A Hero's Journey

My older boys are taking a six week class which teaches the writing outline for a Hero's Journey. The class follows the formula developed by Joseph Campbell.

An outline that is very helpful is located at...

http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/smc/journey/ref/summary.html

Johns Hopkins University's Imagine Magazine

Wonderful ideas and insights on supporting the young writer in this month's Imagine Magazine.

http://cty.jhu.edu/imagine/PDFs/writing_lessons.pdf

Great Art website for kids

In doing our research for the boy's Art History papers we came across a wonderful site which has great tidbits about Art History as well as some really nice art projects to accompany them.

Check it out!!!

http://artsmarts4kids.blogspot.com/2008/04/timeline.html

Rene Magritte & Salvador Dali

For Art History Grey has chosen to write his research paper on Rene Magritte. So far the research is coming along. We were able to get a nice documentary from Netflix from the Artists of the 20th Century series. He really enjoyed it and was able to get a lot of information from it.

Gavin chose Salvador Dali and found a good book in the children's research section of the library. I ordered the same series documentary on Dali from Netflix, but it isnt in our local market and will take a few extra days to get here. I hope it arrives on time!

The boys only have this week to finish their papers and an accompanying art piece inspired by their artist. Should be interesting....

I'll post their projects when they are finished.

Cultural Geography Field Trips

This past weekend brought a couple great opportunities to get out into our community and enjoy some wonderful cultural events. Currently we are studying North America, so attending the Sun Mountain Gathering, a celebration of historical Native American culture was a lovely fit. Followed the next day by the incredible Rancho de Las Golondrinas Harvest Festival in Santa Fe. The Rancho is a living history museum, well a full settlement from the early 1800's. It was a Spanish Colonial settlement and has been beautifully preserved. The kids and I really enjoy getting to go there.

I think the kids came away with a nice historical perspective of where some of our current local cultural traditions began. Including adobe homes, farming techniques, tool development and the importance of religion in this part of the US. Also a respect for how people survived in this climate, using the land and it's resources in creative and thrifty ways.

It was a GREAT weekend. I could do stuff like that every week if it were possible.

Thoughts on the six week sessions

I must say that so far we have found the six week sessions to be pretty good. We can accomplish a lot and still feel like we have a nice little exhale coming around the corner. The kids seem to understand that if we need to use that time to get caught up, that we will and that seems to motivate them to really try to get their work finished.

The only bummer is that the whole world doesnt stop just because we do. LOL So, that means any and all outside classes continue through our week off, and homework still needs to be finished. I believe however that when we have our long break this holiday season, that most of our other stuff is also taking a break. That will be a really wonderful little vacation!!!

The week off has been nice for me to be able to gather materials, make copies and go over what we will be doing in the next session. I like having that planning time. It seems like when I have that time to really get everything together, the lessons run more smoothly. Im not scrambling to find a supply or trying to figure something out on the spot. I can see how in the past my lack of planning and organizing would throw us off track and leave us having to skip things that we rarely ever made our way back to.

I will say the last week is a bit tough. Sort of like the few days before summer vacation. We all get a little tired and anxious for the break to begin. Although, I think we will get used to it and make better use of those final days before a break. Hopefully the pressure of wanting a full break will motivate us to get everything done.

This coming session is our last one before we are off for six weeks!!! Believe me, we are all really looking forward to that!!!

Alexander the Great

The boys have been working there way through viewing a four part series on the life of Alexander the Great. It is free on Netflix, well if you are a member, and viewable on your computer or the Roku. It is called "In the Footsteps of Alexander the Great" and it follows an Archaeologist (I believe) as he literally retraces the journey of Alexander and his army throughout the Mediterranean. It is really interesting and a nice combination of history and curiosity. If Alexander camped, then they camp, if he stops at certain markets or places, so do they. It is holding their interest for the most part. The entire series is four parts, each one lasting about one hour.

Before watching this program they had read a short little article and some background on Alexander, but both boys said they had no idea he had done so much, at such a young age and now they find his story to be fascinating, where as before they just read about him, answered the questions, and were ready to move on. I like it when a program or a resource can bring something from just a bunch of info and facts and make it interesting and even "fascinating".

Anyway, I wanted to share that with you!

Midway Through Session II

We are closing out our third week of our second session. This is the half way point before our one week break. It is also the half way point for our three session plan for the fall. So far Im pretty happy with where we are and with how its going. Of course we are a little behind on some things, but Im actually impressed that we are as close to on target as we are. We had company for a week in our second week, so while that was a lot of fun, it did throw us a bit off schedule with our lessons.

The focus for this session is...

Individual Math levels:

Grey is finishing his Algebra I (saxon) while participating in a Geometry class using Jacob's Geometry. We will both be happy when this overlap ends, it is quite the challenge, but he'll make it through it.

Gavin is finishing up his Saxon Math 3. We had some developmental issues with grasping number theory early on, so we are a little behind. Although we seem to have broken through that barrier and will be hitting Math 4 in October!

Maggie is starting Saxon Math 2, but I need to track down a copy of the first workbook pages. In the meantime she is enjoying working with Destination Math on the computer. They have correlated their lessons to match up with Saxon, so she is moving through the concepts of the Math 2 program.

Oscar, well he likes numbers, and sings songs about them. He also likes to say, 1, 2, 3, GO!! :-)

Exploratory Latin

Ancient Greek History

Norse Mythology, following up on Greek Mythology and the Labors of Hercules

Cultural Geography

Art History

Reading

Performing Arts & Music

So, overall it is a pretty cohesive session. We will wrap up our focus on Ancient Greece at the end of this session and start Roman history for the final session of this calendar year.

