Spotlight on Benjamin: LEGO Master!

In a recent post I mentioned that Benjamin has become quite the LEGO expert. Over the summer I took some pictures of my favorite of his creations. Please excuse me while I gush a little over my son's creative talents!

Most of these pictures are from a fun summer project he did called Lego Quest Kids Challenge. It looks like these were originally intended to be weekly challenges (there are 52), but he did them randomly, whenever the mood struck. Here are my favorites:

Quest #2: Monochromatic

Benj created a blue monster eating a blue mini-figure. See the legs sticking out?

Quest #3: Vessel

This boat was created to be used "for deliveries that need to be delivered really fast." (--Benj) The binoculars on the front pivot down so the driver could see if there was land ahead.

 

 Quest #8: Your Favorite Book

Aslan (from The Chronicles of Narnia)

 

These heroes were in position ready to defend the galaxy from... 

Quest #11: Shadow

We never did test this out, but I think this villain (and his tiny posse) would cast a fearsome shadow, don't you?

 

Quest #13: Earth Day

Creatures from all over the galaxy pitched in to help earth out. The machine in the middle ("kind of like a sail barge," says Benj) shoots missiles into the trash receptacle, which blow up the trash (to the right). The guy to the left in the orange drives. The droids pick up the trash. Check out the bits of trash wedged into the little mini-figure hands. :)

Quest #14: Ancient Monument

For this challenge Benj build a tomb structure, complete with guards.

 

Check out what's inside the tomb. I love this kid.

 

Quest #18: Flags

Benj created the Danish flag in honor of the country that birthed Ole Kirk Christiansen, creator of Legos.

These final 3 pictures aren't Quest Challenges, just fun examples of the creations that daily come out of Benj's workshop.

 

Prison Wagon

View A: Pulled by R2D2, this prison wagon is equipped with ladders and a door for ease of exit/entry for the driver and a pair of movable missiles for defense against attacking "bad guys."



 

View B: On the opposite side of the prison wagon we find a barred window/door where the prisoners can look out and also be loaded/unloaded.

Plane

Seth and I agreed that this little plane, completely of Benj's own design, reminded us of Rusty from the new Pixar movie, "Planes."

 

Mini Star Destroyer

What can I say? We're into Star Wars around here!

Keep on creating, Benj! You have great ideas!

Train Wreck

What started out iffy got worse and then much worse and ended with "oh my word, it's 5:45. I should probably make dinner." Yep, it was that kind of a homeschool day.

A friend and I were talking the other day about how we each picture the other's (and everyone else's) homeschool as a picture of perfection while our own is typically chaos. Well just in case you suffer from the same delusions of grandeur, this, my friends, is a window into the chaos.

We started out late and a bit grumpy. Last night was our first Wednesday night back in church activities, which means we arrive home late and exhausted, so naturally we were all dragging a bit this morning. Additionally, Benj's allergies were bothering him and he was complaining of a runny nose, watery eyes, sneezing, and a sore throat. I gave him a Claritin and proceeded to spread butter and honey/jelly on everyone's toast to whining from the baby who wanted everything in sight as long as it wasn't on her tray. After whining to receive and then refusing to eat toast and some mango, the baby went back to bed.

The rest of us proceeded downstairs for school. Benj decided he was too sick to sit up for our morning meeting so he laid on the floor and zoned out while I tried, in vain, to recall him to the topics at hand. I decided to let it go since he wasn't feeling well.

Next I set the bigger kids loose to accomplish some independent work while I set up a couple of things upstairs. The next thing I knew Benj was laying on the couch trying to take a nap. "Wow," I thought, "he must really be sick." I told him if he wanted to sleep he could go lay on my bed. About 15 minutes later I went to my room to find him playing on my bed, no longer looking as if he was about to pass out.

