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Learning Notes Week of August 23

Learning Notes Week of August 23

The royal court.
The royal court.

Sunday August 23

I played Scrabble with Mom and a simultaneous game of War with Sophie. A rather perfect combination since I find War deadly dull and Scrabble has longish bits of waiting.

Allergy-friendly  chocolate chip pancakes for Lucy.
Allergy-friendly chocolate chip pancakes for Lucy.
Cupcakes for Saint Rose's feast day. Lucia Rose is sharing her cupcake with her Saint Rose doll.
Cupcakes for Saint Rose’s feast day. Lucia Rose is sharing her cupcake with her Saint Rose doll.

Monday August 24

Sophie and Bella did math and copywork. Sophie, Ben, and Anthony had me help them count their pocket money. Then Sophie Lucy and I went to Target while the others stayed with Grandma and watched Robin Hood and Life of Mammals.

Afternoon stories: Peter Duck, Story of the World— Simon Bolivar and South American revolution from Spain (looked at the atlas to find Venezuela, Argentina, Peru, Colombia, Boliva, etc. Bible stories: Jonah and the story of the fiery furnace. The Tale of Samuel Whiskers or The Roly Poly Pudding by Beatrix Potter.

Bedtime: A Street through Time with Grandma, Space Walk, One Small Square: Coral Reef.

Sophie is a thief who gives to the poor. But not like Robin Hood.
Sophie is a thief who gives to the poor. But not like Robin Hood.

Tuesday August 25

I did read Bella and Sophie today’s Gospel and we discussed it and I read them a reflection on Sunday’s Gospel by St John Paul that I really liked.

The school battle was lost before it even began. Somehow all the kids were outside and playing before I was ready to face the school day. Eventually I got the girls to take their math books and copybooks outside— they did their work in the tree! Actually, I think Bella did her math inside, but the copywork was definitely done in the tree.

I could not get the boys to engage with schoolwork at all. They have a new coloring pad from Grandma and that was far more interesting.

But I did a solid-liquid-gas game with Sophie, Ben and Anthony, so I chalk that up as a science lesson.

Afternoon stories: Peter Duck, My Family and Other Animals.

Sophie read to me a bit from The Angel’s Alphabet.

Bedtime stories: Coral Reef, A Street through Time.

Independent reading: Bella finished More All of a Kind Family, read parts of My Family and Other Animals and The Old Man Mad about Drawing.

Tree-schooling.
Tree-schooling.
Anthony found a mushroom.
Anthony found a mushroom.
"I'm a pirate. I kill people. With my sword."
“I’m a pirate. I kill people. With my sword.”

Wednesday August 26

Sophie and Bella both did copywork, math, cursive. I did words that start with H with Anthony. Ben did his calendar and then Anthony and Ben did ordinal numbers. Then we looked at art postcards, discussed artists’ styles, tried to describe paintings with and without looking at them. And I sketched three of the pictures: a portrait by Goya, one by Renoir, and the Brooklyn Bridge by O’Keeffe. Bella colored in my sketches and hung them on her wall.

Mom read some of the coral reef book to the kids. Bella looked at A Street through time.

Afternoon stories: Peter Duck, two chapters to get us through the hurricane. Bible story: Daniel and the Fiery furnace. I’m working on getting the kids to narrate more: tell me what happened in yesterday’s chapter with Peter Duck. Tell me what happened in yesterday’s story and then again in today’s story for the Bible story. Sophie did a credible job narrating the fiery furnace story, but blanked on Daniel. I think she was distracted. Anthony faltered at first but a little prompting got a good Daniel narration and some good stuff on the fiery furnace too. Bella did a nice summary of Peter Duck. Only Ben really didn’t jump in at all.

Anthony and I read the end of the Creature’s Crusade. He keeps getting confused between receiving the Eucharist and receiving the Holy Spirit.

Hanging out with Grandma.
Hanging out with Grandma.
Bella made a hat for Ben.
Bella made a hat for Ben.

Thursday August 27

Field trip to the Worcester Art Museum

The featured exhibit we saw was Samurai! A playful exhibit that mixed arms and armor with colorful contemporary pop culture re-workings of traditional Japanese themes. Some really fun pieces. After the Samurai exhibit we looked at the hall with arms and armor, most of which was from the Higgins Armory whose collection was bought out by the WAM when the Higgins closed last year. We also wandered through the Egyptian, Chinese, Roman, Greek, and Medieval galleries. We did not visit American or European galleries. Which means we must get back at some point.

We listened to two disks of The Horse and His Boy on the way there and back.

Lucia tries on armor at the Worcester Art Museum.
Lucia tries on armor at the Worcester Art Museum.
Ben and Sophie try on armor at the Worcester Art Museum
Ben and Sophie try on armor at the Worcester Art Museum
Samuria at the Worcester Art Museum. The Great Wave with bunnies was one of Ben's favorites.
Samuria at the Worcester Art Museum. The Great Wave with bunnies was one of Ben’s favorites.
47 Ronin battling sea monsters.
47 Ronin battling sea monsters.

Friday August 28

Library and grocery store.

Sophie did math and copywork and cursive. I think Bella did math and copywork, but I didn’t double check.

Afternoon stories: Peter Duck then a couple of library books. One about Phyllis Wheatley and one about numbers in nature.

Bedtime stories: Calvin and Hobbes.

Bella latched onto a book I got from the library and when I went to check on her after bedtime she was on page 230. Mind you, I got home from the library and the store around noon. She and Sophie were laying in Sophie’s bed together reading it to each other in turns. Then after Sophie fell asleep Bella continued to read on to herself.

Watching a video about sloths.
Watching a video about sloths.
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5 comments
  • Did you make the “You never eat a mushroom you pick in the yard” speech? I am a little neurotic about that one.

    What kind of art postcards do you use?

    • Yes. I make that speech every time. And also, “Go wash your hands after touching it,” for good measure.

      I’ve been collecting postcards for a while. I buy a bunch every time we go to the museum and consider it an educational expense. So we have a bunch from the various special exhibits we’ve seen as well as from the museum’s permanent collection: Audubon, Goya, Renoir, Hokusai. Also, I bought a few postcard books of some of our favorite artists: Van Gogh, Vermeer, O’ Keeffe. I have one of those big photo boxes that I store them in. I should remember to take some pictures and write a blog post about our picture study box.

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