Westgate Academy

We've Moved!!

2008-09-08T14:51:00.002-04:00

From now on, you can find posts about our schooling and updates on us kiddos intertwined with Mama's pursuits, stories and posts as well.

Mama decided to simplify her online time and moved us all over. I *think* we still plan to speak from the first person over there as well, but I guess you'll need to head over and find out.

Thanks for keeping up with us, see you at our new location!

Couplet Poetry

2008-09-03T06:00:00.001-04:00

After reading a fun & whimsical book on homes, Janelle wrote a couplet style poem with a similar theme:

My garage is a house to my bike,

a trail is a house to a hike.

A stage is a house to a play,

while a barn is home to some hay.

A teacup is a house to a spoon,

and the sky is a house to the moon.

A hive is home to a bee,

and I'm glad there's a house for me!

The book is a great read-aloud to any elementary-age child, even pre-school. See if your library has this one!

Consider Quietly

2008-09-02T23:16:00.002-04:00

This one is for the homeschooling and any other Mamas reading...from one of my favorite blogs:

"Whenever parents create ceremonies, or a rhythmic routine, around any daily activity, we impose order on the environment, instead of on our children".

Think on this one for a bit. Routine allows the environment to speak to the child, telling them that it's time...for this or for that, but it's time to move on to the next activity or quiet down from the previous one. So we don't nag. We establish routines that speak to our children.

Link of the Week

2008-08-28T13:52:00.002-04:00

FreeReading

There are some great phonics and reading activites...and a FREE week-by-week reading program for K and 1st! Includes resources to download such as picture cards and sight words; and several 'how-to' videos. Click on 'Teach the Program' to get started.

Nature Exploration

2008-08-28T13:14:00.002-04:00

Hi everyone! Jordyn reporting here...

I LOVE being outside and enjoy escaping out into the sunshine. Why be indoors?, ugh! So in our first week of official school, we've done a lot out of doors. Listening to Mom read, writing, just playing or looking for treasures for our nature table.

This week I found a cicada shell and had SO much fun scaring my sister with it!! It was the best! Which, of course, is not it's purpose as Mom pointed out. Along with learning that my sister does not like bug-looking things, Mom showed me pictures of how cicadas shed their shell. I learned a new vocabulary word (molting) and found out that other animals like birds and snakes molt too!

Hmmm, I wonder if I can find a snake skin to use on my dear sister....

The Beginning

2008-08-25T17:14:00.004-04:00

Of another school year! Somehow, we ended up taking more of a break from academics than was originally intended. Maybe the girls being involved in King and I had something to do with it; but oh well, that endeavour was incredibly educational!

We're back to dusting off the books and picking up where we left off or moving forward on new material altogether. We began it all by sitting a spell in the sunlight and reading His Word....

It's going to be a wonderful year! {we'll be back to blogging a bit more regularly too.}

Our 2008-2009 School Year

2008-08-06T10:01:00.013-04:00

We have put much time, thought, prayer and conversation into deciding what would be best for the children and for our family this upcoming school year. Trying to take into consideration each child's abilities and needs and yet wanting to keep focused on the values our family holds dear.

One blog post significantly impacted our decisions and helped to shape how we wanted to include each subject into living life. Our homeschool journey is about academics, yes...but also much more about life :: relationships, growing together as a family, and the like. Our family includes Dad, Mom, Jackie (college freshman living at home & helping out), Janelle (5th), Jordyn (K), Josiah (pre-preschooler, age 2.5)

So, in the spirit of the post mentioned, our school year will include:

Listening ~ a way of the Spirit
daily :: Mom reads aloud to all children-the New Testament using the Narrated Bible, continue with catechism for boys and girls, scripture memorization, praise, worship, prayer...listening to His Spirit

Blessings Every Day :: Josiah's favorite! One of the best devotionals for young children we've used.

weekly :: excerpts from Trial & Triumph for understanding of our Christian heritage, Kay Arthur Bible studies for kids--book of John (Janelle, 5th grade)

Love ~ a way of sacrificing
the foundation of everyday family life, learning to love one another :: extending grace, mercy, forgiveness. encouragement will be towards finding ways to demonstrate that love to siblings, parents, spouse to spouse, parents to children

Labor ~ a way of serving
the ability to work is a gift and we do not shirk away from household chores. the children each have a list of responsibilities; summer time & early in the school year is usually a time for training on new chores. this year the older children will train the younger as each is taking on a bit more & moving 'up' in their ability to work. we do manual work in small chunks & responsibilities are separated into morning and then evening chores.

as a family we will also seek to serve others :: making meals, volunteering, etc. as needs arise in our community circles

Loveliness ~ a way of seeing (poetry, nature, music, art) ~ training eyes and ears to take in the beauty of the created & to be in awe of the Creator and Giver

Poetry Patterns for the 5th grader; much reading aloud of quality poetry for all children

Nature backpacks! Mama is working at a bag for each child to include items for our walks: small sketchbook, colored pencils, binoculars, paper bags for collecting, tweezers, field guides, bug houses for the preschooler & kindergartner, magnifying lenses, small nets, flower press for the 5th grader, cameras

Music education :: Mama will teach recorder and piano to Jordyn (K) and violin to Janelle (5th) who will also continue with piano & voice lessons 2x a month each. Though these could happen at home, it's been helpful for Janelle to experience lessons from others. All children will continue to be exposed to a wide variety of music, study the lives of composers (in a fun format of course!) and attend concerts when available

New art idea this year. We currently have on loan 'Picturing France' from the National Gallery of Art--it's free! Slides, large full-color prints, curriculum for art appreciation. Also the Come Look With Me series and Discovering Great Artists will be used periodically. Some of our art appreciation will be incorporated into tea time. There will also be much focus on handcrafts (primarily knitting and embroidery) and several other arts/crafts projects for all children.

Literature ~ a way of seeking, discovery through great books, resources
American history for the 5th grader will include use of the History of US along with A Blessed Heritage to add African-American perspective. Blessed Heritage is very literature-based, so many good books will be read! Continue a bit of ancient studies with A Mystery of History Vol. I

Janelle will read significantly on other subjects as well using our comprehension program (see below). Mom will read aloud selected books throughout the year.

For Jordyn & Josiah (age 5 and 2) we'll continue to read aloud to them for 2 hrs a day. This can be accomplished in our family because everyone else can also assist Mom in this goal!

Language ~ a way of speaking & writing
narrations & copywork to be done weekly for both K and 5th {both links have many ideas on each topic, keep scrolling!}

our 5th grader is taking a Latin course 2 mornings a week, includes vocabulary, grammar and critical thinking studies

Foundations & Frameworks (F & F) reading comprehension program for K and 5th :: this is a curriculum written by a wonderful friend of ours for the school setting. Last summer he trained us on how to incorporate it into our homeschool & we did for 4th; not much info online, the link has basics and materials are only available to those trained--but, we plan to post more about it throughout the school yr. To say it's excellent is an understatement.

F & F will also be used for phonics, grade K, supplemented with readers

French level I for everyone! Mama speaks the language, so this helps.

Logic ~ a way of scaffolding ideas
Saxon 76 Math for the 5th grader
ACSI Math for Jordyn (K)

Science will be taught by Dad this year for Janelle, who is thrilled! Using our state standards, he'll write and put together curriculum with an emphasis on many hands-on experiments. Mom will continue to oversee Health (including physical education)/Nutrition

A Child's Geography

For Jordyn & Josiah, Nature for the Very Young, Early Science Big Books, Exploring God's World of Wonder. The link for the big books is a sample of those we own; wow...these were bought during Jackie's (now in college) early homeschooling years!

Ahhh....it does feel good to have it all written down, even for our own sakes. Our approach will be to tackle the more weighty subjects such as math in the morning hours and after lunch will be available for nature study, art, music, etc. But we remain flexible and open to the need to occasionally change it all up.

