Last year, we took part in the Scholastic Thanksgiving Webcast as part of our November activities. We were able to watch a live production of an interview with "Pilgrims," see various buildings and tools that were used during the Pilgrim era, and learn a little about their way of life.
Last week, I received an email announcing that the Thanksgiving activities were available again this year. One example of an upcoming activity takes place on November 9th at 1 p.m. ET. There is a "Tour the Wampanoag Homesite" that will be available for viewing online. The website offers many other interesting activities and is really a fun way of learning a little about the past. For those of you interested in signing up, follow the link here. This will take you to the sign-up page.
We received our first Pilgrim email today. It is a letter from a Pilgrim child telling about the journey on the ship to the New World. This letter has links to a Thanksgiving unit and other audio versions of "letters from Pilgrims." We look forward to following the site a few days at a time up until our Thanksgiving break. It will be a chance to see what we remember from last year's unit and what new things we can discover.
Showing posts with label home school. Show all posts
Showing posts with label home school. Show all posts
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Monday, October 31, 2011
Great Website
Some time back I stumbled upon a home school blog called Practical Pages. It is a great site to find ideas for art ideas, notebooks, lap books, etc. If you click on the above link, it will take you to the "Sketch Tuesday" for this week. I signed up for her newsletter and the "Sketch Tuesday" posts are my favorite. She sends out ideas that sparks a creativity to help bolster up our weekly (or at least we are trying to do it weekly) art lesson.
The following pictures are of the Sketch Tuesday ideas that we have completed so far. For each idea, we first made a list on the board of various items. Then we started drawing. We have completed a brown page, a blue page and a green page.
The following pictures are of the Sketch Tuesday ideas that we have completed so far. For each idea, we first made a list on the board of various items. Then we started drawing. We have completed a brown page, a blue page and a green page.
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| JJ's brown |
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| Brown by Savannah Notice the "brown" Oklahoma. This stems from the extreme drought we have been having. |
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| Savannah's green Now if you notice Missouri is green. She always said that Missouri was taking all the rain and wouldn't share! |
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| JJ's green |
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| Savannah's Blue Jay |
Friday, October 28, 2011
Into Term 2
Well, Term 1 is over, fall break is through, and have almost 2 weeks behind us for Term 2. It has been a few weeks since my last post because I actually took the time and relaxed (at least more than usual) during this break. Usually, I am always planning for the next round of lessons, but I decided to just take a break. I made sure the gist of my plans for the first week were already completed before fall break started. I wanted to take the time to evaluate our progress/feelings about the home school calendar change so far.
First off, as for the idea of having the longer breaks...it is/was wonderful! I asked the kids how they liked the new 9-week straight terms with longer breaks in between and here are their responses:
Savannah said, "I loved it. It was much easier. I needed the break."
JJ's response was "You feel more refreshed and relaxed because you have one big long break."
Jason and I both agree that the year long method of scheduling is a great improvement. Some of the advantages that I have found so far are:
First off, as for the idea of having the longer breaks...it is/was wonderful! I asked the kids how they liked the new 9-week straight terms with longer breaks in between and here are their responses:
Savannah said, "I loved it. It was much easier. I needed the break."
JJ's response was "You feel more refreshed and relaxed because you have one big long break."
Jason and I both agree that the year long method of scheduling is a great improvement. Some of the advantages that I have found so far are:
- We can actually finish units and not be interrupted by shortened weeks. When we were trying to follow the regular local school year calendar, it seemed like we had shortened weeks constantly. The public school gets off for holidays as well as teacher meetings so every time we turned around, we had a day off. I am not complaining about the days off because believe me I look forward to days off just as much as the kiddos, but it seemed to really disrupt our normal flow of school because the random days off were constant.
- We had something to look forward to....we knew that we would be working really hard for 9 weeks and that the hard work would be rewarded with a relaxing extended break.
- We are also able to fit our schedule more along the lines of my husbands job. As a handyman, it is really hard for Jason to schedule time off in the warmer summer months. With this schedule we will be planning our winter break as an extended break during one of Jason's less busy times...the holiday season. We will have a full week off at Thanksgiving (instead of the traditional Thursday and Friday),and we will take 3 weeks during the December/New Year time frame.
- Many subjects/lesson ideas are just better taught in a full week session. Maybe it is just old habit of a traditional 5 day a week lesson plan, but (for example) spelling lessons fit a lot better when you have a full week to complete it. When it comes to spelling, we have an order of doing things. We introduce our words on Monday with a "pretest" to see what words they know and what words they need to practice. We practice the missed words that day. On Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, their spelling book provides an activity for extra practice. We do another review-practice test on Thursday and have the final test on Friday. Even as a public school elementary teacher, it was always frustrating to have the week shortened by losing a Monday or a Friday to break. You end up either shortening the lesson for the spelling unit in order to get it done, or you have to extend the unit into 2 weeks. Of course, the problem with extending the unit is that there are typically 34-36 units in a spelling book which accounts for the exact number of school weeks in a school year. As for shortening the lessons, if there are words that the kids are having trouble spelling, they need that extra day to practice and prepare before being tested.
I will stop there for now with advantages. As for disadvantages to our new calendar, the one biggie that I noticed was the "getting back into the swing of things" lag. I knew that it would be a possibility and was actually expecting it. While I was excited to get back to work, the kids were thoroughly enjoying their free time. Part of it is that we had finally had some relief from the extreme heat and drought that was happening here in Oklahoma. (We actually had rain!) The back to school lag was not bad and would be compared to coming back to school after a 3 day weekend...getting used to getting up earlier and going to bed earlier...those kinds of things. So, the one idea that we have of trying to combat it is to have the first week a shortened Wednesday to Friday week and add the missing 2 days to the end of the session. It is a promising proposal because that would give us 2 days at the end that would strictly be for wrapping up the lessons. I am still working out the logistics of it, but it is a promising possibility for Term 3.
In a nutshell, I am really pleased with the change so far. I am sure that as time goes on and new changes and scenarios arise we will be forced to adjust, but that helps make home schooling more interesting and fun!
Sunday, September 25, 2011
1st Quarter Down!...3 more to go!
Yeah! Our first quarter is winding up and a good long break is here!
This year we decided to change up our family home school yearly calendar and tried a new tactic. First a little background...This summer turned out to be a dreadfully hot, unbearably long summer. It was actually too hot to even go swimming. Oklahoma set a new record for days over 100 degrees...I am not sure exactly how many we ended up with because lost track after we broke the previous record of 50 days form back in 1985. It was big news on the stations around here. Every day the news anchors would come up with some way to let us know that is was really hot..."We are one more day closer to breaking that record," " Only ___ more days to go before we break that record for number of days over 100 degrees," etc. The worst part was that we had absolutely NO RAIN.
I have never experienced a summer like this one. The fields around our area were bear where there were usually vast amounts of cattle grazing vegetation. Even the ponds were close to drying up or were dry. (Fortunately, the 2 ponds in our fields kept enough water to keep the fish alive.) However, as you travel around the region, you see the toll the hot, dry summer has played on the ponds that are empty and the grounds that are cracked. Our own yard is practically barren of grass and only has a few remaining weeds that are hanging on the for green look! We have sunken areas that were not there before and long breaks/cracks that run through our yard. That HOT, DRY summer is what helped us make the decision to draw up our new home school calendar.
