Interesting Week of School Coming Up

This week is going to be an unconventional school week for sure. Today is our coop and we are watching a video on The Galapagos, from Vision Forum. It is called, Mysterious Islands. DJ got it for Christmas, but has not watched it yet. We always go on a walk before the class starts as well. Tomorrow DJ and I have the great pleasure of going through all the pictures he has taken, and choosing which ones to have printed to add to his photo book for 4H. We also have to choose the images for the Scrapbook he has to make, for our 4H club. He is the Historian, and this is his job. Then Wednesday we have a park day, the last one until Fall, it is just getting too hot. We are having friends over for dinner, so I will be doing some cooking class with the kids as well. That way if it comes out bad, I can say the kids did it, lol! Thursday is our last volunteer day, until Fall, at the nature refuge. Please pray for us that the bugs will be kind to us. We have had no rain again, in ten days, with only Wed a possibility of rain. I never thought I would say this but we could really use a tropical storm, or dare I say a hurricane. The springs are drying up, and water restrictions are being discussed in all local towns. We really need some rain!!!!! Water Conservation will actually be our coop days, the days we get to pick the topic, after today. I bought the book from 4H not realizing it was intended for a group. So it will fit our coop group perfectly. Can't wait to start it. I am a huge fan of Water Conservation. Oh, I wanted to mention that if you need to put a watermark on any of your images, Picasa is free and it is very simple to do. See DJ's image below.

4H Scrapbook, and End of School Year

Even with all the fun stuff we did this year, we are finishing nicely. Matter of fact both kids will have completed several books in the next few weeks. We don't officially go on Summer break until June 10th. Not all books will be completed. I carry them over to the next year for each child. But, they get other lessons besides just the textbooks. DJ will have Science and Math textbook not completed by June, but he will do a chapter of Math each day over the summer. His Science book will be carried over to next year. Since he did photography and Entomology, plus the National Zoo curric. these all count as Science for him. They have both worked very hard and have earned some much needed time off. Caitlin is reading independently now, and already knows her sight words for next year. She has to learn to spell them though, lol! Over the summer she will also focus on Math, mainly memorizing simple addition and subtraction facts, time and money. She currently uses a number line and fingers for adding and subtracting. I might even introduce a little multiplication, not sure. We have also decided to continue our weekly education co-op over the summer months. We will be done volunteering, until the Fall, and playdates will be limited also. I need a break. 4H will also be over, for meetings and such, have the annual dinner and our group dinner over the summer. Speaking of 4H DJ is the Historian, which means he is responsible to do the yearly Scrapbook. I do not intend to spend a fortune on this, so if anyone has some ideas I am open to them. I think I have come up with one, but my ears are open. We have never done a scrapbook before, and no it can't be digital, I already asked. I have to get all the pictures and print them off, first. Plus DJ and I have to go through all his pictures to get them set up in the lesson book, to be turned into 4H by June. Plus the bug book, and Caitlin's rabbit book. Oh man! I am checking into starting an Earthkids group for our area. This is still very new and needs some investigating.

What Is Reverse Painting?

Torture that is what it is. Reverse painting is a type of painting you do on glass, usually a plate or something that would look opposite on the front. You have to paint the accents first, rather than last. For some reason my mom thought I was ready for this. I was not, lol! Your brain just doesn't think that way. The kids were spared the reverse painting torture. Caitlin drew a tiger on her plate. DJ finished his backyard painting. Both are shown below. My mom and I both did the reverse painting. I am sure you can tell which one is not mine, lol! I also did the little bottle, which for some reason does not want to load. I will be practicing a few nights a week, again, like I used to, because I feel way out of touch. DJ much prefers the painting on paper, rather than objects. Caitlin likes painting on objects. DJ finished up his Spanish final exam today, after painting class was over. Caitlin and I spray painted the tractor tire, and then put 120 pounds of dirt in it. Whew that was hard work. Now my husband says he doesn't think he wants it there. Why do men think it is just their yard and I have no say? Since I am the one doing all the work, jeesh!

100th Anniversary of the Sinking of the Titanic

April 14, 2012 was the 100 year anniversary of the sinking of The Titanic.  Today was our Co-op day, and Kristi chose to cover The Titanic.  I like to carry the theme from the class out during the remainder of the school week.  If you have an Edhelper or Enchanted Learning subscription, they have some lovely printables for the Titanic.  I also found some on About.com, that you can print for free.  The videos below will help you to put together a nice little unit study.  There is also an online Titanic Museum, you can visit to help with your unit study.  DJ will have a reading comprehension, and then a writing assignment due on Friday.  The writing assignment, in case anyone wants to use it, is why was the sinking of the Titanic such a memorable event?  The second video is especially lovely, showing in color what the Titanic looks like under the big ocean.