Summertime Fun

2008-08-06T09:15:00.001-04:00

Sorry!

2008-07-30T13:21:00.003-04:00

Yep, the show has come and gone.

Nope. No pics yet. In the cast were those from an actor's union and so personal pics were prohibited during dress rehearsals. Mom didn't know this until dress rehearsal night. BUT, the theatre's professional photographer took excellent shots of each scene for publicity purposes and will be giving a CD of those to each person involved. So, just hold on a little and we'll post when they come in {knowing how theatres work around here, it could be several weeks!}.

The girls had a fantastic time! All 10 shows went very well and Jackie is proud to report that she did not drop the fan at all :: during rehearsals this happened a few times, so she was a bit nervous. She received many compliments on her solo & Janelle was complimented by the lead lady that she has great acting ability! They are both sad to see it end, but it was a fun way to spend the month :: they met people from all over the US, mainly from New York and now have emails to keep in touch.

Somewhere in the middle of all of this, Jackie turned 18. We had the foresight to celebrate back in June since this month was full. But, hooray and happy birthday Jackie! And huge thanks to Grandaddy for bringing her friend Lauren down from CT for a birthday surprise and to see the show.

{Big breath in and then out} Now, back to normalcy, right?

Yes. A post about our school year plans is forthcoming!

Almost Showtime!

2008-07-15T11:54:00.006-04:00

Two days...a little over 48 hours until the first show!! To update, Jackie and Janelle had auditioned back in March at a local theatre for spots in the musical The King and I {wonderful, wonderful if you haven't seen it}. They got news shortly after that they made it in; beginning of April was full of writing up bios & doing head shots {which Mama did on her own & saved oodles of $$$} ::

And then we all waited until rehearsals began just two weeks ago. The pace has been fast, but the girls were prepared. They had watched the musical twice and already memorized their songs. If you're familiar with the production, Jackie landed the part of the wife who does a solo dance ('the fan dance') and Janelle got a speaking part in the children's ensemble (there are just a few). Yes, we're proud of them!

Above the excitement of receiving roles is the thrill of working with actors and actresses who have performed on Broadway numerous times. The lead role of Anna is played by a woman who did the international and national tour of the King and I; and the girls think the king in this show is just as good as the one in the original 1956 musical. The experience has been a tremendously enriching and fun one.

In the midst of it all, we've taken the time to teach priorities. Rehearsals were scheduled each day except Mondays and start time is 10 a.m. Well, this family goes to church on Sunday mornings. :o) We had the opportunity to show that it wasn't necessary to fudge the more important to get ahead; the girls still got significant parts and simply stated they would be ready by noon for rehearsals on Sundays.

In fact, this past weekend, the start time for the entire cast was changed to noon. Hmmm.....

We'll update after opening night!!

Tea Time

2008-07-10T13:34:00.009-04:00

It's a past time of many a girl through generations and from around the world :: tea time.

And for one little girl in our household, the tradition continues. Jordyn loves to play tea party. From the time she was a toddler with a little plastic set, then a picnic set of enamelware, and now to beautiful porcelain. She enjoys the process of setting up, choosing a treat and making the tea. At times, the sweet treats are not of the edible variety so that our visits to the dentist stay at check-ups only!

So far this summer, there have been tea parties in her room {no real tea allowed in there}, in the kitchen, the basement and outside under the shade of our maple trees. A collection of stuffed animal friends, or perhaps just a special one are the guests :: of course, Mom, siblings and even Dad in the evenings have been summoned as well to join in on the fun.

Realizing that this is such an enjoyable part of her playtime, we will be incorporating tea time into our schedule for school this year. Together, the girls and Mom will sit down several times a week for a short moment {probably 1/2 hr} to just catch our breath, together.

Maybe there will be a special story shared, poetry read, or a particular music CD to listen to. Or maybe simply a time to anticipate right after doing the hard work of phonics, language lessons or math. The primary agenda will be to enjoy one another and our tea. It's all in development stage right now, but will definitely be a part of our days. Besides, it should be mentioned that this little girl's Mama loves tea time as well!

Feeling Blessed

2008-07-03T17:41:00.011-04:00

Just a quick note to report that the blessing party was wonderful. Such a small word to describe the gathering of many women surrounding a teen girl and showering her with encouragement :: with numerous words of praise and of wisdom as she embarks on a new phase of life. Each woman brought their words typed out on card stock {to be placed in a memory book} and also a small gift to symbolize their verbal gift to Jackie. A few highlights:

a silver chain bracelet :: to remind her that her words are like choice silver & to use them wisely

a bilingual Bible :: Jackie studied up to French 4 and Spanish 5; encouragement to use these new 'tongues' to share His word

a striking votive candle holder :: to remind her to shine

a special dance performance to the song Stand by Donnie McClurkin :: a reminder that life will bring its valleys and the appropriate response when they come

Precious. And nothing less than this.

We as a family are tremendously honored to have such pillars of faith and community in our lives. Gratitude swells in our hearts.

Fine Motor Skills

2008-06-17T10:45:00.006-04:00

In the last few weeks of school, Jordyn worked on strengthening the muscles in her hands. For her and at age 5, she is still a bit weak on the fine motor end. Knowing that these skills are very much needed for succesful writing in the future, we asked a friend who is an occupational therapist for a simple evaluation. Through just talking with her, it is good to know there is not a serious concern, but she gave several great tips on activities to do beyond what we've tried.

One of Jordyn's favorites has been the clothespins! For this activity, our OT friend told us it was important to hold and pinch the pin with the thumb on top & fingers in back. The string or clothesline should also be eye level. In our picture above, Jordyn is standing up, but was sitting down for this activity. She simply decided for the picture that 'everyone should see my dress and new bracelet'. That girl.

Another activity is transferring items such as cotton balls or cheerios from one bowl to another (or a plate, etc) with a set of tongs. Because Jordyn adores the flashy, the fancy and stays away from anything plain, our cotton balls are shimmery and glittery :: a great dollar store purchase!! And yes, please notice another new bracelet.

Other fine motor strengthening tips:

:: play with clay, it is harder than play-doh

:: cut a small hole in the top of a plastic container and have the child push beans or pasta through the top. the hole should be small enough that it takes a bit of effort to push the item in.

:: a hole punch! draw a simple shape on paper and have them punch around the shape. then use a piece of string to lace.

:: crumple newspaper into a ball using only one hand

:: spray bottles! let them spray plants with water or 'clean' an item using sponges, etc.

:: if you have a magna-doodle, turn it upside down so that the eraser is on top

:: obviously, if the child can use scissors, lots of cutting, cutting, cutting. Jordyn cuts out all of our coupons {later, the ones we don't use are thrown out}.

:: work at a vertical surface as much as possible~ painting or drawing w/chalk at an easel. If you don't have an easel, tape a piece of paper to the fridge. Working at a vertical surface helps to develop hand control at the shoulder, which is a pre-cursor to more refined motor control at the hand

:: and a last one...don't throw out those old broken-up crayon pieces! have the child work at coloring with a small piece of crayon (1 to 2"); this 'forces' them to use the tripod grasp needed for writing (2 fingers opposed to the thumb).

More Grad Pics

2008-06-17T09:31:00.002-04:00

Josiah on Theology

2008-06-09T15:39:00.002-04:00

In the last several weeks of school, the girls worked on some basic foundational theology in a question & answer style. We've borrowed a bit from the Reformed reader catechism for boys and girls and have chosen the ones that we felt were essential {or that we concurred with}.

Well, Josiah had his own set of questions as well! And here he is in complete two-year old fashion reciting 'my questions' as he is fond of calling them. If you need interpretation, which you may, click on the link above! LOL!

Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books

She's Done!

