Holy cow! We just learned place value. I am exhausted, but he totally gets it. Yesterday he could only read numbers zero to nine. Today he can read zero to ninety nine. Not through rote memory, but understanding place value!!! So totally cool!
Wednesday, October 9, 2013
Homeschool IS Working (Part 2)
Most days I go to bed with guilt over my parenting mistakes, rarely do I feel a sense of accomplishment about my specific roles in my kids growth. I know I am a good enough mom, I am even a good mom on most days, but it takes a lot for me to willing admit that out loud. It is much easier to see my flaws and failures, to see the ways in which I am not good enough, the areas in which I could do so much better.
Homeschooling has added a whole new level to this mind drama I indulge in. I am constantly measuring and comparing if Luke is learning enough academics. Then in the next instant I am stressing that he is not playing enough. When I know he knows something and I ask him to "perform," and he doesn't remember, I feel concerned that whoever is watching is judging and thinking, "I knew homeschool was not gonna work!"
Last night though was a triumph! A total and complete academic triumph! For Luke's night nap book I was reading him a Timeline of the History of Food. (Yes, his choice!) The timeline started in 400,000 BC. and we got as far as 1510 AD. During this time Luke showed us how much he has learned, how much information his brain contains just from the last seven weeks of school, how much homeschool is teaching him. (Which he also demonstrated in his conversation at his ophthalmologist today, but, I don't always accept his brilliance as having any relation to my teaching.)
Because we still do the Classical Conversations Timeline each day Luke is familiar with Sumer. He doesn't know much about it, other than it was important around 3000 BC and was a river community, but he is familiar with this ancient city and somewhat where it falls in the world history timeline. When I read that Sumerian farmers invented the sickle, he had a frame for who those farmers were.
He also knew what sickles were. We have read two books where this very old, yet very functional tool has been used. We read a historical fiction book about Samuel Eaton learning to harvest wheat in 1621 as part of my Pilgrim curriculum we are doing. We discussed how wheat and sugar cane can be harvested with sickles while reading How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World using our Five in a Row curriculum. Now he knows the Sumerians invented the sickle and can plug in so much information and make these huge connections.
We have talked about the building of the Pyramids by the Egyptians while reviewing the CC Timeline. We have studied where Egypt was on the map when reading The Giraffe Who Walked to Paris (another Five in a Row book, which we have not officially rowed, but spent a good deal of time on and frequently reference when studying geography). He knows the Egyptians became an important part of world history before 3000 BC. When I read the foods the Egyptians ate while building the pyramids he had a reference for how much energy they exerted because they had no power tools, how much food would have meant on such a heavy job.
When we made it to 312 BC to learn that Rome started getting fresh water, I asked him, "And who founded Rome?" Without missing a beat he answer Romulus and Remus. Thanks CC Timeline. He knows they were twin brothers. Not a lot of details in his head, but enough, big starting points!
In 1250 AD European Crusaders brought spices from the Middle East to Europe. He could tell us that cinnamon is a spice grown in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka is a pear shaped island in the Indian Ocean. My kid knows all that! He is five-I am in awe! Thanks Five in a Row!
Italians started making pasta commercially in 1400 AD. Luke knows that semolina wheat grows in Italy. We learned about it in How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World. Even though the wheat in the story is ground into grain to make a pie crust, he knew it could also be used to make pasta.
Sunflowers were brought from America to Europe in 1510 AD. When I asked Luke, "So if sunflowers had to be brought from America, they were what to America?" He answered quickly, "Native!" I asked, "What does native mean?" He replied, "From the place." Exactly, my Five in a Row friend.
Last night I saw so much leaning being connected to new learning. I saw how all those hours we spend working together, doing projects, talking about our lessons are building knowledge in his brain. Now that I really see this, that I have hard evidence I know our other lessons are sticking too. I honestly cannot believe how much Luke has learned and retained in seven weeks.
Mark changed the light-bulb to a much brighter one in our bedroom tonight, but I feel like the real light-bulb turned on in my head. Homeschool IS working. We are doing this. We are succeeding. Right now, right here, my five year old is a Kindergartner learning so very much!
Tuesday, October 8, 2013
My Kryptonite
I took the kids to the Science Museum today and am torn between counting this as a day of attendance or not. We did not do any official homeschool activities today other than visit this place of wonder, exploration, and learning. (Well okay, we did learn about the continents and oceans during dinner, and we did talk about Christoper Columbus' voyage at bedtime, and Mark did work on using the index in a book before bed...but other than that, nothing.)
