Friday

2014-11-28

8a    - vet visit, observe stiches, discuss tools
8.30a    - break

11a    - LEGO crafting
12p    - break

1.30p    - PE, running outside
2p    - Planet Earth ep 9 "Shallow Seas"
3p    - break

5:30p     - making a milkshake
6p       - break

7p       - knitting (watched only)
7.30p      - discussed philosophy in Robocop - robot vs human
9:00p      - read first grade reading primer 'Fun with our Friends'
done

We've talked quite a bit about learning every day, with everything, what you want to know - that learning isnt just for school.

Intense Wednesday

Story writing time... she needed spelling help, 

so we did spelling words afterwards.

7.30a    - discussion of the Declaration of Independence, why
      G. Washington didn't sign - browsing through topics on history magazine website
8a    - break

8.30a    - Vet visit, weighing dogs
9a    - break

10.30a    - story writing, copying address onto a letter
11a     - reading Martha Speaks Thief of Hearts,  spelling words
11:30a     - break

12p    - multiplication tables 0-5, recombining groups (8x3 equals 6x4 equals 12x2)
12.45p    - vocabulary words - copywork from list

1.15p    - PE (30x sit ups, 50x 5lb deadlift, 30x 5lb squats, 50x 5lb
      bench)

1.30p    - vocabulary words - making sentences
1.45p    - Nat'l Geographics with mom - peoples of the arctic and map
2p    - done

Add extra credit for talking about the spaying of the three dogs, post-operative care, how long they will take to heal, what they need, how to reassure them...  She was very concerned.. said that this looked like a terrible thing we had done - because each dog had a cut and they were weak and disoriented from the anesthesia...  then we told her how it had happened to several others of our dogs, and they felt better afterwards and were healthy now... and she finally decided she would let them rest and hope they will all get better soon.  She also asked if it was okay to skate downstairs while the dogs were resting and sleeping upstairs.  Very considerate.

Tuesday

8.30a    - PE (Skating)
9a    - break

9.30a    - fun4thebrain.com (Murb math), addition, subtraction, multiplication
10.30a    - more skating
11a    - break

11.30a    - Thank you letter
12.15p    - bird drawing
12.30p    - vocabulary words
1p    - pbskids.org
2p    - done
some reading before bed...talking about learning and why we need to learn lots of different kinds of writing
talking about tomorrow and lots of things we need to get done

Monday recycling and skates

8.30a    - Morning discussion, water pressure in leaking containers
             Hear ye, Hear ye, doctors and medicines
---She had said that she noticed water in a container with a hole in it stopped coming out at a certain point - and she had theorized that the 'hard water' was what was left, and the soft water leaked out.... I tried several other containers with a hole in the bottom and talked about water pressure with her- that we couldn't just scoop up 'hard water' or 'soft water' to put on top of the other water - it was the weight of any water - all the water was the same - but the more that was in there the more 'pressure' the water at the bottom had to leak out.. and when it got down, there wasn't enough pressure to force the water through the hole.  She really understood that, and tried a few more times.
//There was also an outbreak of 'broccoli fever' among her imaginary patients - and a wordplay on 'patience' and patients getting their medicine if they have patience.  *silly*
9a    - break

10a     - watching recycling batteries at plant- weighing scrap
10.30a    - break
               
11:30a     - Mickey Clubhouse pattern matching games
12p    - Grizzwold the bear book, reading aloud
12.30p    - break
----back to town for second trip, buying skates, getting dinner

3.30p   - PE (skating)
4.30p    - break

4.45p    - Reading aloud, Grizzwold again
5p    - pbskids.org, electric company word games
5.45p    - done

We went to the local recycling plant today.  Esme helped us load some of the smaller stuff, count and stack it - and we used equipment for several of the larger things.  Once we were at the plant, she talked to several people about her homeschooling (which I was very proud of her for and she said she felt brave!) and watched them weigh the batteries on the scale.  At one point the girl working there helped Esme take some of the batteries and stack them on the scale - so she could feel like she was helping in the process.  The girl also showed her where on the computer the weights came up.  I talked to Esme about how the scale was built - she couldn't see anything but the flat metal plate and asked me how it was a scale - what made it a scale?  Then we talked about how the weights were figured with both addition and subtraction (there was a pallet on one of them), and then multiplication by the price per pound for the item.  Out of the proceeds, she got a new pair of big kid rollerskates we had been looking at for her.  We are also going to get several of our dogs spayed at the vet, which we have also talked about.  So, this is a big learning day for how things are done and what are important things to do with the money.

She picked up the Grizzwold book by herself out of our latest library excursion, and read in between some of the trips.  Then she picked it up and read it out loud again to both of us with some questions about the words she had missed the first time.

