Chatterer the Red Squirrel (tree squirrel)
Timmy the Flying Squirrel
Striped Chipmunk (rock squirrel)
Rusty the Fox Squirrel
Johnny Chuck (part of the Marmot branch of the squirrel family)
Seek Seek the Spermophile (a ground squirrel)
Monday, January 26, 2009
Burgess Animal Book for Children: Chapter 4
Happy Jack the Grey Squirrel (tree squirrel)
Chatterer the Red Squirrel (tree squirrel)
Timmy the Flying Squirrel
Striped Chipmunk (rock squirrel)
Rusty the Fox Squirrel
Johnny Chuck (part of the Marmot branch of the squirrel family)
Seek Seek the Spermophile (a ground squirrel)
Chatterer the Red Squirrel (tree squirrel)
Timmy the Flying Squirrel
Striped Chipmunk (rock squirrel)
Rusty the Fox Squirrel
Johnny Chuck (part of the Marmot branch of the squirrel family)
Seek Seek the Spermophile (a ground squirrel)
Friday, January 23, 2009
Quite an accomplishment!
My precious kindergartener finished Math-u-See Primer this morning! I can't believe we're only half way through the school year and she's DONE with her math book! I've got some other things she can work on (Singapore Math) while we wait for her Alpha book to come in. I'm so proud of her, she totally excels in math. It's so interesting to see the differences among my own children, how they're SO different in their strengths and weaknesses. It really keeps me on my toes to adjust my teaching style to their specific needs.
We're going to dinner at a friends house this evening and we're going to bring something very cool I saw on another blog a while ago. It's called Broken Glass Jell-O. I've got all the ingredients, all we have to do is to do it. What a fun, rainy-day project!
We're going to dinner at a friends house this evening and we're going to bring something very cool I saw on another blog a while ago. It's called Broken Glass Jell-O. I've got all the ingredients, all we have to do is to do it. What a fun, rainy-day project!
TGIF!
Today we're reading from The Burgess Animal Book for Children, chapter 3 (More of Peter's Long-Legged Cousins). We learned about:
The Swamp Hare
Related to the Marsh Hare, another hare who loves the water. Who knew rabbits would swim?
The Arctic Hare
The White-Tailed Jack
The largest hare
The Antelope Jack
This guy has the ability to move his hair on his back and turn himself almost pure white in order to signal other antelope jack rabbits. Pretty cool!
The Plain ol' Jack Rabbit
Here's a site that tells The difference between a rabbit and a hare
The Swamp Hare
Related to the Marsh Hare, another hare who loves the water. Who knew rabbits would swim?
The Arctic Hare
The White-Tailed Jack
The largest hare
The Antelope Jack
This guy has the ability to move his hair on his back and turn himself almost pure white in order to signal other antelope jack rabbits. Pretty cool!
The Plain ol' Jack Rabbit
Here's a site that tells The difference between a rabbit and a hare
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Resources for the week (January22-23)
Brighty of the Grand Canyon
Wild Burros
Theodore Roosevelt Makes Grand Canyon a National Monument
Grand Canyon National Parks Website
Light and Color
In science this week we're learning about light and color (day 1 of creation). We did a couple of experiments in the past with shadows, but this week we learned more about color by watching The Magic School Bus Makes a Rainbow. I found this on VHS at my library, there is also a book that I'm assuming is very similar, and perhaps has more details to back up what was in the movie.
Clouds
Types of Clouds with experiments
More photos and descriptions of clouds
Wild Burros
Theodore Roosevelt Makes Grand Canyon a National Monument
Grand Canyon National Parks Website
Light and Color
In science this week we're learning about light and color (day 1 of creation). We did a couple of experiments in the past with shadows, but this week we learned more about color by watching The Magic School Bus Makes a Rainbow. I found this on VHS at my library, there is also a book that I'm assuming is very similar, and perhaps has more details to back up what was in the movie.
Clouds
Types of Clouds with experiments
More photos and descriptions of clouds
Our Current Curriculum--an overview
Math:
Math-u-see Primer (dd-A...although she's just about done with the primer--horray!)
