Well, OK, he's a little more than 20 months old, but who's counting ;)
I can't even begin to detail everything he's been doing over the past several months. He's really growing up and I can't believe he's almost 2 years old.
His language and vocabulary skills are impressive. He's really beginning to articulate well. His latest are mommy, daddy and me. I mean really, really clearly. He parrots everything we say.
He walks, he runs and he walks down the stairs. He climbs everywhere and loves the stepstools. Unfortunately, he doesn't leave them where they belong and carries them all over the house. He does know how to get down off things, feet first.
He finally likes to sit and be read to. He loves our "Jesus" books (Christmas and Easter). He points to all the men with beards and says "Grandpa". He's also getting better about being gentle with books. He's pretty much over the babyish toys. He's discovered the stash of Matchbox-style cars and trucks in the big boy room! He LOVES trucks. If he sees something with wheels (car, bike, motorcycle, wheelchair) he calls it a truck. And he's not quiet about it either. He's not really putting toys in his mouth anymore, thank God!
He's become a good sleeper at night. He goes to bed around 7:45 and sleeps for a good 12 hours. Frequently until 8:30 in the morning. Of course this throws off breakfast... He's a picky eater at times, but does eat quite a bit of different foods. He's not big on breakfast. His last set of molars is taking their time. He'll be fussy every now and then, so I think they're moving, but haven't started cutting through.
He has the sweetest disposition! He's pretty patient and soooo happy most of the time. He's been an easy baby and a pretty easy toddler too.
The Professor and Velcro Boy have recently started altar serving, so Pumpkin can frequently be heard during Mass calling out their names. Quite embarrassing. He's been a handful during school time. He wants attention and doesn't want to play by himself for hours on end and I can't figure out why ;) Very annoying :) We've had to make a lot of changes to our routine to work more during nap time and I expect that to continue for the next several months. Hopefully he'll settle down soon.
Sorry for the lack of photos lately. Our hard drive crashed and we almost lost all of our photos for the past year in addition to a lot of other files. I'm trying to finish getting set for next school year so I can get caught up with photos.
Wednesday, September 4, 2013
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
2012-2013 school year review ~ Doodlebug
I'm really on a roll now! :) Doodlebug was only 4 1/2 when the school year started. Technically, he wasn't eligible for Kindergarten until this school year since his birthday is in January. BUT...He's so smart I really hated to wait to start with him. Especially since I knew he would want to sit in on school with Velcro Boy like he did the year before. So I decided to get him started. I don't regret it a bit!
Doodlebug ~ Kindergarten
Math: Math-u-see level Primer. And Alpha. Yup, two math levels in one year. Without pushing him!!! Primer is an introductory level that was really way too easy for him, so we skipped much of it. He already knew how to count and his shapes and all that good stuff. Alpha is single digit (with some multiple digit) addition and subtraction.
Religion: Faith and Life with Velcro Boy. We also read a lot of story books and read devotionals, stories of the saints and celebrated the liturgical year. Since VB prepared for First Communion, so did Doodlebug. Mostly. He understands much of what he needs, so preparing him should be easy when the time comes.
Science: Behold & See 2 from Catholic Heritage with Velcro Boy. It's written on a level that was perfect for both boys this year. Doodlebug seems to have The Professor's aptitude for science. Scary! We also read book based on the letter theme of the week.
Geography: We started covering the 50 states using the same series The Professor used from Sleeping Bear Press. We covered a state each week, so we didn't finish them all. We also didn't do a scrapbook, but used a sticker book I came across.
American History: We covered the 1700's this year. We spent a lot of time on the Revolutionary War. The kids did some projects and a lot of reading. We made some period recipes, made some tri-corn hats and made some games kids in those days played. We even made a lapbook (large book made up of lots of smaller books). They really enjoyed that.
World History: We covered the age of the Apostles. Actually we didn't even finish it, we have 4 more units to complete, which we'll work on this year. We discussed the Apostles, the early Popes, the church fathers and the early martyrs. We learned about ancient Rome. They really enjoyed learning about gladiators. We did several projects as well.
Literature/writing: Doodlebug also used Writing with Ease level 1. He started the year doing a Kindergarten handwriting program and totally rocked it. He has amazingly good handwriting. Especially for a 5 year old boy. I was surprised he could keep up with the questions about the passages, but he did really well.
We're still working on phonics using Reading Eggs. It's a online program and we're also having Doodlebug read to us when ever we can. He reads at least 2 grade levels above where he should be.
