Lining Up Literature...

As you have likely seen, I have a large list of books I'd like to share with my children. I'm going through said list right now, to pick out what I would like to read this spring. So far, I have settled on:

The Secret Garden

The Whipping Boy

Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass

The Princess and the Goblin

and, The Wind in the Willows

I choose these just by looking at my lists, and picking out what I think will suit the kids at this time. We did try The Wind in the Willows a couple of years ago, but some of it was dense going for them, so we'll try again now that they are older. These go in the Afternoon Basket, along with picture books, nature related reading (see below), a living math book, trade books, etc. And I read aloud at bedtime too, but that's the kids' choice, which right now is The Red Pyramid.

I'm trying, purposefully, to limit "historical fiction" this year in favor of having more time for good books, like the above. Having said that, I do have some historical literature/fiction on the agenda, including a few Landmark books (and books from similar series), which I consider on the line between history and historical lit. There are some classics of historical lit that I would like to read during our journey through history, such as good versions of The Odyssey, the Aenid, and so forth, but I don't want to get so caught up in matching lit to history that we ignore the other books out there!

Then there are books related to other subjects, such as nature study. We've just finished up The Tarantula in My Purse (which I highly recommend, by the way!), so I've been trying to decide what to read next. I think we're going to go with My Life with the Chimpanzees, by Jane Goodall, and then maybe John Muir: My Life with Nature. And there are living books for math... we're about to start The Cat in Numberland. I'm also intrigued by The Number Devil and The Man Who Counted: A Collection of Mathematical Tales.

I would have to say that reading is the backbone of homeschooling for us. It is something both the kids and I enjoy, and they seem to retain information well this way. I love books, so this works for me!

How do you choose the books you want to read?

Wordless Wednesday... Random Pics...

A couple more pictures from the symphony...

And my derby girl at practice!

Have a great day! And Erin, thanks for the Gary Larson book recommendation! I'm happy to see the local library has it!

When Things Come Together...

It is a lovely feeling when things come together, AND when your kids appreciate that they did! Back when we were planning to "do a real science curriculum", I bought everything I needed for a year of biology, including a bunch of dissection supplies. We didn't end up using the curriculum, but I still have all these awesome supplies, so we're starting a dissection and/or anatomy unit, and I thought we would start with the earthworms. We have the dissection guide as well, but I wanted something more... something to introduce the kids to more information about the creature they'll be taking apart, and then I remembered that I had a copy of this book sitting, unused until now, on my shelf:


I went ahead and pulled it out, and sure enough, there is a chapter on earthworms! So I read it aloud, and it was really good! We learned about movement, food choices, why they don't like sunlight, even reproduction.

I think it makes a great set-up for today's planned dissection activities, and yes, I'll be taking pictures!



We also finished up the Mesopotamia section in K12's Human Odyssey yesterday, at long last, reading about Nebuchadnezzar and the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. When I mentioned the gardens, The Boy asked me to hold on a minute, and ran from the room. He shortly returned with this book, which happens to mention those same gardens in a section of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World!


He was delighted that he already was familiar with the topic, and able to add in something I hadn't thought of. Our readings also followed very nicely on the heels of the final installation in The Gilgamesh Trilogy, since the K12 book talked abut Gilgamesh and Ishtar.

Anyhow, once in a while everything does seem to come together almost effortlessly, and it is so delightful when it does! I hope you have homeschool moments like this too!

Monday Musings...

A fresh week, a fresh start!

We had a very busy weekend! On Saturday, we heard the San Francisco Symphony at a family concert. The highlight was definitely the live performance of The Composer is Dead, a story commissioned by the SF Symphony back in 2006. While Lemony Snickett was not at hand, Nathaniel Stookey, who composed the music, was, and he narrated it magnificently! Plus, we got to meet him, and he signed the kids' programs...

Then on Sunday, we headed out to a bowling birthday party for a friend, which was a lot of laughter and fun (though both kids did comment on how "loud those schoolies are" (schoolies meaning public school kids, which made up the bulk of the birthday group). Interesting observation, which I told them was likely due to recess and all that, which are by nature loud.

We also planted our artichoke plants, transplanted everything else into larger pots until it is warmer out, cleaned the lizard and guinea pig cages... things of that sort. I finished grading papers, and read a poem in Middle English (tough going there!), plus got ready for a loooong day at work today, which I have once a month.

On the Agenda...

