Monday I am calling to pull Fairy from CAVA (k12). She will be homeschooled without a charter school as Princess' teacher can not take on anymore students and I do not want to add other teachers and expectations on to my already crazy schedule. That is the main reason we are pulling Fairy early.
I have a full week of lesson plans for all the kids completely outlined. I am as ready as I can be. I know I have to call the school, then on Tuesday I file the paperwork with the state. So I am prepared. But still really nervous as now it is completely on me and there is no real back up. But I know after homeschooling for almost 3 years that I can do it and once I get over the nervousness we will do great.
Fairy will be using Teaching Textbooks grade 3 for math. I had her try it yesterday and she loves it and she is doing well so far. We will also be doing a general math class as a family. I want to ensure we hit all the basics and that all the children are where they should be.
For language arts and reading she will be using Complete Curriculum Workbook 1st grade and Little House on the Prairie. She will be doing the same spelling as Princess so she will be working out of Spelling Workout B.
For science we are continuing as a family to study the human body. This week we will be studying the circulatory system and the digestive system. And in history we are going to be working from Vacation under the Volcano. We will be studying ancient Roman, especially Pompeii. But first we will be making a video of an interview with the caveman and drawing cave paintings.
For languages Fairy, Buddy and Baby Girl are studying ASL with Signing Time. I am currently looking for more ways to teach Fairy more as she is learning the signs very quickly. I am trying to learn them as well but am not doing that well.
Princess is continuing Spanish. Her teacher is ordering Little Pim for her. I know it is a young level but with that, the workbook and the computer programs we have I think she should be covered.
This is going to be an exciting week for our family but I hope it all goes smoothly.
Saturday, November 30, 2013
Saturday, November 23, 2013
School at Home and More Changes
We finished studying ancient Egypt at the start of the month. As our final project we made Egyptian bracelets and amulets from salt dough. The kids had so much fun. I took pictures of them making the bracelets and amulets, but not of them painting them.
I paired Princess and Buddy together. Fairy and Baby Girl worked together. I explained to the older girls I wanted them to ask the younger children the answer first to give them a chance. They worked well together and found all the answers with no fighting.
They used the computer to look up how many bones in the body. The bigger girls looked it up then the younger kids remembered it so that the older girls could write it down.
We are pulling Fairy from the K12 school we have been using. The girls will be working together to complete all the things they know for school.
We also finished the skeleton unit we were studying in Science. We watched Stanley the Skeleton and the kids learned so many of the bones. I took some pictures of them watching, measuring their bones and filling in their lapbooks.
I paired Princess and Buddy together. Fairy and Baby Girl worked together. I explained to the older girls I wanted them to ask the younger children the answer first to give them a chance. They worked well together and found all the answers with no fighting.
They used the computer to look up how many bones in the body. The bigger girls looked it up then the younger kids remembered it so that the older girls could write it down.
Wednesday, November 20, 2013
School on the Go!
We have been so busy and Daddy had a motorcycle accident so I have not posted lately but we have taken lots of pictures so I am going to post them and add descriptions on a few posts. I do not want to over do it.
Princess doing math at the Veterans hospital. Daddy had appointments all morning so I took a crate with our school supplies and we fed the ducks and then sat down to do school. All the kids did great and focused really well. We have had to do this a few times lately.
The kids loved feeding the ducks.
We have also went to a field trip to the local pet store (went to get crickets). The workers were taking care of the snakes and were nice enough to allow the kids to hold one and to talk about their care, though they new we were not getting any.
The two smaller kids played with Lego's as I read from their history book. The older girls worked on math and literature. They finished it up pretty good and listened for the most part though at one point I had to put Fairy and Princess on separate tables because they were distracting each other.
Oh I almost forgot! Her is a picture of our school in a crate!
Princess doing math at the Veterans hospital. Daddy had appointments all morning so I took a crate with our school supplies and we fed the ducks and then sat down to do school. All the kids did great and focused really well. We have had to do this a few times lately.
The kids loved feeding the ducks.We have also went to a field trip to the local pet store (went to get crickets). The workers were taking care of the snakes and were nice enough to allow the kids to hold one and to talk about their care, though they new we were not getting any.
Princes loved the snake. She kept asking if we could get one. I am not getting a snake! Fairy did not want to hold the snake though she did pet him. Buddy enjoyed the snake too and was extremely careful with him. Baby Girl was fine until the snake moved, then she dropped him and refused to hold him or go near him anymore.
Yesterday is the last away from home group of pictures I am going to post. Daddy had more all day appointments and I did not do school at the hospital because the kids were all out of sorts. They finally calmed down when we took Daddy to school last night so we did school at Daddy's school!
The two smaller kids played with Lego's as I read from their history book. The older girls worked on math and literature. They finished it up pretty good and listened for the most part though at one point I had to put Fairy and Princess on separate tables because they were distracting each other.
Oh I almost forgot! Her is a picture of our school in a crate!
Monday, October 14, 2013
Trying Something Old Again
When Fairy was a preschooler and Princess had just started homeschooling we found a great website. The kids loved sitting down around the computer and listening to Ms. Cullen, more than they did just me. We had a plan and stuck with it. Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays were preschool. I used it to set things up and give me some great ideas. We eventually went out and made some of our own lesson plans to add in the other two days.
Now that Baby Girl is showing such an interest in doing school, and Buddy will enjoy it also I have pulled the website back up. They have changed it up a bit and added so much more. It is a great site! We will be using it with the younger to kids this week. We will be working on the Space theme. I think they will love it.
Buddy will also be working some off Lesson Pathways, another great lesson plan site. Here are both their websites if you would like to visit.
http://cullensabcs.com/ninasmommy/DIY_Online_Preschool
and
lessonpathways.com
Now that Baby Girl is showing such an interest in doing school, and Buddy will enjoy it also I have pulled the website back up. They have changed it up a bit and added so much more. It is a great site! We will be using it with the younger to kids this week. We will be working on the Space theme. I think they will love it.
Buddy will also be working some off Lesson Pathways, another great lesson plan site. Here are both their websites if you would like to visit.
http://cullensabcs.com/ninasmommy/DIY_Online_Preschool
and
lessonpathways.com
Monday, October 7, 2013
Been awhile
So I have not been blogging every week like I would like. I am having a hard time because we are so busy.
Princess received her math books and we have to go next week to pick up the last of her books from the charter school. I am thinking I got the wrong level in math. It is pretty easy for her and she is flying through it. We are studying history this month and learning about Ancient Egypt. I think this is going to be a 2 month journey though. She is learning it and loving it. We made the Nile river valley in play do the other day. She wrote a paper on the Planets, though it has taken her a month, she just needs to correct it and it will be good. She had a great thought process but her spelling is horrible. This is a picture of her corn husk doll from Co-Op. They are studying pioneer days.
Fairy was advanced to the spelling part of her Phonics. She is ahead in reading and math. We are behind in History and Science but I am taking my time in those so that we can explore those more deeply. We are also behind in art but I do not like K12's art program, so I do not care about that at all.
Buddy is spelling 3 letter words and loving it. I inserted a picture. We need to focus more on his handwriting as it is sloppy and some of it is backwards. I think he is doing fairly well for only being 4 1/2 though. He is enjoying being in class for co-op and having so much fun with addition and subtraction. He is sitting in on History with his sisters and suprising me with answers about ancient Egypt. He is also trying to teach his baby sister how to write a lower case A.
Baby girl learned to write the Letter A. She goes up the mountain, down the mountain and across the bridge. She likes to do school and loves that she gets to go to an art class at co-op. Though she hates going back to the nursery after class is over. She is such a funny little girl. The picture below is of her writing the letter A.