Oklahoma City public schools adopted a new school calendar this year. They decided to go to the year-long school calendar that would spread the number of school days out throughout the year. It has less focus on a long summer break and has more extended breaks during the year.
Since the hot summer kept us sort of house bound this year, the kids were bored and that was when we opted to start school on July 18th and begin our quest of the year-long school calendar. Our first quarter which ends Tuesday was from July 18th to September 27th. It was a straight 9-week quarter with the exception of a Friday and Monday off for Labor Day. We will now have a little less than 3 weeks off.
The rest of the school year will look like this:
Quarter 2: October 24 to December 23 with one week off for Thanksgiving
Winter Break: December 24 to January 22 (3 week break)
Quarter 3: January 16 to March 16
Spring Break: March 17 to April 15
Quarter 4: April 16 to June 15
Summer Break: June 16 to July 29
Then we will start our school year (2012-2013) after the 6-week summer break on July 30th.
At first, the kids were not crazy about the idea of "losing" their summer break. We took the time to have a "family discussion" about the positive and negatives of the new calendar. Once they realized that they would have a long break after only one quarter, they decided that it was as great idea. They would be able to take their first break when the weather was nicer and camping out was more of an option,
Well...the first break is here. Just a bit more odds and ends to tie up in the first session, and we are done! The weather has finally cooled, and we even had a couple of inches of rain this week. The kiddos are looking forward to setting up the tent in the yard. Of course, we are still on a "burn-ban" so there are no camp fires allowed which they are a little bummed about. I have to say that I am looking forward to the break, too. (Maybe even more than the kids!) While I love home schooling, I certainly like the relaxed days of no scheduled expectations. Just good ol' sweatshirt wearin', coffee drinkin' mornings to laze around before the day really begins. Look out break....here we come!
This year we decided to change up our family home school yearly calendar and tried a new tactic. First a little background...This summer turned out to be a dreadfully hot, unbearably long summer. It was actually too hot to even go swimming. Oklahoma set a new record for days over 100 degrees...I am not sure exactly how many we ended up with because lost track after we broke the previous record of 50 days form back in 1985. It was big news on the stations around here. Every day the news anchors would come up with some way to let us know that is was really hot..."We are one more day closer to breaking that record," " Only ___ more days to go before we break that record for number of days over 100 degrees," etc. The worst part was that we had absolutely NO RAIN.
I have never experienced a summer like this one. The fields around our area were bear where there were usually vast amounts of cattle grazing vegetation. Even the ponds were close to drying up or were dry. (Fortunately, the 2 ponds in our fields kept enough water to keep the fish alive.) However, as you travel around the region, you see the toll the hot, dry summer has played on the ponds that are empty and the grounds that are cracked. Our own yard is practically barren of grass and only has a few remaining weeds that are hanging on the for green look! We have sunken areas that were not there before and long breaks/cracks that run through our yard. That HOT, DRY summer is what helped us make the decision to draw up our new home school calendar.
Oklahoma City public schools adopted a new school calendar this year. They decided to go to the year-long school calendar that would spread the number of school days out throughout the year. It has less focus on a long summer break and has more extended breaks during the year.
Since the hot summer kept us sort of house bound this year, the kids were bored and that was when we opted to start school on July 18th and begin our quest of the year-long school calendar. Our first quarter which ends Tuesday was from July 18th to September 27th. It was a straight 9-week quarter with the exception of a Friday and Monday off for Labor Day. We will now have a little less than 3 weeks off.
The rest of the school year will look like this:
Quarter 2: October 24 to December 23 with one week off for Thanksgiving
Winter Break: December 24 to January 22 (3 week break)
Quarter 3: January 16 to March 16
Spring Break: March 17 to April 15
Quarter 4: April 16 to June 15
Summer Break: June 16 to July 29
Then we will start our school year (2012-2013) after the 6-week summer break on July 30th.
At first, the kids were not crazy about the idea of "losing" their summer break. We took the time to have a "family discussion" about the positive and negatives of the new calendar. Once they realized that they would have a long break after only one quarter, they decided that it was as great idea. They would be able to take their first break when the weather was nicer and camping out was more of an option,
Well...the first break is here. Just a bit more odds and ends to tie up in the first session, and we are done! The weather has finally cooled, and we even had a couple of inches of rain this week. The kiddos are looking forward to setting up the tent in the yard. Of course, we are still on a "burn-ban" so there are no camp fires allowed which they are a little bummed about. I have to say that I am looking forward to the break, too. (Maybe even more than the kids!) While I love home schooling, I certainly like the relaxed days of no scheduled expectations. Just good ol' sweatshirt wearin', coffee drinkin' mornings to laze around before the day really begins. Look out break....here we come!
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Math, Science, Vocabulary, and Geography Site
In our History and Geography, we have been studying the individual countries of the Asian continent. I want my children to both have a good geography background so that when they hear of countries, cities, etc. on the news and in everyday life they have a idea of what area of our world is being discussed. Throughout our study, they have located city/country names like Iraq, Kabul, Iran, Israel, Japan, etc that they can recall hearing about in the recent news stories. This gives them a visual picture of how far away various conflicts or disasters are that are being reported on.
When we began this in depth continent study, I realized how lacking my own geographical knowledge was. I really do not recall a specific "geography" course that I took either in high school or in college. (I am not quite sure how I missed that!) I do, however, remember many of the history courses that I took and remember talking about various countries, but I never really "learned" the countries and their locations. For one thing, I think when I was in school my primary goal was to memorize the facts for the test enough to get a good grade and move on. As an adult, learning has taken on a whole new meaning and interest to me. I actually enjoy taking the time to learn rather than memorize. I find more pleasure in discovering how things work, move, and interrelate.
Because of my lack of geography knowledge, I decided that I would learn as many of the countries and their locations that I could right along with the the kiddos! Right now we are slowly making our way through the largest continent Asia. (There are sure a lot of little countries shoved in that continent!) We have learned many of the larger more common countries and their capitals and are adding more as we go along. We are also studying various mountain ranges, major rivers, and deserts located on the continent.
That brings me to the site that I found. There is a great site that has various quizzes in math, science, vocabulary, and geography. It is called That Quiz. (Here is the link.) We have been using this site to occasionally check our knowledge of the locations of various Asian countries, capitals, and rivers. It gives me a good idea of what exactly the children have really learned and gives them a chance to see their progress as well. There are level adjustments that you can make on each of the quizzes to be able to set it to the age appropriate level for your student. At the end of each completed page you are shown a running total of how many you have answered correctly/incorrectly. When the quiz is finished it gives you a percentage along with the answers that you answered incorrectly. You can then go back through the quiz and have them show the correct answer to see what you missed.
Over the last couple of weeks, I have also used a couple of the other subjects just to check up on some basic knowledge in other areas. I remember now exactly what I missed learning in trigonometry! There is such a wide variety of topics covered in this site that it is a good resource for all ages.