Link for the Greeks documentary

The Greeks : Crucible of Civilization

I got this on my Roku, which is a player that makes movies available on Netflix play on our regular tv.  So, it was free.  :-)

We are getting into our first session of the year.  Each session running six weeks.  I guess you could call them blocks, but for some reason session just feels better.  :-)  Anyway, we will run this session until August 21st and then we will go on a break for one full week.  Im thinking of something like this...

Session I   July 13 - Aug 21 (six weeks)

Session II  September 1 - October 9 (six weeks)

Session III October 19 - November 25 (five and a half weeks)

Winter Break  (five weeks)  not including out-of-home lessons

Session IV  January 4 - February 12 (six weeks)

Session V February 22 - April 2 (six weeks)

Spring Break (eight weeks) This is a VERY busy season for out-of-home lessons and classes, including major projects and exams.

June - mid July Summer programs outside the home

That is 150 days of home lessons.  Adding into that we would have summer classes and the ongoing classes that are outside the home.

Anyway, we started our first Session yesterday.  I knew it would be a bit of a struggle to get back into the flow so we started out lightly.  Each of the boys chose a chapter book to read from.  Gavin is reading Harry Potter The Prisoner of Azkaban, and Greyson chose to read The Tale of Desperaux.  They each read for about an hour, well Gavin chose to read for much longer, but that was out of choice.  Greyson then did some review work on his Algebra, going back a couple lessons and completing a few problems from each.  Then both boys watched the first of a three part series on Ancient Greece.  It was a light day, but a good start.

Today, we dug in a little deeper.

Maggie:  Today Maggie and I watched a Peep episode on Discovery Education and did a water experiment where we tried to build a dam that held wter in one half of a container.  It was fun, but she was pretty grumpy through most of it.  She liked the show part.  :-)  Then she did an activity working with the short vowel sound of "u".  

Gavin:  Gavin got REALLY into his book and I had to stop him to eat lunch and work on some other things.  He can go back to the book once he has done some other work.  He then is watching the second part of the Ancient Greece documentary and doing a writing activity about the life of Vincent Van Gogh.  He then has Jazz this afternoon.

Greyson:  Grey read six chapters of Tale of Desperaux, did two lessons of Algebra, wrote, and edited three paragraphs on the life of Vincent Van Gogh and watched the second part of the Ancient Greece documentary with Gavin.  He then practiced his drums.  That is a good second day.

Cultural Geography

I knew that I didnt want to do a basic memorization program for geography.  While Im sure the kids can do it and have a general lay out in their minds, they wouldnt have any connections to these places.  They would be 2 dimensional and because of that they would be quickly forgotten.  So I have been trying to think of ways to bring the map to life.

Enter Cultural Geography...

Our teacher store has these wonderful huge blank spiral notebooks that measure about 18x24.  They are such a fantastic size and shape for a homemade atlas.  I have been holding onto a couple of them for years knowing that one day I would come up with the right project to fill its big blank white spaces.  I think this is just the thing.

So, Im thinking about an eight month long unit,  each continent spanning one month, with the exception of Africa, due to its size and vast number of countries, it will require two.  Obviously Antarctica can be a slightly lighter month, or I can add in a lot about the oceans and such when we do that continent.

Each continent will first be viewed as a land mass with a study of its biomes.  I dont believe it is possible to understand the cultural style of a region without understanding its ecosystems.  They are inseparable and a good understanding of a region's biomes will lead to better understanding of things such as trade routes, national exports and how the economy of a region is successful, or in some cases, unsuccessful.  The environment also plays a large role in religion and traditional myths, folklore and social organization.  Obviously the environment also dictates things like traditional housing, clothing and food as well.  So, for me, it makes no sense to learn about a region without understanding it's biomes and major geological features.  

So we will create an outline map for the continent and a key for the biomes, coloring them in so that we have a nice overview of the region.  From there we will move to political boundries and learning the names of the various countries.  The whole capital thing annoys me.  Please, someone explain it to me.  Of course if you know some of them, it is good, but I dont get the point of watching eight year olds on tv reciting the capital cities of each state.  blah, blah, blah... We will learn cities of influence for each country.  If that happens to be the capital, fantastic.  

Once we have identified the countries and their cities of influence, we will begin to learn about the people and animals that live there.  We will explore things like population, traditional housing styles, traditional clothing styles and of course, traditional foods.  We will learn about the myths and legends of the region as well as touch on the prevailing religion.  We will learn about art and music of the area as well.  

Each month we will have a list of potential research projects that will help us to create a personal connection to the region.  Maybe when studying Australia we will do a project about the Aboriginal arts or the life of a Koala Bear.  I want there to be some projects that bring in influential citizens as well.  Maybe when studying Egypt we will do a project that highlights the influence of Hatshepsut. 

As we move across the globe we will be filling in our Cultural Geography Atlases so that when the program is complete we have a wonderful reference book to keep for future use and just for fun.  

I really do think this is a better way for my kids to learn about geography.  I have tried to find a way to bring the continents to life and to help the kids develop connections to the various regions through experience and a deeper understanding about what life can be like if you lived there.  

Im still putting together the particulars but I have some brainstorm notes to share...

