three different journals going at once: her prayer/Bible reading journal, her journal for her feelings, and one with ideas for stories, books, and articles she wants to write. She loves writing! She's good at it.
I'm convinced that if I had pushed and pushed, it would have gone the other way with her. Some kids can handle it. My oldest won't and my youngest can't. They would have melted under the pressure! As it is, they have been able to grow naturally as writers. They've been able to use their creativity and imaginations in their writing.
I've read things written by kids who write mechanically perfect, but, unfortunately, somewhere along the line the creativity was not developed or encouraged. It's hard for them.
The way I approach writing is not for everyone. Everyone is so different. I don't approach writing exactly the same with each of MY kids. Each one has their own personal struggles and abilities. Each has had to overcome some challenge along the way and each have new challenges they will face. Our job, my job, is to find the best way for each child and encourage them in the journey to becoming a good communicator through writing.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Good Things Are Happening
There has been significant progress in my son's ability to do language arts, which is a minor miracle. I have noticed that he has really clicked with it in the past few weeks, but, on Tuesday, there was a breakthrough. We were doing his lesson in LLATL about quotations. He stopped and said, "Mom! They made a mistake in this book and left off the quotation marks at the beginning of this quote and the comma at the end of the quote." I looked, and sure enough, they had! It wasn't intentional, it was an error in the book. I was so happy!
He's also making amazing progress in math. He has tested into Saxon 6/5 and been doing super with it!
Times like this, I feel as though it's all worth it!
He's also making amazing progress in math. He has tested into Saxon 6/5 and been doing super with it!
Times like this, I feel as though it's all worth it!
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Wordless Wednesday
The view from our balcony! The one on the left is volcano Fuego and erupts nearly every day!
Friday, July 4, 2008
Happy Birthday America!!!!
Anyone who knows me at all knows that I'm extremely patriotic. It's normal to see me cry any time I hear our national anthem, or to break up when trying to sing any patriotic song, or even when I'm reading aloud to my kids something about our country's history. I love my country. I'm so blessed to be an American.
I want to take the time to thank any and all who have sacrificed to make our country what it is. I'm so grateful! Thank you for making it the best place for a person to accomplish their dreams. I love that I can tell my kids, "You can do whatever you want to do. You are citizens of a country that gives you so much opportunity." It's so true!
So, today, God bless America. May we be worthy of that blessing!
I want to take the time to thank any and all who have sacrificed to make our country what it is. I'm so grateful! Thank you for making it the best place for a person to accomplish their dreams. I love that I can tell my kids, "You can do whatever you want to do. You are citizens of a country that gives you so much opportunity." It's so true!
So, today, God bless America. May we be worthy of that blessing!
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Saturday, June 28, 2008
It's Been a While!
I've been so busy!!!!
We've been doing all of our wrapping up of last year's materials and getting ready to begin our next phase. The kids have gone to camp and come back and we are now organizing our life to get started on Monday!
We are really ready. It's been a LOOOOOONG week of "I'm bored." When it starts to get like that I dust off the books and get to planning because I know it's time! They are actually excited to start. I'm thinking it will be good to begin new stuff.
Here's the plan so far!
History
We are starting our 2 year study of American History. This year we will be using the Beautiful Feet guide with the Genvieve Foster books as our spine. We will be reading a LOT of living books and my oldest 2 will begin writing monthly term papers based on our studies. We will tie in Art History and Music Appreciation from this time period to enhance our studies on Fridays.
Science
This has been a tough one for me (see posts below). I was struggling with what to do with my oldest who is a rising 9th grader but a very young one (she will just turn 14 in Sept.) Science has been a HUGE commitment for her this year with Biology and all. She's done well, but, it's been a lot of work for her. Also, she is a little more than half way through Algebra 1 (we had some struggles at the beginning!). The natural progression would be for her to start Chemistry this year, but, I'm afraid that her math skills need a little more work.
In the meantime, I've bought Christian Kids Explore Chemsitry (for grades 5-8) for my younger 2 for this year. I've decided to start my oldest out in that with her younger siblings and let her get her math skills further along and then once she starts Geometry, we will begin Chemistry with Apologia as originally planned. She isn't really interested in college yet, but, I want to make sure she's up to par on science in case she changes her mind.
I feel good about this decision because I think she will in the long run excel with this plan instead of struggle her way through science she really isn't ready for.
We will also continue nature journaling, which we enjoy! Another thing we will be implementing is gardening and weather.
Language Arts
This is an easy one for me! We will continue with Learning Language Arts Through Literature for the younger 2 and begin American Literature with KISS grammar for the oldest. We will also begin KISS grammar for my youngest since I forgot to order Ridgewood (my fav grammar program) and now I have to wait until someone who is coming down can bring it for me!
My oldest 2 will be doing Writing Strands and will be working on writing essays this year. This will be a stretch, because, eventhough we've done a lot of writing, I've never really required a full-on essay with notes, bibliography, etc. We will work on this all year.
We will also be doing Shakespeare throughout the year on Fridays. My kids actually love reading these plays and sonnets. They think it's interesting learning about the language and all of the historical things attatched to Shakespeare.
Math
The oldest will continue with Teaching Textbooks. I really love this program. It's been so great for a non-math mom like me!!!!
My middle child is really advanced at math and enjoys it a lot! She is currently doing an intro. to Algebra course with the Key To...books and will be moving on to Teaching Textbooks later this year.
My youngest will be starting Saxon 65. He is good at math, but, a little lazy about it. He doesn't apply himself the way he should so we will be working on that.
There are a lot of other subjects we will be working with, government, world view, etc. but, that's for later! I can only plan so much!
We've been doing all of our wrapping up of last year's materials and getting ready to begin our next phase. The kids have gone to camp and come back and we are now organizing our life to get started on Monday!
