Homeschool Highlights ~ Weeks 8 and 9

This may be a first for me . . . a Homeschool Highlights post with no {personal} photos. I'll make up for it with my B4FIAR post next ~ I promise. ;-)

Days in school: 36.

Little Ones ~

B4FIAR: Angus Lost (coming up next) & "teacher in service" {planning & creating}

Preschool:

I've been busy planning, sewing and creating to get ready for Eliana's preschool. She turns 4 a month after baby is due. I have updated my curriculum page with what I am planning for her 2011 4K year.

We started this week with Language Lessons for Little Ones 1 ~ it was an impromptu, informal lesson time to see how it would go. I did the lessons orally with her and Malachi together. I loved the picture studies, poetry and discussion.  When a letter is introduced, we will practice with sensory letters (which I am working on) rather than writing them. This is easy and gentle, so I may be able to start this now ~ it would be a good review for Malachi and gentle enough for an introduction to phonogram sounds for Eliana.

5K ~

Math: 

Malachi finished both the U.S. and Canadian kindergarten levels in Mathletics, and is currently working in the 1st grade level (U.S.).  I ordered Singapore Early Bird Math B (textbook and workbook) for him but am debating on saving it for Eliana. Instead, I am thinking about printing the workbook activities that go along with Mathletics since he seems to be doing so well with it. I like that the activities are hands on and relate to what he is learning online. But, I will spend some time looking through Earlybird before I decide.

He also is plugging away on his Kumon 1-120 book. This is not his favorite and will probably be our last Kumon math book {just too much busy work}. To encourage him to finish, I've made a game for him to play.

I bought a new set of Toy Story Bucket o Soldiers (he loves these) and some new dice and he plays "Risk" (remember that game?). He gets one army for every page in the book he completes. He rolls a set of dice and adds them to build each army (the total of the two dice is how many army guys he gets per page). Then he rolls a set of dodacahedral {12 sided} dice - one for each team, and the team with the larger number wins the battle. So he is working on adding and greater than/less than concepts with this game. Some days, he completes 2-3 pages, and other days he completes 8 if he wants a "campaign." He plays Risk with his dad and brothers, so he LOVES this!

Delight Directed:

Malachi has been reading The Usborne Book of Knowledge and bookmarking all the pages he wants me to read to him. His interests are in "How Things Began" {he may be another history buff like his dad} and "How Things Work." I told him we could do this for History and Science and he loved the idea.

He also spends hours each day drawing pictures and making battle scenes. He asks me to spell words for him to title his drawings. Elli follows suit ~ except she draws picture after picture of her and I ~ me with a baby in my belly ~ so sweet! When she brings me a drawing I ask her to tell me about it and I write down what she tells me on the picture.

ETC:

I've put the Explode the Code 1 book on hold for now. He is not reading the lessons from I Can Read It fluently. Each day, we are practicing the words from the Word List book and reading a portion of a story. He can read the words in the Word List just fine, so maybe he just needs some time. 5 is still a bit young for ETC {recommended for 1st grade}. Dylan was a young five when he started it and took a whole year to finish book one. When he turned 6, he finished books 2 and 3 in 2 weeks. But, he was reading all the stories from ICRI and just didn't like to write. hmm. . . Malachi likes to write and could probably do the lessons in ETC. Not sure what to do. Advice would be welcomed.

Older Boys ~

What's New?

Easy Grammar:

We dropped SL 3+4 LA Grammar and picked up Easy Grammar and Daily Grams grades 5 & 6 for Nathan and Dylan and the Ultimate Series for Grade 9 for Jordan. So happy to have a grammar program that is working well for us! We are using EG as a supplement to Queen's Language Lessons.

Biblical History:

Grapevine:
  1. "The Temple" {Solomon's}
  2. "Psalms and Proverbs"
Readings from:
  1. The Scriptures
  2. Holman Bible Atlas: A Complete Guide to the Expansive Geography of Biblical History
  3. The Victor Journey Through the Bible
Read Alouds:
  1. God King: A Story in the Days of King Hezekiah (Living History Library) {Luke}
  2. Hittite Warrior (Living History Library) {moi}
Nutrition 101: Finished Unit 3 and started Unit 4 ~ The Skeletal and Muscular System

I watched a webinar with Paul Nison and WellWithU last night called "What Nobody Tells You About Raw Food" and am considering "Lessons for Healthy Living" as a sequel to Nutrition 101. If you have listened to/watched  this series, I'd love to know what you think.

