The Aftermath

Mixing Colors

This week we have been learning to mix colors with our art curriculum "God and the History of Art".  Even though it is intended for ages ten and up, Abigail is doing well with only the occasional frustration.

Of course Miriam had to paint as well.  You can see the sophisticated color mixing she has done here on her mini masterpiece.  She is exploring a bit of an abstract/ modern kind of art....  hehe.

Constructing an igloo

The little igloo, brought to you by the Daddy and Abbie construction team.

Look Mom, Snow head!  Remember the depressed robot in "The hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy"? Yes, her head is in the little igloo.  She assures me it is warm in there.  I guess "warm" is relative.

Little snow people.

Hauling snow for the big igloo.

Daddy and Abbie working on their big construction project, an Igloo big enough for the two of them to crawl into.  It will be really great but unfortunately the night after these were taken the freezing rain came.  The small mountain of snow that was to become their big igloo is now encased in ice and it's future is unclear.  

Let it snow!

Whoo hoo!!

I am ready to go out mom.

Playing in the snow is a tough job.  It's only 6:30 and they are down for the count.

Morning Break

Good thing our school doesn't have the zero tolerance thing going on.  The boys are having a great time on morning break.

Curlies

Abigail's Bell Choir

OK, it's definitely been awhile since we've posted. What can I say? It's been a busy season!


This last weekend Abigail performed at church in the children's bell choir, in the video it's hard to see, but she actually does have a bell, and she played it so well!

The bear did it

Daddy - "Who put this gum under the table?"

Abigail - (imagine the older child , superior sounding voice here) "Not me, probably Mim did it."

Miriam (You have to imagine the un-enunciated but emphatic lit of the two-year-old voice) - "no meeeee!"

Daddy - "I guess you girls lose gum privileges for two weeks since you can't keep track of your gum"

Miriam - "Bears do, Teddy bears did it."

Daddy "Then I suppose you lose gum privileges for three weeks, for not keeping track of your bears"

Mom starts laughing in the next room.


~Christina

Tonight's Moon!

I borrowed a spotting scope from work (Leupold 12-40X60mm Golden Ring) and captured this photo of the moon tonight. Spectatular!



(Click image for full size view)

David Catches a Rainbow Trout

Finally, a fish! After months of trying David took this small but beautiful Rainbow Trout today at North Fork reservoir. Way to go David! We'll cook it up as a snack tomorrow.



This was probably our last fishing outing this year since most of the lakes are closing their season in a couple of days.

Season score: David - 1, Dad - 0

Learning to Cut Paper

Miriam is learning to use her little scissors.  She was under strict instructions to only, ever, cut paper.  I have enough experience to know that she will eventually try them out of her hair but I have to say it, right?

Although I pointed to the construction paper I neglected to verbally suggest she actually use the construction paper. Miriam went and found her own supply of paper - toilet paper!  Hey, at least it was clean and she was following instructions after all.  

~ Christina 

Weekly Report- Week eleven 2008-09

We had a good week.  Nothing was super exciting as far as school was concerned.  I was thinking today about how well grammar is going.  I had very little grammar in school.  My theory is that my early years in public school they assumed we would learn it later.  Later in Private school I think they assumed we had learned it before.  Hmmmm.  The two years I remember having formal grammar were seventh and eighth grade.  I was homeschooled by a friend in seventh and somehow I managed to keep my head above water through Abeka grammar.  I only had a vague idea of what a noun and a verb were to start with and pretty much felt out of my element the whole time.  In eighth grade I remember memorizing helping verbs but that's it.  Yet, I managed honors English classes in High School.  How does that work?

Around here we use First Language Lessons and then Rod and Staff Grammar.  This is serious grammar, people!

 Today Abigail was working on the different things we capitalize in the English language.  English is the only language that capitalizes the first person pronoun (I).  How is that for arrogance?  The real reason has to do with how it worked out on the printing presses of old but it is rather interesting that we are the only ones who do that.

