Just a quick note to let everyone know that I really do intend to stay updated on this blog -- it is just that unfortunately, two weeks ago, we were hit by a HUGE computer virus that has me without a computer. . . YET AGAIN. grrrrr
I hope to get on my wonderful husband's work laptop this weekend to post a bit, but if not, just hang in there with me and I will be back as soon as I can!
Have a wonderful weekend :-)
Week One: Review
So, we did begin our Kindergarten journey on June 29th. While we have always been year rounders, we decided to go to a 6 week on / 1 week off format for this year. When Monday came around, I had all six weeks figured out -- although that was pretty easy since I was using curriculum that is pre-planned for you.
I did try my variation of Workboxes this week, with pop up hampers that I had purchased from the $1 bin at Target. I had a schedule for each of them that had velcro for either numbers (that correlated to a number on a box) or a picture card (such as Computer Time, Tea Time, Lunch, etc;). I must say that I love the idea of workboxes, how they are meant to give a child a sense of accomplishment -- seeing what has to be done each day and the sense of pride of finishing them one by one -- and I love that it should provide me time to work one on one with each child for Math and Language Arts, since they are on different levels this year. However, they did not work as planned and we abandoned them in week 3. I am really looking forward to the HOTM Conference tomorrow where I can hear Sue Patrick, the master mind behind the concept, and hopefully figure out some tips!
Back to Week One, we used Sonlight for Bible, Scripture Memorization, History, Literature, and Poetry for our "together" lessons, Horizon Health, and NOEO Biology. For their separate subjects, Cali did start with Sonlight LA 1st grade and Math U See Primer, and Jordan used Sonlight LA 2nd grade and Math U See Alpha.
Our daily schedule this week had us doing our morning chores before sitting down to breakfast at 8:30. During this time, I read aloud our Bible lesson (this week we covered creation - the beginnings of Abraham), and we listened to the Sonlight Scripture CD for the verse of the week (All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God). The CD is a huge hit with the girls, probably because it is what they are used to -- I always made up silly songs and dances to help them remember our verses each week, I am just now happy to not have to be coming up with them myself! During this time, we also went over our Health lessons. The first unit focused on feelings, so we discussed different emotions each day.
After that, we moved upstairs. This week, since we were attempting the workbox idea, Jordan would get computer time (she loves Starfall and educational sites like that) while I would work with Cali on her language arts. This was a tricky week because she would easily be able to read the words while on index cards, and would beg to be able to read them in the Sonlight Word List Book (a book that simply listed the spelling words in list form) BUT would completely freak out about reading those very same words in the stories Sonlight provided! We broke it up as best we could, we would cover up the rest of the words, but it still wasn't completely working at this point. Daddy would also read with her in the evenings, as she loved having one on one time and they have a similar learning style so he "gets" her wiggleness much more so than I do :-) We worked on the basic "at" family this week. I will say the biggest struggle is that she wants to learn how to read, she is always looking at books and she sees how well Jordan can read and wants to be just like her, so she asks for it. . . and really, she can sound out pretty easily all CVC words and knows several sight words, but she just doesn't have the confidence that she can do it. I see her frustration sometimes and I try to stop -- I mean, hey, she is only 3!!! -- but that makes her even more upset. So we have been focusing on just trying to be low key and keep it fun (I figured out many more ways to do this, and things started going much better in week 2!)
Then it was time for Cali to get on the computer and Jordan work with me on Language Arts. Jordan's language arts is much more involved, being at a second grade level, and I hear a lot of people say that the language arts is either too busy or "too natural" but I have to say that we ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT! We do make a few modifications, however. She gets her spelling words at the beginning of each week, which I first say outloud and she attempts to write on the white board. This week was all about compound words and she knew them on the very first day. We did have fun mixing and matching endings and different words. All week she LOVED finding examples of compound words in different things she read or heard! :-)
Jordan's copywork was not so good -- we began using Italic print, using StartWrite. Unfortunately, any time that Jordan didn't try her best or would make a mistake, she would just say that it was "an ITALIC H" or "an ITALIC S." That was not going to fly! We did split up the copywork assignment to a few words each day, to last all week, and quickly decided to switch to your standard "ball and stick" penmanship in week 2!
