Winter lingers. ::sigh:: We were hit with another snowstorm all day Tuesday, leaving us shoveling out on Wednesday. I'm not sure the ONE shovel we have left this season is going to hold out much longer. ::wink:: Here I was hoping to tackle some SPRING CLEANING this week. Do you "spring clean"?
Yes, that is a photo from a previous storm. After 3 months of snow, it all kinda looks the same. Trust me.
I had SURPRISING news from the garage: the van DOES NOT need a tire rod! When I got a new tire last month I was told a tire rod was loose, but my mechanic said, "I can't find anything wrong". He said I should come back after POT HOLE SEASON for an alignment though. For those of you in Maine, you know what that means! ::wink::
Homeschool High School
Wednesday marked our 1/2 way point this session so White Pine and I sat down to check his progress. Meeting educational goals through accountability has been a great step in learnng time management for him. He makes this WHOLE PROCESS easy for me though.
Excellence in Literature II: Literature and Composition: 1 unit left
English 101 (Grammar): Not Started
Saxon Algebra: 15 lessons left
Prentice Hall Biology: 1 chapter left
Biology Coloring: 11 pages left
Around the World in 180 Days: FINISHED
Computer Science 101 (Coursera): on schedule
Introduction to Physics: How Things Work (Coursera): on schedule
I suppose all this doesn't make sense, but what it DOES mean is he's in good shape to meet this session's goals EARLY. Oh, English Grammar? He ALWAYS waits until the last week to do it because he completes it in a couple of hours. (I probably should have him drop it, but I figure a final year of Grammar will "cement" concepts.)
White Pine did a pretty cool experiment identifying parts of a flower and looking at them under a microscope. He had "help" from a FURRY lab partner! ::grin::
Wednesday marked our 1/2 way point this session so White Pine and I sat down to check his progress. Meeting educational goals through accountability has been a great step in learnng time management for him. He makes this WHOLE PROCESS easy for me though.
Excellence in Literature II: Literature and Composition: 1 unit left
English 101 (Grammar): Not Started
Saxon Algebra: 15 lessons left
Prentice Hall Biology: 1 chapter left
Biology Coloring: 11 pages left
Around the World in 180 Days: FINISHED
Computer Science 101 (Coursera): on schedule
Introduction to Physics: How Things Work (Coursera): on schedule
I suppose all this doesn't make sense, but what it DOES mean is he's in good shape to meet this session's goals EARLY. Oh, English Grammar? He ALWAYS waits until the last week to do it because he completes it in a couple of hours. (I probably should have him drop it, but I figure a final year of Grammar will "cement" concepts.)
White Pine did a pretty cool experiment identifying parts of a flower and looking at them under a microscope. He had "help" from a FURRY lab partner! ::grin::
Homeschool Elementary
Ah, a shaky week with Balsam Fir. ::sigh:: Some days go smoothly and others, well, they go. Inbetween the whining and sensory meltdowns, he did get SOMETHING done, but it was a challenge.
He also decided that he's D-O-N-E with his Writer's Notebook. But I had a back-up plan for when this happened: Handwriting Worksheets from ESL Writing Wizard. These 10 page FREE handwriting workbooks focus on a specific topic, such as My Body, Airships and the Water Cycle, AND you can choose Zaner-Bloser or D'Nealian print or cursive. It's not creative writing, but it'll keep him writing...for now.
Do you have a catchy tune to learn the continents? the world's oceans?
We were kind of all over the map with SOTW: Middle Ages this week: Byzantine Empire (Europe/Africa), Gupta Dynasty (India), Yamato Empire (Japan), and finally the Maori (New Zealand), but now we're heading back to Europe and learning about the Franks,Visigoths and the Vikings. We made paper viking ships (from the SOTW activity guide). I'm wondering when the gallant knights arrive...
Science remains unstructured. I'm not sure where we're going with it for the rest of the year, but we're still learning. Sugar Maple is keeping a Science Notebook and learning about areas SHE chooses - the water cycle, Astronomy, rainbows, fire, states of matter - and Balsam Fir is working his way through our Lakeshore file folder games. I'm hoping that spring will arrive at some point and we can do more nature studies.
Ah, a shaky week with Balsam Fir. ::sigh:: Some days go smoothly and others, well, they go. Inbetween the whining and sensory meltdowns, he did get SOMETHING done, but it was a challenge.
He also decided that he's D-O-N-E with his Writer's Notebook. But I had a back-up plan for when this happened: Handwriting Worksheets from ESL Writing Wizard. These 10 page FREE handwriting workbooks focus on a specific topic, such as My Body, Airships and the Water Cycle, AND you can choose Zaner-Bloser or D'Nealian print or cursive. It's not creative writing, but it'll keep him writing...for now.
We were kind of all over the map with SOTW: Middle Ages this week: Byzantine Empire (Europe/Africa), Gupta Dynasty (India), Yamato Empire (Japan), and finally the Maori (New Zealand), but now we're heading back to Europe and learning about the Franks,Visigoths and the Vikings. We made paper viking ships (from the SOTW activity guide). I'm wondering when the gallant knights arrive...
