Transitioning into Independence

As a mom your kids rely on you for everything. As a homeschool mom there is even more on top of your "Mom pile" of work. Not only do you get them fed and ready for the day, but you also school them, you are the major source of their moral upbringing, and your attitude directly influences them for the bulk of their days. 

Beginning homeschooling with little ones, we manage everything. The clothes they wear, the books they read, the food they eat, their sleep patterns (if they sleep), and what they learn. As they get older and start to flex their wings, we have to step back. If they don't learn to stand on their own they will never walk, right? Fast forward a few more years and you are still a mom that schedules their lessons and activities, reminds them about due dates for co-op, and other outside obligations. When do you stop doing all of that for them? How do you stop yourself from coming in and saving the day?

My son is now in 7th grade and we are moving toward independence. I know it will be a long road, but I am hopeful that by the end of 7th grade, he will be scheduling completely independent of me. Home subjects and co-op classes may still require that he meet with me for lectures or clarification, but I won't be hand holding him through things. 

The first step on this road is scheduling. I have always organized all of our work into days and told the kids their assignments as we go. I have tried to post this on the board and let them pick through the day. I have created Evernote notes with their assignments in checklist form. I have written out all of their assignments in a planner for them. The point is, previously, I have done all of the scheduling. 

Last week I wrote out all of my son's assignments in a planner. I organized the lessons by day and he highlighted them as he finished. 

Last week.

I did this for this week also. Yesterday, was not a very successful day for him. He decided to sleep in and then take a huge "break" between lessons. He didn't finish his work until 7:45 pm. His dad did not let him go to scouts because he wasn't finished. That was his consequence. Hopefully, he learned from that. 

This week.

For next week he is getting a list of all of his assignments with due dates. He has two due dates. The first, is for co-op stuff he has to finish before class. The second, is for regular work I require. I will help him with this if he asks me. I am definitely going to check that all of the co-op work is scheduled before class, but the rest will be up to him. 

Due Date: 

Tuesday, October 13

Sunday, October 18

Week 14

Science

Complete Ch. 6.3 Test

Review all Ch. 6 notes

Write about Gallium's compounds formed

Write about Gallium's fun or interesting facts

Review flashcards

Organize your paragraphs into an outline

Write your rough draft in Writewell. Print to edit.

Math

Area of 2D flipbook 1 & 2 & 3 & 4

Lesson 27 (Do: 1,4,5,9,11,13,14,19,27)

History

Write your rough draft in Writewell. Print to edit.

Write your final

Read Ch. 21-28

Pick your topic

Write your topic sentence and questions

Read rest of Colonial Times

Research your questions (use notecards)

Write your outline

Art

Unit 5, Lesson 2

Look at Van Gogh's art (pick a favorite and add it to your Evernote with the title)

Spanish

2 - Practice Duolingo

Review Worksheets

2 - Watch videos 6-9

2 - Estar cards

Classics

Holes to @pg 120

I am interested to see if he schedules himself all of the work for individual classes together on one day or spreads each subject out. Who wants to do four math lessons in one day? I don't know, maybe he will. I can pretty much guarantee that will only happen once, if it happens at all. 


How are you helping your kids to schedule themselves? How is it working?

Happy Homeschooling
-Michele

Our Current Schedule

Our schedule seems to morph throughout the year into somewhat of a monster. I have a tendency to keep adding to it until the kids and I rebel against it. I feel a certain amount of pressure to keep the kids ahead of where their public school peers would be and find it difficult to scale back. The kids would probably do just fine with days filled with reading according to their interests and generally following an unschool approach, but I just can't do it. I am an unfit unschooler. I NEED my lists and schedule to check off. I NEED them to systematically go through their Saxon books. Perhaps these are very selfish needs, but without them I don't "know" where the kids are academically and that makes me crazy. Not only me, but when their father asks, where they are in terms of grade level, it would be impossible to answer. So, the kids are stuck with me and the way I map out our homeschool journey. Anyway...enough introspection. I have come up with a form based on one I saw online somewhere. Here is a blank version if you want it.

