I've been racking my brains trying to find ways to show my dd (6) Science. We've done really hard, we've done not so hard. We've done reading, we've tried hands on labs. I was completely lost, dd found it either too hard or too easy, I couldn't win.
Sign up for a pre-packaged science curriculum that takes us right down to the basics... Science at its simplest form - something I took for granted and we're reduced to looking through the eyes of a scientist.... measure, weigh, next up is temp .... why couldn't I do that?
We're loving our new science curriculum, it is on the computer but very hands on as we have instruments and tools that we use to carry out our measurements or activities... I love it! She loves it!
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Grade 1 Plan (at Jan 3/08)
Homeschooling is about learning what fits your family and your style... here is an update of the post I originally had on my other blog.
Well technically we started on August 13th but we're still fine tuning everything and making adjustments here and there for what we really want to do!
LANGUAGE ARTS
- Spectrum Reading (Grade 2)
- Spectrum Spelling (Grade 4)
- Creative Writing assignments from various topics at hand (mostly typed!)
- Penmanship various letters and thank-yous to family
- Baltimore Curriculum Literature
MATH
- Reader Rabbit Math (Grade 1) - completed Sept 26
- Spectrum Math (Grade 2) - started September 27 - almost complete
- McGrawHill Math (Grade 1&2) - started Jan 3 - *new*
- Various online computer games
HISTORY/GEOGRAPHY
-Story of the World I - Ancient History (Egypt, Greece, Rome)
-Baltimore Curriculum History and Geography Kindy/Grade 1 (online curriculum)
- K12 Grade 1 History *new*
SCIENCE/HEALTH
- various topics (including Brownie Try-Its and other subjects of interest)
- **K12 Grade 1 Science
LANGUAGES
- Sign Language at home
- Spanish at home
ARTS/CRAFTS/MUSIC
- various projects
- Baltimore Curriculum Art and Music
EXTRACURRICULAR
- Brownies
- will add more - maybe swimming
I will continue to update as we progress through this first year! :)
Well technically we started on August 13th but we're still fine tuning everything and making adjustments here and there for what we really want to do!
LANGUAGE ARTS
- Spectrum Reading (Grade 2)
- Spectrum Spelling (Grade 4)
- Creative Writing assignments from various topics at hand (mostly typed!)
- Penmanship various letters and thank-yous to family
- Baltimore Curriculum Literature
MATH
- Reader Rabbit Math (Grade 1) - completed Sept 26
- Spectrum Math (Grade 2) - started September 27 - almost complete
- McGrawHill Math (Grade 1&2) - started Jan 3 - *new*
- Various online computer games
HISTORY/GEOGRAPHY
-
-
- K12 Grade 1 History *new*
SCIENCE/HEALTH
- various topics (including Brownie Try-Its and other subjects of interest)
- **K12 Grade 1 Science
LANGUAGES
- Sign Language at home
- Spanish at home
ARTS/CRAFTS/MUSIC
- various projects
- Baltimore Curriculum Art and Music
EXTRACURRICULAR
- Brownies
- will add more - maybe swimming
I will continue to update as we progress through this first year! :)
K12 Science
Not confident in my abilities to pull stuff off the internet or out of books, we decided to try K12 but only one subject on a trial basis ... we opted to do science as that is the area I was having the most trouble teaching. My problem, dd is a very bookish kid, she reads a story or book and absorbs about 75-90 percent of what she reads over a couple days - you know takes it in processes it and then can regurgitate some of the info. While good it becomes hard for me to tailor assignments down to her level without pushing her too hard and then bring in the labs. For my addled brain at the moment it is easier to let someone else do the legwork and difficult stuff. Today I'm willing to admit defeat in that area.
I'm liking the setup of the K-12 stuff, granted we've done one lesson. I loved science as a kid but haven't the foggiest notion how to make it fun for her.
With that in mind one of our assignments later this week requires marbles... whodda thunk that marbles would be so hard to find. We ended up with some fancy ones from the Michaels.
I'm liking the setup of the K-12 stuff, granted we've done one lesson. I loved science as a kid but haven't the foggiest notion how to make it fun for her.
With that in mind one of our assignments later this week requires marbles... whodda thunk that marbles would be so hard to find. We ended up with some fancy ones from the Michaels.
Friday, November 16, 2007
Totally Unplanned!
Its funny how the mind works... where some would take a walk, with a little thought we covered quite a few subjects in 2 hours outside.
How we covered many subjects with just a brown paper bag to get us started! LOL!
Here is our day!
I awoke this morning with grand plans formulated in my head! After reading another blog last night, we were going to put together a big map of South America (9 pages), since that is where our geography lessons are taking my 6 yr old this week. We were going to read some on the web about the Andes Mountain range, and the Amazon river, we would do the usual Math on Turkey Printouts, we would wait for our new Science curriculum to arrive so we could look it over before starting it in 10 days, we would compare Lon Po Po to Little Red Riding hood, we might read a poem The Swing, and she would write a letter to her cousin whom we met for the first time 2 weeks ago!.... you get the picture... grand plans.