Homeschooling:

This week, we'll start studying ancient Egypt! I have plenty of resources at hand -- books, documentaries, activity guides, etc. -- and we're really looking forward to this!Among my top few books for this era are:
 the Ancient Egyptian World (Oxford University Press, a book chock full of facts and interesting information)
Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt (World Landmark books, more of a smooth read-aloud type book, what would be called a "living" book)
Awful Egyptians (Horrible Histories, all the "nasty bits" from history)
and:

 I may try this book with The Girl

Plus, The Boy wants me to read this book at bedtime for now (I'm actually really enjoying Riordan's Percy Jackson series on audio book, alongside the kids, so I am willing to give The Kane Chronicles a try!)

Besides all that, there will be math and language arts, including a grammar lesson from The Sentence Family and possibly a Reading Horizons trial for The Girl; dissection and human anatomy (fits in nicely with mummies, I think); studying for the National Mythology Exam, which The Boy will be taking at the beginning of next week; watching our caterpillars and ladybug larvae, which are getting larger by the day; waiting for the mantises to hatch; at least one art project; AND the last homeschool fencing class before The Boy moves up a level!

Housework:

We've got to get rid of a lot of stuff. We own way too much stuff for a family of four! My goal is 2 bags of outgrown clothes to be donated each week; one box of (gulp) books to the library each week; and getting rid of 99% of all the homeschool paperwork (worksheets, etc.) that I've been hanging on to for no particular reason. The first two I will keep doing each week until I'm done, the last will probably take me a good month. I'm getting rid of all the homeschool materials I have as well, that we just won't use, selling what I can, donating the rest.

College:

Just have to finish up some reading this week, regarding Shakespeare's Pericles, and then I meet with my writing professor for our monthly meeting.

Other:

Roller derby; birthday shopping; fencing, as mentioned above; getting ready to talk about legal homeschooling options at a homeschool information night... yes, yours truly is a "featured speaker" at this event; cleaning out the chicken hutch, again; and probably one million and one other things that re escaping my mind.

Hope you all have a good week!

Friday Miscellenea...

Food Thoughts...
I've been reading a fair amount lately regarding the Paleo, or Primal, diet. It's some pretty interesting stuff! So far I have read The Primal Blueprint and Eat Like a Dinosaur (lots of intriguing recipes!), plus plenty of articles on Mark's Daily Apple. I'm not sure yet if I buy everything they say, but I have noticed that I feel better when I eat lower-carb... my skin looks better, my hips don't ache at night, and I have more energy. I also spent some time recently on Paleo Parents (the authors of the Eat Like a Dinosaur book). Any thoughts on this way of life?

Housework Thoughts...

How do you keep your house clean and organized while homeschooling? Our house looks very, very lived in at the moment. I'm trying to come up with a realistic plan for taking care of the house, the homeschooling, etc., while working and getting my own education. The kids are doing slightly better with their chores lately, but still, I need a game plan!

Gardening Thoughts...

M and I went to the nursery yesterday, and picked up some lovely veggie starts! We got sugar snap peas, broccoli, artichokes, chard, brussels sprouts, and strawberries. We'll head back in a while, when the frost stops, for tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, bell peppers, etc. I've never grown broccoli, artichokes, or brussels sprouts, so that will be an interesting and fun experiment! We're doing container gardening this year, as our soil... well, it kind of sucks, and would be a lot of work to amend properly. Speaking of growing, and experiments, my kids and I have been following the progression of Jessica and Benjamin's bean sprouting experiments over at Only Small Things, and I think we're going to try it ourselves!

Homeschooling Thoughts...

Field trips are in the works! This weekend, we're off to see the symphony, and then as our studies through ancient history progress, I would like to go to the Rosicrucion Egyptian Museum and, when we study ancient China, I would love to see this exhibit! We're also going to see Wynton Marsalis next month!

We've been doing a fair amount of documentary watching lately. The Girl is [nearly] obsessed with Walking with Dinosaurs (which The Boy enjoys too), and she enjoyed Sacagawea: Heroine of the Lewis & Clark Adventure. The Boy has also been watching Prototype This.

I think The Girl's going to try the one week trial of Reading Horizons software next week. She doesn't tend to love computer based learning, but since it is free, we'll give it a go!

Other Thoughts...