Pirates of the Caribbean On Strange Tides

Today is movie Friday, and grocery shopping day, bleh.  Anyway since it was my turn to pick I chose a Johnny Depp movie.  Of course I love the Captain Jack Sparrow character, but Johnny Depp makes him so loveable.  It does seem there will be a part five to the series, and Johnny Depp has been noted as saying that he would play the character Captain Jack Sparrow until he was in a wheelchair.  I think he likes the character, lol!  Have you seen it?  Did you like it?  I think I like it better than even my son, lol!  I just wish they were a tad shorter. 

Drawing A Desert, Painting, and Making Wire Cuff Bracelets

Well yesterday we were supposed to go to the Springs for our playgroup day. Since that didn't work out, some of the playgroup friends came here to swim. I didn't think it was warm enough to swim, but those crazy kids got in anyways. We paint every other Wednesday with my Mom. On the opposite Wednesday we have a playgroup day. Since this one didn't happen until later in the day, it gave us time to do some Art. Since we studied Deserts on Monday, DJ drew a desert scene, as shown. Caitlin painted a little bit, but got bore quickly. So she decided she want to learn to make a wire cuff bracelet like me. This was my very first attempt at making these, and mine is the one with the watch face attached to it. I have decided that each Wednesday will be dedicated to Art no matter what else we have planned. Today I will be messing with the wire again to see if I can tweak what I didn't care for. What do you think? All honest opinions welcome.

How Plants and Animals Adapt In A Desert

Today, was our coop day. Usually when it is my turn, I host at my home. Since one of the families could not come all the way to my house today, I let her host, and I brought all the education material. Caitlin had asked me a few weeks ago: If there is no rain in the desert then how do plants and animals survive there? So I told her we could find out when it is our turn to host the coop again. I think the kids really like this lesson, and had a good time learning. The video below is nice and short, for younger kids attention spans. There are resources all over for printing reading material. I used Edhelper to make a word search, and writing assignment for the older kids. The two younger ones got a coloring page, and a printing assignment. A great day.

Someone has turned on the heat again. Last week was so lovely, now we are scorching again. Craig had to go to a structure fire as soon as he got home, and a grass fire yesterday. I want my kids to learn about preventing fires outside the home, so we will be doing something with that in the near future. It is hot and dry, with no rain or humidity, so the conditions are ripe. People being careless is the leading cause of why fires start both in the home, and out of the home. My tomato plants are getting huge, they love the heat, and are just growing away. My mom gave me two huge tractor tires. We are going to paint them and then make one a flower garden, and the other a vegetable garden. I have pepper plants coming up too, and will probably add some cucumbers. Do you have a garden? My yellow rose bush is huge this year, and I need to find another post to help prop it up.

Marley and Me the Puppy Years

Friday is movie day, here at Melissa's Homeschool. It was Caitlin's turn to pick, so of course some kind of baby animal had to be involved. She picked Marley and Me the Puppy Years. I loved the first movie, and you know what I loved this one too. It was a simple kind of movie, made for kids, but cute and funny. I cried in the first one, there was no crying in Marley and Me the Puppy Years. A sweet, family oriented movie. DJ also finished his Art for Peace drawing. Which we then uploaded to the contest page. Cailtin has chores on Friday, so that is what she did. She has to pick up the yard, porch and her room. Mainly because she is the one who throws everything around in those places. Have an awesome weekend, everyone!

Painting Class and Swim Fun

Last year we did a whole six week lesson on Reuse, Recycle and Reduce. We have been trying to carry that over into this school year as well. Since we have been taking painting classes, this year, we decided that glass bottles and jars could be cleaned, painted and then reused. Wine bottles make great plant watering devices. One note if you try this, be sure to paint on the bottle upside down, so when it is actually in the dirt, the picture will be right side up. The two shown will be mine, because we didn't consider that, lol! I would like to be able to sell some of these things we paint, eventually. We have also made salt and pepper shakers, silverware holders all from glass jars and bottles. Night lights, and pencil holders also. The painting at the top here is DJ's painting of his backyard. The pool still needs water in it, and the swing set could use a swing or two, but he works on it each class. He is doing such a nice job. Caitlin made a jar, and a picture frame. My mom and I each did a bottle, then I used a glass jar that already had stars on it to make a drinking glass for DJ, with a 4th of July theme. My mom made one with Spring flowers for Caitlin;s drinking glass, since she was born in May on Mother's day. So with a little bit of thought you can reuse bottles and jars, and make some pretty unique things in the process.

After paint class we had some of our homeschool friends over for some swimming fun and pizza. A great day all in all.

Cats Having Babies: Biology 101

Today is our co-op day, and it was Marcia's turn to host. Marcia's two cats just had kittens. This is not the cat. This cat was taken at Christmas time, but she is cute. So Marcia did a class on Cats having kittens. They taped the birth, and even though the video wouldn't work, the pictures could still be seen. I have seen many things being born including dogs, calves, humans, etc. But, my kids have never experienced the miracle of birth. Marcia included a word search and crossword puzzle to round out the lesson. And of course we got to see the kittens too! Caitlin loves cats. Unfortunately for her, I am highly allergic, so no kitties at our house. We also walked, had lunch, and the kids got to play on the trampoline. Lots of exercise today! Plus Marcia has chickens, which I am allergic to feathers too, but they have the softest nicest feathers, and they make the cutest noises. I mean it cute like they are talking to you, not obnoxious like you would think. Tomorrow back to our regular school day. DJ is on his final for Spanish! Yay so glad that will be over.