Willing to be flexible, I figured maybe I should just go with a more fun/casual approach today and switched gears. I announced a play dough project would be taking place at the kitchen table. Kids came flying from every direction. (Play dough doesn't come out very often at our house.) Leila made a bee-line for the play dough box and started getting out all the various molds and play set items we own. I explained to her that we had a special play dough project today where we were going to make something specific so we weren't going to get out everything. The next several minutes were spent comforting a wailing little girl who claimed I hurt her feelings because she wanted "that stuff." Once I finally announced the project (to create an animal that doesn't really exist, as a means of appreciating the enormity of God's task in creating the world) they set to work, but I quickly realized the folly of giving tired children a creative assignment. Benj did just fine, but Talia got frustrated right away with her inability to slap together the perfect model she had in her head and spent her time cramming hurriedly constructed pieces together and smooshing them up because they didn't look right. Leila didn't want to participate because she didn't know what to make and then once I gave her a suggestion, didn't know how to make it, and ended up happily hacking her lump into chunks with a plastic knife. Meanwhile, Benj got bored and disappeared again and Talia was still sitting at the table with nothing constructed when we were ready to move on. Play dough ended in more tears and Benj laying/reading on my bed again.

By this time we were about 2 hours into our school day and had pretty much nothing to show for it. I decided to consult the principal and called Seth. He suggested I feed them an early lunch, put them all down for naps, and proceed with school when they woke up later in the afternoon. I agreed. Of course, right about this time Channah woke up and so I was juggling a still-grumpy, hungry baby and several other details when I poured the milk into my Magic Bullet mugs to be blended into smoothies for lunch. 20 minutes later I realized I poured milk - dairy milk - into ALL the cups, including Benjamin's when after drinking over 1/2 of his smoothie he told me his throat was suddenly hurting much worse. Mom of the Year, people. Right here.

I administered all appropriate meds while Channah whined that she wanted the rest of her smoothie, gave the whiner a graham cracker, and made Benj another smoothie (correctly this time). Lunch ended late (instead of early, as planned) and I sent everyone to rooms for naps. Everyone wanted the CD player for naptime (we only have one portable player) so 2/3 of those involved were pouting when all heads were finally on pillows.

I figured they would all conk out immediately. I was 1 for 3. 45 minutes later Talia was playing with her stuffed animal and Benj was laying on his stomach playing with something under his bed. I informed them both in no uncertain terms that they were to go to sleep immediately (knowing full well that I couldn't possibly enforce that ridiculous command) and once again consulted my calm husband. (In case you can't tell, by this point I was about to go through the roof.) We agreed to give them 20 more minutes to respond to my instruction and then get them up for a phone call with Daddy and to complete school. When the 20 minutes had expired they were both asleep.

A couple of hours later they woke up and we re-started school, which, mercifully, went fairly smoothly. Benj still wasn't very perky but considering my colossial mistake at lunchtime I figured he that was probably legitimate and didn't push him. We were still going strong when I went upstairs to get something and realized, you guessed it: "oh my word, it's 5:45. I should probably make dinner."

Back to School

It's hard to believe but the summer has flown by and we are back to school once again. For the first time I was not completely ready to give up the freedom of the summer for the (different kind of) fun of the school year, but now that we are into our second week I am finding enthusiasm for our journey ahead.

Unlike other years, I didn't have a clear vision of how everything was going to flow this year. We are adding quite a bit of new curriculum which impacted the flow of our days quite drastically. In addition, I am slowly gaining a clearer vision of the bigger picture - my philosophy and style, what I (we) want our school to look like, our goals, and even my attitudes as a mama and teacher. I have been challenged to the core this summer in various ways to step... no, leap! out of my comfort zone and really question my methodology in light of what I believe will reach the hearts of my children and give them a foundation for life-long learning. That all sounds very philosophical and trite as I try to summarize it, but it is a fascinating and amazing process to really think through the possibilities of home education. I'll leave it there for now cause I could go on for hours! (But I may pick it up again later....)

All that to say, we started school this year because it was time to start school, not at all because I was ready (logistically or otherwise). But despite the less polished atmosphere we have had a (mostly) good first week and a half.

