Our year so far.... 8/31/12

Wow! One month down! With the overwhelmed feelings from the beginning of the year still easily recalled, I am thankful to be here. 

THINGS I AM DOING RIGHT:
*starting by 10:15 at the latest (usually 10)
*reinforcing the morning chores and compensating them (I check off my chart and keep track of the $ earned)
*We are consistently doing our morning work together: read our Bible lesson, read from Mystery of History or Encyclopedia of the Ancient World and/or Archaeology for Kids.

*I am LOVING the interactive notebooks. They take notes during our morning reading on the right side of their notebooks. They jot down what they think is important, and then I make sure they have the key points down and go over spelling of the names if needed. The next day, we use the left-side of the notebook as our review. I usually do a quick Internet search of our topic each night and either print out photos, maps, charts, or mini-books for them to paste on the left-side. Or, they draw a picture themselves. Here are some photos of their notebooks:

This last one is my favorite! A Stonehenge mini-book that is shaped to mimic the shape of the stones! It opens up, and we posted a bunch of photos of Stonehenge. This site ( http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/publications) also had an interactive tour of Stonehenge;  they took a panoramic photo from the very center so you could look all around. Love!! There is also a photo of Hammurabi's Stele next to the Stonehenge booklet on this page . (At the top is his drawing to help him remember the definition of "epic."

Here is the site I used for the other mini-books:

http://dynamic2moms.webs.com/bible.htm

I use Wikipedia a lot and just "copy image," go to a blank text document and paste it twice (one for each boy). I do this with maps, too.

Then, after morning work and notebooking, we either go to the sun room or living room and read our novel together. We finished The Golden Compass today; we all enjoyed it.

THINGS I NEED TO WORK ON:
Life keeps getting in the way of the daily after-school conference. I do realize that I probably don't need to do this daily. The past two weeks we've only done one per week. I would like maybe 2x or 3x per week. Also, my high-schooler is overwhelmed with all the different resources from Winter Promise and is not finishing everything. I need to be more diligent about making sure the work is done. Also, aside from tests, I still don't know a great way to evaluate him. Sigh. 

I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO:
the fact that we are taking next week off! We will still have to complete our homework for co-op, but hopefully we can catch up on anything missing from our own year thus far.

ON MY TO DO LIST:
We need to fill in our Table-of-Contents on the first page of our interactive notebooks. Also, I had meant to organize the many free printables I've gathered before the school year started. It is still not done. Also, I am tired of not having pens, pencils, scissors and glue sticks when I need them. I want to make a kit for each of us that we keep everything in and always have with us.

OTHER:
I finished this book for book club and HIGHLY recommend it:


The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh.

In co-op, I am teaching 3-5th graders NC History. My high-schooler is taking World View and a writing class. My 5th grader is taking an early American History class and Couch to 5K. My youngest is thrilled with co-op; my oldest is complaining. He does have a lot of homework in the writing class. He also takes a 1.5 hour Biology Lab each week. We have two weeks of this down! 

Thanks for reading! 

How I am doing Lesson Plans this year

I homeschool in North Carolina, where there are no requirements to keep or turn in lesson plans. I still keep them; I want to know what we did whether anyone but me ever sees it or not. I also loved lesson planning when I was a classroom teacher (sometimes even more than teaching itself : ( ). I am a "Type A" so I also like the control accountability that keeping lesson plans provides. Last year, I used the homeschool planner "The Well Planned Day": http://www.homeeducatingfamily.com/shop.html
I really liked it; the subjects are already printed out and each two-page spread covers one week of schooling. It also has articles and other printables (like tear-out report cards) that are relevant and helpful. The problem was I was always writing out the assignments twice: once on the assignment cards that go into each workbox :

(The download is only 30 cents right now on currclick.com http://www.currclick.com/product/21205/Joyful-Steward-Assignment-Cards?it=1 and includes cards for numerous subjects with a grid for each day of the week. I print them on printable postcard card stock that I purchase from Amazon)

...and then again in the planner. This may not sound like much, but it felt like a waste of time and as a general rule I avoid extraneous work to protect laziness efficiency. So, this year I am doing a different system. For starters, I'll make sure to keep a copy of the planning grid that Winter Promise provides for each week (and add the dates and any modifications we made):

For some subjects that are in a book/ workbook, I made copies of the Table-of-Contents to keep in my plan book and will just write the date that each assignment is completed (I am doing this after the fact in case the plans change, as they often do!)

This is from Math Mammoth.

