A Week of Schooling

We're getting back into the swing of things around here. School looks like . . .

. . .a No Sweat Nature Study class on apples. We've been doing these classes for about 3 years now, I think, and we're still loving them. They add a little science and nature study into our indoor school time which I appreciate (and sometimes give me ideas for my nature group, so it's work research, too!)

. . .watching The Secret Life of Pets for a writing class from Brave Writer. I thought we'd kick the year off with a fun language arts class and so far, he's a fan. He gets to watch a movie (this unit is all pet-based movies) each week and then respond to questions in the online forum, and reply to other students comments as well. It's casual, but gets them thinking about the elements of storytelling and character development. 

. . . swim practice. Peanut is doing the year-round swim team this year in order to keep up with the swimming when it's too cold for our pool. I don't know if he'll do any meets, but for now, he's happy practicing a couple times a week. I'm happy that the coaches seem great and he's already learning a ton.

. . . human anatomy and physiology for science class. He's pretty excited about everything we're learning this year. We're starting with introductions to the class and the body systems and then we'll spend a week on each system this semester.

. . . a day of looking for colors in nature. Our first Nature Explorations hike was all about colors and looking more closely. 

It was also ridiculously hot--when our high temps are over 110, no one really wants to be outside, even in the morning when it's only in the 90s. We started the hike a little early, didn't go very far, and were still all hot and sweaty by the end.

But the kids did have fun matching their paint cards to something along the way. It was amazing the variety of colors we found when we really started looking.

It's felt like a full week--even if we didn't get much math done. We're easing into our full schedule this year, and I feel like it's making the transition, for both of us, a little easier. A couple structured lessons each day, a lot of independent exploration and learning, some physical activity--it all starts to add up to a well-rounded education.

 

Peanut Schooling

It's a little different only having this guy for homeschool (although with the other two kids around, it's not as different as it probably would have felt.) We've settled into a little bit of a routine--which mostly looks like a non-routine. With only one kid, I don't feel a lot of pressure to get certain things done every day, or in any particular order, so I usually let him pick how he wants to start his day. At least until we've missed math for a day or two, and then we get going on that. Peanut likes the online math program we picked for this year--Beast Academy, but not as much as he likes reading and writing.

We've tried to fit in some game playing--some academic, some more for fun (but the crazy creatures from Bears vs. Babies seemed like a fun Care of Magical Creatures activity--and we love anything that fits in our Hogwarts theme.)

More often than not, I have to let go of a lot of my plans for the day so he can just write, and write, and write. He's on a creative writing kick and is churning out books in a way that would make any publisher thrilled. I figure who am I to stand in the way of creative genius (and someday, when he's a published author, I don't want him to talk about how he had to sneak away to write because his mom thought he should be doing something else all the time😂.) If homeschool has any advantage at all, it is the ability to let kids work on their passions. And honestly, when he gets an idea for a story in his head, he can't think about anything else, so trying to drill him on multiplication facts or reading about the civil war is pointless--he won't hear any of it anyway.

Peanut is definitely influenced by whatever he has most recently read (I remember being that way at his age, too). He's been reading Magic Treehouse books and then promptly wrote 2.5 Magic Tree Fort books in 2 days. Reading through the first one, I was completely blown away with how well he captured the voice and format of the original books, and his use of sentence length and word choice to keep things exciting and go with the intensity of the situation was impressive. This boy is an author!

But in between his writing spurts, we have done a few other things. We needed a fun start to a Monday, so he pulled out the shark tooth kit and worked on digging the teeth out while we listened to the first Harry Potter book on audio.

He also did an online class on Johnny Appleseed with some of our favorite teachers--Nana from Chalk Pastel Art, Miss Cindy from No Sweat Nature Study, and Miss Mary from Squilt Music. He listened to folk music, drew a map of Johnny's travels, and learned about apples.

I'm glad he enjoys these classes--they encompass so many subjects and are a good way for us to mix things up. This class prompted a request for books on Johnny Appleseed and an apple for a snack, so the learning kept going to rest of the week.

We've also been doing our Hogwarts learning. I'm really loving how simple, but how effective this curriculum feels. This week, we had a copywork payday--an aha moment that perfectly illustrates the beauty of a simple practice. Peanut copied a passage from Harry Potter that involved several commas, including a pair that set off a non-essential clause. I asked him if he knew why the commas were there, we talked about it briefly, and then moved on to the next topic.

Later that afternoon, he wanted to read to me from a 2 page description he had written about a new animal he invented, "Ice Lion's scientific name, Venator mortiferum, means 'deadly hunter.'" He paused after that sentence and commented, "I did the comma thing like we talked about this morning because the name is extra information." And that right there is why copying down someone else's writing can help teach the mechanics of writing. I'm sure he could have learned the same thing from a punctuation worksheet, but I don't think it would have been as much fun, and he probably wouldn't remember the lesson as well as he does from Harry Potter and his own creature invention. And so, we will continue to put on our robes, talk in (terrible) English accents, and immerse ourselves in the world of Harry Potter. 

