Thoughts Here, No Organization

So I haven't been posting much lately - like since Lucy was born, probably - but it isn't because I have nothing to say.  It is just because organizing my brain to write is difficult lately.  I have time in the evenings in which to write, or to post photos (that I don't take many of lately), but my brain just isn't working well by this point in the day.  But I do want to get back into it, to keep a record of family life for my kids as well as to just write, because I have always loved to write, both fiction and journal-style.  The blog is great for journal-style writing.

So, maybe something to get me more organized would help... like doing the Daybook posts again, since they have prompts that tell me what to write about. Or the "Seven Quick Takes" or "Five Minute Fridays" or whatever posts I see that other people join in on.  Those sound about right for my brain with its lack of organization.

So, maybe a Seven Quick Takes on what we are doing lately for school would be a good place to start???  Here goes...

~ 1 ~

Caroline has begun some small written narrations this year.  She is eight and a half, in third grade, and says she would rather write than retell what she read to me most of the time.  So, for smaller passages and for fiction, she is doing that this year.  For more complex readings, like our Ancient Egypt book or an American History story that is info-heavy, she is still retelling these aloud to me.

Here is a look at one that she did earlier this year on a story about Yellowstone Park:

Not having had a third grader before, I am not sure if this is about what one would expect from a third grader's earliest summary-writing, but it looks pretty good to me.  So far I have been pleased with this method.  She is writing narrations of brief saint stories twice a week too.  Her longest ones by far are the fiction tales: fairy tales, Native American legends, and others are very easy for her to relate well, including lots of information.

~ 2 ~

Caroline says that Ancient Egypt is her favorite thing we are studying this year.  She has been perusing several library books I have as supplemental resources to our main text.  One is full of project ideas, and so today we made date candy.  And hey, it is D week for Cecilia, so that works out great with the whole killing two birds with one stone (otherwise known as creating a seamless real-life family environment That Is Homeschooling - no, I don't know why I capitalized those last three words there; it just sounded good in my head).  So here is a photo of that:

Caroline also made an Egyptian reed boat out of drinking straws and duct tape.  She tried it out in our pond, and it floats very well!

~ 3 ~

Any idea how hard it is to homeschool with a toddler who wants her big sisters to play with her all the time?  Well, we have our moments.  Despite the fact that many mornings it doesn't seem possible that we have managed to complete anything between the poopy diaper changing, the retrieving said toddler from the chair she has carried over to the bookcase, the providing with puzzles and art supplies and little setups in the play kitchen... we have.  We tend to get it all done by lunchtime each day.  Even with my sloth-like tendencies added to the toddler fun.  We have a very small amount of things planned for naptime each day - which may or may not happen smoothly depending on whether naptime lasts 30 minutes or well over an hour - and occasionally we actually move a more intense reading to naptime so we won't be interrupted.  But we get it all done, somehow.  By the grace of God.

She sure is cute, though.  And hilarious.  Her latest phrase is, "May not!"  Caroline, Cecilia, Daddy, and I are the recipients of this phrase often lately as Lucy makes her desires to control the world known to us.  And who wouldn't laugh while trying to take a two minute toilet break at the banging from the other side of the door with the tiny tyrant voice shouting, "Mommy?  Who is it?"

~ 4 ~

Kindergarten... as I thought, we are not doing as many fun projects like baking and such as I did when we did Kindergarten the first time.  But we are doing everything else we did, and we are getting plenty of reading time in.  I am trying to get in the habit again of reserving library books for the next letter 2-3 weeks in advance so they all have a chance to meander throughout the entire state and end up in my local library.  It is so cool that they can do that!  Yay for taxpayer money being useful in a very tangible way for us!

Here is some of what Cecilia has been doing:

 

Decopage for D week

 

playdough Dd

 

Connectagons for C week

 

C week work activities

 

clothespin color matching - good for fine motor skills

 

punch out the letter

~ 5 ~

We did take a field trip for D week last week... we went to see the ducks at a local lake nearby.  And I forgot to take my camera, so there are no exciting photos to share.  We did see a mama duck with eight ducklings! 

~ 6 ~

Here is a bit of unschooling... not that I choose to unschool as an educational method, but the kids do it to themselves sometimes!  I told Caroline that if she wanted to plan out a project related to anything we are studying, she could make a plan and include a list of supplies she needs.  She is making a plan to build a pyramid out of some kind of craft bricks (that I will have to look for at the craft store or online, I guess) and to dress her Calico Critters in Egyptian clothing.  

Here is Cecilia working on a menu for her backyard restaurant... can you tell what some of the offerings were?

Menu

Lunches:

Leaf Sandwich

Grass Salad

Grass Coleslaw

Desserts:

Sand Cake

Drinks:

Hose Marigold Water

Pond Juice

~ 7 ~

And here is what our pre-preschool fun might look like on any given day... this was also for Cecilia for D week - doing dishes.  Lucy stayed there awhile after Cecilia had finished, and she soaked both of the towels on the floor!  She has also been enjoying playdough (not eating it, surprisingly), "cooking" on the kitchen floor (dumping and stirring dry oats - and carrying them to her own little kitchen area, where I find them in the doll cradle with her baby dolls who are "eating"), and Do-a-Dots frequently.

That's a look of fun!!