CPR & First Aid: Jordan and Luke earned their certification in both classes this week. Jordan said I wouldn't have liked the first aid class. Most of what they learned was how to treat a victim until help arrives. My focus in our survival studies has been how to treat a victim when no help is available {survival first aid}. But, he did learn some helpful first responder type first aid. I was also surprised how much CPR training has changed since I was last certified (my 2 year certification expires in 2 months). They are moving away from giving breaths and only doing chest compressions ~ except, of course, for family members. I used to carry a protective face mask in our first aid kit (and there may still be one in there), but most people don't carry them because they are expensive.

Sports Programming: Luke and Jordan's team won the soccer championship {adult soccer}. Soccer is now over! {officially} They still play an occasional noon-ball, though. Jordan logged 40 work hours this month.

In the Scriptures: Nathan finished reading through the Bible {The Scriptures version} in 105 days! So proud of him for sticking it out! We have a special date planned.

On the Homestead:  Luke and the boys are firewood maniacs. They cut and split 3 cords of wood for our use, and gifted 2 cords. (I stayed home with Eliana).

Baby on the way: I am 31+ weeks {less than 9 weeks to go!} and I have been asked a few times to share more about my pregnancy, birthing plans for baby, how I will manage cooking, school, and life when baby #6 arrives. . . I'm thinking on this one. Some of these I have answers for and I will be thinking and praying about answers to the rest and how best to share. I am planning a Homebirth 101 crash course for my boys over the next 6 weeks, so maybe I will share what we are learning. If you have specific questions, please let me know.

My giveaway for Household Traditions Glass and Surface Cleaner ends soon!

Hope you had a great week!

Delightful Links:

T.O.B.Y Homes-Cool Highlights @ Hearts in Training

11 comments

  1. bless you as a mother! coming from a mother of 4 :) I lived the raw food life style for awhile (meaning 100% raw) and then found a happy medium of about 80% raw, but find when the weather gets cold I eat more cooked foods. The most important thing is to find balance and listen to what the body is telling you and not get any specific thought form around food, just tune into the vibration of the food and what you are needing on a daily basis.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sounds like you've been incredibly productive while you grow that baby. =o) Love you Risk game. What a clever way to encourage him.

    We LOVE First Language Lessons here. We went through MANY LA programs 'til we found this and it totally fits us. We are SL LA drop-outs too. I tried it twice and it just didn't fit our personalities.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Yea! I get to see your "Angus Lost" unit before we do ours (week after next). You always have great fun. My kids are close in age to your two youngest and we do our BFIAR together, so you inspire me!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Aww, I love that your daughter draws pictures of you and her and the baby! So sweet! My oldest (4) has been drawing pictures of our family a lot lately and every week she asks when we can have another baby!
    I am already amazed with all that you are able to do with five kids and being pregnant - I am looking forward to hearing your plans when your new little one arrives. How exciting that the big day will be here before long!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I am waiting for my Easy Grammar. My other ones were not working. I hope this one helps us out. Sounds like a very productive fun and wonderful learning going on.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I'm just learning about raw foods, so we only eat about 25% raw ~ naturally. I'd like to learn more though and try to incorporate more raw meals. Yesterday we had a vegetable risotto ~ the quinoa was cooked, but the zucchini and carrots were raw (I tossed them in with the quinoa). It was wonderful warm and cold the next day. I cook most of our food though ~ grains, beans. Thanks for the suggestion to listen to my body ~ it has helped me this pregnancy. Mostly, I'd like to stick to whole foods and add some raw in. *Ü*

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thank you! and I am encouraged to know that I am not the only SL LA drop-out! I am using Queen's Language Lessons ~ I have seen good things about FLL and hear they are very similar. Not sure?

    ReplyDelete
  8. *Ü* I'll post it today ~ just need a quiet moment to finish it.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I forgot to share one way that we are using EG. I make flash cards for each major point and we review them each lesson. We do this with "key cards" and "phonogram cards" etc. with All About Spelling and love the concept ~ so we adapt EG to be similar. I have them repeat the main points after me (they hear, they say, then they do) and it works beautifully!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Sometimes I amaze myself, Cara! I don't know how I will get a thing done today, but somehow I will!

    Soooo, are you hoping for another? ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  11. What a delightful couple of weeks! The boys would absolutely love the bucket of soldiers. It would be so fun to watch our little fellows play together :D And Halea would just fall in love with Elianna. Is Luke reading God King aloud to everyone or just the older boys? Way to go Nathan! It was well worth all your committed diligence :D
    Thanks for linking up, you are always an inspiration for us ;D
    Shabbat Shalom, my friend... love to you and the family!

    ReplyDelete