We are really ready. It's been a LOOOOOONG week of "I'm bored." When it starts to get like that I dust off the books and get to planning because I know it's time! They are actually excited to start. I'm thinking it will be good to begin new stuff.
Here's the plan so far!
History
We are starting our 2 year study of American History. This year we will be using the Beautiful Feet guide with the Genvieve Foster books as our spine. We will be reading a LOT of living books and my oldest 2 will begin writing monthly term papers based on our studies. We will tie in Art History and Music Appreciation from this time period to enhance our studies on Fridays.
Science
This has been a tough one for me (see posts below). I was struggling with what to do with my oldest who is a rising 9th grader but a very young one (she will just turn 14 in Sept.) Science has been a HUGE commitment for her this year with Biology and all. She's done well, but, it's been a lot of work for her. Also, she is a little more than half way through Algebra 1 (we had some struggles at the beginning!). The natural progression would be for her to start Chemistry this year, but, I'm afraid that her math skills need a little more work.
In the meantime, I've bought Christian Kids Explore Chemsitry (for grades 5-8) for my younger 2 for this year. I've decided to start my oldest out in that with her younger siblings and let her get her math skills further along and then once she starts Geometry, we will begin Chemistry with Apologia as originally planned. She isn't really interested in college yet, but, I want to make sure she's up to par on science in case she changes her mind.
I feel good about this decision because I think she will in the long run excel with this plan instead of struggle her way through science she really isn't ready for.
We will also continue nature journaling, which we enjoy! Another thing we will be implementing is gardening and weather.
Language Arts
This is an easy one for me! We will continue with Learning Language Arts Through Literature for the younger 2 and begin American Literature with KISS grammar for the oldest. We will also begin KISS grammar for my youngest since I forgot to order Ridgewood (my fav grammar program) and now I have to wait until someone who is coming down can bring it for me!
My oldest 2 will be doing Writing Strands and will be working on writing essays this year. This will be a stretch, because, eventhough we've done a lot of writing, I've never really required a full-on essay with notes, bibliography, etc. We will work on this all year.
We will also be doing Shakespeare throughout the year on Fridays. My kids actually love reading these plays and sonnets. They think it's interesting learning about the language and all of the historical things attatched to Shakespeare.
Math
The oldest will continue with Teaching Textbooks. I really love this program. It's been so great for a non-math mom like me!!!!
My middle child is really advanced at math and enjoys it a lot! She is currently doing an intro. to Algebra course with the Key To...books and will be moving on to Teaching Textbooks later this year.
My youngest will be starting Saxon 65. He is good at math, but, a little lazy about it. He doesn't apply himself the way he should so we will be working on that.
There are a lot of other subjects we will be working with, government, world view, etc. but, that's for later! I can only plan so much!
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Finishing up!
Since we school year-round, we don't really go from one grade to another all at once. So that means, we can be working on at least 2 grade levels in different subjects at some point during the year. We finish levels to go to the next level. This year we have really plowed ahead and are finishing up levels a little early, which is fabulous!!!!
My oldest finished 8th grade last week and now is officially working on 9th grade in all her subjects. We need to finish up Biology and then we can officially move on to all our next levels with all 3 dc. This year, I did something I've never done before and I started all 3 kids in different periods of history and science. I will probably never do that again! It was so much to plan and teach that it's really too much work. I'm more about teaching one lesson in each subject to all 3, and then assigning different levels of projects to be done within that subject. That's what works well for me, I'm too spread out and stressed any other way!
My other 2 have officially finished the main bulk of their work in their levels and are currently working on art appreciation, composer studies, reading, math, and various science topics including nature study/journaling. We are waiting for the oldest to finish up Biology in order to move on together into the new areas of study.
Here's some new things we will be adding and I've planned out:
1. Geography using the Holling books. We are using this at my kids' request. They loved it when we used it years ago and wanted to use it again. This will be a nice change from Trail Guides.
2. Beautiful Feet Jr. High American History. I'm a dyed-in-the-wool Truthquest user, so this has been a change I haven't embraced too freely! But, when we were home for a visit in February, someone gave me this guide with a lot of the books I need for it. I've looked through it, and I've decided to use it because it really is good, and the best part, it's free!
3. Christian Kids Explore Chemistry. I picked this up for my younger 2 because I wanted to do Chemistry because my oldest was going to be doing Chemistry too. After looking at it and talking with my oldest dd, I realized that we are all going to use this together this year. She was going to do Apologia Chemistry, but, I feel like she will benefit from this as an Intro. to Chemistry class. Next year she will do Apologia. She needs a little break from higher level science.
4. Artist and composer study from Ambleside Online. I will be using the AO guide to these along with the prints in the Yahoo group and the selections of classical music I can find online.
5. More intense Nature study. Maybe intense is the wrong word! What I mean is, more in depth. They are at the age now where I will be requiring more from their journals in way of writing. There will be a little research required as well.
That's about it. I still can't figure out how to post charts and visuals like that. So I guess I won't be able to share menus, lesson plans, or other things for a while yet! Bummer, that I'm so illiterate in the computer. But, I'm learning!
My oldest finished 8th grade last week and now is officially working on 9th grade in all her subjects. We need to finish up Biology and then we can officially move on to all our next levels with all 3 dc. This year, I did something I've never done before and I started all 3 kids in different periods of history and science. I will probably never do that again! It was so much to plan and teach that it's really too much work. I'm more about teaching one lesson in each subject to all 3, and then assigning different levels of projects to be done within that subject. That's what works well for me, I'm too spread out and stressed any other way!
My other 2 have officially finished the main bulk of their work in their levels and are currently working on art appreciation, composer studies, reading, math, and various science topics including nature study/journaling. We are waiting for the oldest to finish up Biology in order to move on together into the new areas of study.
Here's some new things we will be adding and I've planned out:
1. Geography using the Holling books. We are using this at my kids' request. They loved it when we used it years ago and wanted to use it again. This will be a nice change from Trail Guides.