I solemnly declare my house a disaster. 2 feet in the door, my dd children (6.5 and almost 2) have pulled all the pillows off the couch and made a big multicoloured bed...(using their blankets.) The kitchen a disaster because DH "forgot" to clean it - it was our deal last night! LOL! Who wants to deal with a disaster area??? Not me,
not today! 0:) (best angel look!) The table covered in yesterday's leaves after our shortened trip to our community park because older dd got cold... (she refused to put on the coat I told her to wear, she didn't believe it was cold! LOL!)
So here we start, "Mum, can we make a robotic hornet?" dd asked
"Sure give me one sec and I'll open it and help you...."
but she was off to the next brainwave, I should have just opened it and watched her do it then and there.
"Mum can we go to the park today?" she asked 1/2 hr later.
"Sure in a bit. Can you get some socks, and a jacket while I finish what I'm doing?"
My brain got working....
Brown paper bag - for collecting stuff.
Warm coats because it is chilly.
Mitts for the little one because she won't put her hands in her sleeves like the big one.
Off we go walking to the park, its about a mile / without stroller. Brave with a not quite 2 yr old but hey! I apparently left my brain in bed this morning! LOL!
At 11am we finally head out. On the doorstep I tell dds they are to find fall. Collect at least 5 things that remind you of fall... you can have more but 5 is the minimum. Off we go. Walking, talking, collecting. Totally not fall topics but hey. They find Southern Magnolia leaves which have intrigued my dh since we moved here 10 yrs ago. The little one finds one almost 2 feet long matching her 2.5 ft ... (easy) so it becomes a challenge for the older one to find one as tall as her, a bigger challenge than it seems... we start off with 3 leaves equaling her height (math, I like this!). We quickly cut it down to 2 as we find a particularly long leaf. We made it to 1 really long leaf and 1 really short leaf... (so we did fall Math!) But came
home with all the big ones! LOL! (call it community service! he he!)
We saw some purple leaves on a young maple sapling... Some leaves hadn't changed yet from green... there were no purple leaves around the tree but there were some red ones and some that had turned red but not fallen.... from this we deduced that the leaves on this maple tree go from green to purple to a brillant red before falling to the ground. (woohoo a fall science lesson.)
We climbed the stairs where dd came across a yellow jacket. Freaked her out - she's not keen on bugs! LOL! We talked about the yellow jackets as scavengers and cleaners! We got to the lake (its an earthen dam lake.) It was full of leaves (it was windy yesterday.) We discussed how the leaves fall into the water and decay there, feed the
fish and how nature cleans up her own (using the Mother Earth image) garbage, and could we find other examples of such! (More fall Science) We also discussed the leaves on the ground as fertilizer or enrichment for the soil.
We met a dog, and discussed its origins. It looked slightly like a coyote but it was black and rather plump for a coyote. (had tags and electronic fence collar thingy) In the right light it looked like a wolf (but again it was black! LOL!) Discussed why we don't pet strange dogs. Discussed why the dog would charge up in front and then run
behind us in circles... herding. So it must have been a shepherd type dog... discussed our neighbour's Australian Sheep dog... and how she does that too! LOL! (more science) and how their nature is to herd. (little one learned to distinguish between hurting and herding! LOL!)
Got to the park where the girls pretended they were on a boat.... older dd underneath became the spinning motor for the boat, while little one was up driving it! LOL! Pirate!
Decided to leave the park for lunch where we had a wonderful Southwest meal because Southwest food and decor reminds me of fall! LOL! Where dd got to practice the little bit of Spanish she is comfortable with! (mental note, need a spanish curriculum! - I learned French so this will be a new venture for us! LOL!) (Spanish and Social Studies covered!)
A quick trip to the Grocery store yields a home ec. class, and we'll be baking cookies in a bit - still in our fall colours theme courtesy of Pilsbury - but we will write up a receipt for fall colour chocochip cookies for next time. Dinner, homemade burritos... maybe dd can help cook that.
We read a poem "The Swing" by Stevenson, when we got home... (ha Literature - Poetry.) She is going to write her own poem or story (creative writing!) And she needs to write that letter to her cousin so we can get our packages in the mail tomorrow...
And we still have to figure out what to do with our collected goods... they did fill that bag... it almost didn't make it home... it tore - good job we stopped at the grocery store! LOL!
All in all a good day! LOL!
And I thought we just blew off a homeschool day!
How we covered many subjects with just a brown paper bag to get us started! LOL!
Here is our day!
