With the change in seasons, everyone is scrambling to spend more time outside these days. This week was supposed to be our week off, but we traded it for last week off. Afternoons have been spent playing outside with the neighborhood children. It's nice that they're old enough now to run around the neighborhood. Of course that doesn't mean that I don't wonder what they're doing, but I'm trying hard to allow them the freedom they have earned. Oddly enough, growing up is a bigger adjustment than home schooling! There are curricula and state guidelines for education. I'm still looking for that parenting manual for the rest.
Saturday both of the kids participated in a Tae Kwon Do tournament. They did fantastic! I was very proud of all the hard work they put in to prepare for the tournament. They went to extra sparring classes and practiced their form at home all the time. It all payed off, and both of them got either first or second place in all three events. You might be surprised to know that Zoë was the one the got first in sparring. Who knew the little pixie could be so aggressive! Aiden got first in forms. He looked very crisp and powerful.
Soccer season is in full swing. Only Aiden is playing this year. The good thing about that is he's able to play on a team his own age. He seems to be really enjoying it. He scored a goal in the first game, and has been playing very hard.
It seems like right now no one is very interested in school. I've been trying to make sure we aren't doing more than our scheduled time, so they have free time in the afternoons. I decided that since they finished the state requirement for time in February, everything now is just bonus anyway. Plus, with the rate they are flying through the content, it wouldn't hurt them to have some time to just be kids! So on most days we're only spending 3-4 hours doing school instead of our usual 5-6.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Mobile School
This week we've taken school on the road and have been doing our work at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Thanks to the generosity of Miss Wendy, we even get to practice piano down the street each day. So far it's been a huge success. We get our work done while the grandparents are at work, then we have the evenings to share together. The kids have really enjoyed sharing the things they've learned with new people. Apparently, they're tired of just discussing it over dinner with Dad.
Right now our unit is on animal adaptation. They put on a puppet show last night with puppets they made to discuss how animals adapt to desert and arctic climates. We did an experiment with "blubber" (crisco) to find out how well it protects from cold, and they've learned about different animals that estivate during the summer to stay out of the heat. Yesterday they also used natural resources to build their own model boats, then floated them in the sink and made adjustments as needed. It was a VERY busy day.
This morning I ordered the curriculum for next year. We're trying something new that may enable us to be even more mobile. The company is now offering online curriculum, and the kids thought that would be great. Aiden was thrilled to learn that he could type most of his answers and then print out the worksheets instead of having to hand write everything. I think he'll love that since he can type much faster than he writes, and editing is much easier. Zoe liked the idea that websites will be embedded in the text and easily accessed for more research on topics. Next year is the first year the curriculum is student driven. The lessons are all written with clear directions for the kids to follow, and I can help as much or as little as needed. I'm very interested to see how this works, and a little sad to give up some of the reins to allow them more independence. They sure are growing up fast!
Either way, having our curriculum online might make it easier to be more on the go. Next time I won't have to pack the crate of books and supplies if we want to spend a week studying somewhere else. I'll just need to find a way to cram the piano in the trunk!
Right now our unit is on animal adaptation. They put on a puppet show last night with puppets they made to discuss how animals adapt to desert and arctic climates. We did an experiment with "blubber" (crisco) to find out how well it protects from cold, and they've learned about different animals that estivate during the summer to stay out of the heat. Yesterday they also used natural resources to build their own model boats, then floated them in the sink and made adjustments as needed. It was a VERY busy day.
This morning I ordered the curriculum for next year. We're trying something new that may enable us to be even more mobile. The company is now offering online curriculum, and the kids thought that would be great. Aiden was thrilled to learn that he could type most of his answers and then print out the worksheets instead of having to hand write everything. I think he'll love that since he can type much faster than he writes, and editing is much easier. Zoe liked the idea that websites will be embedded in the text and easily accessed for more research on topics. Next year is the first year the curriculum is student driven. The lessons are all written with clear directions for the kids to follow, and I can help as much or as little as needed. I'm very interested to see how this works, and a little sad to give up some of the reins to allow them more independence. They sure are growing up fast!
Either way, having our curriculum online might make it easier to be more on the go. Next time I won't have to pack the crate of books and supplies if we want to spend a week studying somewhere else. I'll just need to find a way to cram the piano in the trunk!
Thursday, March 25, 2010
New Unit and School on the Move
This week we've started our last unit for the year on exploration and survival. The next few weeks we'll be studying animal adaptation and reading Abel's Island. So far it seems like a really fun unit. I can't wait for the last part that focuses on simple machines and culminates with making our own Rube Goldberg!
Our piano "experiment" is going really well. In this case it's more of an observation than an experiment with the goal being daily practice. Everyone has discovered that they learn things very quickly when they practice more than 3-4 days a week. Both of them are now progressing quickly through book 1, and we've started planning Aiden's book 1 recital for sometime in May.
On Saturday we pack up our school books and head to Cleveland to spend the week doing school at Grandma and Grandpa's. I'm not looking forward to the 10+ hour drive, but at least we have 3 books on cd to listen to while we travel. If they can manage to get all their work done during the week, we'll be able to do this more often. I don't think it will be an issue because my parents are still working during the week, so they'll be gone all day while we're doing school. I am looking forward to not having all the other things I normally have to do during the week! Maybe that's worth the 10 hour drive.
Our piano "experiment" is going really well. In this case it's more of an observation than an experiment with the goal being daily practice. Everyone has discovered that they learn things very quickly when they practice more than 3-4 days a week. Both of them are now progressing quickly through book 1, and we've started planning Aiden's book 1 recital for sometime in May.
On Saturday we pack up our school books and head to Cleveland to spend the week doing school at Grandma and Grandpa's. I'm not looking forward to the 10+ hour drive, but at least we have 3 books on cd to listen to while we travel. If they can manage to get all their work done during the week, we'll be able to do this more often. I don't think it will be an issue because my parents are still working during the week, so they'll be gone all day while we're doing school. I am looking forward to not having all the other things I normally have to do during the week! Maybe that's worth the 10 hour drive.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)