When we began this in depth continent study, I realized how lacking my own geographical knowledge was. I really do not recall a specific "geography" course that I took either in high school or in college. (I am not quite sure how I missed that!) I do, however, remember many of the history courses that I took and remember talking about various countries, but I never really "learned" the countries and their locations. For one thing, I think when I was in school my primary goal was to memorize the facts for the test enough to get a good grade and move on. As an adult, learning has taken on a whole new meaning and interest to me. I actually enjoy taking the time to learn rather than memorize. I find more pleasure in discovering how things work, move, and interrelate.
Because of my lack of geography knowledge, I decided that I would learn as many of the countries and their locations that I could right along with the the kiddos! Right now we are slowly making our way through the largest continent Asia. (There are sure a lot of little countries shoved in that continent!) We have learned many of the larger more common countries and their capitals and are adding more as we go along. We are also studying various mountain ranges, major rivers, and deserts located on the continent.
That brings me to the site that I found. There is a great site that has various quizzes in math, science, vocabulary, and geography. It is called That Quiz. (Here is the link.) We have been using this site to occasionally check our knowledge of the locations of various Asian countries, capitals, and rivers. It gives me a good idea of what exactly the children have really learned and gives them a chance to see their progress as well. There are level adjustments that you can make on each of the quizzes to be able to set it to the age appropriate level for your student. At the end of each completed page you are shown a running total of how many you have answered correctly/incorrectly. When the quiz is finished it gives you a percentage along with the answers that you answered incorrectly. You can then go back through the quiz and have them show the correct answer to see what you missed.
Over the last couple of weeks, I have also used a couple of the other subjects just to check up on some basic knowledge in other areas. I remember now exactly what I missed learning in trigonometry! There is such a wide variety of topics covered in this site that it is a good resource for all ages.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
GREAT Math Learning Site!
A couple of months ago, I was introduced to the website www.kahnacademy.com through another website that I follow. We have only used it a couple of times because we are actually in the process of "reviewing" another online math curriculum. However, tonight on NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams, the maker/creator of Khan Academy was featured in the Education Nation portion of the show.
When the clip came on, the kids said, "Hey...it is Khan Academy...we have that!" I listened to the remainder of the interview/news clip and was reminded of why I was so drawn to the website in the first place. The Khan Academy is a great site for just good old math basics practice. The site has educational videos that correspond and help teach the various math concepts. I must admit that I have not used the video clips as of yet, but I am looking forward to seeing just what they offer in the very near future.
On the website, the Khan Academy has a video portion and also a practice portion. In the practice portion, the student works his/her way through a maze of math topics on various levels. If the student is struggling with the concept or needs to be instructed on the idea, there are videos located on that webpage (at the top of the practice area) that the student can click on to be shown how to work those particular types of problems. As one level is mastered, the next level is opened for practice. The student is give a choice of a 2-3 suggested areas of study, and they choose what they would like to learn and click into the lesson. They are taken through a series of problems on that designated topic. The student is then required to master the topic by getting 10 problems in a row correct. At that point, they are allowed to move on.
Throughout the lesson, the student is earning points and "badges" that pop up on the screen at various times. There are badges for "speed," "answering 12 problems," "going transient," etc. You can then click into your point area to see how you are doing and see how many badges you have earned. The student can also see what he/she has mastered and what they have yet to master. Even I have had a lot of fun with the website. I have been working my way through the math progression ladder myself. I decided go through the site on my own that way I would be able to see exactly what my children would be using with the site. Also, it is fun to be able to see how quickly I can answer the questions and get through the topics.
I will say that I am very impressed with what this site has to offer. It is a wonderful tool for any parent - home schoolers and public schoolers alike. Probably the greatest part of all is that it is absolutely FREE! So, check it out and see if this is a program that could work for you.
When the clip came on, the kids said, "Hey...it is Khan Academy...we have that!" I listened to the remainder of the interview/news clip and was reminded of why I was so drawn to the website in the first place. The Khan Academy is a great site for just good old math basics practice. The site has educational videos that correspond and help teach the various math concepts. I must admit that I have not used the video clips as of yet, but I am looking forward to seeing just what they offer in the very near future.
On the website, the Khan Academy has a video portion and also a practice portion. In the practice portion, the student works his/her way through a maze of math topics on various levels. If the student is struggling with the concept or needs to be instructed on the idea, there are videos located on that webpage (at the top of the practice area) that the student can click on to be shown how to work those particular types of problems. As one level is mastered, the next level is opened for practice. The student is give a choice of a 2-3 suggested areas of study, and they choose what they would like to learn and click into the lesson. They are taken through a series of problems on that designated topic. The student is then required to master the topic by getting 10 problems in a row correct. At that point, they are allowed to move on.
Throughout the lesson, the student is earning points and "badges" that pop up on the screen at various times. There are badges for "speed," "answering 12 problems," "going transient," etc. You can then click into your point area to see how you are doing and see how many badges you have earned. The student can also see what he/she has mastered and what they have yet to master. Even I have had a lot of fun with the website. I have been working my way through the math progression ladder myself. I decided go through the site on my own that way I would be able to see exactly what my children would be using with the site. Also, it is fun to be able to see how quickly I can answer the questions and get through the topics.
I will say that I am very impressed with what this site has to offer. It is a wonderful tool for any parent - home schoolers and public schoolers alike. Probably the greatest part of all is that it is absolutely FREE! So, check it out and see if this is a program that could work for you.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Story of the World Volume 1
Earlier this year, I purchased a new history curriculum that I had read about and researched online as well as heard the praises of in forum that I follow. The children were really excited when we started the book (Story of the World). It reads in a story-like format and follows up with various activities. I liked the fact that the book followed chronological order and thought this was a plus since it seems logical to study what happened in the past in order! However, I noticed from the beginning that the lessons seemed to be very shallow and left out a great deal of historical information.
The main topics in the book only cover the most basic of information. I knew from the beginning that I would need to find supplemental information, but I did not realize just how much extra would be needed. I also begin finding some ideas in the text that did not line up with what I was finding in other books and online. For example, while studying Egypt, I found some name discrepancies when comparing the Story of the World text with another text that we were using to supplement out studies. I was a little cautious after I found this, but I continued with the book. However, after completing our study on Egypt (which my children thoroughly enjoyed), I discovered that some of the lessons that followed were not historically accurate. In an effort to make the book take on the story form, I felt that the author took a lot of liberties in adding information that was unnecessary and did not correspond with what I believed (the stories were of a Biblical nature). At this point, I could not ignore my leeriness of the book any longer.
We have since discontinued our Story of the World history text. I still would very much like the kids to study history in chronological order. While I have been diligently searching, I have been unable to find a written curriculum book that will fit our need. I do want to continue to teach the history as a
"group" lesson rather than having them learn separate topics on their own. Needless to say, I began my history lesson research today. I have created an outline of study that we will work through over the next however many months it takes to bring us to present day "history." I will be using various sites that I have found online as well as documentaries from the library and YouTube.com. I hope to start our independent history study next week.
