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Learning Notes Week of March 16

Learning Notes Week of March 16

Sophie got beautiful make your own jewelry from Grandma B, colorful ribbons and silver charms. Stretching out the birthday!
Sophie got beautiful make your own jewelry from Grandma B, colorful ribbons and silver charms. Stretching out the birthday!
Sophie's new ribbon jewelry works as hair ties too!
Sophie’s new ribbon jewelry works as hair ties too!

Monday March 16

Sophie did her math and copy work before breakfast was over. She read me a silly library book about a kid who retires and goes to Florida.

After breakfast Bella put away the laundry that was in the dryer, put dirty clothes into the washer and started it, did her school work, wiped down the bathroom counter, started vacuuming the living room, and then unloaded the dishwasher all but the stuff that goes into cupboards she couldn’t reach! All unprompted.

Then because she’d started it, I finished vacuuming the living room, and the decluttered and tidied it, throwing away a lot of paper. I also vacuumed the office and laundry room, did several more loads of laundry, even folded the towels and put them away. I told her there was no way I’d have got any of that done if she hadn’t jump started the process. What a surprise and delight my sweet Bella is.

Somewhere in there Bella also read me the Mary Cassatt board book.

Afternoon stories: Friendly Gables, Little House in the Clearing, Calico Bush.

They watched the first half of Much Ado about Nothing.

Clean living room, with Lucy
Clean living room, with Lucy
Clean living room, tidy shoes
Clean living room, tidy shoes

Tuesday March 17

Sophie got her math and reading done before breakfast except for two math problems that Bella helped her with. Sophie read me a library book, Old Bear and Little Cub.

Bella got mad that Sophie was playing while she still had to work. We had a talk about how much more work and less play she’d be having at school. But I decided that maybe we should have a rule that everyone has table time until everyone else’s school work is done. No games until everyone is finished. Bella did a line or two of copy work, a page of math, and a page of spelling.

Then the kids played school for the rest of the morning, taking turns being teachers and students.

I think Ben did some copying of letters on his own. No math, though.

Sophie read almost all of Horton Hears a Who to Bella and Ben.

The kids watched the second half of Much Ado about Nothing.

Afternoon stories: Friendly Gables, Little House in the Clearing, in Story of the World a chapter about China.

Lucy got a book of her very own, from her godparents for her baptism day.
Lucy got a book of her very own, from her godparents for her baptism day.
Baptism day cupcakes
Baptism day cupcakes
Soda bread or monster?
Soda bread or monster?
Teacher Bella
Teacher Bella
Playing school with Teacher Bella
Playing school with Teacher Bella
Playing school
Playing school

Wednesday March 18

Sophie was up and doing her school work before Dom even got in the shower. She did two pages of copywork and a page of math.

Bella waited until after breakfast and brought her books into my room to do work. I spent the morning in bed, feeling sick. She finished yesterday’s copywork and did a page of math, counting by fours. I was pleased that she was practicing counting by fours at bedtime, so the lesson definitely stayed with her. She’s hit a point where she’s done all the easy addition and subtraction and multiplication in the Miquon book and doesn’t know how to do the remaining pages. So I told her I was going to have to do more teaching, it was going to be more new concepts. She was nervous, but today’s lesson went so well that I think it dispelled some of that. Bella read me a board book.

I think Ben did some letter tracing too.

Afternoon stories: Friendly Gables, Little House in the Clearing, Calico Bush.

They watched an episode of Planet Ocean.

Before dinner they were discussing all the things they’ve learned from Blue Planet and Planet Ocean. All the misconceptions they had about fish and sharks and whales and dolphins and coral. They really enjoy both series. They love documentaries in general. I laughed because one of the complaints of the little boy in a library book we have out now is how much he hates long documentaries.

Thursday March 19

Grocery store day. No morning work. And I was making stuffed shells for a special feast day dinner, so that cut short our reading time too. Bella got up late, she said she’d been in her bed reading Friendly Gables. She’s really gaining in confidence, eager to tackle chapter books, to dive in and immerse herself in her favorite stories.

Afternoon stories: We finished Friendly Gables. Sad to leave the Mitchells behind. One of those series you wish could go on and on. Why did it have to stop? What happened next? Read a library book about bears, a picture book about Kubla Khan. Bella really liked the Kubla Khan book. She was especially captivated by the bit at the end that talked about Marco Polo and how impressed he was with Kubla Khan’s court and how he immortalized his visit in his book and how that book later inspired Columbus. Bella recounted that part of the story later, she’d very much fired up when she can see historical connections. So very excited.

We talked about what to read next now that Friendly Gables is done. We seem to be in a pattern where we’ve got one novel, one Little House book, plus a saint biography ongoing and then history and other books.

Friday March 20

I woke to the sound of Ben shouting: “Deer! Deer! I see deer!” There were indeed several deer wandering the neighborhood.

Sophie did some math and copywork. At least I think she did copywork. Bella definitely did both copywork and math, a page about multiplication grouping dots in a grid.

Then we headed to the MFA for a homeschooling art class. But that I wrote up as a separate entry.

Ben strikes a pose, doing a pretty good imitation of Dante
Ben strikes a pose, doing a pretty good imitation of Dante
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6 comments
    • I wish I had wall space for a bigger one. I wish I had a huge, huge one. I hate having to erase spelling to do math, to erase half a phonics lesson to fit on the other half. I think they’d study it more if I left it up for longer. But it is cute.

  • Hi Melanie,
    The Royal Shakespeare Company have just had a season performing Love’s Labour Lost and Much Ado About Nothing which they have named Love’s Labour Found. The movies of the live performances are being screened around the world at the moment. I think there is a Boston screening in April. http://www.edgeprovidence.com//nightlife/local_events/news//172060/the_rsc's_'love's_labors_lost'_&_'won'_screened_in_boston
    I’ve just been doing the Much Ado About Nothing MOOC with FutureLearn. It is the last week of a four week course this week if you wanted to join.
    Loved reading about your day at the MFA. We’re coming to Boston in June so I hope to get there myself!

    • Very interesting about the screening. Right now we seem to be making a muddle of actually getting to screenings and are relying on dvds being released eventually.

      I’m a little wary about Shakespeare set in more modern setting for the little ones. I sort of feel that they should encounter it in a more traditional setting first and then see adaptations later on when they know the original material and can understand the ideas behind the adaptation. So to really get the 1914 and 1916 settings, they’d have to understand the modern period as well as the Shakespeare plays. I think adaptations might be better suited for high school students. But I’m really tempted to sneak out and see it anyway because I do love Shakespeare adaptations myself when they’re well done.

      I keep trying to do MOOCs, but have concluded that I just don’t have the mental space right now. I’ve signed up for three or four but don’t do anything with them. Alas. Maybe at some future date.

    • Yes, more or less. We’re not strictly Charlotte Mason types, but I lean strongly in that direction. Sort of Charlotte Mason-y, unschoolish, classicalish with a deep interest in Montessori. I don’t follow any particular curriculum because I’m much too fond of making it up as I go along.

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