Boy, did this week fly by. I think part of it was that it was ridiculously cold in our little corner of the world. Oddly, we didn't get stir crazy, and we got to Friday quickly.
Math is still chugging along apace. There was nothing new or confusing this week, which was nice. Getting through things without a fuss is always a bonus.
For spelling, we had words with the "dict" root - edict, predict, prediction, dictionary, diction, and dictate. This was also easy-peasy, even the sentence writing.
We started Ancient India, with a Crash Course video. John Greene talks a little too fast, but it was a good introduction. Then, we started reading a book about Hinduism. Somehow, our study of ancient cultures has turned into a study of religions. I don't know if Henry is really into it, but I'm fascinated.
Finally, science was again the highlight of the week. We listened to two episodes of Wow in the World! in which we learned about flamingos and Scoville heat units in peppers. We also found a science channel on YouTube that showed us how to make sand behave like a liquid.
In the Mama's Corner this week, I've been reading lots of very sappy Christmas-themed romance novels. With all of the depressing news out there every day, I needed something light and sweet, with a guaranteed happy ending. It's a lovely diversion.
Only four more school days until Christmas break. Wa-HOO!
Friday, December 15, 2017
Friday, December 8, 2017
Weeks 12, 13, and 14 - Oops
Goodness, time just got away from me. I was so excited for Thanksgiving that I let everything else go. We did have a lovely holiday. My brother and his girlfriend came over, and we had a wonderful time. Then, hunting season began. My family hunts. It provides us with about 1/5 of our meat supply for the year. Big Sister got a buck, as did Papa Bear. Big Brother #2 got a doe. We have lots of yummy venison.
As for school, things are cooking along pretty well. We are sort of treading water with spelling. When the new year hits, I will be using actual spelling lists. Until then, we are still working on prefixes, root words, suffixes and meanings. I will say that knowing what different prefixes mean, he can figure out what new words are without much explanation from me. I hope it will help him with his reading as we go along.
Math is coming along. I have been using Edhelper.com, fourth grade math, second three months of school. It's a mixed review every week. Over the past couple of weeks, we have been doing long division (very long, like 8,433,167/41). There were only six of those. They were actually a lot of fun to do. Henry was, of course, overwhelmed when he saw the numbers. He said, "How am I supposed to figure that out?" I said, "By taking it one little bit at a time." Voila. No issues whatsoever. We have also been introduced to decimals, improper fractions, and factoring. Today, as a treat, I let him do the math book I had intended on using all year. He whipped through four pages like they were nothing. That tells me that he's absorbed the "harder" stuff.
We are still in Ancient China, but we'll be finished with it early next week. I am not making him know all of the names of the dynasties and the dates. We have the big stuff down, like the Great Wall, inventions and medicine. We are going to do a few crafty things to finish it up on Monday, then we will go on to Ancient India.
Science has been the super fun highlight. I heard about a podcast called Wow in the World! They take one topic every week and dive in with a kid-friendly explanation. It comes out on Monday, and it's become our Monday must-do. We have found out that there is a rat that lives in the Solomon Islands that can crack a coconut open with it's teeth. We know why onions make us cry. This week, we found out about coral bleaching. Every week, we listen and Google things as they come up. It's science, geography, and fun storytelling all in one. I highly recommend it.
Henry is still reading Hatchet. With any luck, he will finish it by Christmas.
In Mama's Corner, I have been knitting mittens and hats in anticipation of snow. It's become insanely cold, but we've had just a few flurries. I am hoping we have a white Christmas. If not, we'll still have nice warm hands and heads.
As for school, things are cooking along pretty well. We are sort of treading water with spelling. When the new year hits, I will be using actual spelling lists. Until then, we are still working on prefixes, root words, suffixes and meanings. I will say that knowing what different prefixes mean, he can figure out what new words are without much explanation from me. I hope it will help him with his reading as we go along.
Math is coming along. I have been using Edhelper.com, fourth grade math, second three months of school. It's a mixed review every week. Over the past couple of weeks, we have been doing long division (very long, like 8,433,167/41). There were only six of those. They were actually a lot of fun to do. Henry was, of course, overwhelmed when he saw the numbers. He said, "How am I supposed to figure that out?" I said, "By taking it one little bit at a time." Voila. No issues whatsoever. We have also been introduced to decimals, improper fractions, and factoring. Today, as a treat, I let him do the math book I had intended on using all year. He whipped through four pages like they were nothing. That tells me that he's absorbed the "harder" stuff.
We are still in Ancient China, but we'll be finished with it early next week. I am not making him know all of the names of the dynasties and the dates. We have the big stuff down, like the Great Wall, inventions and medicine. We are going to do a few crafty things to finish it up on Monday, then we will go on to Ancient India.
Science has been the super fun highlight. I heard about a podcast called Wow in the World! They take one topic every week and dive in with a kid-friendly explanation. It comes out on Monday, and it's become our Monday must-do. We have found out that there is a rat that lives in the Solomon Islands that can crack a coconut open with it's teeth. We know why onions make us cry. This week, we found out about coral bleaching. Every week, we listen and Google things as they come up. It's science, geography, and fun storytelling all in one. I highly recommend it.
Henry is still reading Hatchet. With any luck, he will finish it by Christmas.
In Mama's Corner, I have been knitting mittens and hats in anticipation of snow. It's become insanely cold, but we've had just a few flurries. I am hoping we have a white Christmas. If not, we'll still have nice warm hands and heads.
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