Here are pics of her happy with her new big kid skates!  She has been wearing them most of the night *hehe*

Friday field trip

8.30a    - Hair and fingernails and seashells explained
      'schedule' and 'hours of operation' discussed
9a    - kahn math
10a    - break
1:30-2:30p - tour of artist and pottery studios, talking
             with the artist about painting and art
2:30-3:30p - library music and photography programs, building

4.15p    - reading aloud, "Fall is for Friends"
4.30p    - sketching
5p    - done

Thursday measurings and letter to Santa

9.45a    - Letter to Santa
10.30a    - Measuring tape, meausure 10 things
10.45a    - pbskids.org
11.30a    - break

12p    - Planet Earth  ep 8 "Jungles" & discussion
1.15p    - vocabulary words (I've been having them do a list of 2nd and 3rd grade words, and she has been doing them well)
2.15p    - done

Tomorrow I plan to take her to the library - we have went through the three picture books I checked out 'Animals Santa', 'Oliver finds his Way' and 'Man in the Moon : Guardians of Childhood'... there are two other books on measuring and weighing things that we have not yet went through.  We are also planning on going to the art gallery at the Lee School.  Saturday I have to work and we have tickets for the Mr. Roger's Neighborhood stage play.

I am hoping to get a few things done on my own agenda.  I ordered some geranium seeds for a project coming up, and rebooted the purple sweater I had been knitting for Esme more than a year ago - sometime before she grows out of it!  I would like to get another pair of pants done for her - have fabric set aside for it since September but had not gotten to it.

I'm still reading Royal Assassin by Robin Hobbs... getting to the 3/4 mark and things are starting to blow up all around the main character.

I have noticed since Esme has been out of public school and in homeschool (over a month now) her thoughts are getting even more complete.. she is forming better sentences, and thinks for herself much more.. logical conclusions, arguments/debate etc.  All of this is a very good sign for us.  Other little signs - she is taking care of her 'baby dollys' again... practicing she says for when she is a grown up with a job as a babysitter.  She is thinking more about places she wants to go and days of the week, schedules etc.  Cons - 'Why do I have to get up in the mornings at all?'  Err.. because the whole day depends on it.  Oh. Ok, I'm up.  // Getting her to brush out her hair is still difficult, we always have to help... reminding her to change clothes for town - which she usually does VERY well now, appropriate choices etc.  I can't believe how she can run around the house in winter in a tshirt and not be cold! 

Tuesday and Wednesday catchup

Wednesday:

10a    - Musical Instruments, identifying and playing
10.30a    - Grocery store, prices and sizes comparisons
11a    - break

12.30p    - pbskids.org
3.30p    - break

4p    - pbskids.org
6p    - break


Tuesday:
8a    - pbskids.org
11.30a    - cooking eggs
12p    - break

2p    - Electricity & Lasers video
2.45p    - Reading aloud, "The Story of Babar"
3p    - PE (30x 10lb bench, 30 sit ups, 10x 10lb deadlift,
      30x 10lb squats, headstands)

3.30p    - break

4.30p    - Greek letters and numbers in mathematics
5p    - Planet Earth ep 7 "Great Plains"
6p    - done

Monday oobleck and more

12p    - Reading aloud, "The Story of Babar"
12.30p    - vocabulary words
1p    - math worksheet; more vocabulary
1.30p    - break

2p    - science, B&G "Dancing raisins; oobleck
2.30p    - Snap Circuits #9
3.30p    - break

7:30 p - more oobleck, Greek lessons, take apart Snap Circuits and go to bed
8:30 - done

Friday post, heritage, stew

8:30a     - music song, discuss lyrics
--We've listened to Stand By Me (yesterday) and Lean on Me (today) and discussed the words and what they mean
9a      - wrap package, discuss address parts and postal system, how mail is sorted, history of postmen etc.
9.45a    - break

10.30a    - Paris Heritage center, library, post office
--The lady at the heritage center talked to us about the Civillian Conservation Corp or CCC and showed us some pictures.  I talked to Esme about how older houses were made, and all of the fireplaces, radiators and multiple window/door combinations to keep heat in or let heat out.  We looked at their big dining room, the iron stair banister and the brick fireplaces and walls.  She talked to several people about the age of the house and things that would be happening there next month, and signed the register :)
12p    - break

12.45p    - pbskids.org
1.15p    - Beef stew, cutting meat and kitchen usage
1.30p    - pbskids.org
2p    - beef stew
2.15p    - pbskids.org
2.45p    - done

Ive still been searching for different homeschool styles - and Esme's choice of Greek led me to looking at classical homeschooling... which is similar to the Charlotte Mason.. just the book choices on the lists lead me to many ideas.

