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So Far, So GoodSo far this week has been absolutely wonderful school wise, even with a sick teacher on Monday. Since this weekend's excursions I've given Xander a little more work. And he seems to be doing it wonderfully. This past weekend I also tested his reading level with 2 different tests. And according to both my 5 year old who isn't even supposed to be doing first grade work yet... is reading at a fifth grade level. He's reading more on his own and I even see that it helps him retain a little bit more of what we're learning. It's also made narrations pages a lot easier too. I have to prompt him less! And that I'm completely happy with.He seems to like a little more added responsibility to the work as well. I think he things it makes him older and he's always trying to prove that he's a big boy. I'm amazed at how much that little boy retains. He's even helping his little brother with letter recognition. And that even seems to be helping Lucas a little bit. When we did letter flash cards today he only missed four letters as opposed to his usual 8 or 10. Aiden however has been my problem child. He seems to think I'm only his mommy! He hates sharing my time with the other two boys. Luckily some wonderful ladies on one of the message boards I frequent gave me some suggestions on what to do with them. JOYFUL THOUGHTS -I love having an hour to myself sometimes to do with as I please. I could read books, surf the net, watch one of my favorite programs. (I'm addicted to Jericho right now and I just watched the latest episode. Good stuff.) -I love ground turkey tacos. And I'm happy my family did too. It was a big hit tonight! Weekend Happenings
8:40 PM, Mar. 17, 2008
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This weekend opened my eyes up to some pretty amazing things that my son Xander can do. It really reaffirmed my faith in what we're doing here with the homeschooling. That is in fact getting the education he both needs and deserves. I'm sure I'll get these moments with both Lucas and Aiden as they get older. Now I'm sure you want to hear it.We went to my mother-in-law's birthday party on Saturday and we wanted Xander to make her a card. Now I expected him to ask for help with figuring out what to write and how to spell it of course. I mean after all he's five years old and is just starting to learn how to spell. So you can imagine my surprise when all the sudden I hear him yelled to me.... "MOM, look I used a pronoun in my card to grandma." So I take a look at this card, and sure enough he pointed to the word 'I'. So now I'm impressed. We just started learning about pronouns, but then I took a look at the actual card and that impressed me more. On the front it said 'Happy Birthday Grandma.' On the inside it said. 'Dear Grandma, I love you.' And on the back of the card it said 'Made by Xander' (I think that was his take on a Halmark Greeting logo). But he did this with no help... what so ever. I couldn't believe it. I'm still amazed by this. In fact I was so amazed I decided it was time for him to do some more of his school work independently. And sure enough... today I let him do his Bible studies all by himself. He was able to read it...(which I knew he could do as he did that all the time anyways.) But he was able to answer all the questions correctly by himself. These are the moments that make me LOVE homeschooling. And they so outweigh those horrid moments. And that's my joyful thought for the entire weekend and today! My Sons are Acting OutAnd no it's not over school (although Xander and I did but heads over his spelling work today. But I think it has something to do with what I'm about to write about.) There has been crying, foot stomping (yes foot stomping... which is somewhat new to us), out and out defiance, and not listening. And I'm trying to be understanding. I really am... but is is so frustrating sometimes.But at least I know why they're doing this. My husband has been most busy lately. Yesterday he had to go to a Light Show (he's an electrician) and today he had other things going on. He really hasn't seen the kids in 2 days. And tomorrow he'll also be busy during the day and we have a party to go to tomorrow night. So he won't have any real time with them tomorrow. It is taking its toll on the boys. Last night Xander didn't fall asleep until Daddy came home. He sat in bed quietly but no restful sleep and he didn't sleep in. So he was tired and he had to take a nap after lunch. Lucas, before I put him into bed looked at me with his big expressive eyes and said, "I miss Daddy." I almost cried. Hopefully, come Sunday we can have a nice family day. My boys really need it, aww heck... I really need it too. I'm kind of missing my husband. JOYFUL THOUGHTS -I'm happy