Benjamin is in 2nd grade this year. His passions are Star Wars and LEGOs (I'm not sure which to put first). He goes through stacks of paper drawing various combinations of Star Wars, LEGOs, superheroes, and other favorite characters. He is a fantastic artist and can illustrate nearly any topic that comes to his creative mind. If he's not drawing an idea he's building it out of LEGOs. His creations could take up an entire blog post of their own (in fact, I intend to post pictures of some of my favorites soon), but features such as sliding doors and hinged box lids come to mind. This kid is a master! He is very protective of his sisters and quite gentlemanly towards them most of the time. He has recently been "promoted" to family laundry manager and is doing a fantastic job of keeping up with the never-ending cycle (he usually requests help with the folding, though. :) ) He is very thoughtful and wants to do what is right. I'm so proud of my young man. He is growing up so fast!

Talia is in 1st grade this year. Her newest interests are sewing, "fancy" hair styles, baking or cooking with mama, and learning pretty much any new skill she can. It's difficult for me to create a list describing this sweet girl cause she is pretty much just passionate about LIFE. She flies high and crashes hard. She is one determined, driven little go-getter. She is a joy to parent because she engages eagerly in EVERYTHING. She also exhausts me. Her enthusiasm, never-ending questions, dissatisfaction with pat answers, and drive to try everything keep me on my toes (and knees). She loves bright colors and wild patterns. She is always on to the next thing and dreaming big, but also deep. She loves to help and is usually the first one to chime in "I will!" when I ask for a helper to set the table or pick up a mess. As Benj works on the laundry, Talia has become my "kitchen manager" (a title she greatly prizes, by the way. She loves to be in charge!) She does a great job keeping the dishes rotating through the dishwasher, the counters wiped, and the floor swept. What a blessing this girl is to me!

Leila is taking on Pre-K this year. I have come to not put a huge emphasis on preschool so we just go with the flow, incorporating her into our school day as she wants to be involved. Despite my de-emphasis on academics last school year, she completely surprised me by suddenly starting to read a few weeks before her 4th birthday. She is now reading quite well and taking after her brother and sister by pouring over books in much of her free time. We have also started, on an inspiration from my mom, what we have dubbed "Skype School." During three of the last several school days Leila has been Skyping with Mima for a bit while I work with the older kids on their school work. They have been reading to each other and talking about various other topics. I'm not sure I've ever seen her this enthusiastic and talkative! She loves it! Besides reading and Skyping, she spends much of her time in imaginative play with her "friends" (stuffed animals) and various sets of favorite toys. She reminds me so much of Benjamin at this age! She spends hours setting up our Little People animals and dollhouse and there is no end to the backstory she creates about her little schemes. She is generally a happy, sweet little thing, eager to please. She is also a sensitive little soul and takes both affirmation and correction very much to heart. In many ways I feel like I am still getting to know my third child. As the quietest member of the family she is easy to put in a box, but I am finding lately that she doesn't really fit in there. :) I am thankful for my sweet girl and her sensitive soul.

Channah is the class clown and troublemaker. :) Last year at this time was super difficult because she cried all the time and I am definitely thankful to be past all that stress. At the same time, this year definitely has its own challenges. She wants to be where the big kids are, but her noisy, independent, impulsive nature gives me quite the competition for their attention! Sometimes they can't hear because she's screeching too loudly, sometimes they can't see because she's in and out and everywhere in-between, and sometimes they can't focus because we're all just laughing too hard at her crazy antics. But any effort to re-direct her attention or thwart her intentions to grab everything in sight leads to loud protest. And heaven forbid I put that child in a pack-n-play! She wants her independence! I'm sure she will settle into a routine like the rest of us, but it definitely hasn't happened yet. Despite the challenges we are all completely in love with our adorable, precious, littlest family member. She talks and babbles in recognizable words and phrases and not-yet-recognizable paragraphs. She has also recently discovered the joys of walking, which came on kind of gradually, but has definitely become her main mode of transportation in the last week or so. (Yes, on time! at 15 months!! without physical therapy!!! Major milestone in this house!) She is also sprouting teeth left and right and now sports a cute little 9-tooth smile. She makes me crazy sometimes, but I'm still crazy in-love with my littlest lady.

I am looking forward to another year of teaching my little brood and the new accomplishments and challenges it will bring. Happy 2013-2014 school year!