2008-06-06T09:28:00.003-04:00

Cooperative weather for an outdoor ceremony :: smiling graduate, yet dealing with emotions we can't see on the surface :: family members supportive, beaming :: parents so proud :: siblings not fully understanding, but excited nonetheless :: 533 other seniors, now alumni of the school :: pictures, pictures, pictures :: a very, very special day, memories created for the long-term

Vote!

2008-06-04T19:07:00.004-04:00

No, it's not encouragement on the presidential race!

But homeshooling families, have you seen the article in PARADE magazine on homeschooling? It is a short one and includes a poll asking if parents should have credentials to educate their children. Please take the time to look at this and vote with a resounding 'NO', which is currently the majority by 95%.

The California case has the nation talking....it's a small & perhaps insignificant article, but let your voice be heard. There is a place to leave comments as well.

Some Friends and a Fire

2008-06-04T08:21:00.004-04:00

Yep, teenagers love a fire. So we found out!

Jackie's graduation party last weekend for her friends was a wonderful success! Plenty of seniors, food (menu changed at the last minute from hamburgers/hot dogs to nachos), lots of space and a volleyball net, and the stuff for s'mores and a fire :: all the necessary ingredients for a fun & l-o-n-g after 10p.m. party (the time it was sorta kinda set to end. ha!)

Today grandparents are coming in and we celebrate the BIG day tomorrow with a Mexitalian lasagna, salad and garlic bread lunch. Celebration #2!! The lasagna recipe that will be posted in Mom's site.

We're Done

2008-05-23T11:52:00.002-04:00

{Huge exhale from Mom}.

Our school year is officially done today. In our state, the law requires that we record having had school for 180 days....

Welcome Day 180, you're finally here!

Shouldn't there be a special gift for the teacher? :o)

over the next few weeks, we'll review some of the highlights besides the ones we've posted about and also share what's in store for next yr as far as curriculum plans & such. for now, we're off this weekend to visit extended family at our huge family reunion! have a great weekend.

But, why not?

2008-05-23T11:19:00.003-04:00

Yeah! I can run around outside in my pajamas! So what if the footsies are getting muddy because it's wet outside? This is the life...adventure all the way! Now that I can open the back door, everyone watch out.

Awww, bummer. Mommy caught me. Gotta go inside.

Sugar & Spice

2008-05-16T10:30:00.021-04:00

Our church has a girls' club entitled GEMS where part of the purpose is for women in the congregation to interact and teach girls 4th-6th grade. Once a month everyone comes together and a few women share practical skills. There is also time for devotionals, games, creative movement & worship and lots of laughter!

The end of the year activity was a tea party! Very special as the girls learned etiquette and table manners appropriate for such an event.

After a summer break, it will all begin again in September! Janelle really enjoyed this new ministry focused on younger girls. Jackie assisted each month with teaching the creative movement dance to a smaller group of the girls, who presented the song "Come, Now is the Time to Worship" in church on Mother's Day. Worshipful and Beautiful!

I'm a BIG BOY!

2008-05-16T10:12:00.007-04:00

So, I've been trying to tell everyone that I'm growing up. Josiah is no longer a baby. Hmmmm, not too sure that they have been listening, so I felt the need to demonstrate my maturity.

I climbed out of the crib.

I can't fully describe the exhilarating feeling of escape! The look on Mommy's face after she heard little feet running around and finding me sitting at the top of the stairs was....as Mastercard would say....priceless. I kinda was aiming for the shock effect.

I simply said "Hi Mommy!! I'm a big boy!!"

So off went the crib. At 2.5 yrs old, I think Mommy needs to let go and release me into full-blown toddlerhood. I got to help Daddy take the crib down:

And now, my big boy bed is on the floor. I am SO happy!!

the red, white & blue blanket is one Janelle made for me before I was born. Thank you Janelle.

A Do-Again Field Trip

2008-05-02T08:50:00.002-04:00

Yes! We would do this field trip all over again. I'm (Janelle) going to report since I probably have the most to say {don't laugh those who know me!}.

The trip to the White House complex was a great experience! I felt so important and honored to be walking around where the offices of some very prestigious people are. Security is a really big deal! Here we are getting our badges to enter:

Well, yes. The whole briefing was a bit over my head, but I caught on to one major thing: not everyone finishes high school and there are more dropouts than ever!! I was really so shocked! I guess at nine-years old you don't know everything. Typical to my nature Mom says, I told my Dad that we needed to do something. Of course, that was the reason for him being there.

We had the opportunity to hear Alma Powell speak, wife of Colin Powell. She spoke on the fact that even though some kids are graduating, they may not be ready for college. I thought she was a great speaker & seemed to know what she was talking about. Yeah! Got to grab a picture with her:

And, we really were SO close to the White House, right on the same grounds. Here is a peek outside of the window on the floor where we were:

Overall, it was good to be there. I need to think a bit more about what I can do because I feel the need to DO something. My parents said I can start by graduating from high school. Ha! Ha!

I came home and wrote a mini report on all I saw and experienced and some of my ideas. Maybe I'll share them at some point!

It Wasn't Too Bad

2008-05-02T08:43:00.003-04:00

The days in the hospital weren't too bad. I got lots of attention and really enjoyed talking to ALL of the nurses, doctors and other staff! I'm pretty sure I left my mark on the place.

I'm feeling better, breathing better and home on meds. Thanks for praying everyone!!

I Love My Dad's Job

2008-04-29T11:28:00.005-04:00

Well, at least one of my dad's 'occupations' since he also is one of the pastors in our church. Janelle here writing to say that I LOVE my dad's other job as an educational consultant. Want to know why? When he travels, I can sometimes go along to some really cool places.

So this morning I find out that I'm going TO THE WHITE HOUSE tomorrow! Woohoo!!

Okay, actually it's the White House complex, but it's just about the same thing right?

We'll be attending a policy briefing on "The Dropout Epidemic in the U.S." Whoa. Sounds very important and Mom says that even if it's over my head, I should pay attention. And, I may get to meet Colin Powell's wife who is speaking. There will only be about 100 attendees, so maybe I'll get a shot at a picture or something! It all seems very intriguing to me and I'm very excited to go! We even had to send in my full name, SSN and date of birth for security reasons and have to show up early to get checked out.

This is definitely a super cool field trip. I'm going to try and convince Jackie to go along as well, since permission was given for both of us to attend. I'll tell you more about it & post pictures if I can get any. Tootles!

Less Than 30 School Days....

2008-04-28T15:01:00.011-04:00

....until graduation!! Hello once again everyone, it's Jackie the senior here.

Yes, only a precious few more days of this side of my educational journey. A few more busy days as well! There are exams coming up, end of the year activities, grad practices and all of the like. It's a full month and somewhere in there my family also has stuff going on--Mother's Day plans and our my dad's annual extended family reunion. So, it's going to be a fun time as you can tell!

I've been getting a little tired of everyone asking me what I'm doing after high school. Specifically, where am I going to college and what am I studying?? {sigh}

Now, don't get me wrong, I want to go and have a sketch of a plan, but the pressure to 'have it all together' is a bit much. Fortunately, my parents & I are of the viewpoint that I don't have to figure it all out before September! Right now, their strong encouragement is that I finish well. Then, take a breath over the summer and start some general courses in the fall...all the while pausing, thinking, praying and discerning. I think I'll do that! This summer I'm especially excited to have a part in the musical The King and I at a local theatre; Janelle got a part as well, so get to share that together.

On another note, Mom and I are busy talking & sharing about plans for the upcoming celebrations, namely my grad party and my blessing party. In our home at age 13, 18 (which I'll be this summer!!) & before we get married (which is NOT on my agenda right now) we have a time of blessing with our parents and other significant adults who have been people of influence in our lives. My 2nd round of blessing is coming up and besides my dad who will be there at the beginning, it's all women involved.

I plan to make it very feminine and full of pastels (because I still love the color pink), and am browsing through magazines for ideas. See the pics--either of these might be a style for the invitations. We've already contacted the about 10-13 women who are invited to 'save the date', but haven't sent out formal invites yet. What do you think?

above: the one on the left with the ribbon & twigs?

below: this one in pastels?