2. Beautiful Feet Jr. High American History. I'm a dyed-in-the-wool Truthquest user, so this has been a change I haven't embraced too freely! But, when we were home for a visit in February, someone gave me this guide with a lot of the books I need for it. I've looked through it, and I've decided to use it because it really is good, and the best part, it's free!
3. Christian Kids Explore Chemistry. I picked this up for my younger 2 because I wanted to do Chemistry because my oldest was going to be doing Chemistry too. After looking at it and talking with my oldest dd, I realized that we are all going to use this together this year. She was going to do Apologia Chemistry, but, I feel like she will benefit from this as an Intro. to Chemistry class. Next year she will do Apologia. She needs a little break from higher level science.
4. Artist and composer study from Ambleside Online. I will be using the AO guide to these along with the prints in the Yahoo group and the selections of classical music I can find online.
5. More intense Nature study. Maybe intense is the wrong word! What I mean is, more in depth. They are at the age now where I will be requiring more from their journals in way of writing. There will be a little research required as well.
That's about it. I still can't figure out how to post charts and visuals like that. So I guess I won't be able to share menus, lesson plans, or other things for a while yet! Bummer, that I'm so illiterate in the computer. But, I'm learning!
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Update!
Well, it's been awhile! It's been crazy for me with missions teams coming down and home schooling, and life in general. I'm at a point now where things, for me, should be slowing down a little! We'll see.
Home schooling update
We are plugging ahead with everything. We did a worm dissection yesterday, and that was real interesting. We were able to find everything and identify everything we needed to. I've been reading so long about worms, I know more than I ever really wanted to. The kids loved it. It was a fun afternoon for them.
I'm receiving some of my stuff for our next phase. Since we home school year round, I don't say "next year" it doesn't make sense because we just go until we start something new so we can be working on several grade levels at once for each child. Anyway, our new geography program is arriving in bits and pieces and I'm really looking forward to starting it. We are going to be doing the unit study with Holling C. Holling books. I'm waiting for 2 more books and the maps to arrive. The kids asked for this specifically because they remember doing it when they were younger and they really loved it. It'll be a nice switch from Trail Guides.
I'm done planning all our government, Chemistry, world view, history, art and music appreciation, poetry, nature studies, Shakespeare and Plutarch, and geography for our next phase. I need to figure out Math and LA, but, we have a little time for that yet, so I'm not too worried about getting it done so quickly.
Things are going well. Christopher finally has his times tables memorized and that is helping him out so much in his math (Saxon 54). Bailey is flying through her intro to Algebra text (Key to...), and Alicia is working through Algebra I (Teaching Textbooks). I'm still figuring out what we are going to do with Christopher for math. I have all the Saxon until Algebra I, so it just kills my frugal little heart to not use them. But, I have to admit, Saxon isn't really his thing. Math is too important, so I'm thinking it's time for a change for him. I'm really leaning toward Developmental Math. We'll see.
Family Update
God is good. He's so faithful. We are so grateful to be serving Him here in Guatemala. I'm so glad we were able to go home for a visit, but, it's good to be back. We are all healthy and happy. Mark is busy, but not so bad that we can't spend time with him.
Mark and I celebrate our 15th anniversary on Thursday. It seems like we just got married, but, it's really been 15 years. I'm so grateful for a Godly husband. I'm so thankful that he prays and seeks God for our family and the direction we will be going in. It's so easy to trust a man like that and it takes the stress off of me. I'm so grateful that he is so grounded and not easily flustered (unlike me). So, here's to another 15 years!
I'm still trying to figure out how to post charts here so I can share our menus and such. I'm not the most computer-savvy person, but, I'm hanging in there!
Home schooling update
We are plugging ahead with everything. We did a worm dissection yesterday, and that was real interesting. We were able to find everything and identify everything we needed to. I've been reading so long about worms, I know more than I ever really wanted to. The kids loved it. It was a fun afternoon for them.
I'm receiving some of my stuff for our next phase. Since we home school year round, I don't say "next year" it doesn't make sense because we just go until we start something new so we can be working on several grade levels at once for each child. Anyway, our new geography program is arriving in bits and pieces and I'm really looking forward to starting it. We are going to be doing the unit study with Holling C. Holling books. I'm waiting for 2 more books and the maps to arrive. The kids asked for this specifically because they remember doing it when they were younger and they really loved it. It'll be a nice switch from Trail Guides.
I'm done planning all our government, Chemistry, world view, history, art and music appreciation, poetry, nature studies, Shakespeare and Plutarch, and geography for our next phase. I need to figure out Math and LA, but, we have a little time for that yet, so I'm not too worried about getting it done so quickly.
Things are going well. Christopher finally has his times tables memorized and that is helping him out so much in his math (Saxon 54). Bailey is flying through her intro to Algebra text (Key to...), and Alicia is working through Algebra I (Teaching Textbooks). I'm still figuring out what we are going to do with Christopher for math. I have all the Saxon until Algebra I, so it just kills my frugal little heart to not use them. But, I have to admit, Saxon isn't really his thing. Math is too important, so I'm thinking it's time for a change for him. I'm really leaning toward Developmental Math. We'll see.
Family Update
God is good. He's so faithful. We are so grateful to be serving Him here in Guatemala. I'm so glad we were able to go home for a visit, but, it's good to be back. We are all healthy and happy. Mark is busy, but not so bad that we can't spend time with him.
Mark and I celebrate our 15th anniversary on Thursday. It seems like we just got married, but, it's really been 15 years. I'm so grateful for a Godly husband. I'm so thankful that he prays and seeks God for our family and the direction we will be going in. It's so easy to trust a man like that and it takes the stress off of me. I'm so grateful that he is so grounded and not easily flustered (unlike me). So, here's to another 15 years!
