Kindergarten, Week 26

     In a previous post I mentioned that I was taking a look at curriculum for the Fall and that I would likely go with Sonlight again.  I was wrong.  After taking a look at the Classical Conversations Cycle 3 schedule, I decided to create my own curriculum.  Next year's CC cycle will cover subjects and facts that my daughter could learn with hands on projects, art, notebooking, reading and copywork, thus I'm coming up with my own curriculum, purchasing just a few items.  I have most of it selected and am now just waiting to attend at least one homeschool convention to see if there's anything else I'd like to add or change.  I was very happy with Sonlight (as was my daughter) and I'm sure we'll go back to it when she gets older.  It's just that it can be quite expensive, and I just can't justify spending hundreds of dollars on a curriculum in these early years, especially if it does not tie in with our CC studies.

     This week we studied energy, electricity and Newton's third law of motion.  We also finished yet another wonderful book, The Light at Tern Rock.  My Little Toughie liked to hear that someone could live in the lighthouse.

     Or Bible studies continued into the life of Jesus and with Valentine's Day wrapping up our week we could not help but end it with this:

Free printable Courtesy of Whole Family Strong

     What else can I say?  May God bless and keep you.

Kindergarten, Week 25

     I just realized that our Classical Conversations co-op is in its final weeks.  We've just completed week 17 and there's 24 total.  Our homeschooling should wrap up very close to the end of CC.  I have a feeling the next couple of months are going to pass very quickly.

     Back in November our CC co-op participated in a community outreach project.  The families put together 1 gallon bags for the homeless which contained basic essentials, some snacks, a list of local shelters and organizations for assistance, Bible verses and a note or drawing from each child.  My daughter wanted to continue to hand out bags so it is our goal to pass out 2 bags a month.  Below is a picture of the bag we created together.  As we were shopping I let her pick out most of the things to place in there.

     The bags remain in my car within her reach so that if we happen to be driving past someone in need she can easily hand it out.  Isn't that a wonderful way to share God's love?  It also ties in with a side study of the Fruits of the Spirit that we're doing as a family.  We pick one fruit, focusing on it for two weeks and asking God for guidance as we put in into practice.  This week (and next) is kindness.

     In Week 25 my Little Toughie got to sew on a button.  She didn't want to sew a button onto just anything though.  She was very selective about which article of clothing she wanted to sew the button onto.  Below is my little girl at work.

Viola!  Little red button is secure.

     This week we also finished reading Little House in the Big Woods.  My daughter was amazed that it was a true story and can't wait to read the rest of the books in the series.  Our Bible studies continue into the life of Jesus.  With that, have a wonderful week and may you walk in His light and share His fruit with others.

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Kindergarten, Week 24

      This week in our Sonlight curriculum I saw a little note letting us know that we only have 12 more weeks of school.  Wow!  I just know those weeks will come and go quickly.  I'm already in the midst of planning the curriculum for next school year.  I'm sure we'll use Sonlight again with just a few adjustments.  I'm looking into a different Language Arts and a different Math program because the ones we have progress too slowly for my daughter.  Perhaps that's actually a good thing as it gives it time to sink in.  I just don't want her to get bored.  With Math, I have to limit the amount of pages she completes in her workbook because she wants to finish all of it in one sitting.  I have to supplement with worksheets from Mama's Learning Corner (Sign up like I did and you get member exclusive printables, but her freebies great freebies too!)

     Week 24 took us into the first books of the New Testament.  My daughter was excited to know that we were going to read about the birth of our Savior, His humble beginnings and the work He did in such a short time.  It brought up conversations about heaven and who would be there and who wouldn't be there.  She said she would ask Mary, "Were you surprised to be the mother of Jesus?" and she'd ask the angel Gabriel, "How hard is it to fight Satan?"  She said she would also like to ask Jesus how it felt to rule the world with His love.  Yes, these are the kinds of conversations that come up every day when we read our Bible.

     This week I decided to start having the kids read their bibles (or devotional) independently every morning.  Though we read the Bible together daily, I liked the idea of them starting their morning with God before taking on the day; I wanted them to have their own quiet time with Him.  I probably should have started this sooner, but I wanted to get a feel for our school year and how much time we'd have in the morning before we had to bring A380 to school.  Plus, my daughter wasn't reading independently yet.  She is now though, yay!  Both she and her big brother plant themselves on the couch every morning after they're done clearing their breakfast dishes and getting themselves ready.  While they're doing that I'm either getting the morning chores done or spending my own time with our Father.  By the time they're done we discuss what they've read for a few minutes and then head out the door.  We take the time to pray together in the car on the way to my son's school before we part ways.

     My Little Toughie is so excited that she's able to read on her own that she created a bookmark by tracing her hand:

     Cute, right?  I like that her nails are colored.  There's an actual arm inside the book too, colored purple.  You can do this to get your kids excited about reading on their own.  When my daughter told me what she was making I gave her a sheet of cardstock to make it sturdier.  Works like a charm!  Or you can go ahead and use paper but cut it out and either stick it onto a piece of a cereal box (or some sort of thin cardboard) and then trim that out.

     That's all for now.  Have a wonderful week!

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