Speaking of The Girl, she'll be ten in just over a week! We're going to take Alice-in-Wonderland themed cupcakes to our park day (they'll say "Eat Me" on top!), and she's been talking about a piñata. For her birthday, she wants roller skates (for derby), and her brother's special Sloppy Joes for dinner. We will be doing something fun, as a family, on her birthday too... either bowling, or mini golf, or ??? I can't believe my youngest is about to hit double digits!

Have a good weekend!

Relaxing Rigorously...

Yesterday was good. The Boy got Saxon Math 6/5 in the mail, the 3rd edition of the homeschool version, and is delighted with it. I think one of the appealing points is that it is a write-in workbook, so he doesn't have to copy the problems out. I was a tad worried about him going from 5-10 "Fred" problems daily to 35 Saxon problems, but he didn't have any issues with that. The full lesson took us maybe 30 minutes, not too bad! We'll have The Girl's Saxon Math sometime during the next week, so in the meantime she's doing some Math Mammoth work. I'm not sure which she'll choose - Saxon or Math Mammoth - but either choice is good with me.

The other area I am amping up a little is language arts. The Girl will keep moving through Reading Pathways... she's been making some excellent progress in her [late] reading efforts recently, and I don't want that to stop. I may add in some word family work as well, and of course we're keeping up with Explode the Code. I'm not sure if we actually like Beyond the Code or not. The Boy will keep working through Soaring with Spelling, and he's working in The Paragraph Book three days a week now, and then he gets a day with free writing (he still adores Unjournaling). I think I'll have him do level 2 in The Paragraph series, maybe level 3 (they're short books), and then we'll move on to Writing the Five Paragraph Essay.

Right now I'm all about building a good foundation.

Now, the relaxing part... history and science.

We've decided it is okay if we take a while to get through world history. And it is okay if the kids pursue different interests in the fall, or maybe during the summer... The Boy would love to spend a while on the Greeks, and then the Romans, while Cassia is thinking about American history (she loves Sacajawea, and The American Girls), so in thinking ahead, I'm planning to wrap up our spring semester with the following (using K12's Human Odyssey still as a spine):

Ancient Egypt (we'll add in OUP's Ancient Egyptian World)
Ancient China (again, OUP has a book we can add in)
Ancient India (and the OUP book)
and finally, the Ancient Americas, focusing on the South American cultures of the Aztecs, Incas, and Mayans.This last isn't in the K12 book, so we'll just be winging it with the OUP book.

We'll add in our Horrible History books that correspond as well. We really should be be making better use of these fun and gruesome books!

Then, in the fall, The Boy can dive right into the Ancient Greeks. The Girl can tag along, OR I'm thinking of "secularizing" something like this for her... maybe. Of course, this means putting off the Middle Ages for a while longer, but by the time we get there, The Boy will be more prepared for reading more advanced versions of King Arthur, and so forth. And we don't want to hurry through history--there's too much fun stuff there! Too many potential rabbit trails to just "get through it". We might read the entire Rainbow Book of American History, and/or the books from this, over the summer, and for The Girl, more American Girl books, etc., so that by fall she might be ready for the Greeks instead (truthfully, it IS easier to keep them both on one path!), and this may satisfy her interests while giving the kids a stronger background in American history!

As for science, after reading/flipping through The Magic of Reality myself, I'm setting it aside until fall because you know what? There are so many rabbit trails in it that I think we could use it over a whole year. Seriously. For example, in the first chapter alone, Dawkins discusses evolution (yes, I am one of those), DNA, Watson and Crick, Mendel, Darwin, scientific models, stars and galaxies, dinosaurs, and much more. So if we add in trade books and projects, it could be very full. This means that I should just accept the inevitable, and actually buy the book rather than repeatedly checking it out from the library.

And what will we do in the meantime?

We're hatching mantises, ladybugs, and butterflies. I want to get ahold of some tadpoles. We're drying out a possum skeleton that we think the dog may have killed. We have everything for worm, frog, owl pellet, and sheep's heart dissections on hand. And we're getting our garden ready for spring. We're finishing up a wonderful book about wild "pets". I have Real Science 4 Kids Level 1 Biology, and the Physics book is on it's way to my house. We have Dr. Art's Guide to Science on hand as well. And, we're starting to read The Story of Science: Aristotle Leads the Way. A lovely lady on a homeschooling forum put together a list that correlates the Story of Science books with Milestones in Science, so we'll be working with that once a week.

