Week 2: Cruising Through

Another week down.  I have misplaced my memory card reader and was planning on waiting until I had the pictures, but I'd rather post now while the week is fresh in my mind and add the pictures when I have them. 

We had another very full week.  I am pleased to report that so far we are still loving most everything.  The little girls and Buster made another lap book in Bible and it was as cute or cuter than the first.  I am so glad I made the choice to do an actual Bible study this year.  Much of the material is review, but I like that.  I think we are reinforcing the building blocks that they will need to cover the more complex issues. 

We hit a bump in the road with Language Arts this week.  There appears to be a learning gap between the book Midge used last year and this years book.  The book we had planned to use this year is a 2nd grade book (she is 6 and in 1st) but the book she used last year was the 1st grade book.  The jump is too far for her though.  She is a great early reader but needs more phonetic instruction before jumping into the heavier reading material.  I still haven't decided exactly how I will handle this.  I am researching a couple of options though and for now we are reading, reading, reading, and doing copy work from multiple easy readers.

Chiggie is finishing up Carry on, Mr. Bowditch, which have both enjoyed immensely.  Her curriculum is very straight forward and she really doesn't need much assistance this year.  It's the same for Tea.  She is focusing on her handwriting right now and learning cursive but her reading is already very advanced.  She usually reads a Magic Tree House book a day during her free time.  She has also read the first two Harry Potter books.  I am loving the Horizons Phonics for Boo and so is she.  Right now she is continuing to review the letters and their sounds, but she is having fun and retaining well.

So far math isn't nearly as intimidating for any of the kids as it was last year.  It too is fairly straightforward and only new concepts need explanation.  Both older girls took their first test on Friday so I will know soon how much they are retaining throughout the lessons.

We finished up our first unit in science with the making and eating of a cell.  This activity was of course enjoyed by my candy loving students.  We played vocabulary trivia to help reinforce the parts of a cell and even Boo is really getting it.  This is a favorite for all us so far this year.

We finished up our tour of the White House and Washington D.C. and began exploring the Louisiana Territory with Lewis and Clark this week.  Chiggie and I are reading Streams to the River, River to the Sea, and it is hard to put down.  As a family we have read/are reading multiple short stories and journals about the expedition.  I think the kids are excited to see the settlers moving west, closer to home.

Chiggie made some amazing brownies from scratch including homemade frosting.  This unit is not good for my waist line.  She is having so much fun and gaining confidence in the kitchen.  It is nice for her to see the little kids get so excited that she is baking and eager to try our her creations.

Art was  a little more complicated this week but all ended well.  They drew flower pots with wax crayons and then crumpled up the pictures.  Afterwards they painted over them and then ran the paper under water.  They dried and look really neat.  Next week I hope to find something a little easier though, it made for quite a busy afternoon with so many paintings.

We took the holiday weekend off to get some much needed rest and rejuvenation , but I am already excited for our next week.. This year we have much more concrete evidence of progress than I felt like we had last year.  I think the main difference is that I know more what to look for.