....are always a bit of a mess. Routines are chaotic at times....It is our indoor season due to heat and mosquitoes.
We stick indoors in the mornings unless we head to the pool. Our nature study is very, very lax due to Charlotte's lack of ability to tolerate the heat. The pool area that we visit does have wetlands visible and native plants so our nature study is done walking to each attraction. We are looking forward to cold-front day!
I have split our daily school schedule because it is easier to keep Sam engaged and participating with a short break. Charlotte is in the mix at all times so I had to get creative with keeping her engaged and happy while Sam works.
Our daily school schedule looks something like this...
Charlotte and I "work" for about 10-15 min. either coloring books, drawing, reading stories, etc. Each week I try to pick an area to focus on during this time such as colors, shapes, counting, etc.
While she continues, Sam joins us and we work through..
Math
Poetry
Christian Liberty Nature Reader Book 1* with narration
Copybook
Speech work
Bible with narration
30 min break for Sam while I get Charlotte working on something that will keep her busy while Sam finishes up....watercolor painting has been a favorite. This is the time we listen to our composer for this quarter.
Spelling* (a new spelling program)
AO readings with narration
Handwriting without tears
Reading
Artistic Pursuits Book 1*/ A Reason for Science Level A*
* Nature Reader Book 1 was a book Sam added and it is a favorite and will stay.
*We are giving All About Spelling book 1 a trial and I think it might answer my quest for a individualised spelling program that is easy to implement and not overwhelming.
*Artistic Pursuits has been a big hit. Sam absolutely LOVES picture study but I've had a hard time implementing it due to my own laziness in acquiring prints. This is a keeper.
*A Reason for Science was on sale. I like it because it is organized, the supplies are all available and it fits nicely with our nature study. We'll see how this works out this year.
We have not started Spanish.... holding off until our next break in August. Memoria Press Copybook Book 1 does not have writing for everyday so we have been doing handwriting practice with HWT. We were alternating Aesop and Bible readings but Sam disliked Aesop and would request to continue the Bible stories because they were the "best". I couldn't argue with that reasoning so Aesop is currently dropped from our schedule.
I want a 2ftX3ft magnetic whiteboard! I'd like to have it so I can write our verse from Memoria Press and keep our letter tiles on it for spelling and reading practice. I'm just not sure where I would put it though. Ideally upstairs in the room that functioned as the older kids' schoolroom but it is currently the domain of the teens. The younger kids have been doing schoolwork in the dining room but I'm not sure I want it as a permanent feature in that room.I have seen smaller table top versions that I could use for our verse and just find another solution for the letter tiles.It's a dilemma.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Friday, July 11, 2008
My new toy
This year my husband asked me what I wanted for my birthday and I gave him my stock answer "Nothing, dear, I have everything I need right here."
He didn't listen to me and bought me an awesome present. I was a bit upset that he did this because we are wanting to remodel the bathroom and this gadget wasn't exactly cheap. That was until I got my hands on it. Every homeschool mom is going to want one of these. Every bookaholic is going to want one of these. Gosh, I should get a commission from Amazon just from the number of these I have "sold" at work this past week!
The best analogy I've heard it called is an IPOD for books. I absolutely LOVE this gadget.
I can download books from resources like the Gutenberg project or feedbooks.com. I now carry Jane Austins' entire collection everywhere I go. I can pre-read my younger kids books and with the flick of a button start reading the older kids' books anywhere I want.
Best purchase made in years.
Spelling- momentary insanity
Even after 13 + years of homeschooling I still have moments of insanity.
I wrote "I noticed that his reading ability is far greater than his spelling ability". Well, DUH! He is 6! My own reading ability exceeds my spelling ability as evidence by my almost constant use of spell check and I'm a bit more advance in age.
Re-reading my own musing in Language Arts and reviewing a few online 1st grade spelling list I feel much more confident in continuing our spelling lessons with our reading lessons.
