This was a very funny week. As I mentioned before we'd done 9 weeks of school, then took a week off. Then the week we were supposed to start back, everyone got sick. So, we took another week off.
But it has been a valuable time for reflection.
On a hectic or busy, crowded day we did whatever subjects were convenient--or what the children wanted to do. So, we got History done, because my son loves it. We did our Canadian map book because it was easy. But we were not getting to Grammar or writing.
This week, following the LCC plan, I decided that our priorities would be:
Math,
Language Arts (which consists of Spelling (together), Grammar (separate) and writing. We're using Classical Writing's Aesop A for the girl and Homer A for the boy.)
and Latin.
All other subjects: History, Science, Literature and Fine Arts, Logic, Geography, etc., would take a literal backseat and not be done until the afternoon.
So, that's what happened. I had a real test of my resolve Friday. We started our SoTW3 chapter 11--The Moguls, but we didn't finish it. SoTW is something of a bench mark for me. In our first year of homeschooling, we took so many breaks it took us a year and a half to finish the first book. The second volume also languished for an entire season while I decorated my house. When at last I decided to "get serious" about homeschooling last January, it was there and waiting for us to use--and we finished it right at the beginning of our Christmas break this last year. I am still very proud of that! So, as you can see, where we are in SoTW tells me where we are in out homeschool. Just now, I realised we're in Week 11--'cause we're on chapter 11. I do not want to fall behind: and I see no way to get a chapter done in one day. None. We didn't today, and I doubt we ever will.
The week was extremely short: Wednesday to Friday, only.
Latin:
Lively Latin I: Lesson 15: from Scipio goes to Africa to Diagramming Predicate Adjectives, Ex. 15.8
I've decided to incorporate more drill into our time with Latin. So, I downloaded a drill sheet from Angelina's Blog. For now, I'm just having the kids copy out their endings from a crib sheet. Friday, we made a crib sheet for sum and we'll start writing that out next week along with our declensions.
Spelling:
Um, none, really. I had dictated 1/2 of list M7 the first week we were supposed to be "back" (the week we all got sick) so I'll just pick that back up next week.
Grammar:
The Older: Rod and Staff 4: Lesson 66 to Lesson 70
The Younger: Rod and Staff 3: Lesson 44 to Lesson 48
(yay!)
Writing:
The Older: Started Homer this week. We'd done the planning week while we were under the weather, as it turned out. We didn't quite finish Day 3 or 4. I'm trying to tell myself it really doesn't matter. We will get to it. It will be done. Breathe in. Breathe out.
Math:
The Older: finished Singapore 4A. He did it double the pace and I'm so thrilled. I'm hoping we can keep that up for 4B as he really ought to be finished the entire series by Fall 2010.
The Younger: Singapore 3A: Review A, Ex. 28 and Ex. 29. Unfortunately, these are small gains for the battles we fought.
History:
SoTW3: Chapter 10. We must have done it the week we were sick. This week we only got 1/2 of Chapter 11 done. And by done, I mean we listened to it and answered the review questions orally. No narrations. I'm not completely happy about that but I am finding SoTW3 a slog. I don't know why.
Canadian History Read-Aloud: Meghan's Reading Plan Unit 2: First Contact. Day 7 to 11. Now, we got a lot done with this! And it was just because we were sick. The kids would snuggle up under blankets on the couch and just listen to me read hoarsely. Unfortunately, it is just far too time intensive to continue the way it is set up. I'll be doing some thinking about this (again!).
Geography:
Canada Map Book 2: None
Art & Music:
None
Bible Study:
None
Science:
None
*though if you count the 16 weeks we did before our Christmas break, it's really week 27!
Well, strangely, that was refreshing. I feel ready and energised to start next weeks work.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
LCC, Day 1
I have no idea if there will be a Day 2, honestly, but today we got back to work for the first time in two weeks.
The first week was a scheduled break. The second was a "sick week." We're still not 100%, but I cannot "wait" any longer. We're all getting into terribly self-indulgent habits and neglecting whatever it is we should be doing.