100th Day of School

Yesterday was our 100th day of school. We have been counting the days of school this year to work on developing math concepts in a fun way. Each morning during our morning meeting we colored in the day on a 100 grid then counted up to that number in various ways (regular counting as well as skip counting by 2's, 5's and/or 10's). We also used our daily number to talk about place value and spelling the number words. Even Leila is now counting to 100 with help and knows some of the general concepts behind place value.

As we got closer to 100 I started thinking about what I could do to make this achievement special, homeschool-style. Here's what I came up with:

We started off the day with a special breakfast. I almost never cook breakfast - we're doing good to get cereal served up and eaten in a timely manner - but I decided to try an idea I've been wanting to use from Pinterest: Apple Ring Pancakes. I also made some "line" pancakes for 1's and used the apple ring pancakes for 0's to lay out 100 on their plates. We joked that they were eating 100 pancakes. :)

After breakfast we had a brief morning meeting where we had a big ceremony to fill in our various boards where we have been counting up to 100. We counted in all the ways we know... 1's, 2's, 5's, and 10's. At the end of this amazing display of counting I presented each of them with a crown to decorate. Each crown said "______ is 100 days smarter!" It was exciting stuff, let me tell you!

Next up was math. But not regular math, 100th Day math. I gave each child a 0-100 grid and 4 crayons: red, blue, green, and yellow. I explained that I had hidden star stickers all over the school room. Each star was numbered 0-100. Their job was to find a sticker, look at the number on the sticker, find the corresponding number on their charts, and color the square to match the sticker. The colors made a pattern on the chart. They LOVED this activity. Benj attacked the project very systematically, making his way around the room methodically, filling in each square as he went. It took him about 35 minutes to fill in his entire chart perfectly. Talia (as expected) was a bit more haphazard, flitting from one side of the room to the other, filling in random squares here and there. She made a few mistakes with this method, but had just as much fun. Leila loved this for about the first 15-20 minutes, then wandered around for the next 10 minutes ("I'm just going to take a little break, Mommy"), and ended up happily coloring her chart randomly.

Our writing assignment was to complete "My 100 Book," filling in the blanks to complete various 100-related sentences. Here are the (sometimes quite humorous) results of that project:

My 100 Book by Benj
If I had $100 I would buy Lego Star Wars.
I would never eat 100 apples.
I wish I had 100 toy cars.
I'm glad I don't have 100 sizzres (scissors).
I would eat 100 raisins.
In 100 years I will look like this.

My 100 Book by Talia
If I had $100 I would buy a $100 princess fishing pole.
I would never eat 100 cupcakes.
I wish I had 100 dresses.
I'm glad I don't have 100 dogs.
I would eat 100 raisins.
In 100 years I will look like this.

My 100 Book by Leila
If I had $100 I would buy a princess seat.
I would never eat 100 potatoes.
I wish I had 100 windows.
I'm glad I don't have 100 Legos.
I would eat 100 M&Ms.
In 100 years I will look like this.

Next I announced that we were going to spend some time reading and that we were going to set a goal: Each of us was going to try to read for 100 minutes before the end of the day. I printed off a thermometer template and we colored in a section for every 10 minutes we read. I let them choose whatever they wanted to read. We got quilts, blankets, stuffed animals, and pillows and spent the next 30 minutes reading, Benj & Talia silently, me reading aloud to Leila.

While I went to make lunch I had the kids work on a project that proved to be too ambitious for one day, even though it sounded fun. I gave them our old magazine box and asked them to cut out 100 words they know how to read and paste them in a collage. (Leila just cut out things she likes.) The big kids each got about 20-30 words cut out before we quit for lunch.

For lunch I made them each a cup of trail mix with 100 pieces in it (raisins, chex, cheerios for the girls, and chocolate chips). I served this with celery sticks and a cup of peanut butter (sunbutter) for dipping. The kids love to have "ants on a log" for lunch, so I guess this was a take-off on that.

