Tis the Season

I love this time of year.  I love the smells, the food, the music and most of all the reason for this season.  When I remember the reason why we celebrate, this time of year has a much deeper, richer meaning to me.  I have thought about ways that I can bring this into our daily learning.  It really is nice that we can begin each class with a prayer, and then talk and reflect about spiritual things.  When we look to heaven for direction, enlightenment comes and that is when true learning happens.  I believe we then are able to see things as the really are and not clouded by the way we want to see them. 

Last night I went and finished my last minute Christmas shopping.  It was the only time I had  alone.  I left after dinner, (7:00 pm) and didn't get home until everyone was in bed (11 pm).  The life of a homeschool mom is exhausting.  I'll be honest.   I don't know how parents homeschooled 15-20 years ago.  There is so much information available at the touch of a button today.  Even Christmas shopping is made easier now.  Most things I have purchased online have been shipped to me in two days.  Incredible!  When I sit and think about that, I am amazed at how blessed we are.  I am grateful to live in this day and time when there is an abundance of resources available to aid in our growth and understanding of things as they really are.

We are a week away from Christmas and I am feeling the anxiety of finishing neighbor gifts, cleaning my home for my in-laws to arrive, finishing our lessons before our 2 week hiatus and all of the items left on my "to-do" list.  I am an anxious person by nature and this is the time of year when I can get overwhelmed.  I am trying to do my best to remember that I need to relax, breath and pray for direction.  As long as we are doing our best to progress forward a little some days and more on other days; God will aid us in our learning as we look to Him. 

October Catch-up

This post is an attempt to catch up on the last month or so.  We have had a wonderful fall, full of fun and memorable activities.  When we decided to call home our new school, I worried about all the fun events my girls would miss.  They very rarely complain about missing out on events at the public school and every time I ask if they want to go back they both yell with an emphatic "NO!"  That is comforting since I never planned, nor thought we would be walking down this road of homeschool.

October we went on some fun field trips.  This was the second year we visited Black Island farms with some other homeschool friends.  We road on a tractor, picked our own pumpkins, played in a pit of corn and slid down huge slides. 

 

This has become a fun tradition that my girls now look forward to every fall.  I have tried to make sure that we have fun memorable activities that contribute to what we are learning in school.

 

One of the things that I remember when I was a child in school, was the Halloween parade.  When Avery and Taylor were in kindergarten and 1st grade, I loved going to the school to watch them as they walked in the parade.  This year, in an effort to fill that void, we decided to have a homeschool Halloween party with some of our fellow homeschool friends as well as our cousins who were off track from their year-round school.  We had such a great time. 

 

 

 We decorated caramel apples, bobbed for apples, made paper bats and played a game that ended with our face in a tin of whipped cream.  The kids had such a fun time and memories were made.  I have realized that I can't worry about the experiences my girls will miss from public school.  It is true, they will miss out on things because we aren't there, but I hope that the experiences we share here at home, at The School of Mom, will forever stay with them.  Halloween...homeschool style was a lot of fun this year!

Day 37

Today is day 37 of our school year.  I just returned home from a church meeting and thought I would document how things are going.  I will be honest, today was a difficult day.  Some days are just harder than others. I think it was a combination of things.  Last week we took a week off for a fall break.  We have been very consistent with our school work and I have found that a week off after 8 weeks is needed.  The break is both a blessing and a curse.  A blessing, because it allows me to get caught up on planning and preparing for the next 6-7 weeks until we are off for Christmas.  It's a curse, because the following week, we have to get back into the routine.  I think today was difficult because we are still getting back into the swing of things.  Today I lost my patience.   My children weren't motivated and I felt like a nag.  I don't like nagging.  By the end of Taylor's math lesson, I was exhausted and tired of working with an unmotivated child. 

Don't get me wrong, I adore my children.  I love them with all my heart, but a parent can only take so much whining before they lose it.  I'm sad to say that I lost it.  It's days like this that I ask myself... why am I doing this?  Every day is different with something new to learn, not only for my kids but for me as well. I am learning a lot about myself throughout this process.  I am seeing all of my flaws, which is very difficult, but I am also seeing great miracles which remind me that I am moving in the right direction.  I have to remember that learning is often times difficult because we are being stretched, refined, and molded into something better.  I want to be better.  I want to be a better teacher, mother and friend.  Tonight Tay gave me a hug and told me, "I love you mom!  Please be my teacher."  Tomorrow is a new day.  I am grateful I get to try again.