I'm still trying to figure out how to post charts here so I can share our menus and such. I'm not the most computer-savvy person, but, I'm hanging in there!
Friday, March 28, 2008
Daniel
Today our women's Bible study group finished the book of Daniel with Beth Moore. It was a real challenge! The first half of the book we talked about Babylon and what that means. How we are all in our own challenges in Babylon. We deal with materialism, strife, gossip, gluttony, all kinds of things that pull us from God. I realized that there are some things in my life that I need to work on! (Isn't that just the way God works?)
Materialism is something that people relate to the States and how life is there. There's just so much abundance. You can get anything if you work hard enough and want it bad enough. But, I've found something else out about materialism. It's a state of the heart.
Here's why.
I struggle with materialism. Not necessarily buying things I don't need or spending more money than I have (although there was a time, I suppose, when I spent money I didn't need to), but, feeling resentful that even if I wanted too, I couldn't. There's a deep-seeded feeling of resentment at times when I see friends buying things right and left (things, I would argue, that aren't even necessary) and I can't. The ability to do so isn't even there. To cover it, we can get the attitude, "Well, I guess even if I could, I wouldn't because I can think of so many better things to do with my money. There's so much need in the world, I would help that."
Just to knock out that sense of pride, here's a thought. Do you have something right now in your possession that someone else might really need? Maybe you have more than one thing. Do you give it? My husband one time met a man who lived on the street who was wearing a light, long-sleeved shirt. He gave him his sweatshirt we just bought. At first, I'm ashamed to say, I was a little upset with him. How could he do that? It's not like we have the money all the time to just run out and buy more if we need to. (insert indignant look here) Do you know what he said to me? "Honey, since I have 3 more in my closet, we won't need to worry about running right out and buying another one anytime soon. The man doesn't even have a home." (Now you can insert an ashamed look)
What was I thinking? Did it really matter to us, even if it was my husband's last sweatshirt, to give it to a man who didn't even have a home? You get possessive. You see the need, you can even maybe meet the need, but, you justify it by saying that really, you can't afford to. It wouldn't even truly hurt to meet that need, but, we don't. What does Jesus think of that? He who gave us everything we have to begin with? He who gave all He had without even a second thought, when we didn't even deserve it?
Anyway, Daniel did it to me. I hated that study! I hate having to crucify the flesh. It's painful, it hurts, and it's ugly to see what needs to go. Just when I thought, "Wow, I'm doing really well, Lord. I'm serving You here in Guatemala. I'm giving You everything I have." He says, "Really? Let's just see."
God is so good and patient with us. I'm grateful! What would I do if He thought and acted the way I do sometimes? Yikes! Yikes to us all!
I challenge you. Ask Him, truthfully, what you can work on. He'll start to point things out. It's not fun, but, the end result is amazing.
Materialism is something that people relate to the States and how life is there. There's just so much abundance. You can get anything if you work hard enough and want it bad enough. But, I've found something else out about materialism. It's a state of the heart.
Here's why.
I struggle with materialism. Not necessarily buying things I don't need or spending more money than I have (although there was a time, I suppose, when I spent money I didn't need to), but, feeling resentful that even if I wanted too, I couldn't. There's a deep-seeded feeling of resentment at times when I see friends buying things right and left (things, I would argue, that aren't even necessary) and I can't. The ability to do so isn't even there. To cover it, we can get the attitude, "Well, I guess even if I could, I wouldn't because I can think of so many better things to do with my money. There's so much need in the world, I would help that."
Just to knock out that sense of pride, here's a thought. Do you have something right now in your possession that someone else might really need? Maybe you have more than one thing. Do you give it? My husband one time met a man who lived on the street who was wearing a light, long-sleeved shirt. He gave him his sweatshirt we just bought. At first, I'm ashamed to say, I was a little upset with him. How could he do that? It's not like we have the money all the time to just run out and buy more if we need to. (insert indignant look here) Do you know what he said to me? "Honey, since I have 3 more in my closet, we won't need to worry about running right out and buying another one anytime soon. The man doesn't even have a home." (Now you can insert an ashamed look)
What was I thinking? Did it really matter to us, even if it was my husband's last sweatshirt, to give it to a man who didn't even have a home? You get possessive. You see the need, you can even maybe meet the need, but, you justify it by saying that really, you can't afford to. It wouldn't even truly hurt to meet that need, but, we don't. What does Jesus think of that? He who gave us everything we have to begin with? He who gave all He had without even a second thought, when we didn't even deserve it?
Anyway, Daniel did it to me. I hated that study! I hate having to crucify the flesh. It's painful, it hurts, and it's ugly to see what needs to go. Just when I thought, "Wow, I'm doing really well, Lord. I'm serving You here in Guatemala. I'm giving You everything I have." He says, "Really? Let's just see."
God is so good and patient with us. I'm grateful! What would I do if He thought and acted the way I do sometimes? Yikes! Yikes to us all!
I challenge you. Ask Him, truthfully, what you can work on. He'll start to point things out. It's not fun, but, the end result is amazing.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Goals and Visions
On a discussion board I'm a part of, I recently talked about the importance of having goals and a vision for your homeschool. I really think this is important because it helps keep me focused on what our plans are as parents for our kids. It keeps me focused when I'm choosing curriculum and planning for the next year. In other words, it may be wonderful, but, if it doesn't fit our goals it's not for us. Here's what my husband and I have come up with:
Four Winds Academy
Goals and Vision
General Vision
1. To be able to further our personal relationship with Jesus in all aspects of our
lives.
2. To be able to communicate the gospel effectively and in a culturally relevant
way in society.
3. To be solid in the foundations of our faith by having a Christian worldview.
4. To be life-long independent learners and, therefore, successful in all we do.
5. To build strong relationships with fellow believers.
6. To understand the value of service and committment to others.
Goals to attain the vision
1. To be able to further our personal relationship with Jesus in all aspects of our
lives.
a) Teach the necessity of a personal quiet time each day.
b) Be involved in a healthy, spiritually alive church family.
c) Have a daily family prayer time.
d) Start and maintain Bible and Prayer journals at all ages.