During lunch I read from our read-aloud book to them, which gave us 30 more minutes towards our goal. By this time we were getting a little weary of our celebration so I skipped my final planned academic activity (100 words I know how to write/spell) and went straight for our final fun activity, putting together 100-piece puzzles. We each picked a puzzle to work on alone. The first person to finish was to pick someone else to help, and so on, until everyone's puzzles were complete, which added in just a bit of friendly competition.

During rest time the kids each read for 20 more minutes. When Seth got home we finished out our day with dinner (no 100 theme - I was out of ideas!) and cupcakes. I didn't get fancy, just piped "100" on the top with icing. Our final activity for the night was our nightly reading from the Chronicles of Narnia, completing our 100 minutes of reading.

The kids loved 100th Day. Although I had told them we were going to have a special celebration I think they were expecting more like a "cupcakes and it's over" kind of thing. They told me over and over how much fun they had. I definitely do NOT have what it takes to put this much energy into school every day, but it was so worth it to see my kids enjoy their day so much.

So, we've survived 100 days. Here goes the last 80. :)

Introducing: My New "Notebook" Page

This weekend I started a much-needed update for my poor neglected blog. Yes, for those who have been wondering, this will include some updated pictures for my header (thanks Becky!) So, just so you know, blog renovation will be in progress. Progress will probably be slow, though, so don't hold your breath.

I would like to draw your attention, however, to one small change I have already made - a new page entitled "Notebook." You will find the link just under the header. (I personally don't think the way it is displayed is very intuitive.) I created this page for the purpose of sharing some of the kids' writing projects, both for your enjoyment and to give them a place to share work they are proud of with people they love. As we have new writing to share I will update this page, pasting the newest work at the top. At least, that's the goal.

We hope you enjoy!

Homeschooling Resources: 2012-2013 School Year

This summer I spent a lot of time perusing blogs, exploring rabbit trails, looking back through facebook conversations, and generally just searching for some great resources to use in our homeschooling this year. Since literally everything I know about homeschooling I have gleaned from the expertise of others who have put their experiences "out there" for the benefit of others, I like to occassionally share what we do in the hopes that it may, in turn, help or encourage someone else. So, for those who may be interested, here's what we are doing this year.

Multi-Level Resources

Morning Meeting
--Bible

• The Gospel for Children - A very thorough catechism-type outline presenting the gospel. Uses picture prompts as a memory aid. Even Leila (3) has memorized most of this.
• Get Wisdom! - 23 biblical character traits. Teacher helps, discussion questions & projects included. We will cover one per week after we complete The Gospel for Children.

--Calendar Time

• 1+1+1=1 - This is an amazing blog, in general. She has great ideas and printables. Be sure to check out Calendar...Part 2 (linked at the top of the post) also. I got most of my ideas here, including "...of the week" (she does "day"), song cards, and weather cards.
• Homeschool Creations - I got my "Days in School" poster here. I was so happy to find that she has a version that goes with our math curriculum! I went a step further and created the "Decimal Street" poster on my own to go along with this chart.

Creative Writing

• 10 Easy Steps to Introduce Journal Writing - The approach outlined on this blog is new to me but the kids are really enjoying it and excelling in putting their own thoughts on paper. She gives ideas for all levels, even the tiniest tots.

Handwriting

• Handwriting Without Tears - I am teaching Benj & Talia together this year, even though they are in different books. Leila is not putting pencil to paper yet, but is learning to build her letter of the week with the signature HWT wood pieces and we are starting to cover the HWT "language." I may order the pre-writing book for her to do the second half of the year.

"Read Alouds"
I put together our "read alouds" (books I read to the kids) list based on books we already own that I have been wanting to read to them. These books are a bit too involved to really capture Leila's full attention, but since I read during lunch she sits with us anyway.

