Spring 2013 School Schedule

I just registered the girls for Spring 2013 classes at Friday School.  I am excited that they were able to get into the classes that will help them, and they will enjoy!  Here are their classes for Spring:

Jaden (3rd grade):

Block A: Draw Write Now

Block B: Incredible Edible Bible Fun

Block C: Spanish II

Morgan (1st grade):

Block A: Spanish I

Block B: Incredible Edible Bible Fun

Block C: Historical American Girl

We only have 2 weeks left of Fall Friday School, and then, we will have a 3 month break. 

Our home schooling will continue throughout the break, of course.  We are doing a lot of fun things at home, too... I just have not done well blogging about it. 

Back to School 2012!

Morgan, age 5 (birthday 1/22/07) First Grade 2012-2013 school year

 

Jaden, age 8 (birthday 8/5/04) Third Grade 2012-2013 school year

 

I had to photograph the girls for their Friday School badges, and this is what I got.  Though we do home school all year long, many activities are only available to us during the school year.  We are starting back in all of the school activities.

 

Friday School starts on September 21st, and will be every Friday until the end of November.  Morgan will be taking kindergarten classes there with her friends.  Jaden will be taking Character Traits class, Team Building, and Alphabet Arts.  Their classes were very picked over by the time we got to pick because we took a 2 year break from the cooperative.  Next semester, they will have more choices. 

 

GEMS girls' club starts back up this coming Wednesday.  Morgan is still not old enough to attend, but Jaden will be a part of the group.  She is very excited for it to start,

 

AWANA starts back on September 10th.  Jaden will be in Truth and Training and Morgan will be in Sparkies.  They are both a little anxious to start because their friends will be in the groups younger than them.  Most of Jaden's friends will still be Sparkies and Morgan's friends will still be Cubbies.

 

We are ready to get started with all of these activities.  Looking at the schedule exhausts me, but it will be fun. 

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, Homeschool!

We have had so much fun learning hands on!! (Yes, I said "we" because I am learning almost as much as Morgan and Jaden are!) We have been all over the place, but I haven't been posting- so sorry! I have a lot of catching up to do!

In the beginning, Jaden struggled with seatwork. I say this because even if she sat down to do the work in workbooks and things, she did not retain anything she had learned. I revamped their homeschool experience, and all of us have enjoyed it much more. We are doing hands-on as much as possible. It is wild how when Jaden is doing something at the same time learning is taking place, she can tell me all that I said!!

This picture on this post is from the museum we went to and learned about pioneers. Jaden and Morgan asked the curators all kinds of questions, and I could tell their minds were running a mile a minute.

So, I will be posting shortly about some of our fun adventures in life and homeschool. Stay tuned!!

Mother's Day Crafts at Friday School

On the last day of school, I read books about mothers, and the kids made gifts for their mothers. The girls painted ladybug picture frames and the boys painted snail frames. Then, every one made a bracelet out of beads.

I am going to miss my class, and I know Morgan will, too. All of the children will be moving up to the PreK group this fall. I had the option to teach that group. I was going to instead teach the elementary students... However, after more thought, I have decided that we will sit this next school year out.

Instead of going to Friday school, the girls are going to pick an activity or two of something that they would like to learn to do at the community center. There are all kinds of classes. Morgan really wants to play soccer, so that may be one of her classes. Jaden loves art, so she might have some kind of art class.

Drawing at Friday School

At the Friday School showcase, the drawing teacher displayed 1 drawing of each child. Jaden had one of her practice sheets up. Just like "open house" in public school, all of the kids were proud to show off what they had been doing this semester to their parents, grandparents, etc.

Woodworking at Friday School

The Spring 2010 semester has come to an end, and we went to the Friday School showcase. Jaden got to show off the different items she has made this semester in woodworking. The most fun one is the game above that she made as the very last thing in class. I think she is going to miss this class- Especially since we aren't returning next semester.

Kangaroos

These Kangaroos were part of the show at Sharkarosa. By this time, the group was huge, and we were sardine-packed into the bleachers to watch this.

Camels

The really cool part of Sharkarosa Ranch was the education factor. The people that work with the animals can answer any questions about the animals. I got to introduce the girls to camels, and explain their hump, where they live, etc. It added some fun to the education part.

