Back to school....

After the holidays and a quick trip to Texas, this week was our first full week back to homeschooling. We had managed to fit in some schooling the past few weeks but not a full week so it felt good to have a plan a get it all done this week.

Some changes in our school plan....

Our subscription to Thinkwell Pre-Algebra ran out so Haley started on Saxon 87 a few weeks ago because I am not ready to begin Algebra with her...yet. She likes Saxon. The review and extra topics not covered by Thinkwell will be good review/solidifying of material for her. I didn't feel like she got enough practice with Thinkwell.

She also finished up Best Poetry so I ordered Lightning Literature 7. I have been wanting to do that with her and she is now ready to read the selections and discuss them at the appropriate level to handle the program. Also, her output ability is at a level where she can get the most out of the program rather than just being able to superficially cover everything. She enjoyed the first story..."Rikki Tikki Tavi" (one of my favorite stories) and we are working through the workbook and student guide activities for the next couple weeks.

Haley is interested in doing more music theory so she is going to begin "The Language and Materials of Music" today. She also started piano lessons with a teacher at the music store where Dylan takes guitar. Hopefully a little knowledge of the piano will help her "see" the theory a little easier. She is doing the piano lessons on her own...meaning I am not going into the room with her. (Though I can hear everything that is going on from the waiting area.) I will help her with her practice when she asks but I would really like this to be "her thing."

We are continuing with PLATO Earth Science and other earth science resources and picking up the speed a bit with History of US and the other American Revolution resources so we can hopefully make it at least to the Civil War before the end of June. Other things on our plate include...

Wordly Wise
Rosetta Stone Gaelic and Spanish
Language Mechanics
Mapping the World with Art

Here is Haley's Mapping the World with Art project for the week. She really enjoyed making this huge cookie of Africa with it's sprinkly sandy deserts, chocolate chip mountains, and icing rivers. Crafts are right up her alley. With the rest of the cookie dough, she used her music cutters and made note and violin cookies. (see below)

Violin and fiddle are going really well. Haley is preparing Paganini's Moto Perpetuo for her teacher's studio concert that has been moved up to next Sunday (ah!). Her orchestra concert is the following weekend along with an Irish performance she and Dylan are doing at an area church's Celtic Spring Fling. She has been practicing a lot lately!