2013-2014 School Year FINISHED / Random Pictures to Share

I have apparently "dropped the ball" on blogging about our school year. Here we are, finished with our main curriculum for this school year, and I haven't posted anything new since February! Maybe I can do a better job of posting next school year. In the meantime, here are some random pix from the last three months of some things we have done. I hope it doesn't take too long for your computer to download all of them...

 

SCIENCE



February 4th
Dissecting beans

February 12th
Labeling the parts of a flower

April 10th
Putting a carrot in food coloring to see how the water gets absorbed



May 14th
Microscope Class at a Nature Center

 

HISTORY

February 11th
Hasty Pudding - believed to have originated during the
French and Indian wars.
Made with 2 cups milk, 1/2 cup cornmeal, 2 TB butter, and 1/2 tsp. salt.

March 20th
Russian Manyick Cake
Made this while learning about Catherine the Great.

April 24th
Following directions with a compass.
Did this while learning about Lewis & Clark

May 13th
Samuel Morse and the development of Morse Code.

 

FIELD TRIPS

 

April 23rd
Live theater production at a local University

April 30th
Tour of local Ambulance Department

April 30th
Tour of local Volunteer Fire Department

May 15th
Trip to a horse barn to learn about and ride horses.
EL is pictured here. She was nervous, but enjoyed it.

JJ on a horse. He loved it.

MISCELLANEOUS

 

May 8th
JJ using the laptop to do Math, Reading and Spelling on K5 Learning

EL using Daddy's computer to do her K5 Learning

March 25th
JJ received his Arrow of Light - the highest
award for a Cub Scout to receive.

April 5th
At a Balloon Launch for Autism Awareness Month

 

APRIL 13th Puppet Ministry at our church

April 16th
A visit with Grandma & Grandpa, and my brother and his family.
Pictured here is Grandma & Grandpa Mac with the grandkids.

MEDICAL APPOINTMENTS

 

March 21st
Both kids saw their Allergist and had some testing done.
JJ is still highly allergic to peanuts, tree nuts, and also shellfish
He is no longer allergic to eggs

April 18th
EL had a Sleep Study done.
She has mild Sleep Apnea.

May 18-23
A trip to visit family up North and help Grandma S.
as she underwent surgery to clean out a carotid artery.

After we came home from helping Grandma S., we finished up our main curriculum for this school year, then purchased a family membership to the local pool. We will continue working on some Math and English throughout the Summer.

Have a great Summer! I will try to post pictures of some of our fun Summer activities as I am able.




A Coincidence?

Like I predicted on THURSDAY, Friday was a better day for us. Fridays are generally lighter in the schoolwork area, so that helped relieve some of the stress. Plus, we also spent the afternoon getting ready for company to come this weekend. That kept our minds on something better than arguing with each other and focusing on negative things. So, over all, it was a good day.

I can't help but think we were, ummm, "distracted" on Thursday because of some things we've been recently learning and sharing. For example, last Sunday, the kids used their puppet ministry to share about "counting our blessings." Hmmmm. Counting our blessings requires thinking on the GOOD things, doesn't it? Was our distraction on Thursday a test of that?

Here's the newest puppet video. (Note: My husband is in the video since he filled in for our pastor while he was out of town)...

E-J PUPPETS:  COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS

 

 

Also, we have been learning some verses from the book of James. Maybe its just a coincidence, but don't you think its possible the devil hasn't liked hearing what we've been learning and sharing this week? Here is JJ saying the verses we have learned:

JAMES 1:2-6

 

 

Coincidence?  I don't think so....  Press on, friends!

Tomorrow Will Be Better

I love being at home with my kids and being able to teach them - I really do! But, I admit there are some days when teaching these young rascals gets very frustrating. This morning was one of those days...

I crawled out of bed this morning tired and unmotivated. The cloudy weather didn't help. Still, I pressed onward to try and accomplish our daily goals.

The kids picked up on my lack of motivation, and they both took their time with morning chores. Thus, we got a later start with schoolwork. JJ asked, "Can we skip school today?" Hmmmm, very tempting, but no. It's important to teach the kids that sometimes we must do things we don't want to do. Its just part of life. So, onward we went...

Spelling was first on the agenda. JJ, who has always had trouble with spelling, was frustrated about our English language and how the spelling rules just don't make much sense. I tend to agree with him on that. But, what can I do? Its just the way things are, and its something we have to learn.