So, today, after having read The Latin Centered Curriculum,(LCC) second edition, for the past couple of days, I decided we would do Math, Latin and Composition. Under the program these are our daily subjects (Greek is to be added in later years). They are to be done when the student is fresh and alert and take priority over all other subjects. The author of LCC, Andrew Campbell recommends that all other subjects: Geography (replaced with Logic in the later years), Science, History, Literature and Religious studies be incorporated for extended periods of time once a week, each. It is an enourmously attractive program.
I have yet to work out the nitty gritty details, but I thought I'd give the the program a go until we leave for our Provincial Homeschooling conference on April 16-18. For example, Campbell suggests that grammar need not be studied separately--learning Latin (esp. a course based on translation, rather than immersion) should be sufficient. I am not so sure--even though today taking a separate stand alone grammar course certainly seemed somewhat redundant. In Latin, we covered adjectives and diagrammed Latin sentences. In her writing model, my daughter underlined all the verbs (and thus had to review the definition of a verb, chant the linking verbs and review the helping verbs). Both children covered pronouns in their separate Rod and Staff English texts.
Today was the sort of day when you understand why it's called "grammar" school.
The first week was a scheduled break. The second was a "sick week." We're still not 100%, but I cannot "wait" any longer. We're all getting into terribly self-indulgent habits and neglecting whatever it is we should be doing.
So, today, after having read The Latin Centered Curriculum,(LCC) second edition, for the past couple of days, I decided we would do Math, Latin and Composition. Under the program these are our daily subjects (Greek is to be added in later years). They are to be done when the student is fresh and alert and take priority over all other subjects. The author of LCC, Andrew Campbell recommends that all other subjects: Geography (replaced with Logic in the later years), Science, History, Literature and Religious studies be incorporated for extended periods of time once a week, each. It is an enourmously attractive program.
I have yet to work out the nitty gritty details, but I thought I'd give the the program a go until we leave for our Provincial Homeschooling conference on April 16-18. For example, Campbell suggests that grammar need not be studied separately--learning Latin (esp. a course based on translation, rather than immersion) should be sufficient. I am not so sure--even though today taking a separate stand alone grammar course certainly seemed somewhat redundant. In Latin, we covered adjectives and diagrammed Latin sentences. In her writing model, my daughter underlined all the verbs (and thus had to review the definition of a verb, chant the linking verbs and review the helping verbs). Both children covered pronouns in their separate Rod and Staff English texts.
Today was the sort of day when you understand why it's called "grammar" school.
Monday, March 16, 2009
On Breaks.
When we started school, waaaay back in August--it was after a summer hiatus since May. An eight or even twelve week break isn't uncomon: but it was after having schooled only from January to the beginning of May. The fall prior to that (2007) had been entirely lost.
It added up to a fair amount of inconsistency and as a result we got "behind." I didn't worry too much in the early years, but last fall I realised that was it. I was running out of time. We have to adhere to a fairly rigid schedule from now on, or this homescholing experiment will fail.
And so, after our Christmas break, I decided we needed to go for nine weeks straight--without a break. I don't like breaks. I am so scattered by nature that if I start something during a break (and I usually do, like cleaning out the basement, or planning a garden or some project or other) I continue doing it when it is time to return to school. So, I figured the longer we went without a break, the better our chances to "stick" with school.
But nine weeks was too long.
It nearly kiled me. It would have been fine, I think, if we had not had the added responsibility of caring for my nephew six days a week (and twice on Mondays, usually). I fell behind with the day-to-day tasks or keeping our home running smoothly. I fell behind with the thrice daily ritual of washing the dishes, and I fell behind with laundry. We're on a money saving plan where we can only eat out two times a month at most. I did manage to keep up with that.
So, we start back again tomorrow: this time with a big change, We're going to start getting up at 6:30am with Dad. We did this last fall and though it was a constant challenge and we never did settle into it, I think we need to try it again so that I feel like we will have accomplished something by the time my nephew gets here. On some days, when he comes for the afternoon, we may even be finished! I think the early morning expeiment has a better chance of working now, too. The clocks have been set ahead: and though it will take another month before sunrise is anywhere near 6:30am again, it will be getting up earlier and earlier, not later and later as it was last fall.
