Homeschool Weekly Report: March 3rd - 7th

This week has been pretty productive. We are in the home stretch of Classical Conversations - boo! We've enjoyed it so much I hate for it to end, but we do have some "elective"-type work I'd like to spend some time on once it ends.

Here's what we've been doing in our homeschool this week:



Family Prayer - Morning or Evening, and sometimes both. We use Anne Kitch's The Anglican Family Prayer Book and Vos' The Child's Story Bible. The kids are learning the Lord's Prayer and the Apostle's Creed by doing this.



Math

DD 6 - We started her Singapore "Early Bird" 2B this week. This week we worked on addition fact families.

DS 8 - Still haven't decided what to do for him for Math next. We are finishing up Singapore 1B (we are in the last unit which is money - he's a whiz at adding if money is involved!). I think once we finish this unit (and book) next week, we will just do some fact practice using a Carson-Dellosa mini-workbook and the game "Countdown".



DS 11 - Saxon 7/6 with the DIVE CD is going very well. We generally do two lessons a day, but sometimes only one. I'd say we average 7 lessons a week (we don't do math lessons on our co-op day). We are on Lesson 22 now.





English

DD 6 - "Get Ready for the Code" C is going well. We've completed the first two letters. She is starting to sound out words here and there.



DS 8 -Handwriting Without Tears "Cursive" - he's still interested and enjoying this. We are taking it VERY slowly. He completes about 2 lines of practice each day - that is it. No MadLibs this week, but we did do the first lesson of "Simply Grammar" and a few of the exercises. He seemed to enjoy that. However, I'd like to look at "First Language Lessons" to see if I like it better. Some of the old-fashioned language took some explaining. (I don't mind that for a literature selection, but in Grammar it is a hinderance for him.)

DS 11 - We are working through our weekly assignments from Classical Conversations "Essentials" Grammar and Writing classes. He completed the keyword outline for his critique paper all on his own - I'm so proud of him!! Now we've got to do the first draft and final before next week's class. He's also reading "Sherlock Holmes" and thoroughly enjoying it.

After we finish Classical Conversations, I'm not sure what I'll do with him for Grammar and Writing. I'm considering using "Editor-in-Chief" because he seems to enjoy those types of activities (we do a Punctuation sheet each week in CC Essentials along these lines). I may just use "Our Mother Tongue" (which we have used in Essentials) and continue to review what we've done in Essentials this year. Anyone have suggestions?

Family Studies



Christian Studies - we didn't do anything specific (beyond our family prayer and bible reading) this week.



Modern - Read in "The Last 500 Years": about the Soviet Union and East Germany and the fall of Communism.



Science - they continued working on their bridge projects at CC.



Friday: Field Trip Day! We are going on a tour of a downtown theatre (a BIG one).

Individual Studies



Literature -

DD6 - read "The Ugly Duckling"

DS 8 - missed the Hobbit, but he joined us for "The Ugly Duckling"

DS 11 - read first half of "King Lear"



Modern -

DS 11 - read "Soviet Invasions", "Terrorism", "Chernobyl", "End of the Cold War" from Story of the World 4



Classics -

DD 6 - read 2 Aesop stories

DS 8 - missed his readin this week

DS 11 - read from D'Aulaire's Greek Myths: The Muses and Orpheus





Classical Conversations



All: reviewed week 20 and introduced week 21 (Bible, Math facts, English Grammar, Geography, History sentence, timeline cards, Science sentence)

DS 11 - finished and gave his "President" presentation on JFK (fact gathering, collecting photos, writing notes)

Other

DD 6 - made a book (her own made up story); made a kite; "wrote" an "Aesop"-type story (she makes up the story and draws pictures); Ballet class

DS 8 - counted out our "Family Fun" change (just change we collect in a jar) - $15!; made and flew kites

DS 11 - made and flew kites; Drama class