All this means that while we're learning a lot of science, we're not stressed about it. This week, science has been mainly setting up habitats, and watching documentaries. And I'm good with that!

Hope you're all having a good week!

Wavering Wednesday...

First, a picture of the pretty ice on my windshield this morning...

Not so fun to scrape off, but still nice to look at, all sparkly in the early morning sunlight!

Now, can I cry on your shoulder for a moment?

I was on that darned homeschooling message board again, and people were posting their middle-high school math sequences. And talking about SAT's, and National Merit scholarships, and so forth, and I freaked out. I realized that at the rate we're going, I may be doing The Boy a disservice with our current approach to math, since at this rate, we wouldn't hit geometry until 11th grade, and he needs it before then IF he's to take the SAT's. Now understand, if he goes to the local community/junior college, that may not be necessary at all, but it is good if he wants scholarships. And really, I'd rather have him take a test and be able to get scholarships than to get into debt going to college/trade school/whatever he chooses. I'd like him to have the option of getting scholarships.

So I sat down with The Boy, and M, and asked "Do you think what we're doing is enough?" The Boy's answer? "Not really. I could do more." Sometimes honesty hurts.

I looked back to our early school favorite, which I know is a contentious choice among many homeschoolers, but is a solid program: Saxon Math. I browsed the samples on Christianbook dot com (they really do have the best look inside features out there!), and chose Saxon 6/5 for him. I then found a used copy of the latest homeschool edition on Amazon, and yes, I ordered it. It should be here today, thanks to my Prime two-day shipping. And then we'll see what The Boy thinks of it. And yes, I ordered some Saxon Math for The Girl as well, specifically Intermediate 4.

Now don't get me wrong. I love Life of Fred, and am hoping that in "high school" we may be able to return to it, OR we may transition back into Teaching Textbooks in the fall. Looking at the placement tests, after using Saxon 6/5, The Boy should easily place into Math 7, or even Prealgebra. I am thinking though, that until we get "caught up" to where I think the kids should be, maybe a more traditional approach will be better than the odds and ends approach we have now? And if they hate Saxon, I have Math Mammoth's entire Blue Series as well. That just takes a lot of printing!

We'll just have to wait and see. Wish me luck in getting math back on track! And thanks for letting me cry on your shoulder.

En garde!

The Boy took part in his very fist [in-house] fencing tournament today! He ha so much fun, even though he didn't make it very far in the actual competition. He got some great advice from coaches, scored a total of 7 points, and got an invitation to join the teen and adult class! Granted, the homeschool fencing class is fun, but it is recreational, and The Boy loved the challenge of today! He wants to take it to the next level. I try not to push the kids into sports, activities, etc., but I will be supportive of a genuine desire to pursue something.

I'll stop blabbing now and just share some pictures!

 Suited up in electric gear! (A first for him)

Getting, literally, plugged in before the bout

And, en garde!

 Look at him go!

 A quick break between bouts

 Back in action!

I think we'll be doing this again! Great learning experience, and I have to say, I am very proud of The Boy today. He showed a positive attitude, great sportsmanship, and a willingness to learn!

Science-y Stuff...

I wrote in a recent post that "I have officially abandoned a pre-made science study", ditching "official" curricula in favor of good (living) books, hands-on, nature studies, etc. So what are we actually doing for science?

Well, at the moment...

Reading:




Doing:

Reviewing photosynthesis

Exploratorium's DNA project

Edible DNA project

Observing:

 Time for the Great Backyard Bird Count!









Watching:




And [possibly] upcoming:

This, That, and the Other Things...

Just bits and pieces today...

The Boy has decided not to do track at this point, which is good for me because that would have made a couple of my evenings each week crazy busy. He chose not to do it because it would interfere with something that has been a goal of his for the last two and a half years... and that is to join the Civil Air Patrol! He'll finally be old enough this spring, and meetings are on Monday nights, as is track practice. [On a side note, I'm mad at the track people anyhow, so this works for me. When we joined in the fall, we paid $75. Then for a multitude of reasons, we had to drop out. I notified the coach and board, and a month later, they deposited the check anyhow. And they won't apply any of that money to the spring session. Enough griping though!]

Luckily for both The Boy and myself, at the end of March, they are moving The Girl's roller derby practice to late Sunday afternoons, so Monday evenings will be free and clear for CAP meetings! I have already contacted them, and he has to attend 4 meetings before joining, which we can do over the month leading up to his birthday. Oh, and he might be returning to piano lessons!

