MFW 2nd Grade - Week #20

BIBLE:  Our new memory verse for the next two weeks is "I am the vine; you are the branches.  If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing."  John 15:5

We added another name to our Jesus poster.  I have taken a picture of it, but it up to date with our current week, so I will post it when I get to week #24.  (Sigh. Only 4 more to go.)

SPELLING:  Typical spelling week.  I'm really seeing Caleb struggle.  He can memorize the words for the spelling test, but there is no retention.  I really need to seek out another program to reinforce what I know he knows, but has forgotten because this program doesn't reinforce it enough.  (At least in my opinion.)

ENGLISH:  The lessons in English this week seemed a bit dull and dry.  I guess that's pretty typical for English glass.  

Reading List:

A Picture book of Lewis and Clark, David A. Adler
The Story of Ruby Bridges, Robert Coles
Francis Scott Key, Melissa Whitcraft
By the Dawns Early Light, Steven Kroll
The Star Spangled Banner, Peter Spier

Read-A-Loud:  We wrapped up Farmer Boy and have moved on to "On the Banks of Plum Creek."  Caleb insists he won't like it nearly as much as Farmer Boy.  I'm hoping the story has enough fun antics of Laura Ingalls to pull him in.  Caleb wouldn't let me read the last chapter of "Farmer Boy" for a while.  I finally said we just had to so we could say we were done with it.  He said, "But mom, then it will be over."  He loved the book so much that he didn't want it to be over.  Have you ever loved a book that much?  That you hated for it to end?  My heart went out to him because I certainly know how he feels.

So far, every day he says, "I don't like this new book as much as Almonzo."  Every day.

HISTORY/STATE STUDY:   Our study this week is on Thomas Jefferson and the Louisiana Purchase.  We read from our Story of the U.S. book and going along with that our state for this week was on Louisiana.

It was quite incredible really, that the very week we are to study Louisiana daddy has to take a business trip to - yes - Louisiana.  Caleb and I tagged along and were able to see the place for ourselves.  It was such a good week and while not all our school work was done for this week ON this week because we spent some time being tourists, we did complete the week at the beginning of the next week after we returned home.

History Activities:   It was actually rather fun to make some red beans and rice to go along with our Louisiana theme.  John and I quite enjoyed it.  Caleb?  Well, we all know how he is.  It looked too different and he wouldn't even try it.   I forgot to take a picture of the finished product, but here it is in the beginning stage.

SCIENCE:   More talk on plants and growing things.  We discussed how plants grow, do they need water, etc?  In this instance we used popcorn.  One plate was a dry plate and the other plate the napkins were watered.  We covered them both in foil and Caleb checked them each day, logging the differences in the seeds each time.

It was rather neat to see the popcorn with water actually do something.  I think Caleb was a little surprised as he only thinks of popcorn in the form of movie popcorn or microwave popcorn!

MATH:  Several lessons this week in our Singapore Math book and YES, we finished it.  We are going to back to review for a while before we move on to the next book!  

MUSIC:   We listened to "There Are Many Flags" again and listened to "The Start Spangled Banner" after reading from our "Red, White, and Blue" book.

HEALTH/MANNERS:   Our lesson this week was on the topic of good posture.  I had to laugh just a little bit because Caleb does school all over the house.  He lays on the living room carpet under a tent, he lays on the bed, he sits at the coffee table, at the dinner table and 

LOUISIANA TRIP:   We spent time as tourists, but it was also a time of learning.  Since our study at school has been talking about animals, it was perfect that we spend some time at the Audubon Zoo.  We also went to the Audubon Aquarium, and the Audubon Insect and Butterfly Garden.  The IMAX theater had several options to choose from and Caleb chose the Coral Reef, which helped him to learn a lot about those animals under the water.

It was really cool to see the names of some of the people we're coving in school this week throughout our tourist visit to the Zoo and Aquarium.  Here are a few.

He's not looking so happy here.  We were tired.  And I don't think he wanted to stand for another picture.  This one is of a Baldcypress tree, which is Lousiana's State Tree.  If you wan to read more about it, the next pic give a bit of description.