For circle time we hung up our huge calendar from Lakeshore Learning. It is amazing and it is so much fun to use. We stuck our flag behind it and underneath is a small calendar on poster board for us to work with patterns, plus I take that to co-op. We also have color and shape posters below it.
On one wall I have Buddy and Baby Girl's learning tables. They have nursery rhymes, numbers and the alphabet on their walls. They are also going to get chalkboard paint on part of the walls so they can write on the walls there. Above each child's desk, or table I put a few fun things as well. They have things they made, birthday cards and their graduation certificates from last year.
Here is a picture of our other wall, we have our frog tank on the children's bookshelf that will stay down stairs. The cursive writing chart, so Princess can see it. A few boxes of junk we need to put in the shed. And the bookshelf I am taking upstairs. We still have a long way to go but we are getting there and the kids are still learning and loving it.
Princess received her math books and we have to go next week to pick up the last of her books from the charter school. I am thinking I got the wrong level in math. It is pretty easy for her and she is flying through it. We are studying history this month and learning about Ancient Egypt. I think this is going to be a 2 month journey though. She is learning it and loving it. We made the Nile river valley in play do the other day. She wrote a paper on the Planets, though it has taken her a month, she just needs to correct it and it will be good. She had a great thought process but her spelling is horrible. This is a picture of her corn husk doll from Co-Op. They are studying pioneer days.Fairy was advanced to the spelling part of her Phonics. She is ahead in reading and math. We are behind in History and Science but I am taking my time in those so that we can explore those more deeply. We are also behind in art but I do not like K12's art program, so I do not care about that at all.
Buddy is spelling 3 letter words and loving it. I inserted a picture. We need to focus more on his handwriting as it is sloppy and some of it is backwards. I think he is doing fairly well for only being 4 1/2 though. He is enjoying being in class for co-op and having so much fun with addition and subtraction. He is sitting in on History with his sisters and suprising me with answers about ancient Egypt. He is also trying to teach his baby sister how to write a lower case A.Baby girl learned to write the Letter A. She goes up the mountain, down the mountain and across the bridge. She likes to do school and loves that she gets to go to an art class at co-op. Though she hates going back to the nursery after class is over. She is such a funny little girl. The picture below is of her writing the letter A.
The other thing we have been doing is setting up the class room. I am trying to get rid of clutter and give the children more floor space. I am almost done so I added a few pictures. We still have to take a bookshelf upstairs and get a little more organized.
For circle time we hung up our huge calendar from Lakeshore Learning. It is amazing and it is so much fun to use. We stuck our flag behind it and underneath is a small calendar on poster board for us to work with patterns, plus I take that to co-op. We also have color and shape posters below it.
On one wall I have Buddy and Baby Girl's learning tables. They have nursery rhymes, numbers and the alphabet on their walls. They are also going to get chalkboard paint on part of the walls so they can write on the walls there. Above each child's desk, or table I put a few fun things as well. They have things they made, birthday cards and their graduation certificates from last year.
Here is a picture of Fairy and her desk. I am still organizing so it is not the neatest. On the other side of her desk is Princess's.Here is a picture of our other wall, we have our frog tank on the children's bookshelf that will stay down stairs. The cursive writing chart, so Princess can see it. A few boxes of junk we need to put in the shed. And the bookshelf I am taking upstairs. We still have a long way to go but we are getting there and the kids are still learning and loving it.
Tuesday, September 24, 2013
Homeschooling whys for Our Family
I love homeschooling my children. Some nights like tonight I stay awake and worry though. But I have a feeling no matter where they are I will worry about them and if I am doing the right thing.
I have so much on my plate right now. I have 4 wonderful children I homeschool. A house to clean and care for. We have 8 pets and 2 fish tanks I care for daily. And last but not least I have a husband who I have to love and provide some attention for, or our marriage would fall apart. I also have to teach a class to 9 students and take Nina to school weekly.
I have learned since I first fell in love, that love is something you have to work at to keep. It will be 10 years October 14th since I promised to love and cherish my husband and our love is still going.
My children are the ones on my mind tonight though. Their schooling takes up a good chunk of my time.
Princess chose to be traditionally homeschooled this year and we went through a public charter. The teacher assigned to us is awesome. She found out we planned to read the Little House on the Prairie series for Lit and she brought in her own books for Princess to use. We get to pick and choose what we want to do with very little over sight. Princess and I are loving her new math program, though I think I should have picked a higher grade as most of the work seems like 2nd grade stuff. She is studying ancient Egypt in History and when we are done with that we will be studying the human body in Science.
Fairy is still using k12 which is a public school at home program and I have very little say in what we do. But she is enjoying it and I love watching her learn.
Buddy decided this year was the year he wanted to learn to read. He is picking it up well though we are having to come up with some pretty active ways to learn reading.
Baby Girl wants to do school so bad. So she will sit in on lessons with the other kids and I print worksheets daily so she can have work to do as well. I do help her with them and she seems really interested in doing the worksheets correctly this year, though I do not expect it.
All of that is just for normal learning and done by noon, but as soon as nap is over we are usually looking something up or answering questions, singing the alphabet, signing the alphabet or teaching the kids to cook.
We are busy and happy, but it is a lot of work to keep on top of everything. I do not think there are enough hours in the day. I feel almost always behind. But watching my children learn and grow, which they were not doing in public school, is so much fun.
This is why when people say I should put my children in public school I say no thank you. My kids are active, everyday learners. We learn everywhere we go. The store, zoo, amusement park, regaular park, even the back yard is a place to pick up more knowledge. While I could do that with them in public school it was not as fun for us. Learning has become fun to our family again.
Homeschooling, keeping up with 4 kids, 8 pets and a husband, plus the house is hard work. It is not something everyone wants or should do. But for those that do want this life all the hard work and love put into it is worth it.
I have so much on my plate right now. I have 4 wonderful children I homeschool. A house to clean and care for. We have 8 pets and 2 fish tanks I care for daily. And last but not least I have a husband who I have to love and provide some attention for, or our marriage would fall apart. I also have to teach a class to 9 students and take Nina to school weekly.
I have learned since I first fell in love, that love is something you have to work at to keep. It will be 10 years October 14th since I promised to love and cherish my husband and our love is still going.
My children are the ones on my mind tonight though. Their schooling takes up a good chunk of my time.
Princess chose to be traditionally homeschooled this year and we went through a public charter. The teacher assigned to us is awesome. She found out we planned to read the Little House on the Prairie series for Lit and she brought in her own books for Princess to use. We get to pick and choose what we want to do with very little over sight. Princess and I are loving her new math program, though I think I should have picked a higher grade as most of the work seems like 2nd grade stuff. She is studying ancient Egypt in History and when we are done with that we will be studying the human body in Science.
Fairy is still using k12 which is a public school at home program and I have very little say in what we do. But she is enjoying it and I love watching her learn.
Buddy decided this year was the year he wanted to learn to read. He is picking it up well though we are having to come up with some pretty active ways to learn reading.
Baby Girl wants to do school so bad. So she will sit in on lessons with the other kids and I print worksheets daily so she can have work to do as well. I do help her with them and she seems really interested in doing the worksheets correctly this year, though I do not expect it.
All of that is just for normal learning and done by noon, but as soon as nap is over we are usually looking something up or answering questions, singing the alphabet, signing the alphabet or teaching the kids to cook.
We are busy and happy, but it is a lot of work to keep on top of everything. I do not think there are enough hours in the day. I feel almost always behind. But watching my children learn and grow, which they were not doing in public school, is so much fun.
This is why when people say I should put my children in public school I say no thank you. My kids are active, everyday learners. We learn everywhere we go. The store, zoo, amusement park, regaular park, even the back yard is a place to pick up more knowledge. While I could do that with them in public school it was not as fun for us. Learning has become fun to our family again.