• Use Google Earth to view points of interest and major geological features.
• When presenting about a continent, have the kids research the weather and dress appropriately.  It might just be a rain hat, or if we are doing Australia in January it might be a swimsuit.
• While I wont be able to hit every detail for every continent, I do want the overall lesson to be about how where you live influences your culture and your lifestyle.  I am hoping that when the kids understand that, that they will be able to build more details on this foundation in coming years.  
• I want to combine research skills with art and creativity.  
• Bring in some historical figures of influence.  Great Artists, Explorers, Leaders or Scientists.
• I want it to be fun and to help the kids see more than just the political borders when they think of geography and the lives of people around the world.

Sparking a flame...

When given some direction, I can be one of the most supportive and encouraging parents out there.  You want to swim, I will be at the pool every day at 5am while researching how to get a pool installed in our backyard.  You want to know more about science and I will bend over backwards to get you to the greatest museums and into the best classes I can find.  I can really smother a flame of interest with over-enthusiasm if given the chance.  

What I struggle with is how to spark a flame of passion or interest.  How do you help support and encourage someone when they dont seem to really have anything that they are focussed on.  Nothing that really gets them excited or makes them smile through their eyes.  It is really hard.  

My ten year old son is like this.  He lives in a very dream-like world that really does not seem to enter our reality very often.  He is detached from the rest of us in that he walks around with his head in the clouds.  He has a wonderful imagination and wants to be an author one day, but if I try to encourage that at all, he shys away from it.  He almost pulls away from the interest if it seems to require any focus or work at all.  Sometimes I panic that he is just plain lazy, but then I know in my heart that he isnt, that he just hasnt found his spark.  

The other day he was asking to watch some movie previews on my computer and once I said yes, he was thrilled.  He watched preview after preview and was so excited and happy about them all.  He was shining with joy.  I know that he has always loved movies, but is it really his "thing"?  Can watching movies really be it?  Im trying to stear him in the direction of writing screen plays or working in the movie industry one day.  He seems interested, but I worry about whether or not that is a reasonable path for anyone to go down.  Arent I supposed to give him as many tools as I can possibly fit in his belt so he can be armed and ready for whatever his heart leads him to in the future?  He doesnt want my tools!!  He says their too heavy and cumbersome; he would rather just use some stick he found out in the yard.  :-)

I did plan a fun summer of things that might spark an interest in him.  He is getting to sample a lot of fun things and hopefully by the end of it all, he will have a little something that nourishes him and makes him feel motivated in even the smallest of ways.  We'll see...

Y'know, I think I just hit on my issue.  I dont feel that he is being nourished by anything.  Nothing seems to really sink in and energize him.  It's like everything just sits outside on a shallow surface level and the slightest breeze can come along and blow it off into the wind.  

He does enjoy reading, mythology, movies, games and tv.  That is his list.  All of it.  OK, well maybe you can add storytelling in various forms as well.  He dances Flamenco, but if I said he needs to stop he would be unfazed.  He plays drums, but he never wants to practice and has no real desire to improve or move up in ability.  He is perfectly happy playing in the beginner level, that is fun, without effort.  He likes to go rockclimbing, but he doesnt want to join the team, that is too much work and he isnt competetive.

I feel terrible writing all this, as if Im not holding him in a positive light.  But I truly an amazed by his creativity and talents.  He has a giant pool of potential and ability.  I just cant figure out how to get him to dip his toe into it. 

Maybe more time...

Maybe this summer...

Maybe I just need to leave the poor kid alone...

I cant help but feel that once his fire is lit that he will just take off and set the world on fire.  I just know it!!!!

Highly Recommend...

I know, kinda off topic... But, I have to put a recommendation out for Smirnoff Tuscan Lemonade.  Mmmmm!!!  Not too sweet, not too strong, quite refreshing AND it can really help take the edge off a night with the in-laws.....

2009-2010 planning GREYSON (12yo)

This will look a lot like Gavin's plan. I try to overlap wherever possible for obvious reasons. It makes my life a lot easier and because then the boys have fun working together. Im lucky because Gavin is quite advanced in his reading and writing skills, where Grey is more on level. So this helps me to completely overlap that subject area. That being said, there is NO WAY I will ever get Grey to read the Harry Potter series, or really much of any series in one year. He reads well and enjoys what he reads as long as it is non-fiction or really short. He truly does not enjoy sitting down with a book and losing himself in his imagination. The only book I have ever seen him really enjoy was Stuart Little. He actually really got some joy from reading that book. Other than that, he has enjoyed reading biographies about scientists or inventors. Anyway, back to the planning...

History: The Ancients. We will continue to work with the Ancients. Like I said with Gavin, we really enjoyed learning about Egypt and now we will turn our attention to Greece and Rome. Finishing out with Ancient China. For resources please refer to the previous entry.

Art History: Along with participating in a six week long course on Art History, we will begin working with an online/video course called Meet the Masters. He will work with this program and do some projects in the style of the artist we are studying. I found the Art History books I mentioned in Gavin's entry. They are so fun and cool. Check them out here.

Writing: This is an ok subject area for Grey. It used to be more of a struggle for him, mainly attitude, not skills. As he has matured I have seen a really advancement in his willingness and ability to write. Like with Gavin we will be doing a lot of writing in our study of History, Art History, Mythology and Reading. Grey will participate in a writing group this fall. This will help with encouragement and rising to someone else's standards. He will work with the Harold Syntax Guide to Grammar via Discovery Education. I will have him work with various analogy programs to improve his vocabulary. We are going to work on the five elements of literature: plot, theme, style, character and setting using the Men of Iron program from RGES. I want him to complete two well researched and well written term papers with the topic of his choice. I also want him to write at least one fiction piece. Both edited and ready for "publication". Grey will be taking a six week long writing course which focusses on the fundamental of writing for the middle school aged student. This is through Albuquerque Academy.

