A Heartfelt Thank You :: Wordless Wednesday

My father :: Coast Guard :: Vietnam

My great uncle, brother of my paternal grandmother :: Army :: Killed in battle, WWII

My father-in-law with his father :: Navy

Weekly Report #11 :: Third Year

I was in a big funk this week and we didn't accomplish much in regards to formal lessons. However, we did volunteer 7 hours at the lodge making lefse for our upcoming Christmas Bazaar. This I feel really good about as we can now successfully make lefse just as my mother and grandmother have always made it. It was time well spent. In fact, Sweetie didn't even want to leave!

Sweetie also spent Saturday afternoon playing with her girlfriend next door. When she returned home she said, "Guess what we were doing at her house?" I made a few guesses... Webkinz? Bella Sara? American Girl? I was wrong each time. "We were reading! I love reading now just like I love math!" This is music to my ears!

Math, Logic & Problem Solving

• Buddy :: Math Readiness (6 pages)
  
• Computer Skills :: Library
  

Science, Geography & Nature Study

• Read alouds: Dinosaur Hunter by Elain Marie Alphin, Footprints on the Moon by Mark Haddon
  

Literature & Reading

• Continued reading aloud: The Lost Years of Merlin
• Sweetie independently read 3 chapters of Little Rat Makes Music; she listened to the audio book of Magic Treehouse #26 (chapters 1-5) as she followed along with text, thereafter she completed her first book report (a story cube); she also read a chapter of India the Moonstone Fairy
  

Writing & Research

• Buddy completed 2 worksheets on initial consonants
• Sweetie completed 2 worksheets on nouns
• We orally discussed nouns and made lists of nouns at the pool, in the car, etc.
• Sweetie typed out her cheetah report for Passports Club
• We found a few other young girls with blogs and Sweetie expressed interest in becoming web-friends (like pen pals but via their blogs); We thereby moved her blog to her own account / email and created a little button for her
  

Foreign Language

• Mandarin w/ Tinsel 1x; Independent practice 1x ?
  

Culture, Heritage & History

• Finished chapter 2 'The Early Days of Britain' (Beowulf the Hero) from Story of the World Vol. 2 - The Middle Ages
  
• Field Trip :: Swimming at McMenamins - Roman style bath

Sports & Extracurricular

• Taekwondo 2x
• Poomse practice on own 2x
  
• Taekwondo testing :: Sweetie is now a BROWN BELT !!
  
• Swimming at McMenamins - Roman style bath
• Impromptu playdate with friends 2x
  

Art, Handcrafts & Music

• Piano lesson w/ Janellybean 1x; Independent practice 3x ?
  
• Sweetie and I carved a stamp in our own image for a Postal Exchange at Atlas Quest
  

Adult Skills, Current Events & Service Learning

• Sons of Norway lefse preparation and baking 2x
  

Typical Day :: Wordless Wednesday

All who homeschool joke that we probably spend more time in the car than we do at home... hence the popularity of the book Carschooling by Diane Flynn Keith. This picture is proof that we are no different.
This photo was taken on a Wednesday - our bags are packed for the fitness center (my gym bag & 2 bags for the kiddos' lunch), our afternoon Letterbox outing, Sweetie's Mandarin class, and the library. The green tub in the back is our coats, hats, gloves, etc. for inclement weather.

Admin Note: Oops... I guess this post wasn't wordless after all.

Bridges Are to Cross :: Book Sharing Monday

My kiddos have always been intrigued by bridges. "When are we going to see the big bridge?" is a frequent question as we travel over the Cascade and Coast mountain ranges on our way to Grandma & Papa's house in North Bend. The McCullough Bridge, the mile-long span across the Coos River, is their indication that we have arrived.

With our recent vacation in San Francisco and seeing first hand two of the most infamous bridges (The Golden Gate Bridge and Oakland Bay Bridge), the kids have been increasing interested in bridges. At the library last week, we discovered another gem, stumbling once again upon a book in our library by chance (many of the books we've most enjoyed have been found at the library on display - we haven't actually searched the online catalog to find them).

Bridges Are to Cross by Philemon Sturges is a great introduction to bridges. Everyone knows bridges are to cross -- to get to the other side. But did you know that some bridges carry llamas loaded with firewood, some let people dance over lazy rivers, some were forts for defending castles, and some were crossed by emperors and popes? From a simple log to woven webs of steel, bridges reflect our values, our lifestyles. Feast your eyes on these bridges from around the world and you will come to realize that crossing is only one reason for having a bridge.

The text introduces the reader to many of the most famous bridges in the world, of which our favorites were:

• Apurimac River Bridge, Peru (rope suspension bridge)
• Cnococheague Aqueduct, Maryland USA (stone arch bridge)
• Segovia Aqueduct, Spain (stone arch bridge built by the Romans)
• Salginatobel Bridge, Switzerland (3-hinged concrete arch bridge)
• Brooklyn Bridge, New York USA (wire suspension bridge)

Each bridge introduced also includes a brief statement identifying the bridge type... from arch to suspension to rope bridges... providing a building block for those interested in learning more about the architecture of bridge design.