Homeschooling, keeping up with 4 kids, 8 pets and a husband, plus the house is hard work. It is not something everyone wants or should do. But for those that do want this life all the hard work and love put into it is worth it.
Friday, September 13, 2013
Busy Busy Week, First Co-op Day
This week has been crazy. Monday started off well and all the children finished all their work. Tuesday I realized I had not finished plans for our first Co-op day (I am teaching Early Reading and Math). So I gave the older 2 girls their work for the day and started printing, cutting, gluing and planning the lesson.
They did not do any of their work for Tuesday, Wednesday (I was still working in the school room but on Co-op stuff), or Thursday.
Thursday we had co-op and it went off very well. My class worked on lapbooks (never, ever doing that again for 9 children) and we read Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. Here are the two sites I used to print the lapbooks:
http://www.confessionsofahomeschooler.com/blog/2010/03/chicka-chicka-boom-boom-lapbook.html
and http://lapbooksbycarisa.homestead.com/CHickaBoomTotBook.html. Both have lots of fun stuff for younger kids.
I also helped out in water color poetry and drama, then we left to go to Jui Jitsu.
Princess took Living History, Spanish and Drama. Fairy took Living History, Lego Building and Apologia Astronomy. Buddy took Early Math and Reading, and Art History. Baby Girl attended Art History also. The other classes the youngest 2 were in the Nursery. The mom's who taught the classes were great and the kids had so much fun and were still telling me about stuff today.
Today we spent catching up on work and they will have to work some tomorrow to catch up completely. Hopefully they will get it all done tomorrow.
They did not do any of their work for Tuesday, Wednesday (I was still working in the school room but on Co-op stuff), or Thursday.
Thursday we had co-op and it went off very well. My class worked on lapbooks (never, ever doing that again for 9 children) and we read Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. Here are the two sites I used to print the lapbooks:
http://www.confessionsofahomeschooler.com/blog/2010/03/chicka-chicka-boom-boom-lapbook.html
and http://lapbooksbycarisa.homestead.com/CHickaBoomTotBook.html. Both have lots of fun stuff for younger kids.
I also helped out in water color poetry and drama, then we left to go to Jui Jitsu.
Princess took Living History, Spanish and Drama. Fairy took Living History, Lego Building and Apologia Astronomy. Buddy took Early Math and Reading, and Art History. Baby Girl attended Art History also. The other classes the youngest 2 were in the Nursery. The mom's who taught the classes were great and the kids had so much fun and were still telling me about stuff today.
Today we spent catching up on work and they will have to work some tomorrow to catch up completely. Hopefully they will get it all done tomorrow.
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
Crazy Fun Week
Monday we started school like normal. Everyone but Princess worked hard.
Tuesday we had a class at CAVA. Fairy had lots of fun and got to throw water balloons at her teacher because she finished her ScanTron test on time. She thought that was the coolest thing ever. Since we all went I had Buddy, Baby Girl and Princess sit at some tables and do their work. Buddy and Baby Girl finished all their assigned work. Princess dawdled. She did none of her work at all.
After CAVA we attended our homeschool group Not Back to School Party and hung out till bed time. There was ice cream, cookies, watermelon and water guns. The kids had a blast. They all loved hitting the school supply filled piñata also. They thought it was the coolest thing ever. I am so glad we got to go.
Today Fairy, Baby Girl, and Buddy got the day off so I could focus on Princess. So she has been working since we got up with breaks for breakfast and lunch. She is currently working on spelling words. My hope is that we get her caught up for what I want done for the week, then she can start fresh tomorrow and have a good day. Oh and we need to go to the library, but that will probably have to happen tomorrow.
Tomorrow we may be heading to Princess' charter school for a back to school party after school, but I am unsure since it is the same day and time as Jui-Jitsu. If we do it will be fun.
Friday is going to be a regular school day. Then we have Jui-Jitsu on Saturday and church on Sunday.
Tuesday we had a class at CAVA. Fairy had lots of fun and got to throw water balloons at her teacher because she finished her ScanTron test on time. She thought that was the coolest thing ever. Since we all went I had Buddy, Baby Girl and Princess sit at some tables and do their work. Buddy and Baby Girl finished all their assigned work. Princess dawdled. She did none of her work at all.
After CAVA we attended our homeschool group Not Back to School Party and hung out till bed time. There was ice cream, cookies, watermelon and water guns. The kids had a blast. They all loved hitting the school supply filled piñata also. They thought it was the coolest thing ever. I am so glad we got to go.
Today Fairy, Baby Girl, and Buddy got the day off so I could focus on Princess. So she has been working since we got up with breaks for breakfast and lunch. She is currently working on spelling words. My hope is that we get her caught up for what I want done for the week, then she can start fresh tomorrow and have a good day. Oh and we need to go to the library, but that will probably have to happen tomorrow.
Tomorrow we may be heading to Princess' charter school for a back to school party after school, but I am unsure since it is the same day and time as Jui-Jitsu. If we do it will be fun.
Friday is going to be a regular school day. Then we have Jui-Jitsu on Saturday and church on Sunday.
Saturday, August 24, 2013
Last week in Our Homeschool World.
My sister ended up in the hospital, so I took two of the children to her house with me, so Bumble Bee could attend her kindergarten class. She was there for 3 days and 2 of those days were school days. It is times like these when I am so thankful I homeschool.
If we did not do our school at home someone would have missed school or been missing something. I love my husband but he is not always the best at getting things together and done.
I took Fairy and Buddy with me. The first day they did all their work and needed more. So I was pretty happy with the outcome. My husband was working with Princess and Baby Girl and they did no school work that first day.
On the second day we had orientation with CAVA for Fairy and I took Fairy and Baby Girl with me. They had a great day. Again my husband did not do school with Princess or Buddy. SO the rest of the week they played catch up and did very well.
Fairy is ahead in her progress and is working really hard. I am very proud of her.
Princess is not doing to bad either.
And my husband did do one day of school with the girls because I got sick this week, and it was a successful day.
On another note. Buddy and I are trying out a 34 day trial of Reading Eggs. He is loving it. I am so glad he enjoys it. I am not sure yet if we are going to pay the program after the trial, we will have to see if I see a lot of progress and if we can afford it. But he is having fun for now. I know my girls loved the program, but not all kids are the same.
If we did not do our school at home someone would have missed school or been missing something. I love my husband but he is not always the best at getting things together and done.
I took Fairy and Buddy with me. The first day they did all their work and needed more. So I was pretty happy with the outcome. My husband was working with Princess and Baby Girl and they did no school work that first day.
On the second day we had orientation with CAVA for Fairy and I took Fairy and Baby Girl with me. They had a great day. Again my husband did not do school with Princess or Buddy. SO the rest of the week they played catch up and did very well.
Fairy is ahead in her progress and is working really hard. I am very proud of her.
Princess is not doing to bad either.
And my husband did do one day of school with the girls because I got sick this week, and it was a successful day.
On another note. Buddy and I are trying out a 34 day trial of Reading Eggs. He is loving it. I am so glad he enjoys it. I am not sure yet if we are going to pay the program after the trial, we will have to see if I see a lot of progress and if we can afford it. But he is having fun for now. I know my girls loved the program, but not all kids are the same.
Sunday, August 18, 2013
Why I Homeschool
I was asked today if I had ever written what I believe school should be like. I do not think that there is any one right answer to that question, so I answered with what I want for my children. Here is what I said.
I want them to learn in a setting that is relaxed and enjoyable.
A place where even if something is hard and boring it can be done.
I want them to be challenged. I think that everyone needs to be challenged to learn and explore new things. It should not all be memorization.
I want my children to question the world around them, including religion. I want them to explore and find out their own beliefs and be able to explain and truly understand why we believe the way we do. Not just say because the Bible says so.
I want my children's faith, joy and happiness to be greater and stronger than my own.
