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Our 4th Grade Homeschool Curriculum Choices

Aug292016
August 29, 2016 by 1 Comment

4th grade homeschool curriculum choices - from Homeschool Creations

The main focus this year for Kaleb is reading. His reading skills grew tremendously last year, but with reading being the core of his starting to work on subjects independently (something important in the upcoming years), the core of all we do and focus on needs to be reading. Together he and I are reading aloud to each other and reviewing, reviewing, reviewing so the areas he struggles in becomes much more natural for him. Zachary’s 4th grade year (our other son) was the point when reading finally ‘clicked’ for him, so although I’m trying not to compare too much, I am truly hoping and praying everything really falls into place for him this year and he feels comfortable with his reading skills. 

Another area we will be targeting is history/geography. Kaleb will be working with Zachary (6th grade) on these two subjects, as well as some friends of ours. The intent in history is to work on a similar cycle with the boys and Laurianna so we can tie in some field trips with another family. 

The bulk of Kaleb’s studies are still done together with me, with the exception of math, since we use a computer-based program that essentially reads the lesson to him. He can definitely read more than he lets on most days – it’s just that struggle to actually DO it, rather than letting his siblings jump in (when they are so willing to do so). 

4th Grade Homeschool Curriculum

Here’s a look at the overall plan for our 4th grade year…

Kaleb has been going through science experiment ideas with me and we are compiling a list to work on about one experiment or STEM project each week. This boy is ALL about math and science, so he will be working on plenty of hands-on projects throughout the year both with me and on his own. It’s not uncommon for him to pull out our Little Bits set and work on something while he is waiting for me or when he is finished with his work. 

On the flip side, he is also a boy that loves to create and work on art projects. As the year progresses, his wall will be covered with various creations from Home Art Studio. I absolutely LOVE this program and the fact that Kaleb can work independently on his art projects – and all I need to do is prep a tray for him with all the supplies. Super simple and he can’t get enough of it. Win-win! 

Co-op Learning

This year we are only participating in one co-op with all of the kids and trying to keep life a bit more simple in that regard. While Kaleb isn’t as upset about it (he’s a fairly even-keeled kiddo emotionally), he does love our smaller co-op because his best buddy is also a part of it. Our co-op meets every other week with the elementary and middle school kids, so it isn’t overwhelming for planning. This year they will be working on the following two classes: 

  • Spanish – last year they had a level 1 Spanish for elementary with one of the moms – and really loved it. She is hoping to use a new program this year – so we’ll keep you posted on how that is going. 
  • Five in a Row – two of the moms tag-team teach this class and work on one book each month – art projects, science experiments, etc… 

Curriculum in Year’s Past

In case you are interested in seeing the curriculum that brought us to this point, here’s a peek at what we’ve used with Kaleb the past few years:

If you are new to homeschooling and aren’t sure where to begin in choosing homeschool curriculum, please don’t let this post overwhelm you! Check out the entire Homeschool Basics series for answers to more frequently asked homeschool questions.

See What the Other Kids Are Up To…

Click any of the images below to see our homeschool picks for the current school year. You’ll also find links to past years choices in each post. 

4th grade homeschool curriculum choices - from Homeschool Creations 6th grade homeschool curriculum choices 2016 from Homeschool Creations 8th grade homeschool curriculum choices 2016 10th grade homeschool curriculum choices from Homeschool Creations 2016
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Filed Under: 4th Grade, Curriculum Choices, Kaleb, Our Classroom 1 Comment

EEME Project DIY Display – Review

Oct62015
October 6, 2015 by 38 Comments

EEME Project DIY Display review {%{% Homeschool Creations

Zachary has been having far too much fun getting his fingers working on electronic projects from EEME. After working on the Project Genius Light recently, he was more than ready to jump into a new project and see what he could create with circuitry! When that little brown box showed up, it was immediately on his desk and he was ready to start! He is definitely our build and create boy, and any STEM project something he is more than happy to focus on (if only we could bottle that attention for other subjects too – grins).