Math: This is a strength area for Grey. Currently he is working his way through the Jacobs Elementary Algebra book with the assistance of the Dr Callahan DVD set which you can get to accompany the text. He will finish this up and enter into Geometry this fall with a friend's class. In addition to this he is working his way through the online Fractal course that is offered by the Fractal Foundation.

Science: Like Gavin, we will be exhaling this year a bit from our big science year that we just wrapped up. We will be working our way through a health program which will bring in a study of the human body. Grey will continue his work with WRI and our work with RGRS. We will be having a lot of experiential learning opportunities this year including work in the bosque, the Naturalist Center at NMMNHS and possibly working with Wildlife West for their summer program. We are taking the book work lightly this year because we will be participating in the National Science Olympiad and Grey will have a HEAVY load to study once we know his categories. This is a rigorous program that will consume a lot of his time.

Geography: Still researching how I want to do this....

Reading: Grey is not a big reader by nature, so I will be trying to bring in as much reading as I can within the other subjects. He does a lot of reading for History and with his interests such as the Fractal Foundation etc. However in addition to this he will finish reading Men of Iron, D'Aulaires' Greek Mythology book, The Lightening Thief, and one work from Shakespeare with his group next spring. Note* His studies for the Science Olympiad will require a lot of reading.

Community/Leadership: We will work with our Rio Grande Roots & Shoots group to continue our volunteer work with the community, animals and the environment. We will complete at least one service project per month. Also this year I want both of the older boys to choose a project that is close to their heart and to help in the planning and ideas for how we can make a difference. Greyson will work once a week with Wildlife Rescue Inc to help with the rehabilitation of wounded wildlife. He will assist them in age appropriate ways and continue learning new skills and taking on new responsibilities with them. Grey will work at the Naturalist Center as a student docent along with Gavin and his father.

Public Speaking: Grey will continue participating in Toastmasters. This year I would like him to complete at least three more speeches as well as fully participating in the various jobs and responsibilities of being a member. (evaluator, grammarian, flag/prayer). At the end of the season he will run for one of the office positions.

Technology: Typing for sure and then a simple computer programing course that I have yet to find. Either online or a class that he can take outside the home.

Mythology: This year Grey will be learning about Greek Mythology, his brother's passion. He will participate in the National Mythology Exam including one of the additional subject areas. Hopefully on Norse Mythology, but we'll see what is offered.

Visual Art: Grey will work with a local artist in a small group setting to continue his work with the visual arts. He will also be working on projects at home which bring in the styles and techniques of the Masters. In addition to that I am hoping to find him a private teacher who can really help hi develop his love of sketching. I know of a great teacher but she is hard to get in with. Im trying.....

Performing Arts: Greyson will continue his work with the Outpost Performance Space and perform in three different Jazz Ensemble concerts at the intermediate level. He will also be participating in a study of Shakespeare and perform in a play next spring. In addition to this, Greyson will participate in a summer intensive program that runs everyday for six weeks with the New Mexico Jazz Workshop. I believe there is a performance at the end of that program as well.

Latin: Grey will continue his work with Latin/Greek Root Words as well as begin a Latin Language program. Im researching which program to go with. He will be participating in the National Latin Exam next spring.

Spanish: Im still trying to find an effective program for spanish. Short of buying Rosetta Stone.

Independence: Grey is getting more independence this year. I am using a binder "technique" that reguires him to work through most of his lessons independently. Also he is taking courses and attending programs by himself a lot more this year. He will have to move from place to place, on time and deal with whatever issues may arrise on his own. Grey is also becoming more and more independent with his fencing. He loves it and so it is a good area for him to experiment with having more control and independence.

Music: As above, Grey will continue working with the Outpost Jazz program for all three sessions. He will also continue his weekly private percussion lessons. He will be participating in the Summer JAzz intensive through the NM Jazz Workshop. In addition to this, Grey has chosen to start taking piano lessons this year, so he will be working on both instruments throughout the year.

Physical Education: Grey will continue fencing three times a week. He will participate in hiking a lot during good weather as well as helping to take the dogs for daily walks and participating in a dog agility program with the new puppies. Grey will be working a lot with a health program as well. Learning about nutrition, exercise and puberty.

Responsibility: Grey is very responsible already. So we will continue with that by letting him begin to gain an allowance for helping me with things that are outside of the normal family responsibilities. He is now in charge of the kids portion of the house, learning about how to encourage and lead rather than bully and yell in order to help his siblings to complete their chores. He is still responsible for his chickens and their care as well as taking on new responsibility with the puppies. Grey is also learning a lot about responsibility with his volunteer work and his assistance with his younger brothers and sister.

Culture: We will participate in festivals, and performances. He will celebrate various holidays and participate in cultural traditions of the community. Im still working on ways to fill this out with more experiences that will bring a love and respect for different cultures to his heart.

Art Appreciation: This year we will attend several different museum programs as well as performances at local theaters.

Family Appreciation: I know, same as Gavin's. A weekly family dinner here at our home which includes all of my husband's immediate family. Monthly birthday parties at Great-Grandma's house. Continued communication with my family in VA via Wii fun. Regular visits and communication to Tucson to see my Mom and her family, including Great-Grandma Alice. Yearly visit to El Paso to be with Abuelita.

