We’ve been busy, busy, busy with school. Now that Stacia has arrived, I’m off of bed-rest and the girls have left; it’s time to do “heavy school” as opposed to “light school”!
One thing we’ve realized is that we did NOT require near enough writing of the girls in high school. We apologize to them for this. We SHOULD have required it – it isn’t busy work. This year we are being very deliberate about providing lots of grammar/composition instruction and practice to the children at all levels.
We are in week 4 of Year 3 of Tapestry of Grace. Josiah and Jamin have changed to TOG this year. This curriculum is written to direct a 4 year cycle through history. Ideally a student will do it three times in their school career; once as an elementary student, once as a dialectic student and once as a rhetoric student. We love having all of the kids studying the same subjects, at the same time (though on different levels). For instance in the past weeks Arielle and Nolan were reading “I Crocodile”, while Jared, Jamin and Josiah read “The Diary of a Napoleonic Foot Soldier”. This makes for some awesome discussions. A big part of this curriculum is utilizing the Socratic method of discussion/teaching. Extensive teacher’s notes are provided to bring ME up to speed. The curriculum is billed as being K-Mom and I’m certainly learning as much as the children. An unexpected benefit is that it has provided lots of common ground for discussions with the boys. I had been struggling to relate to high school boys.
Every morning begins with PE for the younger 5 and I. Jared runs. Arielle, Nolan and Alex do interval training….run to catch Jared – sit and wait for Mom. I bring up the end; pushing Stacia as she rides in style. Nolan is learning to write, and the sounds of the alphabet. Arielle and Nolan are both working on spelling the dreaded “G” word.
Snapshots from our week:
Boys at the computer desk in our library
The Boys learn military strategy by playing RISK
(studying French Rev/Napoleanic Era)
Jamin collects water for a Biology Experiment
Arielle, Nolan & Zander enjoy painting on the patio
We all brush up on our phonic sounds by playing "Pick a Sound"
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