I am confused, was Charlemagne good or bad?

We started week 4 today. I was hoping to start the week with a "geography adventure", but due to weather we postponed our trip.

We started the skeletal system today. The girls were full of questions. I am please with R.E.A.L. science so far.

The hardest question that I was asked today was about Charlemagne. I have to be honest and say that I underestimated my third grader's ability to integrate information. I did start her on the Upper Grammar track, but I was completely prepared to adjust to lower grammar. Since I was so unsure about which level we would find ourselves using I focused on lower grammar details over the summer. So, when I was asked today about the details of Charlemagne's life, I had to pause for a moment.

Our history time ended with a conversation about the fact that christians' lives are full of mistakes. I reminded McKenzie of a question that she had asked me earlier in the day. She had asked, "how can we abide in Christ? I know that we want to do that, but we do still sin, so how can we do both?" A great question. One that I suspect she will be revisiting for the rest of her life. We know that Paul wrestled with that same concept. I focused our discussion on the desire to love and follow Christ. After we finish 1 John, I think that Galatians would be a good follow up. ("our righteous acts are filthy rags")

These are the kinds of discussions that drew me to use Tapestry of Grace. I feel better equipped to navigate these spiritual questions couched in the context of history.

Week 3

The girls filled the geography challenge jar this week. That means that week 4 will start with a field trip. I think that it will be good for all of us to spend some extra time outside. This idea worked well, and I would use it again.

I was hoping to get in some of the art projects this week, but that did not happen. I think that once winter sets in we will do the weekly art projects.

Math is going well. So far the balance of Saxon and mathematical reasoning is working. I would like to spend some time playing math related games next week.

Week 2

Last week was quite full for us. We did manage to get in a reasonable amount of school, but there was no time to blog.

Here are a few questions that were on my mind last week. I would love to hear your thoughts.

Cursive - - any tips on teaching cursive? I am using startwrite to create worksheets and I use Donna Young's cursive animations. Any other ideas?

The silly cycle of home school mom guilt - - - "Oh great, she finished a 4 week literature assignment during week 2. I am not challenging her enough." Then, later the same day, "I am expecting too much from her. I should have gone with the grade level spelling workbook." Does anyone else struggle with this roller coaster? How do you find mental balance?

Off to a good start

Here are a few highlights from our first week of school:
1. McKenzie read two week's worth of literature this week (I am sure this will slow down as the writing assignments increase, but I took that to be a great sign)

2. Thanks to the webinars that I participated in this summer I felt the freedom to let McKenzie read on her own. She retained far more than I thought she would. When I read aloud to both girls McKenzie would say things like, "oh the Huns. I read about the Huns today." That was usually followed up by a description of the Huns or another people group that she had read about. This will revolutionize our school day. I have been grateful for the advice all week.

3. Paige (1st grade) begging to go first on the assignments that she does with my help.

4. The geography challenge is working. Yesterday while they were cleaning up their toys the girls kept asking each other questions like, "what is a mesa?" Our jar is filling up.

5. Base 10 blocks are awesome. This summer I bought a set of base 10 blocks. Saxon math does not use base 10 blocks. When I added them to an order the woman on the phone questioned me. "Aren't you using Saxon?" I figure a great teacher would not strictly follow one curriculum. A great teacher would combine ideas from several different programs. This week right as Mckenzie was starting to get frustrated with a few work book pages I pulled out the base 10 blocks. Her demeanor totally changed. She was able to finish the assignment with a smile.

6. Both girls are responding well to a Bible study method that I thought I would try. Again, I got this idea from the webinars. Basically we are trying a scaled back version of the Kay Arthur method. Now, this particular method has never appealed to me. However, when I heard Marcia Somerville talk about using the Kay Arthur method with her children, a light went off in my head. I printed off 1John in large font and we are color/picture coding the words. They are enjoying it. I will let you know in a few weeks if they are learning more about 1 John this way.

This first week was not without typical bumps in the road. My three year old got sick, we had a church event that kept us out way too late, and had some of the general chaos that comes with small children. Overall, a great start to our school year.

School is in session (Year 2, Unit 1, Week 1)

We are off to a smooth start. In the interest of honesty, we started about 30 minutes later than I had hoped due to a toothpaste explosion. I would say that flexibility is on the top ten requirements list for home schooling moms.

This year I have created a schedule for us to follow. I am hoping that it will help the girls move forward when I get distracted by toothpaste explosions created by my younger two. I am also hoping that the schedule will help me re-enter school mode post-toothpaste explosion.

Tapestry of Grace eases into the school year. Today McKenzie read the first two chapters of King Arthur and the first chapter of The story of the Middle Ages. We started reviewing geography terms, completed placement tests for Spelling Power, and started math.

For the most part we are sticking to the basic Tapestry of Grace plan for the next few weeks. I have added a "Family geography challenge" I knew that we would need to focus on math facts this month. Handing the girls another stack of flash cards did not seem like a good idea. They are still making the flash cards, but after that they can ask anyone in the family the definition of the term. We have a jar that they can put a token in for each correct answer. When the jar is full we will go on a geography adventure (i.e. - hiking, berry picking, fishing, etc.).

My goal for the year is to post on Mondays and Fridays. I would love to trade ideas with other moms. How do you start your school year? What fun ideas are you using this year? Leave a comment. If you have already answered the questions on a blog feel free to leave the link as a comment.

Author's note: Sorry that there are no pictures. The camera is broken currently. I hope to have that problem fixed by the end of the month.

Marine Biology, oh, I mean vacation

As I have previously mentioned, my philosophy on teaching science is that it needs to be 98% experiential. Sure, some reading and writing are necessary. However, I am fully convinced that reading and writing supplement experiential learning in the area of science. I use personal experience as both a teacher and a learner to support this philosophy. I have discovered that very little can compete with the joy of watching your own children learn.

We had an amazing experience last week while on vacation. We got to watch a nest of sea turtles hatch and venture into the Atlantic ocean. There was no need for me to prompt my children to learn. They were bombarding me with questions, gasping in awe and planning their futures as scientists. I was able to answer some of their questions on the spot. The majority of their questions required a bit of research.

I suspect that they will retain what they have learned about Loggerhead Sea Turtles for many years. I wish that I could take my children on a world tour, allowing them to take in the amazing variety of plants and animals that call Earth home. Since that is out of the question, my husband and I try to maximize the opportunities that are presented to us.

Here is a link to an article written by Dr. Albert Mohler that addresses the issue of exposing children to God's creation. I was encouraged by this article when it was originally published in 2005. I love it when scholars confirm what I simply feel in my gut as a mother.

For those of you interested in the turtles here is a video of the nest that we saw hatch being relocated. Hopefully the video of the babies parading to the ocean will be up soon. You could check back here or on 'Coastal Digital' page on You-Tube.

Summer Science class (of course they don't know that)

We have been hanging out in our neighborhood garden recently. Gardening with children is so fun. They are amazed that the seeds that they planted in May have actually produced something edible. This is a picture of Paige collecting sugar snap peas. She ate most of them before we got back to the house. Oh well, I guess that is the point.

McKenzie, Lauren, and Zach collecting more peas. I have to remind the kids that we are sharing this garden. We can't pick everything.

We also found a monarch caterpillar. We agreed with the three other families that are working on the garden to keep any milkweed that came up. It doesn't make for a very tidy garden, but we are hoping to attract monarchs. I am hoping that the kids will get to observe the full life cycle. This picture is Lauren finding the caterpillar.