I have a lot of fun pictures from our trip.  I will probably post those on our family blog.  When I get that done, I'll update and put a link here so visitors can click over there to take a peek.

All in all our studies this week were so much fun.  Even those outside of the trip.  There is nothing like a week in Adventures with My Fathers World!  I'm three weeks closer to being caught up now.  Yay me!!

Educating in Christ,

Momma Pam

MFW 2nd Grade - Week #19

BIBLE:  We continued our study of John 1:29 this week.  We read scriptures from John 3:16-17, Isaiah 53:7-8 and verse 4, 1 Peter 1:18-19, 1 John 1:5-9, and Revelation 5:7-14.  As you can see, we had a lot of discussion this week on Jesus and Passover.

Bible Activities:  Caleb created a lamb from cotton.  He filled in the shape of his hand with cotton balls.  It was done in honor of our memory verse.  I have to say it's rather cute.

SPELLING:  Another week, a new list of words.  :)

ENGLISH:  Caleb had some heavy writing this week in English.  Lots of copy work and writing answers to questions.  One of our topics this week was on mice.  A little different but we laughed our way through it.

Reading List:

Baby Duck and the Bad Eyeglasses, Amy Hest
Lentil, Robert McCloskey
Johnny Appleseed, Steven Kellogg
The Story of Johnny Appleseed, Aliki

Read-a-Loud:   We are quickly coming to the end of Farmer Boy.  It has been a long book, but I've come to realize just how good a book it really is.  Caleb has absolutely loved it and doesn't want to come to the end of Almonzo, the main character.  I neglected to mention the book in my last post and how much he's enjoyed reading it.  

HISTORY/STATE STUDY:    We always love it when we get to read out of our American Pioneers and Patriots book and this week we were able to do that for three days!  Yay!  The stories are always so fun and interesting.  Even Caleb likes it when I pull out that book.

Our state to study this week was Ohio.  Did you know? - that it's illegal in Ohio to catch a mouse without a hunting license?  (Seems silly, but it's probably a very old law that was set in place at some point in time. Ha!)

A small activity we did was to "make" a New England Primer, which would be a book that a young child would use at school.  There was a worksheet supplied for us, we just glued it together and went over it.

SCIENCE:  Our topics this week included more on the study of Animals.  Can't really go wrong with that.  A fun and diverse topic.  We talked about animal homes, how some have babies from an egg and some are born as mini versions of momma and daddy, how some animals find food, and where other animals like to hide.

MATH:  Lots of lessons in our Singapore Math book this week.  We are coming near the end of the first book.  That's exciting.  

Educating in Christ,

Momma Pam

MFW 2nd Grade - Week #18

BIBLE:  Our memory verse for this week was John 1:29.  "...the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!"  We read scriptures from John 1:26-29, Exodus 12:1-3, 5-8, 11-14, and 21-30.

SPELLING:  It was our typical week in Spelling.  Pretty uneventful.  We are struggling a bit with the current program we're using, so I am contemplating getting something new to try.  We shall see.  The current program, Spelling by Sound and Structure, doesn't help much in reinforcing all the phonics rules and it seems Caleb is at a time where he needs some of the reinforcement.  We're still plugging along though.

ENGLISH:  Caleb completed some copy work this week and he did some work on when to use "their" and "there."  He also had his weekly assignment of dictation, which he likes "so" much.

Reading List for the Week:

Chickens Fly the Coop, Leslie Helakoski
Mr. George Baker, Amy Hest
Little White Rabbit, Kevin Kenkes
When the Whippoorwill Calls, Kimberly Bulcken Root
All Those Secrets of the World, Jane Yolen
Where the Sidewalk Ends, Shel Siverstein
Mooch the Mouse
Casey Jones, allan Drummond
A New Coat for Anna, Harriet Ziefert
Greg's Microscope, Millicent E. Selsam
Daniel's Duck, Clyde Robert Bulla

HISTORY/STATE STUDY:   It was interesting this week as we were able to learn about Eli Whitney, the inventor of the cotton gin.  It was fun to read on this when we have farmers in the family and in our church.

