Summer Taking Its Toll

LOL! That could be a great headline! What is with the weather here lately? We boing back and forth between high 90s with humidity running at least 80 percent to low 80 and daily showers. Seriously? I feel like I am in lala land. I am not complaining about the rain, it is just odd. That is all.

The girls woke up at 5 am today, after staying up until midnight because they were watching “The Ultimate Guide” about horses! Their thirst for knowledge makes me happy and proud.  Instead of flipping on Cartoon Network (thank goodness!) they put on either the discovery channel or the history channel!

Justin’s son, Tyler, has a new niece. His aunt gave birth to the most beautiful baby yesterday! Welcome to the world H.K!

I am a bit scattered this morning, can you tell? We have a lot going on here and are kind of up in the air until Friday. I am hoping things pan out, but if not that means it wasn’t meant to be. We shall see… I hope I can spill the happenings soon!

Curriculm Review – Story of the World, Volume I : Ancient Times

Title: Story of the World, Volume 1: Ancient Times
Author: Susan Wise Bauer

ISBN: Teacher’s Guide: 9781933339047

Student’s Book: 9781933339009

Overall Rating: (1 being poor, 10 being excellent) 9

Before I am set ablaze by torch for the rating that I gave this curriculum, let me expand on my reasoning. This set of curriculum does a superb job at reaching children through the use of both books. I am enraptured with the teacher’s guide because Bauer goes into extreme details. The only faults that I can honestly find are: there review questions are only in the teacher’s guide, there are very few illustrations and that a few topics seem to be a bit drawn out.

I am truely ecstatic about how well Bauer was able to reach out and grab my children’s minds with the writing style in the student book. It was a daily occurrence to see the light dance in their eyes as I placed the books on the table. Every day the girls would illustrate (as I read) and summarize the topics that were covered. This ongoing enthusiasm was an awesome experience.

Another bonus to this curriculum is the teacher’s guide. Susan Bauer uses this guide to provide the exact details for making this a successful study. She instructs you on what review questions to ask, provides examples of narration, ties in relevant crafts and supplies a library list for your student(s). These details were key for me throughout this first school “year”.

As I became more comfortable with homeschooling my children the over abundance of details started to become slightly annoying and leaving me feeling slightly restricted. I had finally grown aware enough that I became able to pick some options that Bauer offers and add in some of my own flavor. In essence, Bauer’s teacher’s guide taught me how to homeschool. Without seeing the teacher’s guide, it would have been a much longer journey for me to get so comfortable at fleshing out a topic that we were studying.

My main complaint about Story of the World, Volume I : Ancient Times is that there are NO review questions in the student book. I often have the girls read the review questions prior to the assigned reading. I have found that this helps them look for key nuggets of information, thus increasing comprehension and retention of the assignment. My secondary issue is the lack of illustration. My children are extremely visual so this felt hindering to me. I was able to work with this issue by having them illustrate a page while I read aloud to them. The issue of it being drawn out is really a fault of my own, I honestly should know when to skip ahead!

In summary, Story of the World, Volume I is a great curriculum to start with. The author does a terrific job of leading a new homeschool teacher. I have already purchased Volume II for our next school year because this approach works so brilliantly for the children and me. They have not only learned history, but they have discovered that the learning process can be enjoyable and quite the adventure!

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I hope this review gives a helpful insight to anyone looking for a new choice in their History studies, whether they are new to homeschooling or an experienced veteran. This is, by far, one of the best on the market to date.

Delayed…. (and a hello…)

LOL! Yes…. I know… Leave me alone…. I haven’t finished my ‘opinion’ on the SOTW just yet! We had a great weekend and Tyler was here Wednesday until yesterday! My crazed loon of a hubby has been on laundry mode today. Read: Justin has been washing and drying clothes in a frenzy! When he does laundry, he does not fold and hang clothes. Nope. He dumps them on the loveseat. The pile was over 5 feet high (not including the height of the furniture), so I decided to do the laundry.

Did he miss the news bulletin? I am not Tara . (Love ya, babe!) A mom that homeschools doesn’t have time for nonstop cleaning like when the kiddos were in school. It will be okay if the house isn’t spotless. I.promise. LOL!

So that is what my day entailed. Craptastic laundry!!!

Now, onto some blog stuff.

• I would like to say hello to Maria! Maria emailed me privately and I hope she posts a comment soon!
• Tara, if you are reading this post… feel free to comment and tell Maria how you have helped me in such wonderful ways. Like I told you, Maria, without Tara I would not be homeschooling. I was absolutely terrified when I started! Honestly, I still am scared but it is getting easier as time goes on.

