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September 8, 2009
Just Today...just starting, learning to submit, and loving nature along the way.
Perhaps I will start using this site again as a simple notebook journal of our daily happenings. Nothing too exciting to most I am sure, but truly a simple way for me to keep records virtually, and record later on. And if anyone has any comments or advice, I am always welcome for learning new ways of teaching (and learning) things. ;)
We officially started school around 3 weeks ago. I am teaching a 1st and 2n grader, and an over eager 2 year old who is learning most by default. (And the 9 month old who just loves to eat crayons, and when the kids take those from her, she goes for their papers.)
In the past we have used Abeka for maths and phonics. I really just wanted to get a firm understanding of those basics for the first few years, and so that is what we have focused on. We've taken bunny trails on various arts, or sciences, or bible workbooks, but mostly those were the "core" subjects for the first years.
This year I felt very strongly God's desire that I become more persistent with basing alot of this year's curic on Science. A friend highly recommended Apologia which I hadn't heard of before, and also handed down Abeka's 1st grade "Discovering God's World." The Apologia book is on Botony, and does seem bit advanced for 1-2 graders, but still I feel God persisting, "Trust me. Don't put it aside. Use it this year. Trust me. Challenge them."
So, that is what I am doing. I started with the Abeka first grade book, but they have already swept thru more than halfway of the book and only 3 weeks into the year. Perhaps, God actually is right. (As He usually is) Perhaps they are "ahead" on science and I haven't realized it before. Never the less, Apologia kind of intimidated me until this week. I spent the first two weeks this year working on reviewing the girls on their maths, telling time, counting money...etc, and brushing up on some easy readers...and finally this week as we finished the sections on telling time when I began praying about what to do next, God again pushed me over to the Apologia. Sometimes I am embarrassed it takes me so long to submit.
So, today we opened to the page we left off before and began reading more about classes and plants. I had a vague thought to open to Genesis Chapter 1 and also read the Creation Story so it would be fresh in their mind's, this awesome Creator we have, when we went on our first Nature Walk this afternoon. The beginning of reading had my 1st grader saying "this is booooring..." but by the end they were both thoroughly enthralled and enjoying it. Their ideas of how god scattered the stars were so precious! I wish I'd had it on tape.
Afterwards we gathered small memo pads, a few pens, a little box, and all 4 kiddos (with baby strapped in a sling on my chest) tramped outside to find their "specimens." We came home not too long later having chased 4 butterflies, avoided 3 grasshoppers, saw 2 baby grasshoppers, collected half a dozen leaves and a few wildflowers, and caught (but then released) a very beautiful light blue butterfly. We pressed the flowers and leaves in a baggie and squished them under books, then collected our sketches and drawings, wrote dates and time and descriptions. Later I will have a notebook for each child to keep a running log of such findings and sketches...etc. But for now, this will have to do. They were quite pleased with themselves. I can't wait to see what God has in mind for tomorrow. :) |
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About Me
Recent Posts
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• Just Today...just starting, learning to submit, and loving nature along the way.
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