Math-u-see Alpha (dd-S)
I also use worksheets I've printed from http://www.themathworksheetsite.com in order to drill the facts in. To me it's very important that my children have a firm grasp on math facts, it's the basis all other math is built upon, so right now we're working on getting those down pat.
Science:
I'm currently using 106 Days of Creation Studies from simplycharlottemason.com which covers science from the Creationist perspective and divides the studies among the 6 days of creation. It's full of bible study as well as fun projects.
We also use the Handbook of Nature Study by Anna Botsford Comstock. Along with this awesome resource and a must have for serious Nature Study enthusiasts is the website Handbook of Nature Study. I cannot recommend this website enough--and the author is from my hometown...how cool is that?
I find it very important for children to learn about animals--especially about the animals around them, so the Burgess Animal Book for Children is also invaluable. I'll expand more on this in future posts.
One website I came across that I really enjoyed and isn't necessarily Charlotte Mason (however I believe that Charlotte Mason is HOW you teach, not WHAT you teach or WHAT you teach FROM--I have a science background, so this set appeals to me) Real Science 4 Kids.
There are many other science resources I utilize, but for now this is all I have time to list...I plan to start a book list of everything I use as well as expand on daily or weekly experiments we'll be doing.
History:
Oh history. I despised history when I was in school...it was so dull, so blad, so intangible. Boy have I changed my tune. Learning history using the Charlotte Mason method is SO MUCH BETTER!! We've read many living history books (ones I'll try to list later), but currently we're using Genesis through Deuteronomy & Ancient Egypt from simplycharlottemason.com. It starts from creation and moves on to Ancient Egypt. I have a hard time taking things out of context and although I have no problem with jumping from one time period to another while reading biographies or learning about specific events, I need a chronological overview of how we've gotten to where we are. I know most people start with a brief overview of the first humans and then jump into Ancient Egypt, but I like the way Genesis through Deuteronomy & Ancient Egypt utilizes the bible to teach history. We still haven't gotten to Egypt yet, but I do look forward to it because there are a LOT more resources out there once you get to that. One awesome book we've come across is Life in the Great Ice Age by Michael Oard. This book teaches about ancient man and the ice age from biblical perspective. Another great resource for the creationist is Answers in Genesis. I also came across the book Adam and His Kin: The Lost History of Their Lives and Times by Ruth Beechick. This book is fascinating! It speculates on what life may have been like in the days of the first humans, but it is definitely written for an older audience (probably middle school and above), but I'm reading it because it makes those days feel more tangible to me.
Geography:
I never learned much in the way of geography...and I'm almost ashamed to admit that I just RECENTLY learned the capitals of all of the U.S. states...but alas, I DID learn them, thanks to Audio Memory. We used the States and Capitals CD and we all learned the states and capitals in no time. I plan to use many more of their CD's in the future. I have to say though that we aren't thrilled with the Addition CD...it doesn't seem to work quite the same as the States and Capitals.
I just came across a USA Geography website that has games for drilling in the locations of states and other facts.
Math-u-see Primer (dd-A...although she's just about done with the primer--horray!)
Math-u-see Alpha (dd-S)
I also use worksheets I've printed from http://www.themathworksheetsite.com in order to drill the facts in. To me it's very important that my children have a firm grasp on math facts, it's the basis all other math is built upon, so right now we're working on getting those down pat.
Science:
I'm currently using 106 Days of Creation Studies from simplycharlottemason.com which covers science from the Creationist perspective and divides the studies among the 6 days of creation. It's full of bible study as well as fun projects.
We also use the Handbook of Nature Study by Anna Botsford Comstock. Along with this awesome resource and a must have for serious Nature Study enthusiasts is the website Handbook of Nature Study. I cannot recommend this website enough--and the author is from my hometown...how cool is that?
I find it very important for children to learn about animals--especially about the animals around them, so the Burgess Animal Book for Children is also invaluable. I'll expand more on this in future posts.