Since we were travelling the Alphabet Path, we did a new letter every week or so and based our science books on that letter. We also read about a saint, did a cooking project and art work based on the letter. We had a lot of fun with it, but did get derailed when Pumpkin got really active. I'm hoping to really do the Path well with him when he gets older.
Doodlebug ~ Kindergarten
Math: Math-u-see level Primer. And Alpha. Yup, two math levels in one year. Without pushing him!!! Primer is an introductory level that was really way too easy for him, so we skipped much of it. He already knew how to count and his shapes and all that good stuff. Alpha is single digit (with some multiple digit) addition and subtraction.
Religion: Faith and Life with Velcro Boy. We also read a lot of story books and read devotionals, stories of the saints and celebrated the liturgical year. Since VB prepared for First Communion, so did Doodlebug. Mostly. He understands much of what he needs, so preparing him should be easy when the time comes.
Science: Behold & See 2 from Catholic Heritage with Velcro Boy. It's written on a level that was perfect for both boys this year. Doodlebug seems to have The Professor's aptitude for science. Scary! We also read book based on the letter theme of the week.
Geography: We started covering the 50 states using the same series The Professor used from Sleeping Bear Press. We covered a state each week, so we didn't finish them all. We also didn't do a scrapbook, but used a sticker book I came across.
American History: We covered the 1700's this year. We spent a lot of time on the Revolutionary War. The kids did some projects and a lot of reading. We made some period recipes, made some tri-corn hats and made some games kids in those days played. We even made a lapbook (large book made up of lots of smaller books). They really enjoyed that.
World History: We covered the age of the Apostles. Actually we didn't even finish it, we have 4 more units to complete, which we'll work on this year. We discussed the Apostles, the early Popes, the church fathers and the early martyrs. We learned about ancient Rome. They really enjoyed learning about gladiators. We did several projects as well.
Literature/writing: Doodlebug also used Writing with Ease level 1. He started the year doing a Kindergarten handwriting program and totally rocked it. He has amazingly good handwriting. Especially for a 5 year old boy. I was surprised he could keep up with the questions about the passages, but he did really well.
We're still working on phonics using Reading Eggs. It's a online program and we're also having Doodlebug read to us when ever we can. He reads at least 2 grade levels above where he should be.
Since we were travelling the Alphabet Path, we did a new letter every week or so and based our science books on that letter. We also read about a saint, did a cooking project and art work based on the letter. We had a lot of fun with it, but did get derailed when Pumpkin got really active. I'm hoping to really do the Path well with him when he gets older.
See my post about The Professor for high points and difficulties. Overall, it was a good year.
Monday, September 2, 2013
2012-2013 school year review ~ Velcro Boy
Wow! Two posts in as many days. I'm on a roll :) I really need to come up with a new blog nickname for Velcro Boy. It doesn't really suit an 8 year old, does it? VB completed 2nd grade this year and preparation for First Communion as well! Now he's serving at Our Lord's table every chance he gets.
Velcro Boy ~ 2nd grade
Math: Math-u-see level Beta. This covers multi-digit addition and subtraction with carrying and borrowing. I'm amazed at how well he caught on.VB loves watching the DVD's, even for the lessons he really doesn't need to watch. He also likes the manipulatives. He really needs to "do" something in order to learn it.
Religion: Faith and Life. This was the year the kids prepare for First Communion, so they fairly thoroughly covered Reconciliation and our Eucharistic Lord. Great program! We also read devotionals, stories of the saints and celebrated the liturgical year.
Science: Behold & See 2 from Catholic Heritage. This is a fairly broad overview program that touches on all the general science topics. There were some worksheets and some experiments that the kids really liked. Like making a globe out of ice cream. Yummy! It's written in a conversational style and I really liked it. I'm not sure I would use it for a 2nd grader though. It's probably about a year behind the grade. It worked well because VB isn't the type to sit still for long and it kept his interest. I also used it for Doodlebug, who was able to follow quite easily.
Geography: We started covering the 50 states using the same series The Professor used from Sleeping Bear Press. We covered a state each week, so we didn't finish them all. We also didn't do a scrapbook, but used a sticker book I came across.
American History: We covered the 1700's this year. We spent a lot of time on the Revolutionary War. The kids did some projects and a lot of reading. We made some period recipes, made some tri-corn hats and made some games kids in those days played. We even made a lapbook (large book made up of lots of smaller books). They really enjoyed that.