Next, we did English. EL needed help putting words in alphabetical order and became stressed out over that. At the same time, JJ was working on cursive and, once again, voiced his frustrations. "They are just a bunch of squiggly lines. Who made up cursive, and why do we have to learn it?" (sigh)

After English came Science. We have been learning about flowers (botany), and today we learned about the fascinating way God used the colors in flowers to attract bees and other insects. Bees need flowers in order to survive, and flowers need bees in order to survive. JJ drew on the white board while I read aloud; EL sat on the floor and tried to comprehend what I was saying. Her comprehension, unfortunately, has declined since she started taking seizure meds. This is very frustrating for me because I have to keep repeating everything, have her repeat it back to me, and then sometimes she still doesn't comprehend it. (sigh) I know its not her fault, but its still frustrating.

We moved on to History and I read about George Washington at Valley Forge. Comprehension was once again a difficult task - for both kids. JJ's tics have been highly active lately and he just couldn't sit still, so I allowed him to continue drawing on the white board. Some days, that works out well. Other days, like today, his imagination overtakes him and he hears the words I read as "blah blah blah blah blah." More frustration on my part.

I finished up with History and decided to try a drawing lesson for Art. Since we are learning about the Revolutionary War, I used a book that gives directions for drawing a cannon. EL became grumpy and didn't like that idea, but I asked her to do her best. Then, JJ told her she was drawing it wrong and she grew irritated with him and began to mumble under her breath. We tell her its not polite to mumble, but she continues. I tell her to stop, and she yells, "I can't stop!" She threw her pencil onto the floor. I made her pick it up and told her that behavior was not acceptable. That led to a complete meltdown/tantrum - basically screaming at the top of her lungs and crying in frustration. I reacted negatively and raised my voice to her as well. Of course, that helped out a lot - NOT! She was DONE with school for the day, and so was I.

Suffice it to say, this morning was not what I would call a good morning; but, thankfully, we always have tomorrow to look forward to. I am not a perfect mom, and I do not have perfect kids. But, we love each other, and that's what matters most. After some cool down time, we all gave each other hugs and said we were sorry. Things were mostly good again... and tomorrow will be even better.

Spring Semester 2014 Extra-Curricular Activities

 

 


DRUM LESSONS for JJ
He currently goes twice per month and is learning a lot.



DRAGONFLIES DANCE and DRAMA CAMP
This was a one-day Saturday class for Special Needs.

 

DRAGONFLIES
Siblings are encouraged to join in, so JJ took part as well.

 

EL at LEGO CLUB
A club that encourages interaction, cooperation, and social skills.
Both kids participate in this twice per month, and I am a volunteer.



JJ at LEGO CLUB
 

JJ's 5th year in CUB SCOUTS
He won 3rd place at the Pinewood Derby for the Webelos group.
This was his last year to race in the derby and his first year to place.
 

 

PUPPET MINISTRY

In our latest performance, I am the pink female puppet.

JJ is the green male puppet, the tiger, and the chicken.

David is the old farmer (as well as the technical engineer).

EL is the dog and the little pink puppet with yellow hair.

 

 

Miscellaneous School Project Photos

In November, JJ and David went on a field trip to a local college to visit the TV/Radio Station.

JJ practicing his skip counting before beginning to learn his multiplication facts.

 

EL making a model of an insect.

Making Christmas cards to give to family and friends. (Note: This is a good way to recycle all your old Christmas cards!)

Learning about metamorphosis and demonstrating how a caterpillar emerges from a cocoon.

 

This Winter, we have had fun watching the Cardinals and other little birds eat from the bird feeder we made earlier in the year.

Painting with sponges after learning about sea sponges and other creatures of the sea.

Learning about the art of Chinese papercutting. These fragile pieces were given to me and David almost 20 years ago by a college-age foreign exchange student from China. We hosted him and another young man from Korea in our home for a weekend.

 

Our own version of Chinese papercutting. EL and I did the one on the left, JJ did the one on the right.

Learning about Taxonomy - what Scientists do to classify plant life into different groups. We used JJ's bouncy ball collection to see what its like to classify things into groups. 
The Kingdom = Rubber Bouncy Balls
The Phylum = Colors
Class = Solid Colors / Not Solid Colors
Order = Same / Different Patterns  

Trying a version of Johnny Cakes - often eaten during George Washington's time-period. They were normally eaten warm with applebutter or molasses, but leftovers would also be eaten cold as a snack. Made with cornmeal, water, butter, and a bit of sugar and salt.

K5 Learning REVIEW

It has been awhile since I have posted on this blog. Life has been keeping us busy. But, the Holidays have come and gone, and our free trial of the K5 Learning program has come to an end, so it is time to post a review.

K5 Learning is an online Reading and Math program for kids in grades K through 5, or for those with learning delays. After giving it a try for 6 weeks, I have seen some pros and cons.

