Lily_Grace
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Posts posted by Lily_Grace
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American history:
Blood On The River, Jamestown 1607
The Ransom of Mercy Carter (1704)
The Remarkable Ride of Israel Bissell (as Related By Molly The Crow) (Picture book of one of the post riders to combat the deluge of info on Paul Revere's short ride)
and not sure on the historical accuracy, but I truly enjoyed using the Ballad of Lucy Whipple as a jumping off point for the California Gold Rush. Much, much better than By The Great Horn Spoon in detailing the hard work and little/no reward life of the gold fields.
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Slightly off-topic, but does anyone remember The Tightwad Gazette? The author/editor made her living by publishing the newsletters on how to be frugal, eventually turning them into a set of bound volumes. Well, people looking in were sad for her children, saying they'd rebel and it wasn't fair to make them grow up so frugally when their parents definitely had money. The children are all grown now, of course, and a blog writer tracked them down to see how they were doing: http://thefrugalshrink.blogspot.it/ (scroll down past the first post) The one even talked about her frugal wedding/honeymoon. So interesting to see how they turned out!
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I found the more movement I incorporated, the better our day went. In 4th we used...
MUS - along with Math Chef, I Hate Mathematics, pick up sticks, Sorry, etc. Monday was always build it day wit the MUS blocks, Tues-Wed weaning from them, Thurs test day, and Friday he got to teach me while I played stupid and then we'd do something fun.
Noeo biology II - it's written to be slightly dry. We made sure we used the internet links, took the lessons outside, and incorporated them into art.
Writing Strands- total bust.
SoTW - I presented the activity first, had him start working, and then told the story orally as we went along. Next day was map, him reading the book, timelining, then a second activity (if we could) + You Wouldn't Want To Be book..mixing it up made it more attractive.
Literature - themed units. I had started hitting on something here and didn't realize it. Instead of reading aloud, my kid did better when he was immersed. We took beef jerky, water, and biscuits to the top of a cliff overlooking the fishing bay to read Treasure Island, or sat in front of the open fridge to read Mr. Popper's Penguins. I eventually expanded this idea to incorporate toys into the literature - making spy glasses and learning astronomy while reading Carry On, Mr. Bowditch, for example. And we gathered up several skill books to add in to our collection so that we had them as we went along.
School used to take us about 5-6 hours. But it was FULL. Every 15 minute sit down lesson was matched by at least 15 minutes of activity. Lots of "field trips" - sometimes to nothing other than our backyard. Big focus on adding a skill to his daily life that he could hone and use for enjoyment (everything from a Microsoft class to whittling).
I used to look at curriculum and groan, because it always seemed like it was meant for children who sat quietly, did what they were told, and just wanted to follow an example. That was not my kid. Every inch had to be reworked. I had to ask myself "how can I present this in a different way?" Eventually, our shelves started getting crowded more with the 'extras' than with the actual curriculum: 4 books for physics.....and two tubs, a giant science kit, and most of the Disney Imagineering dvds.
We have found better over time. Moving Beyond The Page makes delicious lit units. Intellego worked well. Mr. Q was fun. A picture book of diagramming sentences, of all things, made its way into our day. But there has been absolutely nothing we have used completely as intended.
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I think it depends on how well the couple knows their guests, honestly.
My sister had a similar thing for her wedding. But all of her and her fiance's guests were quite close to them, and they all donated skills and time and energy in lieu of gifts. Her old employers (the church) donated the hall and the pastor's services. The dresses and cake were all made by one side and the food/music by the other. Many of us were at the hall the night before preparing food instead of a bachelorette party.
I enjoyed it. I think this idea of "well they have plenty of money so they should waste it" is more tacky than friends and family wanting to gather to celebrate. I never understood the need to pay thousands for a party, and with suppliers jacking up the price as soon as they hear the word 'wedding' I think it's a lovely return to the roots. If you don't like them enough, stay home. Nobody would want you to feel bad about being part of the gathering instead of just the judging recipient of it.
(btw - I'm hoping my SIL does something similar when her turn comes. I have our gift for her shower, but I'd love for the party to be extended past a quick gathering for cake. It's so much more homey (and financially responsible - a good thing for a new couple to be) than the monstrosity expected out of our credit-hungry society.
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Perhaps try Intellego? They do unit studies, mostly computer based but with hands on investigations you can complete as well.
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We originally decided to homeschool because the school wasn't great. Since then we have decided to homeschool because...