EEME has been blog sponsor for the last several months and sent us the Project DIY Display (ages 7-12) to work on together. When I say ‘together’ that roughly translates to me observing Zachary as he creates the project himself and explains the different concepts to me. It has been the perfect ‘hands-off’ for me, but opportunity to watch him learn.

Project DIY Display

Project DIY Display from EEME {%{% Homeschool Creations-11

The DIY Display project focuses on segmented LEDs. Remember the scoreboards way back in the day (maybe I’m dating myself talking about our high school scoreboard)? In this project, kids learn how to wire their own switch panel and make numbers display on a mini board. Project build time is approximately 1.5 to 2.5 hours and 38 short lessons or modules.

Project DIY Display from EEME {%{% Homeschool Creations-16

We used the iPad this time to work through the free instructional videos and Zachary took a little over 1.5 hours to complete this project. He’s not one to get up and leave it alone, so once he started, he was on a mission to get it finished and working.

Project DIY Display from EEME {%{% Homeschool Creations-14

Compared to his last EEME project, I was able to sit back this time and observe while Zachary worked. If he had any questions or needed help with something, he just asked. At one point he needed a wire stripped (he may have broken one), so I helped with that and he was back working in just a few minutes.

Project DIY Display from EEME {%{% Homeschool Creations-5

He answered comprehension questions in between the short instructional clips – a huge help to see how much kids are understanding. Some of the questions he answered verbally rather than typing in his longer answers.

Inside an EEME Kit

EEME six project set

Unfortunately Zachary was well into building his kit before I realized that we didn’t have a picture of what came in it this time! However, each of the EEME project kits contains all of the components needed to build the monthly project.

Our first kit (or the first month in the subscription) contained a project kit with all the base pieces need to build that project. Future projects are built using those components as well:  a baseplate, breadboard, and a battery pack. These pieces are reusable. Our kit for the DIY Display included additional components that were necessary to complete this specific project. All curriculum is online and your children can watch and re-watch the videos at anytime.

Projects build in difficulty and are geared for children ages 7-12.  If you have an electronics lover in your home, this is a great monthly subscription plan to teach them more about LED’s, resistors, transistors, capcitors, and much more! If those words are all foreign to you, don’t worry – EEME explains everything in the lessons and you don’t have to be a whiz at electronics for your children to succeed in building and understanding!

If you don’t want to wait for the once a month shipment, you can take advantage of their 6 month project bundle HERE and receive free shipping as well.

How the DIY Display Works

Here’s a quick little peek at our completed Project DIY Display from EEME. It’s a short clip, but shows it in action…

Finished the switch panel from @projecteeme – here’s a quick peek at how it works. Depending on which number is flipped on the switch panel, Zachary can make different numbers light up. This project used the base from our Project Genius activity last month. #projecteeme #Homeschool #hsscience #science

Posted by Homeschool Creations on Tuesday, 15 September 2015

Feed readers can watch the video here.

When each switch is toggled on, there is a closed circuit allowing current to flow from one end of the battery to the other end. When toggled off, the circuit is opened and the segment is turned off (or the current cannot flow). Each of the switches is wired so you can toggle them on and off with other switches to create different numbers.

What You’ll LOVE About EEME

Project DIY Display from EEME Homeschool Creations

Aside from the fact that all the supplies are included in each of the EEME project kits, the video curriculum is well put together and explain the building process in detail. Each of the videos is between 2 – 10 minutes long. In addition:

  • videos explain the step-by-step process AND the principles involved (how/why something works) – a huge help for parents who don’t know the answers themselves (cough)
  • shorter videos help those with limited attention spans
  • comprehension questions ensure kids are understanding what you are doing
  • videos can be stopped/paused if needed during the process
  • the videos are free to watch – check them out here and get a peek!

We have honestly LOVED these projects from EEME. It has been the perfect fit for Zachary to work on independently. The projects would be wonderful extensions to current curriculum or even as after school learning – or even make a great gift! We’ve learned so much working through two projects already.

There are different purchase options available, including a basic monthly subscription, individual projects, and a 6 month Project Set. They have different purchase options, but we’ve completed the first two projects so far from the basic subscription basic subscription.  You can find more information on the EEME website, or follow them on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, or Twitter.