On a side note, for the next week, we will be using the Scholastic site found here. It is a part of the Black History month activities that they have put together. It is a great lesson/online tour/story activity that you can follow to learn about the lives of slaves and their use of the Underground Railroad. We have already completed part of the site. Not only have my children enjoyed it, I have too. It is really fun to learn new things right along with my children! If you are a home schooler and have not joined the Scholastic Teacher's Site, I would highly recommend it. At Thanksgiving, they had another activity site up that followed the Pilgrims and even had a Live Virtual Tour/Interview that we were able to watch Live online. It was very interesting. Here is some more information on the Scholastic Teacher's site.
The main topics in the book only cover the most basic of information. I knew from the beginning that I would need to find supplemental information, but I did not realize just how much extra would be needed. I also begin finding some ideas in the text that did not line up with what I was finding in other books and online. For example, while studying Egypt, I found some name discrepancies when comparing the Story of the World text with another text that we were using to supplement out studies. I was a little cautious after I found this, but I continued with the book. However, after completing our study on Egypt (which my children thoroughly enjoyed), I discovered that some of the lessons that followed were not historically accurate. In an effort to make the book take on the story form, I felt that the author took a lot of liberties in adding information that was unnecessary and did not correspond with what I believed (the stories were of a Biblical nature). At this point, I could not ignore my leeriness of the book any longer.
We have since discontinued our Story of the World history text. I still would very much like the kids to study history in chronological order. While I have been diligently searching, I have been unable to find a written curriculum book that will fit our need. I do want to continue to teach the history as a
"group" lesson rather than having them learn separate topics on their own. Needless to say, I began my history lesson research today. I have created an outline of study that we will work through over the next however many months it takes to bring us to present day "history." I will be using various sites that I have found online as well as documentaries from the library and YouTube.com. I hope to start our independent history study next week.
On a side note, for the next week, we will be using the Scholastic site found here. It is a part of the Black History month activities that they have put together. It is a great lesson/online tour/story activity that you can follow to learn about the lives of slaves and their use of the Underground Railroad. We have already completed part of the site. Not only have my children enjoyed it, I have too. It is really fun to learn new things right along with my children! If you are a home schooler and have not joined the Scholastic Teacher's Site, I would highly recommend it. At Thanksgiving, they had another activity site up that followed the Pilgrims and even had a Live Virtual Tour/Interview that we were able to watch Live online. It was very interesting. Here is some more information on the Scholastic Teacher's site.
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
School Day # 42
Today was the 42nd day of our school year. It was great! That is about the only way to describe it. The kids worked really hard and we were able to get all of our school work completed smoothly and completely!
We sort of made part of the day into a game. I mentioned yesterday that my daughter really likes a challenge. Well, I have to say that my son does as well (if not more)! Yesterday, we had some left over dishes that I just did not have a chance to get washed. I had helped Jason on a job yesterday afternoon. I had migraine hit while we were gone so I was exhausted by the time we got home. So, I just left the kitchen a mess and went to bed early (we were all in bed by 9pm.). I knew that I had to get it all cleaned up today before I made lunch, so I went through the teaching part of our lesson and told JJ to try to see if he could get his page done before I had a sink of dishes washed. His response was..."OooooKay!" The only rule was that his work had to be neat, or he would have to erase it!
I am not sure if he has ever had his work done so quickly. Savannah later got in on the fun and began racing us to see how much she could get done. I did a load of laundry, finished the dishes, and cleaned up the kitchen this morning...all between lessons. I love when a day goes smooth!
Now...first know that for one thing I know the days have been easier now that I am finally getting caught up on sleep and have a lot less stress since stopping my extra job at Best Buy. I guess at the time I really did not understand how much it took out of me. Now that I am home more, I am enjoying cooking again, I am not having a day of "work-lag" following a long, late night at work, and I am getting things caught up around the house. I am a much more pleasant person and can deal with situations much better when I have my sleep/rest! It is nice to have energy and feel better again.
Secondly...we are in a great groove as far as schedule, curriculum, and having our new classroom. I can't say enough about our convenient new classroom! Well, that is it for day 42!
Home school Idea: If you are having a slow, boring school day, throw a little competition into the mix. For example, with math, let your child make up a math problem for you to do while he/she is doing their own. Race them to see who finishes first (and correctly). It is interesting to see what problems they can make up for you. Or, do as I did and challenge them to complete an assignment before you finish your household "assignment."
We sort of made part of the day into a game. I mentioned yesterday that my daughter really likes a challenge. Well, I have to say that my son does as well (if not more)! Yesterday, we had some left over dishes that I just did not have a chance to get washed. I had helped Jason on a job yesterday afternoon. I had migraine hit while we were gone so I was exhausted by the time we got home. So, I just left the kitchen a mess and went to bed early (we were all in bed by 9pm.). I knew that I had to get it all cleaned up today before I made lunch, so I went through the teaching part of our lesson and told JJ to try to see if he could get his page done before I had a sink of dishes washed. His response was..."OooooKay!" The only rule was that his work had to be neat, or he would have to erase it!
I am not sure if he has ever had his work done so quickly. Savannah later got in on the fun and began racing us to see how much she could get done. I did a load of laundry, finished the dishes, and cleaned up the kitchen this morning...all between lessons. I love when a day goes smooth!
Now...first know that for one thing I know the days have been easier now that I am finally getting caught up on sleep and have a lot less stress since stopping my extra job at Best Buy. I guess at the time I really did not understand how much it took out of me. Now that I am home more, I am enjoying cooking again, I am not having a day of "work-lag" following a long, late night at work, and I am getting things caught up around the house. I am a much more pleasant person and can deal with situations much better when I have my sleep/rest! It is nice to have energy and feel better again.
Secondly...we are in a great groove as far as schedule, curriculum, and having our new classroom. I can't say enough about our convenient new classroom! Well, that is it for day 42!
Home school Idea: If you are having a slow, boring school day, throw a little competition into the mix. For example, with math, let your child make up a math problem for you to do while he/she is doing their own. Race them to see who finishes first (and correctly). It is interesting to see what problems they can make up for you. Or, do as I did and challenge them to complete an assignment before you finish your household "assignment."
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Our New Math - MEP
Wow! MEP is great! MEP stands for Mathematics Enhancement Programme. It is a math program that is used in the United Kingdom. Here is a quote from their webpage introducing the founding of MEP: "Much of the material developed for this initiative is based on a Hungarian Series, edited by Professor Sándor Hajdu at the Petö Institute in Budapest, and published by Müszaki Könyvkiadó. This has been adapted and modified for UK schools with the help of Professor Tibor Szalontai and Rita Szalontai."
As I have mentioned before, we were having a hard time finding a math program for Savannah that we didn't dread. When she began her schooling (K-3rd), she was using Miquon math. Miquon is a program that is a hand-on, fast pace curriculum which uses a lot of critical thinking in their activities. We rarely had a boring moment in Miquon. However, Miquon ended at 3rd grade. Since then, we have struggled to find a math program that worked along the same lines as Miquon. Saxon and Abeka were both more worksheet oriented with problem after problem of practice, practice, practice!