-we get to travel more. We've gone to 11 different countries since our journey started, and nearly every one during the school year.
-we get to replace textbooks with actual learning. Curriculum calls for a study of water organisms/plants? Great! Let's go to the creek, the lake, and the ocean and see what we can find out. Let's go to the museum and aquarium. Let's look up videos and run experiments.
-we get to adjust things to our timetable. We can review a concept extensively, or skip what's already known.
-we get to make learning a central part of our lives and days, instead of having it tucked away in designated hours.
Why not to homeschool?
-we spend all day with our children. Yippee. There's only so many times I can be chipper about coloring in the lines before I need adult conversation. Especially in February. ESPECIALLY IN FEBRUARY. Why? Because at that point, we've been cooped up for Nov, Dec, and Jan with the rain and general nasty weather. We hit our limit by February, and take vacation the beginning of March, as soon as the warm weather hits.
-it's expensive. Or it can be. Not so much in the early years, but looking ahead to high school makes me shudder. Not to mention any extras thrown in there: co-ops, outside classes, organizational equipment....it adds up. We have a curriculum budget and a monthly budget for activities.
-the WTM can be a horrid place on down days. You have a bad week, and coming on here you see what everyone else uses and loves/hates and you start to doubt your picks. And then you start looking for the "magic" curriculum, the one that's just the right fit. And I'll tell you right now, it doesn't exist. The only magic is the one you bring to the table, the ability to adapt, to be in charge of the curriculum instead of letting it be in charge of you. It's only a guide, a tool. It's not a law book.
-The same goes for every method and philosophy out there. I like the WTM...and Montessori....and Waldorf....and free democratic....and I can take the elements I love and spin it to fit us.
-it changes the family dynamic in ways you can't imagine. You can't run away. You can't work on problems only in the evening. You can't 'wait until your father gets home!" and you have to sincerely look at how you approach difficulties.
-you have to grow a thick skin. And learn to pass the bean dip.
But in the end, I think the rewards are worth it. Nearly every year I make a video for my kid to remember why we do this. :) And looking back, it really has been an amazing journey.
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@KKinVA I believe you should not delay contacting the bank that issued your Debit Card! I believe you should do that, ASAP. My understanding is that a Debit Card has much less protection for the user, if any protection, than a Credit Card. The laws are extremely different, with regard to Credit Cards and Debit Cards. Also, with a Debit Card, you have given access to your bank account to the person you paid with it. If you have a dispute, or a potential dispute, contact the bank ASAP. Good luck!
This isn't true. :) By collaborating with Visa/Mastercard, banks offer the same protection. And USAA is outstanding. We've had 1 disputed charge and it was taken care of immediately, with communication from the rep right up until we made sure the money was back in our account a few days later.
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And what do your children suggest?
Ask them. Talk to them. Build a year together. Explore options like online classes or unit studies or other alternatives. Try to hit the core desires with a well rounded plan.
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jmcremps.com carries wood carving stuff. (and lots of other cool stuff, too!) You could also check out the skill on diy.org and watch the videos with him when he has developed basic skills.
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How is History Odyssey?
ETA: I ask because the sample I looked at appeared to be a schedule that included many of the books people were recommending.
We hated it.
It doesn't flow well. The readers are thrown in there, i.e. "Lesson 7: Begin the Golden Goblet. Read some every day until finished." while the work is rather rote and at times overwhelming. "Lesson 8: do Introduction to Egypt History Pocket". (not actual lessons, but you get the idea.) The HPs are long, and full of cutting and pasting and coloring, AND there are two full books of them in there. The lessons aren't well scheduled, either, having 87 lessons for the year, but some are HUGE and some are tiny. There's no balance so it makes it hard to schedule.
It's an okay curriculum. It's definitely one to take up on their try-before-you-buy offer.
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I'm quite happy with our plans this year.
