Friday, January 22, 2010

Weekly Report (Jan. 18 - 22)

Things we did this week:

5th Grader

1. Math
We are doing fraction and geometry this week. We are going back through some lessons in Saxon 7/6 and trying BJU 6, I picked some exercises for him to do daily as a review. He also finished his Singapore CWP5 this week. I don't know if I am going to get the next book or we might try Life of Fred instead. Still thinking on this one.
2. Language Arts
Grammar, Spelling, CLE Reading > Everything in this area has never been a problem to us. Though I wished that I had discovered CLE Reading earlier. I love how it teaches comprehension skills. It doesn't give you too much vocabulary list but enough to remember them along and learn to use them. I am definitely keeping this in our curriculum.
3. Writing
We are still on Unit 4 of IEW, Summarizing References and Writing Reports. We are using Usborne History Encyclopedia to practice his skills and so far I see improvements in his word choices for his quality adjectives and strong verbs. I also noticed that he doesn't use his checklist anymore when finalizing his draft which is really good.
4. History
We used this week to read more about the 13 Colonies. We finished them last week (mapping, timeline, and memorizing important dates). This week we just read about them to learn more about the differences of each colonies.
5. Science
Chemistry - we are still on States of Matter. We have done 2 experiments this week.
Zoo 1 - We finished studying about bats this week. My kids love this book. There is something about how the author narrates you the lessons that makes it interesting even for little kids. For my eldest, we read 6 pages each week(twice a week sched.) He outlines the first 3 pages and reports to me. And we do dictation on the last 3 pages.
6. Latin
We are on lesson 16 of LC 1. I made him conjugate his vocabularies this week.
7. Arts
We are studying paintings of Pierre-Auguste Renoir. For this week we did picture study of " Woman with a parasol".
8. Read Aloud
Amos Fortune Free Man. A very good read aloud. We also finished reading an adaptation of Don Quixote. My kids want more of Don Quixote so maybe we will try reading Don Quixote and Sancho Panza by Margaret Hodges this time.

Kindergartener

1. Math:
We are adding Horizon Math K to our math curriculum. We have reached to a point in Saxon 1 that it is starting to be difficult for my son (addition and subtraction). For now while we focused on learning his addition facts and more manipulative games, we will stop using Saxon 1, continue with the Meeting book and add Horizon K.
2. Reading
He is getting better in his reading. He is very fluent now in blending sounds.
3. Handwriting
He is almost done with his Handwriting Without Tears workbook. This week we started doing copywork. I found a McGuffey's Primer Copybook and the short sentences are perfect for him.
4. Narration
This week I also started narration with him. I am reading Aesop's Fable and he narrates the story back to me. He's doing a great job.
5. Extra
He is enjoying the cut and paste activities in Rod and Staff ABC Series. I love these books. We are working on Book C and D and he has been learning so much.

I think we did a lot this week because it has been raining here everyday and we just stayed home for the most part. I hope next week, we'll have a better weather so we could go outside for a little bit.

5 comments:

Daisy said...

We had a lot of rain this week also. I think my children just started climbing the walls. LOL.

Sounds like you did have a good week! I need to look at what you are using for chemistry. My daughter still hasn't had much exposure to that particular branch of science.

Leila said...

I love science. I think I get more enjoyment out of it than my kids. lol!

Mandy in TN said...

FWIW- I really wanted my boys to like LoF. I tried Geometry with my middle ds and fractions with the little man. Neither one of them were interested in reading a story for their math lesson. I may however try the prealgebra/ biology, because the extra reading is science instead of just a funny story that takes more time than necessary to get to the math.

Tonia said...

Looks like a very good week! We've recently started narration too - it's a great way to gauge how much they are understanding.

Christie said...

We love the Apologia Elementary series too. I'm using it with a 6th grader and k'ner. Both are enjoying and learning a lot! I am too for that matter! We are just about to finish the Astronomy book and will move on to Botany.