One website I came across that I really enjoyed and isn't necessarily Charlotte Mason (however I believe that Charlotte Mason is HOW you teach, not WHAT you teach or WHAT you teach FROM--I have a science background, so this set appeals to me) Real Science 4 Kids.
There are many other science resources I utilize, but for now this is all I have time to list...I plan to start a book list of everything I use as well as expand on daily or weekly experiments we'll be doing.
History:
Oh history. I despised history when I was in school...it was so dull, so blad, so intangible. Boy have I changed my tune. Learning history using the Charlotte Mason method is SO MUCH BETTER!! We've read many living history books (ones I'll try to list later), but currently we're using Genesis through Deuteronomy & Ancient Egypt from simplycharlottemason.com. It starts from creation and moves on to Ancient Egypt. I have a hard time taking things out of context and although I have no problem with jumping from one time period to another while reading biographies or learning about specific events, I need a chronological overview of how we've gotten to where we are. I know most people start with a brief overview of the first humans and then jump into Ancient Egypt, but I like the way Genesis through Deuteronomy & Ancient Egypt utilizes the bible to teach history. We still haven't gotten to Egypt yet, but I do look forward to it because there are a LOT more resources out there once you get to that. One awesome book we've come across is Life in the Great Ice Age by Michael Oard. This book teaches about ancient man and the ice age from biblical perspective. Another great resource for the creationist is Answers in Genesis. I also came across the book Adam and His Kin: The Lost History of Their Lives and Times by Ruth Beechick. This book is fascinating! It speculates on what life may have been like in the days of the first humans, but it is definitely written for an older audience (probably middle school and above), but I'm reading it because it makes those days feel more tangible to me.
Geography:
I never learned much in the way of geography...and I'm almost ashamed to admit that I just RECENTLY learned the capitals of all of the U.S. states...but alas, I DID learn them, thanks to Audio Memory. We used the States and Capitals CD and we all learned the states and capitals in no time. I plan to use many more of their CD's in the future. I have to say though that we aren't thrilled with the Addition CD...it doesn't seem to work quite the same as the States and Capitals.
I just came across a USA Geography website that has games for drilling in the locations of states and other facts.
The first post is always the most difficult.
I've debated whether to use my current homeschooling blog for this, or whether to start fresh here...I guess this is where I've landed.
I've been homeschooling my children for a year and a half now, they're in grades K and 1st. I've been very interested in Charlotte Mason's philosophy of education and truly feel it's the best fit for my family...although, like most homeschoolers, I do sometimes go out on my own to do what I deem appropriate for my family.
My goal here is to keep a listing of what we're learning and what we hope to learn, to outline our "schedule" not only for my benefit, but also for the benefit of other homeschoolers like myself who like to think outside the boxed curriculum. I've followed some curriculum outlines I see online, but generally I have picked and have chosen from what I deem the "best" of what I've seen and have compiled it into our own, custom Charlotte Mason education. I hope to share our lesson plans, details of what we're learning (maps, photos, etc.) in order to help anyone interested enrich their teaching experience! I hope to expand this to include many interesting resources and insights, but I tend to be crazy at times and do too much too fast, so I'm taking this one slowly, letting the Lord lead me and see what amazing things and people He leads me to.
I've been homeschooling my children for a year and a half now, they're in grades K and 1st. I've been very interested in Charlotte Mason's philosophy of education and truly feel it's the best fit for my family...although, like most homeschoolers, I do sometimes go out on my own to do what I deem appropriate for my family.
My goal here is to keep a listing of what we're learning and what we hope to learn, to outline our "schedule" not only for my benefit, but also for the benefit of other homeschoolers like myself who like to think outside the boxed curriculum. I've followed some curriculum outlines I see online, but generally I have picked and have chosen from what I deem the "best" of what I've seen and have compiled it into our own, custom Charlotte Mason education. I hope to share our lesson plans, details of what we're learning (maps, photos, etc.) in order to help anyone interested enrich their teaching experience! I hope to expand this to include many interesting resources and insights, but I tend to be crazy at times and do too much too fast, so I'm taking this one slowly, letting the Lord lead me and see what amazing things and people He leads me to.
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