They had a baby camel walking around (you can see Jaden standing next to him). Morgan wasn't too fond of him because he was loose a free to do whatever he wants- This included trying to eat a stroller, put a baby's hair in his mouth, and sniffing and checking out EVERYTHING! He was just sweet as can be, but a total baby- only 1 1/2 months old!!

Barrel Ride

I took the girls to Sharkarosa Ranch on Homeschool Day. It was PACKED!!! Entrance was only $5 per person (usually $10 per person). Several families in our co-op were supposed to be at the event as well, but we only ran into 2 families that we knew. I am sure other families were there, but there were just so many people it was hard to find specific people.

This barrel ride was a lot of fun. It lasted about 3 minutes- It was the length of the song from Madagascar "I Like to Move it!" The sond played during the whole ride and made all of the kids giggle as they bumped up and down the lumpy road.

More Drawings by Jaden

I love this picture of a lion above. She did a great job!

a car (above) & an office (below)

This one is a little harder to figure out- imagine a window with drapes, and the drapes are pulled back. That would be what she drew. Not bad for a 5 year old (below)

Jaden is learning how to draw different things in drawing class. It has taken her past stick figures, and into a new world of being able to draw anything she puts her mind to.

On another note, I will be video taping her doing a excercise we do in homeschool soon. I got these flash cards from Hooked on Phonics a while back. They break the word down into segments. One set of cards has beginning parts of the word, and the other set of cards has endings. These have been a great way for her to learn to read! She has been surprising me with her reading skills! I will video tape her the next time we do the cards, and you can see for yourself. She is a brilliant child!

The Birds have found Jaden's Feeder!

Friday School- Jaden at Playground Games

Jaden went to jail- at least she had a friend to talk to while she was there... It looks like they were trying to escape.

Jaden was running, in hopes of not being tagged and sent to jail!

Since I teach Morgan's class, I don't usually get to see Jaden's classes at all. However, this semester, the 3 year olds have gotten used to the Friday School routine... The ONLY time when I don't have to be total hands-on is during music class. It lasts 25 minutes. The music teacher has everything under control, so Stacey (class assistant teacher) and I take turns taking a 12 1/2 minute break. I usually go back to the classroom to clean up and getting ready for snack time. These past couple of days, I have snuck around the corner and peered at Jaden's playground games class. I was hoping that she wouldn't discover me because I wanted her to pay attention to the teacher, but by the time she noticed me, she was in jail anyway.

I am planning to teach classes in Jaden's age group next school year, to rotate my love around. I am planning a class on service for others and another class teaching Spanish and Latin American Culture. We'll see how everything shakes out closer to the time, but I did have to go ahead and let the co-op know that we plan to be there next school year and which classes I would like to teach. Stay tuned!

Jaden's Woodworking Class Part 2

Jaden's Woodworking Class Part 1

Jaden's teacher is the man at the end of the table. I think there are at least 4 helper women as well.

Let me explain why Jaden decided to take Woodworking this semester... First, since I am a teacher, my children get first dibs on the classes they want to take. I arrived the day of registration, and signed Jaden up for the 3 classes she requested: Arts and Crafts, Playground Games, and Drawing. They took my money & ran her choices through the system. Everything was fine, and I returned home. Once home, I received a call from the school director that the Arts and Crafts class was already full!!! ("But, she was already in the class", I said) Well,it turns out there was a computer glitch. The class could only take 10 kids. One of the women in front of me has 3 kids herself that got in (so, that is already 1/3 of the class!) Once I did the addition in my head, I figured that probably only the people that opened up the building on registration day were able to get their kids in the class.

I wasn't angry, but I wasn't sure what class to put Jaden in on that block. When I asked Jaden, she said Woodworking (I was thinking it would probably be too much for her). Both of the class choices were going to cost me additional money. Woodworking would only cost an additional $20. So, Woodworking it was.

Now, let me tell you what I think about it... This has been one of Jaden's favorite classes, and everything she brings home is something terrific she has made with her own hands!! She loves using a hammer, and the teacher is really patient with all of the kids. There are lots of helpers to help all of them. This thing they made this time is a marshmallow shooter! Cool!