Activity - Making Cotton:  Since we were learning about the cotton gin, one of the activities was to take a cotton ball, make some fake seeds, glue them to the cotton ball, and the next day when it was dry have Caleb try to pick the seeds out of cotton.  It was a great way to show him how important the cotton gin was.  Before it was invented, all those seeds were picked out of the cotton by hand.

We had a visitor in class today.  Blue Mr. Incredible.  :)

Here I was instructed to wad it up good so Caleb would have to try harder to dig out the seeds.

Anyone who knows our Caleb, knows it didn't take him long to tell me this was a waste of his time!

Additionally in history, we talked about the state of Tennessee!  We've slowed down a little with the states and have only been doing one a week.  Lots of fun info learned on Tennessee.

SCIENCE:  We studied living things this week in science.  We read in Genesis 1 about how God created the earth and all the living things.  As I read, Caleb was to decide if the things that were mentioned were "living things" or "non-living things."  He created a chart as we went along.   The things mentioned were:  plants, living things in the water, birds, animals on land, people, light, sky, land, oceans, sun, moon, stars....

Activity - Make an animal cell:  I must admit that this was a very creative project that Caleb really enjoyed doing.  We used jello, a sandwich bag, beans and a piece of something we cannot remember.  Ha!!

Some of the ingredients we needed to make our animal cell.

Caleb mixing it up!

After mixing the jello, we put it inside a sandwich bag and let it set in the refrigerator.  After it set, he pushed some things into it, such as beans for "organelles" and something else for a "nucleus."  Neither one of us can remember what that white object is that is supposed to be the nucleus!  Oh well.  (This was a long time ago - my blog is behind!)

Caleb is pointing to an "organelle."

Caleb is pointing to the "nucleus."

Here he is pointing to the outside, or "cell membrane."

Activity - Growing Bacteria in Milk:   Using milk and two jars with lids, Caleb put milk in both jars and one jar went into the fridge and another jar set out on the counter.  We monitored the jars to see which jar would develop bacteria first.  He caught on quick that the jar on the counter would get yucky first.  We neglected to get a picture of the jars at the end of the project. :(

MATH:   We covered lots of math worksheets this week and played games from our Giggle Math set.  I'm trying to work with Caleb to get him more fluent with the addition facts.  He can do them, he just has to think about for what I think is too long.  He's getting there.

MUSIC:  We discussed and listened to the song, "There are Many Flags" during our music lesson this week.

HEALTH/MANNERS:    Caleb learned all about his eyes and how important it is to take care of them in this weeks health lesson.

FAMILY LIFE LEARNING:  There is always something going on at the Parker's and this week began the construction of a barn for some of the animals.  We have some rabbits and we want to have chickens for eggs.  But first, we need a place to put them.

So, one day of school this week consisted of Caleb learning how to dig holes for posts, measure and cut  the framework, mix concrete and use it to secure the posts; among many other things I can't think of at this moment.  He was a trouper.  He stayed along side dad and I most of the time throughout the beginning of the process.  He would take time to ride his bike every so often for a break.  Nothing like some great exercise.

This home school blog is incredibly behind.  As I sit here writing this post, it leaves me only 6 weeks behind instead of 7.  Things have just been busy and taking the time to take picture, choose them, download them, crop when necessary, just wasn't happening.   This is me, trying to catch up!  So if the subjects we are covering seem a bit skimpy in my descriptions, this would be why.   I can't remember what I ate for dinner yesterday, much less what we did in school 7 weeks ago without pulling out all the assignments and looking at all the books again.  There just isn't enough time for that, so I'm going off of the notes I've written on my grid.  I hope this will still give you a glimpse into our home school days and you will find it interesting!

Educating in Christ,

Momma Pam

MFW 2nd Grade - Week #17

BIBLE:  This week we continued memorizing and talking about Matthew 1:23.  We read scriptures in Exodus 3:11-12, Joshua 1:1-9, Matthew 28:16-20, and Hebrews 13:5.

