Weekly Wrap-up: Week 16 - Celebrating the 100th

We're celebrating our 100th day of homeschooling today! Cate actually reached 100 days on Monday, but Friday just seemed like a better day to celebrate when Sam reached it too. (And by Friday we all like a slower, simpler day of homeschool.) At this pace our year could wrap up by mid-April!

CORE WORK

CATI

• English Grammar 101: Section 5 Modifiers - Adjectives and Adverbs
• Writing - How to Stay Motivated and Focused 5 Paragraph Essay
• Vocab Test List 14 (92%) -15 (96%)
• The Swiss Family Robinson (Wyss), Laddie (Straton Potter)
• Khan Academy Pre-Algebra - 80% Completed

SAM

• Grammar and Writing Handbook: Unit 2 - Possessive Nouns
• Writing - My Favorite Outdoor Places Perfect Paragraph
• Grammar Ninja - Level 2
• Cursive Copywork - Ephesians 4:32
• The Borrowers (Norton), Rascal (North)
• Khan Academy Math 4 - 45% Completed
• Saxon 65 - Lesson 1 (Number Sequencing), Lesson 2 (Odds/Evens), Lesson 3 (Place Value with Money)

Sometimes changes must be made. Sam hasn't moved forward on Khan Academy, reviewing the same concepts without mastery, in 6 weeks. Even a 2 week break did not "reset" his learning. "Blocks" happen for everyone, but especially for kids with unique learning challenges. For now, he will continue on with Saxon 65, watching DIVE lessons and completing daily problem sets.

We also read some math literature on angles and cones.

VAN SCHOOL
Several times a week, Sam and I do some of his studies in the van while waiting for Cati at band practice. It's not an optimal time to focus, but a perfect time for read alouds and review.

With Sam's learning challenges, he often has trouble recalling basic information that we've reviewed over and over for many years. This can be frustrating for both of us, yet necessary to learn and understand. This week I pulled out his month flashcards as he wasn't able to tell me the 12 months, in or out of order.

• Month Flashcards
• Grammar and Writing - Commas Review
• Rascal
• History of Us - Woodland Indians, Treaty of Peace

ASTRONOMY

Sam finished up Mars with making a salt dough model of Olympus Mons, and creating a volcanic eruption with baking soda, vinegar and food coloring. Then we started Chapter 8: Rocks.

• Chemical Reaction to Model Volcanic Eruption
• Introduction to the Solar System: Crash Course Astronomy #9
• Meteors: Crash Course Astronomy #23
• Asteroids: Crash Course Astronomy #20

GENERAL SCIENCE

Cati finished Module 6: Foundations of Geology in Apologia General Science this week, learning about rocks and minerals, sedimentation, and physical weathering. Unfortunately, due to it being winter, some of her experiments will be postponed until the spring when we can obtain dirt from outside. She received a 100% on her exam.

U.S. HISTORY and GEOGRAPHY
I read aloud to Sam from History of Us: The First Americans Prehistory-1600 (Hakim). We covered chapters 10-12.

• The Black Legend, Native Americans, and Spaniards: Crash Course US History #1
• Mound Builders (Adenas)
• Algonquian and Iroquois
• 6 Nations Treaty of Peace

And he continued to review US geography with Sheppardsoftware. 50 out of 50 states consistently placed correctly at Level 3!

MUSIC HISTORY, GEOGRAPHY and CULTURES
Cati finished early American music history with Easy Peasy Homeschool, and that started Geography and Cultures. Since the lessons are quick, she completes one week per day, sometimes more. This week she completed weeks 35-36 and 1-3.

• Composed Original Music with Beatlab
• Reviewed Instruments of an Orchestra
• Violin, Viola and Cello

ENRICHMENT

Cati

• Jazz and Concert Band
• CNN Student News
• Walked miles
• Photography

Sam

• Cub  Scouts
• CNN Student News

DAYS COMPLETED: CATE - 103 | SAM - 100

As always, special thanks to these bloggers for their weekly homeschool blog link-ups. Click the buttons to see what other homeschoolers are doing!

Happy Homeschooling!

Weekly Wrap-up: Week 15 - Back to Basics

So, where were we? Ah, yes, week 15.  Almost a half year completed. A tad more really since we did summer studies. We will celebrate our 100th day next week! But what happened this week?

