Monday, August 30, 2010

We've got class


Our official school name defines our purpose.


One of our first projects of the day, the weather journal. They write what the weather is for the day (Noah draws a picture), how they feel that day and why, and something they are thankful for.


They all wrote that they were happy because they got to start homeschool today!


It was a great start to one of the most difficult days I've ever had.

Kind of like trying to do a teacher workshop day while corralling students on the first day of a new routine. Or trying to break a trail through 12 feet of snow.

It's one thing to start a homeschooling journey, and another to start it with 3 kids to prepare for and 2 kids running around. It's so great how Isaac and Josiah have mastered the art of climbing up onto full-sized chairs because now they can reach the table and pull everything off.

In the midst of a tantrum on the part of my oldest, he yells out "A deer!!" and then continues to cry while the rest of us run to the window to see a buck not 5 feet away from the window in front of which we were doing our schoolwork. This was seriously a gift from God right then as I was just about to pull out my last hair.

At about 8:21 - we started school at 7:50 - when Caleb asked for the twelfth time, "Why can't we just....", I tried to explain to him that I like it when my patience gets doled out as a light cinnamon/sugar sprinkle upon the applesauce of life. It doesn't help things when he decides to bring in a shovel and heave it out, carelessly tossing it every which way.

Our state of the week is Minnesota. While doing some independent online research about the state capital, the state flag, the state flower, and so on, Sam asks me, "Mom, I just CAN'T find anything about the state seal! Can't I just put down that it lives in the Mississippi River?"

While sharing facts about our animal of the week, Caleb wondered, "Do porcupines EAT?"

"Can they swim?" asked Sam.

Noah worked on patterns today. He needed to figure out a given pattern on a card and then complete the last square with the appropriate answer. "Blue sheep, blue duck, yellow horse, yellow pig, green cow, ________ horse."

"Oh! It's white!"

Back to square one on patterns --- so to speak.

Judy, God bless her, and I seriously mean that, prepared lunch for the boys (she's our host at our current "home"). I was able to pull myself together enough to decide that my schedule needed to be re-worked to give us all some breathing room.

Successes of the day:

  • I gave Caleb a blank map of the USA and he was able to fill in 20 states without any help.
  • Sam completed a writing assignment. It was like pulling teeth, but he did it.
  • Noah remembers most of the letters of the alphabet even though it's been months since we've reviewed.
  • We are all still alive. And prepared for tomorrow.

I will leave you with a summary of the events of the first 12 chapters of Genesis, as dictated by Caleb to me this morning (headings are mine and were the only prompt he got):

THE CREATION OF THE WORLD AND MAN

First, there was nothing at all. Just darkness. And then God decided to make things. He made trees, plants, and the land. And then he made animals. And then he made a man and a woman named Adam and Eve. And God had given them one rule: Don't eat from the tree in the middle of the garden. `Cause there was fruit on the trees.

THE CORRUPTION OF MAN, THE FALL

And then Satan crept into the garden and made them eat from the tree. And God was very angry, and he made Adam and Eve leave the garden. One day, Eve had 2 sons. Their names were Cain and Abel. And one day, God asked them for offerings. Cain gave God vegetables and Abel gave Him one of His lambs. God was not happy with what Cain had brought and He was happy with what Abel had brought. Cain did not like this, so he decided to kill Abel. He said, "Come to my field and we will talk about stuff." And when they got to the field, they talked. And Cain killed Abel. And God was not happy. Then the flood came.

THE FLOOD

A little boy named Noah was born. And he got married to a wife named uh....I don't know. God talked to him and said, "Build an ark. I'm sending a flood." And then the flood came.; And it washed over mountains and it killed all the people. Then the water was going down FINALLY! And then the ark landed on a mountain. And when Noah died, they all turned away from God.

THE DISPERSION OF MAN, THE NATIONS

Then they built the tower of Babel. They said, "Hey look up here! Look at us! We're greater than God!" And then God destroyed the tower. The people started speaking in different languages.

THE CALLING OF ABRAM

God spoke to him. He said, "Can you move? To a new land?" He said yes. When he got to the land, he was scared. And then one night God said, "Come out of your tent. Can you count the stars?" Abram said, "I can't, Lord." And then God said, "You will have as many children as the stars."

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