I do understand that practice is necessary, especially with math, but these curricula seemed to over do it a little for us. Savannah was bored, the math took forever, and I was tired of making her do so many problems with a concept that she knew well. ( In all fairness...she usually did not argue about the math, it just took forever because she hated every moment of it.)
I took my question to the forum at www.cafemom.com. That is where I was introduced to the MEP plan. It is a math curriculum that is on line and completely free to use (free except that you do have to print it off). So, I knew that I would be able to try it without having to spend more money on a curruculum that we might or might not like. The website has the student sheets, lesson plans, and even the copy sheet masters for teaching. (I do not print off the lesson plan sheets because I can just use my laptop each day and save paper!)
The website has math levels beginning at "Reception" which would be our kindergarten and going through secondary advanced level mathematics. The Primary Math page divides each year 2 parts (a & b except for reception year) and each part into 3 sections. Each section has a separate link for student pages, lesson pages, and copy master pages. We have not used the copy master pages so far because we just use our white board.
After our first week with the curriculum, I asked Savannah how she liked it. She said that she loved it. She really likes the one-on-one interaction that we (Savannah and I) have with this teaching method. It does not give a short instruction lesson and a page of work to do like most math curricula. Instead, each page is divided into teaching type sessions. We work on a concept, use the board and then she is assigned a section of the worksheet to complete with a time limit. Then you check the work together and move on to the next section. It does have review built in to each lesson, but it is constantly building upon previously learned math concepts. Also, she said she likes having the time limit for each section. She has always loved a challenge so I think the time limit gives her something to work toward and try to beat! (Note: She always loved the Miquon, but prior to starting this curriculum if you were to mention math like Abeka or Saxon...she would quickly let you know that she hate it by the dread you could see written all over her face!)
Conclusion: For those who are transferring from Miquon, this seems to be a great transition mathematics. I searched and searched the internet when I was trying to find a program after Miquon and could not find anyone who had a suggestion as to what to use after Miquon. So, if you are struggling with choosing a math program or just beginning and wanting to find a great math learning tool for your child, give MEP a try.
As I have mentioned before, we were having a hard time finding a math program for Savannah that we didn't dread. When she began her schooling (K-3rd), she was using Miquon math. Miquon is a program that is a hand-on, fast pace curriculum which uses a lot of critical thinking in their activities. We rarely had a boring moment in Miquon. However, Miquon ended at 3rd grade. Since then, we have struggled to find a math program that worked along the same lines as Miquon. Saxon and Abeka were both more worksheet oriented with problem after problem of practice, practice, practice!
I do understand that practice is necessary, especially with math, but these curricula seemed to over do it a little for us. Savannah was bored, the math took forever, and I was tired of making her do so many problems with a concept that she knew well. ( In all fairness...she usually did not argue about the math, it just took forever because she hated every moment of it.)
I took my question to the forum at www.cafemom.com. That is where I was introduced to the MEP plan. It is a math curriculum that is on line and completely free to use (free except that you do have to print it off). So, I knew that I would be able to try it without having to spend more money on a curruculum that we might or might not like. The website has the student sheets, lesson plans, and even the copy sheet masters for teaching. (I do not print off the lesson plan sheets because I can just use my laptop each day and save paper!)
The website has math levels beginning at "Reception" which would be our kindergarten and going through secondary advanced level mathematics. The Primary Math page divides each year 2 parts (a & b except for reception year) and each part into 3 sections. Each section has a separate link for student pages, lesson pages, and copy master pages. We have not used the copy master pages so far because we just use our white board.
After our first week with the curriculum, I asked Savannah how she liked it. She said that she loved it. She really likes the one-on-one interaction that we (Savannah and I) have with this teaching method. It does not give a short instruction lesson and a page of work to do like most math curricula. Instead, each page is divided into teaching type sessions. We work on a concept, use the board and then she is assigned a section of the worksheet to complete with a time limit. Then you check the work together and move on to the next section. It does have review built in to each lesson, but it is constantly building upon previously learned math concepts. Also, she said she likes having the time limit for each section. She has always loved a challenge so I think the time limit gives her something to work toward and try to beat! (Note: She always loved the Miquon, but prior to starting this curriculum if you were to mention math like Abeka or Saxon...she would quickly let you know that she hate it by the dread you could see written all over her face!)
Conclusion: For those who are transferring from Miquon, this seems to be a great transition mathematics. I searched and searched the internet when I was trying to find a program after Miquon and could not find anyone who had a suggestion as to what to use after Miquon. So, if you are struggling with choosing a math program or just beginning and wanting to find a great math learning tool for your child, give MEP a try.
Monday, October 4, 2010
Egypt continues...The First Writing
The Egyptians are known to have the first form of writing called hieroglyphics. Not only did the writing consist of various pictures (which would be very difficult for someone like me who can't draw well), they "wrote" on stone. It would take weeks to complete a message. Not only was the process slow, it produced a very large, heavy missive that had to be stored and/or transported.
The Sumerians also had a style of writing that is considered one of the first to be used - cuneiform. It was a series of dashes, lines, and triangles that stood for various letters. The cuneiform was a little bit easier to do because it was written on a clay tablet. If you messed up, it would be a lot easier to fix it. After the writing was complete, the tablet was baked until it was hard.
Both of the above forms of writing have been preserved largely in effect because of what they were written on. We have hieroglyphic writing that can be studied left from the Egyptians because stone (when protected from the elements) will last for a long time. The same goes with the cuneiform. Stone and hardened clay stand a better chance of lasting through rain, fire, etc. Archeologists and historians can use these preserved writings to learn about the life of ancient people.
Later, the Egyptians came up with a form of paper called papyrus. It was made of smashed reeds. This papyrus was much more conducive to sending messages and recording the history of the people. However, while the Pharaohs were very interested in passing down all that they had done from generation to generation, the papyrus, unlike stone, did not last as long. Many of the writings from the time they started using papyrus have been destroyed. So, we do not have as much written evidence of the life of the Egyptians once the papyrus was used.
Anyway, that is just a brief history of what we have been studying. We had a lot of fun learning about the first writings. We wrote our names in hieroglyphics, and I had the kids write a message in cuneiform to one another. They had to decipher what the other said and respond. We also got out the play dough and practiced writing our names in cuneiform on our clay tablets.
The Sumerians also had a style of writing that is considered one of the first to be used - cuneiform. It was a series of dashes, lines, and triangles that stood for various letters. The cuneiform was a little bit easier to do because it was written on a clay tablet. If you messed up, it would be a lot easier to fix it. After the writing was complete, the tablet was baked until it was hard.
Both of the above forms of writing have been preserved largely in effect because of what they were written on. We have hieroglyphic writing that can be studied left from the Egyptians because stone (when protected from the elements) will last for a long time. The same goes with the cuneiform. Stone and hardened clay stand a better chance of lasting through rain, fire, etc. Archeologists and historians can use these preserved writings to learn about the life of ancient people.