For Jordan's creative writing assignment, on Wednesday she answered five questions to work on "Descriptive Words." She held out one of her favorite toys -- Chattery -- and answered questions in regards to how it looked, smelled, tasted, sounded and felt like. My job at this point is to ask the questions, help her understand what they want and simply copy down word for word what she says. Even though she is only 4, she has NEVER had a problem with story telling or describing ANYTHING, so this was just a fun exercise for her! Thursday she then "wrote" a Descriptive Paragraph that was 6 sentences long and was just wonderful. At this stage, at least, she is very gifted in storytelling!
We do not do the optional Explode the code or Wordly Wise with her, as we feel that would be unnecessary busy work. The only other part of her Language Arts is the actual reading. She is reading The Beginner's Bible, one story at a time, and is reading with such fluency and dramatic flair that it is a pure joy!
At that point, Jordan would get a "FUN" box -- such as her Draw Write Now book or Lite Brite or something, while I worked with Cali on Math. Math U See Primer is the only one that is not mastery based, you can move at their pace, but Cali is absolutely flying through this! We are on week 6 right now and she is in Chapter 15! Really, she would sometimes look at me with the "Are you SERIOUS?" look on her face before answering the question in a "No Duh" type voice, HA! She is such a silly nut!
Cali would then get a "FUN" box -- maybe a preschool activity in a bag, a lace up shape or colors -- while I worked with Jordan on Math. She is in Alpha, which is the mastery level, but she is also doing very well. She flew through the first few chapters, getting a perfect "score" (although we don't really keep grades) on the "tests" for chapters 1 -4 within the first week and a half! I can't remember which chapters she did this week exactly, but what I do know is that both girls enjoy Math and I am not afraid to teach it, which is GREAT!
At this point it would be around 10:30 and the girls would get free time while I recapped with Gregg via IM, check email, do a few chores and begin lunch.
This week, we would just enjoy lunch, and then move to our Read Aloud time. We have made some changes to this, but just remembering how well it went is making me want to try this again. I absolutely LOVED our Read Aloud time! We would all snuggle up in my big bed and read our Literature, History and Science pages.
The Boxcar Children was our literature selection this week. We were only "supposed" to read Chapters 1 -5 and it was "supposed" to take 3 weeks, but we finished the entire book this week! I would read only one chapter in the beginning, then move onto History and Science, saying that I would read more IF they listened just as well to the other two subjects. Our History read aloud was from Hero Tales, a book on missionaries, and we read about Gladys Aylward. I had been leery of this book, hearing it was too advanced for the age group, and my girls are younger than the suggested age, but we had no troubles at all. The girls were able to do easy narrations and enjoyed it! Our Science read aloud was DK Weather as NOEO focused on weather for the first 4 weeks. We would look at the pictures, read the captions and just talk about the subject with narrations and discussing examples. Then we would always go back to The Boxcar Children! :-)
After this, I was trying a Nap Time. One day that worked. . .
Then it was free time (although they did have two boxes with "FUN" items in it, if they wanted -- but we never got to them!) until 3:00, which was Tea Time. We would have a fun snack and read the Poetry selection from Sonlight, Language and Thinking from Sonlight, or other literature selections from other "treasuries" we are working through, as well as just recap our day and listen to music.
Besides the workboxes, the other thing that I had planned out that didn't work as planned was working in a SL Prek Theme schedule (which I got from a SL yahoo group). I had been concerned that the K schedule might be over Cali's head, since that is what everyone warned about, so I wanted to work in books that would be more age appropriate. Really, she has been doing wonderfully, and I have just pulled some favorites out to read with her one on one in case she was too young to remember them (since we had read almost all before). We hadn't read 20th Century Treasury before and that has moved to Tea Time, and besides that, all the other ideas I had to make it more "hands on" and supposedly more "age appropriate" has just felt like busy work to both of us and has been phased out. :-)
Well, I think that is a good review of Week One. I am sure there were wonderful discussions had that could have been included, and I could have listed Jordan's descriptive paragraph, but this is already pretty lengthy!
I will be back with Week 2 in Review soon. . . I hope! :-)
