Thursday, January 27, 2011

Things have gone well this week! We are finally getting back to Reading/ Writing Workshop, and our work has been taking right at three hours each day (not including R/W Workshop).

Joel learned about the Erie Canal and Oregon Trail this week. I have really enjoyed doing additional research about these things online. There is a group in NY actively working to preserve what's left of the original Erie Canal. Entire parts of it have been lost, leaving these researchers to speculate about where the original canal went. Parts of the original tow path are now greenways, where residents exercise on actual paths used by the tow animals/ workers.







Homeschooling has spawned some new obsessions interests for me: dry erase makers and index cards.

 I write out the boys' assignments on index cards for each work box for the day. They check off their assignments and then I continue on the same card for the week. We also make flashcards for vocabulary and Bible concepts. Jason is using them to make cards for the West African countries he is studying. I have bought every kind there is (colored, lined, unlined, multi-colored lines, etc.) Joel uses dry erase markers for math and grammar each day because I save paper by putting a page protector over the original copy. He writes on the page protector saving me from making a copy and enabling me to keep the original pristine in hopes of reselling it later. A great thing that happened to me this week was getting my Bic teacher's kit in the mail:

Yes, I was very excited to get permanent markers, three diffent colors of writing pens, mechanical pencils, gel pens, and of course, dry erase markers (and a new eraser and cleaner!!). This kit is worth $60, but sold for $20 and I had a free $10 credit through  Groupon : ). Happiness= school supplies in the mail. I am easy to please. Sometimes.

Today we were reviewing our Bible stories and I had them write the answers to the review questions on mini chalkboards and hold them up. They did so much better this way and it went quickly. I felt like a teacher of a one-room schoolhouse (I am fascinated by them).  And the boards were only $1 at Dollar Tree!!

(Jason has to eventually turn everything into a joke......)

Finally, I am relieved to be able to say that Joel is still extremely excited about learning cursive. He is doing better than I ever expected. I can't believe I put this off and dreaded it so much!

Homeschooling is keeping me learning, and giving me new surprises each day.

Friday, January 14, 2011

Today I faced one of my biggest fears. I began teaching Joel cursive writing. I forced myself to read the introduction of the "Handwriting Without Tears" book (teacher's version) last night. The authors did such a good job explaining why their method was the best and easiest that I had a surge of self-confidence. I learned a great way to ensure proper pencil grip: place the pencil on the desk, grip it between your thumb and forefinger, and then use the other hand to flip the pencil around. You will automatically have the right grip. I also learned that it is considered better to teach cursive straight up and down rather than at the slant we all learned. (Something to do with that only being taught because it had to be that way when you wrote with fountain pens....I was losing interest a little by this point). I also learned that often kids with illegible and horrid less-than-perfect printing (like every boy in my family) often write better in cursive because a, it's faster, and b, they are learning it at an age where their fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination are fully developed.

I also read something that made me sad: a lot of lefties end up with that hooked wrist style of writing because when they write, their hand covers up the left-side of the paper, which in standard worksheets is where the information is placed. I will be more conscious of the handouts I give to Jason. Where are the people campaigning for discrimination against lefties????

I also sent in our registration to take the Iowa Test of Basic Skills. There are two group sessions at my church, which is cheaper and convenient. I looked at the few sample test questions I could find online and feel my kids should do fine. I have volunteered as a proctor (having given many standardized tests as a teacher), so if I am accepted I'll be reimbursed $50, the cost of one test. People make a business of administering these tests, but it provides a real service to homeschoolers who are required by law to administer a nationally recognized test each year. A lady at my church has started a business doing this.


In Social Studies, Joel & I learned about the Natchez Trace and keelboats. Getting from N. to S.in the US using the Missippi river was easy: just ride the current all the way down to New Orleans. Getting back north was the killer: go by keelboat, which took 3-4 months (versus 1 to go down), or risk getting robbed or worse on the Natchez Trace. I'm glad today was a downstream day. I am trying to be better prepared for the days I feel like a keelboat worker, sticking my pole down and trying to propel myself against the current.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Whew. I have been sick with flu-like symptoms for a week now. I have managed to make it through homeschooling but barely. We ended up with a FOUR HOUR delay yesterday because I felt too badly to do my planning and fill the boxes the night before. But, the boys got to work and got it done when I was FINALLY ready. Today I was prepared so of course everyone felt better (okay, mainly me).

Today, Joel learned more about echolocation (when bats sound out sound waves to locate objects.) Luckily we had seen a Stan Lee Super Human special on a guy who is blind and uses echolocation expertly to ride a bike though his neighborhood and town. Both boys spent some time covering their eyes and making clicking noises to maneuver around the house. They both swore they could hear a difference, and maybe they're right since they didn't run into any mess obstacles.

Did you know bats actually fly with their hands, and that thing sticking out on top is a bat thumb? Joel didn't remember being able to see bats at Disney's Animal Kingdom, so I whipped out the photo album to show him. This made us all excited about our upcoming trip! I am excited because there are so many things that will back up our curriculum. (The countries in Epcot, the animals in Animal Kingdom).

I am very impressed with the free books I've been getting for my Kindle. I found a great grammar book that I started Jason on today. They also have some free math books. I will take all the help I can get, and if it's free, it's even better!!

I woke up this morning thinking about PE. Before our break the boys were doing well at getting on the treadmill about four times a week. We haven't done that since starting back. They would do it without complaining but I hate the treadmill and could tell they did too. It occurred to me that I could just have them do 30 minutes of the WII fit. I know they break a sweat doing that, so it's a win-win. So our boxes went well today, and both boys have done at least 15 minutes of PE. Time for a nap.