The Sinister Scribe

For the first week of our second year of homeschooling, I am very pleased with how things went. We were able to accomplish everything I lined up! I thought for sure I’d scheduled too much. But Sam was quite the trooper.

Getting things set up in Homeschool Tracker sure has helped. I spend a few minutes each night double checking and printing out a list of assignments for the next day. Maybe print out a worksheet or two and that’s all! That is such an improvement over last year when I would struggle for hours and hours all weekend trying to find things to use. I’m still tweaking things in HST but I’ve already decided where we’re going.

Math is still a groaner for Sam. He just needs to get down the sequence of multi digit subtraction. He almost always forgets to “regroup” or “borrow” when necessary. Yet again the Math Mammoth series has seriously helped out. We’re doing the5th grade workbook but I went back to the Subtraction/Addition one and learned a new way to subtract that doesn’t involve borrowing! I swear I never learned it. Showed it to Sam. He liked it but still wants to keep with the “regrouping.”*shrug* Thought for sure he’d like this other method better. Oh well. We may just step back for a while until he gets this.

Last week, since we’d exceeded the weekly hours needed by Thursday, I let Sam pick the subjects for Friday. He immediately dubbed it, “funschool”Friday. LOL! We still did reading and math but for science he chose hedgehogs and started a binder on it. I had him list what he knew and what he wanted to know and then set off trying to find answers.
I didn’t get through much of the stuff I’d set up for Jessie. She did color a dozen pictures of cows. Seriously. After finishing each one, she would purposefully march over to the fridge and hand them there. I got a picture of her standing in front of the fridge with all of them. Very cute. I need to get more organized with her. Not that I think she needs to be on a rigorous schedule or anything, but I think she is a bit bored and kinda jealous of all the attention Sam gets when we’re actively schooling.

I did find a couple of neat ideas for her: a preschool box idea (kinda like activity in a bag), and preschool cards. Maybe I will give them a try. I don’t know if it is me or her that is having trouble with the Brightly Beaming outline or if I just need to give it more time.

Sam made a new friend this week at Thursday park day. For now we’ll call him B. Well, B is not yet homeschooled and, until Thursday, didn’t yet know his mom (call her S) was considering it. The first tip of the hat was when I explained to Sam (infront of this B) that I met the mom at the state GLE discussion we had at my house for homeschooling. I failed to notice the quizzical expression on B’s face. When we started to leave Sam walked up to S, took her by the shoulders (she is not much taller than Sam if at all) and said, “YOU MUST HOMESCHOOL HIM! It is so much fun!” How is that for an endorsement.
I’d better go read to Sam. We’re reading another Harry Potter book for our evening story.

Well, I can’t tell ya ‘coz it would ruin the surprise for somebody. I’ve finally made myself take the time to spend a little time here and there to work on scribey stuff. This took me 2 30-minute sessions.

Inside the letter will be guilded. The letter itself will be blue with white work inside. Kind of similar to this. The design is a conglomeration of different styles. I’m not trying to reproduce something specific to a particular period of time. I hope the recipient likes it.

It still amazes me sometimes… that a few words, said by the right person at the right time can have dramatic effects.

I just read this article at the Washington Times, where a supreme court justice mentioned homeschooling in the same sentence as public and private schools… all three as equally viable educational options.

“In Morse v. Frederick, however, Justice Clarence Thomas said, ‘If parents do not like the rules imposed by those schools, they can seek redress in school boards or legislatures; they can send their children to private schools or home school them; or they can simply move.’”

Wow! Sometimes the littlest things make the biggest impacts. I wonder if he knows?

Yesterday was the first official day of our second homeschooling year. All things considered, it didn’t go too bad. And mostly those “things” were Jessie being in a really whiney mood and Sam having a math induced melt down.

Beyond that, Sam was able to finish 99.9% of what I had planned for the day. The only thing not finished was the second spelling rule of the day. Sam choses to write slow, so 15 minutes is not enough time to write both rules. It is not that he can’t write faster, he just choses not to. I am considering making spelling a 30 minute daily session.

Latin went really, really well. He did 2 assignments in 30 minutes! And remembered what we’d learned at the end of the day.

Math, well, I just need to be realllllyyyy patient with him. I need to insist that he use grid paper to write the problems on so that he doesn’t blow a fuse when the answer is wrong because he didn’t align things properly. Part of me wants to let him work independently and then sit down with him. The other part knows he’ll be too frustrated to get anything from our review together and thinks I should sit down with him the entire time and really hand-hold the entire session.