Like most picture books, what intrigued us perhaps more than the words were the three-dimensional illustrations, all painstakingly created with intricately cut paper by artist Giles Laroche. The illustrations were created on a variety of paper surfaces through a combination of drawing, painting, and papercutting. These cut-paper illustrations of bridges are complex and exquisite; their texture and depth astonishing. Paper-cutting or paper-piecing is fast becoming one of our favorite art forms.Upon reading this book, the kiddos are even more interested in bridges and have been building bridges in our living room to cross the span between the couch and the coffee table. They started out using their bodies to create simple beam bridges and have now advanced to using their Taekwondo belts to create suspension bridges. The little guy even identified it correctly, "Mommy! This is a suspension bridge like the Golden Gate!" I may have to change plans once again and do the toothpick bridge unit sooner than I anticipated. If I do so, I hope you will all join us for a virtual bridge building contest. Let me know if you are interested!!!

Bridges Are to Cross is an excellent book for budding engineers, future artists, and especially new readers!

Weekly Report #10 :: Third Year

Math, Logic & Problem Solving

• Buddy completed Singapore 1A lessons #21-24; he also completed several pages in a K1 Math Readiness workbook
  
• Sweetie completed Singapore 3A lessons #11-12
• Computer Skills & Games :: Webkinz & Starfall
  

Science, Geography & Nature Study

• Read aloud: Bridges Are to Cross by Philemon Sturges, Stars Beneath Your Bed, The Surprising Story of Dust by April Pulley Sayre, Cheetahs by Deborah Nuzzolo, Built for Speed, The Extraordinary, Enigmatic Cheetah by Sharon Elaine Thompson, Cheetahs by Ann O. Squire, Cheetahs by Diana Estigarribia, We All Went on Safari, A Counting Journey through Tanzania by Laurie Krebs
• Nature Study :: Pumpkins
  

Literature & Reading

• Sweetie completed 4 weeks of lessons in Daily Language Review (grade 1)
• Sweetie read independently: Berenstein Bears 'On the Moon', Dr. Seuss' 'Fox in Socks' and pre-readers #1-4, 10
  
• Read aloud: Lost Years of Merlin and Beowulf
  

Writing & Research

• Sweetie took notes while I read aloud books about Cheetahs as she chose to focus on the cheetah for Passports Club
• Sweetie completed Daily Oral Language workbook weeks #1-4; she also finished writing thank you cards for her birthday
  

Foreign Language

• Mandarin lesson with Tinsel 1x
• Mandarin practice 2x - reader books and question words
  

Sports & Extracurricular

• Taekwondo 2x
• Playdates 3x
• Halloween parties 2x
  

Art, Handcrafts & Music

• Piano lesson with Janellybean 1x
• Piano practice daily
• Sweetie and I finished up her doll quilt for the American Girl activity at Barnes & Noble; thereafter, she began showing Buddy how to pin together a quilt and she sewed it for him; he expressed interest in learning to sew as well!
  

Adult Skills, Current Events & Service Learning

• Lots of chores on Thursday
• Gathered more books to donate
  

Happy Haunting!

An Objective Reading Assessment

Our neighbor, a retired teacher, read with Sweetie on Monday morning to give me an objective opinion about her progress. I wasn't in the room when they were working so I don't know what books they read or how the assessment was approached. They spent about 20 minutes together and thereafter we sat down for what felt like a 'parent-teacher conference' - my first time being on the side of the parent.

She felt Sweetie was an 'emergent reader' at the beginning first grade level. She made a few additional comments regarding her understanding of grammar and punctuation. Sweetie stated that she had asked her to write only her name in her best handwriting and the vowels. Seeking to impress, Sweetie thereby did her best to write her name in cursive, writing a lower case g instead of a capital to begin her name. [I have given her no instruction in cursive penmanhsip - she has been trying to use it on her own.] From this, it was assumed that Sweetie doesn't have a firm understanding of the rules of capitalization. I know this is not true. Though she is not yet a strong reader, she has a very strong grasp of simple punctuation and grammar - when to use capitals, ending punctuation (periods, question marks & exclamation points) and she is beginning to understand commas and apostrophes.

It was suggested that we continue to use workbooks that emphasize phonetic and grammar skills. I thereby purchased a publication by Evan-Moor, Daily Language Review (Grade 1). It is meant to be used in the classroom for Daily Oral Language - one brief lesson daily for 36 weeks. It includes practice on sentence editing, punctuation, grammar, vocabulary, spelling and comprehension skills. Sweetie started work in it immediately - she loves workbooks - and completed 4 weeks of lessons in just 3 days! She has been reading through the problems on her own - only occasionally asking me for help.

Since Monday, it seems as though she has made remarkable progress. It is apparent that Gesh (our neighbor) sparked her confidence as well as her interest in reading and writing. Each day, she has selected a Dr. Seuss book to read independently and has even requested to do so independently - without me sitting next to her. When she comes to a word that troubles her, she brings it to me and asks for help. Yesterday afternoon, I fell asleep as I have been fighting off a head cold. Shortly after I awoke, Sweetie told me that she and Buddy built bridges for awhile but thereafter she read to him. "I would have been bored while you were sleeping, Mama. But I read books to him and I wasn't bored." Music to my ears!

She has also been more independent in her writing. Asking less frequently for me to spell out words for her. While reading about Cheetahs (her selected topic for Passports Club), she took notes and wrote out an entire page of facts that she wanted to share. She also orally planned out a poster board for her presentation.

Thank you, Gesh!