CORE WORK

CATI

• English Grammar 101: Section 5 Modifiers - Adjectives and Adverbs, Quiz 95%
• Writing - How to Wake up with Energy 5 Paragraph Essay
• Vocab Test List 12-14
• The Swiss Family Robinson (Wyss)
• Khan Academy Pre-Algebra - 78% Completed

SAM

• Grammar and Writing Handbook: Unit 2 - Possessive Nouns
• Writing - New Year's Perfect Paragraph
• Grammar Ninja - Level 2
• Cursive Copywork - 1 Corinthians 13:13
• The Borrowers (Norton)
• Khan Academy Math 4 - 46% Completed

Waiting in the van for Cate to finish band practice is a perfect time for Sam to do copywork, grammar, reading, Mad Libs, A History of US, and this week some literature-based math. I read aloud Fun with Roman Numerals (Adler) and we played Roman Numerals War.

ASTRONOMY
Mars was our focus this week in Apologia Astronomy. Sam completed his notebooking page while I read aloud from the text, and he built models of the Sojourner rover and Olympus Mons.

• Notebooking and Project Pages
• Mars' Atmosphere, Environment, Gravity, Moons, and Orbit
• "Mars: Crash Course Astronomy #15"
• Balloon Rover
• Salt Dough Volcano Model

GENERAL SCIENCE
Cati started Module 6: Foundations of Geology in Apologia General Science this week. She conducted an experiments on the difference between rocks and minerals, separation of sedimentation, and physical weathering.

• Vocabulary: Catastrophism, Mineral, Uniformitarianism, Weathering, Humus
• Soil, Rocks and Minerals
• Types of Rock
• Mineral Classification

U.S. HISTORY
I read aloud to Sam from History of Us: The First Americans Prehistory-1600 (Hakim). We covered chapters 5-9.

• Anasazi
• Inuit
• Northwest Native Americans
• Potlaches
• 15th Century Land and Animals
• Plains Indians

Sam also played U.S. Geography: Level 3 Expert on Sheppardsoftware, scoring 48 out of 50 states.

MUSIC HISTORY
Cati is studying early American music history with Easy Peasy Homeschool. Since the lessons are quick, she completes one week per day, sometimes more. This week she completed weeks 27-34.

• Slave Spirituals
• Songs of the Confederacy
• Mendelssohn
• Strauss
• Major and Minor Scales, Notes, Steps and Accidentals
• Composed Music with Beatlab

ENRICHMENT

Cati

• Jazz and Concert Band
• CNN Student News
• Baked Blueberry Oatmeal Cookies, Homemade Cheese Pizza, Spaghetti
• Planned and Shopped for Meals with a Budget 

Sam

• CNN Student News
• Cooked Egg, Sausage and Cheese Breakfast Sandwiches, Homemade Meatballs with Cheesy Centers
• Planned and Shopped for Meals with a Budget

DAYS COMPLETED: CATE - 99 | SAM - 94

As always, special thanks to these bloggers for their weekly homeschool blog link-ups. Click the buttons to see what other homeschoolers are doing!

Happy Homeschooling!

A Peak At Our Week: Session 4 Week 7 - We Spotted Spring

In My Life This Week
The EGG FACTORY is open! The fridge is spillin' over with our hens' gifts. Anyone have a special recipe using eggs? We're in need of something new! Or maybe you're local and wanted stop by for a dozen...

YARD WORK! With most, but not all the snow, melted, I stopped by Lowe's and picked up rakes and we got to work, taking turns raking and loading up the trailer with bulk trash. 

Things I Worked On (Sometimes With the Saplings)
☀ Decluttering the Diningroom/Schoolroom Bureau ☀ Catching up on Portfolios and Preparing for Our Final Session ☀ Creating a New Fire Pit by Reusing a Metal Wheel Barrel ☀

On the Dinner Menu
☀ Crockpot Jambalaya with Long Grain Rice ☀ Bagels with Cream Cheese and Fruit ☀ Pizza ☀ Cheeseburgers with Potato and Egg Salad and Carrots ☀ Chicken and Veggie Soup with Homemade Bread ☀ Chicken Enchiladas with Long Grain Rice ☀

Homeschool Happenings
With the weather warmer, most of our school year completed and our recent family upheavals, I've been taking a RELAXED approach to homeschooling. Our focus just isn't there. Although we do get some stuff done, right now it's more about family connections, healing hearts and soaking up Vitamin D. 

I did rescue a Spotted Salamander from the chicken and duck run one wet morning. They're on the move! Spotted Salamanders move towards vernal pools or ponds in early spring to breed and lay eggs. This one was only a few feet from our brook. Before we returned it to the woods we did some research and observations. Being nocturnal, it wasn't too lively. :wink: And we didn't touch it as it can give off a noxious substance when threatened.

