Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Plans for our school year

Well, Our homeschool start date for this fall is right around the corner. We wait until the beginning of September to enjoy the summer to it's fullest and get our fall garden going. This year is exciting with lots of fun things planned for the boys.

Eli will be doing 6th grade this year, Ben will be in 3rd grade and Gabe is.....4 and full of energy. This years main lesson blocks for Eli are, men of ancient Greece, ancient Rome, Geometry, Physics, Minerology, Astronomy, and literature analysis.

We have started a new Co-op and are excited to be a part of HeartStones. Each wednesday we get to share in fellowship and learning as our children grow in the Lord together and learn in fun and creative ways inspired by the wisdom of Charlotte Mason.

Ben's lesson blocks are OldTestament stories, shelters, time, money and measurement, native american legends and stories, Farming and Fiber arts. We will be doing a lot of building and practical work in the garden and creating shelters, projects and hand on projects for this 3rd year.

For our bible study this year we will be using our Block on Old testament stories as a family throughout the year. We will create main lesson books to carry our study in scripture, and hebrew culture which give us our roots in Christianity.

Art, written narration, scripture and poetry will be included. Stay tuned for pictures. Literature and living books comprise a lot of our reading. Ben has just started the Hobbitt by J.R.R Tolkein and Eli is finishing his summer reading of Homer's odyssey and Hittite Warrior. He has just begun the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark twain for his Literature Analysis class in HeartStones.

I will be reading aloud several living books based on american history. Some for this year are Poor Richard, Abigail Adams, Johnny Tremain, George Washington's world, and Little house on the prarie books for our Third grade. We look forward to lots of reading ouside under the pecan trees to keep little Gabe busy and having fun and I am excited to have wednedsays with him in HeartStones where we can have time to read and play together.

Piano Lessons continue to inspire the boys to create their own music and have started a band with their best friends Luke and Jack. So far 2 videos have been made and tracks have been laid for some new tunes!! We attribute this creative endeavor to their lessons inSimply Music. It is by far the Best Program for learning music out there!!

Here's to a wonderful year!

Fall Garden Time

August is on it's way out and it's time to put in our fall garden. This year we are planting Kale, Red Russian Kale, Mixed Greens, Broccoli, Beets and onions to winter over. We love fresh greens from the garden and sautee them in onions, coconut oil and a sprinkle of mama garlic and sesame seeds. Yum!! Stay tuned for more recipes from our apples and pecans.