This schedule is for next week. I have a fourth and sixth grader. I start at the top and work our way down. I have the lessons listed in order of importance (to me!). 

Math - Monday-Wednesday, the kids both work in their Saxon books. They read the lessons and do the lesson practice only. They also work on multiplication coloring sheets. I found a creeper from Minecraft and a Pokemon. On Thursday, the kids work on Saxon again, but this time they do the lesson practice and evens or odds of the mixed practice on one lesson. This way they are getting the review of the last chapters without all of the (for my kids) unnecessary repetition. Friday, the kids do Timez Attack, a free game.

LA (Language Arts)- Monday-Wednesday, the kids read a McGuffey Reader lesson EXACTLY. I have found that they will skip over words or mispronounce something, so I read it with them. If they make a mistake, I have them read that sentence again. After they have read it, I have them write the lesson (or half of it) as copywork. They do the next half the following day and read the selection again. Alex will work through the lessons on Daily Grammar and I work with Sidney through First Language Lessons, which Alex joins us. After that I make up a sentence or two for them to write in cursive. Thursday, the kids write an original compostion on anything they like. I sometimes need to give my boy prompts, but my girl never runs out of stories. Friday, the kids turn in the final draft of their composition. We do not do Daily Grammar, FLL, or cursive on Thursdays or Fridays. 

Read(ing)- Monday-Thursday, I read aloud. This is the "L" on the schedule for Listen. The kids then read aloud, "A" on the schedule. We are going through What Your Sixth Grader Needs to Know. This week I am reading, "Oliver Twist" and "The Secret Garden". The kids are taking turns reading the poems and speeches aloud. This week Alex is reading, "A Song of Greatness" and "The Road Not Taken". Sidney will read, "A Psalm of Life" and "Life E'vry Voice and Sing". The kids then read silently, "S". Alex is currently reading "Hatchet" and Sidney is reading "Eloise". Friday, the kids work on vocabulary.

Art- We are taking an art history class that has a lot of reading. Monday-Thursday, we do the reading and Friday we work on an art project. 

Hist(ory)- We are working through Story of the World, volume 2. You can see my other posts about this. 

Unit (study)- This is where science comes in. We are going to finish Earth science this year and then the kids want to do more random unit studies. Sidney wants to focus on animals and Alex wants more experiments and chemistry. 

Other- Typing and Seterra (geography game) twice a week. Spanish, 3x a week, and Latin 2x a week. 

Happy Homeschooling!

-Michele

p.s. "Proud Mommy Moment"

I have used a simple reading test for the kids since they started reading. The kids both took it this week. Alex is reading at almost 9th grade level and Sidney is reading at an 8th grade level! So proud of both of them. 

The Diaspora

The Diaspora

(Story of the World, Volume 2, Chapter 20)

1. Listen to the audio book selection or read Story of the World text.

2. Watch : The History of Israel in Five Minutes
3. Write in your notebook.

4. Timeline:

70 Temple in Jerusalem destroyed by Rome

1290 Jews are expelled from England

1306 Jews are expelled from France

 

Happy Homeschooling!

Michele

Knights and Samurai

Knights and Samurai

(Story of the World, Volume 2, Chapter 17)

The English Code of Chivalry

1. Listen to the audio book selection or read pages 152 - 155, from the Story of the World book. 

2. Watch : Chivalry , I'm a Knight Lego from Horrible Histories, and How to Shoot an English Longbow
3. Write the first page of your notebook.

4. NO timeline entries for this chapter.

5. Design your shield. 

The Samurai: Japanese Knights

1. Read pages 155- 159, from the Story of the World book.

2. Read pages 270-271, "Land of the Samurai", from The Usborne Internet-Linked Encyclopedia of World History

3. Finish your notebook. 

4. Watch/Listen to this presentation of medieval Japanese music and a short video on the Japanese Bow.

Happy Homeschooling!