The blessing party is at the end of June & will be in our home, so I'm also thinking of decorating some with florals....we thought this was a cool idea to do around the ceiling, except that the word would NOT be 'fairy'!!

Well, it's time to make up our minds Mom says! So, I need to figure all that out.

My parents are also letting me have a drop-in party for friends at the end of May (volleyball, outdoor games, FOOD, and such), AND a brunch for our family members that come for the actual graduation event on June 5th. THREE special times of celebration...yeah!

So, instead of blogging--let me get to my party planning. See ya!

Time to Plant!

2008-04-28T14:42:00.002-04:00

Both children are SO excited to get these into pots! We'll keep updating.

Spring Science

2008-04-21T10:09:00.007-04:00

Since the talk around our home is about gardening, we thought it would be a good idea to post some of our favorite books on the topic! These have been checked out of the library, so hint, hint grandparents--we don't own them and would love to! No pressure or anything.

Roots Shoots Buckets & Boots ~ a great book on gardening together with our parents! Fun and informative as well. We really like this one.

Up, Down, and Around ~ wonderful for preschoolers! Here we learned about veggies that grow underground, some that grow above ground and others that grown all around the garden.

The Vegetables We Eat ~ a good source of info on how various veggies are grown and then the process of how they get to our grocery store. We learned much about how botanists catagorize veggies--by the part that we eat: tuber, leaf, stem, bulb, flower bud, root, seed, or fruit.

A Seed is Sleepy ~ this is Mom's personal favorite, you can find her looking through it on her own! This book has gorgeous illustrations and information on seeds and their 'abilities'. Such as...a seed is clever: it knows to seek the sunlight, to push itself up, up, up through the soil.

In all of this talk and reading, Mom has also explained that God planned for seeds to do their job from the very beginning of creation. Isn't that amazing? He made every tree, every plant, every fruit with the ability to make more of itself. That way, He wouldn't have to keep speaking words of creation every time we needed more fruit or another tree somewhere. In one word, He planned for it to go on, and on, and on....Wow! How super-duper intelligent of God!!

Oh, one more book: One Bean, which inspired this project:

We're growing beans! A bean is a seed that we can eat; and we started it off by placing two between wet paper towels. Their hard skin will get soft and wrinkly and begin to sprout. We'll update as we go along!

Boyhood

2008-04-18T16:51:00.009-04:00

exploring, seeking, playing, finding...water, sunshine, tall grasses & rocks.

and one little boy enjoying it all.

Jordyn, The Domestic Diva

2008-04-16T16:05:00.004-04:00

I love to help Mom out and am often on the lookout for ways to get involved around the house. I especially enjoy cooking. Fortunately, Mama doesn't mind me slowing her down with my numerous questions--yeah!

More recently, I asked to learn embroidery. Mom is working slowly at teaching herself and it seems interesting to me. So off we went to get some sturdy burlap material and a tapestry needle (it's pretty blunt); I chose my thread from Mom's stash and voila! Lots of fun going on.

idea of how to teach children embroidery from The Creative Family

Hello Again!

2008-04-16T15:38:00.006-04:00

We're back after an intentional break! Let's try several little posts about what's been going on instead of one really way-too-long one, shall we?

First, Janelle's show was GREAT! She did an excellent job throughout all 12 performances and has fallen in 'love' with acting, singing and all that jazz. If you enjoyed Schoolhouse Rock from the 70s and 80s, you would have loved the show--75 kids singing their hearts out to the famous 'Conjunction Junction', 'Interjections!' and many others. A favorite in our home, 'Just a Bill', is pictured below.

See her? Janelle is one of the many grumpy 'bills' stuck in committee!

Oh, yeah! Now they've been made into a law!

Confused? Well, check out the original Schoolhouse Rock cartoon & see how a bill becomes a law.

The theatre was wonderful to work with and made the job easy for parents. In the last few weeks, we heard about another audition and yes....Janelle AND Jackie decided to go for it. They both got cast into The King and I for this July! Exciting all around! We're looking forward to playing around with the face makeup needed to play the Asian parts. And, we've rented the original 1956 musical so that they can learn the songs. More on that as it develops!

The Week in Review

2008-03-28T19:13:00.008-04:00

Hello all,

We've been working this week at catching up some on academics since being sick for a long time earlier this month had us off track. Now that we're definitely healthy, Mom has instituted BOOK camp (very similar to boot camp!).

I (Janelle) finished my Math curriculum this week and am taking a break before starting the next one. I've improved quite a bit in my accuracy and in following directions! Before, I usually just jumped in and started my work without giving much thought to what they were actually asking me to do {hehe}. Seriously not okay with my mother. I've read several books in the last two weeks and also worked through lots of reading comprehension & thinking skills exercises in my language curriculum. Yesterday I wrote a Spring acrostic poem. Want to hear it? Of course you do:

Beautiful things sitting on trees

Unravel a story to no one told

Dipped into beauty, they hold a

Secret we will soon see.

Alongside of academics I've had rehearsals this week for the show I'm in at a local theatre. Opening weekend is coming up! I'm nervous, excited and ready all at the same time. Oh, and achievement testing is on Monday...but who wants to talk about that?

Alright, I (Jordyn) have been busy as well. Mom and I are working on basic phonics and reading now that my interest has resurfaced. I'm really enjoying my Word Whammer and also a reading site that Mommy found to reinforce what we learning. I finished Psalm 27 and am starting on Psalm 8. Of course, Mom reads to me daily. Other than that I keep myself occupied with building things, which I LOVE to do! Blocks, Legos, K'Nex, Lincoln logs or items around the house such as straws, plastic cups & masking tape and such are all tools for me to use. Oh, and I work on writing skills, which is not my favorite at all so I don't have much to say there.

Why am I left at the end?? I (King Josiah) would rather be first next time. I've been up to...well, let me just show you what I've been doing:

Who spilled those Cheerios on the floor?

Oh yeah.......ME!! Guess I better go and help clean up.

Jackie will post her own senior update in a while so stay tuned!

Psalm 27

2008-03-26T14:12:00.004-04:00

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Early in their lives, we chose a few scriptures for each of our children that we felt would be a life verse or vision for them. For Jordyn, the verses come from Psalm 27; here she is reciting what we chose and proclaimed over her life before she was born. If you missed her memorization of Psalm 100, click here.

Rosetta Stone Giveaway!!

2008-03-24T18:30:00.003-04:00

For others who read besides grandparents :o), go and enter in the contest to win a FREE Rosetta Stone Homeschool Version 3 Language Program!

Here are details:

Rosetta Stone has been the #1 foreign language curriculum among homeschoolers for a while -- next week they are unleashing a brand new curriculum, and you can WIN the *all new* Rosetta Stone Homeschool Version 3… FOR FREE!
This is a $219 program (and believe me it's worth every penny!) and the winner gets to pick from any of these 14 languages: Spanish (Spain or Latin America), English (American or British), Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Irish, Hebrew, or Russian.
This will also include a headset with microphone, and students will participate in lifelike conversations and actually produce language to advance through the program. Rosetta Stone still incorporates listening, reading and writing as well, in addition to speaking. Many homeschoolers requested grammar and vocabulary exercises, and with Rosetta Stone Homeschool Version 3, they're included! For parents, the new Parent Administrative Tools are integrated into the program and allow parents to easily enroll students in any of 12 predetermined lesson plans, monitor student progress, and view and print reports.

To win this most excellent program -- in the language of your choice -- copy these (blue) paragraphs and post it in (or as) your next blog post -- then to enter the contest, go to the original contest page HERE: http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/JenIG/501132/ and leave a comment with the link showing where you blogged about it. And please make sure the link works to get back to the original contest page when you post it. And good luck! The winner will be picked randomly on March 26, and will be notified thru the link they left to their blog pg. And if you have more than one blog, you can post them and enter those separately for more chances to win. Yay for free stuff!

