"Insta"-replay #6, lazy summer days

This week we managed to do a bit less, I had a headache.  And I a big enough wimp to whine about it!

We started the week with music lessons! Since I've never played any instruments I am very easy to impress. My kids were pretty impressive anyways!

Also impressive, we were first in line at the library.  That meant front row seats!!  

I also managed to pack a lunch to eat at the library instead of rushing home after the show.

The rest of the week was spent eating otter pops and avoiding the heat, but I managed to get the kids out side playing for a bit.

The big accomplishment of the week was my husbands, he created a "grate pole" for taking pictures of covered culverts.  He's part of a team inventorying them along the freeway and his poles help get pictures where they can't reach.  Not bad if I do say so myself, and I do.

Even with the headache we managed to ha e another fun summer week! 

"Whatchadoin?" #2~ Mathematics

Now anyone who has known me for more than 10 minutes or so knows I LOVE math.  I watch math related videos, laugh at math jokes, read math books and dream of going back to school to study math.  So I, of corse, hoped my kids would share the love of all things mathematical.  To be honest, they don't.  Especially my oldest, math is her least favorite subject.  I will never forget the time I caught her cheating on her division workbook.

Because of that math was a tricky subject for me to plan.  I wanted to teach not just the math facts but the fun that came with them.  Luckily I discovered "Life of Fred."  I know I've mentioned these excellent books before but I can't help but want to go on and on and on about how much I love them and how happy my kids are using them!

Because my girl are eager to learn more about Fred and his adventures I don't worry about how fast they go through the books.  It makes lesson planning easy, I don't have a set amount of time for them to complete the books as long as they work on them every school day.

"Like of Fred" is not based on standardized  grade level achievement charts, i.e. They do not cover the concepts you will see on end of year tests during any given year.  Instead some "higher" concept are introduced early and some "lower" concepts are not introduced until later.  There is also a lack of stress given to test concepts.

If I lived in a non-testing state I would not worry about it, as long as the kids are prepared for the next book grade level specifics can be a bit arbitrary.  But this is a testing state so I want my girls prepared for testing.

Last year I bought simple grade level practice workbooks for them to complete at the end of the year.  Turns out a page of 50 multiplication problems was the equivalent of having to walk across hot coals for my older daughter.  There were tears, days of staring at the same page, fits and no fun for anyone.

So this year I decided to try something different, "Daily Math Practice."  Most teaching stores sell the teachers book, complete with class room copy right permission but since I was only planning to use them with one, maybe two kids I decided to order student books instead.   As a child I remember the teach handing out these short worksheets before class, I loved them!  Now I know they are part of "busy work," designed to keep kids quiet while the teacher changes subjects, then I only knew they were fun.  I'm hoping my girls will also find them fun.

Instead of the repetitive page of 50 problems, these have 5 slightly diverse problems and on Fridays just 1 harder problem.  The goal is for the girls to see and experience the types of problems they will be tested on while not overwhelming them.

When Charry first saw the workbook she defiantly groaned but when I showed her it was just a few problems a day she relaxed.  I think these will be a good compromise for us.

"Insta"replay #5, let's go to the movies

This has been a busy week full of fun summer memories!!

Grandma Kelly treated the kids to a lunch of doughnuts.

My hubby was free in the evening for a surprise trip to DQ.

Another surprise was Charry going on stage at the Library's weekly kids event!  

Charry also completed her first junior scout badge!

Merry was a lalaloopsie garden gnome, the outfit is a toddler size Halloween costume, I can't believe she can still squeeze into it.

Summer clearance meant new outdoor toys, putter in particular. 

We saw "Turbo". That snail is fast.  Cute movie, girls liked it, and we'll probably buy the DVD.

 We saw yet another movie!  "Movies in the park" was showing "Brave" out by my inlaws.  (Your welcome Aunt Katie for not plastering that "great" picture of you all over the Internet)

And finally my big accomplishment, I made my first real bento box meal!  Compleat with flower shaped food.

So that was our week, fun, full and now we're ready for the next one!

"Whatchadoin?" Week 1~ lesson plans

I am counting the weeks until school starts again.  I think there are only five or so left.  Of course that is partly do to us starting only half way through August but still I'm starting to prepare.

To be honest I love lesson planning and scheduling.  Picking out curriculum is a blast for me.  My husband rolls his eyes and groans a bit when I try to get him to read text books but he still listens to me as I compare each of them.

Right now I am mapping out the first half of our year.  I always start with each subject on their own sheet of paper.

Then I try to put them in one planner so I can see my plans at a glance.  This year I am trying something new.  Instead of waiting for the teacher books to go on sale I found really cute student planners.

My hope is that these will also take the place of checklists for the girls.  The cuteness of the planners also inspired me to make the inside look nice too.

Since I tend to plan one subject at a time, the different colors were pretty easy to use.

The different colors also helped me to keep track of when I was scheduling reading vs projects so I didn't have her doing the same thing in every subject.

So my plans are coming along, Wednesdays I will try to share what we are doing in each subject, or at least hoping to do.

"Insta"-replay #4, a bit Buggy

Another week done!  This week we had some unexpected fun and learning. 

It started with the discovery of a giant, over two inches long, Crane Fly in the laundry room.  I for one had never seen one so large.  We of corse trapped it, examined it, and released it out side.  

Self highlights were the "highlight" of my week.  And yes I think I'm funny.

My sister bought board book kits and sent them over for the kids.  They loved coming up with their own stories.

My sister-in-law sent over some cool zebra print balloons.  Unfortunately they didn't fair very well outside, but they were fun while they lasted.

Our week ended with another large "bug."  I know spiders aren't bugs, but they sure bug me.  We took our little house guest to the department of Agriculture where a very nice gentleman explained what type it was and reassured us we were safe even if it wasn't the only one visiting.

Bugs give me the creeps so starting and ending with them was not my ideal.  My daughters (also not bug lovers) had a surprising amount of fun with magnifying glasses and our trapped "friends."   That made it almost worth catching the bugs.

"Insta-Replay" week 3 July!

It is hard to believe it is already July!  We have had a full week.

We started the week with hair cuts, hopefully the shorted locks will help beat the heat.

Then we had another trip to the library.  The weekly trips have been a lot of fun and Charry especially has been enjoying the many books at her disposal.

With the house feeling like an oven we have been spending most of the time outside, especially when the cousins are around.

My wonderful mother-in-law gave me an autographed copy of Fred's geometry book.  While the kids play out side I've been reading.

This week was the Fourth of July and we spent it in small town style.  The parade even had a fairy riding an unicorn (I wish I had gotten a picture of her)

The day ended with fireworks at the middle school.  

We finish the weekend by going to a reenactment.  Watching the civil war battles and hearing about life 150 years ago was educational and inspirational.  

It has been a great week but the summer is moving fast.

"Insta"-Replay Week 2: Feels Like Summer

Here again is my week, instagramed:

We decided it dissect our dirt babies, I was amazed at how few roots were visible in the soil vs grew  below in the water.  We were also able to see how the roots spread and why grass is hard to pull out.  

Mid-week library trips are becoming routine.  This week we saw a puppeteer.  After the performance he showed off the different types of puppets he used and taught the kids how to make different voices.

Merry had trouble finding a quiet place to read at my in-law's, but  I wouldn't let her play on the ipod unless she read a chapter first.  Luckily her Aunt Abbie had only half way put away her bed.

When the weather gets "hot" Oregonians go shopping.  It rarely gets over 90 so when it does we stay out of our houses and go to air-conditioned spots around town.  Our favorite is Dairy Queen.