I am very weak in Science. Kinetic energy, gravity, friction, velocity, centrifugal forces, androids (not the phone!) and aliens, kilowatts, nuclear power plants, pistons, brakes, tectonic plate movement (okay, this one I am pretty good with!), mastodons versus wooly mammoths, rotational forces, combustion...completely overwhelming and over my head.
When I reflect on my interest and experience with science learning it is dismal to say the least. I have very few, if any, fond memories of science lessons, classes, field trips, or even experiments. I remember studying for a science test in early elementary school and feeling beyond inadequate as I tried to memorize the details. I remember reading dry texts and answering discussion texts. I remember dropping a beaker (or my lab partner did, one of us, completely accidental)and getting screamed at by our Earth Science teacher, "Get a broom and clean that up!" I remember sitting in chemistry class wondering when would the 40 minutes finally be over.
There are only three positive and exciting science lessons I can recall. Learning the eight life function in freshman biology (which I still know; pat on the back and cue: respiration, reproduction, regulation, growth, excretion, transport, synthesis, nutrition) and dissecting a rat in that same class (and carrying its heart up to our principal(an elderly nun) hoping to both shock and impress her). The third is learning the three types of clouds: cumulus, cirrus, and stratus (which I subsequently learned this year when teaching Luke...there are far more than three!).
Everything else, or virtually everything else boggles my mind. I think I can handle the lower grades. I am literate after all and literally have the world at my fingertips via the Internet. It might mean late nights as I prepare lesson plans and learn new material before introducing and teaching it. But it is all do-able. The later grades don't worry me because Mark can teach that material, or You Tube, or the free online classes from Stanford and Harvard.
In any case, my lack of scientific knowledge does not concern me, except when walking through the Science Museum and I don't understand more than 75% of the exhibits. I feel like I need a Study Guide to prep for a day there ad refer to while visiting. The kids were so thrilled (as usual, but this was our first time there since school started) to be able to touch and run and push and throw and PLAY, they did not even want anything explained. Luke always asks me how things work, but not today. (Which would have been good, except I felt compelled to at least attempt to introduce the concepts of many of the exhibits). I have to take a Classical Approach and just hope I put some pegs in today.
I am very weak in Science. Kinetic energy, gravity, friction, velocity, centrifugal forces, androids (not the phone!) and aliens, kilowatts, nuclear power plants, pistons, brakes, tectonic plate movement (okay, this one I am pretty good with!), mastodons versus wooly mammoths, rotational forces, combustion...completely overwhelming and over my head.
When I reflect on my interest and experience with science learning it is dismal to say the least. I have very few, if any, fond memories of science lessons, classes, field trips, or even experiments. I remember studying for a science test in early elementary school and feeling beyond inadequate as I tried to memorize the details. I remember reading dry texts and answering discussion texts. I remember dropping a beaker (or my lab partner did, one of us, completely accidental)and getting screamed at by our Earth Science teacher, "Get a broom and clean that up!" I remember sitting in chemistry class wondering when would the 40 minutes finally be over.
There are only three positive and exciting science lessons I can recall. Learning the eight life function in freshman biology (which I still know; pat on the back and cue: respiration, reproduction, regulation, growth, excretion, transport, synthesis, nutrition) and dissecting a rat in that same class (and carrying its heart up to our principal(an elderly nun) hoping to both shock and impress her). The third is learning the three types of clouds: cumulus, cirrus, and stratus (which I subsequently learned this year when teaching Luke...there are far more than three!).
Everything else, or virtually everything else boggles my mind. I think I can handle the lower grades. I am literate after all and literally have the world at my fingertips via the Internet. It might mean late nights as I prepare lesson plans and learn new material before introducing and teaching it. But it is all do-able. The later grades don't worry me because Mark can teach that material, or You Tube, or the free online classes from Stanford and Harvard.
In any case, my lack of scientific knowledge does not concern me, except when walking through the Science Museum and I don't understand more than 75% of the exhibits. I feel like I need a Study Guide to prep for a day there ad refer to while visiting. The kids were so thrilled (as usual, but this was our first time there since school started) to be able to touch and run and push and throw and PLAY, they did not even want anything explained. Luke always asks me how things work, but not today. (Which would have been good, except I felt compelled to at least attempt to introduce the concepts of many of the exhibits). I have to take a Classical Approach and just hope I put some pegs in today.
