In addition to academics we have been working very hard on 1. managing frustration and disappointment and anger 2. being kind to one another including using our words to explain what we want and how we feel, and 3. working hard to complete a task.
I am very pleased with Claire's progress on the latter as evidenced by her hard work taking many loads of trash out to the bin yesterday when I was getting rid of a bunch of stuff and today when she filled her entire paper with ink using her ink-a-dot markers.
Right now the girls are having an impromptu pretend tea party with the brass tea set from Nonna Beth. Very sweet.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Button math
You can use a lot of math concepts in a short amount of time using buttons and a jar. Claire filled a spice jar with buttons. Then estimated that there were 50 in the jar. Next we counted them into piles of ten, counted by tens and discovered there were 65 buttons in the jar. Next we sorted them by color. Then Emily sorted by size taking out the tiny ones. Next Claire strung the golden/brass buttons onto a pipe cleaner. Next we are going to make patterns using two or three colors of buttons.
Thanks to Nanna and Mrs. Jenney for the butons.
Phonics in motion
We have been using some books called Explode the Code for Phonics. I have been supplementing with some active games that I though of. I wrote each of the letters for the sounds we've been working on a piece of paper and set them around the room. For the first game (musical chairs variation) I sing and when I stop the girls stand on a letter and tell me what sound it makes and a word that starts with that letter. The second game we use the same papers and I call out a sound and everyone puts foot on the letter that makes that sound (I plan to do this with blends, digraphs, sight words etc.)
Here's another game;
PHONICS HOP (see video)
Friday, October 14, 2011
Getting the ball rolling
This past week as really our first full week of homeschooling.
We did phonics: learning sounds for "oo" "C" vs. "K" and "Y" girls glued buttons on for double o's in boo, poo, boot, shoot book, look, took. We made OO's with our hands as we talked about what words have the double O.
We did math: we are making a collective book with clear pockets attached and the kids put in the correct number of mini pom poms. We put together the October calender. Claire helped cut out the pieces and put them on in order. We did number 10 day Monday- they had to do various things with ten items including build a tower 10 blocks tall. We did the O's (cereal) guessing game...how many O's do I have in my hand? No more than 5, no less than 11 etc. Another game with O's where I flash a small handful and ask how many after I close my hand.
We worked on penmanship: how to hold a pencil. How to make loops-- i.e. for a cursive e or l, how to begin a letter by starting on the line. I also did a few cursive demos so they could get the idea of connected flowing script.
Science: we read books about bugs.
Literature: we listened to the first half of the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe.
Roll play: we played shopping. I cleaned everything out of the car (7 bags full)and dumped in on the kitchen floor to sort it and told them they could buy whatever they wanted. They kept asking how much various items cost and giving me imaginary money while I sorted out everything and put it away.
Hygiene and Chores: Emily brushed my wet hair Claire brushed Emily's wet hair and her own. Claire has been regularly washing off the kitchen table and helping to clear the dishes. Emily sorted laundry she found all the kids socks and separated them out. Claire put some of her laundry in her drawers and folded wash cloths.
Art: Painting on large plain newsprint with tempera freestyle- no instruction. Claire decided to fill the entire page with various colors. Emily layered various colors on top on each other in one area of the page.
Claire drew a sun and butterfly.
Drawing on brown paper bags.
Craft: girls glued tissue paper in various colors to a glass jar and squeezed glitter glue on top.
Bible verse: Matthew 28:20
Manners: Working on using napkins for wiping fingers and face.
We did phonics: learning sounds for "oo" "C" vs. "K" and "Y" girls glued buttons on for double o's in boo, poo, boot, shoot book, look, took. We made OO's with our hands as we talked about what words have the double O.
We did math: we are making a collective book with clear pockets attached and the kids put in the correct number of mini pom poms. We put together the October calender. Claire helped cut out the pieces and put them on in order. We did number 10 day Monday- they had to do various things with ten items including build a tower 10 blocks tall. We did the O's (cereal) guessing game...how many O's do I have in my hand? No more than 5, no less than 11 etc. Another game with O's where I flash a small handful and ask how many after I close my hand.
We worked on penmanship: how to hold a pencil. How to make loops-- i.e. for a cursive e or l, how to begin a letter by starting on the line. I also did a few cursive demos so they could get the idea of connected flowing script.
Science: we read books about bugs.
Literature: we listened to the first half of the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe.
Roll play: we played shopping. I cleaned everything out of the car (7 bags full)and dumped in on the kitchen floor to sort it and told them they could buy whatever they wanted. They kept asking how much various items cost and giving me imaginary money while I sorted out everything and put it away.
Hygiene and Chores: Emily brushed my wet hair Claire brushed Emily's wet hair and her own. Claire has been regularly washing off the kitchen table and helping to clear the dishes. Emily sorted laundry she found all the kids socks and separated them out. Claire put some of her laundry in her drawers and folded wash cloths.
Art: Painting on large plain newsprint with tempera freestyle- no instruction. Claire decided to fill the entire page with various colors. Emily layered various colors on top on each other in one area of the page.
Claire drew a sun and butterfly.
Drawing on brown paper bags.
Craft: girls glued tissue paper in various colors to a glass jar and squeezed glitter glue on top.
Bible verse: Matthew 28:20
Manners: Working on using napkins for wiping fingers and face.
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