Bible Activities:  The only bible activity this week was to make a cake and decorate it using icing to spell out "Immanuel" on it.  Given the fact we are trying to be more healthy at our house the idea of an entire cake laying around is just not a good one.  So, we'll just rest on the fact we talked a lot about God always being with us this week, and call it good.

SPELLING:  Another week of spelling over and done with.  This week we used a different approach in writing spelling words.  Just writing them on paper gets a little boring.  So, here's a picture to show what we tried new.  Caleb loved that I changed things up a bit.  :)

ENGLISH:  Caleb had some copy work in English this week along with answering questions.  He does well when he allows himself to enjoy it.

HISTORY/STATE STUDY:  We only covered one state this week and that was Kentucky.   If anyone is interested in what the state sheets look like, well, here they are:

The assigned sheet from MFW.  Caleb colors while I read tidbits from a page telling all sorts of interesting facts about the state.

For extra learning, we do these pages also.  Caleb does all the cutting and I glue them down.  Then I have him write in the blanks.  This one for Kentucky isn't completely finished yet.  When he has a lot of writing in other subjects, I let him carry this over to another day where we may not have as much writing.  

This week we also talked about Daniel Boone and how he developed the Wilderness Trail.

SCIENCE:  Our discussion and projects in science had to do with the weather.  First we tried to make a rainbow on a sheet of paper using water, the sun, and a small mirror.  We were not very successful with this, so Caleb opted to reinvent the day he made a rainbow in the goldfish pond.

Success!

Success!

Then we made a weather vane:

It didn't work exactly as we wanted it to, but I think that had to do with the size of knitting needle I used, which was the ONLY one I have.  Ha!!  It wasn't quite thick enough and so the empty thread spool sat crooked.  It's okay though.  He did get to see the wind whip it around some, as it was a very windy day.

MATH:  Lots of pages out of the math workbook were completed along with playing some math games and hitting the flashcards.  I've noticed that as things start to become a little more challenging and require a bit more thought, Caleb gets more easily discouraged when the answers don't come easy.  We're plugging along though, and I pray that this season of discouragement he is feeling passes quickly.

HEALTH/MANNERS:  Our health lesson involved "Getting Enough Rest."  I read a half page discussion regarding the importance of getting enough rest and then Caleb was required to answer some review questions.  He did really well.  I thought it was interesting how well he understood the concept of needing enough rest for our bodies to be healthy.  Then again, we're having a lot of healthy talk around here lately, so I shouldn't be very surprised.

Read-a-Loud:  We are still at in, moving through Farmer Boy.  Here's a picture of it in case you were thinking I was making it up.  Ha!  It's a thick book.  By the time I read a chapter, we're ready to move onto other just-for-fun books.  This one is FULL of history and interesting facts all to do with a little boys' life on the farm.  I've not shared with Caleb that I am getting tired of reading this book because then HE will be tired of it.  It's a required read, so we'll get it finished.  I will admit though that this weeks readings were quite interesting.  The story itself is very good.  It's just all the details.  It describes every move, every step of a specific project. But, I know, THAT is why MFW chose it -- for all those details.  Even I am learning from them.  Did I know that people cut ice back in those days from the pond or lake, and saved it up by covering it a shed with sawdust a certain way so that they would have ice in the ice house all summer?  No.  I didn't.  That is just an example of the wonderful details this book covers.

                         

Book Baskets Reads:
The Inside-Outside Book of New York City, Roxie Munro
Cardinals, Patrick Merrick
Big Little Elephant, Valeri Gorbachev
Soap!  Soap!  Don't Forget the Soap - An Appalachian Folktale, Tom Birdseye
Little Chick, Amy Hest
Kiss Good Night, Amy Hest
The Dog Who Belonged to No One, amy Hest
The Boy Who Cried Wolf, B.G. Hennessy
Sleepy Places, Judy Hindley
Ox-Cart Man, Donald Hall
Jangles A Big Fish Story, David Shannon

The Ox-Cart Man was probably my favorite read of those we've had in a while.  It talked a lot about the things we've been learning about this year.  While reading it Caleb said, "Mom!  That's just like Almanzo!"  Almanzo is the little boy in Farmer Boy.  It was wonderful to see that Caleb remembered and could relate it to a completely different book.