Thank You!

2008-03-22T14:01:00.006-04:00

Thanks Nana and Grandad for the Easter treats! We really like Beatrix Potter's books and characters, so the animals will be fun to use when retelling the stories. And of course, the candy was a good idea too!

Egyptian Masks

2008-03-22T02:25:00.006-04:00

Instructions here. Warning: our mother decided after this project that she did not enjoy paper mache. We, on the other hand, relished it from start to finish.

Arts and Crafts

2008-03-13T12:54:00.003-04:00

We've been enjoying some great arts and craft projects around here. But, before the pictures come, we'll pass on a few sites that have been wonderful for getting the creative juices flowing!

Elementary Art lesson plans

DLTK's various sites: this is the main site, but look on the right hand side for links to other sites. Bible craft projects and free coloring pages included.

KinderArt: you name it, they have it. sculpture, printmaking, mosaics, multicultural, etc. loads of info and links here.

Those are some good places to get started. We'll post some pictures soon!

Party Time!!

2008-03-10T13:36:00.004-04:00

It's Party Time over at Five Minutes for Moms! And our Mama is joining on in, so I guess that means we are too. Well, we are her four kiddos and you can read some about our activities and homeschooling adventures here at this site. Sometimes Mom will post creative ideas or notes & thoughts on various curriculum, books, etc. But, mostly it's just a place to record the stuff that's going on and to keep grandparents and family up to date! Because, that's important.

Let us know you've visited and happy party!

Sweet Moments...

2008-03-07T09:35:00.001-05:00

Josiah's First Delivery

2008-03-07T09:20:00.006-05:00

Hello everybody! Josiah here to talk about my very first delivery from the local flower shop. But, I didn't get flowers....I got FRUIT! This inspired me to begin eating fruit again, much to Mommy's delight. I even took a bite out of each apple while no one was looking; I needed to see which one tasted the best.

The card read "Sorry to hear that you are sick. Hope these fruits make you feel better. Share some with your sisters. Love Grandad and Nana."

Thank you Nana and Grandad!

100 Days!

2008-03-07T09:02:00.006-05:00

Well, plus a few more...about two weeks ago, I (Jordyn) celebrated the finishing of my number line to the 100th day of school! We celebrated with several activities including counting out 100 legos to build something and filling a hundred board with Fruity Cheerios. My brother happily ate while I worked.

Mommy asked me what I would buy with $100.00 and I answered: "If I had 100.00, I would have it. Then I would buy 15 plates. Then I would put the rest of the money in my purse to keep." Sounds like a good plan, right?

Then Mommy asked if I could have 100 of anything, what would I like. I answered: "I would like 100 cards so I could write to Nana and Grandad and Mimi and Popi."

Psalm 97

2008-03-07T08:57:00.003-05:00

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Get your NIV out and follow along! She did a wonderful job. The assignment was to do a dramatic reading of a Psalm that spoke of the power, glory and majesty of our God.

Finally!

2008-03-03T14:49:00.001-05:00

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The girls finally had enough good weather to pull out the goodies from the garage! Come on Spring!

Celebrations!

2008-02-20T21:55:00.006-05:00

This month has been one event after the other and we seem to keep stopping to take notice of special happenings around us. In February:

Groundhog Day (okay, we didn't do much, but it is a PA tradition)
Superbowl--and we're not even football fans!
Super Tuesday
Jordyn's 5th Birthday
Valentine's Day
President's Day
Total Eclipse of the Moon--did you catch it tonight?
100th Day of School
Black History Month
Leap Year
Mom & Dad's Anniversary

And that's not counting the things that we don't really participate in much like Mardi Gras, Chinese New Year, the start of Lent....wow! All of these events make for some fun learning as we discover the who, what, and why behind the celebrations. We kind of need to get back on track with our regular academics {ahem!}.

Valentines for Others

2008-02-14T17:14:00.006-05:00

Last week our church homeschool group got together to make valentines and enjoy a little party. Instead of thinking of those in our family or close friends, we took on the project of assembling cards for the residents in a local nursing home. With a list of names in hand, the children were able to address the cards specifically to a person in the home. We also included scripture verses that had a reminder of God's love. Today was the scheduled date of delivery, but too many of us were sick! The cards were dropped off and then distributed, unfortunately not by us though. Another time!

Pinkalicious!

2008-02-11T16:31:00.000-05:00

Another birthday in our household~~Jordyn is FIVE! Since her favorite color is pink and she likes cakes and sweets (much to Mama's dismay), we decided to focus the theme on the book Pinkalicious. A sweet story of a girl who eats too many pink cupcakes and finally figures out the remedy to turning herself pink. See the website for pink party ideas!

We got away with another 'family only' party, most likely the last one. Jordyn had fun making cupcakes with Nana, shopping for a new bicycle with Mimi and Popi, playing with siblings and her cousin, and enjoying the pink festivities, especially the cupcakes! Happy Birthday little girl!

Mommy and Me Class

2008-02-06T20:59:00.000-05:00

So I've guess you've heard about how I, King Josiah, am getting a little more spunky! I thought that's what I was supposed to be doing? Hmmm....anyway, Mommy and I went to a class for 2 and 3 year olds at our local children's museum. This one was all about colors and I had a very good time.

Here are some pictures:

we used the colorful fruity cheerios and a red licorice strand to make necklaces; I ate mine before we got home.

dropping & mixing blue, red and yellow water to make new colors!

mixing again with foam paint

playing with rainbow rice

He's Two.

2008-02-05T08:47:00.000-05:00

Josiah is officially two and the powerful will and mindset that often comes with that age is starting to show. By the way, he moved the chair over, climbed up and opened the freezer all by himself! He said he needed some bread.

In the last 2 weeks his thoughts towards things have changed as well:

"I don't like bananas anymore!" This basically has applied to any fruit or veggie he was happily eating in the past year. We now call him the Carbs King. Thus, the need to look for bread?

{sigh}

He still does remain a sweetheart though.....loving to cuddle up with Mama on the couch. The rest of him just has to be taken in stride!

The Value of a Number Line

2008-01-28T13:05:00.000-05:00

No pun intended in the title!

Jordyn has been working on building a number line since the first day of school and she is approaching the 100th day in the month of February! A BIG celebration that we will blog about later. Anyway, each month has its own figure which usually matches the seasonal theme of that particular month.

The number line has been an excellent tool in learning a great deal of math concepts. Here are a few that we review often:

:: Number Recognition

:: Counting forwards and backwards

:: Skip Counting (22, 24, 26,....)

:: Number 'Families' (the 10s family, the 20s family, the 30s, etc.)

:: Directional Cues--RIGHT and LEFT

:: The concept of MORE and LESS--when we move to the right, the numbers get bigger, to the left the numbers get smaller; so 65 is more than 41 and 12 is less than 28. Over time, Jordyn has learned to explain this concept on her own.

:: Addition and Subtraction--slowly we have built up to doing simple word problems, verbally of course; example-"find number 45. If you had 45 pieces of candy and Grandaddy sent you two more, how many would you have now?" She now knows to move two spaces to the right and get the answer; or to the left if Mom uses the words 'less or take away'.

:: Understanding that Time is Passing--along with marking a daily calendar, the number line helps to give a visual and more concrete example for understanding the abstract concept of time. Because each month has a different figure, Jordyn is able to to 'see' that September, October, etc. are over and in the past. We can also count how many days of school we had in a particular month by simply counting the Christmas trees, leaves, or whatever.

All of this has been done without pencil and paper. Because Jordyn learns well visually and with hands-on activities, she is having fun and learning so much without feeling overly stressed. Then next year we can begin with some math worksheets and such...but she'll have a HUGE bank of concepts and framework in her mind to 'attach' all of that to!