2. To be able to communicate the gospel effectively and in a culturally relevant
way in society.
a) Teach a thorough understanding of the gospel and the law.
b) Create opportunities to be evangelistic as a family. Encourage the sharing
of their faith to their friends and others that they meet.
c) Teach them to be culturally relevant by using the newspapers, magazines,
music, and videos as tools to understand the cultural trends.
d) Be open and sensitive to questions they may have about what they see and
hear.
e) Choose curriculum that is fresh and makes God relevant to all they are
learning.
f) To teach a variety of communication skills including: writing, speech, drama,
music, art, and debate.
3. To be solid in the foundation of our faith by having a Christian world view.
a) Attend World View Weekends and Summit camps at appropriate ages.
b) Choose material that clearly represents and defends our Christian heritage.
c) Educate them on other religions and world views so they can compare and
contrast and understand truth.
d) Buy current event materials taught from a Christian World View.
e) Provide videos that teach these concepts.
4. To be lifelong independent learners and, therefore, successful in all we do.
a) Choose curriculum that is self-contained and can be easily done independently.
b) Assign projects that encourage research and discovery.
c) Provide materials to assist in research and discovery.
d) Teach skills effectively: reading, writing, research, etc. This will help to
achieve independence.
5. To build strong relationships with other believers.
a) Attend a spiritually alive church.
b) Provide ample opportunity to build friendships through play dates, co-ops,
and clubs.
c) Teach how to be a good friend and effective communication skills in relation
to others.
6. To understand the value of service and commitment to others.
a) Provide opportunities of service through community volunteer organizations:
nursing home activities department, soup kitchen, animal shelters, crisis
pregnancy centers
b) Teach on commitment and find a place for them to have to commit to being
involved for a short length of time.
c) Help them understand attitude, commitment, and obedience go hand in hand.
Four Winds Academy
Goals and Vision
General Vision
1. To be able to further our personal relationship with Jesus in all aspects of our
lives.
2. To be able to communicate the gospel effectively and in a culturally relevant
way in society.
3. To be solid in the foundations of our faith by having a Christian worldview.
4. To be life-long independent learners and, therefore, successful in all we do.
5. To build strong relationships with fellow believers.
6. To understand the value of service and committment to others.
Goals to attain the vision
1. To be able to further our personal relationship with Jesus in all aspects of our
lives.
a) Teach the necessity of a personal quiet time each day.
b) Be involved in a healthy, spiritually alive church family.
c) Have a daily family prayer time.
d) Start and maintain Bible and Prayer journals at all ages.
2. To be able to communicate the gospel effectively and in a culturally relevant
way in society.
a) Teach a thorough understanding of the gospel and the law.
b) Create opportunities to be evangelistic as a family. Encourage the sharing
of their faith to their friends and others that they meet.
c) Teach them to be culturally relevant by using the newspapers, magazines,
music, and videos as tools to understand the cultural trends.
d) Be open and sensitive to questions they may have about what they see and
hear.
e) Choose curriculum that is fresh and makes God relevant to all they are
learning.
f) To teach a variety of communication skills including: writing, speech, drama,
music, art, and debate.
3. To be solid in the foundation of our faith by having a Christian world view.
a) Attend World View Weekends and Summit camps at appropriate ages.
b) Choose material that clearly represents and defends our Christian heritage.
c) Educate them on other religions and world views so they can compare and
contrast and understand truth.
d) Buy current event materials taught from a Christian World View.
e) Provide videos that teach these concepts.
4. To be lifelong independent learners and, therefore, successful in all we do.
a) Choose curriculum that is self-contained and can be easily done independently.
b) Assign projects that encourage research and discovery.
c) Provide materials to assist in research and discovery.
d) Teach skills effectively: reading, writing, research, etc. This will help to
achieve independence.
5. To build strong relationships with other believers.
a) Attend a spiritually alive church.
b) Provide ample opportunity to build friendships through play dates, co-ops,
and clubs.
c) Teach how to be a good friend and effective communication skills in relation
to others.
6. To understand the value of service and commitment to others.
a) Provide opportunities of service through community volunteer organizations:
nursing home activities department, soup kitchen, animal shelters, crisis
pregnancy centers
b) Teach on commitment and find a place for them to have to commit to being
involved for a short length of time.
c) Help them understand attitude, commitment, and obedience go hand in hand.
Time Management
I've noticed lately the need for a lot of attention to time management. I kept track, one day, of all that needed to be done and I have to say, I'm not sure how I did it. There aren't enough hours in the day! For example, just today, this was my schedule so far (it's now 11 am):
6 am wake up and have quiet time
7 am left for the gym
8:15 am returned from the gym
8:30 am showered and got ready for the day
9 am started school, did science, history, algebra, and spelling by 11 am also, baked a banana cake for my family for desert tonight (try to do that 2 times a week)
Now, I have to make lunch, finish the laundry, take the kids swimming, make dinner, finish language arts with ds9, do more reading for tomorrow's classes, and spend time reading for myself (I'm working through all of the Jane Austen books again).
I think as moms, we do more before lunch than even the army does all day!!!! It's overwhelming. At first, I want to see what can go from my schedule, but, there isn't anything. I would love to get rid of the gym! But, because I have a heart murmur and I need to loose weight, that can't happen (I want to live to see my grandchildren!). Besides, why is it that we always assume that whatever we, as women, do for us is automatically open to cutting out of the schedule? Well, that's not going to happen! Not in my world!
One thing I've done is take a book I need to read to the gym to read while I'm on the treadmill (I call it the torture device from satan's lair, but, I'm informed that the proper term is treadmill) and that saves me time and helps the miles melt quicker. I also utilize the time at the pool or horseback riding for lesson planning or reading (for me or for school).