I want to raise them so they know they can be, love, do anything they want and be proud of it. Not ashamed and hiding. While I may not always agree with them, I want them to have the confidence to stand behind who they are and what they believe and want for themselves.
I do not feel that public school can give this to my children so I homeschool.
Homeschooling has given my children the ability to be themselves and learn at their own pace. My children are truly all over the board.
Basically I want an education that lifts my children up. Teaches them to be strong individuals, and is tailored to their educational needs.
No school can provide that even with excellent teachers, of which I believe there are many.
This is why I choose to homeschool. I want the whole world open to my children and we can explore everything.
I want them to learn in a setting that is relaxed and enjoyable.
A place where even if something is hard and boring it can be done.
I want them to be challenged. I think that everyone needs to be challenged to learn and explore new things. It should not all be memorization.
I want my children to question the world around them, including religion. I want them to explore and find out their own beliefs and be able to explain and truly understand why we believe the way we do. Not just say because the Bible says so.
I want my children's faith, joy and happiness to be greater and stronger than my own.
I want to raise them so they know they can be, love, do anything they want and be proud of it. Not ashamed and hiding. While I may not always agree with them, I want them to have the confidence to stand behind who they are and what they believe and want for themselves.
I do not feel that public school can give this to my children so I homeschool.
Homeschooling has given my children the ability to be themselves and learn at their own pace. My children are truly all over the board.
Basically I want an education that lifts my children up. Teaches them to be strong individuals, and is tailored to their educational needs.
No school can provide that even with excellent teachers, of which I believe there are many.
This is why I choose to homeschool. I want the whole world open to my children and we can explore everything.
Wednesday, August 14, 2013
School today and Hairbows
Fairy finished her SCANTRON test. I think she did amazing.
Princess is behind on finishing her work, but we think she may have a kidney infection. I am about to leave for the ER once the kids get ready.
Baby Girl worked with Ants and sang The Ants Go Marching One By One. We also read The Jungle Version on If You are Happy and You Know It.
Buddy decided last night to paint his wall with poop, so he has spent his day cleaning said walls. Maybe one day my boy will decide he wants to use a toilet. I can only hope.
Now on to hair bows. If you are looking for cute hair bows then look no further than my friend Stephanie. Here are her websites: http://www.etsy.com/shop/StephsCraftz?ref=si_shop, https://www.facebook.com/groups/stephsbowtique/ and <a id="rc-f415530" class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/f415530/" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
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My 3 girls love their hair bows and bow holders. Go check her out.
Princess is behind on finishing her work, but we think she may have a kidney infection. I am about to leave for the ER once the kids get ready.
Baby Girl worked with Ants and sang The Ants Go Marching One By One. We also read The Jungle Version on If You are Happy and You Know It.
Buddy decided last night to paint his wall with poop, so he has spent his day cleaning said walls. Maybe one day my boy will decide he wants to use a toilet. I can only hope.
Now on to hair bows. If you are looking for cute hair bows then look no further than my friend Stephanie. Here are her websites: http://www.etsy.com/shop/StephsCraftz?ref=si_shop, https://www.facebook.com/groups/stephsbowtique/ and <a id="rc-f415530" class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/f415530/" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
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My 3 girls love their hair bows and bow holders. Go check her out.
Monday, August 12, 2013
First Official Day Back
CAVA had their first official day back today so Fairy had to do school so we made it the first official day for everyone, though Princess's charter school Mountain Peak does not start back till the 21st.
Princess on her first official day of 2nd grade.
Fairy on her first official day of 1st grade.
Baby Girl on her first day of Preschool.
Bubby and his first day of 2 year Kindergarten.
Our crazy class.
Today the kids had a hard time settling in to the school routine, which is to be expected.
We also went to Co-Op registration and they are signed up for all their classes.
So all in all today was a good day.
Monday, August 5, 2013
School was put off again
Well we tried to start and do to unforeseen circumstances beyond my control we have missed the last few weeks for school.
I pick up the last of Princess's curriculum on Wednesday. Hopefully by then I can get our new schedule planned out and we can finally get started.
I pick up the last of Princess's curriculum on Wednesday. Hopefully by then I can get our new schedule planned out and we can finally get started.
Friday, July 19, 2013
This week and lesson planning
Well we only did school for 2 days this week but the kids learned about the sun and started working on learning the things we will work on this year.
I just finished 5 hours of lesson planning for Bubby and Baby Girl, and for the Co-Op class I am teaching.
Here are the lesson plans.
I just finished 5 hours of lesson planning for Bubby and Baby Girl, and for the Co-Op class I am teaching.
Here are the lesson plans.
BUBBY AND BABY GIRL WEEKLY LESSON PLANS
JULY 22
MONDAY- CIRCLE- DAYS OF THE WEEK SONG, MONTHS OF THE YEAR SONG, YESTERDAY,
TODAY AND TOMORROW, WEATHER, ALPHABET SONG, LETTER OF THE WEEK A
READING- LETTER SOUND SONG, PHONICS
FACTORY LESSON 1 STEP 1 REVIEW LETTER SOUNDS SOUND ALPHABET
MATH- 10 LITTLE NUMBERS SONG, COUNTING SCAVENGER HUNT(LESSON
PATHWAYS)
LIT- READ PRINCESS AND THE PEA
HANDWRITING- ZIG ZAG LINES
TUESDAY- CIRCLE- DAYS OF THE WEEK SONG, MONTH OF
THE YEAR SONG, YESTERDAY, TODAY, AND TOMORROW, WEATHER, ALPHABET SONG, LETTER
OF THE WEEK A
READING-LETTER SOUND SONG, PHONICS FACTORY LESSON 1 STEP 1
MATH-10 LITTLE NUMBERS SONG,
FISHING FOR NUMBERS (LESSON PATHWAYS)
LIT- ACT OUT THE STORY OF THE PRINCESS AND THE PEA
ART- MAKE AN ANT
WEDNESDAY-CIRCLE- DAYS OF THE WEEK SONG, MONTHS OF
THE YEAR SONG, YESTERDAY, TODAY AND TOMORROW, WEATHER, ALPHABET SONG, LETTER OF
THE WEEK A
READING- LETTER SOUND SONG, PHONICS FACTORY LESSON 1 STEP 1
MATH- 10 LITTLE NUMBERS SONG, MAGNETS IN A BAG (LESSON PATHWAYS)
LIT- SIGHT WORDS DOWN, COME, FIND (LESSON PATHWAYS)
HANDWRITING-WRITE THE LETTER
THURSDAY- CIRCLE- DAYS OF THE WEEK SONG, MONTH OF
THE YEAR SONG, YESTERDAY, TODAY, AND TOMORROW, WEATHER, ALPHABET SONG, LETTER
OF THE WEEK A
READING- LETTER SOUND SONG, PHONICS FACTORY LESSON 1 STEP 1
MATH-10 LITTLE NUMBER SONG, NUMBER 5 MAKE A NUMBER BUDDY (DLTK
WEBSITE)
LIT-MY FUNNY STORY (LESSON PATHWAYS)
MUSIC-SING LETTER A SONG
FRIDAY-CIRCLE- DAYS OF THE WEEK SONG, MONTH OF
THE YEAR SONG, YESTERDAY, TODAY, AND TOMORROW, WEATHER, ALPHABET SONG, LETTER
OF THE WEEK A
SCIENCE- PLANET MERCURY
ART- DRAW A PICTURE OF SOMETHING THAT STARTS WITH A
That is one of about 10 weeks I completed planning for with those two. Now to get Princess and Fairy all set up.Monday, July 15, 2013
Lifes Little Crazy's
We were suppose to start learning today. We did not all do to life's little crazy's.
We have been setting up the classroom and unpacking everything for the last month, or at least trying too. I still am missing things I need for this year and I know it must be in the garage in a box.
