Week 4

We have officially completed 19 days of school.  It is already going by so fast.  The writing curriculum finally arrived this week, so we'll begin that on Monday.  It's going to be a lot of work, but it looks like a great curriculum.  I gave up on the geography curriculum, so we are going back to what we did last year.  I also changed what we were doing for grammar and those books arrived today, so we can start that next week also. 

Justin is doing better with math.  Yay!!! 

Next week will be the first MOPs meeting, so Justin will be staying at home while I attend the meeting.  I am helping with childcare.  The meetings are twice a month at our church.  Justin will have his list of things to do while I'm gone.  IF he proves to me that he can't be trusted to stay at home and get something done, he will have to go with me.  He doesn't want to do that, so I'm hoping he can prove himself worthy of staying at home alone. 

I keep forgetting to take a few pictures during the day.  I'll try to do better next week. 

Week 3

Justin and I enjoyed our first "hooky" day this past Monday.  We went to Columbia to do a little shopping.  We've already made plans for our first week off.  We're going to Hilton Head Island for a few days with Aunt Mary.  A few of the perks of homeschooling!! 

Academics are moving along.  Justin has already completed 13 math lessons and read 8 chapters in his history book.  This week we added in grammar.  In the near future, we'll add writing and vocabulary.

For P.E., Justin is either walking on the treadmill, using the Wii Fit or using an exercise DVD.  On Friday, we tried the DVD.  We worked on our abs.  We are both sore today.  HaHa!  Guess it worked! 

Week 2

We have managed to complete 2 weeks of our first 6 weeks.  Only four more to go until we get a break!  Justin has been doing well.  We are finding some things are a little more challenging than we expected.  Take Bible for instance.  Have you actually seen a print copy of Nave's Topical Bible or Strong's Concordance?  They make the Bible look like a beginner's chapter book.  These books are HUGE!!!  Computer programming is another subject that is a little more than we expected.  The first lesson was a flop and I ended up having to contact customer support to figure out what went wrong.  This, of course, convinced Justin that he is not capable of doing this subject, which is not true!  It's a good lesson in patience for him.  He would do just fine if he would read the directions more carefully and not be so quick to "click" on things.  He has been doing well with math, so far.  Right now, he is mostly doing review, so that is helping to boost his confidence. 

Other than academics, we are also working on life skills. ( Mainly, housekeeping skills.)  Some of his duties include, making his bed, cleaning his room and the living room, putting his dishes in the dish washer, emptying trash cans and taking the trash to the street on Wednesday nights and cleaning his bathroom.  Some things we're working on: laundry, vacuuming, dusting, and simple cooking.   

Week 1 = DONE!

Wow, this week went by fast!  We managed to complete everything I had scheduled.  After trying the schedule for a week, I can see areas that need tweaking.  Rather than doing science M/W/F, with a lab on Friday, we'll try doing it M/T/W instead.  I think we will only do geography two days a week, T/Th.  I'm still not real thrilled with this program.  I'm going to give it another try and if I still don't like it; I'll go back to including geography with history.  When we start writing, I think we will try to do it on T/W/Th.  I would like to have a more heavy workload at the beginning of the week. 

Justin completed the first art lesson Friday.  He learned about lines this week.  He watched an instructor on a DVD and then completed the assignment.  He also completed his first science lab this week.  I think he's going to like this curriculum.  It is open and go.  Everything is provided.  The textbook and lab book are written to the student, so it requires minimal help from me.  Justin managed to walk 1 mile on the treadmill everyday.  Not too bad for a couch potato! 

First day of 7th grade...DONE!

Here is a picture of my 7th grader.

 

Justin woke up on his own this morning, which is great, except that it was 4:30am!!  Trust me, it was not from excitement.  By 8:00am, he had already completed his morning chores and had walked one mile on the treadmill.  Today, Justin completed assignments in Bible, math, history, science, reading, computer, geography, and p.e.  As the weeks go on, I will add in some more subjects.  He will not do all subjects everyday. 

Below is a brief list of what he will be doing this year:


Bible:  Because You are Strong (This is a Bible study for "young men" that is published by Doorposts.  It will take about half the year to complete.)
Math:  Teaching Textbooks Pre-Algebra ('nuf said)
History:  The Story of the World Vol. 3 & 4, Early Modern Times and The Modern Age (This is a continuation from last year.)
Science: The Rainbow  Year 1(This is a two year program.  This year will concentrate on physics and chemistry.)
Reading:  He is starting the year with a study guide for Redwall. 
Computer:  Windows programming. (This should take the first semester.  Game programming is for the second semester.)
Geography: Mapping the World by Heart (Hmmm...I'm not real sure about this program.  It's not real easy to follow.  We'll see how it goes.)
P.E.: Today he walked on the treadmill.  Activities will vary.
Grammar:  I have two programs on the shelf, but I haven't decided which one if any I'm going to use this year. 
Writing:  Cover Story (This is the only curriculum I don't have yet.  It has been pre-ordered, but it's not ready yet.  I don't expect it to be ready until September. )
Logic:  The Fallacy Detective and The Thinking Toolbox (He hasn't started these yet.)
Latin:  Latina Christiana I (I have this on the shelf, but haven't decided when or if I want to use it.)
Art: Atelier Art (He will do this on Fridays.)
Music: Piano Wizard
Spanish: Rosetta Stone (I've had this for years.  Still not sure I'm going to use it this year. Might wait for high school.)

                  Our favorite new school supply is a self-inking date stamp!!!  Good times!!!