So, let's hope this new plan will keep us on track. Let's hope it will give me the time I need to get my chores done--and the kids' schoolwork completed before supper.
It added up to a fair amount of inconsistency and as a result we got "behind." I didn't worry too much in the early years, but last fall I realised that was it. I was running out of time. We have to adhere to a fairly rigid schedule from now on, or this homescholing experiment will fail.
And so, after our Christmas break, I decided we needed to go for nine weeks straight--without a break. I don't like breaks. I am so scattered by nature that if I start something during a break (and I usually do, like cleaning out the basement, or planning a garden or some project or other) I continue doing it when it is time to return to school. So, I figured the longer we went without a break, the better our chances to "stick" with school.
But nine weeks was too long.
It nearly kiled me. It would have been fine, I think, if we had not had the added responsibility of caring for my nephew six days a week (and twice on Mondays, usually). I fell behind with the day-to-day tasks or keeping our home running smoothly. I fell behind with the thrice daily ritual of washing the dishes, and I fell behind with laundry. We're on a money saving plan where we can only eat out two times a month at most. I did manage to keep up with that.
So, we start back again tomorrow: this time with a big change, We're going to start getting up at 6:30am with Dad. We did this last fall and though it was a constant challenge and we never did settle into it, I think we need to try it again so that I feel like we will have accomplished something by the time my nephew gets here. On some days, when he comes for the afternoon, we may even be finished! I think the early morning expeiment has a better chance of working now, too. The clocks have been set ahead: and though it will take another month before sunrise is anywhere near 6:30am again, it will be getting up earlier and earlier, not later and later as it was last fall.
So, let's hope this new plan will keep us on track. Let's hope it will give me the time I need to get my chores done--and the kids' schoolwork completed before supper.
Friday, March 13, 2009
St. Patrick's Day: Not too late.
As I was putting together this post, I became aware that St. Patrick's Day has been moved this year. That's right. It isn't on March 17th, but March 14th--so that it may be celebrated outside of Holy Week. (Whatever that is. (see below))
I'm not sure whether we will do a mini-unit study on all things Irish, but the idea has some appeal. My father's ancestors left "The Auld Countrie" right as the potato famine ended. However, we can't really claim to be Irish because 1) we're Protestants and 2) apparently we were in Scotland a mere two hundred years prior to that. Given those two facts, the less said about claims to Irish ancestry, the better.
However, just in case I yearn for a pint of Guinness and a few bites of gorgonzolla, I've collected a few resources better suited to share with the wee ones.
The history of St. Patrick, from the History Channel itself.
Dover publications has a maze and some candidates for colouring pages at this sample page.
DLTK has some themed worksheets.
Here's a nice little collection of Irish Fairy Tales. There's also Louey Chisholm's and Joseph Jacob's at The Baldwin Project.
I have no idea of "authentic" Irish fare, really, but these recipes look close. Unfortunately, other than the potato, there doesn't seem to be a lot in common in our cuisine. (Seafood and lamb are exorbitant luxuries here).
However, just in case I yearn for a pint of Guinness and a few bites of gorgonzolla, I've collected a few resources better suited to share with the wee ones.
The history of St. Patrick, from the History Channel itself.
Dover publications has a maze and some candidates for colouring pages at this sample page.
DLTK has some themed worksheets.
Here's a nice little collection of Irish Fairy Tales. There's also Louey Chisholm's and Joseph Jacob's at The Baldwin Project.
I have no idea of "authentic" Irish fare, really, but these recipes look close. Unfortunately, other than the potato, there doesn't seem to be a lot in common in our cuisine. (Seafood and lamb are exorbitant luxuries here).
Perhaps a few scones and a cup of tea while we read a Celtic tale or two will be a sufficiently pleasant salute.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
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