Homeschool Mother's Journal

 

This week was kind of a bummer as we had rain every day.  I mean non-stop rain, and wind, so we pretty much stayed home all week.  The good think is we were able to get a lot of school completed.  Yeah!!

In My Life This Week:  As I said our days were filled with rain.  I was able to get some baking done, a loaf of bread, and some cookies.  The family was very happy about that.  We are going to be doing some work to out backyard next week, so some prep work was done on Thursday.  This made me a little nervous, as now my yard looks like a mud ring.  Just a few more days, and then it will all be over.  I will show the after shots.  Ash's dog training session was canceled due to the weather so she was a little bummed, but we are all set for next Friday.  Bella is doing great so far.  I am very pleased with her progress,  and so is Ash.  Tay is getting ready for her dance performances coming up here in the next month or so.  She is pretty excited.  My husband found the perfect little bike for Buddy yesterday, so as soon as our yard is complete we will buy it for him.  We are looking forward to seeing Buddy get going on a bigger bike (with training wheels of course).

In Our Homeschool This Week:  Well, one thing I figured out this week is that Latin is one subject that I am not able to teach.  Tay is doing Latin and I finally broke down and bought the teaching DVD's this week.  They came yesterday, so Monday will bring a fresh start in this subject.  I can't even begin to tell you the relief I feel.    Sometimes it is just better to concede to defeat.  Tay is pretty excited to get started.  Ash is still doing great.  She is really enjoying reading now, as it has finally "clicked".  I am so proud of her.  She has also started spelling words with All About Spelling.  This is such a great program.  She is building her confidence as we go.  This means less frustrating moments for her.  Yeah!!  Buddy has become obsessed with Green Eggs and Ham.  He just loves the story and the movie.  I decided to move away from Chicka Chicka Boom Boom and add Dr. Seuss ABC.  He really loves it.  One good thing about Buddy is he loves to repeat everything he hears.  I know that soon he will be running around reciting the alphabet the way he recites the words from Green Eggs and Ham.  I am happy with his progress, plus he is having so much fun!  That's what preschool is all about.

Places We Are Going/People We Are Seeing:  Due to the weather we have not been able to go anywhere.  This week we are getting our yard done, and if all goes well we are planning on having a family party on Friday to celebrate our new space.  I am praying everything falls into place.  We will see.

My Favorite Thing This Week:  I can honestly say that I think my favorite thing this week was watching Ash spell.  She was having so much fun and the look of happiness on her face was so fulfilling.  I am so very proud of her.  Things are always a challenge for Ash, so it is nice to see her having fun and having great success.

What Is Working/Not Working For Us:  Latin was not working for us, well rather me.  I am hoping the DVD's will change all this.  I have faith that they will be a great resource for us.  On another note, All About Spelling is working great.  I absolutely love this program and plan on switching Tay to it next year.

A Photo To Share:  Buddy's face as we all sang happy birthday to him back in December.

Please head on over to The Homeschool Chick to see what others are saying about their week.

Blessings,

The Homeschool Mother's Journal

 

Wow what a week we have had.  I feel like we actually were able to accomplish everything I set out to do.  That does not happen very often around here.

In My Life This Week:  This was a great week for me.  I was feeling a little on the down side the last few weeks, but this week my spirits were lifted.  I have decided to try to dive deeper into my faith this Lenten season and I can honestly say my overall feeling inside has changed.  I have a sense of peace inside, which in turn as lightened my anxiety level.  As I shared earlier this week, we celebrated Happy Hearts Day for Ash.  This was great fun and it was really refreshing to see where she was six years ago and where she is now.  It was so much fun to have family here to celebrate with us.   St.Patrick's Day was filled with crafts, which turned out awesome.  I guess I would wrap up our week as very fulfilling.

In Our Homeschool This Week:  Last week I was struggling with Tay during History.  I am really considering making a change in this area next year, but have decided to stick with what I have for this year.  I wanted to change things up for her a bit to make the subject of history more interesting and fun.  Tay really likes the way the Apologia Science is formatted, so we now follow the same format for history.  Her textbook is written as if it were a story.  The chapters are short and at the end of each chapter there is a study summary, activities, and a study test.  As we do we science, we read the history chapter as a read aloud.  During the reading process I would stop and ask her some Tay a few questions. At the end of reading, the two of us went over the study summary orally together.  Tay then chose an activity to do, which is usually some kind of art project.  After all this was completed I had her complete the study test on her own.  She really enjoyed this.  I am planning on doing history this way for the rest of the year.  Ash is now reading and spelling!  So exciting.  I am very pleased with her progress and am excited to see her more relaxed during reading time.  She is still working on counting by 10's and addition as well as subtraction.  We have been working on handwriting, which is a struggle for her because her hand tires so quickly.  Buddy is coming along nicely.  He is counting objects really well and we are going to start working on shapes this week.  I am also putting together a unit for him on ocean life, which in not done yet, for the weeks to come.

