Plan for the school year

I am breaking into my update posts on the school room organizing---yeah it is still in progress but I stopped to plan a little bit. Back in the spring I blogged about ordering A Plan In Place Planner for this school year and now I am sharing it in motion!

Starting point-- Mission Board.  Mission?!

**survive the school year

**still love the boys by the end of the school year

**Everyone complete the grade

**graduate them

When I sat down and actually pondered it I found that I do have a mission beyond survival...and now to map out goals to get me there.

Next are the brainstorming blocks for each student and extra for the other things that we are involved it.  I have one for the math class that I am teaching at our  co-op----I want it to be the best math year ever for each of my students!

Next before planning our breaks I am filling life, family,and Church events that I know are happening:

Some thing never change so plan for them first. {once again Christmas will be December 25th this year!}

We already have the dates for the youth conference--so we wont to be out for that!  This is how I start my plan.  Then as life happens we can look ahead and re-arrange days as needed.

For the last two years we have ended our school year by attending a missions conference.  And that is my goal for this year too!

For daily planning I mainly record what we finished each day.  We do 170 days...Ben's work arrives broken up that way.  Nate's work follows the co-op and so with Eli I have to make sure that he completes his grade when the other 2 finish . Beside the weekly plan page there is a page for me to keep track of the boys music practice, youth group activities, volunteer obligations,recitals, and so forth.  Across the bottom: A WEEKLY MENU PLAN! that is an area that I am trying to submit to and practice.  Want to try some of these to see if this is the planner for you?  Free printable here!

Hopefully my next post will be progress in the school room :-)

Reading Bulletin Board

I am planning to share our school room for 2017-2018 as it comes along...so keep checking back.

Ben will be schooling in his room this year since he will be doing ABEKA DVD and I don't want the other 2 watching his videos instead of doing their own work.  We don't exactly have a true "school room" but we have an open area off from the den that walks out of the basement.  It is a great space!  The area has a door that opens to Ben's bathroom so our school will have a convenient bathroom!

Nate and Eli will have tables to work at--even though there are 6th and 4th grade I want to keep the room decor fun.

So our motivational bulletin board :-)

Nate's reading record:

Eli's reading record:

I think that the little bulletin board kit came with about 30 blank belly robots...so every time they each finish reading a book I will make a title label and stick it on the robot belly!

Thanks for reading!  I hope that as I post our "school room" that something may spark an idea for your school this year!

To Co Op or Not?

I share openly with parents that are working out how to school their children my own experiences.  Do I know it all? No, but I think I have been down all the roads: public school, private school, home school, and homeschooling with help. My personal favorite?  Homeschooling with help.

Homeschooling with help--co op has been my most successful choice.   The term "Co op"comes from the word "cooperation".

Cooperation by definition:  an act or instance of working or acting together for a common purpose or benefit;
joint action. 

At my local co op we have parents who take on all kinds of jobs so that other parents can provide opportunities for their children.---But this can not be carried out as an individual.  One parent may coach but other parents may have to take on other jobs: carpooling, snacks, and so forth. My local co op is large enough the we have an academic co op(grades 6-12) and an enrichment co op(preschool-6th grade).  Some parents volunteer to teach a class a class while others divide up the other responsibilities that are vital to the program. 

Belonging to a group not only provides accountability but it also ensures support.  On more than one occasion I have been able to draw from another homeschooling moms experience.

Co ops are usually made by a group of members with similar values. My local homeschooling co op is made up families practicing the christian faith.

 10As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. 
I Peter 4:10 KJV

Elizabethtown Historic Walking Tour

Today is Kentucky's 225th birthday! We celebrated by doing a tour of our town! Local actors told the story of our town. 

This walking tour is every Thursday evening starting on the first Thursday of June and running until mid September.

The tour starts in front of Vibe Coffee Shop at 7PM. Stories come to life on the sidewalks and gives a whole new appreciation to our downtown.

2017-2018 Curriculum

Smith Classical Academy is on summer break!

However organizing and planning is in full force!