PRO's:
1.  I love the online assessments. Before beginning our lessons, each of my kids took an assessment in Math and in Reading, to give an idea of where to begin. It helped to not have to "guess" about where to place them.

2.  It was easy to communicate with the K5 staff via e-mail and have my kids levels increased or decreased where necessary.

3.  The lessons are short, and easy to understand.

4.  The program gives complete instructions for learning new materials, so its not just for review purposes.

5.  The lessons are animated, and there are some games that help challenge the kids. However, the entire program is not a game. It is animated instruction exhibited in an appealing way for kids.

6.  The animations are well-mannered, modest, and are shown in various nationalities.

7.  It is easy enough to accomplish new skills, but challenging enough to keep the kids engaged and learning.

8.  It keeps track of each child's skill levels and shows how much progress they have made.

CON's:
1.  I wish there were parent controls available to increase or decrease the levels on my own, so I wouldn't have to "bother" the staff, and could have more immediate success in the changes.

2.  If a student is trying to think about the answer to a particular question, the computer doesn't give them much time to think before explaining the instructions or asking the question again. This was sometimes annoying or stressful for EL, who needs more time to think without being interrupted.

3.  The program only goes up to 5th grade level, whereas other online programs (such as Time4Learning) goes through 8th grade or higher.

4.  It only covers Math and Reading skills, unlike other programs that have ALL major subjects.

You can see there are a lot more Pro's than Con's. Overall, I am content to continue giving it a try.  Both of my kids have made progress with this program in just the short time they have been using it. They are learning and are not bored with it.  EL is not a fan of the computer, but I think it is good for her to use it, as it has been challenging her in new areas. I asked JJ if he wanted to continue with this program, or go back to the workbooks we were using. He likes this online program. So, we paid for an annual subscription for both kids, to at least get us through the rest of this school year, and into the Summer. We will, then, re-evaluate as to whether or not we will continue.

The cost is comparable with other online programs, listed at $25.00 per month or $199.00 for a full year. For additional children, the cost is discounted to $15.00 per month, or $129.00 for a year.

You can get a 14-day free trial of your own by clicking below (contains affiliate link): 

 

We're Going to Try K5 Learning

Over the past few years, we have tried a variety of different options for Math (with both of our kids), and we are still struggling to find the right fit. What a daunting task this has been! Each math curriculum we have used has worked well for a little while, or for a specific area of need, but we eventually come to a roadblock.

Well, a couple of weeks ago, I found out about K5 Learning. They have an online reading and math program for students in kindergarten to grade 5, as well as those with special needs.  I've been given a 6 week free trial to test and write a review of their program, so maybe this will be the answer for us. I'll be sure to let you know! 

If you are a blogger, you may want to check out their open invitation to write an online learning review of their program.

Dairy Farm Field Trip

On Thursday afternoon, we took a field trip to a local Dairy Farm. It was a nice Fall day, and we all enjoyed the trip. It was fun and educational. Here are a few pictures...

Playing and "sledding" in the cotton seed. JJ is at the top.

EL standing by bales of hay.

Waiting for the cows to enter the milking barn.

One of the cows getting hooked up to be milked.

Outside looking at the cows.

One of the calves in the calf barn.

The kids all had the chance to milk a cow by hand. EL did not want to do it. JJ wasn't too sure about it, but finally took a turn. Here's a short video...

 

 

Fish, Fins, and Dried Corn

I don't have much to share this week. We still did our usual amount of school work (with the exception of Wednesday when we took a "sick day" due to JJ's cold, and also had a check-up with my doctor), but I only managed to take a few pictures.

 

Our SCIENCE focus was on FISH this week. Here are the Art projects the kids did, with the use of cardstock, colored pencils, goldfish crackers, glue and a black marker...

 

JJ's picture



EL's picture

A worksheet we did about the different types of fins on a fish. They each had to cut fin shapes out of construction paper and glue them to the fish, then label them. The kids each did their own worksheet, but this one is EL's.

QUESTION OF THE WEEK: How do the front fins help the fish?

ANSWER:  They help it go up and down in the water, and help it to slow down.

For HISTORY, we continued talking about Colonial Days, and the founding of each of the first 13 colonies. We focused on Maryland this week. And, we talked about the way the colonists had to preserve their food for the winter months. One way they did this was by drying and smoking their foods. The Native Americans taught them how to dry corn and store it in the ground. So, we made some of our own dried corn in the oven and tried it for a snack.

 

Place some thawed corn on a baking sheet and put in the oven at 175 degrees for about 4 hours, or until crunchy.

Eat as a snack!