10 Weeks Down, 22 To Go

It's amazing that we're almost 1/3 finished for the year. 10 weeks down, 22 weeks coming up! It's time to stop, reflect on our progress, and tweak as needed. Are we on track? Where do we go from here? Let's see!

Language Arts

Cati
Reading 9 Books
Easy Grammar 6 65/332 Pages
Daily Grams 6 30/180 Days
Poetry Unit 7/18 Styles
Spelling Power Level D 23/36 Lists
Greek Word Roots: Para, Photos, Phone, Graph, Pyro, Metron

✏ Cati's a voracious reader! She has finished prepositions in grammar, and received a 95% on her overall test, and is working on verbs/verb phrases. However, she hasn't covered as much "ground" as I had planned for Grammar. (It's not her favorite subject...) We started her poetry unit a few weeks into the year and is learning and writing different types of "formula poetry" such as Haiku, Tanku and Couplets. Spelling is ALWAYS a struggle, but she is well on her way to completing Level D (Grade 4).

Sam

Magic Tree House 3 Books

Daily Grams 3 43/180 Days

Copywork 5 Poems

Spelling Power Level A 14/29 Lists

Greek Word Roots: Para, Photos, Phone, Graph, Pyro, Metron

✏ Although reading only 3 books in 10 weeks may seem low, it's a GREAT accomplishment for Sam to read at GRADE LEVEL with visual processing challenges (SPD). I'm super proud at him for plugging away at something so frustrating for him. He's also half way through Level A (Grade 1) in SP, his first year of formal spelling. I'm not concerned that he's 2 levels behind as he should complete Level A & B this year. Grammar is also new for him, but he is moving ahead, learning the basics with spiraling review. His handwriting remains wobbly, but legible. Barely. We will be stopping poetry copywork to work on letter formation and spacing for a while.

Mathematics

Cati 
Saxon 76 70/138 Lessons
✏ Cati has completed over half her math in just 10 weeks! Instead of completing every single lesson, she's been taking the tests and moving ahead 5 lessons each test with a score of 85% or better. Rarely has she gotten below a 90%! I see no point in doing days and days of lessons for concepts she's got a "handle on". We're still in discussion about starting Saxon Algebra 1/2 or Khan Academy later this year.

Sam

Math-U-See Beta 13/30 Lesons

✏ Sam is continuing to work on MUS from last year. He's completed 6 lessons in 10 weeks. (Each lesson has 7 practice pages and a test.) He's been doing very well so I'm beginning to skip some of the practice pages with problems that "click" with him. He's ready to move ahead to harder concepts. My goal is to have him finish MUS and start Horizons 2 (for multiplication) by March.

Life Science

Cati
Prentice Hall Life Science 8/24 Chapters

✏ Although Cati is finishing up Chapter 8, she skipped 2 earlier chapters, making for only 6 chapters completed. With science, I don't focus so much on getting these chapters completed as understanding the information within them and observing concepts through experiments. (We've done 7 experiments thus far.) Her major areas of study have been in cells (processes and energy), some genetics, bacteria and viruses, and now protists and fungi.

Sam
Mr. Q Life Science 13/36

✏ Sam is doing his Life Science on-line, and has covered biotic and abiotic things, recycling, habitats and niches, biomes, animals species, life cycles, and now the classification system.

U.S. History
NROC US History 1 19/40 Lessons
"America: A Story of US" 4/12 Videos

✏ We ALWAYS have one subject that we're "all over the place" with, and this year it's history. We're oftentimes not accomplishing it for days at a time, but we're still almost half way through the first 40 lessons of NROC (for high school students).

Fine Arts 
Band 4 Days
Art Fraud Detective 6/30 Artists

✏ Cati is participating in both Jazz and Concert bands at the middle school, and continuing to take clarinet lessons. Both Cati and Sam are working together to learn different historical artists using the book Art Fraud Detective: Spot the Difference, Solve the Crime! (Nilsen), which have included Della Francesca, Eyck, Uccello, Van De Velde, Watteau, and Vermeer.

As ALWAYS, linking up to these WONDERFUL blogs:

Sam's Dream in Legos: RVing

Sam and I have a DREAM to explore the U.S. in an RV. We can't think a better way to REALLY see and EXPERIENCE our country than hopping in a camper and cruising. The open road, the natural world and a simple life call us!

We even decided on the RV we'd want (if the MONEY TREE ever starts growing :wink:).