I awoke this morning with grand plans formulated in my head! After reading another blog last night, we were going to put together a big map of South America (9 pages), since that is where our geography lessons are taking my 6 yr old this week. We were going to read some on the web about the Andes Mountain range, and the Amazon river, we would do the usual Math on Turkey Printouts, we would wait for our new Science curriculum to arrive so we could look it over before starting it in 10 days, we would compare Lon Po Po to Little Red Riding hood, we might read a poem The Swing, and she would write a letter to her cousin whom we met for the first time 2 weeks ago!.... you get the picture... grand plans.
I solemnly declare my house a disaster. 2 feet in the door, my dd children (6.5 and almost 2) have pulled all the pillows off the couch and made a big multicoloured bed...(using their blankets.) The kitchen a disaster because DH "forgot" to clean it - it was our deal last night! LOL! Who wants to deal with a disaster area??? Not me,
not today! 0:) (best angel look!) The table covered in yesterday's leaves after our shortened trip to our community park because older dd got cold... (she refused to put on the coat I told her to wear, she didn't believe it was cold! LOL!)
So here we start, "Mum, can we make a robotic hornet?" dd asked
"Sure give me one sec and I'll open it and help you...."
but she was off to the next brainwave, I should have just opened it and watched her do it then and there.
"Mum can we go to the park today?" she asked 1/2 hr later.
"Sure in a bit. Can you get some socks, and a jacket while I finish what I'm doing?"
My brain got working....
Brown paper bag - for collecting stuff.
Warm coats because it is chilly.
Mitts for the little one because she won't put her hands in her sleeves like the big one.
Off we go walking to the park, its about a mile / without stroller. Brave with a not quite 2 yr old but hey! I apparently left my brain in bed this morning! LOL!
At 11am we finally head out. On the doorstep I tell dds they are to find fall. Collect at least 5 things that remind you of fall... you can have more but 5 is the minimum. Off we go. Walking, talking, collecting. Totally not fall topics but hey. They find Southern Magnolia leaves which have intrigued my dh since we moved here 10 yrs ago. The little one finds one almost 2 feet long matching her 2.5 ft ... (easy) so it becomes a challenge for the older one to find one as tall as her, a bigger challenge than it seems... we start off with 3 leaves equaling her height (math, I like this!). We quickly cut it down to 2 as we find a particularly long leaf. We made it to 1 really long leaf and 1 really short leaf... (so we did fall Math!) But came
home with all the big ones! LOL! (call it community service! he he!)
We saw some purple leaves on a young maple sapling... Some leaves hadn't changed yet from green... there were no purple leaves around the tree but there were some red ones and some that had turned red but not fallen.... from this we deduced that the leaves on this maple tree go from green to purple to a brillant red before falling to the ground. (woohoo a fall science lesson.)
We climbed the stairs where dd came across a yellow jacket. Freaked her out - she's not keen on bugs! LOL! We talked about the yellow jackets as scavengers and cleaners! We got to the lake (its an earthen dam lake.) It was full of leaves (it was windy yesterday.) We discussed how the leaves fall into the water and decay there, feed the
fish and how nature cleans up her own (using the Mother Earth image) garbage, and could we find other examples of such! (More fall Science) We also discussed the leaves on the ground as fertilizer or enrichment for the soil.
We met a dog, and discussed its origins. It looked slightly like a coyote but it was black and rather plump for a coyote. (had tags and electronic fence collar thingy) In the right light it looked like a wolf (but again it was black! LOL!) Discussed why we don't pet strange dogs. Discussed why the dog would charge up in front and then run
behind us in circles... herding. So it must have been a shepherd type dog... discussed our neighbour's Australian Sheep dog... and how she does that too! LOL! (more science) and how their nature is to herd. (little one learned to distinguish between hurting and herding! LOL!)
Got to the park where the girls pretended they were on a boat.... older dd underneath became the spinning motor for the boat, while little one was up driving it! LOL! Pirate!
Decided to leave the park for lunch where we had a wonderful Southwest meal because Southwest food and decor reminds me of fall! LOL! Where dd got to practice the little bit of Spanish she is comfortable with! (mental note, need a spanish curriculum! - I learned French so this will be a new venture for us! LOL!) (Spanish and Social Studies covered!)
A quick trip to the Grocery store yields a home ec. class, and we'll be baking cookies in a bit - still in our fall colours theme courtesy of Pilsbury - but we will write up a receipt for fall colour chocochip cookies for next time. Dinner, homemade burritos... maybe dd can help cook that.
We read a poem "The Swing" by Stevenson, when we got home... (ha Literature - Poetry.) She is going to write her own poem or story (creative writing!) And she needs to write that letter to her cousin so we can get our packages in the mail tomorrow...
And we still have to figure out what to do with our collected goods... they did fill that bag... it almost didn't make it home... it tore - good job we stopped at the grocery store! LOL!
All in all a good day! LOL!
And I thought we just blew off a homeschool day!
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