Coming Up...

We seem lately to be getting a better rhythm to our days. I've backed off in some areas, made others more rigorous, and we're finding time for some rabbit trails. I start each week now with two things: one, a list of books from A Picture Perfect Childhood to read during the week (and what days they are particularly applicable); and two, a list of general goals for the week.

On the agenda this week:

Some of our general reading/Afternoon Basket, just to give you the flavor of a week's worth of books from A Picture Perfect Childhood (note: not all these titles are the actual "suggested" ones--sometimes I fill in with other books on the same topic):



There are a few more on my to-read-this-week list, but this will definitely give you the general idea! We usually read 2-3 of these picture books a day, and have enjoyed all of them so far!

In math, I'm changing things up a little this week, mainly because we've almost finished our current Life of Fred books, and I have yet to put in an order for the next ones. So, The Boy will be working in Zacarro's Primary Grade Challenge Math (level 3 and "Einstein" level work), while The Girl and I explore Everyday Number Stories. I did read a bit of it to her already, and she really liked it. Reading through it makes me want to pull out Primary Language Lessons for her again, which I may well do.

I did pick up a copy of The Paragraph Book for The Boy. I think it'll be a good, solid, and not heavy-handed introduction to basic writing techniques. After that, we'll just have to see!

Continuing work/reading: We'll be reading about Babylon this week, in K12's Human Odyssey, finishing up the Mesopotamian area, and then we'll be prepping for Egypt. I am trying to decide if I want to buy one of these...







Or there is this one (less than half the price, so I could get two!)...



We'll also be continuing with The Sea of Monsters (audio book); The Invention of Hugo Cabret (what a gorgeous book!!!!); and The Magician's Elephant. Cassia and I have almost finished  Dancing Shoes, and then we'll start maybe Circus Shoes, or she's been wanting to learn more about Sacajawea, and I found these books...

We'll see how far her interest goes! I also found this video, and that alone may be enough to satisfy her interest at the moment!

Also on the agenda:
A lesson from The Sentence Family
Spelling and phonics
An art project
Some science with Dr. Art's Guide to Science and The Magic of Reality, and a DNA project (thanks Michelle!)... and perhaps this project on DNA, as well as a review of photosynthesis.

Yes, I have officially abandoned a pre-made science study. We really enjoy books like Dr. Art's Guide, and The Magic of Reality, and it is certainly easy enough to tie in projects, and extra books, so I'm just going to go with the flow! Plus, Dr. Art has an entire website devoted to expanding on the topics in his book! This approach also allows us to explore what we're really interested in, rather than what so-and-so says we "should" study next. Plenty of time for a more formal science study in high school/junior college.

I think that's it for now. Happy Chinese New Year, and I hope your Year of the Snake gets off to a good start!