All this dreaming inspired Sam to create a camper out of Legos. His spatial skills and attention to detail are amazing!

Since our DREAM RV has a slide-out, well, his Lego camper had to have one too. His original design had 1. I mentioned that 2 would give the camper more room, but I didn't think it would be possible to build a Lego RV with 2. Sam pondered for a bit, disappeared, and came back, having rebuilt the body with 2 MOVEABLE slide-outs.

"Mom, see! I can build it with 2 slide-outs!"

But the details didn't stop there! He created "chassis" storage, a driver's "cockpit", a propane tank area, and a "tow package" since we'd need to pull a small car while we travel to visit all those cool spots near the campgrounds.

And even inside the camper there was a steering wheel, sofa and bed!

Sam decided those that it would be REALLY awesome for his Lego RV to pull a TRAVEL TRAILER CAMPER too. You never know when family and friends want to come along too, right?

All this building and creativity has a downside though...

Perhaps his next building inspiration should be a BULLDOZER. :wink:

I'm linking this post up to Thrilling Thursday at The Family Blog. Nothing more THRILLING that watching delight-directed learning at its best. What's THRILLED you this week? Head on over and link up!

Also linking up with:

Clucks and Quacks: Reading Buddies

Have you ever heard of READING BUDDIES at school?

An older students pairs up with a younger student just learning to read. Oftentimes the other student reads books to the younger one, or sometimes the younger one reads to the older one for practice.

Or how about a DOG READING BUDDY? Sometimes schools or libraries allow specially trained dogs to become non-judgmental READING BUDDIES to struggling readers. These readers find a furry friend much easier to read aloud to when it's still a struggle. It's a win-win! The reader reads and becomes confident and the dog loves the attention.

Photo Credit

But have you heard of a CHICKEN READING BUDDY?

:wink:

Yep! Totally unexpected, huh? Or maybe not...This is ME. :laugh:

My Sam is a struggling reader. With his SPD (see Sensory Processing Disorder in the tabs for more information) and visual tracking and convergence challenges, reading and following words are plain ol' hard work. Finding something - ANYTHING! - to bring the fun back into reading is one of my biggest trials as a homeschooling Mama of Sam.

One day I had this crazy idea to bring a chicken in for him to read to. Our lil' Welly Butterfly joined Sam on the couch. Sam read his Hooked on Phonics reader Mad Dog to her with his Eye Level Reading Ruler. 

And you know what? He read it without complaint, giggling as Butterfly cheeped softly occasionally. (I told him she was making a comment about the story he was reading.) So, now we have HEN READING BUDDIES!

Freedom and Time to JUST Play

There's ALWAYS something truly special about just letting the kids BE and DO without guidelines, without expectations, without conditions. It's inspiring to see what their minds will come up with. Sometimes even surprising! 

"Children need the freedom and time to play. Play is not a luxury. Play is a necessity." - Kay Redfield Jamison (Contemporary American Professor of Psychiatry)

Now, this WASN'T surprising, but my Sam spent a WONDERFUL warm afternoon doing this:

Did you notice the socks over the pant legs? :laugh: A creative way to make sure your pant legs do not get stuck in the spokes of your bikes while riding. That poor, poor bike has been taken apart and reassembled numerous times!

And he also did this:

I'm not sure you can see his facial expressions in these photos, but he was so INTO his imaginative play that he was making different machinery sounds for each of the construction vehicles.

I could watch him, with a smile, all day. His contentment and happiness is contagious!

"Play energizes us and enlivens us. It eases our burdens. It renews our natural sense of optimism and opens us up to new possibilities." - Stuart Brown, M.D. (Contemporary American Psychiatrist)

Raising Awareness of SPD

My energetic, fun-lovin' Sprinter has Sensory Processing Disorder. A condition that effects all aspects of his life. And our lives. Read his "sensational story" here.

What is Sensory Processing Disorder?  

Sensory Processing Disorder is a neurological disorder that is like a virtual traffic jam in the brain. The information from all eight senses is misinterpreted which causes a child (person) to often act inappropriately - SPD Blogger's Network 

For more information see my What is Sensory Processing? page here.

Each child with SPD is affected differently, but for Sprinter, his proprioceptive and vestibular senses are "off". SPD Connect on Facebook shared these fantastic videos from You Tube that explain these two areas of dysfunction and I wanted to share them with you!

And look at these COOL Sensory Processing Disorder awareness bracelets we just received in the mail from SPD Connect!