I know that one thing that gets put aside is the rest time, the mental downtime I need as a wife, mom, and minister. I really need to make sure that I can fit it in. It's super important! I need to prioritize that and maximize it.
Meals are also something I can't just set aside. My family gets hungry regularly! One thing that has helped me is menu planning (I'll try to post an example) and trying to cook as much ahead as I can. When I buy the hamburger, I brown what I'll need for the week for different recipes and put it in the freezer in labeled containers for the different meals. I also try to clean all the veggies and fruit as soon as I bring them home. I grate up the cheeses I need and put them in labeled containers as well. I precook my chicken and prep as much as I can on Saturdays. During the week, I just have to throw it all together and cook it. I also make sure I make up at least one large pot of soup, stew, or chili to keep in the fridge for when I don't have time to cook for lunches.
There are other things I can do as well. I'm working on maximizing my time so that I can do everything I need to do as well as having time to enjoy my family and have time for myself.
6 am wake up and have quiet time
7 am left for the gym
8:15 am returned from the gym
8:30 am showered and got ready for the day
9 am started school, did science, history, algebra, and spelling by 11 am also, baked a banana cake for my family for desert tonight (try to do that 2 times a week)
Now, I have to make lunch, finish the laundry, take the kids swimming, make dinner, finish language arts with ds9, do more reading for tomorrow's classes, and spend time reading for myself (I'm working through all of the Jane Austen books again).
I think as moms, we do more before lunch than even the army does all day!!!! It's overwhelming. At first, I want to see what can go from my schedule, but, there isn't anything. I would love to get rid of the gym! But, because I have a heart murmur and I need to loose weight, that can't happen (I want to live to see my grandchildren!). Besides, why is it that we always assume that whatever we, as women, do for us is automatically open to cutting out of the schedule? Well, that's not going to happen! Not in my world!
One thing I've done is take a book I need to read to the gym to read while I'm on the treadmill (I call it the torture device from satan's lair, but, I'm informed that the proper term is treadmill) and that saves me time and helps the miles melt quicker. I also utilize the time at the pool or horseback riding for lesson planning or reading (for me or for school).
I know that one thing that gets put aside is the rest time, the mental downtime I need as a wife, mom, and minister. I really need to make sure that I can fit it in. It's super important! I need to prioritize that and maximize it.
Meals are also something I can't just set aside. My family gets hungry regularly! One thing that has helped me is menu planning (I'll try to post an example) and trying to cook as much ahead as I can. When I buy the hamburger, I brown what I'll need for the week for different recipes and put it in the freezer in labeled containers for the different meals. I also try to clean all the veggies and fruit as soon as I bring them home. I grate up the cheeses I need and put them in labeled containers as well. I precook my chicken and prep as much as I can on Saturdays. During the week, I just have to throw it all together and cook it. I also make sure I make up at least one large pot of soup, stew, or chili to keep in the fridge for when I don't have time to cook for lunches.
There are other things I can do as well. I'm working on maximizing my time so that I can do everything I need to do as well as having time to enjoy my family and have time for myself.
Saturday, March 22, 2008
My thoughts on Science for next year
I just had a conversation with a friend about science. It was interesting. I was telling her how I'm currently reading about chemistry because next year I'll be teaching it to my children. As we talked, I realized how much I don't enjoy science. Do my kids feel the same way? It's a question I'm pondering. I don't want them to not enjoy science. Science is really wonderful and awe-inspiring when you look at it with the correct point of view. Is my reluctance to teach it rubbing off on my kids? Is my attitude effecting their ability to enjoy a subject? Here's what I think.
I'm the teacher. I'm the adult. I set the tone. Unfortunately, in science, it's been a struggle for me to enjoy it because I feel as though I've never really understood it. I had teachers who "did their job" but didn't inspire a curiosity an adventurous spirit. It was about the right and wrong answer not about the process. Science needs to be about the process, not necessarily the right and wrong. How many experiments throughout history have failed and other things discovered: penicillian, gravity, the solar system revovling around the sun, electricity. What if they all just looked for the right anwer and everything else was considered a failure?
I don't want that for my kids. I want to inspire them. I want to challenge them. I want them to have, dare I say it?, fun with science. Here's a contingency plan I've been processing on how we'll get there:
1. More nature journaling. We currently nature journal once a week on Friday. We enjoy it. It's fun for us,
but, we don't take the time to do it the rest of the week. I want to add at least one more day. I want to
incorporate art and poetry into our journals as well to make them more interesting and fun. We used to do
that, and I'm not sure why we stopped, but, we will start again.
2. More experimentation. I'm still figuring all of this out. But, since we're studying chemistry, there's so much
we can do. Making ice cream is chemistry (there's an excuse!). I'm looking at books that introduce fun
experiments like that.
3. Read more biographies. Sometimes scientists seem so above us. We can never attain to their stratosphere
of knowledge and know-how. It helps to see them as regular people trying to solve regular problems. I'm
looking forward to finding out more about their lives, who they really were. It'll inspire my kids to see that
they are people just like us.
4. Gardening. We have a walled-in back garden at our house and I brought some seeds from the US. I plan on
learning about composting and growing things in our backyard. I also want to build a trellis for grapes and
climbing roses. This should be a great opportunity to learn about composting, seeds, and how things grow.
Not to mention, it will make our backyard beautiful!
For nature journaling, I already have a great resource. It's called Keeping A Nature Journal by Clare Walker Leslie and Charles E. Roth. I love the way it breaks things down into seasons with really great pointers on making your nature journal great. My kids have seen it and already shown an interest in it.
So, there's my ramble on Science! When I come up with a more concrete plan, I will be sure to post it here!