Engineering and Robotics: Grey will continue to participate in his monthly Engineering and Robotics team meetings. We will compete in the First Lego League Challenge this fall.

Clubs and fun: Chess club and middle school competitions. Book Club to hopefully inspire more reading. Possibly a mythology club as a way to prepare for the Mythology Exam.

Grey really wants to start a band, but time and such have made this really hard. We'll have to see if we can fit this in and find other musicians who are dedicated to making it work.

I know Im missing something, I will have to look back through my notes to see what I have forgotten.

2009-2010 planning GAVIN

OK, so Im trying to plan for Gavin.  This is a big, breakthrough year for him.  The third and fourth grade year are so huge for little boys.  I haven't had a girl go through it yet, so I cant speak to that. Because we homeschool, were not strapped into a calendar school year.  I tend to set goals for each child around their birthday.  So, this is the rough skeleton for Gavin's year.  He turns 10 on Sunday!!

First I try to gather my thoughts about what topics or subjects are important for this year, and then I try to find the materials or activities that support it.  Not every topic is really about academics.  Many are about helping him develop into the strongest and happiest version of himself that I can support him in.  The nice thing about homeschooling, is that you can incorporate things like responsibility, or independence into your "curriculum" or plan.

This is in the planning stages, so typing it up is helping me process it and gather my thoughts.  Things will change!!

History:  The Ancients.  We will continue our work with the Ancients.  Gavin really enjoys this subject so we tend to spend a lot more time and go into it a bit deeper than is typically done at this age.  We will really focus in on Roman and Greek History this year.  He loved Egypt, but we are ready to move on.  Later in the year we will expand out to the far East and work with Ancient China.  I will use some SOTW and maybe the Christopherus Roman History program along with Discovery Education Streaming for documentaries and projects.

Art History:  Along with participating in a six week long course on Art History, we will begin working with an online/video course called Meet the Masters.  He will work with this program and do some projects in the style of the artist we are studying.  Also there is a book series that I want to get, and I cant remember the name of it.  It is where you go through the book and try to determine which painting is a fraud or not.  You study the original and then study others to find the fraud.  Hmm, I will have to do a search for it.  

Writing:  This is a big subject area for Gavin.  His strength and his passion.  So we will probably be entering most subjects via the Writing door.   A lot of writing in our study of History, Art History, Mythology and Reading.  Gavin will participate in a writing group this fall.  This will help with encouragement and rising to someone else's standards.  He will work with the Harold Syntax Guide to Grammar via Discovery Education.  He will participate in the Word Masters Challenge Exams to take three exams throughout the year and work with various analogy programs to improve his vocabulary.  Gavin will participate in a study of JK Rowling by reading all of the Harry Potter books and learning about her character and setting development.  We are going to work on the five elements of literature: plot, theme, style, character and setting.  I want him to complete two well researched and well written term papers with the topic of his choice.  I also want him to write at least one fiction piece.  Both edited and ready for "publication".  

Math:  We will continue our work on finishing up the Saxon 3 program and then dig into the Saxon 5/4.  Hopefully we will make enough progress with this over the summer to allow Gavin to begin working with Shang-Ying in her Arithmetic course starting in the fall.

Science:  This year we will exhale a bit from a big Science year that we just wrapped up.  He will begin a program on Health as well as learning more about the Human Body.  We will continue our work at the Natural History Museum and following his interest in Rocks & Minerals.  He will work with our RGRS group to continue his work in the bosque and with animals.  

Geography:  Still researching how I want to do this....

Reading:  We will be reading a lot of Harry Potter this year.  Finishing the series out and working with an author study.  Also Gavin will be working a lot with Mythology and his love of all things having to do with it.  This year we will bring in the Norse Myths as well as reading Heroes, Gods & Monsters.  He will participate in a six week long study of Heroes ranging from Mythology to Star Wars.

Community/Leadership:  We will work with our Rio Grande Roots & Shoots group to continue our volunteer work with the community, animals and the environment.  We will complete at least one service project per month.  Also this year I want both of the older boys to choose a project that is close to their heart and to help in the planning and ideas for how we can make a difference.

Public Speaking:  Gavin will continue participating in Toastmasters.  This year I would like him to complete at least three speeches as well as fully participating in the various jobs and responsibilities of being a member. (evaluator, grammarian, flag/prayer)

Technology:  Still working on this one too.  At this point Im thinking just typing would be a good choice.  Gavin will be participating in a three week long course on digital photography and a separate three week long course on digital filmmaking.  Both of which at least require some form of technology.

Mythology:  This is covered via some of the above listed topics, but in addition to this, we will participate in the National Mythology Exam.  This year Gavin will do the foundation exam as well as choosing one of the additional supplement exams.  Hopefully on Norse Mythology, but we'll see what is offered.

Visual Art:  Gavin will work with a local artist in a small group setting to continue his work with the visual arts.  He will also be working on projects at home which bring in the styles and techniques of the Masters.  In addition to those, he will be participating in a three week long class on clay.

Performing Arts:  Gavin will continue his work with the Outpost Performance Space and perform in three different Jazz Ensemble concerts.  He will also be participating in a study of Shakespeare and perform in a play next spring.  In addition to this, Gavin will continue his study of Flamenco including working with the guitar, cajon, dance and flamenco literacy.  He will dance in his weekly class as well as participating in a two week summer intensive which culminates in a performance.  