White Pine
Algebra Tests 21-24, Bio Chap 27: Flat- and Roundworms, Bio: Chap 28: Anthropods, Intro to Physics: Bumper Cars, Intro to Computer Science 101, "National Geographic: North Korea", "Gettysburg"

Sugar Maple
Spectrum Reading pp 145-8, Saxon 65 Lessons 118-120, Sci Notebook: Uranus, Genghis and Kublai Khan and the Mongols, Marco Polo

Balsam Fir
Writer's Notebook, Math-U-See Lesson 5, Life Cycle of Frogs, Insects vs. Spiders, Genghis and Kublai Khan and the Mongols, Marco Polo

What We Read
Have you read Debbie Macomber? My friend from 3 Crazy Monkey's mentioned her on Facebook. It took 6 months (or so), but I FINALLY remembered to see if the library had her books. I'm on my 3rd one in 3 weeks. :wink: I REALLY enjoyed Between Friends and Susannah's Garden, but The Shop on Blossom Street is reading like a winner too.

White Pine was trying to "trudge through" Evanhoe, but it wasn't working so he's deciding on something else.  Sugar Maple is reading her way through the Bobbsey Twins. And Balsam Fir is reading aloud a bunch of I Can Read it All By Myself Dr. Suess books. I'm stepping back a little on his reading since it's been a struggle recently. I truly want him to ENJOY READING.

Places We Went, People We Saw

 ☀ Pinewood State Derby (BF) ☀ D__ (WP) ☀ Scouts (All) ☀ Gardening Class (WP) ☀ Library (WP/BF) ☀ Band Concert (SM) ☀

Our Favorite Thing
We couldn't help but watch this video over and over. HILARIOUS!

Something to Share

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A Peak at Our Week: Session 4 Week 1 - The One With Sour Lemons

In Our Life the Last 2 Weeks
Life has sure given us a lot of sour lemons lately. Boxes of them! We've turned some of those lemons into lemonade, and someday the rest of them will be made into something "refreshing" too. Lemons can be good, right? In the meantime, we're thankful for the family and friends in our lives, our health, homeschooling, and the continued comfort of our home.

And Mother Nature has given us one of the snowiest winters in February. Ever. It's been one of those winters where we just haven't been "into" the snow so fortunately the temperatures are warmer now and the snow isn't sticking around for long despite coming down in FOOT measurements. How long until spring?

Things I Worked On
✔ Decluttering the Downstairs
✔ Scrubbing Down the Frig
✔ Steam-cleaning the Carpets
✔ Fixing 2 Kitchen Drawers...Twice
✔ Organizing School Supplies

What We're Cooking
Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole with Steamed Corn
Spaghetti and Mozzarella-stuffed Meatballs with steamed Green Beans
Scrambled Egg, Bacon and Cheddar Cheese English Muffin Sandwiches with Pineapple
Nestle Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookies


This Week in Our Homeschooling

Have you seen Coursera? It's this FREE on-line resource where you can sign up for college level video instruction from universities around the world. White Pine started a Computer Science 101 self-study this week. I'm doing it with him since my CS knowledge comes to a complete halt after Facebook, e-mail and Blogger. He's enjoyed my stumbling attempts at programming code a little too much. ::wink:: Kids pick up this stuff way quicker than adults, don't they?

Now, I don't want to jinx it by saying anything, but Balsam Fir still seems to like Lego Math (i.e. Math-U-See Beta). ::crossing fingers:: He wrapped up lesson 1 and started 2 this week, having time to build with the blocks after each worksheet. Maybe this is THE Math for him!

Sugar Maple continued her Health studies independently, studying body systems. She's wanted to "spread her wings" and be more responsible for her learning. Go, SM! And Balsam Fir is using Lakeshore Science Folder games. We're inbetween science studies right now, waiting for spring to arrive and continue Botany.

And we read about the Dark Ages and the spread of Christianity from the fallen Roman Empire to England through the Archbishop of Canterbury Augustine and his monks. The sapling created some fancy letters like the monks did as they copied books word-by-word. Sugar Maple enjoyed this creative activity, but, well, Balsam Fir, scribbled his down with some color and was D-O-N-E. ::shrug:: He did a little better on our Justinian and Theodora paper dolls when we moved onto the Byzantine Empire, but just a tad. Coloring is not his thing!

