Today was a field trip to the Kimbell Art Museum downtown. It was wonderful. The kindergartener said he enjoyed the art museum more than the zoo.
The teens were particularly impressed with the large collection of Monets and the Van Gogh. I enjoyed all the Mayan artwork.
Queen Nefertari Exhibit until March 14th...you have to pay extra for the exhibit, though.
Because this is Fun Week for us, we got pizza and played all afternoon at the park.
From a Lutheran historical perspective and in light of what's happening in the world with covid, this was fascinating to read!
It's an article from The Lutheran Witness. Martin Luther is writing to a fellow pastor about people's different reactions to the plague. It's eight pages and very academic, but worth reading.
https://blogs.lcms.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Plague-blogLW.pdf
Saint, Hymn and Bible Study
Kindergartener
We started a new science curriculum. I ordered it from Rainbow Resource: https://www.rainbowresource.com/category/4839/Summers-Lab.html
I bought the Teacher's Guide and the Lab Workbook. We started the Amphibian unit study today and he loved it. He has been begging to do more science, so I bought this curriculum several weeks ago. I'm very happy with it. It looks like something he will really enjoy.
You need the DK Children's Encyclopedia to go with the curriculum. I ordered it from Amazon, but because of the snow storm, it's not here yet.
Here's what he did today:
It's Ash Wednesday, but we are not able to go to church, because of the snow. Church is closed. 😔 We're planning to watch the Ash Wednesday Chapel Service through LCMS.org
The service is on Facebook on The Lutheran Church Missouri Synod page. I can't find a link through their website.
Kindergartener
We did have school yesterday, but I didn't have time to update my blog.
Kindergartener
Kindergartener
Math App: Dragonbox's Numbers. I just bought this app today and he loved it. https://dragonbox.com/products/numbers The app was $7.99.
Reading App: Teach My Monster to Read. I also bought this today and he enjoyed it. https://www.teachyourmonstertoread.com I think the app was $5.99, but it looks like the computer version is free.
We went to the library.
13 Year-old
She read from the Gospel of John in the Bible.
Math App: Dragonbox Algebra
Visual Thesaurus Spelling Bee: https://www.visualthesaurus.com/bee/
Countries of the World puzzle - she put this together
Atlas Anatomy App: She spent some time on this app to supplement her Apologia Anatomy & Physiology - https://www.visiblebody.com/anatomy-and-physiology-apps/human-anatomy-atlas
Library Day!
15 Year-old
She read from 1 Samuel in the Bible.
Visual Thesaurus Spelling Bee
Countries of the World puzzle
She read another chapter in The History of Medicine
Library Day
Kindergartener
Five in a Row - Make Way for Ducklings
The 15 year-old is almost finished with her unit study on the US of the mid-1800s. I've decided that our next unit study is going to be about the Puritans and the Salem Witch Trials. Here's a tentative plan for our study. Keep in mind that this student turns 16 during the unit study. I wouldn't do this study with any of my younger kids. I expect this study to take about two months - mostly dependent on how quickly she can work through the Progeny Press guide.
Literature and Writing
Kindergartener
Once again, the five year-old didn't do any schoolwork. He went to a Valentine's Day park party with a group of other homeschooled kids. We went to the store and he picked out Valentine's cards and a gift bag. We sat and signed the cards (which came with pencils). He put the cards and pencils together and brought them to the party. At the party, he played on the playground and passed out his cards. He had a great time. In the evening, he went to church.
13 Year-old
Here's the book: The Call of the Wild + Free: Reclaiming Wonder in Your Child's Education by Ainsley Arment.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/42078805-the-call-of-the-wild-and-free
I happened to see this book in the library last week and checked it out on a whim. It's a quick read. I read the book in just a few readings. It's more of an inspirational homeschooling book than it is a practical one. The book is more about how kids need unstructured playtime outside than it is a how-to manual for homeschooling.
The first part of the book - I didn't really like the book at that point. I already understand that playing outside is important for a kid's development. My kids spend time outside every day. We even do school outside if the weather is nice.
A big part of the beginning had an unschooling flair to it. I tend to be instinctively skeptical of the "just put everything aside and let the kids follow their interests" philosophy - even though I actually do that quite a bit - and one of my favorite homeschool bloggers is Sue Elvis, an unschooler from Australia. (She has probably THE absolute best homeschool blog out there, by the way: https://www.storiesofanunschoolingfamily.com ).
Letting the kids decide what to do with their time sounds amazing until I'm faced with the reality that is my own kids. The youngest three do not do well with too much unstructured time. If we take a month off from school, their behavior (especially the 5 year-old's) deteriorates quickly. My 15 year-old, specifically, wants an assortment of learning activities and books set out for her every day. We also don't live near the beach like the pictures in the book and we can't go beach-combing all day. We live in a city - a very ugly city - for that matter. If you took pictures of us in our city, it wouldn't look like the pictures in this Wild + Free book.
When I reached the third section, I started to really love the book. I couldn't put the book down. As someone with a degree in biology, I completely agree that kids can learn a ton by spending time in nature. I also agree with the chapters that covered children needing stories and unstructured pretend play for their development. I liked being reminded that it's important to say "yes" when the five year-old invites me to sit on the floor and play with him. He's inviting me into his world. I can't always be too busy to accept his invitation to play. If I constantly say "no," at some point, he won't invite me anymore.
Overall, I enjoyed the book so much that I bought their handcrafts book: https://www.bewildandfree.org/handcrafts Expensive book...yes...I'm going to try all of these projects with the five year-old, though. It looks like something we will both enjoy doing together.
Kindergartener
He just played and played all day. I didn't want to interrupt his playing, so I left him alone. He didn't do any schoolwork today.
13 Year-old
Kindergartener
Hymn Study
We listened to the hymn "What a Friend We Have in Jesus," written by Joseph Scriven in 1855. We read the background information behind the hymn and a mini biography of the author.
Saint Study
We read a short biography of Saint Francis of Assisi. The 15 year-old commented that she wished we had learned more about the different Catholic saints earlier, because they are referenced in literature, etc. I realize that, as Lutherans, we don't revere saints the way Catholics do, but the stories behind some of them are fascinating and cultural knowledge is important (especially, like she said, there are references to some of them in literature, etc).
Some Extras
The 13 year-old worked on Dragonbox Algebra (12+), which is an app/game that teaches algebraic rules used in beginning algebra.
I'm thinking of turning Fridays into a day we work on not only Bible Studies, but also the kids can work on some learning apps. She enjoyed Dragonbox so much that she worked through about 30 levels in one sitting.
The 15 year-old worked on Health (not liking ACE Health at all!) and read History of Medicine. She had theater class, also.
Kindergartener
Kindergartener
Kindergartener
Kindergartener