We're using Learning Adventures, which is an all in one. Rather like Sonlight, with readers and integrated history, language arts, etc. But since the history is lecture form most of the time, I was ordering a Jackdaw for each unit to supplement. Jackdaws are portfolios of documents with a teacher's guide for discussion questions, activities, and essay prompts. We also used a variety of sites:
Letters of Note
History Animated
How To Be A Retronaut
America101
to name a few, so that we could gain a well rounded picture. A good idea of how I approach history lessons is in the book Teaching What Really Happened: How To Get Students Excited About Doing History. I ask questions, we take opportunities to cross subjects (like right now, history, his international law class, and logic all have the same time period lesson spread out in 3 different directions)
For my littles in history class, I started with 6-8/9 year olds three years ago and finished with 9-12yos this year. In the beginning, we did a lot of focusing on the social aspect: what it was like to be a child, major events, activities to put them in place (cooking, mosaic making, etc). This year, much of the class was focused on what history is and isn't. The kids, with extra guidance, used primary resources in their studies, did fact vs. fiction, read accounts of transcribed and 'translated' memoirs to see how filtering it through someone else's eyes made a difference. Still a lot of activities, but much more on understanding the effects of events then their first year was.
I have never found a history curriculum that measures up to what I want. Even SOTW, while nice, is still just *a* resource (love the activity guides, though!). Even Creek Edge Press, which could be phenomenal if reworked and partnered with primary docs, is only so-so. The kids spend too much of their time learning other people's opinions. If I homeschool the younger kiddo, I'm confident enough now in my ability to do without a curriculum. Goodness knows I have enough on my bookshelf!
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Italy:
Shakespeare (R&J, The Merchant of Venice..)
The Travels of Marco Polo
A Bell For Adano
The usual ancient Rome stuff....
I'm sure I'll figure out more, it's just getting late here. I did enjoy The Glassblower of Murano and An Enchanted April, but those would hardly make the list. LOL I'll have to see what I can come up with overnight.
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We'll be a while. We're on day 162, and after the bulk of the subjects are done we'll still be continuing math and science over the summer.
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I give people a week, mostly because I may also need the courtesy. BUT, I want them to tell me up front and I want them to be prompt in communication. If after a week I get no tracking number and no reply to my inquiries, I would file.
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Try this one, The Stone of Destiny: Tales from Turkey. There's also The Hungry Coat, but it's much shorter. Beautiful illustrations, though.
OT: I have family in Turkey right now. The pictures they've taken are absolutely gorgeous. :)
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I will be. :)
By age group...
3-5yo:
Writing - no curriculum. Ferby colored pencils, Ikea/golf pencils, tweezers, eye-droppers, paintbrushes, table washing. Focus on learning proper grip with small instruments and learning counter-clockwise circles.
Reading - tactile letters, introducing one by one until sounds are learned, then introducing a mat with a large arrow on it - taking the best of the 100EZ lesson book and making it multi-sensorial. Fast/slow games, building words...
Math - different manipulatives that show relation and value, eventually building up to Decimal Street-type manipulatives that show place value up to the hundreds.
6yo:
Writing- D'nealian or cursive, using the same pencils. Copywork that corresponds to reading lessons.
Reading - easy readers
Language arts - Montessori parts-of-speech manipulatives, word tiles, other types of writing (poems, plays,..) and dictation.
Math - MUS Alpha/Beta alternate lessons
Social studies - world awareness, using Looking Down and building the pink tower into a hands on model (universe -> self), maybe something like Little Passports, too.
At 7, I'd continue with MUS, but switch to Moving Beyond The Page for Language Arts components and start science (BFSU) and history (SOTW)
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I'm in! For those doing it now, what are you up to?
Math: The wee'un (3yo) is interested in numbers/value right now but has moved through his spindle box. He's currently rotating through the brown stair, pink tower, MUS blocks, and c-rods. We don't keep beads in the house because he's my take-aparter. My next manipulative to make is the tens/teens boards, as he becomes more familiar with the names, i.e. two-tens-one = 21. It's amazing how much my language has changed between the oldest and the wee'un. With the oldest, I would say "this is..." With the 3yo, I now say "this counts..." to help him make sense of the different numbers.
Language arts: not much on the front here. He was interested in letters until he knew all the sounds, but the logic isn't developed enough to put them together and so he has quit for a while. I did find him matching a 3part card of 'cat' to the tactile letters we have, sort of. 'atc' LOL He's getting there, but I think it'll be quite a while before he gets interested in letters again like he was before.
Motor skills: I've tried to have a rotating set of activities for him to go through: playdough, bubbles, large and small nuts and bolts, paint....he likes the tools the most. This weekend I'm going downtown for some never-dry clay to fill up an old box. That way he can pound golf tees in with his little hammer.
Science - this month has been all about the bugs! We turned over stones to watch ants, he went to a butterfly house, we watch the birds picking at the grass every morning. We go camping in a week and I'm going to bet he'll have a blast.
