Jan. 11, 2007 - Taking Stock, Keeping Track, Making a List and checking it twice...
Here we are starting off a new semester already. I've got a cold for the New Year, so MBB has been getting a fairly easy week, but we did sit down yesterday and talk about what we want to get done by the end of the school year.
Math: Memorize times tables to 12 by February. The 8's and 12's won't "stick" for some reason.
Division..two digits into three digits by June
ALEKS.com...complete two pieces of pie on MWF in order to complete by the end of the year
Online Math League.com contests
Handwriting/Typing: Finish the cursive lower case letters in HWOT by March 1
Use Sponge Bob typing tutor 2x week
Start 2-3 line dictation in March in cursive, using either memory verses or stuff from Guttenburg site
Writing: This continues to be a challenging area, but it is getting to be less of a chore. We started a "Picture a Week" story, where we will use famous paintings/pictures to start a story. We'll try to do some kind of writing, at least five sentences on MWF, choosing from the following: Picture a Week, Never-ending Tale website or our own notebook version, write a postcard, send e-mail, post to Bionicle.com, write captions in photo album, Reading Rainbow story contest
Reading: I really don't keep track of what MBB reads...we head to the library once a week and he has everything read within a day or two. Neither of us are good at maintaining lists, so as long as he is reading one "Real" (non-comic book or magazine) book a week for fun I'll be happy. For "school" reading we still have two of the Childhood of Famous Americans to finish, and we'll pick one other fiction book to really focus on by the end of the year. He isn't pushing himself very much in terms of what level he chooses to read, but I think I missed out as a kid because I was a book "snob" and wouldn't read "easy" books. In some ways I am glad he chooses the easier books, since the subject matter is more appropriate that way.
One resource I did NOT end up using in this area....Reading Strands (you can read my scathing review on Amazon) I guess I am lucky if this is the only homeschool book I've purchased and just hated. Bleah...enough said.
Language/Grammar: I didn't use K12 this year, because I thought it focused on too much grammar, etc. last year, but I am regretting that decision a little now. MBB is enjoying the Punctuation Puzzler workbooks...they really make you pay close attention to how a few commas can change a sentence. Our goal is to complete both workbooks by June. I would like to see him consistently use capitals correctly in his own writing. He can spot the errors once he has written something, but sometimes it seems like he just throws capitals in at random when he writes.
I'd also like to do a little study on prefixes/suffixes with him. I don't know what resources we'll use yet...I think I'd like to have him make up his own list or book of prefixes/suffixes
History Our charter school and K12 are still fighting it out about whether we can order just the history course. It is very frustrating, and if K12 wasn't so good, I'd have chosen something else by now. If it drags on past Feb. I will start looking at Susan Wise Bauer's stuff.
In order to have something to do on History days, we have been using the Living Books for the Ears site. Both kids enjoy listening to the old radio broadcasts while working on some sort of related art project. The books that one of the moms in our homeschool group donated earlier in the school year have fit in really well with the broadcasts. When they had a great Story of the Pilgrims broadcast, we just happened to have a book called The Stories of the Pilgrims that went with it...then a field trip opportunity to sail on a tall ship came along that same week, so maybe God is just taking care of this subject for us.
I have started Tivo'ing Drive Thru History, so we may use that as well. There is a website called Awesome Stories that has good historical stuff...I thought it was a little boring, but MBB likes finding the "source documents..." Tickets for the Hindenburg, video of Einstein, etc. (Einstein sounds just like the scientist duck from the old Disney films)
Science: We slowed down a little in this area, but plan to finish the EE unit on chemistry by February and then move on to Space and a Human Body unit.
The science museum in a nearby town puts on some great classes. MBB got to attend one during December. He was pleased that "I wasn't the only one that knew the answers!" We are considering getting a membership to the museum so we can go geek out whenever we want. I will try to get him into classes over Spring Break at the very least. One of our homeschool groups put on a science day...so hopefully that will happen again.
P.E. MBB ended up going enrolling in the homeschool gymnastics class this year. I thought he was making good progress, and staying with the class much better than in the past. Unfortunately, some of the kids were really good gymnasts, and he felt like he couldn't keep up. They weren't the friendliest bunch of kids either, so he decided to quit in December. He really wants to try rock climbing, but the timing just isn't working out. Baseball starts soon, so we'll try that again this year.
Bible: This is a hard area for me...I had no idea where to even start, so I bought the Explorer's Bible Study. It has been good at making sure we at least do something, but I can tell the kids aren't all that thrilled with it. The only way they'll sit still for it is if I let one of them read the story, and the other one read the questions. I'll try it for another few weeks, but I am thinking of going with some little devotionals we got at the dollar store. I guess my goal is to do something, anything, every day after lunch, even if it is just playing a hymn on some instruments. This is the first subject to go when the schedule gets tight!
Music: Well, I still don't have any great piano or dulcimer virtuosos :( We did get a lap harp at Christmas from Santa for MBB. It didn't work quite right, so I sent in a complaint to the company, and a brand new lap harp arrived last week. The kids decided Santa must have made his elves work overtime to get a new harp made! Since I had managed to get the orginal instrument tuned except for one string, we now have two. MRB is actually very good at plucking out little tunes, so MBB will try a few just so his little sister doesn't steal the spotlight.
What to pray for: That we will be more inspired, our at least more diligent in our Bible study, that MBB will have a more teachable spirit so he can learn more easily from others, that I will stay healthy
What I'm thankful for: All the amazing resources, people, and field trips that God has brought our way, A supportive husband and family, and kids that love to learn
OK...back to our regularly scheduled life...MRB need lunch or she is going to eat a whole box of Ritz Bits.
Comments
Mar. 8, 2007 - Key for 8's and 12's
Posted by SheilaG
I hope you're doing well in meeting your goals this semester!
Do you want a hint for the 12's? You go up by 1 on the first number and then count by 2's. The only tricky one is 12x5 because you actually go up by 2 (from 48 to 60).
But 12, 24, 36, 48, 60, 72, 84, 96...: if they can count by 2's they can do 12's.
And for 8, figure out the ones they know like clockwork:
1x8, 2x8, 5x8: 10x8, then you can get rid of those ones.
That leaves a much smaller list: 3x8, 4x8, 6x8, 7x8, 8x8, 9x8. Only 6. 9x8 is easy if you follow the 9's rule: subtract one and then it adds up to 9. So 9x5 is 5-1 (4) and then what adds up to 9? (5). etc.
For 7x8, you just learn 56 - 7 - 8 (7x8 is 56, so you just read 5678).
Now you're down to three, and those three you just have to memorize.
I don't know if that helps, but there you go.
Sheila.