8th grade will be Abeka video {as a trial year to see if we want to take this route for high school.

6th grade:

Harcourt Spelling 6

Rod & Staff English 6

Mystery of History Vol.I

Saxon 7/6

Bob Jones Reading 6

Apologia Anatomy and Physiology(Sem. 2)

Apologia Zoology 3 (Sem. 1)

Fourth Grade:

Bob Jones Reading 4 (ordered)

Apologia Chemistry and Physics (elementary)

Rod and Staff English 4

Harcourt Spelling 4

Rod and Staff Penmanship

Mystery of History Volume 1

Saxon 5/4

Review Game: BATTLESHIP

We are out of school for the summer and I am preparing for the new year. As I come across things I meant to share during school I will try to share now!

I have a wipe off grid poster. Across I letter A-J and down I number 1-10.

One player:

* I give out math facts/history questions

*a correct answer gets two "shots" (guesses) to find my battle ship.

*I graph my ships on a piece of graph paper

*game is complete when all of my ships are sunk.

*ship sizes are traditional: 5,4,3,3,2

Two Player:

Rules are same as above. Each player gets their own "hit" and "miss" color.

Happy Summer!!

Treasure Hunt!

This morning a friend and I met at a local coffee shop--  Vibe Coffee Shop.  Braving the 14 degrees 7:30 this morning.  While we waited on a library sale a couple blocks away to begin.  {Wendy and I may or may not have discussed camping out last night to make sure we got in first!--glad we met for coffee instead!}

It was a great score!!  48 books for $48!!  I got some curriculum, several biographies, classics and Hardy Boys!  Thinking maybe I need to start cataloging our books before our home library gets out of control. 

Do Not Try This At Home

Sharing our sibling science again today:

First set of experiments:

Static electricity

Materials: two beautiful heads of blond hair and a plastic comb

**so I combed the lovely hair and held the comb over squares of tissue paper.  The squares moved some but I was expecting them to move more.

Second set:

Gassy Belly

First experiment:

Necco candy in water--few bubbles

Second experiment

Conversation heart candy in a solution of baking  soda and water.  The candies fizzed a little.  after a couple minutes I added vinegar and a plastic lid.  Lots of foaming and the top of the lid popped up some.

Third experiment

 A mento in little plastic cup of soda.  Quite a bit of fizzing. But I snapped on the lid and it was contained. After a few minutes we added vinegar and put the lid back of...this time the lids indented area popped up. The soda began to find loose areas around the lid and drip out.  After the solution settled some everyone begged to add baking soda. So we did!! Immediately got an erupting cloud..so we quickly snapped on the lid...as soon as I took my hand off--there was a huge POP and a platic lid flew through the air!!

The candy hearts were supposed to dance--they did not...however the mento explosion was the hit of the day!

P.S.  for the moms who are fearfully wondering...yes there were " Daddy Gas Belly Stories"!!LOL!!!

Motivation is Spelled...

Motivation is spelled C.O.M.P.E.T.I.T.I.O.N. at least at our house.  So this is my latest "bait".  A simple CONNECT FOUR game.  At the start of the day I take all the game pieces.  Through out the day Nate and Eli can have a game piece every time they earn one--and immediately place it! That causes each of them strive to earn one before the other.

How to earn:
2 PIECES
**make 100% on a test
1 PIECE
a.finish a subject for the day
b.make their bed
c.do a chore

~~SPECIAL NOTE
Academic pieces have to be earned before any chore ones can be earned. Pieces must be played as soon as earned...that way a handful cannot be earned all at once.

Even after the motivation loses its glamour it is still a fun game to put on the shelf for family game night!

Birchbark House

My oldest takes his language arts at an academic co-op for homeschoolers. recently his reading assignment has been The Birchbark House  by Louise Erdrich.  His final assignment was to write a cinquain about someone or something from the book.