World History: We covered the age of the Apostles. Actually we didn't even finish it, we have 4 more units to complete, which we'll work on this year. We discussed the Apostles, the early Popes, the church fathers and the early martyrs. We learned about ancient Rome. They really enjoyed learning about gladiators. We did several projects as well.
Literature/writing: Velcro Boy also used Writing with Ease level 1. Since this is a gradual instruction, I'm hoping not to have the same problems with writing with VB that I have with the Professor. It's going well so far.
Spelling: We started using All About Spelling this year and we're really happy with it! I'm amazed at how well VB has taken to spelling given how much reading has been a struggle. We do some work on the board with magnetized letter tiles, so I think this is a big part of it. Remember how he likes to touch things. We completed level 1 and started level 2 this year.
We're still working on phonics using Reading Eggs. It's a online program and we're also having VB read to us when ever we can. He's made a lot of improvement, but still has a loong way to go.
See my post about The Professor for high points and difficulties. Overall, it was a good year. I also discovered just how good at helping with the baby Velcro Boy is! He's been a life saver. We probably wouldn't have eaten all year if he hadn't been so good with Pumpkin :)
Velcro Boy ~ 2nd grade
Math: Math-u-see level Beta. This covers multi-digit addition and subtraction with carrying and borrowing. I'm amazed at how well he caught on.VB loves watching the DVD's, even for the lessons he really doesn't need to watch. He also likes the manipulatives. He really needs to "do" something in order to learn it.
Religion: Faith and Life. This was the year the kids prepare for First Communion, so they fairly thoroughly covered Reconciliation and our Eucharistic Lord. Great program! We also read devotionals, stories of the saints and celebrated the liturgical year.
Science: Behold & See 2 from Catholic Heritage. This is a fairly broad overview program that touches on all the general science topics. There were some worksheets and some experiments that the kids really liked. Like making a globe out of ice cream. Yummy! It's written in a conversational style and I really liked it. I'm not sure I would use it for a 2nd grader though. It's probably about a year behind the grade. It worked well because VB isn't the type to sit still for long and it kept his interest. I also used it for Doodlebug, who was able to follow quite easily.
Geography: We started covering the 50 states using the same series The Professor used from Sleeping Bear Press. We covered a state each week, so we didn't finish them all. We also didn't do a scrapbook, but used a sticker book I came across.
American History: We covered the 1700's this year. We spent a lot of time on the Revolutionary War. The kids did some projects and a lot of reading. We made some period recipes, made some tri-corn hats and made some games kids in those days played. We even made a lapbook (large book made up of lots of smaller books). They really enjoyed that.
World History: We covered the age of the Apostles. Actually we didn't even finish it, we have 4 more units to complete, which we'll work on this year. We discussed the Apostles, the early Popes, the church fathers and the early martyrs. We learned about ancient Rome. They really enjoyed learning about gladiators. We did several projects as well.
Literature/writing: Velcro Boy also used Writing with Ease level 1. Since this is a gradual instruction, I'm hoping not to have the same problems with writing with VB that I have with the Professor. It's going well so far.
Spelling: We started using All About Spelling this year and we're really happy with it! I'm amazed at how well VB has taken to spelling given how much reading has been a struggle. We do some work on the board with magnetized letter tiles, so I think this is a big part of it. Remember how he likes to touch things. We completed level 1 and started level 2 this year.
We're still working on phonics using Reading Eggs. It's a online program and we're also having VB read to us when ever we can. He's made a lot of improvement, but still has a loong way to go.
See my post about The Professor for high points and difficulties. Overall, it was a good year. I also discovered just how good at helping with the baby Velcro Boy is! He's been a life saver. We probably wouldn't have eaten all year if he hadn't been so good with Pumpkin :)
Sunday, September 1, 2013
2012-2013 school year review ~ The Professor
Hi all! I know I've been promising a review of our school year for a while and I keep procrastinating. Sorry. Life's busy and I'm tired by the time the kids get to bed. Anyway...here goes:
The Professor ~ 4th grade
Math: Math-u-see level Epsilon (fractions). As in the past we continue to love the math-u-see program. It's fairly easy for me, since the kids watch a dvd that teaches the concepts. And it's not difficult material that I still remember how to do it. That may change in a few years and Matt will need to become more involved ;)
Religion: Faith and Life. This is an awesome program for learning the faith. They take a spiral approach that breaks everything (the bible and the catechism) down for the younger set, starting in 1st grade, and incorporates more meat each year through 6th grade. They may go higher, I'm not sure. We also read devotionals, stories of the saints and celebrated the liturgical year.
