Weekly Report - 3

This week was not as challenging as last week, but it wasn't nearly as exhilarating as that first week either!  I know now why I always seem to peter out after three weeks.  The brain load just gets to be too much.  I have so much stuff to think about, so much to plan, so much to implement, and too much to keep on top of that I just mentally shut down.  The fourth week always seems to fall apart as my mind takes a vacation.  Blogging has been helpful in showing me my weaknesses and patterns, as I had hoped, and I am slowly developing some useful skills that are keeping us moving.

I wrote up my topical year-at-a-glance list for history and science.  Now, I can easily see what's coming up soon and order books from the library or amazon.  I think that next year I will try to buy almost all of the books we will use to save myself this stress.  It is a weekly irritation that could be alleviated by better planning and budgeting.  If we weren't moving next summer, I would start buying books now for October's topics.  Alas...

The other list that is working tremendously well is a weekly subject checklist.  Now I can see what we still have to accomplish and know that nothing was missed.  I can also see that I am consistently missing Art.  Maybe I need to move that to an earlier spot in our day?  I am waiting for Drawing with Children from the library, but I may just have to buy it in September. I hope that Kaden is old enough for it now and maybe Chloe as well.  We can begin working through Artpak 1 next week though, if I can get the supplies put together this weekend.  I need to get some colored paper for Sam's ABC activities anyway.  Saturday might end up being a shopping day.  Maybe after I paint the boys' room and Chloe's room... 

The final helpful thing I started this week was putting each day's stack of readers on my desk under my checklist.  Each book planned for science, history, literature and storytime are all nicely stacked and ready for those moments when their play seems to be getting out of hand and they require a change in plans.  This has helped immensely towards getting our reading done!  An easy fix, especially with the space I now enjoy on my new desk.

So, that's the progress I've made this week.  Here's what the kids accomplished:

MATH

Kaden finished chapter 4 of BJU 2.  I think he understood the subtraction strategies better this go around.  It was an easy week for him.  He improved with Flashmaster as well and moved on to level 4.  Chloe finished chapter 3 of BJU 1.  It was all review, so she was able to focus more on her facts.  She is working on level 3 of Flashmaster addition.  I didn't use the TM's at all this week.  

WRITING

Writing with Ease is wonderful!  I took the workbook to Kinko's and had the binding removed, the teaching pages bound together, made another copy of the student pages and had both student books bound.  It is so easy to use and the kids liked it as well.  Happy all around!  I'm going to get the audio versions of the books she takes her selections from and listen to those in the car.  I always forget to reserve audio books, so this will be helpful!

SCIENCE

We were supposed to continue on with earth science (earthquakes, volcanoes, caves) but ALL of the library books that I had preselected this summer were checked out until mid-August! So, we checked out 10 books about the human body.  This week we learned about our senses from My Five Senses, by Aliki and You Can't Taste a Pickle With Your Ear, by Harriet Ziefert.

I had planned to do more hands-on learning with this topic, but it just didn't happen.  Most likely because I didn't plan anything out on paper.  Plans that exist only in my head never seem to amount to anything tangible.  Go figure!

HISTORY - KING ARTHUR

We wrapped up our King Arthur unit this week with some great stories.

Bearskin - Pyle

Knights of the Round Table - Talbott

Merlin and the Dragons - Yolen

The Minstrel and the Dragon Pup - Sutcliff

Talbott's book about Lancelot still has not come in from the library, so we'll have to add it in next week somewhere... 

POETRY

Kaden learned Long Gone, by Jack Prelutsky.

Chloe learned Singing Time, by Rose Fyleman.

We did manage to read three chapters of The Princess and the Goblin.  It continues to be a favorite read-aloud.  We are also enjoying The Willoughby's by Lois Lowry.  It is quite funny and terribly ridiculous.  I think it will make a great yearly read-aloud as the kids are still a bit young to grasp much of the subtle humor.  Chloe read Going West, a picture book adaptation from Little House in the Big Woods and Kaden is enjoying The Nine Lives of Aristotle, by Dick King-Smith, in addition to another half-dozen A to Z Mysteries and Ready Freddy short chapter books.

We only made it to the gym once this week.  I hope we can improve our record next week!  And on a final note, our puppy has gone to live with an older couple, big sighs of relief but also a tad bit of sadness and regret... I actually miss the little yapper.