Dictation is a new one for us this year. After the initial session, I think I need to have a shorter quote for him. I also think reviewing/introducing punctuation rules would be a good thing to do at the same time.

Besides melting down frequently, Jessie didn’t do bad really. I introduced her vocabulary word of the week, calf. We made goofy cow noises for a while and she colored no less than 10 cow coloring pages. After completing each one, she marched over and posted it on the fridge. LOL! I’ll have to get a picture of that. Her coloring has changed. Instead of randome sribbling, she scribbles only on the object pictured in every color she has. Very rainbow-like! At the end of the day I asked her what a calf was… “a moose” was her answer.
Well, I’d better get to day two now. Jessie has a cooking class at HyVee today. Sam has the same one for older kids on the 24th. I hope they like it!

How’s this for a fuzzy wuzzy?!? It is one of the many critters Jessie has found over the last week. Others include: a mantidfly, one big green stick insect, katydid, lots of hooktip moths, frogs, toads and turtles. Oh my!

Gigi’s visit was great. I don’t know why I get to tickled by the kids reaction to her. They really do love to see her and be with her. I think it is great.

Sam’s camp ended on a bummer note. Until yesterday, he came home after camp full of stories of all the fun he had. Yesterday though he was very down and upset saying that there were a lot of mean kids in camp. Apparently they had given Adele and him a really hard time yesterday. So Sam decided not to go Friday, the last day of camp. I’m sad that it ended on such a sad note, makes me wonder if it would be possible to create a homeschooler’s camp. Not that homeschooled kids can’t be mean, but it is a tight group here and they are all pretty good to each other. Hmmm… maybe a group camping trip somewhere would be fun.

Monday this week, with monetary help from mom, I relieved the local Joann’s of their linnen (at 60%) off. Yes, I was the one you hate to be behind in the line to get your fabric cut off the bolt. 7 yards of a light yellow, 7 yards of natural, 5 yards of brown, 4 yards of pale green and 1 yard of medium blue. It is all washed and back on the bolt boards (an added bonus when you buy what’s left). Thanks mom!

Tuesday we all went to the Abbott’s for some pre-Fourth festivities. I am happy (and amazed) that everyone, adults and kids alike, came away will all digits and appendages still intact if somewhat singed in places.
Wednesday we didn’t go to Centralia afterall. There had been a lot of rain and the pool was closed. So we ended up going downtown to see the (free) fireworks there. We found out later that the ‘Moor group did end up going to Centralia at the last minute. Oh well. We have fun anyway. :p

Thursday there was a 6-board chest workshop here. Only no chests were made. Seems the bringer-of-the-wood… ummm… forgot. So we’ll be having a take two this coming Thursday.

Friday we headed off to STL. We saw (and touched) the arch. Even to a brief jaunt into Illinios (took a wrong turn). LOL! We ate near the Mississippi. I can’t remember the name of the neighborhood. Here is a picture of the street. The restaurant was a piano bar and was beautiful inside. We ate outside though. The food was great but still richer than we have been used too.

We were bussed up to the race site on Saturday. There was a last minute venue change and I guess they thought it best to do things this way. For us it didn’t turn out to be that much of an inconvenience. The kids and I hung out, snacked and played while we waited for Bob to pass by so we could cheer him on. He did great by the way. Have I mentioned how cool it is (and how proud I am) that he is doing this?!? Makes me wanna try to get back into running. Doh! If you click on the picture of the arch, keep clicking through the pictures after it to see more from the trip.

So, we’re home now recovering from a 5am start to today. We took a monster nap this afternoon so Bob and I are very awake and glad that tomorrow is Sunday. We’ll be heading off to fighter practice after lunch.

Monday starts our second homeschooling year. I’m kind of nervous. I hope I planned enough… but not too much. I have my schedule (from which to deviate… love that phrase!) and am excited about the things we are going to try this year. I think I’ve gotten Sam on board with the idea of truly year-round schooling, taking a week break every six weeks or so. We’ll see if that works along with everything else.

My mom drove up from Oklahoma yesterday and is staying with us for the week. So, I may not be posting much for a while. Next weekend is the half marathon in STL for Bob too.

Looks like the rain has stopped for a bit too. None in the forcast until the end of the week.

No sure what exactly we’re going to do for the Fourth. Have a yummy dinner planned. We may go hang out with Amlesmore. Apparently they have a big bruhaha for the Fourth. It would be fun for all of us. Sam’s been complaining about missing the last two fighter practices so I KNOW he’d have fun seeing his friends. Bob is going to the shire meeting this afternoon so that we at least know what we’re volunteered for. ;P

OK. Better hop off now. Have a happy holiday!