my husband has a job that I can complain about. I have to remember that when times get busy like they have been I also wanted to thank those of you who comment both on the actual blog and my friends and family that comment on it to me over the phone or in person. Scheduling ConcernsSo I was looking through our math book, and we're just over halfway through with it. Now if you go by the average 'school' year, we're a little bit behind. (Not really... considering Xander and Lucas are both ahead of what their respective levels). We've not even done 100 days of school. Now I'm starting to panic because people on other message boards are almost done with their school work for the year. It still seems like we have so much to do compared with the rest of these homeschoolers.So now would be the time to step back and look at the choices I've made through the year. I have to remember that I chose to do a full year, with no massive breaks. I didn't this because I've noticed that after long breaks, it takes Xander a longer time to get back into the swing of things. So what we have been doing is having 3 weeks of school and then one off. (I know, I know... I've mentioned this before.) So of course we'll be slightly behind. So really it's not big deal. But still it seems like this year is taking forever. And it's not even that I'm not enjoying it. I just hate feeling like I'm behind. UGH... maybe I should just stop comparing myself to others and just focus on what's working for us. Because really... this schedule is working for us. I like to think that my children are even thriving with it. So I just have to keep reminding myself... that hey.... what I'm doing is working. JOYFUL THOUGHTS -I love the period around St. Patrick's Day.... I love to indulge on McDonald's Shamrock Shakes -I love how my kids can just do or say something out of the blue that just lifts my spirits. How Do You Argue With ThisSo the other day my husband and Xander were having a conversation about the moon. This is stemming from the moon model my son got for his birthday. Keep in mind this is a five year old talking, it amazes me how this boy's mind things... anyway... here's the general gist of the conversation...Xander says to my husband, 'I think a full moon should be called a half moon.' Husband: Oh yeah? Why do you say that? Xander: Because when we see a full moon we're only seeing half of the moon. We can't see the other side of the moon, so we only see once side of it. Husband: Okay what would we call a half moon then? Xander: A fourth moon because you're only seeing one fourth of the full moon. Husband: That's pretty smart. Xander: I know. Isn't my son so modest? But seriously... his argument does make sense. JOYFUL THOUGHTS -I'm happy I decided to homeschool. It hasn't just been beneficial for my children... but I myself have reawakened my thirst for knowledge. I'm reading books I never would have even thought of if I wasn't working on certain things in school with the boys. And I would've had no idea what I had missed. -I'm happy i can go into a toy store with my children and they don't expect us to walk out with a new toy each time. And they don't cry about not getting anything. Hits and MissesOkay so I'm one who goes around checking out various homeschooling message boards. Mostly I'm just a lurker. It's actually really rare that I post anything on them. There are two that I will post on, but even those are sparingly. But one of the posts I come across often are ones about hit or missing texts and work books. Some times I agree with what's being said and other times I don't. And that isn't a problem, it's a matter of opinion and what a child needs. I myself have come across things I just don't like.Let me tell you... I live by The Well Trained Mind. Okay well, maybe I don't follow it to a tee. But so far the suggestions they've given have been wonderful for my household. (Trust me the times they suggest in the book are just that... suggestions. Even the authors know that the time suggestions are a bit outlandish and were put in there only to appease editors.) But the general books suggestions have been wonderful. I've already posted my book and spine selections before and for the most part, and they're hits. So I won't go through those again. Keep in mind that with things for history and science.... the books I choose are spines. We do a lot of extra reading. But here are my misses. Sing, Spell, Read and Write- We used the preschool program. I won't use it again and I wouldn't order the next stage. Nothing bad with the actual program... I know many people who swear by it. And it does work. I just didn't think it was worth the price. Especially when I know for a fact that there are many other phonics programs that are not even a third of the price and work just as