On our 2nd to last day we did our reading outside on the picnic table.

On our last day of this week, we read Farmer Boy while out for our daily walk.  It was interesting with me trying to read while huffing and puffing, but I know Caleb loved it.  If he road his bike too far away he'd say, "wait, I'm too far, I can't hear you."  So, then I'd have about 20 seconds to catch my breath.


PHYSICAL EDUCATION:  I've never really posted this as a separate category or made much note of it, but I do believe it's very important.  So, as we have things to post, I'll add a little bit of something here.

We're trying to be more healthy at our house and have regular discussion on food and fitness.  These past few weeks Caleb has ridden his bike many miles.  I wish it had an odometer on it, because I think we would all be impressed with the number of miles he puts on it.   In addition to his random bike rides just playing outside, he also rides his bike every day while I walk.  We take a walk to the dead end and back, which is about 1 mile.  If we're up to it, we go past the house in the other direction for a bit and then come back.  We try to walk every day, but we also do several exercises every other day.  These usually make me HURT all over, so we only do them every other day.  When we started we took a benchmark test, so it will be interesting to see how well we do at our next benchmark test when we've been at this for a while.  That test is supposed to be at the 1 month mark.

MISCELLANEOUS:   One little project we had this morning was to put all of next years school supplies neatly on a shelf.  They've been sitting in a box in the corner of his bedroom, but now they are proudly placed on a shelf.  Lots of book, lots of learning that will be continued when Caleb moves onto 3rd grade.

This week we also had some fun with gardening.  It's been too windy and cold yet to put the plants we bought in the ground for our family garden, but Caleb helped me plant some herbs in a pot on the back porch.  Every spring I try to plant herbs, but due to weather and/or neglect they've never survived.  My personal goal is to get these guys thriving so they are a useful tool in my kitchen!

Caleb was very proud of our herb garden and two days later insisted that we'd done such a good job they had grown.  What you can't see in this picture is a hanging plant of strawberries overhead.  I placed them this way so that when I water the strawberries, the excess will flow into the herb garden.  Less water waste.  We had one strawberry in our basket the other day and so Caleb and I shared it.  He was SO excited he could barely stand it.  I know he will LOVE the fruit of that labor.  :)

In closing:

This was a rough week.  As I mentioned earlier, Caleb has been feeling somewhat discouraged.  I tried to talk to him and had dad talk to him.  But, I think, at the age of 7, we can't always understand why we feel the way we feel.  If I had to guess, we're just having the middle of the year meltdown where the things in our curriculum aren't new anymore and some of them are getting a little harder.  So, some prayers for Caleb would be awesome.  And I guess I could use some too as I try to guide my precious little boy through this rough patch he's having....We ended our week on a better note.  He said this morning....Mom, I'm gonna do better today.  And he did.

Educating in Christ,

Momma Pam

Miracle Update

"Miracle"

I decided to put this post here since this event happened on a school.  It's incredible what a couple of weeks can do.  The first picture is just a day or two after birth.  We tried to wrap his back legs to offer support, but the wrap just didn't help.  You can see how the back, left hind foot is folded-over.  It was very difficult to watch him try to move around when it was like this.

In this second picture, you can see some darker wrapping on the back foot/ankle.  John and I put a splint on the back leg, with Caleb's assistance.  The splint made it harder for the little guy to lay down and get up, but he adapted to that rather well after a short while.  We left the splint on for as long as we thought possible.  After a week and a half, we decided he had grown some and we worried it would get, too, tight on his ankle.  So, we removed it ... to find ...

 That he looked so much better.  He was still a little weak, but within a matter of minutes he took off running allover the pasture.  He was so excited to be "free."  It was a beautiful moment to watch momma and baby interact outside of their small pen.

Just a quick up date to let you all know he is doing awesome!!

Educating in Christ,

Momma Pam

Crosspost with our family blog....