Next year we may count the school days in the shape of a hundred board. We'll see.

3D Snowflakes

2008-01-28T12:55:00.000-05:00

Try making one yourself, it's fairly easy. (yes, we know there is no such thing as a yellow and blue snowflake, but ran out of white paper! :o)

Two Home Runs!

2008-01-23T15:38:00.000-05:00

I (Janelle) am not even a baseball fan, but just wanted to post about the absolutely GREAT news in my life! First, last Saturday, I participated in the county's 4th/5th grade homeschool spelling bee--and won second place! After 27 rounds of words--ten of those rounds being between the winner and myself--the word 'saucer' finally stumped me a little and I heard the ding of the bell meaning that it was not spelled correctly (If you must know, I inserted an 's' instead of a 'c'). But, let's not focus on what I did wrong....

I won second place! And, I heard that last year the bee ended at round 11, so this was a great showdown.

But that's not all! On the same day, I went to audition at a local theatre for a part in the upcoming show 'Schoolhouse Rock, Jr.' To say that I was nervous is a big understatement, but I had practiced my monologue and song a bunch of times. In I went and at the end, the director told me "Terrific job, Janelle! You will definitely be getting a callback...we'll give you a phone call in a few weeks to explain details of the show."

Y-E-A-H!!

All of the work (which I sometimes complained was boring & hard) of practicing during the fall paid off....woohoo!! I cannot wait to be on stage.

So, there is my supercalifragilisticexpialidocious day! (can YOU spell that without looking?)

Mama D's Musings

2008-01-15T11:42:00.000-05:00

It's been a while since there has been a post about our family mission statement and the driving force behind why we've chosen to base the children's education from home for this season. Well, the primary reason is because we've been doing the work of educating them! But, the real reason is basically...I forgot.

In the fall, I posted about reason number one, and today I want to elaborate on our mission statement--five descriptions that we came up with back in 2003 that seem to give us a goal to attain. We have not perfected it by any means, but we try daily.

Number Two: "We develop our abilities and talents to honor God and help those in need. We will generously share what we have with others."

Not only are we called to experience relationship together as a family and with our Creator, we are called to relationship with those around us. No theologians here, however, if we did a quick scan of the Scriptures, much seems to focus on the fact that mankind is to care for the things (tangible or intangible) given to us. But not only for our own benefit or to make a name for ourselves! To glorify God and to serve others.

As parents we desire that our children first understand that they are gifted--created in the image of a multi-faceted and highly intelligent God. The gifts or talents they've been given are to be nutured so that they can serve and take their place in this slice of history. Any parent knows it is a huge task to discover where our children's abilities seem to flourish and to provide ways to ignite that fire.

So...we have them at home for a little longer than the 'norm'. Here we can take more time to observe, make note of, take in who they are and the ins and outs of their personalities and potential. With that information in mind, we create opportunities for them to grow in a more holistic way than a classroom might provide. We do not blame the schools, their primary focus is to train children academically. But there is much more to a person than that.

Our family has been entrusted with much. Four beautiful children and the many gifts, talents and abilities among them. Having them at home this season enables us as parents to be much more diligent in allowing them to develop, grow....and become.

Critical Thinking Skills

2008-01-11T10:31:00.000-05:00

Janelle has been using some books that have been SO beneficial in improving her thinking and comprehension skills. The genius behind them is The Critical Thinking Co. and their products span almost every subject range and also every grade level. Janelle has been working through Math Detective, which enhances (and evaluates) her understanding of a math concept. While we work on computation, mental math, etc. with our Saxon curriculum, Math Detective has been excellent in combining reading comprehension with math practice. It's been challenging for Miss Janelle, but she is making progress! We have also enjoyed other products from Critical Thinking: Building Thinking Skills and Punctuation Puzzler. An excellent company and resource overall--highly recommended!

Enjoying Christmas Presents...

2008-01-11T10:21:00.000-05:00

It's all about blocks and books these days for Josiah and Jordyn.

Psalm 100

2008-01-08T12:04:00.001-05:00

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Come on, 2008!!

2007-12-31T14:59:00.001-05:00

Happy New Year to each of you...

Jackie Update

2007-12-18T10:22:00.000-05:00

Hello All!

I haven't written much but that doesn't mean that things are not busy here for me! Senior year is going alright so far and it's becoming more difficult to believe that it's almost half over...my entire high school career is coming to a close. Wow. Along with academics, I still continue to work at my dad's office doing various clerical work. We recently had a move and I now have my OWN desk, computer and phone! Woohoo!! I have definitely moved up in the world. :o) The work is sometimes tedious and um, boring, but I get paid for it so can't complain much there.

This year I also began dancing again, which has been wonderful. Back to the studios and the world of tights, leotards, and all that stuff as I've taken ballet, modern and lyrical jazz classes. Exhilarating! I really enjoy this particular studio because everyone is grouped by ability and not solely by age like other places. Also, they have a dance company that I can audition for this summer; so it all doesn't end senior year as other studios do. All in all, it is a great place to be! And since Janelle and Jordyn take classes as well, we all have something to do together. I enjoy holding mini-classes for them in the basement....well, most of the time.

Here is a pic of me last week at my grandparents. Janelle & I wanted to show off the jackets from Nana & Grandad. Anyway, my last note is about my car. Ahhh, my car. Ooooh, my car. Well, it's not exactly my car yet, but I am buying it from my Mom & Dad. It's a 2005 Silver Honda Civic that I hand-picked this year at a used car lot owned by friends of my parents. I'm saving like crazy and already have put a chunk down, so just a little more to go! Fortunately, my parents have put some into the pot also. (whew!) All in all, life is going smoothly.

Well, that's a quick update...gotta run!

Ready for Carnegie Hall?

2007-12-18T10:16:00.001-05:00

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Feed the Birds

2007-12-17T16:41:00.000-05:00

This is the most we've posted in one day!

But, it seemed important to include a project started and completed in one setting. Sometimes Mom's ideas take a little longer than that. Inspired by this tutorial on Bella Dia's blog, today we made some wild bird treats to hang outside on the tree. We used dental floss instead of upholstery thread and it worked well. Jordyn is slightly upset that no feathered friends have come to feast though the snacks have been hanging for a total of two hours. Be patient, sweetheart.

Today we are Reading...

2007-12-17T09:43:00.001-05:00

Because the girls really enjoyed watching a Wind in the Willows DVD this summer, we decided to check this book out of the library for a cuddle-up-on-the-couch-with-Mom read aloud.

The illustrations are beautiful and we have paused to study each one just a wee bit more than usual--they're so detailed. The adventures of Rat and Mole and the return to making Mole End a home again will keep us cuddled up today for quite a while. It's a wonderful story of friendship and the celebration of the Christmas season.

Home Again

2007-12-17T09:26:00.000-05:00

What a wonderful whirlwind trip to CT we all had! The children were of course very excited to meet their new cousin and visit with grandparents. Food...fun...and the falling of snow! Almost twelve inches of 'cold, cold' as Josiah calls it, but the next day was fine for travel.

We celebrated Christmas and Jordyn and Josiah came home with these rocking chair treats as a present from Grandad and Nana. Grandad couldn't resist he says. :o) Getting them into the van was a challenge, but worth the 'trouble'.

Mom set up the chairs, a table full of books and felt nativity pieces in the family room. The new 'book nook' has been very appreciated and used constantly. Thank you Nana and Grandad!

Slowing Down

2007-12-11T22:44:00.000-05:00

Tis the season to slow down our school work and focus more on spending some extra time on the celebrations of the month. Right now, we are keeping up with our language and math studies through next week but the other subjects will pick back up in January. Fortunately, we've wrapped up certain projects....like the frog dissection. :o)

Along with academics, Janelle has been busy practicing monologues and songs for 2008 auditions at local theatres. The soccer champ turned drama queen hopes to get a spot in either 'Charlotte's Web', 'Schoolhouse Rock' or many of the other children's musicals in the area. But, this is all about to pause for a few weeks as well. Jordyn is beginning to read 3-letter words! We're working in a relaxed way on some basic phonics, and she is doing well. Her attention span has grown this year, so that's a big contributor to her success.