Win a Project Light Link from EEME

Project Light Link from EEME giveaway {%{% Homeschool Creations

EEME has offered Project Light Link as a giveaway to THREE of my readers! Project Light Link is the best way to get acquainted with EEME’s hands-on building and learning experience. This giveaway is open to US readers only and will be open through Wednesday, October 14th at midnight. Use the Rafflecopter widget below to enter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway


But I’d love to know – what age is the child you would like to use EEME with and learn about electronics? Leave a comment below!

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Filed Under: 4th Grade, 5th Grade, Opinions and Reviews, Science, STEM 38 Comments

Story Detective Printable – Identifying Parts of a Story

Aug192015
August 19, 2015 by 9 Comments

Story Detective printables for learning the parts of a story

 

This year we are using WriteShop Primary C as a part of Kaleb’s 3rd grade curriculum. Right now we are learning about the parts of a story: the who, what, where, when, why, and story details.

Because I didn’t want to take 20 minutes to cut out and create the suggested magnifying glasses (heaven forbid I should pull out the construction paper and scissors – every one of them would be a different shape and that would bother me), I spent an hour creating the Story Detective printables instead. (In my defense, there are more than magnifying glasses in the pack.)

Story Detective Printables

Story detective worksheets at a glance

Inside the Story Detective printable set you will find:

  • Story Part magnifying glasses: who, what, where, when, why/how, and story details
  • Story detective worksheet: use this to go along with stories your child creates or reads
  • Take-along cards: quick notecards to hang up or use as a reference
  • Story sheets: write and illustrate your own story

Download button

Draw and Journal Pages

Draw and Journal Pages

If you like the story sheets that are in the pack you can find additional Draw and Journal pages here.

Essay Outline For Older Children

Hamburger essay outline for literature

If you have older children that are at the essay stage of writing, download a free copy of the Hamburger Essay Outline to help organize the writing process.

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Filed Under: 2nd grade, 3rd Grade, 4th Grade, Printables, Writing 9 Comments

EEME Project Genius Light Review

Jul282015
July 28, 2015 by 2 Comments

Helping our kids have a deep understanding of what the science, technological, electronics, and math (STEM) principals are behind various technology is so important in life! If you are one that isn’t familiar with circuitry, but have a child who is – read on, because your children will LOVE the projects and lessons we’ve been covering recently.

Project Genius Light Review from EEME

Zachary is our hands-on, loves to learn about electronics kid. He is constantly trying to figure out how things work, sometimes to the detriment of things in our household. Note: That doesn’t mean I’m always happy when he tries to ‘fix, aka mangle’ something.

The Project Genius Light from EEME

EEME offered us the chance to work on the Project Genius Light (for kids ages 7-12), an LED circuit board that teaches kids about electronics in a meaningful and engaging way. Can you guess who was excited about helping out? From the moment the box arrived in our house, Zachary was ready to start.

Here’s a look at the Genius Light project:

With the Genius Light project, you will assemble a simple LED circuit system that does the smart thing – lights up when it is dark and dims when it is light. (30 lessons)

Your family will learn about:
– LED light bulbs
– Resistors
– Photoresistors
– Breadboards
– Project build time: 1.5 – 2.5 hours

Project Genius Light from EEME-4

I’ll be honest and tell you – I was a little hesitant on pulling it out for Zachary though and put it off to the side for a bit because I didn’t want him to get started and then forget about it or get distracted. But then I forgot and the box got pushed aside until he found it and held the box in front of me every day until I opened up the laptop to have him watch the free instructional videos and let him work on the project.

Project Genius Light from EEME-18

Although he wanted to work on it by himself, I hung around in case he needed any help. Sometimes he can get ahead of himself and want to do the lessons out of order. For the most part, I tried to stay out of what he was doing and he quickly figured out that the lessons are in an order for a reason. As he began going through the lessons and tried to skip ahead, he went back and picked up where he should have followed along.

Project Genius Light from EEME-21

In between the short video clips on the projects, there were comprehension questions to answer so I was able to see how much Zachary was understanding. Rather than having him try to type in the longer answers, he gave me an oral answer (we were watching via the iPad and it was much harder to type answers on for him).