I'm the teacher. I'm the adult. I set the tone. Unfortunately, in science, it's been a struggle for me to enjoy it because I feel as though I've never really understood it. I had teachers who "did their job" but didn't inspire a curiosity an adventurous spirit. It was about the right and wrong answer not about the process. Science needs to be about the process, not necessarily the right and wrong. How many experiments throughout history have failed and other things discovered: penicillian, gravity, the solar system revovling around the sun, electricity. What if they all just looked for the right anwer and everything else was considered a failure?
I don't want that for my kids. I want to inspire them. I want to challenge them. I want them to have, dare I say it?, fun with science. Here's a contingency plan I've been processing on how we'll get there:
1. More nature journaling. We currently nature journal once a week on Friday. We enjoy it. It's fun for us,
but, we don't take the time to do it the rest of the week. I want to add at least one more day. I want to
incorporate art and poetry into our journals as well to make them more interesting and fun. We used to do
that, and I'm not sure why we stopped, but, we will start again.
2. More experimentation. I'm still figuring all of this out. But, since we're studying chemistry, there's so much
we can do. Making ice cream is chemistry (there's an excuse!). I'm looking at books that introduce fun
experiments like that.
3. Read more biographies. Sometimes scientists seem so above us. We can never attain to their stratosphere
of knowledge and know-how. It helps to see them as regular people trying to solve regular problems. I'm
looking forward to finding out more about their lives, who they really were. It'll inspire my kids to see that
they are people just like us.
4. Gardening. We have a walled-in back garden at our house and I brought some seeds from the US. I plan on
learning about composting and growing things in our backyard. I also want to build a trellis for grapes and
climbing roses. This should be a great opportunity to learn about composting, seeds, and how things grow.
Not to mention, it will make our backyard beautiful!
For nature journaling, I already have a great resource. It's called Keeping A Nature Journal by Clare Walker Leslie and Charles E. Roth. I love the way it breaks things down into seasons with really great pointers on making your nature journal great. My kids have seen it and already shown an interest in it.
So, there's my ramble on Science! When I come up with a more concrete plan, I will be sure to post it here!
Friday, March 21, 2008
New and updated Plans for 2008-2009
Well, after much praying, thinking, reading, praying again, and discussion with dh, I think I've narrowed down what we will definitely be doing 2008-2009.
9th Grade
Teaching Textbooks Geometry
Lightning Literature Early American Lit.
History from 1600-1800 (with lots of reading!)
Trail Guide to US Geography
Art Appreciation, Music Appreciation using some books I've bought from RR
Apologia Chemistry
Writing Strands 5
Spanish and beginning French
PE/Health--not sure yet!
God and Government 1
7th Grade
Teaching Textbooks Algebra 1
Lightning Literature 7
Learning Language Arts Through Literature Green
History from 1600-1800
Beautiful Feet Geography
Art appreciation/Music appreciation
Christian Kids Explore Chemistry
Writing Strands 4
Spanish
PE/Health--not sure yet!
Land of Fairplay
5th Grade
Developmental Math
History from 1600-1800
Beautiful Feet Geography
Christian Kids Explore Chemistry
Learning Language Arts Through Literature Purple
Art appreciation/Music appreciation
PE/Health
Spanish
Land of Fairplay
This, of course, doesn't include our Plutarch and Shakespeare which I'm not done planning yet. We also have art lessons that the kids do with a teacher here. And, of course, our Nature Journaling we do weekly around our house and at various spots in Antigua.
You know, every year I get so excited about what we are going to be learning and studying that I have a hard time focusing on what we're doing now! It's a struggle for me to continue to be excited about where we are and not always looking ahead. The grass is always greener, if you will!
This year we will completely finish: LLATL for all 3 dc, all our science, all our history, and our math. That is some kind of record for me, I have to say!!! I know that the public and christian schools don't finish their stuff every year, but, I always feel like I've wasted money when we don't! I don't like the feeling of unfinished books sitting there while we pull out the new ones. It's a pet peeve of mine. One I don't think I'll ever get over!
We are year-round schoolers, so this helps us out a lot in finishing, although, we do take our share of time off during the year. Next year it looks like I'm able to come up with the same type of outcome,which is good for little obsessive me!
Happy Easter everyone! Have a beautiful and peaceful holiday.
9th Grade
Teaching Textbooks Geometry
Lightning Literature Early American Lit.
History from 1600-1800 (with lots of reading!)
Trail Guide to US Geography
Art Appreciation, Music Appreciation using some books I've bought from RR
Apologia Chemistry
Writing Strands 5
Spanish and beginning French
PE/Health--not sure yet!
God and Government 1
7th Grade
Teaching Textbooks Algebra 1
Lightning Literature 7
Learning Language Arts Through Literature Green
History from 1600-1800
Beautiful Feet Geography
Art appreciation/Music appreciation
Christian Kids Explore Chemistry
Writing Strands 4
Spanish
PE/Health--not sure yet!
Land of Fairplay
5th Grade
Developmental Math
History from 1600-1800
Beautiful Feet Geography
Christian Kids Explore Chemistry
Learning Language Arts Through Literature Purple
Art appreciation/Music appreciation
PE/Health
Spanish
Land of Fairplay
This, of course, doesn't include our Plutarch and Shakespeare which I'm not done planning yet. We also have art lessons that the kids do with a teacher here. And, of course, our Nature Journaling we do weekly around our house and at various spots in Antigua.
You know, every year I get so excited about what we are going to be learning and studying that I have a hard time focusing on what we're doing now! It's a struggle for me to continue to be excited about where we are and not always looking ahead. The grass is always greener, if you will!
This year we will completely finish: LLATL for all 3 dc, all our science, all our history, and our math. That is some kind of record for me, I have to say!!! I know that the public and christian schools don't finish their stuff every year, but, I always feel like I've wasted money when we don't! I don't like the feeling of unfinished books sitting there while we pull out the new ones. It's a pet peeve of mine. One I don't think I'll ever get over!