Finally, for the rest, I am going to use those aforementioned assignment cards! I have figured out a way to save them and have them double as my lesson plans. I purchased 3x5 recipe-card protector pages, and I will keep the cards (after the week is up) in there. We've only done one week, but it looks like this:

This was my 5th grader's Science assignment card that was in his workbox for this week (that ended today). Next week, once that week is over, I will put that card right next to this one in the second slot (now blank). Once I get to the 5th week, I will use the back of the week two card (I printed them front/back) just to make it less bulky (as opposed to using a new card and slipping it in.) So, when I turn the page, the first card will be week 5 (which is also the back of week 2). I am making sure to write the name of the books/ resources we are using somewhere on the card, usually at the bottom. The other thing I like about my plans this year is they will be organized by subject and student rather than by day/week, so I will get a more cohesive idea of what each has covered. Now that I am gearing up to complete a high school transcript, I think this will be even more helpful. 

Some random notes:

*when I taught 6th grader I NEVER used red pen b/c I didn't want students to get "bleeding" papers back; now I like to use them (especially to write out assignments) because I think it is attention-getting and cheerful (?)

*I tried Homeschool Tracker and it takes me far more time to type stuff up than just to write it. I also didn't find it intuitive to use so I gave up quickly

*In my plan book (which is a 1-inch 3-ring binder I got from Dollar Tree), I taped a sheet in the back that tells me:

~the exact name of the assignment card file so I don't have to search/ remember;

~the exact page numbers to print and a reminder to print front-back (I am using the blank assignment cards this year and writing in the subject for greater flexibility)

~a note to cut off part of the edge before tearing the cards apart so they will fit into the recipe protector pages

Hopefully God won't laugh now that I've made plans : )

Our 5th Grade Curriculum 2012-13

We are using Winter Promise this year! Here are the main books used (copied from the Winter Promise website winterpromise.com)

A Full WinterPromise Exclusive Resources Set:

Ancient 4/8 Guide for Middlers
"Make-Your-Own" Ancient History 4/8
Setting Out on Ancient Adventure Quests

Plus These Print Books:

The Mystery of History - 2nd edition
Encyclopedia of the Ancient World
Great Ancient China Projects
Lamps, Scrolls & Goatskin Bottles
Story of the World, Vol. 1
Ancient Egypt Projects
Pharaohs & Foot Soldiers
Kings & Carpenters
Explore Ancient Greece
Explore Ancient Rome

Plus these novels:

Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt
The Golden Goblet
Victory on the Walls
The Iliad
Bronze Bow
Gladiator
Hittite Warrior
God King
Adara
The Odyssey

And these novels for Language Arts:

Tirzah
Beauty in the Fields
Bible Wars & Weapons
Rise of the Golden Cobra
Aesop's Fables
Theras & His Town
Detectives in Togas
Polycarp: Crown of Fire

Here are the boxes he will have:


BIBLE~ we've actually been doing this together during our group morning work.  I am using the reading recommended in Winter Promise that coincides with Mystery of History.

LANGUAGE ARTS~ We are using the Winter Promise La. Arts; he had to do some worksheets related to grammar and writing. We are also going to finish up the second half of First Language Lessons Level 4.


MATH~ We are using a new curriculum this year, Math Mammoth. I loved Math-U-See but after nearly daily tears and frustration, I had to at least try something new even though I do feel it is the subject more than the curriculum causing the issues. Now, I have to teach Math each day and am spending far more time with my 5th grader than I ever did when he was a 4th grader. Can't decide if this feels like a step backwards or not. This curriculum seems hard but  teaches you ways to do things in your head. While that idea stresses me out, it is right up my 5th grader's alley so maybe it will click. This box has not gone smoothly but it is only day 3. And it is still math.

http://www.mathmammoth.com/complete/grade_5.php

SPELLING~ After reading rave reviews about All About Spelling, I am using it! I have to start basically from the beginning but we are moving quickly and so far I think it is teaching wonderful things and there has been no frustration. Again, math and spelling were on his own last year so this is adding to the "Work with Mom" list. 

http://www.allaboutlearningpress.com/

Music~ Using Erica's curriculum from Confessions of a Homeschooler: (I idolize her more than any celebrity I can think of!)

http://www.confessionsofahomeschooler.com/blog/2012/01/worlds-greatest-composers-vol-1.html
It starts with the 4 main periods of classical music, and will take a closer look at a few composers from each. It has wonderful lapbooks and tells us what songs to listen to on naxos.com or itunes. 

Science~ Apologia Land Animals of the 6th day textbook and notebook:


Vocabulary~  I printed out a vocabulary study from Scholastic called "Vocabulary: No Boring Practice Please" by Harold Jarnocki. He learns a word a day, which he records in a notebook, and he has a brief activity from the book to complete using that word. It's an ebook that I got during one of their $1 download sales (more expensive now!!)
http://teacherexpress.scholastic.com/no-boring-practice-please-vocabulary


HISTORY~ This is the box for his independent history work. (Winter Promise includes things for us to read aloud together, which so far has been a lesson from Mystery of History Vol. 1 and a chapter from the novel The Golden Goblet, along with pages from Archaeology for Kids which is more for my 9th grader). He has to complete "Adventure Quest" pages and read from Story of the World Part I. He has also started a Nature Notebook which I have always wanted to do. 