Science remains unstructured. I'm not sure where we're going with it for the rest of the year, but we're still learning. Sugar Maple is keeping a Science Notebook and learning about areas SHE chooses - the water cycle, Astronomy, rainbows, fire, states of matter - and Balsam Fir is working his way through our Lakeshore file folder games. I'm hoping that spring will arrive at some point and we can do more nature studies.
Places We Went, People We Saw
♥ Basketball (SM) ♥ Girl Scout Cookie Booth (SM) ♥ STEM School Meeting (WP) ♥ Museum of Science (BF) ♥ St. Patrick's Dinner with Friends (SB/WP/SM) ♥ Scouts (BF) ♥ Garage (SB) ♥ Lacrosse (WP) ♥ Clarinet/Band (SM) ♥
Something to Share
Sugar Maple found a free, fun app for her little tablet that has different MOUTHS that talk as you make noise. Giggle Time!
Thanks for stopping by! I'm linking up to these AWESOME blog hops. Check them out!
I am planning on doing Spring Cleaning when we get back from Florida next week. That will be how we end our Spring Break. Fun (not!).
ReplyDeleteawwwwwww WOW i bet that many months of the same color gets monotonous! :(( ... Glad you got lots of cleaning done! Great pics of the kids work!
ReplyDeleteThere is a lot of learning going on in your house. Great pictures. Hope you are all doing well.
ReplyDeleteLooks like a good week! Love the flower dissection and study. What does he us for a microscope?
ReplyDeleteAs always enjoy reading your posts and thanks for the link to the Handwriting worksheets from the writing wizard.
ReplyDeleteI so love to read about your great week. It always makes me smile. The winter white trees are very beautiful. We didn't get any snow this year, just cold. My high schooler is half way through, too. He is ahead on somethings and behind in others, so I am urging him to work harder on those subjects he is behind in, and relax on the ones he is ahead in, but it is hard because he avoids the subjects he is behind in, and that is why he is behind. Thanks for all the great resources you point out. I am going to check out those handwriting sheets.
ReplyDeleteIt looks like you had a great lesson with the flowers and I love the photo at the end with the different tablet mouths. Thanks for sharing on HammockTracks. I always enjoy your posts.
ReplyDeleteThanks for linking up at Living and Learning With Our New Normal this week! I appreciate your support. I think we had the same snow storm here in upstate NY! Our cat likes to help us learn too! You've given me some great ideas for homeschooling! I like the free handwriting work book idea! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThe snow is beautiful -- we didn't have any this year. :-(
ReplyDeleteThanks for linking with Collage Friday!
What a great week. Glad the van doesn't need more work. Love the snow picture.
ReplyDeleteBlessings, Dawn
Great week! We are anticipating a large snowfall here starting tomorrow, and this is Missouri. Freaky weather this year.
ReplyDeleteEven though it doesn't apply to us yet, or maybe never, I enjoy reading your high school updates as well as the elementary ones. Makes the high school years seem more manageable.
No Spring cleaning here - I just get excited about getting in the garden. While I do look longingly at your snow, we did eat pizza with fresh herbs in the pizza sauce last not. Not sure I would trade that for snow or not - still thinking.
ReplyDeleteMy kids would be so jealous of the snow! the last 2 winters we have hardly recieved more than a dusting. They so want to make a snowman!
ReplyDeleteWe are suppose to get more snow this weekend. They are saying up to 10 inches! I am so over this!! lol!!! I want spring to get here also. Sounds like you had a busy week. I hope you have a wonderful week.
ReplyDeleteLynn
We're ready for spring weather here too. We had both springlike days and snow days in the same week this week:( And no, I don't spring clean;)
ReplyDeleteHere's a song that might help:
North America, North America,
South America, South America,
Europe and Asia,
Africa, Australia,
Antarctica
to the tune of Are You Sleeping?
I'm going to sound like a broken record, but your snow is beautiful! We're supposed to have a winter storm, 6-9 inches here, this weekend. We'll see....
ReplyDeleteWe do "North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, and Antarica, these are my 7 continents" to the tune of "this old man". But I thought they changed Australia to something else in the textbooks- but I can't remember what. Some homeschool mom I am. ;) I can only imagine how frustrated you are with the snow, and while I love my sunny weather, this Ohio girl does miss the snow just a bit!! Wonderful week! Sorry about balsam firs bumpy week- but next week will be better! Usually our best weeks follow our bumpy ones.
ReplyDeleteI'm not from Maine but I know what pothole season is. We are in the middle of it right now. The city is pretty good about patching them though. Take a picture with their cellphone app and it sends the picture and GPS location to the city to be added to the list of holes to patch.
ReplyDeleteHey again, I have a request for you. :)
ReplyDeleteCan you give me any advice for raising ducks with chickens? Are there any things I should be concerned about? Any precautions to take?
Do I Spring Clean? YES MA'AM. It's like a sport to me! haha
ReplyDeleteI love to Spring Clean! Tossing out the old and stained and re-organizing is pure joy to me!
That App looks fun. haha
I am off to find it.
And - what is up with that ground hog. He totally LIED about Spring coming, didn't he? Hmmph!
Have a great week.
Em