Practical life: along with bugs comes plants, and the plants mean gardening! A small rake and shovel is perfect for little jobs, and his dump truck has become a wee wheelbarrow. My neighbor made a watering can for him out of a Downy bottle, too. We're also working on getting dressed all by ourselves. Some days are a yes, some days are still a no, but everything in his wardrobe this year is made for little fingers to do easily. He's also been learning little tricks, like laying his jacket on the ground upside-down so he could put his arms in and flip it over his head. I painted smiley faces on all his shoes - one eye and half a mouth on the instep of each one - so that he can see if they're on right or correct if they're not.
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Dh and I debated the same, and if it came down to it, we'd pick the cabins. They're quieter, there is more to do (trails, boating, horses, archery), there's a character meal on property, and we get a porch. AoA, while it has great theming, is louder, more kid-oriented, and less privacy.
We stayed at the Wilderness Lodge last time and it was wonderful. This time around, the cabins look to be our best bet if we go for a suite-like experience.
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They should be free to download. They are being used by public school teachers all over the country. No Stanford degree required. I haven't tried to download, as I am mobile.
They are. You have to make an account to get them, but they are free. Some of the lessons use Discovery Streaming as an enhancement but as we found out yesterday, that part is easily skipped and the lesson still works.
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Assign them.
Seriously. Make her read them, be challenged by them, and then not fear them.
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I started using student planning sheets at about that time. We'd sit down together, go over what he needed to accomplish that week according to my schedule, and have him write it down, planning it out day by day. There were blank spots at the bottom for extra work for him to accomplish on his own - research, long projects, etc. that needed more than one day (those also got a separate checklist, where he wrote down each step and when he expected it done by. I would then check the progress and he'd continue to the next step all the way through).
Middle schoolers are like toddlers. They need the hand holding.
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It doesn't make me not want to shop there.
For years I've been edged out of the clothing/shoe market. Sizes change to make bigger women feel better about wearing a smaller size. We're told how stick-thin isn't 'a real woman's body' and 'disgusting' and how there must be some eating disorder.
In 1950, I would have been a size 4, average height, with average sized feet. I have a real woman's body because I am a real woman. I'm tired of coming home from clothing stores in tears because nothing fits, or if it does, it's from Justice or another tween shop. My last shoe foray had the saleslady point me to the children's department. I'm NOT a child! I cannot even shop at our BX here, because the clothing sizes start too high. I'm not their market base. They don't stock clothes or shoes to fit me. And in the classic case of Jack Sprat, I married a man with the same issues....on the other side of the spectrum. I'm too small, he's too tall. There are thousands of labels we cannot buy: LL Bean, Land's End....and shoes! Oh my, even in Italy, shopping for a pair of high heels in my size is a challenge. My next pair will from Jimmy Choo - because I know they'll fit, and unless we have another flood, I'll get my money's worth out of them.
I'm not offended by exclusionary labels. Frustrated, yes. But you know, I'm damned happy when I find one where *I* am included.
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Thank you! I'm printing out the Chinese Exclusion lesson right now. :) It fits in perfectly with the California history unit my 14yo is doing!
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:confused1: I'm sitting here trying to figure out how you have a history class without much reading . . .
Probably the same way the honors class is conducted here. Students work on a year-long independent project within their time period, while at the same time learning how the civilization they picked interacted with and affected other civilizations that different students are studying. It's a fascinating class, the way the teacher does it. The kids are constantly researching and comparing notes. Ours here borrowed several jackdaws from me to supplement their catalog of primary sources they use.
Advice for long road trip/moving
in The Chat Board
Posted
Take the things you'll need immediately and/or would be more expensive to replace than drive down. We'll be taking a flight for our next move, but a rubbermaid tub will be sent ahead with sheets, a pot and a pan, set of measuring cups, and small toys (playdough, new coloring book, chalk..)
For our very long flight I'm planning to put together a backpack with
window clings
audio books
magnetic play set
an old digital camera
I spy bag, along with booklet of cards for each item
some logic puzzles for the oldest (sudoku, mice cards, etc.)
knitting mushroom
If we were driving, I'd add in
simple maps, with our stop offs highlighted
car bingo
maybe a pie tin set like these or busy bags
and snacks. Lots of snacks. When my oldest was little I used to get into a rhythm of every half hour snack OR toy, with a stop every 2.5 hours. At that point I'd collect up all containers and toys, refill and restock my bag, and continue the cycle after a nice break.