- Peg One: gravity makes the ball go down
- Peg Two: more weight increases the friction
- Peg Three: kinetic energy is a phrase that means something...
- Peg Four: electricity starts at the power station
- Peg Five: certain requirements must be met to be classified as a living thing
- Peg Six: the earth is really, really, really old and has changed a lot
- Peg Seven: some people think it got too cold for the dinosaurs to stay alive
- Peg Eight: movement of an object is affected by the shape of what it is moving on
- Peg Nine: air can move balls through a pipe, air can hold balls or chairs up above the ground
- Peg Ten: there are different states of matter
Homeschooling IS Working! (Part 1)
Everyday I worry if Luke is learning enough. Everyday I worry if I am going to fail him. Everyday I worry that I am not doing this right; right for Luke or right for me. (Not to mention if it is right for Ian who doesn't get two hours of dedicated learning each day!)
I absolutely love being a homeschooling family. In these short seven weeks I have seen lots of positive changes in Luke, changes that I firmly believe would not be happening if he was spending seven to eight hours a day away from our family unit. Luke has become a great team member to Ian, he often has his back and will tell us, "Just give him one more chance," or "Just let him do ___." He is teaching Ian daily, from teaching him totally new concepts to continuing to review the basics (colors, letters, numbers). He gets overly excited when Ian demonstrates a new skill, often clapping or cheering, sometimes slapping his hands over his mouth in surprise and joy! Luke often encourages Ian, "You can do it, it is hard, but you can do it." "Keep trying."
Yes, my kids still fight, they still grab from each other, Luke still pulls on Ian's clothes and Ian still hits Luke. But they share better, they are kinder, they hug and say, "I love you," daily (sometimes with prompting, but always with sincerity now). Luke might wish it was still just the three of us sometimes, but he does love Ian. A lot. Some of this is I am sure attributed to the loads of attention he gets while we do school. Who doesn't love "The All About Me" Show?
I suppose I could argue that if I would have just been more committed to lots of one on one or special time we would have seen these same improvements sooner. Maybe we would have. But I didn't give him two hours of undivided or almost undivided attention daily after Ian was born. I can't change that course. I know though, without a doubt, if Luke was in school, he would be getting even less attention from me...I honestly believe his rough relationship with Ian would have suffered more. Instead Luke sees our family as on a special journey, he has changed in the last seven weeks and it is beautiful.
Our primary reason for homeschooling is we believe learning character is far more important than learning any school subject. If our kids learn nothing except how to be kind, honest, loving, compassionate people, we will have succeeded. We would much rather our kids drop out of high school, but be kind, be honest, choose love before each reaction they give, and share joy in this world, than be a successful college grad with no passion for love and kindness. Of course, our academic goals are at least four year college degrees before age 23. But if we only get one (academic or character achievement), we will take love everyday of the week. So far, I feel like we are achieving that.
Homeschool is building the character we want to see in our children. Are we there yet? Not by a long shot, I am not even there. But this is the beginning and already we are seeing results.
Homeschooling is hard, exhausting, draining. It requires me to be "on" almost all the time. I am desperate for a break by the end of the day. However, I love it; the beauty and joy, the time together, the memories we make each day are far bigger and much more powerful than any of the challenges. Luke growing in love for his little brother is all the proof I need that we are on the right path for our family.
I absolutely love being a homeschooling family. In these short seven weeks I have seen lots of positive changes in Luke, changes that I firmly believe would not be happening if he was spending seven to eight hours a day away from our family unit. Luke has become a great team member to Ian, he often has his back and will tell us, "Just give him one more chance," or "Just let him do ___." He is teaching Ian daily, from teaching him totally new concepts to continuing to review the basics (colors, letters, numbers). He gets overly excited when Ian demonstrates a new skill, often clapping or cheering, sometimes slapping his hands over his mouth in surprise and joy! Luke often encourages Ian, "You can do it, it is hard, but you can do it." "Keep trying."
Yes, my kids still fight, they still grab from each other, Luke still pulls on Ian's clothes and Ian still hits Luke. But they share better, they are kinder, they hug and say, "I love you," daily (sometimes with prompting, but always with sincerity now). Luke might wish it was still just the three of us sometimes, but he does love Ian. A lot. Some of this is I am sure attributed to the loads of attention he gets while we do school. Who doesn't love "The All About Me" Show?