We were going to work around the clock this past weekend to get it done and the kids let our cat out. We have had her for 4 years, her entire life and my son's as well, so instead of unpacking we were on a cat hunt. Thankfully she was found Saturday evening. I was then reminded that we had previously agreed to help some friends of ours so we needed to do that instead.
So needless to say we are not starting school today. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day to start.
We have been setting up the classroom and unpacking everything for the last month, or at least trying too. I still am missing things I need for this year and I know it must be in the garage in a box.
We were going to work around the clock this past weekend to get it done and the kids let our cat out. We have had her for 4 years, her entire life and my son's as well, so instead of unpacking we were on a cat hunt. Thankfully she was found Saturday evening. I was then reminded that we had previously agreed to help some friends of ours so we needed to do that instead.
So needless to say we are not starting school today. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day to start.
Tuesday, July 9, 2013
I am back!
We have been moving and it has been crazy. We are far from almost unpacked and I have to finish up atleast the school room this week.
I finished next week's lesson plan. It is going to be just like I wanted to do without the charter schools. We start back at CAVA and Greater San Diego Homeschool Academy (GSDA) in August. Princess has decided to go to San Diego Homeschool Academy. Fairy really wanted to stay with CAVA. I am not so ok with Fairy's choice, but I can make it work. She will learn lots of new things and besides making me a ton of extra work it is not a bad curriculum.
I am hoping that GSDA will work well with us and get Princess challenged and keep her that way. If not we will be moving away from public charters and strike out on our own. I am a little scared and a lot excited about that.
Since I last blogged, we got a bearded dragon. He is adorable. We also rescued a baby kitten. She is a pain, but no one will take her and the shelters are full of kittens so they can not take her either. So I guess we have another cat who will probably forever be named Kitten.
We also found a Co-Op/playgroup. It is a Christian one, which may cause problems, but only because my husband is not a Christian and wants to be involved. We will have to see how that plays out. I have volunteered to teach the littlest children who are ready for school to read and do early math. I am really excited. That does not start till Sept. though so I have a lot of time to plan.
Bubby and Baby Girl can not wait for school to start. They ask everyday if it is school time. I told them not till next week. I am just going to do a few small things with them and give them worksheets. But they do get to be a little more active in school this year.
I finished next week's lesson plan. It is going to be just like I wanted to do without the charter schools. We start back at CAVA and Greater San Diego Homeschool Academy (GSDA) in August. Princess has decided to go to San Diego Homeschool Academy. Fairy really wanted to stay with CAVA. I am not so ok with Fairy's choice, but I can make it work. She will learn lots of new things and besides making me a ton of extra work it is not a bad curriculum.
I am hoping that GSDA will work well with us and get Princess challenged and keep her that way. If not we will be moving away from public charters and strike out on our own. I am a little scared and a lot excited about that.
Since I last blogged, we got a bearded dragon. He is adorable. We also rescued a baby kitten. She is a pain, but no one will take her and the shelters are full of kittens so they can not take her either. So I guess we have another cat who will probably forever be named Kitten.
We also found a Co-Op/playgroup. It is a Christian one, which may cause problems, but only because my husband is not a Christian and wants to be involved. We will have to see how that plays out. I have volunteered to teach the littlest children who are ready for school to read and do early math. I am really excited. That does not start till Sept. though so I have a lot of time to plan.
Bubby and Baby Girl can not wait for school to start. They ask everyday if it is school time. I told them not till next week. I am just going to do a few small things with them and give them worksheets. But they do get to be a little more active in school this year.
Thursday, June 13, 2013
Moving and Summer Break
We have been moving for the last month. That is part of the reason I have not been blogging. We are staying on break till July 15th. Then we will start our summer work.
The girls finished strong with CAVA and can not wait till next year.
We are working on setting the school room up and unpacking for the next month.
Both of the older girls are starting Jui-Jitsue this week. We are also meeting with a home school group next week.
The girls finished strong with CAVA and can not wait till next year.
We are working on setting the school room up and unpacking for the next month.
Both of the older girls are starting Jui-Jitsue this week. We are also meeting with a home school group next week.
Friday, May 17, 2013
Moving......
We are prepping to move and will be moving in 2 weeks. Princess, Fairy and Bumble Bee are not handling it well.
Princess is crying and hurting people and just an emotional mess.
Fairy has started to use her hands and feet in anger and refuse to do time outs.
Bumble Bee is doing the worst by far because she knows that she will no longer see us all the time. Her and her Mommy are staying put. She is really sad and clinging to me.
So todays class lesson will be for everyone. We are going to talk about thier fears and make charts. We are going to discuss the good things and the bad. They are going to make pro and con lists and we will discuss how we can help the con list to not be so bad. It should be a productive day.
Princess is crying and hurting people and just an emotional mess.
Fairy has started to use her hands and feet in anger and refuse to do time outs.
Bumble Bee is doing the worst by far because she knows that she will no longer see us all the time. Her and her Mommy are staying put. She is really sad and clinging to me.
So todays class lesson will be for everyone. We are going to talk about thier fears and make charts. We are going to discuss the good things and the bad. They are going to make pro and con lists and we will discuss how we can help the con list to not be so bad. It should be a productive day.
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Belated Mothers Day
I am such a lucky Mommy.
I was blessed a little over 7 years ago with a beautiful baby girl. She is now 7 and working at so many levels. Socially she is in kindergarten, Emotionally she is 7. In reading she is working on 4th or 5th grade work. In math she is working on 3rd grade work. We are so very lucky to have such a beautiful little girls.
The following year we were blessed with our amazing Fairy. She is socially light years ahead. She makes friends everywhere she goes. She is working at a first grade level most of the way around. She is such a sweet child.
I was blessed a little over 7 years ago with a beautiful baby girl. She is now 7 and working at so many levels. Socially she is in kindergarten, Emotionally she is 7. In reading she is working on 4th or 5th grade work. In math she is working on 3rd grade work. We are so very lucky to have such a beautiful little girls.
Princess
Fairy
Two years after we were blessed with Fairy we were lucky enough to have our one and only boy. He is such a very sweet boy. He loves to give hugs and kisses, and cuddle. He loves cars and trains and giving me gray hairs.
Buddy
Our youngest was born 3 years ago. She is such a very sweet baby and the only Mommy's girl I have. She loves to color and play like she is doing school work. I am so very happy that she loves school and hope she continues to love school. She is a joy and a blessing.
Baby Girl
We have been extremely blessed to have these children and as a mother I could not be prouder or more blessed. My children are all healthy and happy. They are all smart and well rounded. They are not perfect but they are mine. I would not change them for anything in this world.
Friday, May 3, 2013
Liturature 2nd grade, 1st grade, Prek
Since I last posted things have been really crazy. We are moving. We had a plan in place and now that may be changing. So I am now fully going to plan to homeschool all four children, no public school charters or anything for next year. If we are still close enough they can do it, if not then I at least have a plan in place.
Princess will have her own literature curriculum.
July to August- She will be studying The Phantom Tollbooth. We will read the book, discuss the plot, write a story about Princess and a magical tollbooth and we will make a toll booth. We will also be making a Lap book.
August to September -She will read The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe. We will do similar projects with each book we read and a lap book for each book we read this next year.
September to October-She will be studying poems with Where the Sidewalk Ends. In this unit we will be writing different kinds of poems. She will put together a book of 10 of her favorite poems that she wrote by the end of this unit.
October to November- She will be reading Prince Caspian.
November to December- She will be writing a factual story on the subject of her choosing. She can write about a person, place or event that she would like to research and learn more about.
January to February- Will find Princess reading George Washington's Socks.
March to April- Princess will read the Voyage of the Dawn Treader.