Being indoors more has got all of the children in antsy and funky moods. We don't mind the cold, it's the rain and muddy ground that has us using the basement as a playground as well as learning area. Oh well, par for the course....

As part of our celebration, each evening (or thereabouts) we pause for an Advent focus. This year we've decided to use the Proclamation Ornaments instead of doing a nightly story reading. Usually we try to add some singing since it adds to the activity and keeps Josiah interested! So far, so good. We'll see how it goes until Christmas morning.

Over the mountain & through the woods

2007-12-11T22:12:00.000-05:00

Yeah! The perfect Christmas tree has finally been found!! This year we all chose quickly (maybe because of the cold?). The kids enjoyed the adventure overall; it definitely makes a difference that there are more opinions this year!

I think they enjoyed the free hot chocolate even more?

After a day of drying and hanging, the decorating began in full swing. Mom mostly took pictures, Dad gave overall supervision and the girls did the bulk of the work. Josiah roamed from room to room disappearing with certain items and reappearing again.

The final result...

Remembering December 2, 2005...

2007-12-03T10:19:00.000-05:00

It was a beautiful day when we welcomed you into the world baby boy. All nine pounds, nine ounces of you was a precious gift we all waited eagerly for. Happy 2nd Birthday!

We're Back...

2007-12-03T09:23:00.000-05:00

Yes, we're still here dear faithful blog readers! The end of November was full with our school projects and also just family activities and the like. One thing we enjoyed was what Mom labeled The Great Pumpkin Project! Lots of math as we predicted, estimated and counted the actual number of seeds, did mental calculations, skip counted, etc. Jordyn's predicted 7, Janelle 50, and Mom 150. After cutting the pumpkin open and looking inside, we estimated based off what we could see. Jordyn changed hers to 100 ("no more than that!"), Janelle 150 and Mom to a possible 300. Well, the actual count was FIVE HUNDRED NINETY-NINE! No, we didn't count from 1...599, but rather placed the seeds in groups of ten and went from there. The pumpkin then got baked and the insides are to be used for a pie at some point. Jordyn also explored how a pumpkin grows as we read about the seasons of a patch and she learned that other seeds can be eaten besides pumpkin--she was excited about that! All in all, it was a fun project! Now, on to Christmas...:o)

We're moving along....

2007-11-15T15:23:00.001-05:00

It's day number 46! Janelle has a few more days logged than that since she began over the summer, but Jordyn is excited that her number line is growing l-o-n-g-e-r!

My Gacko

2007-11-15T14:58:00.000-05:00

I LOVE my Gacko (aka 'my jacket')! Everyday I ask Mommy to get it for me so that I can go outside. Sometimes I cannot go out, but that doesn't matter, I wear my gacko anyway! It's especially handy if I need to stuff extra bits of breakfast or lunch into the pockets. Gackos are wonderful--you can wipe your nose on it, stuff animals in it, unzip it and ask Mommy to rezip it several times a day, and a bunch of other things. Though I have several gackos around, this one is my favorite because it's soft on the inside. If Mommy would let me wear it to nap, I would! But that's not happening she says. Oh, well...when I wake up the gacko goes back on anyway. Do you have a favorite gacko too?

He Speaks!

2007-11-08T15:46:00.000-05:00

Josiah said his first 3 word sentence recently. At almost two years old, he has an abundance of words and while he's been stringing two of them together for a bit, he's decided to expand his skills.

What was this flash of brilliance worthy of blogging?

"I NEED THAT!"

Need I say more?

Stories of our Faith

2007-11-05T09:46:00.000-05:00

Wanting to focus some on the history of Christianity, last week we took time to read a story of courageous action in the life of Martin Luther. After listening to Mom read an excerpt from the book Trial and Triumph, the girls chose to act out the story of the posting of his 95 Theses on October 31, 1517. Jordyn was a poor woman buying indulgences and Janelle represented the church council. Dear Mom was Martin Luther ("because you know the story best Mommy"). Scenes switched as we rehearsed the ripple effect of one man's questioning and searching. We became the printers who spread copies of the theses throughout Germany and Europe; then we were the ones who threatened Martin not to speak out. Finally, we acted out the common German people who were happy to receive the Bible in their own language after Luther had translated it for them.

After the hulabaloo of costume changes and such, we took time to remember examples from the life of Jesus....another courageous man who defied the empty religious practices of his day to bring hope to others. We prayed for courage and strength for ourselves, that we too would not simply point others towards outward practices, but toward relationship with a real God.

Our time ended with a rousing rendition of one of Luther's hymns, "A Mighty Fortress is Our God". Janelle led by playing the melody line on the piano, Jordyn pranced & danced around, and Josiah tried to be heard above the music as he yelled for someone to get him his sippy cup.

It was a beautiful time. :o)

The Girl, The Grasshopper and The Owl

2007-11-05T08:48:00.000-05:00

No, this not the title of an Aesop fable. It's the pictoral adventure of one young girl who loves science! We didn't catch the specimens ourselves :o), but ordered a dissection kit from Home Science Tools which included a frog, an earthworm and a grasshopper. Thinking it would be a good idea to do a 'dry' dissection, we worked on the owl pellet kit as well. Very interesting! And owl swallows its prey whole and regurgitates a pellet containing all of the bones.

Here are a few pics of the dissections Janelle has worked on so far:

taking a look at the owl pellet...

separating out the bones...

and the grasshopper...

(Jordyn suggested that we not show close up pictures because 'it might make people sick').

Have you missed us?

2007-10-29T16:28:00.001-04:00

Sorry that we have not been updating as much, we've been busy! Enjoying the outdoors mainly and taking time to play in the fresh air before the weather gets too cold for long stretches of time outside.

Quick notes about what's happening in school~
Our new curriculum came in for Bible and History! Mom and Janelle are beginning this week to dig into The Mystery Of History Volume II. We'll be enlightened about events, people and places from early church history through the Middle Ages. Look for us to comment about this in the future.

As part of some music appreciation, today we listened to a recording of the Moonlight Sonata by Beethoven and the girls had various responses. Jordyn asked why it was so sad and declared that we should listen to happier music. Janelle said "this song grips me". She went on to describe that the song seemed happy and sad all at the same time. That the happiness tried to rise above the sadness, but got swallowed back in. Excellent work Janelle! The sonata was written after Beethoven had witnessed the passing of a friend and it definitely has an overall somber tone.

Jordyn has almost completed memorizing Psalm 100 and is quite proud of herself. Janelle began working on John chapter 1 today. We'll try and record soon and pass this along! First, Mom has to learn how to do it. :o)

later everyone!

Just some pics

2007-10-22T14:13:00.001-04:00

Simply Science

2007-10-11T14:37:00.000-04:00

Okay, Janelle reporting here. I am here to tell you that I LOVE Science!! Mostly life science and anything having to do with the human body. Well, after almost a year of begging.....(drum roll please)....I have finally convinced my mother to let me dissect a frog! YES! I am so very, very excited you would think it was my birthday all over again. We ordered it this week, so it will be several more days for me to painfully wait. Mom says I should work on my skill of observation before then, so here is a simple project I completed.

If you take 3 apple pieces and place one in water, one in hydrogen peroxide, and one in white vinegar, what changes will occur after 1 minute? After 5 minutes? After 10 minutes?

Mom made me a chart to record my data. First, I made observations about the liquids. For example, they are all colorless. Can you think of others?

Then, I wrote a hypothesis for each of the three. You do remember what a hypothesis is, correct?