 

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Overall, the videos, lessons, and building took us a little over an hour to complete (allotted time is 1.5 to 2.5 hours). Above is a video clip of Zachary explaining one of the circuits he built and why/how it worked. I may have learned a few new terms and things about circuits in the process!

What is in an EEME project kit?

Each of the EEME project kits contains all of the components needed to build the monthly project. The first month you receive a project kit with all of the base pieces you will need to build future projects on, including a baseplate, breadboard, and a battery pack. These pieces are reusable. All curriculum is online and your children can watch and re-watch the videos at anytime.

Projects build in difficulty and on what children are learning and are geared for children ages 7-12. And psst – they have a 100% satisfaction guarantee. If you have an electronics lover in your home, this is a great monthly subscription plan to teach them more about LED’s, resistors, transistors, capcitors, and much more! If those words are all foreign to you, don’t worry – they explain everything and you may learn a thing or two before your child is done.

EEME six project set

If you don’t want to wait for the once a month shipment, you can take advantage of their 6 month project bundle HERE and receive free shipping as well.

What I Love About EEME

The videos from the EEME project kits are well put together and explain the building process well. Each of the videos is between 2 – 10 minutes long. In addition:

  • videos explain the step-by-step process AND the principles involved (how/why something works)
  • the shorter videos help those with limited attention spans
  • comprehension questions ensure kids are understanding what you are doing
  • you can stop/pause a project if needed during the process
  • the videos are free to watch – you can check them out here
  • if the words LED, resistor, transistor, and capcitor are foreign to you, don’t worry – they do all the teaching!

 

    Try a FREE Project from EEME.co

FREE LED Light Circuit Offer from EEME

EEME has a FREE LED light circuit introductory offer for readers of Homeschool Creations. Build an LED light circuit and learn how it works with Project Light Link and the online curriculum. The project comes with everything you need to start building – batteries, wires, etc… This is normally $14.95, and all you have to pay is s/h for the project. Click HERE to get your FREE kit from EEME.

Win a Project Genius Light from EEME

2015_07_27__genius_light (1)

EEME has offered a Project Genius Light as a giveaway to one of my readers (a $49.95 value)! This giveaway is open to US readers only and will be open through Wednesday, August 12th at midnight. EEME is hosting this giveaway, so click below to enter!

But I’d love to know – what age is the child you would like to use EEME with and learn about electronics? Leave a comment below!

Homeschool Creations: EEME Project Genius Light Giveaway

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Filed Under: 4th Grade, 5th Grade, Opinions and Reviews, Science, STEM 2 Comments

Fourth Grade Year in Review – Homeschool Curriculum Choices

Jul132015
July 13, 2015 by 6 Comments

4th Grade Homeschool Year in Review


While getting all of our curriculum lined up for the year can be overwhelming, sometimes putting it all into practice can be equally as daunting. Choices that may have seemed great at the beginning of the year might not pan out by the end of the year. It’s fun to see all the different options that we share when we start, but I also love hearing how programs worked out for families during the course of the year – and hope you do as well.

You can see all of the homeschool curriculum choices for the 2014-15 here, but below you’ll get a good look at what we used for Zachary’s fourth grade year and what we will be (or won’t be) using again next year – and why. Many of Zachary’s subjects this year were more independent, but he still struggles (cough) with staying focused on what his assignments are. Part of it is my fault – and part of it rests with him. There are always things more interesting to do. Like watch dust in the air. Just sayin’.

Science

The plan: Nancy Larson Science 2 with LEGO Education programs ~ WeDo and Simple Machines; three weekly Snap Circuit assignments; K’Nex Simple Machines set

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Zachary worked on Science 2 together with Kaleb. Although he has worked through the level before (several years ago) he really enjoyed doing it with Kaleb. Because of the way the program is laid out (lesson plans already in place), there were a few days when he offered to do the lesson teaching with Kaleb (I may have enjoyed that a lot!).  Above you see the end results of dissecting an owl pellet (something both boys enjoyed much).

read aloud time

We added in some fun simple machine projects using our Simple Machines from LEGO and also our K’Nex Simple Machines set. When we were learning about pulleys and levers, Zachary built a ‘working’ elevator using the K’Nex set (he may have been very proud of that!).