May to June- She will pick a book, write a full book report, verbally tell the book report. It has to include plot, character descriptions, and the setting of the story.
Literature for 1st and PreK
July to August- We will be studying The Magic Oatmeal Pot and The Lion and the Mouse- The children will complete lap books and art projects to go along with both stories.
August to September- We will study The Frog Prince and The Star Maiden and the Flax Flowers.
September to October- We will be studying Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes for the Preschoolers and Fairy will join her older sister for Where the Sidewalk Ends.
October to November- We will go back to fairy tales. Snow White and Rose Red and Why the Manx Cat Has No Tail.
November to December- The Elves and the Shoemaker and Twas the Night Before Christmas
January to February- The Princess and the Pea and The Twelve Dancing Princesses
March to April- Cinderella and Chicken Licken
May to June- Rumpelstiltskin and How Jumbo Went to the Moon.
Princess will have her own literature curriculum.
July to August- She will be studying The Phantom Tollbooth. We will read the book, discuss the plot, write a story about Princess and a magical tollbooth and we will make a toll booth. We will also be making a Lap book.
August to September -She will read The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe. We will do similar projects with each book we read and a lap book for each book we read this next year.
September to October-She will be studying poems with Where the Sidewalk Ends. In this unit we will be writing different kinds of poems. She will put together a book of 10 of her favorite poems that she wrote by the end of this unit.
October to November- She will be reading Prince Caspian.
November to December- She will be writing a factual story on the subject of her choosing. She can write about a person, place or event that she would like to research and learn more about.
January to February- Will find Princess reading George Washington's Socks.
March to April- Princess will read the Voyage of the Dawn Treader.
May to June- She will pick a book, write a full book report, verbally tell the book report. It has to include plot, character descriptions, and the setting of the story.
Literature for 1st and PreK
July to August- We will be studying The Magic Oatmeal Pot and The Lion and the Mouse- The children will complete lap books and art projects to go along with both stories.
August to September- We will study The Frog Prince and The Star Maiden and the Flax Flowers.
September to October- We will be studying Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes for the Preschoolers and Fairy will join her older sister for Where the Sidewalk Ends.
October to November- We will go back to fairy tales. Snow White and Rose Red and Why the Manx Cat Has No Tail.
November to December- The Elves and the Shoemaker and Twas the Night Before Christmas
January to February- The Princess and the Pea and The Twelve Dancing Princesses
March to April- Cinderella and Chicken Licken
May to June- Rumpelstiltskin and How Jumbo Went to the Moon.
Sunday, April 21, 2013
Week of April 22
Princess and Fairy are still working toward finishing up their k12 curriculum for this year.
We have a meeting Tuesday with a homeschool charter that will allow Princess to work at her own pace and is going to test her to find her actual knowledge level. She will be starting next year. They also provide money for extra classes and she is looking forward to Tahitian dance.
The preschool set will be working on the letter B, number 1, and simple addition. We have library Monday, and Thursday also.
This week we are also going to start practicing for our end of year graduation. I want to provide them with a fun graduation since we have a kindergartner graduating to first, and a preschooler graduating to kindergarten. I don't want to separate out all the others so they will all be joining.
Princess will be saying a poem.
Fairy, Bumble Bee, Buddy and Baby girl will each have their own songs. Then they will all sing Brown Bear Brown Bear.
I have to finish planning but I want them to have something great to remember.
We have a meeting Tuesday with a homeschool charter that will allow Princess to work at her own pace and is going to test her to find her actual knowledge level. She will be starting next year. They also provide money for extra classes and she is looking forward to Tahitian dance.
The preschool set will be working on the letter B, number 1, and simple addition. We have library Monday, and Thursday also.
This week we are also going to start practicing for our end of year graduation. I want to provide them with a fun graduation since we have a kindergartner graduating to first, and a preschooler graduating to kindergarten. I don't want to separate out all the others so they will all be joining.
Princess will be saying a poem.
Fairy, Bumble Bee, Buddy and Baby girl will each have their own songs. Then they will all sing Brown Bear Brown Bear.
I have to finish planning but I want them to have something great to remember.
Thursday, April 18, 2013
This week
This week has been really busy. We have had to school around looking for new tires for the truck and going to pick up school forms for Buddy and Princess. Princess has decided she wants to try a charter school that gives us lots more freedom than CAVA. We will be registering next week.
Princess attended this homeschool charter school for Early Enrollment Kindergarten. They do suggest what you should teach but you also write down what you covered and can jump around as needed. I will be able to follow her interest more and she can learn the way she chooses. I was very happy before with this school and I do believe she will enjoy this year more than she has the last two years of repeat work we have been doing.
For preschool we worked on Shapes and Patterns in Math. We worked on the Letter a and practiced writing.
Princess has managed to finish about 65% of this years work with CAVA, we were at 20% in Jan.
Fairy is at 70% complete in her work with CAVA and that is an improvement from 50% in Jan.
They are working very, very hard.
Princess attended this homeschool charter school for Early Enrollment Kindergarten. They do suggest what you should teach but you also write down what you covered and can jump around as needed. I will be able to follow her interest more and she can learn the way she chooses. I was very happy before with this school and I do believe she will enjoy this year more than she has the last two years of repeat work we have been doing.
For preschool we worked on Shapes and Patterns in Math. We worked on the Letter a and practiced writing.
Princess has managed to finish about 65% of this years work with CAVA, we were at 20% in Jan.
Fairy is at 70% complete in her work with CAVA and that is an improvement from 50% in Jan.
They are working very, very hard.
Sunday, April 7, 2013
Week of April 7, 2013
Princess will continue working on completing all her CAVA work.
Fairy will also continue working on Completing her CAVA work. She will finish all of her Lit Skills by the end of the week.
Bumble Bee, Buddy and Baby Girl will be working on the Letter A.
In Math they will work with many different patterns.
In Reading We will go over letter sounds A-O this week. Bumble Bee will also read a simple book.
Princess and Fairy will have time work on Study Island, a fun online program that CAVA provides.
Bumble Bee, Buddy and Baby Girl will have time to work on The Head of The Class and ABCmouse.com for a few minutes each day.
Monday we will go to the Library after nap time to read to dogs. Wednesday we will also be going to the library in the afternoon but this time for PJ story time. Thursday mornings from now on will be at the Library for Preschool Story time.
Fairy will also continue working on Completing her CAVA work. She will finish all of her Lit Skills by the end of the week.
Bumble Bee, Buddy and Baby Girl will be working on the Letter A.
In Math they will work with many different patterns.
In Reading We will go over letter sounds A-O this week. Bumble Bee will also read a simple book.
Princess and Fairy will have time work on Study Island, a fun online program that CAVA provides.
Bumble Bee, Buddy and Baby Girl will have time to work on The Head of The Class and ABCmouse.com for a few minutes each day.
Monday we will go to the Library after nap time to read to dogs. Wednesday we will also be going to the library in the afternoon but this time for PJ story time. Thursday mornings from now on will be at the Library for Preschool Story time.
Friday, April 5, 2013
Websites for Preschool and Kindergarden Reading
I forgot on my last post to add all the websites we use for Preschool and Kindergarden reading. There are many sites, some of them are for more and you will see them through my blog.
We use abcmouse.com for fun and to reitterate what they are learning.
Starfall.com is an excellent reading site and you do not have to pay for it.
http://www.readingbear.org/ This is a fun phonics website.
http://www.lessonpathways.com/Account/LogOn?ReturnUrl=%2fPlan Has plans for preschool reading.
http://www.theheadoftheclass.com/Default.aspx Is fun and the kids love it.
http://www.progressivephonics.com/ Is an ok site.
http://www.preschoolexpress.com/theme_station.shtml This has lots of themes and the kids love the activities.
I hope some of these sites help you.
We use abcmouse.com for fun and to reitterate what they are learning.