Later, the Egyptians came up with a form of paper called papyrus. It was made of smashed reeds. This papyrus was much more conducive to sending messages and recording the history of the people. However, while the Pharaohs were very interested in passing down all that they had done from generation to generation, the papyrus, unlike stone, did not last as long. Many of the writings from the time they started using papyrus have been destroyed. So, we do not have as much written evidence of the life of the Egyptians once the papyrus was used.
Anyway, that is just a brief history of what we have been studying. We had a lot of fun learning about the first writings. We wrote our names in hieroglyphics, and I had the kids write a message in cuneiform to one another. They had to decipher what the other said and respond. We also got out the play dough and practiced writing our names in cuneiform on our clay tablets.
Friday, October 1, 2010
Working and Homeschooling
I have to say that working, taking care of a house, and keeping up with my husbands business paperwork was very time consuming and exhausting. Or at least I thought it was! When I first began working for Best Buy back in late May-early June, I remember being so tired when I came home from work that I just didn't want to do anything. It seemed to take a full day (the following day) just to recover from an 8 hour shift. I did get used to it after a few weeks and was able to function the day following a long work day.
However, I just thought I was tired then. When we began school in August, homeschooling was thrown into the mix. A while back there was a lady who posted the question (on a forum I am a part of), "Do you think it would work to home school and work out of the home part-time?" I thought...sure why not. I knew I had a husband that would be home with my children when I was not, so it should not be hard at all, right? While it was not too bad during the first moth of school because I was only working 1-2 days per week, the extra work did finally catch up with me. When I was moved to 4 days per week (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday ), I became mentally and physically exhausted.
However, as of yesterday, I am not longer a regularly scheduled employee (Sales Operator/Multichannel Specialist) at Best Buy. I have moved to Occasional/Seasonal. With the position I was formerly in, I usually hit the ground running from the moment I clock-in. There was always something to do whether it be handling an incoming phone call, finding something out for someone, or helping out in areas that just needed a little extra attention. The job was a great position, and I thoroughly enjoyed it because it is active and rarely has a dull, boring moment. If I was planning on working full-time or had to have a job, it is a wonderful position for me. However, I have chosen at this time to resign my position. I have found that when I am giving 100% at work, I am so tired the following day that I lose out at home. I usually worked from 4 or 5 to close. The problem was that close was anywhere from 9:15 to 11:30 p.m.. By the time I got home and settled down, it was after midnight and approaching 1 a.m.. I knew that I couldn't keep up that schedule and be the mom/wife/teacher that I am supposed to be.
After speaking to our manager, we decided that I would stay on as occasional/seasonal. I also told her that I will work on occasion if they get in a bind. Right now my priority is my children. I feel that the hours that I worked (however many or few they were depending on the week) were taking away from my children and my family life. I missed being here to tuck my kids in at night in at night. I missed being a part of the family evening moments like building a camp fire, fishing in the pond, or exploring the field.
I realize that I am very fortunate to have not working as an option. I am thankful that I have a husband that realizes the importance of me being at home with my kids. I so much appreciate my husband and the kids for putting up with my work schedule and accompanying crankiness for the last few weeks.
As far as the home schooling and working question, I found it to be very difficult to keep up with it all. It seemed that nothing was really receiving the 100% that it needed, rather I was being pulled in too many different directions. It was very difficult to be a mother, wife, teacher, secretary (for my husband's business), and employee outside the home. I am sure there are those that can do it, but I know that it was/is not for me. Glad to be home again!
However, I just thought I was tired then. When we began school in August, homeschooling was thrown into the mix. A while back there was a lady who posted the question (on a forum I am a part of), "Do you think it would work to home school and work out of the home part-time?" I thought...sure why not. I knew I had a husband that would be home with my children when I was not, so it should not be hard at all, right? While it was not too bad during the first moth of school because I was only working 1-2 days per week, the extra work did finally catch up with me. When I was moved to 4 days per week (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday ), I became mentally and physically exhausted.
However, as of yesterday, I am not longer a regularly scheduled employee (Sales Operator/Multichannel Specialist) at Best Buy. I have moved to Occasional/Seasonal. With the position I was formerly in, I usually hit the ground running from the moment I clock-in. There was always something to do whether it be handling an incoming phone call, finding something out for someone, or helping out in areas that just needed a little extra attention. The job was a great position, and I thoroughly enjoyed it because it is active and rarely has a dull, boring moment. If I was planning on working full-time or had to have a job, it is a wonderful position for me. However, I have chosen at this time to resign my position. I have found that when I am giving 100% at work, I am so tired the following day that I lose out at home. I usually worked from 4 or 5 to close. The problem was that close was anywhere from 9:15 to 11:30 p.m.. By the time I got home and settled down, it was after midnight and approaching 1 a.m.. I knew that I couldn't keep up that schedule and be the mom/wife/teacher that I am supposed to be.
After speaking to our manager, we decided that I would stay on as occasional/seasonal. I also told her that I will work on occasion if they get in a bind. Right now my priority is my children. I feel that the hours that I worked (however many or few they were depending on the week) were taking away from my children and my family life. I missed being here to tuck my kids in at night in at night. I missed being a part of the family evening moments like building a camp fire, fishing in the pond, or exploring the field.
I realize that I am very fortunate to have not working as an option. I am thankful that I have a husband that realizes the importance of me being at home with my kids. I so much appreciate my husband and the kids for putting up with my work schedule and accompanying crankiness for the last few weeks.
As far as the home schooling and working question, I found it to be very difficult to keep up with it all. It seemed that nothing was really receiving the 100% that it needed, rather I was being pulled in too many different directions. It was very difficult to be a mother, wife, teacher, secretary (for my husband's business), and employee outside the home. I am sure there are those that can do it, but I know that it was/is not for me. Glad to be home again!
Monday, September 27, 2010
School Update!
Well...I have to say that having a school room set aside is a great addition to our learning experience. We all seem to be enjoying school so much morer. Daddy is even more involved since he is teaching the morning class first thing each day. We all make sure we are up and dress for school to start on-time!
Our schedule is really working well also. We have our set aside times for each subject as well as our breaks, and we ALWAYS follow the break schedule. The kids make sure of that! J
We have changed/added a few different school books since the beginning of the school year. For JJ, we added the Pathway Reading Series. While he was enjoying the Harcourt reading book, I decided to get him a reading series with a corresponding workbook that would allow me to better check his writing and comprehension. This way I have a pre-designed set of questions (and answers) that I can use and be able to have him answer instead of having to make up everything. It is a real time saver for me. Also, the Pathway series was the series that I used with my daughter when she was in 2nd grade. The series is put out by the Amish. J.J. had already completed one of the books last year, and my husband and I like the series and decided we did not want to miss the opportunity for J.J. to use the rest of the set, too.
We also added the Abeka Language book. We were doing the Emma Serl Primary Language Lessons, but we had reached the half-way point in the book which is where 3rd grade begins. The writing/reading portion of the remaining lessons are in cursive which we are just beginning. Instead of having a daily language session that was extra taxing as far as the amount of writing required and having to decipher cursive, we decided to begin the Abeka Language for 2nd grade. The Abeka Language focuses more on grammar and will give him extra practice on sentence structure and the parts of a sentence. This will be a great addition to his curriculum (and he really likes it!).