Snap circuits

The initial plan was to have him work on 3 Snap Circuit assignments each week, but in truth that ended up being when he wanted to work on them. There were days that he did between 3 to 5, but he did work on most of the projects in the box over the course of the year. This was one of those “I’m really glad that we purchased it” items for the year. He loves hands-on projects like the ones included and it keeps him away from other things…such as my vacuum cleaner. (ahem)

History

The plan: Mystery of History 4 combined with Story of the World 4; Liberty Kids dvd series

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Although the lessons were longer in MOH 4, the kids loved this year because we were able to add in so many REAL videos from recent events and see pictures of things as they happened. Zachary in particular absorbs so much of history and especially enjoyed when we started getting into recent wars and learning all about them. We did fill in here and there with Story of the World, but primarily focused on Mystery of History.

While the coloring pages are ok for Zachary, he prefers making his own drawings or LEGO creations to go along with the stories we are reading.

Spelling

The plan: All About Spelling Levels 3 (finishing) & 4 and All About Homophones

We typically worked on one lesson a week (although not always). We finished up Level 3 this year and are almost finished with Level 4. All About Homophones ended up being put to the side for the year since we were working on a lot of the same stuff in our literature program. We are both ready to get into a better swing with spelling next year as we change our grammar program and it will merge better with it.

Language/Writing

poetry unit

Switching to Learning Language Arts was a huge change for us – different format and style, but the main reason for the move was to include more book studies for Zachary. Truly this has been the BIGGEST area of improvement for him over the year. Because of several of the book choices (that he had to read independently), he was pulled into the stories and completed his first book this year, and then he subsequently read several more that weren’t a part of the program, but on a reading list I pulled together for him (see reading section below).
Personally I would have liked to see a little more consistency in grammar rules in the LLATL program (I understand that it is a little more informal). We could have used Daily Grams to go along with it, but I held off on that this year. Next year we will be switching to a different program, but still following a similar format for book studies since that is something that I did really appreciate about Learning Language Arts Through Literature.
Zachary’s confidence and love for reading has definitely been pushed this year! In addition to the books that he had to read for school, he also read all of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series and several other books of his own choosing (yay!!)
As for book reports – ummm, other than the reviews that we did for the four books as a part of language, we didn’t do a single one. Oops!

Reading

image

Zachary really enjoyed finishing up the Level 4 program this year (I’m sad that’s the highest they go!). He’s received such a strong foundation in reading with the program and really can read well, but half of the time it’s mentally convincing him that he can.

The reading list I put together for him at the start of the year included four books to go along with the Learning Language Arts Through Literature program and then nine others that I picked out, so thirteen total. Out of those thirteen books, he completed TEN of them and truthfully I am beyond thrilled with that! Considering that he read his first actual book from cover to cover at the beginning of the year (September), this is HUGE for him and then to read nine more almost makes me cry with joy.

If anything, this year has put confidence in him. He is picking up books independently to read, choosing and wanting to purchase books, and branching out beyond the typical ‘easy’ books that you can flip through when we go to the library. So – hugely successful overall.

Math

The plan: Teaching Textbooks 5 and Life of Fred

We were rather sporadic with Life of Fred this year with Zachary, which was ok since he was primarily focused on Teaching Textbooks. Our biggest issue is staying focused. We’ve had multiple headphone issues this year (someone keeps leaving them on the floor and they break…and then needs them when working so he isn’t distracted by all the noise/talking in the room). I won’t mention any names.

Bible

The plan: Picture Smart Bible – wrapping up our Old Testament Studies and 90 Devotions for Kids – morning devotions.

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We did work through most of Picture Smart Bible and at the end of the year switched over to Grapevine to work on a unit on the book of Ruth. All of the kids were in agreement that they want to do more Grapevine next year again. It’s not that we don’t like Picture Smart Bible, but Grapevine is just a better fit overall, and if the kids enjoy it, I’m all game!