well. Alpha-Omega's LifePacs- We used their Kindergarten Program. Which consisted of a Math and Language Arts package. This program I did not like one bit. First off... their phonics program moved much too slowly for my liking. My goal was to teach my child to read as soon as possible in the easiest way possible. I had to enhance their reading program with The Websters Phonics Handbook. Using this Language Arts program was probably my biggest mistake in homeschooling so far. The math was fine at least for the Kindergarten year. It gave Xander a big enough start so that he could easily transition to Abeka's Arithmetic 1. But as I studied the scope and sequence I realized again went at a lot slower pace then I liked. I didn't even get through the first year of these texts. There you have the two programs I didn't care for. Hopefully this will be a help to someone out there. JOYFUL THOUGHTS -I love seeing on the news that we might actually have a little bit of a warm up in the weather on the way. I'm so ready for spring and the mild weather and that springy smell. -I love when we have a nice family night just watching a movie and enjoying each other. It doesn't seem to happen, that's why it's really special when it does happen. A Better StartWell, today has been better than all of last week. I didn't come across one problem. In fact Lucas only had to go into a time out once and Xander was well behaved in both school and not in school. There were no problems with him not wanting to do his work. They cleaned up the play room when it was time to. And even though we started actual school work late... we still got done around the same time we used to. So today was very, very good.Xander today learned how to draw lines of a certain length in both cm and in. He also learned how to count by threes. I'm amazed at how easily he picked it up. But that's Xander for you... tell him how to do things once and he just gets it. The other school work was also done well, he's learning pronouns and the like. He's loving the Greek myths. It amazes me how much he actually absorbs and remembers. Right now he's reading, by himself an adaptation of Treasure Island. I love watching my kids learn. Lucas is really coming along. Still learning to count, his alphabet, shapes, colors, etc. I think I've mentioned before that he's a visual learner. It's a different challenge than what Xander was. I have to do things differently. But I roll with the punches and Lucas is doing wonderfully too. I'm very proud. JOYFUL THOUGHTS -I love opening my eyes in the morning and listening to my children talk and play with each other. My kids are usually up before me, and they go into the play room or play Legos in their bedroom. And it's absolutely amazing how well the get along sometimes. -I going to the movies. I don't do it often, but there is just something about the whole movie theater experience. BooksSo today we went to Borders. I think I was driving my husband and my sons nuts with how long I took looking at everything. Books are probably one of my biggest vices. I absolutely love to read. I'll read non-fiction, fiction, etc. Right now my interest has been in classics.Not long ago I finished Jane Austen's Mansfield Park. I didn't like it as much as I liked Sense and Sensibility, but still it was an enjoyable read. I liked how at the end she gave you the definitive end but she added a little bit of what might have been if the characters hadn't acted on baser impulses. But of course the ending was perfect and just right. So you are more then happy with the outcome that happened. Right now I'm currently reading Plato's Republic, translated by Robin Waterfield. While I'm not so impressed with the introduction to the actual work, (much to dry for my taste) Plato is an absolute brilliant writer and thinker (duh). I'm enjoying the piece very much. My next book will probably Herodotus' The Histories, followed by Aristotle's The Art of Rhetoric. Which was my husband's choice at the book store today. I probably would've chosen something by Caesar or Cicero. (What can I say... Rome interests me.) As you can see since we're studying the Ancients in history, I've caught a little bug. We did however by a younger translation of Treasure Island that Xander should be able to read aloud. I think after we're done with our phonics program (we have maybe 15 more lessons to go through) he'll read that out loud to me as our reading program. JOYFUL THOUGHTS -Have I said how happy I am my family loves to read. Even the little ones, Aiden loves to look at his board books and gets so excited when it's time for family Bible time. Lucas also likes to look at his books and make up stories to go with the pictures. -I'm happy my life turned out the way it did and not the way I wanted it to in highschool Kind