Savannah also has had a couple of changes. We decided to go ahead and get her going on a reading curriculum. She wanted to continue in the Pathway Readers series as well, so we purchased the 5th grade reader and accompanying workbook. She really enjoys this series. The book she is currently using is Book 5: Living Together. I guess one of the things that my husband and I have always liked about this series is that they are "simple" (not as in easy, but as in the simple life) stories that teach little lessons along the way. The stories are based on Amish farms, schools, and communities. Savannah has always liked the vast amount of stories dealing with animals.
We also went to a sale this weekend and found an Abeka Language Book B (5th Grade) for Savannah. I was able to purchase the teacher's answer book as well as the student workbook for only $10.88. She will be using this book in addition to her Emma Serl Intermediate Language Lesson book. The Abeka workbooks once again have more of a grammar study base. She will be learning more sentence structure and basics. She will even learn diagraming sentences which I have to say she will probably actually enjoy!
We have also decided to put Saxon math aside for the time being. We switched to Saxon math because Savannah absolutely hated Abeka. However, I have found that Saxon is set up much along the same lines as Abeka. The main difference is that Abeka is much more advanced than Saxon grade level wise. I will talk more about what we are now using for math in a later post.
That about sums it up. I think we are set for the rest of the year. We are all settled into our daily routine, and we are all satisfied with our current curriculum choices. And....there are only 2 weeks left in 1st quarter! Only 3 more to go! J
Our schedule is really working well also. We have our set aside times for each subject as well as our breaks, and we ALWAYS follow the break schedule. The kids make sure of that! J
We have changed/added a few different school books since the beginning of the school year. For JJ, we added the Pathway Reading Series. While he was enjoying the Harcourt reading book, I decided to get him a reading series with a corresponding workbook that would allow me to better check his writing and comprehension. This way I have a pre-designed set of questions (and answers) that I can use and be able to have him answer instead of having to make up everything. It is a real time saver for me. Also, the Pathway series was the series that I used with my daughter when she was in 2nd grade. The series is put out by the Amish. J.J. had already completed one of the books last year, and my husband and I like the series and decided we did not want to miss the opportunity for J.J. to use the rest of the set, too.
We also added the Abeka Language book. We were doing the Emma Serl Primary Language Lessons, but we had reached the half-way point in the book which is where 3rd grade begins. The writing/reading portion of the remaining lessons are in cursive which we are just beginning. Instead of having a daily language session that was extra taxing as far as the amount of writing required and having to decipher cursive, we decided to begin the Abeka Language for 2nd grade. The Abeka Language focuses more on grammar and will give him extra practice on sentence structure and the parts of a sentence. This will be a great addition to his curriculum (and he really likes it!).
Savannah also has had a couple of changes. We decided to go ahead and get her going on a reading curriculum. She wanted to continue in the Pathway Readers series as well, so we purchased the 5th grade reader and accompanying workbook. She really enjoys this series. The book she is currently using is Book 5: Living Together. I guess one of the things that my husband and I have always liked about this series is that they are "simple" (not as in easy, but as in the simple life) stories that teach little lessons along the way. The stories are based on Amish farms, schools, and communities. Savannah has always liked the vast amount of stories dealing with animals.
We also went to a sale this weekend and found an Abeka Language Book B (5th Grade) for Savannah. I was able to purchase the teacher's answer book as well as the student workbook for only $10.88. She will be using this book in addition to her Emma Serl Intermediate Language Lesson book. The Abeka workbooks once again have more of a grammar study base. She will be learning more sentence structure and basics. She will even learn diagraming sentences which I have to say she will probably actually enjoy!
We have also decided to put Saxon math aside for the time being. We switched to Saxon math because Savannah absolutely hated Abeka. However, I have found that Saxon is set up much along the same lines as Abeka. The main difference is that Abeka is much more advanced than Saxon grade level wise. I will talk more about what we are now using for math in a later post.
That about sums it up. I think we are set for the rest of the year. We are all settled into our daily routine, and we are all satisfied with our current curriculum choices. And....there are only 2 weeks left in 1st quarter! Only 3 more to go! J
Divisibility Rules Chart
Savannah is deep in the heart of division, fractions, and factoring in school. We have been reviewing the divisibility rules for numbers. (FYI: Divisibility rules are the little "helper rules" that are used to figure out easy ways to know if numbers can be divided by another number.) I found a great mathematics divisibility tool/sheet on a website. It has a list of all the diivisibility rules for the numbers up to 11. The site is here: Divisibility rule site.
I took the sites information and made a compilation of the rules on a pdf to print out for Savannah's use. It's a nice sheet to have around when you are looking to factor a number or when you are just trying to find a common denominator between 2 fractions. We taped the rules sheet right in front of her so that she always has it available.
I took the sites information and made a compilation of the rules on a pdf to print out for Savannah's use. It's a nice sheet to have around when you are looking to factor a number or when you are just trying to find a common denominator between 2 fractions. We taped the rules sheet right in front of her so that she always has it available.
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Story of the World - The Egyptians
In our Story of the World, we are studying the early Egyptians. It has been a very exciting study so far. To think about the building of the pyramids and the overall complexity of the Egyptian culture is amazing. Take for instance their architecture...they built these HUGE pyramids without any of the equipment that we use today. Of course, it took a lot more time and human effort to build these great wonders, but their tools, while much more primitive than ours today, accomplished these pyramids with intricate tunnels equip with "traps" to try to protect the Pharaoh's stash.
One of the activities that we did this week was the carving of an amulet. We carved the scarab beetle, kehper,which was a sacred symbol to the Egyptian people. You can read more about the myth of the scarab beetle here. We also read a book from the library entitled The Scarab's Secret by Nick Would. (Find the Book here)
For our activity, we took a bar of white soap and first drew the picture of a scarab on the top. The pencil did not actually leave a pencil marked drawing, rather it left an indented path. We then used a steak knife to carve around the beetle to make is stand out on the top half of the soap. Tip: We used the cheap Jergens soap. It worked really well because it was soft enough to carve yet firm enough to hold up to the carving.
Here are our results:
One of the activities that we did this week was the carving of an amulet. We carved the scarab beetle, kehper,which was a sacred symbol to the Egyptian people. You can read more about the myth of the scarab beetle here. We also read a book from the library entitled The Scarab's Secret by Nick Would. (Find the Book here)
For our activity, we took a bar of white soap and first drew the picture of a scarab on the top. The pencil did not actually leave a pencil marked drawing, rather it left an indented path. We then used a steak knife to carve around the beetle to make is stand out on the top half of the soap. Tip: We used the cheap Jergens soap. It worked really well because it was soft enough to carve yet firm enough to hold up to the carving.