We're coming up on a milestone... The Girl will be TEN in just a few weeks! We're planning a small party at a park for her, with a few of her friends in attendance, and maybe a couple of The Boy's friends too, to keep him happily occupied. I think she wants a piñata, filled with organic lollipops, fruit treats, trinkets, and so forth. And a four-layer cake, chocolate with strawberry filling and vanilla icing. We were toying with an Alice in Wonderland theme, but aren't positive yet, although we'd better get cracking on this!

The Boy will be in his first fencing tournament this upcoming weekend. It is just a small, in-house tournament... a good way for him to get his feet wet. He's pretty excited about it! His coach stressed that this is about learning and having fun, not necessarily winning, which I really appreciate.

I was reading Kim's Year of the Garden post, and it got me thinking about our own garden, which we are in the midst of preparing for and planning. We'll be growing:
sugar snap peas
green beans
corn
tomatoes (lots of tomatoes!)
bell peppers and chili peppers
squash - summer/zucchini
lettuces
lots of herbs - we have rosemary and thyme year 'round, then we'll add in basil, dill, chives, cilantro, etc.
potatoes
chard
spinach
eggplant perhaps (I'm the only one that like it)
cucumbers
nasturtiums and violas

And when we transition into fall, I'd like winter squash, broccoli, kale, chard, onions, beets, radishes, and so on. We're aiming for year-round growing, which is entirely possible in northern California.

And we're getting some artichoke plants this weekend! A friend of a friend of a friend is dividing his, so we're getting three. They'll actually go out in the front yard along a section of the fence.

In case you're wondering since it hasn't appeared in this post, homeschooling this week? Ummmm... the less said, the better. It just has been one of those weeks. I think though that I have decided against the Project Passport: Middle Ages that I mentioned earlier in the week, in favor of other hands-on things, like making gargoyles, a stained glass art project, and building a model of a castle, etc.

I did order some fun stuff though, namely a butterfly kit with live caterpillars, a ladybug larvae refill kit, and a praying mantis egg sack!

We're also getting ready for a couple of things, one being The Great Backyard Bird Count (starts tomorrow!), and the other is the National Mythology Exam, which we received in yesterday's mail. The Boy is really excited about taking this test!

Before I go (enough rambling!!!), I did want to wish you a

It's That Time of Year!

I visit, off and on, a couple of homeschooling message boards, and it is that time of year once again - everyone is talking about their curriculum choices for fall... what they'll be buying, should they get this or that, and so on.

There are a few things I plan on buying with my upcoming tax refund, and a couple I am not sure about. Much of what we'll be using this fall is simply what we're using now!

Books/Literature:
Between the titles from A Picture Perfect Childhood and the Core Knowledge Trade Books list, plus my own list, I think we have plenty of choices for reading, so nothing to buy there! I do have the goal of reading through The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings trilogy, but we own those already.

Math:
I do have to buy some math stuff, namely more Life of Fred books. I buy these on an as needed basis.

Language Arts:
I am not buying anything in this category. I already own Primary and Intermediate Language Lessons; Winston Grammar; English From the Roots Up; Getting Started With Latin; Igniting Your Writing; The Paragraph Book #1; The Natural Speller; Comprehensive Composition; and probably a few more I am forgetting about. Wait... I might buy some more Explode the Code books, but then again if The Girl's reading really takes off, I probably won't.

History:
We'll be continuing with K12's Human Odyssey. When we finish volume 1, I will want to buy volume 2. I am slowly collecting the World in Ancient Times set, second-hand, and the World in Medieval & Early Modern Times. At some point, I might buy Volume A of The Concise History of US by Joy Hakim, to complement the K12 books. My big internal debate is this...

Project Passport: The Middle Ages

If I buy it, will we use it? It looks like fun, but it also looks like possible busy work. I'll have to think on this one some more.

Science:
I'll be continuing with good books and correlated hands-on, and of course, random hands-on as well. I think we might buy, for this spring, some ladybug larvae, caterpillars, praying mantis eggs... things of that sort, but no curriculum. Maybe a family membership to the California Academy of Sciences?

Other:
Art supplies are high on my list. I have a three-drawer dresser in my dining room that I would love to turn into an art supply center!

I think that's it. We'll need supplies along the way for science, any history projects, etc., but no actual curriculum materials, unless you count Life of Fred!

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!