Okay, I am off to bed. Since it is 9:30 that is surely a sign of old age, isn’t it? *sigh*…. I can’t be young forever, but one can always dream. Right? Right?

Remember?

Remember this post? Well, it is time for me to do my reviews! I will post my honest opinions for the inquiring minds. The first review to be posted will be for Story of the World, Volume I, Ancient Times. I will continue on from there. I will have a category just for curricula reviews in the right hand column. Needless to say, I won’t be posting millions since this was our first year but there will be a few. I find it hard to find an honest opinion on most curricula from a ‘beginner’ homeschooling moms point of view, so I hope to be able to help fill that void. Wish me luck!

A whole lot of nada….

LOL! Yes, that is what I did today. Since I declared today a ‘nada’ day, the girls had to act up and misbehave. They refuse to stop learning…. IS THERE A SWITCH??? Seriously… is there?

*sigh* 11 more days until I am emotionally undone, so I thought to myself “The best way to unwind is to post nothingness on my blog.”. Here I am. It is 11:15 and I simply cannot sleep.

Some news on the homefront:

• My first lapbook is getting geared up to be offered for FREE at Homeschool Share thanks to the wonderfully talented Ami! I am uber excited. Because it was my first lapbook, Ami had to make quite a few changes. LOL I feel so badly for her, but this was definitely a learning experience!
• Justin and I are looking to purchase another vehicle. SHUSH! It will be E friendly! I told him it had to be. LOL Unfortunately, with all of my doctor’s appointments we cannot bike 30 miles…..
• The girls are driving me batty. Kammie hurt her back yesterday and has been whiny about it all day… UGH.

OH! I must inform you of the most favorite information that I discovered today!!! We went to the library and they surprised us! Starting July 11th, the library will be open ON FRIDAYS!!!!! I need the blushing icon because the librarian was snickering when she told me about how Mayor Chip Thompson begged them to get me to stop inquiring about when the city would expand their budget! Finally! Something absolutely wonderful came out of me having a major gripe fest! (I was polite, but very to the point!) I am so excited!!! I know a few other local hs moms called, and I thank you for answering my plea to help! In a few months the library will extend their hours from 9 am to 8 pm!!!! I may live there… Is that awful? I want to live in a library. Though, if I had a choice of which library to occupy, I honestly don’t see Piedmont being at the top of the list. I am a high needs gal. I need stories upon stories of books!

I do love my local library. *sigh* The girls finished the reading program today. I didn’t even let them record all of the book they have read because I thought it would be unfair. I was told today that for each twenty books they read, they get another chance to win the drawing. So, the girls have decided Mommy needs to print out their spreadsheet of books read (Yes, I do keep one by date….sad, isn’t it?).

About the Latin in the previous post:

I posted my source in the comments, but if you use bloglines you cannot typically see comments. I am pasting it here just in case. LOL

Memoria Press

We bought the book set and the dvds. I have heard several people rave about it. I will be learning alongside the girls as I don’t have any Latin in my background. Wish us lots of luck!

The upcoming school year…

Whew! We are entering our second ‘year’ homeschooling this year. It amazes me that the time flew by so fast and that the girls and I were able to pull off the homeschooling journey. Like all new journeys, there were quite a few bumps in the road and without Tara’s help I probably wouldn’t have made it.

All the bumps in the road have been a great lesson for both me and the girls. Kammie and I have learned not to butt heads so often. Zoe and I have learned to be able to tell when we are going to push the other over the edge of sanity. Both girls have learned so much this year that I am amazed; I honestly never would have imagined the thirst for learning that they both have now. It truly makes my heart light up with joy. I have also learned the best mornings start off with us snuggled in my bed watching an educational show. The entire family has learned how good life can be. Homeschooling has set us free!

Ahem… Now for me to get back on track, this post is about my goals for next year! So, here they are:

• Kammie will become well versed in multiplication, division, fractions and be able to better handle word problems. Zoe will become well versed in addition, subtraction and word problems. I am hoping that the Singapore Math Program will be the answers that we are looking for.
• Both girls will finish Story of the World Volume I and begin Story of the World Volume II and will continue to supplement with additional books. I would love to find a way to help them ‘live’ through the next text.
• Both girls will finish up the study of animals and will progress to do some of the www.ScienceA-z.com packets. I also have a LOT of experiments that I want them to do!
• Continue on with our reading program from www.readinga-z.com; I need to find a new way to help Kammie with her comprehension. Zoe will continue on to become a fluent reader. We will use McGruffy’s Eclectic Speller for their spelling lessons. I want them to finish up First Language Lessons and start on the Second Language Lessons.
• The girls have a boxed DVD Latin set on its way. My goal is for them to get through this first year and love every minute of it.
• The girls will be joining in the sports at YMCA this year to help bolster the P.E. area.
• I have signed the girls up for Saturday Art Lessons, starting in August. My goal is for them to become comfortable with their level of talent and to further develop it.
• They will also enter in contests/fairs for sewing or art. Yes, Kammie can sew a complete outfit and Zoe does know how to embellish.