David has been working on antecedents and verb phrases.  I can't tell you much more than that because my independent boy dislikes me teaching him grammar.  It is much more expedient to read the lesson and complete it on his own.  I tried a couple of weeks ago and was met with "Mooooom, I already read it.  It's not hard!" Ok, I get the picture. [backs slowly away for the pre-teen boy]

J has been learning to diagram for the first time.  One more kid in this world who thinks I am evil!  When he first joined us I started in on verb phrases and soon discovered that he didn't know the definition of a verb!  So much for trusting someone else's testing.  Back to the beginning we go. He is moving right along and should jump up to the next grade level by Spring.

You are now wondering how I could possibly tach grammar after so little exposure.  I am about 50 lessons ahead of David and I actually like diagraming.  I find it fascinating now as an adult.  I love filling in the gaps and it is easier since I am more motivated now than when I was a kid.   

These are pictures of us today just finishing up our end-of-the-week work.  I was taking pictures of the other kids and Miriam says "Picture me too!"  Here she is with her ponies.

David doesn't like having his picture taken 

Abigail teaching multiplication to her ponies.  She informed me today that I need to order her another math book.  She has done about 100 pages this week and finished all of the Beta review pages today.

J drilling math facts.  Not exactly his favorite thing but he will be glad to know them later.  At least that's what I tell him.

~ Christina

Weekly Report- Week Ten 2008-09

This was project week.  The kids were suppose to entertain themselves while I actually got the house clean.  The best laid plans and all.....  We had doctor appointments and phone consultations and bored kids and I was just plain distracted!  The boys did work quite a bit on their stop motion movies.  This week Abigail decided she was going to try to finish her math book so that she could move on tot he next one.  She learned to divide and thinks it is really fun.  The boys are trying to convince her otherwise and I just keep shushing them.  Our home is so peaceful when Abigail is happily doing page after page in her math book.  When they are bored they all annoy one another so it is good to keep everyone busy.

Today we will go to the library and I will sort clothes.  This was my ultimate goal this week.  I have gotten some clutter taken care of but I need to switch Miriam's clothes out for the next size, so that has to be done today.  This weekend I will be buying new clothes for David and Adriel and filling in anything missing from Miriam's wardrobe.  David has grown and some of Adriel's clothes need replacing after a few mishaps.  Time to get ready for Winter!

Weekly Report- Week Nine 2008-09

This week we were learning more about Rome .  Specifically we learned about Roman arches and their building projects.  The Romans built 6 bridges over the Tiber River and 5 of them are still in use today!  They also invented concrete.  Our project this week was to make a Roman arch out of pudding boxes.

Here is David cutting the sides of the boxes to make them a wedge shape.

Everyone helping to get the boxes ready for construction.

Our "stones" cut, taped, and ready for building.

The final product.

The victorious builders.

In other news.... Miriam is finally letting us know when she needs to go potty and accidents are few and far between.  The Henderson world rejoices!  ~ Christina 

Weekly Report- Week Eight 2008-09

Our first week with out new student went well.  We are still learning about Rome for a few more weeks.  David is bored of Romans but Abigail and J are interested and excited about our studies, so we will just leave David to his adolescent angst.   I didn't get any pictures because I was very busy getting use to an extra student as well as his math and spelling curriculum which I agreed to use.  Note to self : The virtual charter school is not my thing!  It reminds me how much I love Math-U-See.   Wednesday we are suppose to make a Roman arch out of pudding boxes so there should be pictures of that next week.

Adriel's birthday is on Thursday but unfortunately he is still not feeling well.  We will celebrate quietly.  It sure came quickly this year.  I keep thinking it's about a week away.  Hmmm, it's not anymore!

