Next week I'll be prepping for the class junior high English class I teach to junior high homeschoolers. This year I'm working really hard to be ahead on the many responsibilities I have.
I've been doing much better with our homeschool lesson plans. Everything is laid out and easy to follow in Heart of Dakota, but in order to track it all I need to have it laid out on a grid. I also have been much more consistent about inputting the girls assignments each morning into their homework app. This has been a huge help in the smooth start to our year. I'm planned ahead for both my English class and the moms ministry I lead at our church. I also have plans for my Christmas piano recital in the works. I still feel pressure as the year is under getting under way, but the stress is significantly less.
On to the girls' week!
Rose: 5th Grade - Creation to Christ Unit 18
We are starting the second half of the guide! Rose has grown so much from last year and I see how much she is continuing to enjoy school through Heart of Dakota. Now is the time of year I begin to look ahead to what is coming next. We'll move on to Resurrection to Reformation sometime after Christmas. Right now I'm in the process of making a spreadsheet of all the books I will need and how much they would cost new. I'll buy them up slowly over the next several months. This helps us keep from dishing out a large sum all at once as well as gives me the opportunity to shop around for bargain used books. I typically save about 50% off the total.
Rose loves the notebooking pages. I really like the timeline in particular. I think it is highly meaningful for my kids to create their own timeline pictures. This method begins with Beyond so by the time we reach this guide it is just part of the week.
Bible study with Heart of Dakota is genuinely meaningful. Yes, it is part of school, but it is meant to penetrate their hearts. God's Word never goes forth without return. The long passages for Scripture memory are incredibly rewarding and beneficial. I am so happy with how Heart of Dakota lays out the Word of God.
We finished up the History of the Ancient World this week and while Rose said she enjoyed it, she is very much looking forward to new books. She is very excited that we are beginning the life of Christ next!
Beth: 3rd Grade - Preparing Hearts Unit 3 (1st half)
So this is actually the painting project from the previous week which we didn't get to. Our TV trays have provided an excellent way to paint and allow it to dry off to the side!
This week's research was about cave paintings. I have some wonderful resources from Master Books about our ancient ancestors. One of my favorites is The Genius of Ancient Man. It is such an interesting read! It is a big above Beth's level, but provided some excellent examples of cave art in addition to what was shown in Life in the Great Ice Age. We avoid Wikipedia because of its unfortunate inaccuracies at times.
After studying about cave paintings Beth began creating her own. She'll finish this project when we finish the unit.
Rose took this sweet picture of us reading history together!
Grace: Kindergarten - Little Hearts for His Glory Unit 24
This sweet girl is full of giggles during our reading time with Frog and Toad. She loves good humor and it's fun to see her catch the witty narrative in these books. I remember reading and loving these books as a child as well. It's so fun to share them with her!
One of the weeks assignments was to create an island like New Amsterdam. She really likes these projects and I love giving her the freedom to create. I'm sad to say when we first started out homeschooling I didn't do as good of a job at just letting my kids do what they do best: Create! I tended to micro manage and prefer to just skip some activities because of what I perceived as unnecessary. I've learned to be much less rigid in this way and it is for the better. Sometimes projects fail, but my girls never seem to mind. They enjoy the process of creation and do well to learn on their own without my interference!
One of Grace's jobs is to update the calendar each day. She takes this very seriously and does a great job at it!
This week we learned about place value with tens and ones. I love this abacus I snagged at a yard sale for $1. I'm always on the lookout for things I can use and you never know what you might come across. This one came from Florida while we were visiting my husband's parents. They have the best yard sales in South Florida!
Our week was really good and I did a much better job of snapping pictures of everyone! I'd love to hear how your week of homeschooling went!