I cannot wait for August! LOL I don’t know why though….. We have chosen to homeschool through the summer in order to keep them from loosing everything they have learned. We are doing a very light summer work load, though. We cover History, Reading/Language Lessons and Math. Period. That only takes us about two hours, maximum. The rest of the day is spent playing and swimming.

What are your 2008-2009 plans? I hope they are great!

Summer Days

We are thoroughly enjoying our summer, here at the Bishop House. Of course, every activity still has a sting to it.

We are nearing the one year anniversary of Mama’s death and it is looming more than ever. Mama’s favorite season was Summer, even though her favorite Holidays were Halloween and Christmas! Every summer she would grill out and insist on everyone joining her for supper since she always cooked enough to feed a small army.

This time last year we had talked of going down to Fort Yargo with the kiddos and letting them have a blast. Unfortunately, we never got past talking about it. The emotions are still raw inside. I don’t know how I will feel on the 13th, the day she passed. I always joke around and say that she waited to pass until the 13th because it was FRIDAY the 13th…. I am a bit weird, admittedly, because I don’t like to leave the house on that day simply because my Granny was the same way. LOL I had told Mama that NOTHING could get me out of the house that day… she proved me wrong! LOL

I used to spend two or three hours on the phone with her each and every day, bragging to her about how wonderful her son is and griping about how spoiled her grandchildren were to have such a wonderful Gramma. I used to listen to her talk about her bills and how tired she was, she would listen to me vetch about how I would uncontrollably be crunching numbers mentally all the time. She was the only one who understood that I have an adding machine stuck in there and it just runs amuck twenty-four seven.

I hope she knew how loved she was, and how much she is now missed.
The lazy days of summer are upon the girls and I. Spending time out in the little pool out back (only 3 feet deep) and visiting our elderly neighbors. The girls want to go to the races on the third to see the fireworks…LOL I despise crowds, but I think we may end up going.

Justin is looking into a part time job so he can get a discount on parts for his truck. A wild hair has gotten hold of him, evidently. He suddenly wants to improve his truck, add annoyingly loud mufflers, a new sound system, step rails and more…. LOL! We shall see how this pans out!

Well, I am off to teach! Yes, we are still doing school but we only do two hours a day…. LOL! Don’t give me that look! I would rather teach lightly through the summer instead of spending three months reviewing next school year. Just to show that I do know how to have fun, we took the girls to the icky beach Sunday where they enjoyed swimming in icky water and Kammie gladly informed me she was building Mesopotamia in the sand….. ::shaking head:: I fell over laughing and her Aunt looked at me like I was a buffoon…. I had to tell her that Mesopotamia was a subject that we had just finished! LOL

When I take a break….

I take a break! LOL Sorry! I honestly had no intention of falling off the face of the earth. I am here. Plugging along. I am a worry wart, and worry because my garden just isn’t doing well… I am very concerned… UGH!

Kammie goes to the Orthodontist later this month! WoooHOOOO! This appointment couldn’t have came early enough! We are just doing a consultation to begin with. After that we will probably get a few teeth pulled and spacers…. Fun, fun. Speaking of Kammers… Her TMJ is flaring… UGH! I have banned her from all gum… hoping the Orthodontist will have some ideas about that.

Zoe is as happy as can be! She can now count to 24 without missing a beat. LOL I quit reading and every thing else to FOCUS on numbers! Wooohooo!

We have some gift cards coming our way! WooT! $50 for Barnes and Noble, $50 for JcPenny’s and $50 for Lowe’s… So nice to be able to do this… I am a bzzagent and have been saving points for a LONG time! LOL

Well, that is my scatter brained post for now. I am off to finish up a Mollusk and earthworm lapbook (2 different books) for the girls and the HSS contest! Wish me luck!

Holiday…

Until The 26th…. Have fun, everyone!

I am awful.

I am sorry I didn’t blog again last night as promised. It was hot as sin here…

My excuse tonight? Tired. Today was one of those 4+ mile bike rides with the kiddos. They love every minute of it though! LOL

Night y’all .