READING~ For his Language Arts novels (different from the one we read together!) Currently he is reading Tirzah. 

HANDWRITING~ Finishing up Can-Do Cursive from Handwriting Without Tears (http://shopping.hwtears.com/category/HWT):

He is almost finished as he started this last year; we will be using one of their blank books and doing basic copywork when he finishes this. I also purchased some of their stickers that show the proper way to write each letter and stuck it to the outside of his box so he always has it for reference.






So, he has 10 boxes this year! He does on his own: history, science, vocabulary, and handwriting. The others will be a mixture of work w/ me and independent. 

Our 9th Grade Curriculum for 2012-13 School Year

First off, let me state what will become obvious: I spent a lot of money on curriculum this year. I've been hoarding gift money and spent all of it on curriculum. I am chronically tired and I really wanted my hand held this year as I navigated our first year dealing with high school. So, we went with Winter Promise "Quest for the Ancient World." We are using their history curriculum, as well as their Language Arts, which includes some writing, grammar, and novels that tie into what is being studied in History. 

Here are a list of the core books for Senior High: (copied from the Winter Promise website:

http://www.winterpromise.net/product_info.php?cPath=21_38&products_id=1260&osCsid=a04e76d6cecfd1c891d6aa66c77b7b94)

The Mystery of History - 2nd edition
Encyclopedia of the Ancient World
Great Ancient China Projects
Holman Bible Atlas
Archaeology for Kids
Unwrapping the Pharaohs & DVD
Story of the World, Vol. 1
The Riddle of the Rosetta Stone
Ancient Greek Challenges
Ancient Roman Challenges
Tools of the Ancient Greeks
Tools of the Ancient Romans
Augustus Caesar's World

I am excited to be using Mystery of History!

Here are the novels he will be reading:

Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt
The Golden Goblet
Victory on the Walls
The Iliad
Bronze Bow
Gladiator
Hittite Warrior
God King
Adara
The Odyssey

In addition, he will read these novels for La. Arts:

Mara, Daughter of the Nile; Shadow Hawk; Hadassah; Archimedes & the Door of Science; D’Aulaire’s Book of Greek Myths; Galen & the Gateway to Medicine; The Ides of April; Beyond the Desert Gate; Ben Hur

In addition to history, reading the novels, and grammar, he will also be reading from this:

For Math, he will finish up Math-U-See Algebra 1 (the last 9 weeks to be exact; Math was a struggle last year and we detoured a lot.)

After he finishes this, we will move on to Life of Fred Geometry:

For Vocabulary, he is beginning SAT prep. We are using this book because he is a visual learner:

He has to do two words per day. He has to copy the words into a notebook along with the definition and a "hook" (either a picture or a phrase based on the info in the book).

He has additional Bible work each day, and will work through this book: (The Most Important Thing You'll Ever Study)

A special thanks to this website, which I will use as a reference for lesson plans for this book:

http://homeschoolblogger.com/wdworkman/bible-lesson-plans/

He will do Spanish twice per week; he will continue with Rosetta Homeschool Spanish.

For the other two days (we do a 4-day week due to co-op), he will do an art appreciation class for this workbox. I got my lesson plans from here:

http://harmonyfinearts.com/section/rhetoric/

It uses these books:

Another of his workboxes is Music Appreciation. I am using the free curriculum also found on harmonyfinearts.com. Here are the main resources:

For Science, he is using Apologia Biology.

I buy the curriculum from My Father's World so I can use their lesson plans, which are already typed up and bound so I just include that in his box. He also will be doing interactive notebooking and lapbooking with science. I want it all to be in a big 3-ring binder, so instead of using a regular notebook, I am printing off pages that look like this:

from this website: http://www.printablepaper.net/

It is lined paper that runs the long way instead of the short way. I will fold each piece in half and then open it up so it is divided into a clear left and right side. On the right side, he will take notes. On the left, he will apply the information in a creative way. I've given him a list of things to choose from, some of which are ask ?s, draw a picture, create a chart or mini-book, or do a chart/graph to help remember the material. Usually this is done in a spiral notebook (search for "interactive notebooking" online), but this way, I can punch holes in it and include it in his Biology binder so everything is together. Later in September, some other moms and I are going to try to start a Biology co-op so we can do the labs together. 

I am using lapbooks from http://liveandlearnpress.com.

He will also be doing some spelling. We will do a combination of All About Spelling and the suggested words in Winter Promise. 

I think that is everything! Here's hoping for a good first year of homeschool high school!!

Not Back to School Day!!

Wish me luck! Tomorrow (Monday, August 6, 2012) is our first day of our new homeschool year!!