White Pine's Accomplishments
Julius Caesar, Algebra Lessons 73-75: Factoring Squares, Probability, Scientific Notation, Slope, Biology Chapter 22: Plants, CS 101 (Week 1; Code, Variables and Digital Images), Europe: Geography and History

Sugar Maple's Accomplishments
The Incredible Journey, Creative Story (3127 words), Reading Comprehension (pp 112-115), Word Builder (Gr 3: Unit 8-16), Lessons 100-103: Fractions and Division and Circles, Xtra Math: Subtraction (97%), Skeletal, Respiratory and Muscular Systems, Archbishop Augustine, Byzantine Empire (Justinian and Theodora),

Balsam Fir's Accomplishments
Daniel's Duck, Writing Journal, Word Builder (Gr 1: Completed, Gr 2: ), MUS: Lesson 1: Place Value and Addition Facts (Test 17/18), MUS: Lesson 2: Sequence, Water Cycle, Archbishop Augustine, Byzantine Empire (Justinian and Theodora)

Books, Books, Books
We had only a few chapters to read before finishing up The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe before vacation, but our reading together time got pushed aside with all of life's happenings.  So, (finally) onto Prince Caspian next week! 

People We Saw, Places We Went
★ Ice Skating and Shopping with Grandparents and M_ (All) ★ T_ and L_ (WP) ★ Bowling and Dinner with Grandparents (All) ★ Scouts (WP/BF) ★ Band (SM) ★ Library ★

Something to Share

Thanks for stopping by Our Side of the Mountain! We're linking up to these wonderful blog hops! Oh, and since our days are pretty chaotic right now, I'm postponing the Explorers Blog Hop until spring. But stop back next week to see what we're up to in our Peak at Our Week post! 

A Peak at Our Week: Session 3 Week 7 - And We're Off on Vacation!

In My Life This Week

Snow. Lots and lots of snow. A part of me was hoping that spring would come early, in February, but I forgot for a sec that we're in Maine. ::wink:: Forgot? Hard to imagine, I know, but we've been down to bare ground for weeks and weeks and I got used to it. I even pulled out the hiking backpacks! What was I thinking? Anyway, we were hit with a blizzard Friday and Saturday and over 2 feet of snow piled up and blew around in frigid gusts. Our newly purchased shovels are definitely "broken in" now...and one is just plain BROKEN!

Things I Worked On
✔ Organizing Papers Into Portfolios
✔ Shoveling
✔ Planning for Session 4
✔ Cleaning up the Van

My Favorite Thing
Happy birthday to some GREAT kids! White Pine turned 14 and Balsam Fir turned 8 this week. Would you believe they were both due on the SAME DAY 6 years apart? 

Homeschool High School

::echo:: Very little to report this week! White Pine had a few pages to complete in his Biology Coloring Book and an Algebra test, but otherwise he had a "week of leisure" (i.e. sleeping in until lunch when I would let him)...IF you don't count the copious amounts of shoveling and cleaning up after a "hurricane" hit his bedroom. ::wink:: It all comes from 6 weeks of long, mostly focused school days and voila! his session goals were met early. 

Homeschool Elementary
In my quest to find a math program that flows well for both Balsam Fir and I, I ordered and received Math-U-See Beta and he started it this week. He flew through lesson 1 and I suspect most of Delta will be EXCELLENT review for him. We called it LEGO MATH because of the blocks! ::wink::

SM Accomplishments
The Royal Diaries: Cleopatra VII, Word Builder, Reading Comprehension, Decimals, Fractions, Percentage, Digestive System, Anglo-Saxons, Mapwork

BF Accomplishments
Flat Stanley, Target Word Wall, Writer's Notebook, Word Builder, Place Value, Addition Facts, Plant Germination, Anglo-Saxons, Mapwork

Books, Books, Books!

The Lion, the Witch and The Wardrobe has been a BIG hit around here! We're almost finished with it, so we'll bring along Prince Caspian on our travels next week too.

People We Saw, Places We Went
☃ Boy Scout Merit Badge College (WP) ☃ Scouts (BF) ☃ Visit Family (All) ☃ Basketball (SM) ☃ Ice Cream Parlor ☃ Library ☃ Ice Skating ☃ Clarinet/Band (SM) ☃

Something to Share

Thanks for stopping by Our Side of the Mountain! I'm linking up to these wonderful blog hops. Why not click over and read more homeschool happenings. And don't forget our 3rd Explorers blog hop is this Sunday!