Happy Easter!

Easter Quotes Pictures - Photobucket

Native Americans and Moving West Homeschool Curriculum Ideas

Well it is Friday, that means movie day here at our house. Today we watched, The Zookeeper. It was OK, not awful, not great. The kids liked it. It did have some mild innuendo in it, which my kids don't understand yet anyways. Rated PG and a decent family movie. We had downgraded our Netflix to streaming live only. But after their contracts ran out with Disney and Starz it really just stunk. So we started using Redbox, which is fine, except I really hate having to put my debit card in there. So I broke down and switched back to one DVD at a time, and streaming. I guess I can afford 16 dollars a month. We were probably spending that at the Redbox anyways each month. I have been with Netflix like 10 years.

The two books below are for Native Americans and Moving West. They are by Evan Moor, and you make pockets and read to learn about the subject. Caitlin did one this year on the Plymouth Colonies and has really enjoyed it, so she will be getting the Native Americans one next year. This is the time of year when I start searching and deciding what I need, or want, for next school year. I do try to use as much free online, or close to free, resources that I can.

Good Friday is today, so that means Easter is Sunday. Have a blessed and safe one. Don't eat too much candy!

Lessons For 04/05/12:

DJ:
Math: Saxon 65 chapter 85 and multiplication
Science: Endangered species
Reading: Literature unit for Treasure Island
Spanish
Writing: Horseshoe Crab on blog
Social Studies: The Middle Ages chapter 30

Caitlin:
Math: Skip counting, addition, fractions, shapes, place value
Spelling: Consonants
Head of the Class: 3 cycles
Language Arts: Action words

Park Day, Lessons and Uverse

Today was park day, and the weather was splendid until about 1, when it got brutally hot. Since DJ was going to his friend's house for a few hours after the park, I invited the ladies to our house to swim. That would be a mom, and two girls. The youngest girl is Caitlin's best friend. So we had a good time swimming. I did not walk today, feeling a little guilty, but will make it up tomorrow. DJ did get his reading assignment done, and Caitlin her Head of the Class. Only lessons accomplished today. We switched to Uverse internet about two months ago. It is cheaper, only problem is it sucks. It is supposed to be two times faster than what we already had, digital internet, but it is not I can promise you that. So when we called to complain, and switch back, they said sorry you can't go back once you get the digital internet. Grr you could have told us that. Anyways now the virus scanner, the same one we had for years with the other service, now does not seem to be doing as good of a job. My laptop has had three issues in two weeks. I think they downgraded us to the cheapest virus scanner option, which really peeves me. So now we get to call and inquire again. Do you have Uverse? Are you satisfied with the service? Lesson plans for yesterday are listed below.

Lesson Plans for 04/03/12

DJ:
Science: Entomology, digestive system of a grasshopper, and waves
Math: Saxon 65 chapter 84, multiplication
Reading: Treasure Island literature unit
Art: Art for Peace
Social Studies: Chapter 29 Middle Ages, map skills
Language Arts: Irregular verbs

Caitlin:
Head of the Class: 3 cycles
Math: Word problems, graphs, skip counting, subtraction
Language Arts: Verbs, consonants
Social Studies: The Plymouth colonies
Science: Entomology, and seeds
Printing Practice

Bugfest 2012 and Spring Break is Over

Well Spring Break is over, and we had an awesome week off. I don't think I cooked one night, love it. My sister and hubby left for NC this morning, and last evening we surprised her with Wrestlemania on PPV. She is a huge fan, and since we already were getting it, we surprised her with it too. I still didn't get report cards done, but that should get done this week.

Today we had our coop. It was Ms Kristí's turn, and we did Resurrection Eggs, as shown below. This is basically the story of Jesus' Crucifixion with a story booklet and eggs with different objects in them. It was a cute way to tell the true story of Easter. Then Kristi and I hid Easter eggs, and the kids did an egg hunt. It is exceptionally warm here right now, and we are in for record breaking heat. I am glad the pool is clean, I have a feeling we are going to be using it.

DJ wants to join Boy Scouts, but I am not certain this is going to be feasible. I will discuss this more with my husband and the scout leader. We will attend a meeting Thursday evening, and go from there.

For those of you who live in the Gainesville area, there is a Bugfest Wednesday April 4th from 6-8. There are all kinds of fun things to do, it is free, and discusses the Entomology degree that UF offers. I wish I had known sooner, because my kids would love this. Unfortunately we can't do everything. Click the highlighted link for more info.