Michele

England After the Conquest

England After the Conquest

(Story of the World, Volume 2, Chapter 16)

The English Language

1. Listen to the audio book selection or read pages 140 - 144, "The English Language", from the Story of the World book. 

2. Watch : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9Tfbeqyu2U

3. Set up your notebook.

4. NO timeline entries for this chapter.

5. Fill out the map.

Serfs and Noblemen

1. Read pages 144 - 147, "Serfs and Nobleman", from the Story of the World book.

2. Read page 220, "The Feudal System", from The Usborne Internet-Linked Encyclopedia of World History

3. Fill out the Feudalism mini book and copywork in your notebook. 

4. Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCPp7XWZfHo

Stone Castles

1. Read pages 147 - 151, "Stone Castles", from the Story of the World book. 

2. Read pages 224 - 225, "Living in a Castle, from The Usborne Internet-Linked Encyclopedia of World History

3. Complete Castle coloring page. http://images.scholastic.co.uk/assets/a/09/71/lt9111151-sip-13-468550.jpg

Harvesting and winnowing.

Review

1. Watch Castle by David Macaulay. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGbPShUpjpg

2. Look through Eyewitness Books, "Castle". Add any interesting items to your notebook. Use Google to research further. Fill in your notebook with your findings.

I chose to look up falconry and the medieval farming year which led me to winnowing. This really gave me an understanding of how hard it was just to stay alive in the middle ages!

Happy Homeschooling!

Michele

Jan van Eyck Inspired Triptych

Jan van Eyck Inspired Triptych

A friend of mine is teaching an Art History course using a pretty in depth book as the spine. I read the biography from the book and the kids eyes glaze a bit. I have incorporated a few Youtube videos to reinforce anything that leaks out of their brains while I'm reading.

This artist was a MAJOR deal. He turned the art world on it's ear. The difference in earlier paintings and his is incredible. I really loved the music in this video showing many pieces of art by Jan van Eyck. This video has a great visual of the size of the triptyck by van Eyck. If you can spare an hour the whole episode is really great to watch.

Here is my video on how to make the triptychs. It is just a very quick run down. Sorry about the lighting.

Sidney's, of course, is Pokemon!

Alex's was a pixelated chicken. I need to post that pic as well!!

Happy Homeschooling

-Michele 

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Working on Dialog

I thought I would share a video of my son reading his writing assignment for the day. He was supposed to use dialog. The pauses are for "dramatic effect". Just in case you can't understand it: It is about a man that sees another man with a goatee. The goatee reminds the first man of a scarf a girl he knew wore. He asks the man with the goatee for a piece! and....did you catch where he said black and white movie from the 80's!!!! lol

Happy Homeschooling

-Michele

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Grandparent's Day

This weekend is Grandparent's Day. I have not be consistent with celebrating this with my kids. I love the idea though! This year we are going to do something for the beloved grandparents in my kids lives. My kids are beyond the handprint paintings and toilet paper tube projects. It was tough to find ideas that were geared to older kids. I was able to find a few gems in the mix though.

Questionaire

Etsy
This was sold already by the artist, but it is a cute idea!

Cards

this is such a great idea. I have several pictures of all the grandchildren together that would be great for this!

Happy Homeschooling!
-Michele
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Egg Tempera Painting Like Giotto

A friend of mine is teaching an Art History course using a pretty in depth book as the spine. I read the biography from the book and the kids eyes glaze a bit. I have incorporated a few Youtube videos to reinforce anything that leaks out of their brains while I'm reading. 

Today we learned about Giotto. A project suggested by the teacher, was to paint using egg tempera paints. This was the medium used at the time of Giotto. So, I used trusty old Google to help me with a recipe. 