This year we are reading:
The Little House on the Prairie series
The Boxcar Children series (We read the first book in the series last year and they loved it, so we will read at least book 2 this year)
Grandma's Attic series (Again, we read book 1 last year so we will continue on this year with book 2)
Complete Tales and Poems of Winnie-the-Pooh
Henry Huggins
Beezus and Ramona
Greek Myths for Young Children (One of the few books I bought. It is part of the Sonlight Core B and I thought it looked interesting.)
Elmer and the Dragon (Another sequel. We read My Father's Dragon last year.)
Favorite Poems of Childhood

1st Grade Resources

Reading

I have compiled a list of possible readers mainly from two sources, listed below. We are working our way through the list at Benj's pace. I am borrowing many of the books from the library this year. I am planning to purchase some that I find the kids especially love for our permanent library. Benj reads aloud to all of us. Even Leila is enjoying most of the stories, so this ends up being multi-level in a way.

• Veritas Press readers
• Sonlight readers - Actually Grade 2 readers. We did Grade 1 last year.

Spelling

• Fry's Instant Word List - I pre-tested toward the end of last year and am basing his spelling lists on the words he missed.
• Prepared Dictation - An explanation of Charlotte Mason's approach to spelling. This approach is more for older students, but I am planning to review spelling using the sentences & phrases found here.
• spellingcity.com - Lots of options to teach & practice. As a teacher you can create and save lists for the student to use.

Copywork

• Bible
• Passages from favorite readers
• Lyrics to songs (esp. those we are trying to memorize)
• Copywork for Little Boys - I love this resource! So does Benj. The assignments are short!

Creative Writing

• Letters (including thank you notes)
• I'm a Writer! (and I Didn't Even Know It) - Benj loves the fun assignments in this book! There are books for different grade levels.
• ReadWriteThink.org - TONS of awesome lesson plans for all grade levels! We have done acrostic poems and an alphabet story so far and he has actually cheered when we get out a writing project. This is a complete 180 from last year, trust me. Use the filtering box in the left-hand sidebar to find specific lesson plans.

Typing

• Typing Instructor for Kids - We are taking it slow, but enjoying this fun program!

Math

• Math U See Alpha - I am so pleased with this curriculum! Watch a demo video here.

Kindergarten Resources

 

Reading, Copywork, Creative Writing

• Sonlight Core A w/ Language Arts 1

Computer Resources

• Starfall.com
• FunBrain.com - Go to the "Teacher" page and you can search for games by grade level.

Math

• Math U See Primer - Again, LOVE!

Preschool Resources

• ABC Jesus Loves Me
• Raising Rock Stars Preschool

I would love to hear about your favorite educational resources. What resources have been helpful to your family?

 

P.S. None of the links in this post are affiliate links. I just posted them for convenience. :)

Off to a Good Start

I always start out the school year thinking I'm going to blog through our year, documenting the kids' milestones and achievements. And I don't think I've ever documented much more than the first couple of weeks. This year for sure is going to be no exception, seeing as I'm only blogging about once a month, but I thought it would be fun to at least share the beginning of our homeschool year.

We have massaged our basic routine a bit just to smooth out a few kinks, shake things up a bit, and also accommodate the fact that Leila was ready for a bit more structure.

One of our new additions that we are all loving is Morning Meeting. During this time we sing, have our Bible lesson, review our calendar skills, talk about and graph the weather and work on basic math skills by tracking our days of school. We also have a letter, animal, color, and shape of the week (tracking along with Leila's preschool work) that we review some days. We also try to have time some days that the kids can share their previous journal entries, which they are always eager to do. We always end our Morning Meeting with prayer, which is something I hadn't really thought to include in our daily routine in past years. I like the sense of family unity and focus this time brings to our whole day. Sometimes it's hard to cut it off and not let it take up too much of our day!

We have Morning Meeting at the bottom of the stairs :)

 

Here's a close-up of our board: (L to R, top to bottom) ..."of the week" cards, song cards, weather/season cards, weather bar graph, hundreds chart, place value and number words cards, "decimal street"

My biggest challenge this year has been trying to figure out how to divide my time between my children, especially since none of them are very solidly in the self-directing camp yet. Each needs my help and attention for nearly everything they do, so I've had to get creative. I have been able to use various technological resources this year, which has been fun. Even Leila gets her little 15 minutes of computer time each day, which she spends on a phonics website (starfall.com - a phenominal free resource, by the way).