I suppose I could argue that if I would have just been more committed to lots of one on one or special time we would have seen these same improvements sooner. Maybe we would have. But I didn't give him two hours of undivided or almost undivided attention daily after Ian was born. I can't change that course. I know though, without a doubt, if Luke was in school, he would be getting even less attention from me...I honestly believe his rough relationship with Ian would have suffered more. Instead Luke sees our family as on a special journey, he has changed in the last seven weeks and it is beautiful.
Our primary reason for homeschooling is we believe learning character is far more important than learning any school subject. If our kids learn nothing except how to be kind, honest, loving, compassionate people, we will have succeeded. We would much rather our kids drop out of high school, but be kind, be honest, choose love before each reaction they give, and share joy in this world, than be a successful college grad with no passion for love and kindness. Of course, our academic goals are at least four year college degrees before age 23. But if we only get one (academic or character achievement), we will take love everyday of the week. So far, I feel like we are achieving that.
Homeschool is building the character we want to see in our children. Are we there yet? Not by a long shot, I am not even there. But this is the beginning and already we are seeing results.
Homeschooling is hard, exhausting, draining. It requires me to be "on" almost all the time. I am desperate for a break by the end of the day. However, I love it; the beauty and joy, the time together, the memories we make each day are far bigger and much more powerful than any of the challenges. Luke growing in love for his little brother is all the proof I need that we are on the right path for our family.
Planet Box Among Stars and Planets
We took an Angels of Light field trip to the Science Museum today and learned about real planets. (And various other things....like how our city was located below the equator billions of years ago....I could be living in a tropical paradise, yo!)
Then we took our lunches to the cafe and dined in style next to photos of the sun and planets! Here are photos of Luke's before and after! Yummy!
Each lunch contained:
--1 hardboiled egg
--Crinkle cut carrots
--Diced cucumbers
--Hummus in the small dipper
--Sliced mushrooms
--Mashed potatoes in the big dipper
--1 marshmallow
--1 hardboiled egg
--Crinkle cut carrots
--Diced cucumbers
--Hummus in the small dipper
--Sliced mushrooms
--Mashed potatoes in the big dipper
--1 marshmallow
Monday, October 7, 2013
Smarter than Me
I just made a couple pictures for visual cues for Luke for when we do speech. One of them is a sun. As I finished it and started to move the paper to draw my next picture he said, "Wait! You forgot the sun spots! Those are places where it is a little cooler on the sun. Do you know about sun spots, Mama?" Oh man, am I in trouble!
Autumn Leaves ~ New Medium
Today we explored a new medium with an old project. A couple weeks ago, Luke came up with a great fall tree project which both kids loved making.
Today we did the same project, but used paint instead of construction paper.
Ian did 75% of his tree by himself and obviously designed his falling leaves and the placement of each handprint and leaf finger print independently. This was one of the first activities that Ian really followed directions and demonstrated patience. Yay! He put his handprints where he wanted them, but allowed me to place my hand over his for a good print and let me take his hand off.
Luke did his entire picture independently, except I painted his actual hands and fingers for all the leaves. He selected each spot and placed his hands and fingers on his own.
I am excited to see their reactions in the morning when they can really see the similarities between their new and old pictures, but also notice the differences.
Now if I can just think of one more medium for this project!
Sunday, October 6, 2013
PlanetBoxes 3
We attended a birthday party tonight where little to none of the food was safe for Luke. We brought our own meals in our PlanetBoxes, as usual the boys were thrilled! Luke started asking as soon as we arrived, "Can we eat now?"
Each meal contained:
- Hummus in the big dipper
- Mexican chicken
- Mixed Berry Almond Yogurt in the little dipper
- Grapes (sliced in half for Ian)
- 2 hard boiled eggs
- Sliced cucumbers
- 1 marshmallow
They both loved watching me make them, Luke gathered their magnets, Ian collected the bags, they could hardly contain themselves waiting for me to finish so they could close them up. These containers are going down in history as the best money I have ever spent!
The party was at a cottage on a lake and we ate in the backyard with a beautiful view of the water and boats. Luke said, "I think this is my first time using my PlanetBox at night."
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