One thing I learned while sifting through recipes is that the egg will start to stink. I don't know why this did not occur to me on my own. Anyway, my solution was to use Ener-G Egg Replacer as a substitute for the egg yolk. I did break a real egg to show the kids how it was done the-old-fashioned-way. We even released the yolk from the membrane so that the color would stick better. It was very cool. Then we mixed up the recipe for the paint and were ready to start our masterpieces. 

The recipe

sidewalk chalk

egg replacer

water

*rub the chalk back and forth in a glass bowl to produce powder. Add mixed egg replacer/water to the chalk. Pour into egg carton. Repeat with other colors. 

The kids of course did not want to draw out what they were going to paint before taking brush to page. Not being a naturally talented artist myself, I used pencil first. We talked about how much time it would take to not only make the paints, but to keep going over the painting to make the colors vivid. We also discussed apprentices and the role they played in supporting the masters as they painted.

My son didn't know that the paintings would be shared with his class, or he said he would have spent more time on it. He did not however, want to do another one. 

My daughter's painting of her and I. 

My frog on a lily pad. 

I am so glad that my friend offered this class. I would not "do" art on my own, but I do see a great deal of value in it. My kids love to draw and are actually very good (when they take their time). I am  enjoying the activities more than I thought I would. 

Happy Homeschooling

-Michele

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September Fun Stuff

There are national "days, weeks, and months" for almost anything. Those that are absolutely inspirational and others that are not so much. Did you know that September 5th was National Be Late for Something Day? Yes, really.

Here is our list of some of the one from a long list that we are going to explore and how I plan on implementing them. I hope you will join us! - Michele

September Fun Days

September is National Courtesy Month
*We will be watching, "Time For Table Manners", a Disney Educational film. My kids already are pretty good at please, thank you, and basic manners. Their table manners could use some work though. This one is kind of fun too.

September 1st - Labor Day
"Why do Americans and Canadians celebrate Labor Day?"

September 7th - Grandparent's Day
The kids will be making cards and we will pick up a few small items to put in a basket for each set of grandparents. I love this goofy photo album idea. 

September 12th - National Video Game Day
History of Video Games followed by some Minecraft!

September 13th - Roald Dahl and Kids Take Over the Kitchen Day
I'm thinking of having the kids make a Roald Dahl inspired dinner. I think that they could use the Three Course Gum from Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory. Anyone up for some Tomato Soup, Roast Beef & Baked Potato, and Blueberry Pie and Ice Cream. 

September 17th - Constitution and Citizenship Day
I plan on letting the kids explore this page founded by Sandra Day O'Conner. 

September 21st - Wife Appreciation Day
I think I will switch this up a bit and throw in a love note to my hubby and kids. 

September 23rd - National Great American Pot Pie Day
For the PKUer in the family, I think I will us this recipe with modifications: 
Veggie Pot Pie
160gm potatoes cut into small cubes
50 gm onion, chopped
75 gm carrots, sliced
25 gm celery, sliced
1 can of swansons Vegetarian Vegetable broth
1/2 cup of non dairy creamer
1.5 tbsp butter divided
1 tbsp cornstarch
1/4 tsp. sage
Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust dough ( the kind you can unroll)

Boil cubes of potatoes in veggie broth until soft, about 10 mins. Meanwhile saute onions, carrots and celery in 1/2 butter until barely tender, about 5 mins.Drain potatoes, reserve 1/2 cup broth in seperate cup. MAke a white sauce by adding melted butter, and cornstarch and whisking until smooth.Slowly add cream and veggie broth and simmer until thickeneds. Add sauteed veggies and potatoes into while sauce, along sage, and salt and pepper, if desired. Fill 2 small (4oz) aluminum pot pie tins with mixture (about 235 gms in each).Then top each pot pie with 28 gms of pie dough. Bake in oven @ 400 degree for 15 - 20 mins.