Science: Exploring Creation with Anatomy and Physiology. The authors have a whole series that covers each of the days of creation, about one each year. They're very well written and go very in-depth into the subjects. It's written in a Charlotte Mason style, very conversational. It's broken down for elementary level students without talking down to the kids. My only complaint about the series is that the author follows the young earth philosophy, believing that the earth was created in 7-24 hour days and is about 4000 years old.
Geography: We finished covering the last of the 50 states and completed our scrapbook! And it only took just over 2 years :)
Map Skills: He completed level D this year. This is another series I like a lot. It spirals through reading maps, keys, globes, atlases, different types of maps, etc. Comes in handy when the GPS isn't working ;)
American History: We covered the 1700's this year. We spent a lot of time on the Revolutionary War. The kids did some projects and a lot of reading. We made some period recipes, made some tri-corn hats and made some games kids in those days played. We even made a lapbook (large book made up of lots of smaller books). They really enjoyed that.
World History: We covered the age of the Apostles. Actually we didn't even finish it, we have 4 more units to complete, which we'll work on this year. We discussed the Apostles, the early Popes, the church fathers and the early martyrs. We learned about ancient Rome. They really enjoyed learning about gladiators. We did several projects as well.
Grammar: Level D. He learned more about diagramming sentences and the less known parts of speech.
Literature/writing: We started using a new program this year called Writing with Ease. There are 4 levels and the author also takes a spiral approach (notice a theme here?). There is narration/dictation, handwriting practice, listening comprehension and more. The first level has the instructor reading a passage from a book/story. Then asking questions of the kids. They then need to remember one thing from the passage and write it down (or the teacher writes it and the student then copies it). The idea is to gradually work up to the student finding the main idea in a passage and summarizing stories. The Professor has issues with doing this, so I'm hoping that starting so basic will help him to develop the skills. I'm also hoping that the others don't have the same issue and that this will catch it before it becomes a problem.
Vocabulary: We've been using a series called 240 Words ___ Graders Need to Know. We completed the 4th grade level.
Art: We started using Drawing with Thomas Kincade from Alpha Omega. It's a good program and he finds it challenging. He's learning more about perspective and shading and drawing faces.
We had a good year.
Best discoveries:
I spent our last summer break (4 weeks or so) making copies and print outs of everything I would need throughout the entire year. In years past, I would do this during our weeks off. Usually on Sunday night before starting school Monday morning :) Doing everything in advance really worked well. That way I knew it was all done and didn't have to stop what I was doing to make a copy or print something out. As we all know, when you need to do something in a hurry, you can't find it or the internet is down or the printer is broken or something. It also made less to do during the weeks off, which made life easier.
I also changed the way I do my lesson plans. In the past I would lay out exact page numbers, worksheets, etc to do on specific days. Every week off I would do the plans for the next 3 weeks. This was time consuming and would get thrown off when someone was sick, or there was an appointment or we just decided to scrap school for the day. This year I just planned each subject and what would get done on a daily basis. Example: 1 page per day for math, 2 pages per day for grammar, x many weeks per unit for history, 1 state every 2 weeks for Geography, etc. Then I made a checklist for the kids with their chores and their school work so we could see what had been done and not done.
Hardest part of the year:
A growing toddler. That likes to climb. And get into everything. It's amazing how much harder it's been keeping Pumpkin out of things than it was with the other three. He's been an easy baby and a pretty easy toddler and he's such a happy boy, but he is a toddler. So our routines got shifted around a lot and lots of things got put off to nap time when ever possible.
All in all it was a good year. We all learned a lot and got a lot done.
The Professor ~ 4th grade
Math: Math-u-see level Epsilon (fractions). As in the past we continue to love the math-u-see program. It's fairly easy for me, since the kids watch a dvd that teaches the concepts. And it's not difficult material that I still remember how to do it. That may change in a few years and Matt will need to become more involved ;)
Religion: Faith and Life. This is an awesome program for learning the faith. They take a spiral approach that breaks everything (the bible and the catechism) down for the younger set, starting in 1st grade, and incorporates more meat each year through 6th grade. They may go higher, I'm not sure. We also read devotionals, stories of the saints and celebrated the liturgical year.
Science: Exploring Creation with Anatomy and Physiology. The authors have a whole series that covers each of the days of creation, about one each year. They're very well written and go very in-depth into the subjects. It's written in a Charlotte Mason style, very conversational. It's broken down for elementary level students without talking down to the kids. My only complaint about the series is that the author follows the young earth philosophy, believing that the earth was created in 7-24 hour days and is about 4000 years old.