Latin:  Gavin will continue his work with Latin/Greek Root Words as well as begin a Latin Language program.  Im researching which program to go with.  He will be participating in the National Latin Exam next spring.

Spanish:  Im still trying to find an effective program for spanish.  Short of buying Rosetta Stone.

Independence:  Gavin will be branching away from the home and sibilings for several of the above listed courses and projects.  He will have to become more responsible for his own lessons and for setting and maintaining his goals.  

Music:  As above, Gavin will continue working with the Outpost Jazz program for all three sessions.  He will also continue his weekly private percussion lessons.  His work with Flamenco is also helping his study of music.

Physical Education:  Gavin will continue to go to his weekly Rock Climbing club for lessons and fun.  He will dance every week as well.  We will be working with hiking and swimming this year too.  With the addition of our new puppies, a daily walk will also become a part of his physical exercise.  Im hoping to get a good health program going for Gavin, so he can learn about the importance of exercise, good nutrition and what his body needs to stay healthy.

Responsibility:  Gavin will continue his responsibility for his bunny as well as taking on responsiblity for a new puppy, her training and beginning an agility program for junior handelers.  He will be working on his chores and on motivating himself with his lessons.

Culture:  This year Gavin will really be learning a lot about Flamenco and the cultural aspects of the dance.  He will continue to learn about the hispanic culture both historically and contemporary.  We will participate in festivals, and performances.  He will celebrate various holidays and participate in cultural traditions of the community.

Art Appreciation:  This year Gavin will attend several different museum programs as well as performances at local theaters.

Family Appreciation:  LOL, yeah I know, but I do have to really make a strong effort to make this happen...  A weekly family dinner here at our home which includes all of my husband's immediate family.  Monthly birthday parties at Great-Grandma's house.  Continued communication with my family in VA via Wii fun.  Regular visits and communication to Tucson to see my Mom and her family, including Great-Grandma Alice.  Yearly visit to El Paso to be with Abuelita.  

Clubs and fun:  Chess club and possibly competitions.  Book Club to share with friends.  Possibly a mythology club.

OK...  So that is all I have right now.  Im researching a few of the subjects that I listed above, trying to figure out the best way to fold them into our regular lessons or schedule.

Now, on to Grey and Maggie....

Math...

I think the one subject that you hear homeschooling parents talking about time and time again is Math.  "What are you using", "how did that work", "I am needing something more like this, or less like that".  "How will I teach them once they surpass where I am with it".  I would be willing to bet you that most homeschoolers who have done this throughout their child's life and who are not using a grade in a box type of curriculum have several math programs in their curriculum graveyard known as the bookshelf.  

I seriously stressed about math more than anything else.  I knew that my child could and would read, I knew that we could develop a healthy interest in history or the arts.  I knew that our family was so into science that it would be impossible for them not to just take that in via osmosis.  But math....  Math is different.

You cant just decide one day that you want to be a scientist or a doctor or an engineer if you dont have a strong foundation in math.  You cant "catch up" in math and then really take it somewhere.  Math is the test.  For me, math and where my kids are in math tells everything to me about how successful our homeschooling is.  In fact, I have told my kids that the grade you are working in in math is your grade level.  This is just because you cant skip stuff in math, you have to work it step by step.  You have to build upon it level by level.  So if you are in third grade math, then really you are working in third grade.  I cant say that you are in fourth grade until you finish that math level.  We can be in fourth grade and still be working on some history that some people feel is third grade.  We can be reading at a different level and still be in an age appropriate grade.  But math is math is math.  There are no shortcuts.

I got lucky when I first started homeschooling.  I met a lady who became a dear friend and who shared with me her experiences with various programs.  I can still remember her saying that if you want a solid foundation in math, there is no better program than Saxon.  She talked about singapore and waldorf and montessori styles.  How they speak to the various types of learners.  But I remember those words "solid foundation".  I knew it was what I wanted to use.  

Poor Saxon takes a lot of hits.  I will admit that it isnt the most original or creative program.  Many people say it is boring and too repetitive.  That their child is bored to tears and just hates it.  I dont know, its math, not a circus act meant to entertain and thrill.  Of course I understand that it wont work for every child, and I know of the importance of developing a love of learning and having an engaging program.  But in the end it is math.  You sit down you do it and you move on to a subject where you can then have more excitement.  

I know that the K-3 of saxon is laborious.  I agree.  However, for me, the nature of early elementary program is so worth it because of the quality and ease the 4th and up program has.  My oldest son is so comfortable with it that once he hit the 4th grade program he could then move through it on his own.  Only asking me a question here or there or wanting me to review the "New Concept" with him out of habit.  My second son is not having the easiest time with it.  I have thought about switching out of Saxon to see if it just isnt meeting his needs but in the end I just know that if he can get over the hump, he will really sore with it and it will be worth really buckling down and working through this difficult stage.  Its about foundation.  Gavin's foundation is requiring more mortar than Grey's did.  We are having to shift the soil a bit and really take the time to make sure each and every block is level before we can start building on top of it.  In the end though, he will hopefully be able to build a skyscraper on that foundation should he choose to.

