Our Week in Review, 9/6 - 9/11

We had a really short week this week; between the holiday, medical tests for me day, and the first MOPS meeting of the year, we only got about 2 1/2 days worth of school done.  Still, what we got done was very productive, and we did manage to pick up a few stray activities here and there as well.

Connor
Math: I think he's really getting adding 10's and 100's now.  His confidence has grown too, and it's great to see his grin when he gets the answer.  Hopefully this will serve as a mile marker to look back on the next time he doesn't grasp something immediately!  We've also been reviewing telling time, which he learned pretty thoroughly last year.  I almost skipped it, but I decided he could use a few "easy" lessons after pushing through the last few.

Reading: He and I are reading The Family Under the Bridge by Natalie Savage Carlson together, with both of us reading a few pages to finish a chapter a day and then "working together" to narrate the chapter.  He's been resisting narrating a bit lately (not good, since it's a major part of what we do!  Plus, he's pretty good at it when he tries!), so hopefully this will help.  So far we've been inspired to find France and Paris on the map, and I'm hoping for some good talks about families and homelessness, among other things.


History: He and Brennan painted their "Ming bowls" and we read a little from Ancient China, a DK Eyewitness Book by Arthur Cotterell.  Today we began glazing Connor's bowl with a glue/water mixture, but Brennan forgot my warnings about how breakable they were and broke the bottom out of his.  After a few tears and hugs, we got out the clay and started another one for him.

Science:  We began studying hummingbirds this week, beginning a notebook page and reading from our animal encyclopedia.  To be finished next week!

Latin: He finished up SSL chapter 14.  It was particularly fitting that he learned the Latin word for cat this week since we just adopted a stray!  He really enjoys listening to the songs and will even ask to listen to the CD on his own, especially when he's drawing/coloring.  Who am I to object to that?!? *grin*

Singing along with "Animal Song" from chapter 14

Grammar: FLL lesson 49, more pronouns.  He can recite the whole list that we've learned so far--I'm constantly amazed at how quickly he can memorize!  But here's the kicker--Brennan has started pointing out random pronouns ("Mommy!  You said a pronoun!") too.  And I don't even remember him listening in on a lesson! Maybe he was hiding under the table.

Brennan

Math:  He worked on RS A, lesson 12: patterns and making rectangles.  He always likes it when we bring out the tiles!

Making a rectangle

This is what he came up with when I asked him to come up with his own pattern after doing a few together:

Now, we've worked a little with patterns before, and I have shown him how sometimes patterns can consist of items in different positions and not just different colors and shapes, but I was totally impressed that he change the pattern by standing up some tiles on his own!

Phonics:  He's working on two-consonant endings, most of which he can already do.  Good review and confidence-building, though!  It seems like his fluency is building very quickly.

Handwriting:  Once again, he's insatiable!  I think he'd do handwriting sheets all day if I let him!  This week he did H and L.

We're also working on a spider lapbook, which is going very s-l-o-w-l-y, partly because we've got other things going on and partly because Mommy needs to get it together!

Together:
Bible:  We learned about God parting the Red Sea for Moses and the Israelites to pass through (and acted it out with stuffed animal Israelites and Egyptians and blue blankets for the water--unfortunately, I didn't think to get any pictures!) and about how God provided for the Israelites with manna and quail.  We acted this one out too--they pretended to be  sleeping Israelites while the manna (cotton balls) was scattered around them, then in the "morning," they woke up and gathered manna for their families.  We had to do this several times!

We've also done a couple of simple science experiments this week from 101 Cool Science Experiments by Glen Singleton.  I really like this book.  It's got a wide range of activities, from simple to complex and capable of being done by or with multiple ages.

I started to post the details here, but this post was getting really looooong, so I created another post with pictures if you're interested!  Just click here.

Science experiments

We had fun with a couple of science experiments this week!

First we explored force and inertia by rolling a marble along a path so that it struck another marble or marbles.  The boys (Connor especially) were fascinated to discover that the marble or marbles he rolled caused only that same number to move after the collision rather than making all of them move.  We had a good chat about force and inertia that I'm sure they probably didn't get 100% at this point, but that's okay--my purpose was more to introduce the idea and develop interest in science than to have them master the concepts.

We did another experiment today to discover how ink marks from different markers run when they get wet, which of our markers would run the farthest, and what colors we would see as the ink ran.  

By the time the 10 minute wait was over, their attention had moved elsewhere, so we really didn't discuss much other than whose dot ran the farthest and what colors we saw.  But even if they don't totally "get" that black is made up of other colors, they've seen it.  The more I think about this, the more I think I may talk about it again with them soon.  Oh, and the dot that didn't run at all was a dry erase marker.  You know, in case you were wondering. *grin*

Our First Letterboxing Adventure!