New Student

We are getting a new student!  J is 10 yo and is joining our homeschool for this year, so if you see an extra kid in the pictures I post, it's him.  We are excited to add someone to our little school.  I am also watching two little ones (3 yo and almost 2 yo) for a friend.  She is at the hospital with her youngest.  Baby Elizabeth could use any prayers you can send her way.  Her big sisters really miss Mommy and we want Elizabeth to grow up big and strong.  

It is gearing up to be a busy week!

~Christina 

Announcing .... (drum roll please)

Our school has a name!  No we don't legally need a name but why should that stop us from having one?  Now if we don't feel like discussing the finer point of "socialization" with the cashier at Fred Meyer we can just say the kids go to Navigamus Classical School.  Sounds impressive doesn't it?  I figure that will look better on a transcript than "Henderson homeschool".  I even made a little logo.   I will get a picture of it up here eventually.  I am still trying to come up with a theme verse or snappy tag line though.  How about this one "Aut disce aut discede" -Either learn or leave! (Just kidding)

~Christina 

"Mom, why is the flag at half mast?"

How do you answer that question for children who don't remember that day?  My children don't remember a time when we were not at war.  David was four years old and Abigail just under six weeks old that September.  I struggled to explain why the "bad guys" would choose those targets.  I understand that the towers were symbols of American freedom and financial strength.  The Pentagon is a symbol of our military strength, but how do you explain freedom to children who have never lived in a country without it?  An then, how do you explain why someone would attack us because of that freedom?

Yes they understood the basic facts, airplanes, towers, the Pentagon, a field in Pennsylvania, but they can't understand the horror and grief of that day and all of the days after it.  I am glad they can't understand.  I am forever grateful to the men and women who keep my children secure in their freedom, never understanding what it is to live in fear and without freedom.  I pray that the babies born in Iraq and Afghanistan today won't understand.  I hope their mothers can say "You were too  little to know what it was like back then..... But now we are free".  I pray that day comes soon.

~Christina 

"War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things.  The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling that thinks nothing is worth war is much worse.  The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature, and has no  chance of being free, unless made and kept so by the exertions of greater men than himself."

-John Stuart Mill

My First Braids

Don't mess with me.

Grumpy?  Who says I'm grumpy?  I'm two.  I don't need a reason to make this face.  Why are you taking my picture anyway!

Oh ya, I like having picture taken.  Do you like my braids?  I am so cute and I know it!!

LALALALA

Weekly Report- week three 2008-09

Better late than never right?  David's first week of school went well.  It continues to be an adjustment for him but he will be back in the swing of things soon.  Each day we get through things a little faster.

David

Math - reviewing Epsilon

Latin - Lively Latin lesson one

Rod and Staff Grammar- lessons 1-3

Abigail

Handwriting - Learning cursive letters l,e, h and f

Math- reviewing Beta lessons

Grammar - FLL lessons 100 - 103

Everyone

Narrations and copy-work

Art - basic drawing from "God and the history of art"

MFW - We started learning about Rome this week.  The founding of Rome and the start of the Republic.  I picked up the contact paper and card stock that we need for our timeline but we haven't started the timeline yet.  I have figured out where to put 

the timeline after some

 thought.  We don't really have hallways so we will have a vertical timeline.  Pictures next week.

The girls made their Roman clay tablets.  You can write a note and then smooth the clay over and over.  Yes, they really did use clay tablet books to write on in Ancient Rome.  Can you imagine taking lecture notes on that?

Second grade is exhausting!

Labor Day at Fern Ridge Reservoir

On Labor Day I took my girls and lady out for the afternoon on Fern Ridge Reservoir. We were joined by a few dozen other sailboats on the lake. It was a beautiful day with good steady air and a warm sun. 







The first hour the girls enjoyed playing "hit the buoy." You can watch the action in this video: 


Click for full size video.

Later both girls fell asleep, Miriam on mom's shoulder and Abigail curled up on a towel on the floor.





In all we sailed for over four hours and covered over 13 miles of water. A beautiful afternoon.