Friday, August 23, 2013
Thursday, August 22, 2013
Be still my heart!
The day that I have been waiting for is finally here! Ansleigh is in ballet! I kid you not, I have been dreaming about pink ballet slippers since I was pregnant.
And look!
Here she is :)
She and I both are down right giddy over her little ballet slippers...
and little white leotard..
and pink ballet tights..
So.Stinkin. Precious.
And look!
Here she is :)
She and I both are down right giddy over her little ballet slippers...
and little white leotard..
and pink ballet tights..
So.Stinkin. Precious.
Wednesday, August 21, 2013
2013-2014 Homeschool Routine and Curriculum
Tomorrow we start our second year at CC! I am beyond excited because I am also a Tutor for Chases class this year. A little nervous, but mostly excited. :)
We have been doing school at home the whole summer, but we will start adding in our new memory work (English Grammar, Timeline, Math, History Sentences, Geography, Latin, Ephesians 6) to our day.
I am not much of a schedule person. It gives me way too much anxiety to stick by actual times. Instead, our family has a routine that works really well for us.
Breakfast
Bible
CC Memory Work
Brush teeth and get dressed
English
Math
Math Worksheets (Chase) and Handwriting (Ansleigh)
Snack and Outside Break
Sonlight Reading List
Free Play
Lunch
Educational video (right now they are loving The Magic School Bus. Any other recommendations?)
Room time
Chores
Snack
Handwriting (Chase)
Free Play/Errands
Cook Dinner
Reading With Daddy
Family Time
Bath/Brush/Book/Bed
And that's pretty much it :) It took me awhile to get into this routine, but once we got into the rhythm it totally transformed our day.We have school Monday-Wednesday, CC is on Thursday, and we have a free day on Friday.
Ansleigh pretty much does the same work Chase does (the great thing about having them only 19months apart!). I work more heavily with Chase on reading and copywork, and Ansleigh and I are working more with letter/sound recognition and writing letters.
For this school year we are using-
1. Saxon Math- I have found that people either hate Saxon or love it. We love it! I love that it tells me EXACTLY what to say and my kids love that it uses manipulatives. It takes us about 30 minutes to get through a lesson (without interruptions from Miss AG) and is age appropriate for both kiddos.
2. First Language Lessons- I LOVE this! I bought this at a homeschool book sale thinking that I would use it in a few years. A friend of mine said that she used it for her first grader and so I gave it a try and it was a success! Again, it tells me exactly what I need to say (I'm not afraid to admit that I need a confidence booster in this area!). It teaches the kids to recite whole poems and my kids love that. I also love that the lessons are so brief. It usually takes us less than 10 minutes to do a lesson. Perfect for their attention span!
3. Handwriting Without Tears- We haven't started this yet, but I've heard good things! So far they have been doing copywork. This will be good because Chase needs to work on correct letter formation and Ansleigh just needs more practice. I will probably add this in next week.
4. Sonlight Reading List
I am so glad that I added this in. The Sonlight reading list is fantastic! I love that these books are a little above their reading capacity, but still interesting enough to grab their attention. Our favorite book so far has been Ten and Twenty by Claire Bishop. It tastefully touches on World War II in a very age appropriate way. It was full of suspense and both Chase and Ansleigh begged me to keep reading. Love that!
5.Cycle 2 Memory Work
This is going to be such a fun cycle for Chase! This year we will be learning Astronomy, Ecology, Physical Science, Pre-Reformation to Modern World, European and World Geography, Pronouns, Adverbs, Conjunctions, Impressionists in Art, and more!
6. 100 Easy Lessons- This book is so/so. Again, it tells me what to say (see a pattern, here? ha!), but it takes us foreeevvvverrrr to get through a lesson. Chase likes that it has repetition and he likes that it has a picture after each lesson. He also likes that it asks questions about the story (reading comprehension). But this book requires multiple breaks (and multiple reminders for me to BREATHE) in order for us to get through it and some days I give it to Alan so that he can finish while I cook dinner. Learning comes fairly easy to Chase and this book pushes him, which is not necessarily a bad thing.
I am sticking with it because I do think that it gives Chase a pretty solid foundation in reading. By the time we get to lesson 100 (we are on 51) he will have a 2nd grade reading level.
I haven't decided if I will use this book with Ansleigh. I think I might need to find something a little more fun and colorful to keep her interested.