It was supposed to be last Monday... nothing like messing up the pre-planned school year first thing, but I have had a major mental block concerning our school. I have tried to do small steps, but have mainly felt completely overwhelmed. I know the main reason is that we are basically doing all new curriculum for all but 2 things (and there are 20 regular subjects between my two boys). Also, my oldest is NOW A 9TH GRADER. Thinking about transcripts, the SAT, high school course credits, etc. makes me want to go and consume large amounts of chocolate protein to get through the stress.

Here's our set-up for tomorrow for my 9th grader:

We are not numbering the boxes this year, but just labeling them by subject. The labels have to go sideways on these boxes. I got my subject cards here:

http://www.confessionsofahomeschooler.com/blog/2012/02/workbox-school-subject-cards.html

I will do a separate post on his curriculum.

Here is my 5th grader's boxes (I finally splurged on the IKEA Trofast system:

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/30171123/

with these boxes/bins: http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/60094072/#/80089239)

He has 10 boxes (which I will explain in a different post). Again, subjects and no numbers. The first 3-4 boxes will be the "Work with Mom" boxes so we can get to those at the beginning of the day, with his independent work for the afternoon. (You can see my 9th grader's boxes in this picture also; they are right beside each other). The bit of red you can see at the top of the photo is a bag that I taped on that contains 10 laminated tags that say "Finished!" Each box has a velcro dot on the far right. When he is finished, he just adds the "Finished!" label. This way, he still has a visual for what work he had completed and has yet to complete, but I am not dealing with stacked boxes everywhere. Also, this way he can just remove the contents of each box instead of the entire box if he chooses (which presumably he will then return to the correct box!)

Last week, while we didn't officially begin our new school year, we did a mini-unit on the Olympics and finished up a few things from last school year that my extreme fatigue prevented me from enforcing. I also typed up and went over a "Welcome" letter to try to make things more official and hold ALL of us more accountable. It includes our subjects, schedule, and a few other things.

Here is that:

WELCOME TO J & J ACADEMY 2012-13 SCHOOL YEAR!!

Jason- 9th Grade    Joel- 5th grade

SUBJECTS:

Bible

History (Ancient World)

Spelling

Math (Jason: finish Algebra 1 and begin Geometry)

Art and Music appreciation (composers, artists and their works)

Science (Joel: Zoology, Jason: Biology)

Vocabulary

La. Arts (Grammar, Writing, Reading)

Others may include typing, Spanish, PE, Logic, Handwriting

In History this year, we will be learning about the cultures of ancient peoples from the beginning of history to the Roman Empire. We will study these civilizations: Mesopotamia, the Egyptians, the Israelites, the Assyrians, the Babylonians, the Persians, the Greeks, and the Romans. Time lines and time line cards will be a key component, and our novels will reinforce what we are learning. 

Notebooking will be used in many subjects. Notebooks should have a table-of-contents for the first few pages. Take notes on the right-side page, then go back and apply that information on the left-side. You can draw pictures, ask ?s, do a chart, or any other creative thing you can think of to help you learn and remember the information. You can also print things off of the Internet or do mini-books.  

DAILY SCHEDULE (usually 4 days a week plus SEEK)

School from 10-12 and 1-3, with a one hour break for lunch/ free time.

REQUIRED: a daily conference with me. We will go over what you've done and learned that day, grade anything you've completed, and prepare workboxes for the next day. You can choose to do this when you finish for the day (before 3) or in the evening after dinner (and before 8:30 PM).

You will be given a responsibility grade based on completing your morning routine and this conference. Grades will also be assigned for each subject.  Corrections are expected; you will earn back half the points taken off for each correction corrected correctly. 

Note: SEEK is our co-op. I am very excited about using "Interactive Notebooking" in a few of the subjects. I think it will really help my 9th grader get ready for note-taking in college. You can search for this and find lots of ideas online. 

Also, since I need all the help I can get, I am going to pay them for doing their morning routine (make bed, straighten room, brush teeth, get dressed, comb hair, and eat breakfast) and for the conference. Also, some additional $ for a really clean room. I made a ledger so instead of paying cash (which I never have and which has defeated every allowance attempt I've made) I am keeping a running balance and they can either have us buy something for them or cash out when I go to the bank. Here is what the top of that says:

JASON'S RESPONSIBILITY LEDGER

Completing morning chores= 50¢ per day

Teacher conference= 50¢ per day

once a week perfect room= $3 once a week 

Swiffer floor (dry then wet cloth) $2

date morning chores teacher conference perfect room Dry/ Wet Swiffer floor Running Balance

1

2

3

4

5

So, this is how we are beginning our year. I'm sure some of this will change/ slip by the wayside, but this is where we stand now and I am dreaming big!!

Have a great school year other homeschoolers!!