Almost every morning we started off with a quick devotional from 90 Devotions for Kids. Short and sweet, so we purchased the next devotion book because we loved it so much!

In November and December we took a break from Picture Smart Bible to focus on Unwrapping the Greatest Gift. We loved the Advent study from Ann Voskamp – those coloring pages just seal the deal!

Handwriting

While this may not be Zachary’s greatest joy in life, his handwriting is neat (when he wants it to be) and he has the basics down. (grins)

Art

Zachary completed about 60% of the art projects in the Home Art program, but also participated in art during his co-op time, so I didn’t push too much with it. He’s a boy that would rather work on Snap Circuits or K’Nex, and that’s okay too.  We also managed one pastel from HodgePodge (the kids always love those!).

Co-op

PE, Art, and other electives
We participated in two different co-ops this year, and Zachary really enjoyed both. Although our kids are active with swim team and life in general, PE at co-op is always fun, some of his art happened via co-op, and Zachary was also able to work through a human body class (he rather enjoyed that one!).
I’ll be sharing our year end review of 6th, and 8th grade soon, so be sure to check back! Click the image below to see our 2nd Grade Year in Review.

2nd Grade Homeschool Year in Review

New to Homeschooling?

If you are new to homeschooling and aren’t sure where to begin in choosing homeschool curriculum, please don’t let this post overwhelm you! Here are a few posts that you might find helpful as you discover what is best for your family. Be sure to check out the entire Homeschool Basics series for answers to more frequently asked homeschool questions.

Homeschool Teaching Styles and Philosphies.png Identifying Children's Learning Styles copy How to Choose Homeschool Curriculum

Additional Resources: Unfamiliar with some of the curriculum choices above? Follow the links below to learn more about the companies and resources:

Curriculum Choices from Years Past…

If you’d like to see what curriculum we’ve used in years past, click on one of the posts below. Grade levels taught each year are listed with the posts.

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Filed Under: 4th Grade, Homeschool Classroom, Weekly Wrap Up 6 Comments

What We’ve Been Up to in Our Homeschool Time – a Sum-up of the Last Five or So Weeks

May182015
May 18, 2015 by 2 Comments

The last time I shared about our homeschool goings-on was quite a bit ago. March to be precise. It was just before life got crazy with travel and doctor’s visits. And then it started to feel like I was so behind and there was so much to share – which is true on both accounts.

But, it is always so much fun to see what others have been up to, so this is the abbreviated version of what we’ve been learning about in the last six or seven weeks. There are a few subjects that we still have to wrap-up for the year, and we likely won’t finish on schedule, and that’s ok. Really ok. (I need to keep reminding myself of that).

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We did finish up Nancy Larson Science 2 with the boys and they both had so much fun with dissecting owl pellets. The last unit is all about birds, so it was a fun way to round out the unit. I ended up buying a more owl pellets online because they wanted to do more! Kaleb was a bit grossed out at first, but he was the one that ended up pulling apart the most!

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For the last eight weeks of school the kids asked if we could work on a Grapevine Bible study together. While we’ve enjoyed Picture Smart Bible, they told me they prefer Grapevine – so we made a quick and easy switch. They all love drawing their figures and illustrating their stories, so we are working on the book of Ruth together.

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For me that meant some new teacher supplies – a lovely rainbow collection of dry erase markers. Can someone please explain how all the colors you need seem to dry out the fastest? I’m rather happy with the new collection. (grins)

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We had been using graph paper for Kaleb’s math, but truthfully – for a 2nd grader, it was a bit much (and more expensive). A reader suggested turning a sheet of lined paper sideways and lining up columns for him to work on his math problems that way. SO much easier for him!

Laurianna has been working hard on several projects for her physical science credit. Her most recent one was building a solar-powered fan. She was really frustrated because it didn’t work for quite some time, and we couldn’t figure out why, and then one day it suddenly started working. Yay!!

