Mr. Poppers Penguins

We started our first real book study this week. Mr. Popper’s Penguins! We’ve read many novels this year, but this is the first one we expanded on. I got some great resources from Homeschool Share and we are running with it. When we finish this book, we will be tackling Five in a Row. I’ve been playing with the idea of “rowing” as the diehards call it. I always seem to decide to do it later. I think I was over thinking it and making it harder than it needed to be. So I’m ready for the next two “rows”( I learn lingo quickly!). Many people do lapbooking, but we have already been notebooking this year, so we’ll stick with that.

I’ll upload some pics of her Journey book when we finish the book.

Spanish

Just to keep things exciting, in the home classroom, we’ve switched languages again! I consider it keeping Emily well rounded.

I picked up a Spanish Kids dictionary to help keep her excited about learning and try some new words out. I’m excited to try something new. I can hardly wait for next year when I get to try some new things again! I think one of the keys to helping a child learn a new language is modelling it. Like any other concept, if you do it, they will. I usually replace the words for “I want” and “I have” en Español and she picked that up without even knowing it was part of class. Now she asks if I want something of if she wants something and is using this weird kind of sign-spanglish. I doubt there is a term for it. I looked into Rosetta Stone for her, but she’s not quite there, so we will stick with a mixture for now.

Sensory Bin!

I made a toddler Sensory bin, and the girls have been enjoying it! Its full of letters, puff balls and bottle caps. Those and the usual tongs, spoons and little bags.

I love watching Avery dig in. After last weeks sensory couch fiasco, I figure, I need a bin with less dumpable stuff for a while!

 

Sensory Couch

Unfortunately, the couch has become a sensory bin….AVERY!!!

Phys Ed

Today for Phys Ed, we learned to rollerskate! Months ago, Emily got rollerskate, but for some reason we never pulled them out before. So we geared up and learned to skate. I made a huge observation about my girls. I need to say “Be careful!” to Avery and ” Way to go!” to Emily. My girls both learned to skate on the same day. one at almost 6(can you believe it!) and one at almost 3. Emily cautiously walked around on her skates and Avery let loose and let roll! After a while Emily got more and more comfortable with them, but I realize she needs to feel in control before she will try something. That’s something her adrenaline-crazed-mommy doesn’t exactly understand. We’ll get there!

 

 

Life Skills

Some things we focus on everyday are life skills. Over the last 6 months, Emily has learned to make breakfast and lunch, pour from a full 4 Ltr Milk jug, use the toaster, load and unload the dishwasher and vaccuum! I love that she loves to learn to help. It’s neat to see her feel more and more confident in her own abilities. I certainly love to have a little extra help around the house. Especially while we are planning and getting ready for Mexico next month!

BAK SAL

All day long Emily talked about this bake sale she wanted to have and she even made a sign. After the 40th time she said something about it, I clued in and thought we’d better set up a bake sale and add some silent /e/’s to the words BAK SAL. Then we dug out some pennies and sent daddy for tim bits.

This bake sale included reading, writing and math…all unknown learning goals for two tiny tots who devoured 4 cent tim bits and 2 cent glasses of pink lemonade. Gotta love teaching practical things. I was even brave enough to let emily pour juice in the living room…what a day!

Also, you cant see it there, but Avery has been accident free for 2 days! Potty training is significantly easier with non-sensory kids…just saying…

Pointillism

African Violet Pointillism – by Emily

Homeschooling Lesson of the week…patience! For the both of us, or should I say for ALL of us because this included Avery and Daddy too.

We had a regular week of school followed by a completely irregular weekend. Normally, I dont use words like irregular unless Im talking about the potty, but Ive been studying my spanish way too much and Im all about verbs! regular ones and irregular ones, but I got of track there.

We have been doing progressive phonics for reading. Emily is pretty much good to go with short /e/ words! We just finished the “Secret World of Og”, which was definitely one of my favorite books of all time! Math U See feels a bit boring at this point, but I think she finally starting to recognize 6 and 9. I got a couple new apps on the ipad that are helping with that sooo much too. And we started a new science unit about creation from Our Fathers World.

We finally got into the groove…then morgan got appendicitis and kablooey(technical term)…the routine was gone. Mk is recovering well. Lucky guy is now less an appendix and plus three tiny scars. We will have to wait and see what next week looks like, but I’m planning on taking it easy and starting potty training…Avery, not me…

 

Games

First Week back at school and we are reevaluating EVERYTHING! Kindergarten needs to be fun, so we are taking ourselves less seriously and playing more. This is one of our favorite Games: Kids of Catan. Gotta start em young!

Winter Class

Homeschooling in the winter is super cozy. We spend as much of our day as we can curled up with a good book, or sitting at the table, looking out the sliding doors at the snowy wonderland. We’ve been trying to get outside when the sun is shining, but this is the biggest problem we have…

Avery hates it outside! I usually bundle her up, which is a challenge, and take her outside even if she doesn’t like it. I keep hoping she’ll get over it. The last time we went out was better. She didn’t cry and scream for the whole time. Maybe she’s getting used to it. Or maybe she just realizes that no one is going to take her inside for at least a little while.

She’s only sort of smiling in this picture because I told her that if she smiled she could go inside. I know, bribe parenting…bad Courtenaymomma. Mr. Snowman nudist there is apparently named “Alina Melina”. I’m thinking that is one confused snowman. Or should we perhaps switch to snowperson…

Emily and I have been talking a lot about how snow works and the weather. “Why it melts”, has been the question of the week as it warmed up so much. First his teeth fell out, which left him looking a bit like a hockey player. Then his nose fell off. Then the mits. Now he kind of looks like a zombie snowman. His face is all messed up and his arms hang limp at his sides. He went from cheerful to creepy in one week.  Emily keeps saying we should fix his face, but to me, that seems just as morbid. “Excuse me Mr. He/She while I remove your head for repairs…” See what I mean.  Next year I’ll make a clown snowman that can melt and the creepyness will be complete.