Fun Friday

This week we have been studying about the ancient Egyptian pyramids. It  has been so fascinating, especially for Avery.   This afternoon, she wanted to search the library for books on ancient Egyptian mummy's because she wanted to learn more.  

Earlier today we had an activity to make a small pyramid out of sugar cubes.  The girls had a great time constructing their pyramid and even made up a pretend Pharaoh that was buried in their pyramid.  His name is Pugnacious, because he loves to fight.  (Pugnacious is the word of the week because it is an English derivative of their Latin vocabulary word Pugno).  I was amazed that they came up with that on their own.  I certainly had no idea what Pugnacious meant when I was in 2nd & 3rd grade!

Taylor just finished reading a book about Johnny Appleseed.  Since it is harvest season, we decided to do an apple craft to decorate our classroom.  I found this cute Johnny Appleseed craft on Teachers Pay Teachers.  I have found so many helpful ideas on that website!  

Edible Cell

This week we have been studying about the anatomy of a cell.  We learned about all of the different organelles that are part of the cell.  The curriculum that we are using is Exploring Creation, and his week we had a project to complete our lesson where we created an edible cell.

 

This is what we used:

 

Jell-O & Knox Gelatin-   to represent the cytoplasm

Peanut M&M candy-   mitochondrion

Skittles-   lysosomes

Smarties-   golgi body

Fruit Roll Up-   endoplasmic reticulum

Cake Sprinkles-  ribosomes

Licorice Pull and Peels-   centrioles

Round chocolate truffle-   nucleus

 

 I made the Jell-O according to the package and then mixed an extra cup of water and packet of Knox Gelatin.  I sprayed 2 ceramic cereal bowls and filled them with the mixture. I made them the day before we assembled the cell so that it had enough time to become firm.

 

Once the Jell-O was firm, I gave the girls each their bowl and the ingredients listed above and had them gently push them into the Jell-O.  Once their cell was constructed, we flipped it over onto a plate and talked about the different parts of the cell.  The most fun was when they tried to eat it.  This was a great hands on activity and we had a lot of fun with it!

 

The Nile River

We have been into school for 4 weeks now and I feel like we are finally in a good rhythm.  We began a new history curriculum this year.  I have heard a great deal about Story of The World and I thought we would try it out.  At first, it felt a little slow and boring but I realize I just needed to give us some time to get into a groove.  My girls love the many activities and artwork that is part of each lesson.  There is a variety of activities (books to read and craft/art projects to pick from) when teaching a lesson, which I think is why I struggled at first.  But now, I am seeing why so many rave about this history curriculum.  It is very engaging and keeps my girls interested.  That can be difficult to do, especially when teaching history.  

We also started a poetry notebook this week which is part of our grammar curriculum. We are using First Language Lessons level 2.  My girls enjoyed level 1 so we decided to stick with it.  I love the approach and continuous review that is incorporated into most lessons.  We also love the poems.  My daughter recited her favorite poem, that she learned last year, at a recent family reunion talent show.  

Today we began to put together our notebook.  The girls had a great day.  Who knew Friday could be so much fun? 

 

Lake Powell 2014

Every year we travel to Lake Powell with my family.  I always ask myself at the conclusion of our trip..."why do we do this? It is SO MUCH WORK?" Then I get home and watch videos of my children waterskiing for the first time, playing with their cousins and building sandcastles and realize that all the effort is worth it.  We are making memories that will last a lifetime.

I love the freedom that teaching my kids at home gives to us.  If we need to go away for a week, then we work around it. We started school a few weeks before our trip and I was grateful that when we returned it was easy getting back into our routine.  My girls knew what to expect which makes it easier to take a trip and not miss a beat when we get back.      

Here are a few memorable moments from our trip.

Until next year....

Business 101

This morning I was busy doing laundry, preparing for our annual trip to Lake Powell, when I noticed my daughter unusually coming in and out of the front door multiple times.  When I asked her what she was doing I saw a big brown bag full of produce in her arms. "Oh...nothing mom, we are just playing." The girls have a playroom full of toys and plastic produce so I knew something was up.  I didn't fall for it.  