So what about when they get too advanced for me to help them.  Well, Im confident in the upper Saxon program and I like its progression.  However, I got lucky.  Here in Abq we have the wonderful and talented Mrs. Clark who offers math courses for homeschool students in the area.  She is wonderful and over the years she has really developed a solid progression of courses.  I spoke with her a few years ago about Grey and his love of math.  I felt like she really understood my position on Math and it's importance for my children.  She was offering a general Arithmetic course for 6th grade students and although Grey was newly 10 at the time, she felt it would work for him based on where he was with his Saxon.  This was wonderful, we had a goal and we were excited to reach it.  Grey and I sat down and looked at where he was in his math and where I thought he should be before starting this course.  We backed out the goal with a timeline and off we went.  Grey devoured the fifth grade math and was ready to dig into Mrs. Clarks' course.  Then I got the message that there were not enough kids in the course and it had to be canceled.  :-(  We were really bummed out.  Grey was definitely disappointed.

So now what?  Well we worked on through the 6th grade math with Saxon and started in on the 7th.  I spoke with Mrs. Clark and she suggested having him start in the pre-algebra course rather than the basic arithmetic for the 2008-2009 school year.  OK, so that is what we did.  Grey loved the class, he had to get used to the idea of earning a grade for his work.  I do check his work, and if he gets one wrong we rework it until he knows what happened and then we move on, so grades would make no sense.  More on that in another post....

Anyway, the quizzes, midterm and final were definitely nerve wracking for him, but he did terrific.  I could see his pride and confidence grow, I think he finally understood how all those years of Saxon paid off for him.  His foundation is strong and now he can build whatever his heart desires on it.  It is funny because he will even tell people that Saxon is a great program.  LOL

So, after having this experience with Grey I am now trying to figure out how to bring this success to Gavin too.  He is on target for his age in math, maybe a little behind, but I am sure if he went to school he would be on level if not a little bit ahead.  But, now it is on.  We have a goal.  Mrs. Clark suggested having Gavin attend the Arithmetic course next fall.  Im not sure he will be ready, but we are going to try.  Even if we fall short of our goal, we will have moved forward and made some good progress in the journey of striving for it.  

Only two more to get through this process and I will be able to retire my Saxon math to the graveyard, oh I mean bookshelf.  Unless of course we have another baby, in which case I will have Saxon math strapped to my walker as I make my way through the day.  :-)

Now, I just have to be sure Mrs. Clark doesnt retire.  If you are interested in information about Shang-Ying Clark's Math courses and you live in Albuquerque just email me and I will be happy to get you in touch with her.  She is currently taking registrations for the 2009-2010 school year.

By the way, Grey got a 99% for his overall grade in the pre-algebra course.  And, yes I AM bragging about it!!!!!  :-)  LOL

Here is a day in the life for you....

6:15am:  Woke up and grabbed a cup of coffee.  My husband makes coffee in the morning before heading off to the gym and I get the benefit of a hot cup of joe as soon as my eyes open!  All the kids are sleeping still so Im stealing some time to putt around on the computer and have a quiet cup of coffee.  I can hear the birds outside our dining room window.  A nest is out there and the little birds, now grown, seem to like hanging out on the fence.  They are so fluffy and cute.

7:00am:  Well I emptied the dishwasher, dusted the living room, and picked up the miscellaneous toys that were left behind by the night elves.  The kids are still sleeping, WIERD!!!  

7:30am:  Manny is home from working out and Gavin is awake and reading his instruction manual for Animal Crossing.  They are just LOVING that game!!  Maggie is up too and thrilled that she slept in her room all by herself.  She has done this before, many times, but recently with a round of the flu she ended up back in Gavin's room.  Yesterday we decided that it is much better to have her own space again and so she returned to her bed.  I just got a request for a celebration breakfast to commemorate the big occasion!!

8:01am:  One "celebration breakfast" served!

8:17am:  Packing snacks and water bottles for the Community Gardening Project that we are doing this morning with our RGRS group.  One bag with granola bars, peanuts, gummy fruit snacks, goldfish and Pirate's Bootie.  Plus four bottles of filtered water chilling in the fridge.

8:20:  Oscar came crawling into the kitchen...  I guess he is awake!!

A fresh diaper and outfit and then a snack on the couch with Thomas the Tank Engine so Mommy can hit the shower.

9:00am:  Kids are finishing breakfast, can you say SLOOOOOW???  They are basically snacking, chatting and watching Sid the Science Kid.  Im getting everyone on their way, dressed and Grey is helping Maggie and Gavin to get their beds made.

9:30am:  Loading up the car with monkeys and heading out the door for the OSVC and our gardening project.

10:00am:  Begin service project with Rio Grande Roots & Shoots.  Today we are planting the demonstration garden at the Open Space Visitors Center here in ABQ.  They put this garden in last year and we helped them with it then.  This year we planted all the vegetable seeds as well as the Ollas, watered everything in and helped to move large adobe bricks (much larger than a traditional brick) to a new location.  This ran for about 1.5 hours, after which some of the kids, including Greyson, went inside to watch a really cool documentary about Land Artist, Andy Wordsworthy called "Rivers & Tides"  It was really cool according to Grey, I had the littles out of the way to help others focus on the documentary.  Check it out!!  I posted an excerpt.  

After we had to head out we swung by Starbucks for Mom's mid-day fix!!  Venti, triple, iced, caramel macchiato, stirred.  Mmmmmmm

Some of us chose this time to take a rest!!

2:25pm:  Home now and I am making a light lunch to tide the kids over until dinner.  We had snacks at the project today, so we are going with pb&j and carrots with ranch dressing.