I'm hoping I can take Esme to a theatre performance by our local troope here later next week... trying to see if I can arrange for it as it overlaps with my work schedule that day but it would be a great opportunity.  They are doing Mr. Roger's Neighborhood and the tickets are not expensive.

Thursday capacity

9am    - Kahn academy math
9.30a    - music notation video; notes and rests
10a    - break
10:30a  - Capacity book - math with pints/cups water
11a     - break

1p    - planet earth ep 5 "deserts"
2p    - ep 6 "ice worlds"
3p     - zip line stuff with Skittles packages and pipecleaners
done

Wednesday units

8.15a    - Kahn Academy math
8.45a    - break

9.30a    - town run, change at bank, units and prices at store
10a    - break

11a    - units, comparison
11.15a    - Greek alphabet video, math worksheet
12p    - break

 

Playing with a balloon... I made her sit down to the Greek lesson just after this

 

2.30p    - vocabulary words
3p    - snap circuits #8, plus experimental variations
3.30p    - PE (30x 10lb bench, 30x 10lb bicurls, 30 sit ups, 30 almost
      push ups, 30x 10lb squats)

4p    - Reading aloud "The Fantastic Flying books of Mr Morris Lessmore" by William Joyce
4.30p    - done

One of the things we worked on at the store and at home was how to tell how much something weighed - comparing lb and 'pound' and oz and 'ounce'.  She continued with another Greek lesson at my behest...then I had to go to work and it was to Daddy for the rest of the day.

While we were getting ready for the town run this morning she was looking at a picture chart that was supposed to be filled up with pictures until grade 12.  She said that grade 12 was about science.. so the conversation turned to 1- you learn reading/writing/math to be able to understand Science, which is all of those things put together.. and 2.- in homeschool she can be many grades at once.  She said she was in second grade now, right?  I said it would all depend on what books she chose and what she learned - and she could learn at any pace now.... and that some of her things were still first grade, and some even third grade...

We watched How to train your Dragon 2 as a family - it was so sweet, both the movie, and the three of us cuddled together watching it :)

Tuesday painting

8.30a    - painting -- will add the pictures to the post later...
Esme did a painting that is a 'King kid who set down his crown on a mushroom, which has a bean growing under it, and a flower, and grass... the kid has a grass stain on his sock, because he is a kid.'  I tried a painting of some flowers :)

9.15a    - Kahn academy math - subtraction word problems and comparing greater/lesser than +1425 pts
9.45a    - break

10.15a    - cooking scramled eggs
10.30a    - planet earth ep 4 "Caves"
11.45a    - k'nex engineering - rolling robot thing with a cup to hold things
12.45p    - break

3p    - snap circuits #6 and #7
3.30p    - done

I gave Esme the schedules of some of the free 'museumy' things around here.. she really liked that idea.  She had wanted to go visit one and see what they had there - when we were painting this morning.

She had lost a tooth last night.. one of her last front baby teeth.. she was a bit upset the tooth fairy left only a few coins, and not a toy.  I had such a headache when I got in from work she did her snap circuits with Daddy instead of doing something she had planned to do with me.  I was still not entirely 'good' early this morning - and I thought she was tossing things around in the video area downstairs, but she was really reorganizing, moving a table from her room, clearing things in her room to make more room to sit etc etc.. she made a teaparty with her teddy bear and was drawing pictures on post-it notes this morning when I suggested painting to her.

Monday geography

9.30a    - pbskids.org
10a    - cooking scrambled eggs
10.15a    - break

10.45a    - Geography (google earth)
11.15a    - writing vocabulary words
12p    - break

12.45p    - Planet Earth ep 3 "Freshwater"

1.45p    - google earth
2p    - PE (30x situp, 30x 10lb benchpress, 30x 10lb squats, 30x 5lb
        bicurls, 50x 5lb deadlift)
2.30p    - break


7.15p    - snap circuits #5
8p    - done

She waited for me to come home from work - wanting to do something with me, but I had a killer headache, so Daddy brought out the snap circuits kit and they did a module in that.  We had been studying greek online this weekend (long story) - she was catching on quite well.   I might do another one of those with her tomorrow.  It is nice to be able to follow her interests when she has one, with homeschool.

She had come to me when I was running hot water over my head - waiting for my migraine to ease.. and told me that she guessed she would go finish her work now, but she was sad.  She was sad about the boring stuff had to be done before the fun stuff could happen - like putting the circuit together 'just right', but when it worked, she was happy.  I told her that was a lot like other things in life - and I had that at work, too.  She said and there is the opposite - you have to do the fun stuff, like have a break, before the boring stuff happened, too!  Like do a worksheet after the break!  **oh my child**  Yes, that is true, but we usually don't see it that way...