Places We Are Going/People We Are Seeing:  Yesterday we had a baby shower for my Sister In Law.  It was so much fun.  My brother and his wife came in from out of town for the shower.  The girls helped put it all together along with my Mom, my two Aunts, and my cousin.  It was nice to see family I had not seen in a while.  We also celebrated Happy Hearts Day this week with family, which was a blast!  Ash had her second dog training lesson with Bella.  They are both doing very well.

My Favorite Thing This Week:  There was so much happening here this week that it is hard for me to come up with just one.  I think that my favorite thing this week was watching Ash, Buddy and Bella chasing bubbles in the backyard.  They were all having so much fun and it took all the worries of life away for a moment.

What Is Working/Not Working For Us:  Well, last week I stated that history was not working for us, but now that we have changed things up a bit it is working great.  Sometime it is good to think outside the box.

Homeschool Questions/Thoughts I Have:  I have been thinking a lot lately on how to add a little spice to our school days.  I really enjoy the days that we take time away from the books and do special crafts or learning units on a particular subject.  I also enjoy watching the girls work together as a team.  This does not happen very often, but when it does it is a wonderful sight to see.

A Photo/Quote/Or Video To Share:  In our study of Lent, I came across this little prayer:

"Jesus, no matter what happens today; I'm splashing myself with hope."

I hope you have enjoyed reading about our week.  If you would like to participate or read about what others are doing this week, hop on over The Homeschool Chick.

Blessings,

The Homeschool Mother's Journal

I love writing the Homeschool Mother's Journal entry.  I have found it a great way to reflect on our week and see what things are working or not working.  I actually look forward to Friday so I can write this post.  So, I have once again linked up with Sue over at The Homeschool Chick for one of my favorite hops.

In My Life This Week:  On Monday I woke up feeling terrible.  I was very sluggish all day and lets just say, my patience was less than it should have been.  I went to the Doctor on Tuesday, turns out I had a really bad sinus infection and my asthma was acting up.  Antibiotic and 2 inhalers later I am feeling much better.  Besides being sick we were still able to get some schooling done.  Thank goodness.  The weather was nice yesterday so we were able to have a play outside day.  My house stayed the cleanest that day. Funny how that works.  I have been pondering taking on a new project and today I found the answer I was looking for.  I think I am going to go for, but we will see.  It is still in the planning stages.

In Our Homeschool This Week:  We made some great progress here.  Ash has finally figured out she can read!  The excitement on her face was priceless.  I am so happy for her.  Now, she just needs to take it beyond school time.  This will come soon.  She is progressing well in math.  We have been doing addition flash cards this week, as well as some oral problem solving.  I do think that math is her kind of subject.  Tay is still doing great.  She is reading about George Washington and preparing for her essay next week.  She took her math test today and got a 100%.  She was so happy!  Math is not really her strongest subject, but she is gaining confidence there.  Buddy and I enjoyed reading Chicka Chicka Boom Boom.  He laughed throughout the entire story.  We then did an alphabet puzzle together.  He really enjoyed that.  Next week I am planning on printing out some activities that go with the story to hopefully further his interest.

Places We Are Going/People We Are Seeing:  Since I was not feeling the greatest this week, it was pretty quiet around here.  Last Sunday we tried a new restaurant with the family.   It was a cute little Italian restaurant up the street.  I will be honest, I am not one for restaurant Italian food, as I prefer my Mom's cooking.  My Mother is Italian and in my opinion the best cook. I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised.  The food was pretty good.  I didn't really order an Italian dish, unless you consider a Philly Cheese Steak sandwich from Italy.

My Favorite Thing This Week Was:  I thought about this for some time.  I would have to say my favorite thing this week was reading Chicka Chicka Boom Boom with Buddy.  He was so into the story and really thought it was funny at times.  His laughter filled my heart.

Whats Working/Not Working For Us:  Our new workbox system is really working out great for us.  The girls know exactly what needs to be done for the day and they even get their music practice in.  It has made the school day progress smoothly and efficiently.  Another favorite I have this week is the Funnix reading program on the computer.  This has been a great resource for Ash.

Homeschool Thoughts/Questions I Have:  I have decided that I am going to take one day a week and work only on character training.  I will probably do this on a Friday as most of our lessons are done by then.  How do all of you incorporate lessons on character into the school day?  I do add a little each day, but I really want to bring it more into focus.  I would love to hear your ideas.

A Photo, Video Link, or Quote To Share:  I know another picture of Buddy this week, but here he is after a haircut and a bag of mini Oreos.

Thanks for listening about my week.

Blessing,

Kimberly