Total phe: 324
Phe pre gram: 61

and this for the dough

Pot Pie Dough

1 1/2 cups Wheat Starch

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup Butter flavored Crisco

1 tablespoon water

2 1/2 tablespoons light Karo corn syrup

Combine wheat starch and salt in a mixing bowl. Cut in shortening with a pastry blender, fork, or 2 knives, until mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs; sprinkle water over and blend with a fork. Dribble syrup over and continue mixing with a fork. Dough will be moist. Gather dough into a ball, adding wheat starch to your hands if sticky. toll out onto surface dusted with wheat starch, or pat out into desired shape.

Makes enough dough for one of the following:

10 pot pies

8 small turnovers

4 large turnovers

four 4-inch diameter pie pans

                                

               Phenylalanine (mg)  Protein (gm)        Calories

Per recipe          29             0.5                     1696

Per pot pie          3              -                      170

Per small turnover   4             0.1                     212

Per large turnover

or 4-inch pie pan    7             0.1                     424

For the rest of us a Super Easy recipe is just what I was looking for.

September 25th - National Comic Book Day
We are kind of a nerdy family, so a trip to the comic book store is in order. I am also planning on sending my nephews and niece a few through the mail. I was also thinking about making these

haha, my skill level is no where near that! This would be great for my hubby's birthday day though. 

September 26th - National Pancake Day
Also know as, Teach the Kids to Make Their Own Pancakes Day! ;o)

September 27th - National Hunting and Fishing Day
We will be taking a trip to the National Wildlife Museum for an event specifically designed for this day. 

September 28th - National Good Neighbor Day
I think we will just be taking some cookies to our neighbors. I really want to try Loaded M&M Oreo Cookie Bars. Doesn't that sound delicious? I will need to work out an low protein version for my PKUer. Maybe gluten free fake oreos and less of the M&Ms, or a few M&Ms and butterscotch chips? 

Whatever you do don't do this!

September 29th - National Coffee Day
A trip to Starbucks would be fun, but my daughter would not be able to have anything. So, we are attempting to make them at home. She wanted to try a Cotton Candy Frappuccino, my son wanted a Coffee Frappuccino, and I love the White Chocolate Mocha Frappuccino. I will need to figure out how to make these at home. I will post the recipe when I work out the details.

September 30th - National Chewing Gum Day, National Mud Pack Day
While chewing some Bubble Yum (PKU safe), we will apply our masks. I am going to try to find this one at the drugstore. Maybe we will even do some cucumbers over our eyes. 

Don't forget to check me out on Facebook!-Michele

The Medieval Indian Empire

Story of the World

 Volume 2, Chapter 5

The Medieval Indian Empire

Day 1
Listen to Chapter 5 by Jim Weiss.
Cut out Ajanta Caves booklet from lapbook pages.
Write two narrations from the SOTW Activity Guide.

Day 2
Watch : India Gupta Empire
Add "Ajanta Caves deserted" on timeline (550 ad)

Day 3
Read, Mohammed.
Watch, The Life of Muhammad.
Write a summary in the notebook and add him to the timeline.
Map and worksheets.

Advanced 5th Grade Homeschool Curriculum

My husband and I love the BASIS Charter School's standard of excellent teaching and results. We have always said that if the kids went to school it would most likely be there. Although I am not ready to send my upcoming 5th grader to BASIS, I did wonder if I could give him the same types of programs and education at home. Transition to school would be so much easier if you were already using and learning the same stuff, right?

So, after much digging, planning, and researching, I have come up with our 5th grade plan. For the upcoming year, we will be switching to a "loop" schedule. Basically, we will be studying Math, Grammar, Spelling, and Writing in our first 2 hour block and then the "loop" for the next 2 hour block. After trying out the loop for a few weeks, I have seen some great things and some pit falls. I really like that we get to everything on our list to do, every week! It is hard to get to more than 1-2 loop activities if there are interruptions. For the loop schedule, you have a list of activities you would like to complete each week. You start at the top on your first day of the week you homeschool and work through the list for your specified amount of time. The next day you pick up where you left off, and so on through the week. Sometimes you can get to some subjects more than once a week. 