Starfall.com is an excellent reading site and you do not have to pay for it.
http://www.readingbear.org/ This is a fun phonics website.
http://www.lessonpathways.com/Account/LogOn?ReturnUrl=%2fPlan Has plans for preschool reading.
http://www.theheadoftheclass.com/Default.aspx Is fun and the kids love it.
http://www.progressivephonics.com/ Is an ok site.
http://www.preschoolexpress.com/theme_station.shtml This has lots of themes and the kids love the activities.
I hope some of these sites help you.
Monday, April 1, 2013
This week April 1, 2013
Princess is hard at work trying to catch up on work from CAVA. She fell behind when I was sick and then she got sick. It has been a bad year. We are about half way through the school work for the year with 2 months left. Luckily she knows most of the work and we tested completely out of Phonics. This week I am going to test her to see what we still need to work on this year. Since we are working on our own next year it will not matter to much.
Fairy is about 20% behind and has now decided she does not want to work anymore. I had to tell her today that if she wants to go to a public classroom next year and be in first grade then she had better get to work. She is able to test out of a lot of things too this week.
Bumble Bee worked on reading today. We went over letter sounds, short a words and ending sounds in a word. She did really well. I was proud of her.
Buddy and Baby Girl decided not to do any class work today.
Bumble Bee, Buddy and Baby Girl will continue working on Letter Sounds and the Alphabet in general. We will also be talking about time. The hands on a clock and what they mean.
Well I have to go get the kids up from nap so we can head off to the library.
Fairy is about 20% behind and has now decided she does not want to work anymore. I had to tell her today that if she wants to go to a public classroom next year and be in first grade then she had better get to work. She is able to test out of a lot of things too this week.
Bumble Bee worked on reading today. We went over letter sounds, short a words and ending sounds in a word. She did really well. I was proud of her.
Buddy and Baby Girl decided not to do any class work today.
Bumble Bee, Buddy and Baby Girl will continue working on Letter Sounds and the Alphabet in general. We will also be talking about time. The hands on a clock and what they mean.
Well I have to go get the kids up from nap so we can head off to the library.
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Science and History
Next year for Science and History my kids will all do the same curriculum but in a different way. We will be using a mixture of Magic Tree House and Magic School Bus for these subjects.
Every other month we will be reading a Magic Tree House book. Then Princess will come up with a project on the subject of the book. She will be allowed to act, draw, make a model or write a report on the subject of the book.
The months we do not read the Magic Tree house we will watch an episode of the Magic School Bus and study that subject in depth for a full month. There will be science experiments, research and lots of fun. Princess will be required to do a month long project to present at the end of the month for Science also.
The younger children will be doing arts and crafts and small projects that they can do hands on. I want science and history to be lots of fun.
When we start school in July we will not do either. These lessons will start in August. We will start with Dawn of the Dinosaurs. We will discuss prehistoric history and paleontology. I am hoping that they will enjoy the lessons. We will be coloring dinosaurs. Talking about prehistory times and whether or not cave men lived in the time of the dinosaurs. If they believe they did then how would they survive? If not then what were the dinosaurs like and how did they relate?
It should be interesting to see.
Every other month we will be reading a Magic Tree House book. Then Princess will come up with a project on the subject of the book. She will be allowed to act, draw, make a model or write a report on the subject of the book.
The months we do not read the Magic Tree house we will watch an episode of the Magic School Bus and study that subject in depth for a full month. There will be science experiments, research and lots of fun. Princess will be required to do a month long project to present at the end of the month for Science also.
The younger children will be doing arts and crafts and small projects that they can do hands on. I want science and history to be lots of fun.
When we start school in July we will not do either. These lessons will start in August. We will start with Dawn of the Dinosaurs. We will discuss prehistoric history and paleontology. I am hoping that they will enjoy the lessons. We will be coloring dinosaurs. Talking about prehistory times and whether or not cave men lived in the time of the dinosaurs. If they believe they did then how would they survive? If not then what were the dinosaurs like and how did they relate?
It should be interesting to see.
Saturday, March 23, 2013
Reading
Today I am going to address next years reading program. We will be using our local library. I have a book list that we will be reading for Literature.
The Phantom Tollbooth
The Little House Series
Peter Pan
The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
The Boxcar Children series
The Magic Tree House series
The Chronicles of Narnia series
I will be using a website and the 3rd Grade Complete curriculum for grammar. Princess will also be required to pick out one fiction and nonfiction book to read on her own time. Each week she will also hand in a book report one of the books she read in her free time.
Here is the website I will use for grammar for Princess.
http://www.sfreading.com/resources/ghbgrd3.html
She also enjoys this and I use it to check her comprehension.
http://bookadventure.com/Home.aspx
With Buddy and Baby girl there are several websites that are fun for them to play on but they will only access one per day for about 15 min. I set a time limit because I want them to not get to attached.
I have Hooked on Phonics K and Phonics Factory for Phonics for these two. We will be reading several books also.
Here is their book list.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar
Stella Luna
How do Dinosaurs series
The Alphabet Tree
Three Billy Goats Gruff
Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes
and many others from the library
These two little ones will get to choose whether they want to do school. I am not going to force them to sit quietly for more than a few minutes. I have letter magnets and a chalk board and dry erase board for them to play on, and small quite toys for them to play with when they do not want to do school or I need to work with Princess.
The Phantom Tollbooth
The Little House Series
Peter Pan
The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
The Boxcar Children series
The Magic Tree House series
The Chronicles of Narnia series
I will be using a website and the 3rd Grade Complete curriculum for grammar. Princess will also be required to pick out one fiction and nonfiction book to read on her own time. Each week she will also hand in a book report one of the books she read in her free time.
Here is the website I will use for grammar for Princess.
http://www.sfreading.com/resources/ghbgrd3.html
She also enjoys this and I use it to check her comprehension.
http://bookadventure.com/Home.aspx
With Buddy and Baby girl there are several websites that are fun for them to play on but they will only access one per day for about 15 min. I set a time limit because I want them to not get to attached.
I have Hooked on Phonics K and Phonics Factory for Phonics for these two. We will be reading several books also.
Here is their book list.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar
Stella Luna
How do Dinosaurs series
The Alphabet Tree
Three Billy Goats Gruff
Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes
and many others from the library
These two little ones will get to choose whether they want to do school. I am not going to force them to sit quietly for more than a few minutes. I have letter magnets and a chalk board and dry erase board for them to play on, and small quite toys for them to play with when they do not want to do school or I need to work with Princess.
Friday, March 22, 2013
Math
Princess will be homeschooled next year as I said in a previous post. I plan to use a workbook called 3rd Grade Complete Curriculum by Harcourt Family Learning. She is going into 2nd grade chronologically but is doing 2nd grade math this year with K12. So I am going to use this book to see if we can find a way to challenge her.
We will also be using Khan Academy once a week with daily practice from XtraMath. For worksheets off the computer we will also use education.com. For a more complete curriculum we will also be using The Head of The Class and Lesson Pathways.
As you can see for math most of what we use will be free. Princess will be reviewing and practicing adding and subtracting up to 3 digit numbers with borrowing. She will also be introduced to 4 digit numbers. We will continue to work on multiplication and division with her also. She will review money and telling time also. She will also practice solving word problems.
In case you would like to look at some of this curriculum here are the websites.
xtramath.org
http://www.khanacademy.org/
http://www.theheadoftheclass.com/Default.aspx
http://www.lessonpathways.com/
For Buddy we will be practicing writing our numbers, recognising the words and counting to 20. Once he understands that we will review shapes and patterns. Then if he still wants to do school work we will work on addition and subtraction. Followed by telling time and money.
He will also be using The Head of the Class and Xtramath. His lessons will also include starfall and abcmouse.