Using language translation from the glossary of the book here is his cinquain:

Zeegwan

Maple Sugar

It is minopogwud

Because ninoonde wesin

Megwetch

Spring

Maple sugar

It is delicious

Because I am hungry

Thank you

Simple Science

I teach a "siblings science" class at the academic co-op my oldest attends. {Siblings classes are offered for the kids too young to attend the academic classes--while the mom is doing her volunteer time.}

So today I am sharing our science experiments... hoping that a homeschooling mom might be inspired to use with her child or enrichment program. Enjoy!

Floating Egg

Materials:

-an egg

-glass three-fourths full of water

-salt

Procedure:

**set the egg in the glass

**slowly add salt half a teaspoon at a time until the egg floats

After a bit the water will become dense and be heavier than the egg

Float the "M's" off M&Ms

Materials: 

-small shallow clear bowl

-package of m&ms

Procedure:

-cover the candies with water

The candied shells will start to melt and the "M's" will float to the top of the water!!

WHY?????

The "m's"on the candy are an edible ink that does not dissolve in the water...as the shell melts away the "M's"float away!!!

OCEAN WAVES

**fill a clean plastic bottle with water

**add some food coloring

**then finish filling the bottle with vegetable oil

**cap the bottle and seal

ENJOY SOME FUN SCIENCE WITH ITEMS IN YOUR KITCHEN!

Kids FLY for FREE!!!

 So I kept hearing of this great opportunity for kids to try flying...and I kept passing it by because it is for kids 8 and up--then Eli turned 8!!!!  So we have done it and I have to share!!

Young Eagles Flying Program  This is such a great opportunity!!!!  The kids get to hang out with a pilot learn about his plane then they get a free ride!!!  And a certificate to remember the experience!

And they can keep returning to try flying again!

After age 12 they receive a "logbook" and as they continue in the Young Eagles Program they and study and receive ground instruction through Sporty's Pilot Shop.  Then as they progress through the program there is opportunity for flying lessons and guidance in finding a career in aviation!

Week 2 of Summer School

I am so excited to share our morning basket for our second week of "summer schooling".
My two oldest guys are doing a couple of pages a day in Handwriting for teens.


Just for fun and to keep sharp we are doing about 10 minutes a day of flash card drills followed by a group activity from Family Math.

Our artist study is Norman Rockwell.  So far we have watched a short biography about him on YouTube.  We have a calendar of his pictures we are studying.  We are finding common features in each (like how his name is always signed in stencil).  Recently we found three puzzles of his work and have put these together as a family.

While the boys work on the puzzle is a great time to get in another chapter of our current read-a-loud: Islands of the Blue Dolphins.

What fun things have you found to keep your homeschoolers fresh and sharp?

Plan Now!

Plan your field trips now!  I know everyone hasn't finished school yet...but I also know that the curriculum sales are in full force!  However it is the greatest time to plan field trips!  Last year --about this time I found that there were a little over 700 FREE tickets available for students to The Louisville Youth Orchestra! When I called to reserve our Homeschool tickets the operator told me I got the first five! SCORE!!!

Also I was able to purchase State Fair tickets for $2each!  State fair is a great way to start the school year!  

State fairs are a great places to collect information about great places drivable, local festivals, historical re-inactments and friendly farms.

Start making plans now so that after life gets busy with schooling and public schools begin to fill up the venues you have tickets! 

Last summer I noticed that the Nina and Pinta floating museums were docking for a few days only an hour from us and the VERY week my fourth grader was studying Columbus!

Plan now!

The Homeschool Nook Party!!

I.Will.Not.Start.School.

I.will.not.start.school.
I.will.not.start.school.
I.will.not.start.school.

At least not until we get our "schooling area" freshly painted .  Actually I am still finishing up a bit of paperwork, filing away last years test, just small things.  This Tuesday my co op is hosting a community used curriculum sale {which will force me to finish emptying our cabinet}.

Alas, I confess:
I love touching fresh books!
My heart is a little giddy about planning!
I am forcing myself NOT to open the lab kits!

Two day shy of being out of school for {only} two weeks and I am excited about starting again!

My Library is Happening!!