Here are our results:
Thursday, September 16, 2010
2nd and 5th Grade Combined Home School Schedule
One of the things that I am always searching for is a way to schedule my school day that will incorporate 2 different grade levels. As an elementary school teacher in a public school classroom, you only have one grade to schedule at a time. You teach all your children at the same time and have somewhat of a schedule already set for you with all the "extra" classes and recesses that are scheduled by grade level. However, one of the most difficult things for me in scheduling our school day is trying to schedule both of my kids during the day so that I can help them and teach them the necessary classes without one child's learning interfering with the other.
I have personally searched online for sample schedules to use or at least base our schedule off. I have found some schedules from other home schoolers, but I have never really found any that specifically fit our needs or have come even close. I realize different families have different age groups, different subjects, different focuses, etc. I just wanted to find another example from some one of a schedule that worked for them.
This past week, I spent a lot of time working on and developing a written schedule for us to follow. It allows me to work with each child during their more oral based teaching lessons while the other child is doing their written work. It gives us a set time to know what we are to do and what is expected. After trying it out on day one and adjusting the times accordingly, the following is what we have decided works best for us:
5th Grade Home School Schedule
Here is Savannah's Schedule:
TIME | Subject |
7:15 | Rise and Shine! |
Get dressed, Make bed, Pick up Room | |
7:45-8:15 | Breakfast and Teeth Brushed |
8:25-8:50 | MWF - Bible with Dad |
8:50-9:00 | T-Th - Personal Study Calendar |
9:00-9:30 | Intermediate Language Lessons |
9:30-10:00 | MWF - Typer Island |
T-TH Writing Book | |
10:00-10:15 | Language Workbook |
10:15-10:30 | Break |
10:30-11:00 | History with Mom |
11:00-12:00 | Math with Mom |
12:00-1:00 | Lunch |
1:00-1:40 | Reading |
1:40-2:00 | Spelling |
2:00-2:30 | Science |
2:30-3:00 | M - Cleaning Day |
T - Physical Education | |
W - Music | |
Th - Art | |
F - Free Time |
2nd Grade Home School Schedule
Here is JJ's Schedule(Same early schedule 7:15-9:00):
9:00-9:30 | Math with Mom |
9:30-9:50 | Science |
9:50:10:15 | Spelling |
10:15-10:30 | Break |
10:30-11:00 | History with Mom |
11:00-12:00 | Language Arts, Oral Phonics, Handwriting, |
12:00-1:00 | Explode the Code Lunch |
1:00-1:30 | Reading with Mom |
1:30-2:00 | Typer Island |
2:00-2:30 | Complete Daily Work and Learning at Home |
2:30-3:00 | M - Cleaning Day |
T - Physical Education | |
W - Music | |
Th - Art | |
F - Free Time |
When we first presented the schedule the first thing JJ read was... "Hmm... Break... uh.... lunch .... breakfast." Those are his favorite times!
Of course, these are just sample schedules. This is what we will aim for each day. There are definitely days that will require change and variation...like tomorrow morning's dentist appointment. Some days it will take us more time, some days it will take less. However, the great thing about our schedule is that it seems the days are already running smoother after only 4 days.
For a while, I tried to have a more relaxed schedule, but that is when it seemed that things became more difficult in our classroom. I thrive on a schedule and a prepared day, and my children seem to work better, too! I need the structure and so do my chidlren. That is not to say that we will not have our off days, rather it helps me know that as long as I am doing my part as a teacher and providing an environment conducive to learning and the kids are doing their part by working to the best of their ability, everyone is happier in the long run!
Home School - New Schedule, New Room
This past Monday marked a new day in the Holman house. School has been a little rough this couple of weeks. One of our biggest problems this year seemed to be our "school room" situation. We have been using our kitchen for the last 2 years for our studies. This has worked well up until this year. However, as the kids are getting older and bigger, this area has shrunk. Between the bigger books that they have now (especially Savannah's books!) and the multiple notebooks for each subject, I found that our work area was becoming very frustrating.
This past weekend, Jason decided it was time to make some changes. I was waiting to move our bed back into our room from the living room until we had finished painting and redecorating our bedroom. I had the bedroom mostly cleaned out just waiting for the paint. However, with me working and doing school, painting the bedroom had been put on the back burner.
This past Saturday, Jason took matters into his own hands and painted my room for me. (I dreaded painting this room. Thank you for helping me Jason even though it was not your idea to paint in the first place. For this I am forever grateful!!!)
He also decided that it was time to try something new with our school set-up. He decided to turn our living room into a school room. We still have our television in one corner with our recliner, but everything else has been moved out to make room for our school things. We have our central table for our together work and for me to use as a desk with our "calendar and morning area" behind that. Savannah has a separate work station with her books with her schedule attached to the side. JJ has his own desk with his schedule attached on top (attached with clear contact paper), and his books are on the book shelf set aside as his shelf area. They each received their own new pencil box with all the school items that they need on a daily basis. We hung various posters around the room and bought a 3X4 white board/dry erase board for our board activities.
As far as the schedule, we redesigned our daily schedule (which I will post later). The kids have their times for each subject so that they know when they are working with mom, how much time they have to finish each subject before it becomes homework, and when their breaks are. While we do leave room for schedule adjustment, we have stuck pretty close to the exact schedule so far, and I have to say that the last 3 days have gone very smoothly. The kids know exactly what is expected of them, and their is no question as to what they should be doing and when because they have a schedule. Hmm...organization! I feel better already.
Here are a few pictures of our new school room:
That is about it. The set up of our room makes life so much easier. All of my school things are in one place, and we do not have to put all our books away in another room every time we have lunch during a school day. Thank you again Jason for coming up with the idea for our school room and for helping me set it up!
This past weekend, Jason decided it was time to make some changes. I was waiting to move our bed back into our room from the living room until we had finished painting and redecorating our bedroom. I had the bedroom mostly cleaned out just waiting for the paint. However, with me working and doing school, painting the bedroom had been put on the back burner.
This past Saturday, Jason took matters into his own hands and painted my room for me. (I dreaded painting this room. Thank you for helping me Jason even though it was not your idea to paint in the first place. For this I am forever grateful!!!)
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| Group Table and Mom's Teaching Area |
As far as the schedule, we redesigned our daily schedule (which I will post later). The kids have their times for each subject so that they know when they are working with mom, how much time they have to finish each subject before it becomes homework, and when their breaks are. While we do leave room for schedule adjustment, we have stuck pretty close to the exact schedule so far, and I have to say that the last 3 days have gone very smoothly. The kids know exactly what is expected of them, and their is no question as to what they should be doing and when because they have a schedule. Hmm...organization! I feel better already.
Here are a few pictures of our new school room:
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| White Board, Graph Poster Paper, and World Map |
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| Morning Calendar Activities Including Roman Numeral Date, Tally Marks, Date in two forms, Temperature, and Number of School Days |
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| Savannah's Work |
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| Savannah's Schedule |
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| JJ's Work Station |
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| JJ's Desk and Schedule |
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| Books and File Cabinet with Supplies All in one area! |
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| "A" Paper Post A star is earned for each A paper. The end of the week we add it up for school bucks for the School Store! |
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| Job Chart Record daily completion of chores |
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