Schooling in May..and a new Rhythm

So it is almost the end of the year and I am STILL tring to find a good rhythm for us in the morning for school! I have decided that once we come down stairs it is too easy to get involved in other activities, such as play or computer..SO..we now stay upstairs. I started to prepare this breakfast tray for them, so they can serve them selves cereal,juice,fruit,muffin etc...

They do this while they get to watch PBS for 1/2 hr upstairs in the den. Meanwhile I get dressed,fed chickens,make tea and set up any work in the schoolroom. They go get dressed, brush hair and teeth before going into the school room. WOW! all of us up, fed, and dressed by 8:00! This has been great and we are now done with school by 11-11:30!

We have also started to have a morning meeting before we start.

I put on soft music and light a candle.

We have had a silent moment, or a guided (child friendly) meditation, energy work (where we think of people we want to send good energy to for the day). We talk about what our goals are for out work period and sometimes talk about our dreams we had durning the night!

The boys are learning the National Anthem as a surprise for "Dada" for Father's Day.

Using the movable alphabet to spell out the ending sound digraphs words he is working with in his workbook. (our own adaption of language and using the Montessori materials)

Researching the countries of North America.

He has been working on this little 9 patch quilt for awhile and finally finished it! He was so proud of him self! He wants to make one for James for his birthday!

Spelling

Cursive

I was lucky enough to be able to go and observe at a sweet little Montessori school near me last week! It was wonderful to be able to see how the children work together and use the materials! The teacher gave me this "work journal" for Mason to use. What a great tool! It helps him make goals for the work period, it helps him stay focus and on task, and it really helped him to feel a sense of accomplishment! He felt so proud after the first day. He loved being able to check off that he was productive!

Story of the World

sewing a patch on his new hat!

Now for James...

Sewing on a piece of shelf liner around a picture frame.

Smooth, cold, hard, shiny rocks!

Peeps!

OK..we do not have the pink tower (yet) but these buckets work great!

He is tring to figure out how they nest, it took him awhile of putting them in and taking them out, but he got it.

He also build it tall and knocked it down.

putting and spooning marbles

When Mason needed a break he worked with James.

James made him some marble pancakes!



Muffin Tin Omelets

"sorry for the poor pic"

These are ham and cheese..they were so yummy. 

I think these would be great to make for a crowd.

Nice and easy!

Here is a link to a the EHow website with the recipie for muffin tin omelets.

cook-eggs-muffin-pan

Schooling in May 2011

This is our Movable Alphabet, click here for more info on this.

Since Mason was reading before we started Montessori, I have decided to adapt the Language materials to use them in a way that better fits his stage in reading.  We just started to use this (it would normally be used with a child around 4). I wanted to have it made for James anyway, so I have Mason use it for spelling words.

I recite words or he finds objects around the house to spell out.  He really like this!  It is a chance to be on the floor and moving about while doing school work. (which is great for a 6 year old boy!)

cute book

Grammar:

Love James in this pic "see me?"

Adjective and Pronouns:

match the wooden shape to the card match the label, match the definition, and the correct words.

Continuing North America:

State puzzle map

So this is very exciting!!!

A local home school mom gave me a whole box of language materials and a CD that was bought from MECS years ago for around $800.00! I have had it for a year..and could not figure out how to make it run...right...so I sent an email to the company and they totally hooked me up! The CD is great (not the best graphics since it is from 2005) but it does the job! Mason went thru the North America program, doing 3 period lessons about countries, flags, capitals!

this CD also has...

phonetic reading,spelling,puzzle words,Jurassic Earth,solar system,planet Earth,telling time,anatomy of a horse,math facts add & sub, math module 1 & 2, and all 7 continents! WOW I feel like I have won the lottery!

He graduated from the Save the Bay program! He did a presentation about the spider crab.

James has not done as much "school"...here he sorted colored sticks into jars

Kids Laundry Line

I wanted to do this last year, but you know how life happens! I really wanted to have a clothes line that the boys can reach! They are at that lovely tender age where they actually like to help do house work!

Mason has been helping to do his own laundry since he was 4. Loading the washing machine, adding soap, pushing the button... I want taking care of himself and his things to just be apart of what happens in the house (not a chore).

Now they can hang their clothes on the line!

I am also hoping that hanging their clothes on the line will also just be a natural thing for them when they grow up, and it will be normal for them to hang their clothes outside to dry instead of in the drier!

Things I hope to instill in the boys as normal:

composting

recycling

turning off water when brushing and washing dishes

hanging clothes

growing food

turning off lights

reading

not watching TV

raising chickens

reading food labels

not drinking soda

not eating junk food

Etc...

"A mother can dream right?"

School Days April, part 2

The weather is finally warm enough for us to "school outside". We live on a dead end street and use is a lot to do school work with sidewalk chalk. Both boys loved this ABC Caterpillar. Mason went through is saying the sounds of the letters, backwards, and hopping on one foot. James and I went down it together saying the letters and sounds.

Mason wanted to know "how many minuets does it take to count to 1 million? He said he heard on a movie that it took 23 days (I don't know how accurate this is, but I went with it to not discourage him from wanting to do this math!)

I recited some random words for him to spell.

We reviewed nouns and articles. I wrote out sentences and he drew the appropriate symbol above the word.

Big blue triangle for noun and small black (he used grey) for article.

James' Work...

I got these spring erasers at the grocery store at 50% off! He graphed them.

Sorted them.

Sorted by fly or non-fly (Mason made him the paper)

Learning letter sounds

reading together

unlocking the box with a key

our version of spindles

pouring seeds

Mason's Work

4 addends

I have added this book, since I do not have the language materials together.  I hope to have it together for James! Mason was beyond that material when we started anyway.

North America continent box, I listed the things I want him to research.  We are going to make the continents a unit study over the course of next year. We will take all summer to do North America!

2 more land forms!

notice the water is not colored blue..we had a bit of a blue disaster with the food coloring in the kitchen..

Poetry journal

I love these cards! There is information on the back that I had Mason read to me, and 4 questions he answered.