I wrote "I noticed that his reading ability is far greater than his spelling ability". Well, DUH! He is 6! My own reading ability exceeds my spelling ability as evidence by my almost constant use of spell check and I'm a bit more advance in age.
Re-reading my own musing in Language Arts and reviewing a few online 1st grade spelling list I feel much more confident in continuing our spelling lessons with our reading lessons.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Reading , week 2 & 3
Week 2.
We finished the Little Red Hen. Introduced words, spelled the words and played the games as we did in week 1. By the end of the week he could read the selection with ease. He could spell some but not all of the words introduced.
I noticed that his reading ability is far greater than his spelling ability. I could spend a few more weeks working on this selection before he is able to spell every word in it but would absolutely kill his interest. I do anticipate having to spend some specialized time with spelling ability with Sam in part due to his speech delays. I don't believe that Sam is going to be a natural speller like his older brother who required very little if any spelling instruction other than copywork and dictation. I think that for Sam this spelling instruction should be separate from his reading instruction because his reading ability is going to quickly out pace his spelling ability.
Week 3.
I switched gears this week so I could make an observation and we worked through 2 lessons of 100 EZ lessons. He was enthusiastic with his ease of reading this book after spending some time with other types of reading lessons. He felt that is was "easy" and when we dropped this book he was feeling frustrated with it. Using 100 EZ lesson really is just EASY. Pick up the book and go. It was a nice change for me not to have to plan and decide what to cover in the reading lesson.
Decisions to be made.
Sam could learn to be an independent reader using either program. 100 EZ lesson is easier to use but a bit redundant in practice. Creating a reading program using Treadwell's primers requires a bit more thought from me and could also become redundant if I'm not careful. For the rest of the summer I think that we are going to alternate between the two. We will spend a few weeks concentrating on 100 EZ lessons and a few weeks concentrating on Treadwells's readers.
I need to make a decision regarding spelling. My preferred spelling program that really helped my older daughter is Sequential Speller but it is not appropriate for a 6 year old. I'm going to spend the next week or so researching spelling programs and see if I can find something that will suit us. If not I will continue to do spelling instruction with our Treadwell's reader selections.
We finished the Little Red Hen. Introduced words, spelled the words and played the games as we did in week 1. By the end of the week he could read the selection with ease. He could spell some but not all of the words introduced.
I noticed that his reading ability is far greater than his spelling ability. I could spend a few more weeks working on this selection before he is able to spell every word in it but would absolutely kill his interest. I do anticipate having to spend some specialized time with spelling ability with Sam in part due to his speech delays. I don't believe that Sam is going to be a natural speller like his older brother who required very little if any spelling instruction other than copywork and dictation. I think that for Sam this spelling instruction should be separate from his reading instruction because his reading ability is going to quickly out pace his spelling ability.
Week 3.
I switched gears this week so I could make an observation and we worked through 2 lessons of 100 EZ lessons. He was enthusiastic with his ease of reading this book after spending some time with other types of reading lessons. He felt that is was "easy" and when we dropped this book he was feeling frustrated with it. Using 100 EZ lesson really is just EASY. Pick up the book and go. It was a nice change for me not to have to plan and decide what to cover in the reading lesson.
Decisions to be made.
Sam could learn to be an independent reader using either program. 100 EZ lesson is easier to use but a bit redundant in practice. Creating a reading program using Treadwell's primers requires a bit more thought from me and could also become redundant if I'm not careful. For the rest of the summer I think that we are going to alternate between the two. We will spend a few weeks concentrating on 100 EZ lessons and a few weeks concentrating on Treadwells's readers.
I need to make a decision regarding spelling. My preferred spelling program that really helped my older daughter is Sequential Speller but it is not appropriate for a 6 year old. I'm going to spend the next week or so researching spelling programs and see if I can find something that will suit us. If not I will continue to do spelling instruction with our Treadwell's reader selections.
Friday, June 20, 2008
Reading, Week 1
Day 1.