Random Happenings

The new Netflix show, Floor is Lava, dominated our lives for a couple days, with lots of reenactments. I preferred the ones that happened outside, like this, to the indoor ones.

Then, it was Calvin and Hobbes. One entire day was spent in pajamas, reading C & H. He finished off all three of the books we own and would love it if I found some more.

Random cold spell that only lasted for a day or two, but the winter coat was pulled out so he could keep reading, outside. Hahaha.

We realized that as much as everyone has been begging for free days and no schedule, we do better with a little loose routine. Not "school", but an hour or two of directed activity, has really improved the attitudes in our house. One morning, Peanut did an online nature study about the water cycle that included a little experiment.

Some mornings, we play a game or two after breakfast. Some days, I read aloud, we watch author interviews about books we love, or do science experiments. It's really been nice. And the kids still have hours and hours of free time.

We finally  got back out for a hike, after taking 3 weeks off because I was battling an ingrown toenail. (The toenail won--I had to go to a podiatrist to have a piece removed, which is pretty much a nightmare in my mind--I cannot stand the skin under nails and wasn't sure I was going to make it through the whole thing without fainting, but I did it, and can almost look at my nail again now.)

Our hike wasn't very strenuous, but we spent an hour by a creek doing some nature journaling. Bean did this watercolor of one of the trees, Peanut and I found items to represent each of the primary and secondary colors in nature. It was a nice morning, and made me realize how much I'd been missing these weekly adventures. We all need the outside time, but it's more than that. As much as I enjoy our backyard, a certain level of depression starts to set in when we aren't leaving the house for anything fun and wild. And right now, maintaining our mental health is important. This Covid thing is hard! Less time on social media and more time in nature makes us happy.

The farmer's market FINALLY opened! It has been a mess of delays, mostly not pandemic related, and I missed our summer fruits so much. I was giddy when I got to go down and pick out pluots and nectarines and berries.  It just felt like a little bit of normal. Except all the masks, and the fact that a woman coughed by the strawberries, which reduced my options of which basket I could choose--things that would not have been a part of the farmer's market last year.

More reading--in all types of places. Peanut finished up the final Harry Potter book a few days ago.

Everyone has done so much reading.

I love finding them scattered around the backyard like this.

There has also been a lot of writing going on. Peanut latches on to whatever he's currently reading, so after reading Tales of Beedle the Bard, he started his own wizarding fairy tale book and has been churning out the stories.

After a couple weeks of lethargy (probably related to my toe, the lack of exercise, and way too much time on Facebook), I finally got motivated and tackled the art supply corner. I had hopes of purging a lot and making space for some other things to be stored here, too, which was mildly successful. It's hard to get rid of things when I know they might come in handy some day. The kids want it all.

The finished project looks much nicer, and even though you can't tell from the pictures, I did get rid of a couple garbage bags of stuff, and have some new supplies tucked away in some of those bins. As soon as I get the table in this room cleaned off, I'm going to start strewing different supplies to see if I can generate interest in some of the things we never use.

The boys and I did another nature study, on caves this time. I love getting to sneak a little learning in, even though we're technically on summer break. And caves are just cool. I hope that we can go visit one in person sometime soon. Following up our indoor nature studies with in person application is the best.

Other un-pictured events:

Bug and Bean have had water polo every Mon/Wed/Fri. They are both really enjoying it, and it feels like a pretty safe activity. They don't get to actually play, but the conditioning drills and strengthening exercises get them in the water, and around friends.

We've had a couple meet ups with friends. I ended up sitting out for hours two nights in a row with just the moms, and then we've done a couple day time things for the kids. It has helped so much with feeling isolated. The kids are mostly really good about the masks and distancing. I've realized my kids are more spatially aware than most kids, haha, but everyone is trying and we need the interactions.

Church on Sunday continues to be a highlight of the week. Bean keeps saying how much she likes the discussions we have, and we all love seeing Rara each week. She's started sharing a family history story with us each time, and then Daddy-o reads to us from a life history journal that we had given his mom which she recently returned to us, full of her stories. We're loving getting to know our ancestors a little better.

And, of course, the endless hours of meals, meal planning, grocery shopping, and food preparation. I don't even know how it's possible, or why it's happened, but I feel like I spend twice as much money on food right now, and yet, the kids are always hungry and always looking for something to eat. 

And that's most of the past couple weeks.

Science and More Science

Watching the meteor shower yesterday has kicked off a renewed interest in all things space with Peanut. We listened to a couple Brains On podcasts over breakfast about space volcanoes and Pluto, and then he pulled out the solar system he made a couple years ago.

He also started working on his invented solar system that he created a couple months ago. He's adding comets and meteor showers and naming everything on the different planets in his system.

We did take a break from all the science to do some math and handwriting and reading.