We are year-round schoolers, so this helps us out a lot in finishing, although, we do take our share of time off during the year. Next year it looks like I'm able to come up with the same type of outcome,which is good for little obsessive me!
Happy Easter everyone! Have a beautiful and peaceful holiday.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
It's that time again!
Where I live, Easter and Holy Week are the biggest weeks of the year. It's such a cultural experience each year for us that I really love it! Here are some pictures of Antigua this time of year. I love the sawdust carpets (yes, folks, that is colored sawdust that they use to make those incredible carpets all over the streets of Antigua! Also, I love the costumes and pageantry. It's really an incredible sight. On Easter Sunday, there is the final procession proclaiming Jesus' resurrection from the dead. That's a great one! The music is happy and joyful and the people rejoice in the streets. It's fun!
What am I doing for ME!?
Someone on a message board I frequent posted about what do we do, amidst all the planning for our kids, to plan for ourselves and our goals and education. I loved that! As moms, we usually don't plan and try to fit ourselves in amongst the daily grind of life. As a wise college professor once told me, "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail." If my education is put on the back burner and I'm not a life-long, motivated, active learner, how can I expect my kids to think it's important enough for them? I can't. They will follow my example. So, here are some goals for me:
Learn something new:
--start learning to play chords on the piano
--landscape my back garden
Continuing Education:
--get all my past-tense Spanish verbs down so I don't have to think so hard!
--continue reading about Russian History, start journaling
--learn more about herbs and natural remedies
Character development:
--work with our family on specific character traits every month with journaling, reading, and accountability to each other
I'm hoping to come up with a plan of action, so to speak, on how I will start to accomplish these things. I know that I need accountability, so here it is. I've put it out there for anyone to see. That will, hopefully, make me motivated to begin a plan of attack!
Learn something new:
--start learning to play chords on the piano
--landscape my back garden
Continuing Education:
--get all my past-tense Spanish verbs down so I don't have to think so hard!
--continue reading about Russian History, start journaling
--learn more about herbs and natural remedies
Character development:
--work with our family on specific character traits every month with journaling, reading, and accountability to each other
I'm hoping to come up with a plan of action, so to speak, on how I will start to accomplish these things. I know that I need accountability, so here it is. I've put it out there for anyone to see. That will, hopefully, make me motivated to begin a plan of attack!
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Happenings here!
Well, we finally made it back from our first break in 2 and a half years! Minnesota was beautiful, but, I have to say, very very cold. And to top it off, the car someone let us use didn't have heat! God has a sense of humor, doesn't he? Needless to say, we are very glad to get back to sunny, warm Guatemala. It was a good trip, and we accomplished much, but, I'll be glad to get back into the swing of things here again.
During our trip, we didn't do much schooling. We brought some books in the event that we had some time to do some school, but, it just didn't happen. We did visit the Science Museum in St. Paul, and did some fun educational activities including visiting the co-op I helped to start several years ago. Boy, do I miss the friendships and support I had back then.
Good things are happening here. We have 2 new families moving in close to us who are home schoolers! That's an answer to prayer for me and my dc, we don't know many here to home school, most send their kids to the missionary school in the City. It's expensive for us, and, I just love home schooling!!!! I'm meeting with one of the families tomorrow to talk to them about how to go about it and help them with some curriculum. I'm looking forward to it.
While we were home, I made our final curriculum choices. We are going to go with everything except Singapore Math. I've decided to do Developmental Math with my ds who is an extremely visual learner and loves hands-on things. It will be a supplement to what I already have and I think with the two together, it will work really well.
I am now endeavoring to piece together my history things and see what else I might need in way of supplements, but, I think I'm doing okay with all of that as well.
Tomorrow we get back to it. I'm overwhelmed by what needs to be done in the next several months, but, I know it will all come together and I constantly remind myself that public schools do not finish their curriculum by the end of the year, so I don't need to worry so much about that. I do want to get to a good stopping point for my dc so that they don't have holes, though, and I'm going to spend the next few weeks going through everything and determining the good stopping point. Whew! I'm going to be busy.
I hope to start posting our weekly report to keep myself accountable as to what we are accomplishing and doing. Also, I want to start processing through writing my thoughts about Charlotte Mason and her methods. I need to be inspired again to keep on the track we started so long ago!
During our trip, we didn't do much schooling. We brought some books in the event that we had some time to do some school, but, it just didn't happen. We did visit the Science Museum in St. Paul, and did some fun educational activities including visiting the co-op I helped to start several years ago. Boy, do I miss the friendships and support I had back then.
Good things are happening here. We have 2 new families moving in close to us who are home schoolers! That's an answer to prayer for me and my dc, we don't know many here to home school, most send their kids to the missionary school in the City. It's expensive for us, and, I just love home schooling!!!! I'm meeting with one of the families tomorrow to talk to them about how to go about it and help them with some curriculum. I'm looking forward to it.
While we were home, I made our final curriculum choices. We are going to go with everything except Singapore Math. I've decided to do Developmental Math with my ds who is an extremely visual learner and loves hands-on things. It will be a supplement to what I already have and I think with the two together, it will work really well.
I am now endeavoring to piece together my history things and see what else I might need in way of supplements, but, I think I'm doing okay with all of that as well.
Tomorrow we get back to it. I'm overwhelmed by what needs to be done in the next several months, but, I know it will all come together and I constantly remind myself that public schools do not finish their curriculum by the end of the year, so I don't need to worry so much about that. I do want to get to a good stopping point for my dc so that they don't have holes, though, and I'm going to spend the next few weeks going through everything and determining the good stopping point. Whew! I'm going to be busy.
I hope to start posting our weekly report to keep myself accountable as to what we are accomplishing and doing. Also, I want to start processing through writing my thoughts about Charlotte Mason and her methods. I need to be inspired again to keep on the track we started so long ago!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)