Wow! This week went fast. to keep track of the resources we’re using, I’ve started this page. I’ll add to it as we go. I’ll link the names as I get time. (or not if I don’t)
This year history is Medieval and Early Renaissance. This week was Ancient Persia. Rather than narrate only from the “spine” book, I waited until he had read the additional resources we got from the library and then we talked about what he “knew” and had him type that up. He still tries to get goofy with his writing (like calling Alexander the Great “Ol’ Al”). I allow it, but I’m not so sure I should. Where to draw “the line?”
We didn’t get to the timeline as I had hoped. Makes me wonder if a “century book” concept would work better for us or maybe a “digital” timeline that we work on…? Hmmm… Googling doesn’t pull up much. We did get to some globe and mapwork today though… With teatime of all things.
Art & Music appreciation I’ve tied to History, so this week we studied this statue and listened to this music. (Pssst! Get the music through iTunes, it is cheaper 
) I didn’t get a chance to get the images of persian art and culture up on our bulletin wall this week. I am hoping that if the artwork is up all week it will maybe spark stronger recall and conversations.
Science: Astronomy… wow! We’ve hit a strong interest here. That’s good but it also leads to wild and imaginative ramblings with Sam. LOL! That’s not all bad but not all good either. I asked him to “type up what he knew on this weeks Astronomy topics and I got an imaginative rambling on “the space/time continuum.” I posted it on our wall but then with much questioning, tugged out of him something more on topic.
We’ll spend three weeks on books and information gathering and then a week on experiments. Found a great book for this: “Make-it-Work! Earth” by Baker/Haslam. A late nite (or three) of star gazing will also be in order.
Latin is Minimus Segundus this year. This week we went through chapter 1 and I’m going to (somehow) spread it over the next two weeks as well. Verb ending were introduced again so I think I’ll have him doing the worksheets in the TM, practicing the “words to remember”, conjugating additional verbs, reading more about the Greek myths mentioned, etc.
I did manage to get a copy of Winnie Ile Pu through BookMooch. Huzzah! Though I don’t imagine we’ll be really reading it this year. Next I need to acquire “Catus Petastus.”
Japanese is rather scaled down this year. We’re focusing on learning to write and identify Hiragana and then each week introducing 6 phrases. To get things started off easy, I had him pick the phrases this week. Each day he practiced writing the first ten characters. What I didn’t get to today was testing on them. Will need to do that on Monday. Basically, we won’t move on to the next set until this set is mastered.
We’re using MathScore.com for math this month. Next month too if we can afford it. Otherwise we’ll do it every other month. Mid week he was rather frustrated with his lack of progress. He was doing fine really but thought he should be doing better. (can’t imagine where that tendency came from {whistles innocently}) But today he did really good.
One of the many things I really like about using this online subscription service is that it tell me how much time he spent actually doing the problems. Idle time isn’t counted. Many days this week, after spending 30 minutes at it, he only had 12 or less minutes of actually doing problems. Surely a 10yo can focus longer than that! Well today I told him that if he could spend 14 of 15 minutes actually working, he wouldn’t have to do any more. It worked. 
Rather than a formal grammar program this year, we’re studying word roots using Vocabulary Vine. We did the first 3 this week. I can’t wait to get enough completed so that we can try some of the suggested games. Like “Neologism!”
Today in the car on the way to swimming I quizzed him on the roots. He could remember two of the three so I am wondering if rather than filing them in his box right away, maybe we could post them on the wall. ‘Course this wall is getting rather crowded so maybe that’s not such a good idea. Maybe if we review last weeks roots on Monday and the current weeks roots on Friday (Tues through Thurs introducing the new ones) that will be enough. I’ll let you know next week how that works.
Nature Journaling… we started journals last year and I intended to pick them up again this week but we didn’t quite get to it. However, we did experience quite a lot of nature this week so maybe that’s okay.
We have a pupa collection going and one of them ecclosed (came out of his cocoon) yesterday. (pictured here” It was a Virginia Creeper Sphinx moth. Gorgeous! Sam said over and over “Mom, this is so COOL!” LOL! We still have a luna cocoon, an Isabella (wollybear caterpillar) and an unknown cocoon to go. Oh, and an Elm Sphinx caterpillar. I put a stop to things when we found a tomato hornworm. Those dudes are gonna have to go. Don’t mess with mama’s tomatoes!
For music practice, we’ve picked up the Pennywhistle again. The break seems to have done some good for the enthusiasm. I was pleasantly surprised how much the songs he can play from memory. The music reading was a bit rusty but I hope that will improve with time.
Exercise has been either taekwondo, swimming or running. Next week he’s going to give karate a try. At some point soon I need to sit down with my DH and come up with a basic fitness ability plan. Sam has trouble jumping rope, and doing basic tumbling. He doesn’t see the benefit of really working on it himself so I think I’m going to encourage it by making it part of our learning day. (and save money for the activities I can’t lead )
Where’s Jessie in all of this? Well, most of the week I staggered their quiet times. For example, while Sam was reading… Jess and I were out on a nature walk or painting for example. Then switched and while Jessie played kinda quietly in her room, Sam and I focused on subjects he needs more help on. It worked well but had me feeling rather completely frazzled by the end of the day. She also helped me mix up some freezer cookies. Where I can, I include her with what Sam is working on. Things like tea time work well too. IF she’s interested. Today she wasn’t. I feel the need to work more with her… getting her used to a schedule but I’m not yet sure how beyond going with what she’s interested in at the moment.
Things we didn’t get to this week: dictation & literature reading, Shakespeare, memory work, life skills (sewing), and LibriVox volunteering.
Saturday I think we’ll try to get the sewing project started… a simple drawstring backpack for our nature walk gear. I’m thinking we’ll do some nature printing on it at a later date.
Speaking of Saturday, I think I’ll go to bed before it gets here. I’ve promised to make some “good bread” tomorrow (wheat). In the name of science, I’m eating wheat again. That way, when I see the allergist next month, I can show as well as tell. 
I found the President’s Physical Fitness standards online and we have slowly been working on hitting goals each year. We can now get close to the level suggested in sit ups and push ups. We do the sit and reach just about every day and it is improving too. My boys do jump roping once a week…they hate it but after three years, they are getting pretty good at it.
I found it was easier to try to reach some sort of concrete goal with the boys and now they are even doing really well on their mile run times. They take it personally when they look at the chart and they think their times and scores “stink”.
Little by little they improve every year.
Just something we do,
Barb-Harmony Art Mom
Maybe you could do a compare and contrast writing contest thingy where you challenge Sam to write a funny essay versus an essay that sounds like a book. Then he can do the paragraph where he says “Good ol’ Al” and the same paragraph over again, all tricked out like book speak (without being book plaguarism). Maybe the challenge is that some day he can get something published, or turned into a play or a tv or movie script.
I remember my Mom teaching me how to write essays and papers by saying “Tell me the answer, like you’re in a play. Now write down what you just said outloud. Now take out just the parts that sound like slang.”
But then again, we were helping my mom run lines (practice dialogue for theatre) when we were little…. we read before Kindergarten, and I think I was helping her run lines by the time I was in 2nd grade. We were a nutty family, I’m sure.
Hi Hope,
Just wanted to say that my dh made the jump ropes that you sent me the directions for…..awesome! The boys are so happy now and my daughter and I even got jump ropes.
Also, thanks for the link to the Persian music. We are studying the Rise of Islam this week and it is perfect to dial up a little sample to listen to while we work on our mosaic art projects.
Thanks again,
Barb-Harmony Art Mom