of Happy the Week is OverI think this is the first week of this school year where I'm actually happy the weekend is here. Sure there were some good things that happened this week. But there were times when both Lucas and Xander were very trying. Today in and of itself was very mild. Xander did his work with no problems. There were no open displays of defiance, no crossed arms, no protruding lower lip, no stomping of feet. It was a blessedly easy day. Lucas as well did his work happily. He even listened to the rest of The Wanderings of Odysseus as I read it to Xander. Like I said it was all in all a good day.How ever... after school was done and the younger two took their naps, it was time to clean the playroom. For some reason... my kids like to take every single toy out. We've tried to get them to do the whole one at a time thing. But it doesn't seem to sink in. It can be so aggravating. And then when the time comes to pick up... it's like pulling teeth. And if you don't sit there and watch them like a hawk... they just end up playing AND NOTHING GET'S DONE. I don't know why I'm surprised by this. I did the same thing when I was a child. I now know why my parents got so frustrated with me. I guess the old saying 'what goes around, comes around,' is true. Remind me to tell my dad (who was the one who was most annoyed by the mess) that I'm very, very sorry. Well, I'm sorry I didn't give an update on yesterday's goings on. My husband and I had a mini-date night. After the kids were in bed (that's usually when I get a chance to blog) we decided to pop in a net-flix movie that we've had for awhile. It was Mission Impossible 3. Let me tell you... I was not impressed. I've decided I am not a fan of J. J. Abrams. I was disappointed in Cloverfield and unimpressed with Lost after the first season. And unfortunatly this doesn't bode well for the new Star Trek Movie coming out next year. (Yes, I am a Trekkie and probably one of the biggest geeks ever). JOYFUL THOUGHTS -I'm happy my husband knows when I'm very stressed and I just can't take on the extra task of cooking dinner. He ordered us pizza for dinner to night and I had the night off -I love the smell of books, old, new... it doesn't matter. I love to walk into libraries and book stores and simply enjoy the smell. I don't know what it is about the paper they use to print on. I just love it. More Trying TimesOkay, so today I noticed something. Xander is a perfectionist in every sense of the word. He hates being wrong. It gets to the point where if he does get something wrong... he simply gives up. He will actually will stop working if he makes a mistake. It absolutely drives me insane!Take for instance today in math. I told him to count from 50 to 125 by fives. He started out just fine. Then around 100 he started to mess up a little. Not a very big deal. I know he knows how to count by fives past 100. He just stumbled a little. But I did correct him, I feel I was gentle in doing so. I didn't act angry, I didn't act upset. I simply said... 'oops, you made a mistake, let's try that again.' Well he wasn't having any of that. He just looked at me with a small pout upon his lips and crossed his arms. Finally I was able to coax him into working again and the day went fine. Until the same thing happened when we were working on Spelling Workouts. He read the directions wrong and I asked him to read the directions again. He could even tell me what he did wrong. But he was close to tears because he got something wrong. What is one supposed to do with a little guy who holds such high standards in himself!?! No I admit I do expect a lot from my kids. But in what I do expect I know they can do. I don't allow laziness or slacking off simply because they don't feel like working. But I never ever have gotten angry with them for making mistakes. I don't don't understand where he gets this from. I don't feel like I'm perfectionist. My husband might be a little, but not to the extent Xander is. Is it a genetic thing? My mother-in-law is the biggest perfectionist I've ever known. It's just something that has left me pondering. And it makes for a very difficult school day sometimes! Lucas on the other hand is the complete opposite. He's so laid back and he just takes everything in stride. It amazes me how different those two can be. All three of my little guys have different personalities. It is completely amazing. JOYFUL THOUGHTS -I'm happy to have an amazing extended family that is supportive and nonjudgmental. No matter how 'weird' my choices are (ie homebirth, homeschooling). -I'm happy to have 4 wonderful friends that I've kept through highschool and beyond. I don't know how I would get through life without them. { Last Page } { Page 2 of 5 } { Next Page } |
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