In 5th grade, I will be asking Optimus to do much more independent work and writing. He is of the age now that it's time to increase the work load. I need to devote more time to my 3rd grader and give him some more independence.

Optimus' 5th Grade Curriculum Schedule

EVERYDAY:

Math, Saxon Math

Grammar, Saxon Grammar and Writing Grade 5 (we won't be using the writing sections)

Writing, Writing with Skill

Spelling, All About Spelling

Required Reading

LOOP (2 hours a day):

Science, Glencoe Science Level Red (followed by Holt Science & Technology: Astronomy and Focus On Middle School Chemistry, Gravitas Publishing with Elements: A Visual Exploration of Every Known Atom in the Universe)
Letter Writing
Geography, Geography Book: Activities for Exploring, Mapping, and Enjoying Your World and Geography Coloring Book
Oral Reading, Words That Built a Nation (followed by The World’s Greatest Speeches and George Washington’s Rules of Civility and Poems of American Patriotism by Brander Matthews)
Math Supplement, math facts or Sudoku
Vocabulary, Vocabulary from Classical Roots A (followed by B)
Read Aloud, for me to read to him
 Book List

1. Arabian Nights
2. Black Ships Before Troy: The Story of the Iliad by Rosemary Sutcliff
3. Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes
4. Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle
5. Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
6. Classics for Young Readers, Vol 5A and 5B
7. American Tall Tales by Adrien Stoutenburg
8. Paddle to the Sea by Holling Clancy Holling
9. Bard of Avon: The Story of William Shakespeare
10. My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George
11. The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkein
12. Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell
13. Ben and Me by Robert Lawson
14. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne
15. Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle
16. War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells

Latin, Prima Latina (followed by Latina Christina)
Art, Artistic Pursuits Grades 4-6 Book 1 (followed by Book 2)
World History, Human Odyssey Vol. 1, Prehistory Through the Middle Ages
Music, Peter and the Wolf (followed by Disney’s Fantasia and The Magic Flute, by Mozart and Boccherini - Minuet, Mozart - Symphony No. 40, Beethoven - Symphony No. 5 Mvt. 1, Beethoven - Symphony No. 9, Schubuert - Unfinished Symphony, Schubert - Trout Quintet, Schumann - The Happy Farmer, Brahms - Lullaby, Souza - Stars and Stripes Forever, Tchaikovsky - The Nutcracker Story and Music, Tchaikovsky - The Nutcracker Overature, Tchaikovsky - The Nutcracker March of the Toy Soldiers - Beethoven - Moonlight Sonata, Gounod - Funeral March of a Marionette, Strauss - Blue Danube Waltz, Vivaldi - Autumn of The Four Seasons, Vivaldi - Winter fro tThe Four Seasons, Dvorak - Humoresque, Bach - Orchestral Suite, No. 1 Bouree, Bach - Minuet in G, Mozart - Piano Sonata in C, Beethoven - Fur Elise, Beethoven - Turkish March from The Ruins of Athens, Schubert - Serenade, Mendelssohn - Spring Song, Chopin - Fantasie Impromptu, Debussy - Reverie, Stravinsky - Petrouchka, Brahms - Symphony No. 1 Mvt. 4, Tchaikovsky - Sleeping Beauty
Logic, Logic Liftoff (followed by Orbiting With Logic and then The Art of Argument)
Science Read Aloud, Aristotle Leads the Way
Spanish, Mango with Youtube
Poetry Memorization
American History, The Story of US
Cursive, Cursive Writing Practice Jokes and Riddles with CWP Inspirational Quotes
Handicraft (sewing/cooking or carpentry/survival skills or Scout activity)

There you have it. I'll post an update on how things are going with this in a few months.

Happy Homeschooling
-Michele