school has started!!

well, we started school! albeit only a half-schedule, but we started :)

we have been reading from our Story of the World Vol 1 and are exploring Egypt in lots of fun ways! the boys really enjoy doing their map work. i have taken to letting them color their coloring pages while i am reading/reviewing the chapter to them. i really like the way the material is broken down into manageable chunks, so if we want to bunny trail, we can do so without compromising too much of the day. some of our read-a-longs were Croco'nile, Bill and Pete Go Down the Nile, One Small Blue Bead, and (tic tac's fave) It's Gross and We Ate It. my favorite was One Small Blue Bead. the kids picked right up on the rhyming and we got to talk about what it would be like to not have any neighbors and wonder if you were the only people in the world. there were some crazy ideas tossed around with that one, and lots of pretending/play acting!

tic tac finally finished his Horizons math workbook. man, was it a loooonnnnggggg road with it. we had to take several breaks along the way when he would get bored or frustrated with it. i will be getting his new Math U See curriculum this weekend. i introduced him to the manipulatives that go along with it just yesterday, and he had loads of fun playing with them. when i told him we were going to use them for his new math books, he was super excited!

bonobo has kept up with tic tac in all the activities and narration. he is more into coloring and being precise with his crafts than tic tac is, which surprises me. it also causes a LOT of frustrated moments for him when it doesn't go as planned. we started Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy lessons, but just yesterday he told me it is too hard and he doesn't want to keep going. we were only at lesson 8! but the last few lessons have been difficult: he doesn't want to sit through them, he doesn't want to rhyme or put his finger on the dot, etc. so i told him we would put it on the shelf for a month or so and then see how he feels about it.

stinkerbell is mostly in the way during school time, so i am trying to get creative with her before we start school, or just move school to when she is lying down in the afternoon. it has meant a LOT of playdoh time, but that will only last so long.

we also rowed The Giraffe Who Walked to Paris, which we got through our ILL system. what an awesome book! and it fit right in with our Egyptian week. the kids really loved doing the math to see just how far she traveled. we read Zarafa, the Giraffe who Walked to the King as a go along for a different perspective, and the kids like the illustrations in that one better.

all in all, i like the way our schedule has been working. and, of course, since i like it, something has to come along and mess with it, right? of course.

i will leave that one hanging for now. but we are making some pretty significant decisions in the next two weeks, so i would appreciate your prayers for wisdom and peace :)

Down Down the Mountain- FIeld Trip

we finished off our FIAR with a visit to a pioneer museum. it was so much fun! we had a blast looking through the old log cabin homes, seeing people dressed in period attire, and watching a gunfight! the gunfight was a bit loud for Little A, so i didn't get any pictures of it as i was busy holding her ears! below are some pictures of our morning. we got to eat a picnic lunch on the town green, and then listen to one of the moms read our story.
this was my favorite thing of the morning! we got to watch the blacksmith make a nail! i was amazed!

the printing press office was pretty amazing. it was fun to watch the kids' faces when i explained that each letter had to be put into the template before they could print out the newspaper! they couldn't believe they couldn't just point and click!

my ha-ha moment of the day was when one of the girls had a conversation with me about the cameras in the old days...you know, the ones with film that you had to take to the store to have developed...boy do i feel old!

I'm in love...

well, sort of...

i am definitely becoming an admirer, and i don't think it will be too long before i am in love.

what am i in love with?

Five in a Row.

i am discovering that i am not the teach at the table with workbooks kind of teacher.

my kids are simply more hands-on kind of kids.

although tic-tac likes his workbooks to an extent, it only holds his attention for say, 10 minutes at best.

and bonobo just can't do them at all... sigh

i was getting so discouraged as of late with our "failure" at staying on task these last several weeks. i had just lamented to my husband about how much i was feeling like i just wasn't capable of teaching our children.

it was a 'bus day' for sure.

you know, when you were wishing you were a traditional schooling family and the bus came and carted your kids away for 8 hours.

i only have them in my most desperate of moments.

and then, like God is so apt to do, an answer came in the perfect time.

a woman who is in my bible study and i were talking and i was just sharing with her my recent frustrations with our curriculum and my, well, my angst over my own abilities.

she asked, have you ever heard of Five in a Row?

i told her we had the first volume, but hadn't done much with it, because i was so stuck in my rut.

she graciously invited me to her home that friday to share in their FIAR co-op! they have been praying for another family to join, so she asked me to come and check it out!

isn't that so like God?

so, anyway. we went and heard a wonderful story, then played outside acting out elements of the story. we also did a craft emphasizing the desert landscape that was so much a part of the story. it was a joy to watch my kids living out the story. it really cemented the elements into their minds.

they talked about it all the way home and then got to share with daddy about how much fun they had.

wow! my eyes were really opened up to the possibilities that exist with FIAR. i am hooked, and just might be in love. thanks, julie, julie and yvette for opening your co-op to me and letting us get creative with you! i had so much fun, and came away with a lot of ideas :) i hope to do it again soon!!

oh, the book we read? Roxaboxen, by Alice McClerran. definitely a keeper!