Monday, August 30, 2010

In Love With Penmanship!!!!



After several lessons in the traditional ABEKA cursive writing for first graders...we gave up in tears.  So I made a trip to the local teacher supply store and paid too much money for a hand writing book that brought more tears.  There had to be an easier way to get caught up and be a good "printer"--and as the fine motor skills develop--a great "cursive writer".  Finally I found this book from Christan Light Publications.
65 lessons that direct correctly made letters in a simple format.  Now our writing class is a happy and interesting time!  Ben loves the information in each lesson about the different animals.  But most of all he is encouraged that he is learning to make beautiful manuscript.  The best $5.50 that I have spent on homeschooling writing curriculum.

Sunday, August 22, 2010

I am taking up "flying"

I have decided to give up and join the Flylady. I have been busy organizing cabinets and throwing out partiel bottles that I have no idea why I haven't already done so. I decidedto leave between behind CHAOS...Cant Have Anyone Over Syndrone. Organized and free from clutter...the less stuff I have to put away is less work for me.

Pictures to come soon!

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Safety In Camouflage

 I walked out to my porch this morning and found the answer:
 There is safety in camouflage.  Monday morning I went to the doctor with what I thought was just a re-occurring bladder infection.  By noon I had an appointment with an urologist and had had some tests run along with prescriptions for a cocktail of medicines.  I left the office feeling like I may pass out at any moment.
But this morning I am reminded that my God is not one of fear.  Just as He designed this moth to be protected...He will protect me from fear and whatever is to come.  But of course right now I am minding my health and praying for a healing and/or simple diagnosis.

Another scary thing on my porch this morning....


Can someone really love skateboarding enough to get up and skateboard with out even getting dressed?
Life is good and I have so much to be thankful for.

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Measure of Success

Nate is loving not going to preschool this year.  In fact now when he is misbehaving we will ask him if he wants to be good or we can call the school and send him back....he immediately begs to learn at home.

He could do his little workbooks with lots of direction but was not enjoying them ---just enduring them.  I decided that even though this is Preschool we both needed more structure and direction.  So I found the World Book scope and sequence for every grade on line.  The list looks easy enough to complete.

I felt that Nate would also be more apt to do his lessons the more successful that he felt.  So I ordered a{pre}preschool set of books from Christian Light Publications.
These books are very,very basic in skills and concepts.  So far Nate is enjoying them.  The only thing that we are having a problem with using these books is that they are based on an Anabaptist lifestyle....seems in my eyes{outsider looking in}  to be between Amish and Mennonite.  So in an activity where it would have objects that the student had to match to the activity Nate is not always familiar with these.  {sewing machine, needle,etc}  and in one exercise he has to distinguish male and female clothing--I do always wear skirts but I{nor anyone else he knows} wears a dress with a cape.  Otherwise the books are a great spring board to early education.  I understand that these books were written for the Anabaptist people and I am thankful that they are sharing their work with us.

In addition to this stage of Preschool we are doing rote counting, tactile letter studies and traditional children's literature.  During the study of literature we are practicing:
  • speech
  • comprehension
  • sequencing
For literature we are doing nursery rhymes and traditional fairy tales.

After the Basic Skills series I plan to move on to the ABC Readiness Series by CLP and probably stay with that curriculum until Nate's first grade then move him to ABEKA.