That's when I saw this sign ...

  

My daughter decided to set up a produce stand and sell our fruits and veggies to our neighbors.  I told the girls at breakfast that we needed to "eat" up our food in the refrigerator before we leave for our vacation.  This wasn't necessarily what I had in mind.  I'm pretty sure I paid more than .10 cents each... so my neighbors that bought the produce got a great deal!  I think it is time to include Business 101 into our curriculum.  That said, I have to admire my daughters ambition.  She did make a dollar and is now motivated to sell more.  We either need to raise our prices or grow a garden!

Second day slump

We had a great first day of school! My girls were exhausted and by the time their heads hit their pillows...they were out! When my kids are exhausted, it's best for all of us if I just let them sleep.  I worried about a second day slump and since we had such a great first day, I wanted to keep the momentum going.

We like to start our school time together around 9:00 am, but today we began at 10:30.  This is one of the reasons I have fallen in love homeschool.  We adapt our learning to what we need and those needs change from day to day.  Adapting helps us avoid melt downs both from the kids and from me.  Now I admit that my kids weren't as gung-ho as they were the first day of school.  It's easy to be excited when you have a new school outfit, pictures, and anticipation for a new school year.  How can the second day even measure up?  I admit, it starts with me.  If I want a happy home that is a place of learning...I have to be happy and create that environment.  I set the tone.  It isn't easy and I am continually working at this.  We have done homeschooling for a year now, so I am still a newbie at this.  But something I have found rewarding is that a love of learning has developed for each of my children; they have a desire to know and understand so many things.

I believe reading is key.  If I want my children to blossom in learning, they must be able to read.  My oldest daughter reads with ease.  Phonics are easy for her to recall and she has become a fluent reader.  My second daughter has struggled a bit with her reading.  It doesn't come as easy for her and it requires more time and effort on her part.  I have to be consistent with her each day or her progress is hindered.  Over the summer our library had a fun reading program where if you read so many minutes a day, you could earn a free book.  I thought this was great, but I decided to up the ante.  I told my girls that if they read at least 15 books then they could select a toy of their choice.  They were excited and motivated... and I was thrilled.  Avery wanted a telescope and Taylor wanted a science kit.  They both reached their goals, but I admit that it wasn't easy.  Some days were very difficult and it felt like we were getting nowhere, and other days I found them curled up immersed in a story.  Either way, if  I encouraged them each day and continued to work with them they eventually completed their goal.   My challenge was to find what motivated them.  The last book that Avery finished reading is one of my favorite stories, adapted for young readers.  

Pride & Prejudice💕

 

(I saw her love for Mr. Darcy blossom...so magical!)

This school year I have selected books from a reading list used by Hillsdale Academy.  They are a charter school which publishes all of their curriculum by grade (and a week by week schedule) online.  We don't use everything that this charter school lists, but it has been a very valuable resource for our school. I was so surprised to find my girls  in different parts of the house today, reading their first assigned book.  What was supposed to take two weeks to read...they both finished their book in two days. They will fill their time for now with books of their choosing until it is time to begin the next book.

I think we successfully avoided the second day slump and hopefully we can keep it going.  I'm up for the challenge.  

Below I have listed the reading list  we will follow for 2nd and 3rd grade:

 

 

Second Grade Reading List

 

  Mop Top

Miss Nelson is Missing

Wagon Wheels

Johnny Appleseed

The Hole in the Dike

The Long Way Westward

The White Stallion

The Pilgrim's First Thanksgiving

Apple Tree Christmas

Make Way for Ducklings

Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel

How is a Crayon Made

The drinking Gourd

The One Bad Thing About Father

A Weed is a Flower

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

Annie and the Old One

The Courage of Sarah Noble

The Boy of the 3 Year Nap

Farmer Palmer's Wagon Ride

 

 

 

Third Grade Reading List

 

Marie Curie

Pocahontas

I'll Meet you at the Cucumbers

Sarah, Plain and Tall

Molly's Pilgrim

A Certain Small Shepherd

Snow Treasure

Sasha and the Wolfcub

Louis Braille

Aesop's Fables

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

 

First Day of School

Yesterday was our first day back after a two month summer break.  I have been anxiously awaiting the first day of school.  It is a love hate relationship for me.  I love getting back into a routine, where our day flows easily and we all know what to expect.  I don't especially love trying to adapt to the routine.  It always takes time to adjust and I have to remind myself to be patient.  Yesterday was a great first day!  I am so proud of my girls.  After breakfast we took pictures in our first day outfits.  We let the girls pick a new outfit for their first school day.  They were so excited to put on their new clothes and get going.