Saturday counts as school

7a    - pbskids.org
8a    - break
8.30a    - Planet Earth, ep 2 "Mountains"; pandas on youtube
9.30a    - break

10a    - "build and Grow" at Lowe's
11a      - library, music games, building, play with boy
12p      - shopping, counting money, comparing prices at two stores

1p     - break for home packed snack

2:00 p     - home, math lesson with comparing prices from receipts
2:30     - break
5:45-6p - gelatin baking soda vinegar volcano experiment

We didn't set out 'specifically' to count today as school, but we knew there was a good chance of it.  I told her, on the way out of the store at noon, that it was probably a school day, and she was surprised.  I did my own Kahn academy stuff today, instead of having her do hers.. since she had already taken her time and done math with the price comparison 'Price is Right' type lesson I made with the groceries when we got home.

I'm listening to music now and wondering if I should try to sew something.

Friday banana blueberry bread recipe

7.30a    - math worksheets (easy one), discussing learning
    - Reading aloud (Story of Ping)
8a    - break
9a    - pbskids.org
10p    - BBC "Planet earth", ep 1 "Pole to Pole"
11p    - break
4.30p    - Kahn Academy math
5.15p    - "Structure of Atoms" video - Bill Nye Science Guy Atom videos
6p    - baking banana/blueberry bread - copying recipe changes
6.45p    - done

Recipe :
Banana Blueberry Bread

Ingredients: 
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup mashed bananas
1/2 cup blueberries
3/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 cup quick cooking oats

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Grease and flour pan (we used an aluminum pie pan)
Cream together sugar and butter.  Add egg.
Add mashed bananas and blueberries.
Stir flour, baking soda and salt into flour in a separate bowl.
Mix in oats.
Fold into banana mixture.  Add vanilla.
Put into pan.
Bake for about 40-50 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

This was very good!

Thursday bits here and there

We kind of split this day up here and there to fit everything in - and Esme was so glad to get her 10,000 point badges on Kahn :)

7.30a    - Starfall.com
8a    - walk, leaves and mud outside
8.30a    - crafting skee ball target
9.30a    - break
5p    - shopping, comparing items, money counting
5.30p    - break
6p    - clothes folding and care
6.30p    - Kahn Academy math - adding, comparing equations, counting from any number 100-120
7p    - Mr Rodgers video - Growing
7.30p    - done

Wednesday math, a potato and more

 

The Potato clock was done today!

They had to work around a lot of things - but they got it working :)

 

The Dinosaurs did some copycat action and went after the mountain of Skittles in the care of several turtles.  Esme says this is a picture to send to her friend EmK to see in her house!

We started Khan Academy math again, and racked up 4800 points, and then did our first of the computer programming modules.  Will return to it again!

Mark and Esme made a skeeball target for her catapult she got for her birthday, which was their engineering craft project for the day (besides the potato).

A weekend and a birthday

We have had a long weekend - going out to a bonfire party on Saturday with Esme, and then getting ready for her birthday party on Sunday.

We had invited her friend over and did 'simple'... pizza, birthday cake and presents.. with some TV and air swimming bird and K'nex mixed in here and there.  Esme received some lovely presents from several people - an electronics kit from EK, footie pajamas, slippers, flashlights and more from Grandma (we were still  'discovering things' into the night!) and a Lite Brite lightweight from her friend.  I gave her the eagle toy she had wanted and some key books (which she will discover later), and Daddy got her a siege weapon and a potato. OK, it was a mini-catapult that shoots ping pong balls, and a potato :)

 She had asked for a pink velvet cake with strawberry frosting - and a #7 candle.

She was one happy girl!  I was kind of proud of making a layer cake 'old style' and frosting

it with a knife. Sprinkles make everything look better, and it tasted really good.

 Guests in our kitchen space, accompanied by dogs and balloons.

 An eagle - I (always wanted) an eagle!

Unwrapping the Snap Circuits Light kit and immediately taken in by all the diagrams.

 Playing Lite Brite

 Serious chart following and a little bickering over round and square bits.

We put together the first set of programs in the kit and I promised her we would do more today as schoolwork.  But, we have a town run as well as a little bit of reading to do.  She got up at 6 am (in her pink leopard footie pajamas) and played Jake's Story Maze and Minecraft for two hours before I was able to finally wake up.. I still have till Wednesday before I have to be back to work..  Esme's actual birthday is on the 4th.. and we will do some family time that day and no 'school'...

It is SO cold!  Esme also wants to go to the library sale today if it is open.  I've started reading Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb ... into the third chapter, and not bad.