But we were back to the science after dinner. I hosted my first science fair, and while it wasn't the event I had in mind when I first started planning, I think it went pretty well. We had 10 video submissions and after each one, the kids asked and answered questions. I was impressed with the things they wanted to know more about, and their experiments. And while it would have been fun to all be together actually looking at their display boards, this worked better than I hoped.

Only 4 more weeks of science before we're done for the year. I really, really hope we'll be meeting in person when we resume in September!

Other things of note: 

Bean had a Zoom church activity tonight with the other high school girls. They baked shortbread cookies, which meant it was fun for her, and for us :)

We got pizza for dinner, and I have to say, it's actually one of the easier meals to unpack and feel like everything was kept "clean" assuming that it was corona-free when it went in the box. I hate that food is so stressful to me now, but I have shied away from getting pizza for the past 6 weeks because it somehow didn't seem as safe as some of the other options. Nice to add that one back in.

Our backyard is so full of bees. It's nice, unless you are a kid who got stung 4 times last August and still hasn't gotten over it. We are working hard to get and keep Peanut outside, but it's not easy, and mostly involves sitting within 3 feet of the house because there aren't bushes and flowers along that side of the lawn. I regret that trip to Tahoe pretty much every single day.

Finally, mid-afternoon chocolate is a great pick-me-up for all of us. That's all :)

Science Day

It's the one day of the week I for sure know what day it is. Little stressful all the other days as I have to remember if it's Thursday yet, or not, so I don't miss it, haha.

We talked about eclipses today, which happen to be a favorite subject of mine, so that was fun. The Zoom classes are going pretty well--not as fun, by any stretch of the imagination, but for most of the kids, it's good enough. I've got a couple of my younger ones who really struggle. One keeps turning the class off about halfway through--she's just done. I don't blame her. It's not the same as playing games and acting things out how we used to.

Peanut stayed on with one of his friends for almost two hours after class today.

They figured out how to change who was hosting, and how to share the whiteboard so they could play games and draw things for each other to guess. I hate that friend time has to also be screen time, but am so glad that they have the chance to connect with people even in isolation.

Bean read to the boys from another one of her books she wrote when she was little. From the sounds of all the laughter, it was another hilarious installment of Animal Adventures. I missed out on this one because I still had science class stuff I needed to finish up. (And our backyard is now officially as messy as our house--random towels and blankets everywhere, 4 hammocks up all week--but everyone's been out there reading in them daily, so it's worth it.)

After dinner, Daddy-o and Bean had a seminary class on Zoom, so the boys and I went out for an hour. They biked, I walked.

They spent 15 minutes just biking over these speed bumps over and over, trying to jump them, or in Peanut's case, just taking them at full speed with no feet. He's gotten much braver on the bike--hard to believe it took him so many years to figure out how to ride, and now he can't get enough. I'm so glad because biking has been a true joy for him during all of this. And he doesn't complain about his legs getting tired like he does when I make him walk.

Random Note: So, I'm curious--I appear to have 5 people who read this regularly. I know who a couple are, but would love to hear from the few people who check in here daily, if you don't mind commenting or sending me a message some other way. I know most people only check when I put the link on Facebook, which I rarely do.

More of the Same

Another sunrise walk/run.

A failed attempt to make an edible geode.

Math games in the sunshine. He's working on memorizing the 3s times tables and we're making up all types of ways for him to practice.

Followed by a lot of reading for the boys, chemistry for Bean, and working on my science lessons for tomorrow for me.

A post-dinner walk/bike ride because I realized that while we've spent a lot of time outside, this boy hadn't left the house in two days and hadn't had any real movement, which he needs.

I do love the family walks.

And then we ended the day with bedtime stories from one of Bean's books she wrote when she was 7. It was hilarious and had us laughing so hard we were crying. 

Rainy Days and Mondays

With a forecast for rain most of the day, we took advantage of the break in the morning and got out for a walk. The creek was raging--it's so much prettier when there's water in there.

The boys biked, including some mountain biking off the trail. Bug also took a challenge from a friend and figured out how to stand on the center bar of his bike and even go hands free for a half second.

Our weird nature find of the day--an early form of a pinecone.

When we came back, everyone got to work. We are hoping for a bit of a break this week from the normal routines. It's supposed to be our Spring Break, although a couple of our now online classes (including mine) are still happening because of missed days last month. But today was the day to get the work done. I planned out science class for the week.

Peanut finished the book he's been writing, and then started the next in the series.

He was completely inspired by reading the first Dinosaur Cove book and the first 68 Rooms book, and now wrote his own story about two friends who find a time traveling machine in a museum and get to visit the dinosaur time.

Bug was hard at work on his science fair project. We're going to do a virtual "fair" so the kids need to each submit a video of their project.

Bean is officially off this week, but had some catch up work to do before she can enjoy the break.

And I finally embraced the quarantine baking that has taken everyone by storm--cheese-filled pretzels for snack, and homemade bread baked for the week.