Days 32, 33, 34

Math everyday. Gilbert doing better with his reading workbook but still not enjoying it. I may switch. Today we went to a homeschool park day and had fun.

Day 29, 30, 31

Days proceeding. Co-op today. Math and reading for Gilbert, math for big girls.

Day 28

Math for all today. Faith baked. Bede drew comics.

Day 27

Missed co-op yesterday. Today Gil did math and reading workbook. Faith and Abby did Life of Fred.

Trixie and Gilbert made LEGO dragons. Trixie's fine motor skills and tolerance of frustration are much improved.

Day 25, 26

Faith and Abby LoF. Gilbert MCP. Just doing what we do.

Day 24

LoF started and enjoyed by Faith and Abby. Gilbert did his math too, some place value review today. He's still struggling but finishing his reading workbook. It's hard for him to read between the lines and glean information. This is good practice for him.

Post-school Wii.

Day 23

Co-op. All enjoying their language classes and doing well. Life of Fred: Fractions came today too, so Abby and Faith will start that.

Day 20, 21, 22

Math for all and and also purchased Writing Strands for composition. Certainly for Faith and Abby, possibly for Gilbert.

Day 19

Co-op day. All did well. Little girls and Bede did workbooks while the others cooperated. Here's Dorothy.

Day 17, 18

Math was done by Gilbert, as well as reading workbook. We all went to the State Fair too. Faith and Abby fizzled out on their math for a few days because the text is too sparse. We have obtained two other books and have a third on the way so we will undoubtedly find one that sticks.

Day 16

Gil did math but the bigs ran into a snag. Gil finished Third Grade Detectives, too.

Day 15

Math for Faith Abby Gil. Trixie has been drawing a lot in the past months and her hand strength and ability to hold a pencil correctly has come very far. Yesterday she tried a few penmanship exercises and said her hand was tired after a few lines. A definite step forward from last year, when she couldn't make two letters and could barely draw a happy face. The Draw Write Now! books have helped so much. She is still clenching on the pencil but that will improve with time. All of that is my long way of saying she didn't do any formal work today but is making great strides overall.

Gilbert also did his reading workbook with aplomb today, no complaints, anxiety or tears, and got all the answers correct.

Bede has been reading a lot today, comics and picture books. Gloria is drawing and writing and really getting the connection between the way words sound and the way they are spelled.

Abby and Faith are working with integers in their math and  I think we may take some time to explore beyond the algorithm and see why it works. Abby is particularly interested. Khan Academy probably has a good video or two.

Day 14

Co-op today. Faith got a 97 on her first Latin quiz, woo! Before co-op G A F did math. At co-op Bede did page after page in his new math workbook. Turns out he knows how to do at least basic addition, which is cool. Six pages, all correct.

This weekend we visited a family farm. We petted goats and drank their milk, played with cats and chickens, and were sent home with a lovely sampling of garden produce to boot. The family has nine? children and they homeschool. It strengthened my resolve to get chickens and possibly goats. Dorothy concurs.

Day 13

Math for A, F, G. Bede also did a bunch of addition and subtraction. Gilbert did his reading workbook to no tears and all correct answers. Having him do the comprehension questions first, rather than second or last (how they are presented in the book) helped tremendously. Gloria, who deeply wants to learn to read, tried reading a BOB book today and went one page before anxious and tearful cries of "I don't know!" So we will wait until after Christmas for our next reading lesson. Clearly she is unable to handle it at this time. I have had readers at age 2 (Bede) and readers at age 7 (Faith) so it's no sweat for me. She is about where a typical K student is, if not a bit ahead.

Below see Dorothy vrooming a car and Faith and Abby doing... something? complicated and amusing in a game of their creation involving many many fictional characters.

Day 12

Faith, Abby and Gil did math. Bede is still making comic books. I ordered him a math puzzlers workbook on his request, and a handwriting workbook for Trixie. Also BOB books for Gloria. And Gil read Third Grade Detectives.

Day 11

Faith and Abby did algebra, Gilbert math as well. Today was Gilbert's reading workbook as well. Bede has been making comic books. Today we had a tornado shelter installed. Kids loved watching the excavation.

Day 10

Math for F, A, Gil. Bede has been reading our book on pregnancy and fetal development. Gilbert also read more Third Grade Detectives. Below is our current science interest, the giant Argiope aurantia who lives outside our window. Later it's Walmart.

Day 9

No co-op today for Labor Day. But our school goes on. Gilbert started MCP Math level C today, and Abby and Faith did Algebra. The Spectrum Algebra they are using would be more properly called Pre-Algebra, but there you have it. They like it fine. Below, Bede figuring out arithmetic with the calculator while Gilbert looks on.

Day 8

F and A Algebra, Gilbert did reading to less stress than the first day. Bede is recreating Zero the Hero in LEGO. Bede, Gilbert, Trixie and Gloria all made birthday cards for Sean.

Day 7

Faith and Abby did algebra today and Faith played Dragon Box + as well. Still much reading of To Be Or Not To Be. Faith is also rereading the second book in the Mysterious Benedict Society. Gilbert is still in Third Grade Detectives. Trixie read The Fire Cat today. I think you can see it in the photo amongst the table clutter. Bede has been on the computer most of the day making something lengthy in Google Docs. I think it is a translation of a Discovery Channel show about cats.

We were visited by our friends and fellow homeschoolers, the Pergs, in the afternoon and much fun was had.

Day 6

Faith and Abby started their algebra today, painlessly. Gilbert started his reading workbook and didn't much care for it, but we will continue on for a while. He gets overwrought like Gloria. Below is Abby reading To Be Or Not To Be, which being a Shakespeare Choose Your Own Adventure book, by the creator of Adventure Time, was apparently written just for her.

Day 5

Gloria, Gilbert and Bede intent on the tablet, below. Today we went to Walmart and did much real world math. Also worked with Gloria on reading. She is afraid of something, being wrong maybe? Slow going. Soon it will all click.

Day 4

Co-op again. The kids were prepared for classes and enjoyed it. Faith got a new phrasebook in Latin. I did order an algebra book for Faith and Abby, and as you can see they are really excited about that. 

I think I'll get a math workbook for Gilbert too. He really likes Teaching Textbooks but the computer use required is currently problematic. Gilbert has been reading Third Grade Detectives and seems to like it well enough. Trixie and Gloria have been working in their Brain Quest books, and Bede has been writing actual books and binding them. "A Book About Going To Space!" Bede has also been teaching himself more arithmetic.

Days 1, 2, 3

Ready for co-op!

We started co-op on Monday, Faith, Abby, Gilbert. Little girls and Bede did Brain Quest workbooks during. Tuesday we got sick. Wednesday Faith practiced Latin and Gilbert started Third Grade Detectives. He read more today. Kind of waiting on the internet situation to resolve before we start math for the year but I feel like we will fall behind.

I got a Spectrum Reading workbook for Gilbert. I may get them for some of the other kids too.