We are also attending a co-op one day a week this year (see this post, if you missed it.) We are all loving it!

Benj: Finding His Groove

Benj is in 1st grade this year. So far our transition into the school year has gone much more smoothly than last year. I am keeping essentially the same structure in place that he was used to all last year, so that has helped him to jump right in with enthusiasm. Last year I would write up little messages on our small chalkboard at the bottom of the stairs to greet them as they came down to school; things like "Are you excited to learn today?" I remember getting several flat out "No, not really"'s. This year Benj has told me several times: "I had so much fun in school today!" I am so thankful for his great attitude!

For the last 2 years (Preschool 4/5 and Kindergarten) I have used a full "boxed curriculum" for Benj. Even if you aren't familiar with curriculum lingo, you can probably guess that this means I received everything I needed for a complete year in a box and didn't have to do any planning on my own. This year I decided to branch out and tweak some things to fit our vision and Benj's style a little better. This means I spent a good deal of time this summer searching out and piecing together resources to fill his academic plate. Now that we are five weeks into our school year I am really enjoying the fruit of that labor. Subjects he despised last year (copywork!, creative writing!) have become some of his favorite tasks this year. I am really enjoying the freedom of using a wider selection of the many, many amazing resources out there.

Spelling with cereal box letters (I've been collecting them all summer!)

 

Completed spelling assignment

 

Bible copywork on Rule #8: Exercise self-control in all things

 

Talia: A Great Start

Talia is a Great Big Kindergartener this year. She is loving her new status as a grade-schooler. She is getting to participate in all the experiences that were new to Benj last year so she feels like big stuff. She is a much more naturally eager and willing student than Benj was as a new kindergartener. I originally wouldn't have pegged her as a born scholar (she seems like such a classic bubbly socialite), but she absolutely LOVES the challenges school presents and is meeting them with enthusiasm and skill. I am so proud of her!

I am using the same Kindergarten curriculum Benj used last year with Talia this year. It's a good feeling to have my feet under me from the very beginning. Not only am I familiar with it, but the curriculum fits Talia's academic personality well so things are going very smoothly with her. She loves math, declaring at math time on the first day of school, "Finally! Math! Now THIS is what I have been waiting for." Actually, I don't think there is a subject Talia doesn't love. She is eager to participate in pretty much any task I give her. It is a blessing to have such a willing student!

Coloring her Create-A-Calendar

 

Lost in a book. Talia is a great reader! She won "top reader" for her age group (complete with a $20 gift card prize!) in a summer reading program, logging 90 or more minutes most days!

Leila: Me Too!

Leila has grown up so much in the last few months! Maybe it's just my perception since she is no longer the baby of the family, but she has seemed to just explode with developmental milestones over the last few months. I knew she would definitely be ready for more academically this year, especially since she is really into being one of the "big kids" right now. She is really thriving with a more structured day.

Last year I tried putting together activities based on a few homeschooling blogs, which was a royal failure! It was so time consuming I didn't prepare well beyond the first 12 weeks or so, and didn't do it at all towards the end of the year. She ended up just kind of wandering around aimlessly, poor little lady. So this year I decided to go with a fully-planned-out-for-me (free!) curriculum. We are both having a great time with it. She is learning some basic Bible stories, memory verses, songs, and nursery rhymes. We are also working on her letter sounds (although I was shocked at how many she already knew when I pre-tested her at the beginning of the year) and numbers. We are working on fine motor skills as well with fun activities like cutting, building with blocks, and drawing and lots more. She is loving school this year!

Leila loves to cut! It is her favorite school activity

 

This was the result of a "draw what I draw" activity with Leila. Too cute!

 

And they call this school! We are clearly having way too much fun. :)

 

So there you have it: school for this year. It's not as smooth and perfect as it all looks on a blog (trust me!), but we have gotten into a good groove and are having a mostly enjoyable year so far. I am thankful for the privilege of seeing my children grow and develop before my very eyes.

 

Oh, and in case anyone is interested in what we are using this year (I love perusing what others are doing to get fresh ideas!), I am going to put together some links in a separate post, coming soon. ish.