Geography: We finished covering the last of the 50 states and completed our scrapbook! And it only took just over 2 years :)
Map Skills: He completed level D this year. This is another series I like a lot. It spirals through reading maps, keys, globes, atlases, different types of maps, etc. Comes in handy when the GPS isn't working ;)
American History: We covered the 1700's this year. We spent a lot of time on the Revolutionary War. The kids did some projects and a lot of reading. We made some period recipes, made some tri-corn hats and made some games kids in those days played. We even made a lapbook (large book made up of lots of smaller books). They really enjoyed that.
World History: We covered the age of the Apostles. Actually we didn't even finish it, we have 4 more units to complete, which we'll work on this year. We discussed the Apostles, the early Popes, the church fathers and the early martyrs. We learned about ancient Rome. They really enjoyed learning about gladiators. We did several projects as well.
Grammar: Level D. He learned more about diagramming sentences and the less known parts of speech.
Literature/writing: We started using a new program this year called Writing with Ease. There are 4 levels and the author also takes a spiral approach (notice a theme here?). There is narration/dictation, handwriting practice, listening comprehension and more. The first level has the instructor reading a passage from a book/story. Then asking questions of the kids. They then need to remember one thing from the passage and write it down (or the teacher writes it and the student then copies it). The idea is to gradually work up to the student finding the main idea in a passage and summarizing stories. The Professor has issues with doing this, so I'm hoping that starting so basic will help him to develop the skills. I'm also hoping that the others don't have the same issue and that this will catch it before it becomes a problem.
Vocabulary: We've been using a series called 240 Words ___ Graders Need to Know. We completed the 4th grade level.
Art: We started using Drawing with Thomas Kincade from Alpha Omega. It's a good program and he finds it challenging. He's learning more about perspective and shading and drawing faces.
We had a good year.
Best discoveries:
I spent our last summer break (4 weeks or so) making copies and print outs of everything I would need throughout the entire year. In years past, I would do this during our weeks off. Usually on Sunday night before starting school Monday morning :) Doing everything in advance really worked well. That way I knew it was all done and didn't have to stop what I was doing to make a copy or print something out. As we all know, when you need to do something in a hurry, you can't find it or the internet is down or the printer is broken or something. It also made less to do during the weeks off, which made life easier.
I also changed the way I do my lesson plans. In the past I would lay out exact page numbers, worksheets, etc to do on specific days. Every week off I would do the plans for the next 3 weeks. This was time consuming and would get thrown off when someone was sick, or there was an appointment or we just decided to scrap school for the day. This year I just planned each subject and what would get done on a daily basis. Example: 1 page per day for math, 2 pages per day for grammar, x many weeks per unit for history, 1 state every 2 weeks for Geography, etc. Then I made a checklist for the kids with their chores and their school work so we could see what had been done and not done.
Hardest part of the year:
A growing toddler. That likes to climb. And get into everything. It's amazing how much harder it's been keeping Pumpkin out of things than it was with the other three. He's been an easy baby and a pretty easy toddler and he's such a happy boy, but he is a toddler. So our routines got shifted around a lot and lots of things got put off to nap time when ever possible.
All in all it was a good year. We all learned a lot and got a lot done.
Monday, November 26, 2012
A little quiet...a little busy
Hi all! I know it's been quiet around here lately. I've been rather busy lately and unfortunately the blog is the first to go :( I haven't the same excuse as some very blessed women, such as Kelly, Emily, and now Jen, but just busy with our little corner of the world. I'll try to share some pictures soon. Pumpkin is growing like a weed. Stop by and congratulate these lucky women, won't you?
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
VROOM! VROOM!
Normally, hubby and I don't exchange gifts for holidays and birthdays, but for Father's Day this year, I splurged. I got a Google offer in email a week or two before Father's Day for something I knew hubby would love. We redeemed his voucher this past weekend!
He got to drive a Lamborghini!
The video on this one wasn't working, so they let him drive another one!!!!!
He had an amazing time!
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
First Day of School 2012
So, for the first time I actually thought to capture the kids on the first day of school! I've been meaning to do this for quite some time :)
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| The Professor (never can get a "normal" expression on him) |
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| Velcro Boy |
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| Doodlebug |
And because he's just soooo cute...
He's trying to get Doodlebug's puppy.
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