Introduced words for 1st 2 sentences.
Read each word .
Encouraged him to really look hard at each word.
Made new sentences with each word.
Found words in the stack " Can you find the word hen?" , etc.
Shuffled cards and found them again.
Made silly sentences with the words and read them " The little seed found a red hen.", etc
( mistake I made. I turned over the words he could already read before practicing. He got stressed that I was only leaving the "hard" words.)
Time spent 15 min.
Day 2.
Reviewed words.
Made new words. found -sound-mound, etc. Did not do every possibility.
more sentences using all word combinations possible.
I say a word and he spells it with letter cards. ( he really enjoyed doing this.)
Time spent 15 min.
Day 3
Reviewed words.
Introduced new words for next 2 pages of story.
Made new sentences and read them.
( I had a hard time getting him to do this lesson today-he did not want to do reading first .I introduced too many new words.)
Time spent 20 min. Had to redirect him several times to work.
Day 4
Reviewed words.
Made lots of sentences and read them.
Played a few games with the words that he wasn't reading easily. Pick a card if you read the word you keep it, etc. Concentration, etc.
He read the first 2 pages of the story and I read the next 2 pages of the story.
( I did reading after all his other subjects which did work better. He liked the games. It was easier for him to read the words in the story than randomly)
Time spent 15 min.
Lessons I learned.
Don't get rid of cards that he can read easily too quickly.
Better to introduce fewer words.
Non competitive games. He really enjoys these and really looks hard at each to word to make sure he remembers it.
Next Week
Continue working on the words we have until he knows them without hesitation.
Spelling with letter cards words + words we can make, found- mound, etc.
Possibly introduce the rest of the words in the story.
Keep reading as the last subject of the day.
Introduced words for 1st 2 sentences.
Read each word .
Encouraged him to really look hard at each word.
Made new sentences with each word.
Found words in the stack " Can you find the word hen?" , etc.
Shuffled cards and found them again.
Made silly sentences with the words and read them " The little seed found a red hen.", etc
( mistake I made. I turned over the words he could already read before practicing. He got stressed that I was only leaving the "hard" words.)
Time spent 15 min.
Day 2.
Reviewed words.
Made new words. found -sound-mound, etc. Did not do every possibility.
more sentences using all word combinations possible.
I say a word and he spells it with letter cards. ( he really enjoyed doing this.)
Time spent 15 min.
Day 3
Reviewed words.
Introduced new words for next 2 pages of story.
Made new sentences and read them.
( I had a hard time getting him to do this lesson today-he did not want to do reading first .I introduced too many new words.)
Time spent 20 min. Had to redirect him several times to work.
Day 4
Reviewed words.
Made lots of sentences and read them.
Played a few games with the words that he wasn't reading easily. Pick a card if you read the word you keep it, etc. Concentration, etc.
He read the first 2 pages of the story and I read the next 2 pages of the story.
( I did reading after all his other subjects which did work better. He liked the games. It was easier for him to read the words in the story than randomly)
Time spent 15 min.
Lessons I learned.
Don't get rid of cards that he can read easily too quickly.
Better to introduce fewer words.
Non competitive games. He really enjoys these and really looks hard at each to word to make sure he remembers it.
Next Week
Continue working on the words we have until he knows them without hesitation.
Spelling with letter cards words + words we can make, found- mound, etc.
Possibly introduce the rest of the words in the story.
Keep reading as the last subject of the day.
Sample narration, week 1.
Sam's very first narration....
narration by Sam
A whale met a man and ate him. The man danced and danced in the whale and made the whale hiccough. The man used his suspenders and his raft and made the whale a throat. Now the whale has a throat and can only eat little fish.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Preschooler at work
Friendship bracelets made with pipecleaners and ponybeads have always been a favorite activity with my preschool age kids. My oldest daughter used to make matching ones for all her dolls and horses. Today was Charlotte's first time working on this project and she was content to practice putting on the beads and pulling them off but we did get one finished project.
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