Week 5 - CHECK!

WOW!  At the beginning of the semester, before we even got started, I actually cried because I was facing a 7-week stretch before our 1st break and then another 7-week stretch before Thanksgiving Break.  (I usually set up our schedule for breaks after 3-4 weeks.)

I know, it probably doesn't seem like a big deal to veteran public school teachers because you go longer than that all the time.  But for me, it was a big deal, because I don't get to leave my students at school.  I don't ever really leave school either.

Any way, we have made it through 5 of the 7 weeks, and I am doing fine.  This is BY FAR my busiest year, teaching-wise, ever.  But the Lord has helped and empowered me SO much that I'm keeping on top of things better than usual, even my grading.  I'm VERY excited about that!!!

Two more weeks and then...awwwww...a little relaxation and mostly just a different kind of busyness as I begin to restore order to other parts of the household that fall apart while we're schooling.  But, at least cleaning is a somewhat mindless and tunnel-vision task.  That will be a GREAT break for my constantly taxed brain which must switch between 4th and 8th grades too frequently and between a whole spectrum of subject matter as well.

This week was shorter than usual, due to Labor Day Weekend.  Since Robert was home Monday, we took an extra day too.  The kids are having to cram alot in to make up for it, but we are getting it done.

Josh and Erik continue to be greatly challenged by the increase expectations of this year, but I KNOW that by the end of the year, they will have learned to handle it and will enter high school much better prepared because of it.  My main goals for Josh and Erik this year are to work on self-responsibility, following directions, and paying attention to and working successfully with details.  As you notice, having all As and Bs is not my goal.  The expectations for them have shot way up and I know that will be reflected in their grades somewhat.  But what I really want is for them to gain study skills and take ownership of their own learning.  If they can do that, they will be well-prepared to enter high school even if their current grades aren't what I want them to be.  (Yes, please keep reminding me I said this when I am feeling like moaning over their grades!)  I know that learning how to learn is a major hurdle.  But, if they can do that, they will do better in all of life.  This is more important than being able to regurgitate information that is spoon-fed to them.

Isaac and Seth are studying Colonial Life in history and even got to make Man and Woman paper dolls and dress them in layered, era-appropriate styles + have move on to learning about 'social' insects in science.  They are doing great learning to do some basic sentence diagramming in English and are amazing in their retention of the info we talk about.   In addition, I am proud to report that Isaac and Seth have memorized their 1st poem for their English program, The Land of Nod by Robert Louis Stevenson.  I will try to record it digitally and put it on here for you to hear.  :)  They memorized way quicker than me and can do it better than I can still.  We move on to a new poem Monday.

Fridays continue to be my favorite.  It's so nice to talk about artists and musicians and geography and health after 4 days full of the other subjects.  Today, we talked about Leonardo Da Vinci, a contemporary of Michelangelo.  (The boys like to learn about the Renaissance artists because 'they are named after' the boys 4 favorite turtle superheros. (Of course, Donatello is actually pre-Renaissance as far as I can tell, but...SHHH!)  In music, we switched from Haydn to Clementi.  September Fridays will major on Clementi.  I hope to have a different composer every month and at least move through several artists in one era per month.

I have NO idea if anyone who reads this blog really wants to know all this, but it is helping my brain process my life as a sort of journaling catharsis.  So, if you don't want to know all this, just skip over any post that looks 'school-ish' in nature.

For those of you who care to know all these crazy details of my life and the random meanderings of my mind, God bless you and thanks for caring!

Love to you,
Lezlie