School prep

I think my favorite part about teaching is the planning.  I love to get ready, to figure out how all the pieces should fit, to make schedules and charts, get organized.  This year, since we'll only be here for the first semester, my planning was more complicated and confusing -- and pretty overwhelming.  I'm so thankful to live in an area where there are so many different classes and electives and clubs and activities offered.... but my decision-making-impairedness is very challenged by it all!  Slowly, I've made some progress, though, and was happy to at least finally get a few charts and new systems put in place!

Here are the things I'm most pleased with:

 This is my chart mapping out every half-hour of each day, and what each member of the family should be doing during that time.  I know that we are likely to actually do these things only about 10% of the time, but at least it's something to shoot for!

 The kids' bulletin board has their schedules and their chart identifying their responsibilites for each day.

 I don't have a label-maker, but I pretend like I do!  (I just cut these out of a full-sheet label paper).  Now, theoretically, the books should be put back in the same place every day, reducing the amount of time spent answering the "Where is my math book?" daily question.  I know this will only work for the first few weeks -- or until the labels are peeled off, whichever comes first.

 And speaking of label-peeling...  I was so proud of myself to dig out this hand-me-down shelf unit and label all the slots to cut down on the paper confusion around here.

 But -- and this is not an exaggeration -- within mere MINUTES of me setting it up, someone had already come by and done this!  What is with my kids and their need to constantly peel things off of other things??

Anyway, I'm still excited about the promise of this new school year.  And I'm mostly excited about the fact that we have an in-home, electric pencil sharpener, which is now going on 15 hours of working life -- I'm pretty sure that's a record for us.  What a luxury to have all kinds of sharpened pencils at the ready!

No pressure to start school early

This recently published academic paper is reassuring!  Starting the kids later in an academic setting (and letting them PLAY and be kids while they are young) is not detrimental to their later schooling.... In fact, starting too early can actually have the opposite of the intended effect!

http://papers.nber.org/papers/w17085#fromrss

A great summary: Why would anyone homeschool

Much better said, and done, than I could ever do!

http://www.aholyexperience.com/2011/05/pros-cons-homeschooling-christian-educatio/

If you're not going to the Sistine Chapel anytime soon....

... or even if you ARE going, but won't be able to get up close to the ceiling, here is an interactive web site that shows all the detail of Michelangelo's work.

We think it's awesome!

http://www.vatican.va/various/cappelle/sistina_vr/index.html

Good "bug" videos

My kids have been getting a kick out of these today!  I highly recommend them.  There's a whole series, each about 4-5 minutes long.

Not surprisingly, the one titled "hyperactive" has been a favorite:

If you watch them, make sure to have your speakers on.  For being "wordless" the sounds still convey the best part!

Science experiment day(s)

Today's co-op theme was science experiments!  This was such a hit last semester, we decided to do it again.  Which means we (moms) had to come up with even more fun experiments to do.... I guess it was sort of a Science Fair for us mothers!  Thankfully God has made a very interesting world, and there never seems to be an end of cool science to learn.

My station/experiment was about the difference between baking soda and baking powder.  (Did you know baking powder has an added acid in it, so it begins to react (fizz) when any liquid is added?  That's why we have to mix dry ingredients and wet ingredients separately until right before we bake muffins!)

We also taste-tested corn muffins, one batch made with just baking soda and one made with baking powder, to see the differences in texture. Strider said he felt like he was on the tasting lab of "America's Test Kitchen."  That made my day.

The other moms had separate experiments for groups of kids to rotate through as well...  I didn't get to see any of them first-hand, but from what I heard (and these pictures which Strider took), it appears there were experiments about the freezing nature of salt, the floating nature of salt-water, putting a sharp stick through a balloon using vegetable oil, .... and.....

the perennial favorite:  Mentos exploding in a Coke bottle!

Two weeks ago our co-op topic was about electricity, and the kids got to see how to make a battery out of vinegar (or a lemon or a potato), a nail and copper wire.  I love this stuff!!

And the kids do, too!

Something to teach the kids this week

What a great video about reversing our thinking!

http://www.sermonspice.com/product/28742