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This entire high school thing is really sinking in now that we are wrapping up our first year – yikes! When helping out at a homeschool convention, I picked up a microscope for next year’s biology lab. Like a real heavy-duty for REAL microscope. I know it’s not a huge thing, but it somehow just makes it even more real.

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While this picture is a little cheesy, my thought is if you take pictures using your mom’s phone, it becomes her property to do whatsoever she desires with it. A few weeks ago I took our high school lit co-op class to see Much Ado About Nothing at a nearby Shakespeare center. SO MUCH FUN. Not only with the kids, but just in remembering part of what I loved about being an English major. Our class had been studying The Tempest, so it wasn’t the same play – but still worth every minute there. The theatre was packed and our small group of six had nearly front row seats – and two on the stage so the kids had to participate a few times. We are definitely doing it again next year!

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With the weather turning beautiful, we’ve been spending time outside on the front porch or our back deck. The birds have been out in full swing and it has been so much fun to look for the different species. We’ve been using our Bird Nature Study Printables to count how many have been at the feeder and using our iBird Pro app to imitate their calls. McKenna and Zachary spent about 45 minutes outside one morning and managed to have a piliated woodpecker get close to the house. It really has been a blast!

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One of the things I’ve had the hardest time keeping up with this year is the grading of papers. The typical day to day isn’t too bad, but having papers from lit class in co-op is a little more challenging. It’s one thing to grade your own child’s paper, but quite another sometimes to grade papers for other kids. Over the last year it has been so encouraging to see how each of the kids has grown in their writing abilities – and it can sometimes be hard to give constructive criticism. As hard as it is to give it, the kids have been so gracious in how they receive it too, working even harder. Love that.

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Since the boys have finished their day-to-day science lessons, they are all about finding nature around the house and enjoying that. They unearthed a red salamander one morning and have been checking often to see if it is still hanging around in the same spot.

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We are *almost* at the end of our history lessons with Mystery of History 4. We had to put a hold on them when life got crazy, but all of the kids have been engrossed in the modern history we are learning (Kennedy, Nixon/Watergate, Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks to name a few). There are only six more lessons to wrap it up and we will get around to it – eventually!

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There have been a LOT of audio books lately. A lot. As we travel back and forth to appointments, there is usually one on in the car. One series that we have really been enjoying lately is from Lemony Snickets – A Series of Unfortunate Events. It’s one we had put off for a bit (I wouldn’t recommend it for kids under 8 years old), but the humor in it has the kids and I cracking up all the time. I’ll be sharing more about the books soon, but we are almost finished listening to the fourth book right now and have the fifth and sixth waiting!

hydroponics system

Another project Laurianna and I will be sharing with you soon is her hydroponics system. In North Star Geography she has been learning about farming and one of their assignments was to build a hydroponics system and see how their plant grew. She did a bit of research and found something she thought would work and has been having a lot of fun working on it the past two or so weeks.

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As for day to day life, we’ve made it through the hardest part with my parent’s surgery and things should be slowing down here. This week is TESTING – yippy, Skippy. One of the kids has whizzed through her testing already, so the focus this week (after dealing with two follow up doctor visits for a concussion and my mom’s surgery) is getting it all DONE and in the mail. My stress relief has been walking and exercising lately – and making my health a priority. We live on an amazingly beautiful road that just needs to be admired. One of my goals this year is to run a 5K (and to make sure I do it, I volunteered to teach a co-op class!!). I’m either crazy or – well, let’s not go there, shall we?

That’s the overall sum-up. I know when it gets close to the end of the year we are all just ready to be finished and over with it all, and trust me, I am as well! With all the chaos the last bit, my plans have gone out the window and we’ve had to move to a day-to-day, sometimes hour-by-hour plan and that has been really hard for me. If you’ve been around here long enough, you know that I’m a girl who likes to have a plan in place. In all of that though I have to say – God has been amazingly good. We have been surrounded by friends and family that have been walking beside us and helping out in tangible and non-tangible ways. So thankful for all of them and their support!

What have YOU been up to these last few weeks during your homeschool time?

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Filed Under: 2nd grade, 4th Grade, 6th Grade, 8th Grade, 9th Grade, Weekly Wrap Up 2 Comments