Years ago I worked in the library at the college I attended.  Recently I have came across moms in the homeschooling blogging world that have personal libraries!!! like 1000s of books!!!  I know this is my destiny!

 My job was repairing books and cataloguing audio {read cassette tapes!}  Having that job from time to time I came across treasures!  One such book arrived to my station basically a s a stack of pages.  I totally rebound it and read it.  Afterward I read it and shared it with patrons.  Soon it was the "hot" read and not available.

  In my library venture I knew I needed this book!  I bought it last week on Amazon for 78 cents!  Four dollars shipping!  And it arrived today in MINT SHAPE!!!!!!

This is a very exciting start to my own personal library!

Summer "School"

Can I really call it school if we are just going to do a few fun things together?

The plan is light and subject to change.  We have only been "out of school" for a few days.

Here is the plan:
Math: flash card drills
Geography: 50 states puzzle
Handwriting:
-a couple of pages a day from Cursive Handwriting Practice for Teens (Ben and Nate)
-one page a day from Carson Dellosa (Eli)
Art: Norman Rockwell study 

        -

Shhhhh It is M*A*T*H

My 4th grader just completed fourth grade a few hours ago!  And hopefully we will close out 2nd grade in the next few days!

And I am just about to introduce our summer mathematical goals!  Just a few weeks ago some moms were sharing about "Family Math" on Periscope Homeschoolscopes. 

I found it used on Amazon. Used with shipping less than $5!

Family Math is full of games,logic projects, and puzzles.  It is geared to grades kindergarten to fifth grade.  The object seems to be to solve these together. 

My hope is the each morning after we finish our flashcard drills the we will enjoy one or two of the projects together.  That way the boys will stay sharp on their skills while enjoying math.  I really can't use the phrase "summer school" as I am adopting "unschooling"!  I really feel Family Math is the perfect entrance for us.

Hello Summer!

Finishing Up

Hallelujah!!

The point we have been journeying toward!  The completion of the 2015-2016 is here! We are on target to be done by Wednesday!!  

May has hit us like a whirl wind! This week but we are facing it practically free!!

I haven't dreaded this week but I am ready for it!  And secretly I am excited about the beginning of 7th, 5th and 3rd grade!!

Most of our materials for next year have arrived!  

Exciting news!  We are trying out the Charlotte Mason Method of learning this year.  As I read and study more into the methods my heart is filled with peace.  I plan to share our experiences and projects here.

**Also we are planning to paint and remodel a section of our basement for our study work area.

I hope that you will come along with us on this new adventure!

Book Review: the Organized Homeschool Life

So much more than a book review!  This is a book recommendation!!

****
I purchased this book myself and I am sharing it because it has stirred my heart and given me hope!
****

the ORGANIZED HOMESCHOOL LIFE
A WEEK-BY-WEEK GUIDE TO HOMESCHOOL SANITY
by Dr. Melanie Wilson

ll

Over the past several months I have "met" Melanie on Periscope--and it has been an instant friendship and mentorship!

The book!!

Melanie--you messed up a little....this book is for everyone--even non homeschoolers!

First--the book is divided

*by months

*by weeks

Second--use it how it works for you!

As I read through the Table of Contents I wanted to jump in and do every week this week!  But I stepped back and considered starting with week one.  Then I thought I would embrace May--since tomorrow is May 1.  The first week of May challenge is:  "Organize Clothing Challenge" so "week 19" will be where I start.

Week 20 is the organize vacation challenge.  Our vacation is a few months away--although I am at week 19 in life right now... week 20 is months away.  Ah! But the book is flexible!  I will just look at the list and see which one feels like where I am.

Is this overwhelming? No--it is like a gentle conversation with a friend over a cup of tea. You know-- you mention a struggle and the friend confides that she has been there and tells you what she did.

Each week is broken up into simple tasks/goals to help you conquer the challenge.

Will I arrive to an organized life in 52 weeks?

No because life continues.  But I will have a framework that will help me feel focused and secure.

Thanks Melanie for the book--

for the conversation!

Joining up with Jenn and Amy over at:

Homeschool Nook Party