Thanks to a recent post on the Well-Trained Mind forums, I was reminded of a fun family activity that I'd heard of a few years ago, but at the time the boys were too little to participate--letterboxing.  Letterboxing is kind of like a treasure hunt: a person hides a small, weatherproof box containing a logbook and a rubber stamp in a public area (i.e., parks, near historical monuments, etc.) and then post clues on a letterboxing website so that participants who live or are traveling nearby can go find it.  Finders bring along their own logbook, rubber stamp, and an ink pad.  When you find the letterbox, you use your stamp to "sign" the box's logbook and then use the box's stamp in your own logbook and date both books.  Fun, simple, inexpensive, and a way to spend time together as a family outdoors.  If you're interested in more info about letterboxing, atlasquest.com and letterboxing.org are great places to start.

We went on our first letterboxing adventure today!  The boys were still to young to really be able to follow the clues to the one we found (that was my job), but they had fun.  They really enjoyed the treasure hunting feel of it!  Most of the clues to boxes that I've read about have a theme--often some sort of historical or local interest information.  The one we found today was about a turn-of-the-century Texas governor, and as we followed the clues, Connor was more interested in the background info than I had expected.  He even remembered the governor's name when we were talking about it at dinner!

Finding the box

Checking out previous stamps

Brennan stamping our book.  Serious letterboxers (the ones who create and hide the boxes) often create handmade rubber stamps to use in the boxes, and this was one of those.  It was very well done!

Connor stamping our horse stamp (which they chose last week) in the box's logbook

Putting everything back together to hide for the next finder

We had a great time, and we're looking forward to our next letterbox hunt!

Tight Spots

I began my time with God today by very honestly talking to Him about some things that are heavy on me right now, and He reminded me of Psalm 46:10: "Be still and know that I am God."  The NASB translation I'm using actually translates it, "Cease striving and know that I am God."  I love that.  Makes me think of someone who is almost drowning--they have to stop panicking and flailing around when someone comes to help, or neither of them will get very far.  I went back to the beginning of the Psalm and read some more familiar words:

"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble."

As I read the verse, I noticed a couple of text note indicators.  So I checked them out to see what was up, and I discovered that another way to translate this verse is,

"God is our refuge and strength, 

Abundantly available for help in tight places."

Wow.  I can think of some tight places in my life right now, that's for sure.  Tight places that frustrate me, that worry me, that hurt when I try to wiggle out of them . . . but God is abundantly available for help.  How incredible is that?  Abundant--overflowing, much more that what's needed, profuse.  The God of the universe (who is Himself the *definition* of abundant!) is not just here to help, He is abundantly available.  He doesn't give just a little, or just what's needed--He gives all that He is, and He floods over my tight places.  He doesn't hold back.  He is a lavish God, giving us Himself, more than we could ever need--and still He gives.  He lavished His grace on us, giving the priceless gift of His Son without hesitating over the cost or how we would respond.  How silly of me to sit here and try to wrestle my way out of my tight places, when He is ready and abundantly available to help!  All I have to do is ask--and stop trying to wiggle out by myself!

Our New Addition

We've been adopted by a stray kitten!  

When we moved in here, our landlord clearly laid out a no animals policy, including outdoor cats (a policy which somewhat frustrated us as we've a few problems with mice!).  So after this one had been here a couple of days without showing any signs of moving on, we reluctantly called her and let her know, because Connor was already becoming pretty attached to the cat.  She said that she or her son would come pick it up and take care of it, and she did pull into our driveway this evening.  But she didn't get out, and a little while later, she called and asked if her son had come by to get it.  When I told her no, she asked where it was right now, and I told her that Connor was actually outside playing with it.  She asked if it would be hard on them if she took it away, and I said that it probably would be, but that they both knew from the beginning that we couldn't keep it.  She said something about it not being too bad if it was outside, but that cats are a hassle, etc., and sensing that she was softening, I let her know that we would really like to keep it and that we'd be sure to vaccinate and spay/neuter it, and she agreed--as long as it doesn't go in the house!
Both of the boys, but especially Connor, were THRILLED.  Aaron and I were pretty happy too--it's a cutie, and it was so clear that the boys adored him/her.  Connor has already bonded with it, I think.  It follows him wherever he goes in the yard, and he's been catching crickets for it to pounce on and eat.  We named him/her Confetti, because it's black with flecks of brown and white.  He/She is a friendly little thing--hardly shy at all!  I guess we'll be making a trip to the vet soon!

Our Week in Review, 8/30-9/4

School has been a little hit-or-miss this week due to some health issues.  Still, we got at least four days worth of the basics done, so I'm calling it good!

Connor
Math: Still working on adding 10 and 100 to a number (RightStart B, lessons 51 and 52).  He gets the concept, and it's been a really good reminder of place values.  He's still struggling a bit if there's a 9 in the place value that he's adding with (i.e., 294 + 10).  He can do it just fine with the abacus, and he's beginning to recognize that there's something different with 9's, so I think we're on the right track.