Want to help spread awareness? Get your bands here!


What SPD looks like for Sprinter while doing 30 seconds of Math. Notice he stands, chews and wiggles to concentrate.

But no matter how SPD affects Sprinter, he keeps us laughing!

Weekly Wrap-up: Portfolios, Plans, Patience, Practices, and Progress

It's PORTFOLIO time! 

Piles of papers, completed lap books, finished workbooks, notebook pages, art creations, 3-hole punch, and 3-ring binders with page dividers have been scattered across the dining room (and sometimes the coffee table in the living room) this week. Fortunately I only have to assemble 2 portfolios this year, next year will be 3, and I've been sorting papers on-and-off since about October. After STUFFING J and C's 2" binders with examples of their work, I've come to the conclusion that next year I need 3" binders instead! Their binders are "bursting" open! Or perhaps I need to be more SELECTIVE? Our portfolio assessment reviews are on the 22nd...and I'm ready!

J and C's Bursting Open Portfolio Binders

SUMMER VACATION!

So, even though it's vacation and we're enjoying warmer temperatures....well, this week it's been RAIN, RAIN, and RAIN...the kids will continue to work on a few areas. J will continue sharpening his typing skills using Jumpstart: Typing, C will continue with All About Spelling Level 2 and Spelling City to improve her Spelling, and C will continue with Hooked on Phonics: Learn to Read. 

A huge, HUGE chapter finished in S's Life Book - He was discharged from Occupational Therapy! After almost 2 years of therapy, he has met most of his OT goals. He will always have Sensory Processing Disorder and we will continue his "sensory diet" activities at home and help him to recognize what his body needs in appropriate ways, but OT has done what it can.  He's made INCREDIBLE progress and we're very proud of all he's accomplished! Special thanks to Ms. E for everything that she's done for S and us!

S with Ms E During Last OT Session

J headed off for another weekend of Boy Scout camping. He has SUCH a great time on these camping weekends (even if the weather is COLD or RAINY). Nothing more fun than camping in tents with friends! I snapped a quick photo of him in his uniform right before he left. (Were the mosquitoes and the little black flies ever bad that afternoon! Ack!)

J in his Boy Scout Uniform

C's been having an AWESOME softball year! Her hitting confidence has returned and she been getting some GREAT swings! Her team is 2-1. And S started t-ball this past week.

C Before Her Game

Playing 3rd Base

And it's a foul tip!

S Learning to Hit off the Tee

Right Before Catching the Ball

Ready in the Outfield?

We're still CRAZY busy with activities (through June), but the kids have even more time to read, garden, ride bikes, watch movies, and build with Legos. C tackled the MUCH NEEDED weeding in the strawberry bed. (Our strawberries are starting to flower.)  J got the bike tires and balls aired. And S created some AWESOME Lego spaceships.

S with his Spaceship

We also received our first Timberdoodle review product, How to Draw the Life and Times of Grover Cleveland, which combines American History AND Drawing into one handy-dandy hard-cover book. We had fun coming up with verbal trivia questions from the reading to stump each other! Watch for the review next Friday!

How was your week? I'm linking up to Forever, For Always, No Matter What, Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers and Hip Homeschool Hop!

Snapshot Summary of SPD: S's Spinning Swing and Swirling Windmill

With the help of Dad, S pulled out the Lego Education: Simple Machines - Gears kit and assembled a spinning swing. (Remember the swing ride at amusement parks?) If that wasn't neat enough, he completed the 2nd project ON HIS OWN - a spinning windmill - with some "personal modifications". And the next day while I was grocery shopping with C, they pulled out the pulley kit and made a crane. It's SO exciting to see knowledge UNDERSTOOD and APPLIED after it's learned! Check out the HAPPY faces in some of these photos!

Lego Education: Simple Machines - Gears

Building the Gear Axle

Testing the Gears

Adding Lego People to the Swing

Getting Ready to Spin

Spinning!

SPINNING!

Telling C That the People Will be Sick! LOL

One Last Spin Before Demolition

Finished Windmill

SPINNING!

And the Pulley

We purchased our 3 Lego Education: Simple Machines kits - Gears, Wheels and Axles and Pulleys - from Amazon. Unfortunately the kits don't come with information on why and how the simple machine works, so be prepared with information to share with your child. Have fun building and learning! And check out other Lego creations by clicking on the Lego button on my left sidebar.