Adjustments

Remember our lovely posters?

They came down. I was tired of using up so much tape to keep them up for a day.
Unfortunately a couple had been well-taped (Thursday, I think), so we now have a couple spots that will need some fixing-up work when we paint there next. *sigh*

I tried something new while still using the badges we already created: making a ribbon for each day with the 12 velcro circles on them. One of the ribbons doesn't hold the sticky well, so I'll need to sew them on (or buy more normal ribbon ;) ) but I think it will work!!

Mongol Yurt

This week we're learning about what was going on in Asia during the Middle Ages.
We haven't read as far as the Mongols yet, but the kids were excited to start on the Hideaway.

This was one that we had to improvise on their plans, since we don't have a round table I could give up for the week. I wasn't too gung-ho on eating on the kitchen floor. Such a party-pooper.

So we tried their "simplified" idea, which was much harder than their original plans. But at least it didn't take our table.

 It lasted a total of 10 minutes.

(watching for bad guys)

When it fell apart, I attempted to convert it into a new part of their "reading nook" in their bedroom.
Yesterday, the nook looked like this:

Today, adding in the hoop and sheet, it became:

We won't talk about the pile of books on the floor.
Jasmine is still Jasmine, even at 6. She thought it should go in the middle of the room as a play area, but I told her it's not strong enough for that. So this was her way of "getting back at me" without actually ripping it from the ceiling (because I told her it wasn't going back up once it fell).

Oh, right. I wasn't going to talk about it.

We still have some math to do today, but otherwise we're in great shape! That always feels good :)

One third done: second one starting!

I almost called it a "trimester" but don't want anyone even momentarily thinking I'm pregnant!


I realized this weekend that we'd finished the 1/3 mark. Not that I'm counting down, but I love seeing the fractions.
Yes, I'm a math geek. You had to ask??

So I thought this might be a good time to summarize what's working for us, what I wish we'd done differently, and anything else I think of.

Working:
badge system

Not working:
badge posters

Next year we'll come up with something that doesn't fall apart in the humidity. And maybe something smaller, so it doesn't take up every available inch of wall space!

Working:
Teach Your Child To Read in 100 Easy Lessons

Not working:
that exact copy of the book

Working:
Writing with Ease

Not working:
All the workbooks

I have to admit, I'm already starting to ponder ideas for next year. Thinking of songs about animals, etc...but for the most part I'm just loving this year. Even days like today, when the kids are all recovering from head colds and I'm praying I'm not getting it, I'm still enjoying the time and experience with the kids. It's magical, and I wouldn't trade it for the world!

Spelling Fun

Jasmine has a tough spelling list this week.
-er, -ir and -ur words. They all sound the same, so it's pure memorization to learn which is which.

So we've come up with silly sentences to help her remember. And it seems to be working well!

"I am a girl because girl has an i in it."
"I wear a skirt because skirt has an i in it."
"You are a nurse. I'm not one, because nurse has an u in it."

Today we did a practice with sand.

She wrote the words in the sand.

The funniest part? My daughter, who hates pencils and pens, actually wrote the last word in the sand with a pencil.

I don't get it either.

After we finished, I did a quick quiz with her, asking her for the sentence for each of the 10 spelling words without seeing the word. She got all 10 right. So she should be ready for the test tomorrow :)

Hudson wanted to be involved, but I didn't really want to let him go to town with sand. So I gave him a pie pan with lentils. He had a blast and still made a mess. 

But it kept him from begging for Jasmine's sand!

Medieval Castle

We're a week behind in actual hideaway structures. We may stay that way and build the Tudor House next week, or skip the house completely.
But as my daughters live to be princesses, spending time making the castle was definitely high on our list of priorities!

(word to the wise. If you're going to use the flaps upright to add height, tape them together BEFORE you paint. The paint warps the cardboard. Don't be like me.)

Pouting because I didn't do her hair the way she wanted it. She is a princess.

Prince Hudson, all decked out in clothes from India.

(he just keeps getting cuter. Oh my goodness.)

The Queen

(which makes me the Queen Mother!)

The kids all helped paint the outlines of the stones on the castle. Don't they look realistic?

New Directions

Things are changing a little.
After pulling teeth for the first 11 weeks of school, trying to get Jasmine to do the workbooks, I realized it just wasn't working. So after talking to a friend a few years ahead of me in this learning experience, we're now using Susan Wise Bauer's materials for language arts.
We're using Writing with Ease and First Language Lessons, Level 1. She still didn't want to write yesterday for the first copywork assignment, but she eventually did it (she got paid in chocolate chips for each word written. I fed her like a sea lion, which she thought was hilarious. We will not consistently use bribery or sweets, but I needed her to start out with a success).
I also bought triangular pencils in hopes that it would help her hold the pencil properly. Hopefully that will help it be more comfortable, in case comfort is part of the problem here.
It's possible it's just some of Josh's genes showing up. He's always hated writing. Fought it his whole life. But she needs the basics, no matter how much she wishes she didn't.

We celebrated by finishing a project that Bekah did the bulk of. I traced starfish onto a bunch of pieces of construction paper, and Bekah cut them out (and added smiley faces to most of them), and this morning we taped them to yarn and hung them up. We learned a little about sea creatures last week and have been reading about shells and the animals that live(d) in them, so this was a fun little celebration! The kids think it looks like a party in the homeschool room!

Back in the saddle again

Just a quick check-in...
we're finally back up and running again. Week 11: Medieval England. I'm fascinated about what we're learning already this week! I read a book called "1066 And All That," which is a very silly "English 'history'" book, but since I don't know any of the real history, most of it is over my head. So reading about Alfred the Great made the jokes a lot more understandable!

We cut out a large castle. I donned my very bad British Accent as I cut out the doors and windows. Bekah got on my case as soon as I lapsed into my normal voice.
Tomorrow we paint and glue the two boxes together, and then I'll get pictures. I have too many pictures to edit from our vacation last week to want to touch the camera again today!

Last week was a great learning experience, though. They had a horseback riding lesson, we visited the aquarium, Old Fort Niagara, a botanical garden, the county fair, watched their daddy take a flying lesson, went to the Museum of Play...so to read all about our educational fun week, check out my other blog!