We started our class with a prayer and the pledge of allegiance.  After going over the calendar, I read outloud to the girls from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum.

 Then we did some creative work in a first day of school packet that I put together for them.  I love having the girls write down things about themselves, their hobbies, talents, interests, draw a picture of themselves, and then save it to look at the end of the year.  It is a fun marker to look at their progress. They also love it!

We will work on this throughout the week and I will post their pictures.  After they worked on their artwork, we started with our core subjects:

The older girls 2nd & 3rd grade:

Spelling

Phonics

Reading

Language

Handwriting/writing

Latin

Math

History/Science (alternating days)

Prek:

Letters/sounds

Math

Creative play

I will post in more detail about what we use for our curriculum but this is an outline of our day.  

I have to remind myself that not every day will be as easy however as long as we are consistent, persistent and prayerful, we will be successful.  We are looking forward to day 2!

Bedtime stories

Tonight we cuddled up on my bed.  My girls were very sleepy and not in the mood for a bedtime story.  I wasn't giving up...

I opened this book and told the girls how my mom used to read these stories to me when I was a child.  My goal was to try and engage them into anticipation for the story that we were about to read.  They still weren't moved.  

Last week I received a call from a friend, who told me that she was clearing out some old books and wanted to know if I'd like to take a look at them before she gave them away. (Side note...  I LOVE old books.  Let me restate that.  I LOVE classic books.  Books that have meaning and leave a lasting impression upon the soul.  Books that leave the reader inspired to do better).  Needless to say, I rushed over and gave her books a new home.  Some of the books she gave to me date back to 1940.  These bedtime story books were printed in 1950.  

Why does any of this matter?  After I opened the cover and began to read the first story, "Wilfred's Secret," my girls were suddenly cured from their exhaustion.  They listened intently to what I was reading.  I would love to say their sudden interest in the story was due to my fine story telling skills, but that would be untrue.  It was the story.  The premis of the story is about Wilfred and his sister performing acts of kindness for people anonomously.  They call themselves the "Surprise Package Company."  What a novel idea... doing acts of service to others secretly and feeling the joy that comes from helping others. This is good stuff.

The author states in the preface to the book that these stories were "designed not only to entertain but to build character, to lead boys and girls to choose the good way of life, by teaching them to be kind, obedient, honest and truthful."  

These principles are not new, they have been around for centuries, however they are becoming harder and harder to

find in society today.  There is something gratifying about a good story with a moral foundation that fills the soul.  I believe we yearn for it.  We just have to search for it and listen.  I'm glad I didn't give up because my kids did listen.  They loved it and are looking forward with anticipation to tomorrow night. These are the moments I treasure with my kids.  

What is your name?

This year I thought it would be fun to give our school a proper name.  I have been reading Facebook posts recently about other families that have given their school a name...names like "Little Learners," and "Adams Learning Institute."  I have had a few names swirling around in my brain but nothing felt right.  I thought of "Key Academy," in honor of my dad.  As a child, my dad often asked my siblings and me, "What's the Key?" and we would energetically reply..."EDUCATION!"  I thought this name had meaning and sounded somewhat insightful.

One night, while stewing over my selected name(s)  I asked my husband for his opinion.  He wasn't very fond of my choices, which was no real surprise to me.  When it came to picking baby names he was quick to shoot down every single name I offered,  yet never provided suggestions of his own.  While we were debating school names, we suddenly heard the theme song from the movie The Breakfast Club "Don't you forget about me," play in the background.  Anyone who had the good fortune to grow up during the 80's will know this song by heart and magical memories of jelly shoes, feathered hair and florescent pegged pants suddenly comes flooding back to heart.  While singing the lyrics to the song, we looked at each other and knew what our school should be called.   In essence we have created our own little club as we sit down each morning, eat breakfast and learn together.  It's kind of silly and doesn't have much sentimental meaning but it is fun and light hearted, which reflects our family perfectly.  So that is the story of how our little school came to be known as...