Here are their websites.
http://www.starfall.com/
http://www.abcmouse.com/home
I do need to add that we pay for starfall so there is more math on the website than most people know.
We will also be using Khan Academy once a week with daily practice from XtraMath. For worksheets off the computer we will also use education.com. For a more complete curriculum we will also be using The Head of The Class and Lesson Pathways.
As you can see for math most of what we use will be free. Princess will be reviewing and practicing adding and subtracting up to 3 digit numbers with borrowing. She will also be introduced to 4 digit numbers. We will continue to work on multiplication and division with her also. She will review money and telling time also. She will also practice solving word problems.
In case you would like to look at some of this curriculum here are the websites.
xtramath.org
http://www.khanacademy.org/
http://www.theheadoftheclass.com/Default.aspx
http://www.lessonpathways.com/
For Buddy we will be practicing writing our numbers, recognising the words and counting to 20. Once he understands that we will review shapes and patterns. Then if he still wants to do school work we will work on addition and subtraction. Followed by telling time and money.
He will also be using The Head of the Class and Xtramath. His lessons will also include starfall and abcmouse.
Here are their websites.
http://www.starfall.com/
http://www.abcmouse.com/home
I do need to add that we pay for starfall so there is more math on the website than most people know.
Thursday, March 21, 2013
Our Plans for Next Year
This year we are using K12. We have enjoyed it for the last 2 years. It has been challenging at times, especially with Princess. We still have not completely gotten her challenged. We are leaving k12 next year more than likely. We are moving when my husband gets his new job. We are planing and praying for him to get the job.
I am planning to use many different tools I have found both online and bought to give Princess a challenging fun curriculum next year. I will be using 3rd grade curriculum with her, though technically she will be in 2nd grade.
With Buddy we will be using what is left of our k12 curriculum to build him his very own kindergarten curriculum. Baby Girl will join him as she so chooses.
Fairy and Bumble Bee will be attending public school. Though Fairy may come back to homeschooling if she does not learn anything.
I am planning to use many different tools I have found both online and bought to give Princess a challenging fun curriculum next year. I will be using 3rd grade curriculum with her, though technically she will be in 2nd grade.
With Buddy we will be using what is left of our k12 curriculum to build him his very own kindergarten curriculum. Baby Girl will join him as she so chooses.
Fairy and Bumble Bee will be attending public school. Though Fairy may come back to homeschooling if she does not learn anything.
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Circle time
All the children participate in Circle Time. We spend a good 20 minutes on this. It is the only thing I make Baby Girl and Buddy participate in.
We start off by going over classroom rules since Bumble Bee will be going to kindergarten next year, we do try to run the day in a small way like a classroom.
Our next step is to stand and say the Pledge of Allegiance. For our family this is very important. Both husband and I were in the military and loyalty to our country and the men who died protecting it is important.
Then we do the calendar. We sing the months of the year, and days of the week. We discuss what today is, tomorrow will be and yesterday was.
Next we go over the weather. We sing the weather song and ussually I have Baby Girl and one helper check the weather for the day.
We start our day like this everyday. It is fun for the kids and they love the routine.
We start off by going over classroom rules since Bumble Bee will be going to kindergarten next year, we do try to run the day in a small way like a classroom.
Our next step is to stand and say the Pledge of Allegiance. For our family this is very important. Both husband and I were in the military and loyalty to our country and the men who died protecting it is important.
Then we do the calendar. We sing the months of the year, and days of the week. We discuss what today is, tomorrow will be and yesterday was.
Next we go over the weather. We sing the weather song and ussually I have Baby Girl and one helper check the weather for the day.
We start our day like this everyday. It is fun for the kids and they love the routine.
Monday, March 18, 2013
Meet Our Family
To start this blog I would like to introduce our family. There are 6 of us not counting the pets. If you count the pets there are 26 of us. We are very busy and life is never dull.
We will start with myself. I am Mommy. I was in the Navy for 5 years after graduating highschool. By the time I had finished my contract I had 2 beautiful girls and childcare was more than I could make at the only job I could find, so I started my journey as a stay at home mom. I love being home with the kids, though sometimes I do need a break. I never thought I would homeschool. I always figured only wierd people homeschooled. Well I guess I am wierd.
Next would be Daddy. He served 9 years in the United States Marine Corps. That is how we met. He is now serving in the Army Reserves and going to school for Electronical Engineering. His favorite subject are math and science.
Our oldest child is a little girl, lets call her Princess. She is the reason we homeschool. She started kindergarten knowing how to add and subtract. She knew all her alphabet and was reading. She was also able to tell time and could do math at a first grade level. She was also reading at a first grade level. She was bored and always in trouble. When we moved I decided to use k12 till the new school year started. I asked her what she wanted to do. She said she wanted to go back to public school. I asked her why just so I knew. She told me she wanted to go back so I could have a break because that is where parents sent thier kids to get a break and that she enjoyed helping other kids learn what the teacher was teaching. We decided to homeschool after that. She no longer has a desire to go back to public school.
Our secound child is also a girl, we will call her Fairy. She went to public preschool and did great. We homeschooled with k12 for kindergarten this year. But she has decided she wants to go to public school next year and would love to try a regular public school next year.
Our third child is a boy and he is a handful. We will call him bubby. He would be going to preschool next year but he refuses to poop in the potty. So he will be home with us next year and he will be working on preschool to kindergarten work here at home.
The baby of the family is our third girl. She is a delight. Let us call her Baby Girl for this forum. She will be 3 and will be able to do school with us if she chooses or she can just play quitely.
This year my niece who is 4 is with us and she is doing school with us next year but will be going to public kindergarten next year. We will call her Bumble Bee.
We also have a cat, dog, 12 fish, 1 hamster, 2 guinea pigs, and 3 whites tree frogs. Our life is busy and full but I would not have it any other way.
We will start with myself. I am Mommy. I was in the Navy for 5 years after graduating highschool. By the time I had finished my contract I had 2 beautiful girls and childcare was more than I could make at the only job I could find, so I started my journey as a stay at home mom. I love being home with the kids, though sometimes I do need a break. I never thought I would homeschool. I always figured only wierd people homeschooled. Well I guess I am wierd.
Next would be Daddy. He served 9 years in the United States Marine Corps. That is how we met. He is now serving in the Army Reserves and going to school for Electronical Engineering. His favorite subject are math and science.
Our oldest child is a little girl, lets call her Princess. She is the reason we homeschool. She started kindergarten knowing how to add and subtract. She knew all her alphabet and was reading. She was also able to tell time and could do math at a first grade level. She was also reading at a first grade level. She was bored and always in trouble. When we moved I decided to use k12 till the new school year started. I asked her what she wanted to do. She said she wanted to go back to public school. I asked her why just so I knew. She told me she wanted to go back so I could have a break because that is where parents sent thier kids to get a break and that she enjoyed helping other kids learn what the teacher was teaching. We decided to homeschool after that. She no longer has a desire to go back to public school.
Our secound child is also a girl, we will call her Fairy. She went to public preschool and did great. We homeschooled with k12 for kindergarten this year. But she has decided she wants to go to public school next year and would love to try a regular public school next year.
Our third child is a boy and he is a handful. We will call him bubby. He would be going to preschool next year but he refuses to poop in the potty. So he will be home with us next year and he will be working on preschool to kindergarten work here at home.
The baby of the family is our third girl. She is a delight. Let us call her Baby Girl for this forum. She will be 3 and will be able to do school with us if she chooses or she can just play quitely.
This year my niece who is 4 is with us and she is doing school with us next year but will be going to public kindergarten next year. We will call her Bumble Bee.
We also have a cat, dog, 12 fish, 1 hamster, 2 guinea pigs, and 3 whites tree frogs. Our life is busy and full but I would not have it any other way.
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