BTW- Check out these CC geography flashcards! They.are.amzing. A must have in your CC toolbox. (Plus, proceeds will go to the adoption of three precious blessings from Congo! yay!)
http://www.madetoorganize.com/2013/07/geography-flashcards/
I get asked all the time about what I did with Chase and Ansleigh when they were in preschool. I will be adding a post about my favorite pre-school resources SOON!
-Carla :)
We have been doing school at home the whole summer, but we will start adding in our new memory work (English Grammar, Timeline, Math, History Sentences, Geography, Latin, Ephesians 6) to our day.
I am not much of a schedule person. It gives me way too much anxiety to stick by actual times. Instead, our family has a routine that works really well for us.
Breakfast
Bible
CC Memory Work
Brush teeth and get dressed
English
Math
Math Worksheets (Chase) and Handwriting (Ansleigh)
Snack and Outside Break
Sonlight Reading List
Free Play
Lunch
Educational video (right now they are loving The Magic School Bus. Any other recommendations?)
Room time
Chores
Snack
Handwriting (Chase)
Free Play/Errands
Cook Dinner
Reading With Daddy
Family Time
Bath/Brush/Book/Bed
And that's pretty much it :) It took me awhile to get into this routine, but once we got into the rhythm it totally transformed our day.We have school Monday-Wednesday, CC is on Thursday, and we have a free day on Friday.
Ansleigh pretty much does the same work Chase does (the great thing about having them only 19months apart!). I work more heavily with Chase on reading and copywork, and Ansleigh and I are working more with letter/sound recognition and writing letters.
For this school year we are using-
1. Saxon Math- I have found that people either hate Saxon or love it. We love it! I love that it tells me EXACTLY what to say and my kids love that it uses manipulatives. It takes us about 30 minutes to get through a lesson (without interruptions from Miss AG) and is age appropriate for both kiddos.
2. First Language Lessons- I LOVE this! I bought this at a homeschool book sale thinking that I would use it in a few years. A friend of mine said that she used it for her first grader and so I gave it a try and it was a success! Again, it tells me exactly what I need to say (I'm not afraid to admit that I need a confidence booster in this area!). It teaches the kids to recite whole poems and my kids love that. I also love that the lessons are so brief. It usually takes us less than 10 minutes to do a lesson. Perfect for their attention span!
3. Handwriting Without Tears- We haven't started this yet, but I've heard good things! So far they have been doing copywork. This will be good because Chase needs to work on correct letter formation and Ansleigh just needs more practice. I will probably add this in next week.
4. Sonlight Reading List
I am so glad that I added this in. The Sonlight reading list is fantastic! I love that these books are a little above their reading capacity, but still interesting enough to grab their attention. Our favorite book so far has been Ten and Twenty by Claire Bishop. It tastefully touches on World War II in a very age appropriate way. It was full of suspense and both Chase and Ansleigh begged me to keep reading. Love that!
5.Cycle 2 Memory Work
This is going to be such a fun cycle for Chase! This year we will be learning Astronomy, Ecology, Physical Science, Pre-Reformation to Modern World, European and World Geography, Pronouns, Adverbs, Conjunctions, Impressionists in Art, and more!
6. 100 Easy Lessons- This book is so/so. Again, it tells me what to say (see a pattern, here? ha!), but it takes us foreeevvvverrrr to get through a lesson. Chase likes that it has repetition and he likes that it has a picture after each lesson. He also likes that it asks questions about the story (reading comprehension). But this book requires multiple breaks (and multiple reminders for me to BREATHE) in order for us to get through it and some days I give it to Alan so that he can finish while I cook dinner. Learning comes fairly easy to Chase and this book pushes him, which is not necessarily a bad thing.
I am sticking with it because I do think that it gives Chase a pretty solid foundation in reading. By the time we get to lesson 100 (we are on 51) he will have a 2nd grade reading level.
I haven't decided if I will use this book with Ansleigh. I think I might need to find something a little more fun and colorful to keep her interested.
BTW- Check out these CC geography flashcards! They.are.amzing. A must have in your CC toolbox. (Plus, proceeds will go to the adoption of three precious blessings from Congo! yay!)
http://www.madetoorganize.com/2013/07/geography-flashcards/
I get asked all the time about what I did with Chase and Ansleigh when they were in preschool. I will be adding a post about my favorite pre-school resources SOON!
-Carla :)
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