The other day a TOG Mom sent me an e-mail, asking where my Year 1 information was. Well, I designed this blog a few weeks after finishing Year 1, which was last summer. My blog's first year anniversary came and went and I forgot all about it until just now! (gasp) Last summer was quite a learning curve for me, learning how to blog, use a digital camera, and how to do html code for my blog template. This summer I assured my new TOG friend that I would catch up with looking back at some highlights of TOG year 1.
Before we started TOG, the dc and I were involved in Children's Choir at church and I worked behind the scenes, primarily on costumes. This was an outreach ministry and we had a blast serving the Lord! When I found Tapestry of Grace, which blended history, literature, geography, Christian Worldview, arts and crafts, and performance, we knew it would change the course of our homeschooling!
TOG highly recommends unit celebrations for closure on a unit and to celebrate all the hard work that had been done. It is also a time for family members to come and see what the dc have been learning. These are usually done in a co-op setting. Since we were not part of a co-op, I studied what others did for their unit celebrations and planned out what we could do to make ours special. I was a bit hesitant. Were we weird? I did not know anyone who did anything like this curriculum. I was not yet part of the yahoo support group. Surely we were nuts. I prayed about it and in faith, ventured forth with the family to make plans. Then I invited my parents and brother and his family, who live nearby, to come and see what the children had been learning. Following is the invitation I sent to them:
Everyone is invited to an open house for our study of The History of Redemption: Moses' World. This will be on Sunday, October 22, anytime after noon. Come and go as you like (and IF you like. If you have other plans, or would rather not attend, that is fine.) This weekend culminates our first 9 weeks of school. We have learned a lot of exciting things, in the context of the Bible. We have studied Ancient Egypt, the Creation, the Great Flood, the Patriarchs, and the first 5 books of the Bible. Most families of this curriculum conclude the unit with a big celebration where we pull out the art projects and share what we learned. B and C have each chosen one of the papers that they have written to present as a speech. (We will not force that presentation on anyone. However, if interested, ask and they will make their presentations.) We will have foods available that are representative of these ancient cultures. B and C would love to share all that they've learned. Ask as many questions as you want (Although they have learned a lot, they haven't learned everything! We had to save something for the high school years!) Let us know if you are coming and the general time frame of your arrival. Thanks!
Laurie
As you can tell, I was a bit trepidacious! I knew my brother and his wife are very busy and had a baby and I wanted them to feel welcome to come at their convenience, for as long or as little as they wanted. Who would come? Anyone? Would they think we were odd ducks? Little would they know what surprises we had in store for them! Well, stay tuned for Part II to find out who came, the reaction, and what we did!
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• Jul. 23, 2008 - Untitled Comment
Blessings,
Pam