Then, with timer in hand and some help from Mom, the apples got dropped in as I kept a vigilent watch for any particular changes. One minute.....5 minutes....(nothing much happening, except the peroxide making sizzling sounds and bubbles around the apple).

Ten minutes....well, still no significant change for the water or vinegar solutions. Peroxide still bubbling. I guess some experiments are like that. Anyway, lastly I recorded all my observation on the chart and called it a day. I wonder if the apples changed in smell? Hmmm....

While I worked, Jordyn used an apple to paint.....

....and Josiah surveyed his kingdom.

Mama D's Musings

2007-10-03T00:19:00.000-04:00

I thought it would be good to add my comments, musings or thoughts at random points throughout this blog. I have been so pleased with the start of our school year and am still basking in the 'glory' of fresh new days. This is partly due to our new basement and s-p-a-c-e to spread out, but today I realized it may have to do with the fact that I am more in tune as to why we homeschool.
On the first day, I processed this with the girls: 'why do we homeschool?' Their responses were funny and even impressive! But, I finally explained in words they understood. We have them home with us during this season of their lives because we want them to be instructed in our family's mission. They can receive an adequate or even superior academic foundation elsewhere, though we are committed to this as well. However, no institution can take ample time to teach our children some of the values we hold dear--or even if they did, it may not be with the same emphasis or passion.
So, what is this mission you may ask? In 2003, we adopted as a family (at least those who were speaking members then!) what we call our 'mission statement'--or purpose statement if you will. Five simple statements that we have felt sum up why the six of us are under the same roof---a LOT. I'll introduce them one at a time here and there along the way.

Number One: "We enjoy relationship with God and with one another. We love to laugh, talk & share, play, worship, work and have fun together."

Life is primarily about relationships. Period.

Yes, I guess it's important to know about Socrates, the dates of the American Revolution or how to calculate the area of a shape....but we strongly believe that our children also need time to build solid relationships. First, with their Creator God and alongside of this we emphasize that He divinely placed them in the context of a family to learn about relationships here on earth. Yes, we do branch out and encourage them to build friendships and associations outside of our family--but it all starts here. And home is at times the hardest place to put into practice the very aspects needed for great relationships: trust, loyalty, kindness, service...and the list could go on. We want to take not just small snippets of time, but huge chunks and large blocks of time to instruct them that real, rich and robust relationships with a holy God and with those in their family are BIG. It's the glue that kind of pulls the other pieces of life together I think. We don't always get it right, but we know enough to make it a priority.

So, there you have it. This, my friends, is the first reason as to why we base our children's education from home.

An Apple a Day...by Jordyn and Josiah

2007-09-27T16:20:00.001-04:00

It's Friday!

2007-09-21T21:01:00.000-04:00

This is Jordyn reporting: It's the end of another week of school. Yes, I know, I know. We haven't had that many. We've all been very busy this week as Janelle began adding more subjects to her schedule and I picked up my routine as well. Mom did say we were going to get more organized. Anyway, the way I see it, Janelle can give you her own report...so here's mine:

First, let me tell you more about my daily activities. Each morning we come together (we being Mom, Janelle, Josiah and me) to review our scripture of the week, some songs, and to pray. I usually offer to pray. I think it's cool to pray about random things that may not have to do with school at all and Mom once had to cut me a little short. Oh, well. Then Janelle goes off to her independent activities, Josiah goes to play and I work with Mom. We do the calendar, our number line and read, read, read. I really like our number line because we are counting up to the 100th day of school. Today was day 13. And, I love Mom reading to me! I also work on writing my first and last name and reviewing my letter sounds. Eventually I hear they are supposed to combine and make words! Yeah! I cannot wait.

Hmmm...what else? This week we did a science unit on apples, airplanes and archeology. Yes, a-r-c-h-e-o-l-o-g-y. Mom strongly believes in deviating from solely the apples, bears and cat mode of ABCs. Something about children being able to learn so much more if we only offer it to them. She turned out to be right because I enjoyed everything we did. We wrap it up next week, so I'll post pictures then.

Well, I should go to bed. Tonight we went out as a family to play mini golf and I'm pooped. Have a great weekend everyone!

There's a Voice in the Monkey in the Jacuzzi.....

2007-09-18T16:55:00.000-04:00

There is a new game that Mom and Janelle are enjoying. It's called In A Pickle and we're having loads of fun thinking up silly and quite funny connections between words. This had us laughing today and we can't wait to introduce it to Jackie and Dad. It's sure to be a family favorite!

Taking Time to Play

2007-09-17T14:12:00.000-04:00

Ah, warm air and beautiful sunshine make for a perfect day to hang out in the sandbox. Yes, even kings take time to play and enjoy their surroundings!

It's a Fiesta!

2007-09-13T13:59:00.001-04:00

Feliz Cumpleanos to me! That is "Happy Birthday" for those who haven't studied Spanish. My (Janelle) 9th BD slumber party was last weekend and this year I decided on a Mexican Fiesta theme. We had lots of fun doing the Hat dance, swinging at our chili pepper pinata, eating at the taco bar, playing loteria (the Spanish version of lotto), and making clay bead necklaces. One game we did was a relay race where we carried pinto beans on a wooden spoon--talk about hard!

Mom and I made several tissue paper flowers to decorate & then we also cut the bottom of paper cups, & then hung them on some yarn for a garland effect. I was happy with the results and Mom was happy with the price. We stayed up very, very late! Jackie had the 10p.m. to 1 a.m. shift and then we had a mandatory lights out. But of course that didn't keep us from giggling and talking for a little longer. I had friends from church, our homeschool group, and also our neighborhood. A special guest was my mentor friend Crystal. She's in her 20s and married and has been to each of my BD parties since I was 4. I was in her wedding 2yrs ago.

After all my friends left the next morning, I went shopping with Mom to spend gift $$ from my Mimi & Popi (Mom's parents). Whew! Between a party in CT with my Nana & Grandad (yep, Dad's parents) the weekend before and this slumber party, I think I've celebrated my birthday in style!

Introductions

2007-09-11T11:36:00.000-04:00

sweet little old Jackie

Hello folks! I'm the head of the group here at Westgate, though I'm attending another institution of learning at this point. :o) Hooray! for my senior year which consists of a half day of school and a half day of working at my father's office. I'm enjoying the work...ahem, *cough*...well, yes...the money as well. This year a big goal is to dig deep into my language studies--French 4 and Spanish 5. I also recently did an orientation to volunteer at our local crisis pregnancy center. My responsibilities will include helping sort and stack clothes and diapers then also providing childcare while the moms are in class or counseling. Of course I'm always doing something with my family and/or friends!

Janelle

Hi! I'll be quick because I'm much too busy to sit around and blog all day long. But, you'll hear from me often. This is my 3rd year with homeschool and I'm loving it! Outside of academics I enjoy soccer, piano, drama, sewing, ballet and reading, reading, reading. Playing with my siblings and coordinating my social schedule are top priorities. Gotta go...see ya!

It's me, Jordyn!

Hi there readers! I can't wait to be able to be able to read just like you, which is why I insisted that my mother include me into the program at Westgate this year.....it worked and here I am at my little desk. I am having soooo much fun so far and will have to let you know what all is going on around here (I'll tell you the good stuff). I enjoy Mom reading to me, coloring and cutting, play-doh, dressing up, cooking, eating and playing with my brother & sister. Tootles!

King Josiah

Hello everyone. I am King Josiah. And believe it or not, I'm in charge.

That's it, there is no more to say.

Let the School Days Begin!!

2007-09-06T13:48:00.000-04:00

Hooray for the first day of school (yesterday)! We are all very excited about the new schoolroom added to our basement this summer, and so the day was a bit on the wild side as we tried everything out. Mom says we are going to get some routine around here before long. We'll just have to see about that, huh?

Here are some pics of the new room!

our cool setup

We'll post more later....gotta run!