Reading: This week he read and narrated The Story of Ping by Marjorie Flack to go along with our study of ancient China in history.  I read out loud one of the stories from the book Shen of the Sea by Arthur Bowie Chrisman, and we'll read another one sometime this weekend.  We also started reading and narrating The Family Under the Bridge by Natalie Savage Carlson.  It was illustrated by Garth Williams, who seems to be popping up everywhere these days--he also illustrated The Story of Ping, Five Chinese Brothers (which we read last week), and Little House in the Big Woods, which we finished reading aloud the other day.

History:  We finished ancient China this week.  We're working on making Ming bowls--the clay is still drying, so it'll be a few days before we get them done, but the reading, narrations, and mapwork are done.  There were three sections to this chapter, and the second section was about the pictogram writing developed by the ancient Chinese.  He was pretty fascinated with the ones in the book, so we copied them and then he made up his own pictograms to write a sentence: "The horse saw two bears in the woods and ran back to the barn."

It was only with difficulty that I managed to remind him that these were pictograms--otherwise he would have filled the whole page!

Science: We had some hands-on experience to go with our study of frogs today: they caught a toad outside!  He's a fat little thing, and Connor named him Spikey.  Spikey was less than thrilled with the arrangements (and escaped a little while later, saving me from having to be the bad guy and making them let him go), but the boys were fascinated.

Connor volunteered the info that Spikey is cold-blooded and is an amphibian, which he remembered means that he has lived part of his life in water and part on land.  Earlier in the week we learned about the life cycle of a frog and did a cut-and-paste activity where he had to glue the stages in order (he really likes poison dart frogs, hence the bright colors!).

So then we talked about where Spikey was born and how he had changed to the adult toad he is now.  Perfect timing!  And speaking of perfect timing, we've been learning about Moses this week in Bible, and the lesson on the 10 plagues coincided nicely with science since one of the plagues was frogs!  So we made a double-duty craft: rock frogs.

Grammar:  FLL 47 and 48 this week--more on pronouns.  He's recognizing pronouns in books and conversations, which is neat to see, except when the conversation is discipline-related and he constantly interrupts with, "Mommy!  You just said a pronoun!  So did I!!"  Well, at least he's getting it!  He really seems to like reciting the pronoun list.  He definitely seems to be cut out for the grammar stage memorization of the classical education method!

Latin: We began SSL chapter 14, which is animal names.  He's thrilled to be able to say cat, dog, horse, and  fish in Latin, and he's excited to get to the next lesson with more animals (like lions!)

Bible:  We're continuing Moses.  This week we talked about the burning bush and God's call for Moses.  We made burning bushes by dripping and using straws to blow yellow, orange, and red paint (watered down) on pictures of a bush, which was a lot of fun.  Connor was very enthusiastic (meaning, he TRIED to blow the paint off the paper.  Stinker!)

Brennan was a little more laid back:

We also covered the 10 plagues (including frogs, as mentioned) and the Israelites leaving Egypt, talking about God's protection and how we need to follow and obey Him.

Oh, yeah.  Did I mention that George Washington came to visit this week?

Brennan
Math: He finished lessons 9, 10, and 11 in RightStart A this week.  He's getting really good at recognizing quantities 1-10 without counting.  He also had a lot of fun creating squares and rectangles on the geoboard, but I didn't think to get any pictures!

Handwriting: He continues to pester me for handwriting sheets, even if it's not school time!  We did several new letters this week, including "P."  I'm not surprised at how quickly he's picking it up, but I *am* surprised that he's not giving me a hard time about doing it the "right" way (i.e., starting from the top) instead of the way he's picked up on his own.  Not complaining, though!

Phonics: We've finished -ck words (which he already pretty much knew anyway) and will be moving on to two consonant endings next week, most of which he can already do as well.  We found (meaning, he pulled off the shelf and mommy sifted through them) quite a few early readers at the library that are right at his level, and he loves reading them out loud.

Reading (literature): I let him choose a story for reading/narration earlier this week, and he chose Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney.  It was a new one from the library, and it was a bit complex for him as far as narration (and as far as really *getting* the story), but he did pretty well.  The next one we did was my choice, "The Bicycle," from Poppleton in Spring by Cynthia Rylant.  Much simpler, much easier to narrate!  He did a great job, and I was amazed with his picture of a bicycle:

Not bad for a 4 year old!

I have some Montessori-inspired activities/supplies on a shelf, the idea being that I set out new activities for them to choose from every few weeks.  That hasn't exactly happened yet, but Brennan pulled out some beads, a funnel, and a vase and got busy on his own:

It's nice to look back over the week and see that we really *did* get a lot done, even though it didn't seem like it at the time!

Goofy boy!

Yes, he's reading in the clothes hamper. *grin*