3:00pm:  Made a futile attempt to clean off our back porch.  We have a beautiful back porch which currently has fallen prey to the "stuff" that haunts our life.  We did have the "stuff" in the garage, but it had to go in order to make the garage a useable space.  So out it went.  However, now it is on my porch.  We got rid of a lot of it, donating it etc.. BUT, I have these random bins of random stuff that I would love to just say "DONATE" and be done with it.  However, within those bins are little family treasures.  Each bin holds probably one or two things that I cant get rid of, a family heirloom that has been regrettably mistreated, or a wooden letter that Manny painted to hang in the baby's room before he was born.  Little things like that force me to have to literally sort through each bin as though I were hunting for a nugget of gold.  Oh yeah, I have a ton of time for that!!!

3:45pm:  Load up the family and run Grey to fencing practice.

4:15pm:  Home again.  Its time to focus on getting everything together for the family dinner.  Every Tuesday we have my husband's family over for dinner.  Not the entire family, but his parents (who are divorced) and his brother.  Occasionally my brother in law's wife will make an appearance, but that is always a surprise on the doorstep.  

Tonight I decided to make beans, enchiladas, tostadas, tacos and red chili.  My brother in law is SUPER picky, so I know he will only eat the tacos, but hey, I tried!

I need to vacuum the entire house, so much traffic makes our floors look terrible in no time at all.  I also have to make sure the monkeys are cute and clean etc...

5:30pm:  OK, I didnt really get rocking too hard on stuff.  This is my hardest time of day.  I have almost no energy and I start to get grumpy!!!

5:37pm:  Sanity Shot!!!  There are times when a person needs a small nip, or a full shot of tequila to keep the wheels in motion.  Tuesday night, about a half hour or so before the in-laws arrive is just that time!!!  Only one, no need to over-medicate!!!

5:40pm:  Vacuuming!

6:30pm:  The family arrives and I am a "Cookin Mama"

9:00pm:  Family leaves, and I am a "Sleepy Mama"  Manny puts the kids to bed each night, including Oscar.  He does book time with the kids, and then gets them each a glass of ice water, starts the Jim Weiss story cd and then he and Oscar snuggle down on the couch with some mellow music until Oscar falls asleep.  This started because if he nurses down (Oscar, not Manny) he wakes up every 40 minutes or so throughout the night.  BUT, if Manny gets him down he will sleep for a few hours before his first night feeding.

Im in bed, watching whatever shows I have taped on the DVR before falling asleep.

I know this isnt a normal lesson day.  I will do one of those soon.  It is hard to type this much.  LOL

Get your jazz on...

Here in Albuquerque, we have a fantastic organization that strives to bring jazz improvisation to kids.  Basically they have three different youth ensembles ranging from beginning (very beginning) to intermediate (mid-school with 3-4 years experience) and advanced (high school with 5+ years experience).  They keep the prices low and accessible to everyone in the community.  Each ensemble class runs for 8-10 weeks culminating in a performance.  

We love this program and have participated in 6 series over the past two years.  Gavin is in the beginner's class and Grey is in the Intermediate.  The performance was this past weekend and was by far the best we have seen in a while.  You never know who will be in the ensemble when the series begins, so you don't know what instruments you will have to work with etc.  This round really had a fantastic balance of instruments and talent. 

Unfortunately our video camera battery died after only a couple of minutes.  Hey, believe me, I know how lame that is!!!  In my win column I did have four clean, well dressed, fed and prepared children there on time.  This after my husband and Gavin has to work a shift at the Naturalist Center right up until our departure time for the performance.  Oh, and did I mention that I was helping to clean the LEGO loft all morning too???  Yeah, I know, it is still super lame that I didn't have the battery charged.  There goes a great memory and an inspired performance that I wont be able to get back!!!   

I see all these "Mom Calendars" around and I even have an iphone.  Between all the marketing of Momdum one would think that there would be an app or something that reminds you to charge your camera batteries, or to go ahead and grab that extra diaper or to make sure your kids each have their water bottles.  I know how to not forget a Doctor's appointment for goodness sakes, its the important stuff that I seem to forget!!!  :-)

Ready to get your jazz on?  Check this out...

Outpost Performance Space announces their Summer Youth Jazz Ensemble Classes! Two four-week sessions starting on June 9. Classes are onMonday, Tuesday and Wednesdays from 4-5:30 pm at the Outpost Performance Space, 210 Yale SE, and are open to all young musicians (instrumentalists & vocalists) elementary through High School levels who want to have fun learning more about improvising and playing jazz in a small ensemble. Classes are taught by the Outpost team comprising drummer, Sharon Eldridge; saxophonist, Kanoa Kaluhiwa; and trumpeter,Paul Gonzales. We aim to build positive attitudes, trust, teamwork, cooperation, confidence, compassion, and a sense of humor—everything you could ever want from music. All ensembles perform a recital for family and friends at the end of their second session. It is expected that students will have their own instruments to bring to class, however, Outpost will provide a piano, a drumset, and guitar & bass amplifiers. 

Cost: $25/each four-week session. To register, please call Outpost at 268-0044.  www.outpostspace.org

Fresh Start

I used to blog a few years back and really enjoyed the process of expressing myself and recording our days.   Somehow I woke up one day to realize that I hadnt posted for, well, YEARS!  Where did all that time go?  Did I have nothing to say for a couple of years, or did my life really get so busy that I couldnt sit down with a cup of coffee and a few thoughts?  Most likely it was a combination of them both.

So, here it is, my attempt at a fresh start.  A way to record our journey and to remember to take a few moments for myself, my thoughts and a nice cup of coffee!