Homeschooling: Silent Reading

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I'm going to spend a bit of time explaining some of the aspects of our homeschooling day, and here's the first one I'm tackling - Silent Reading.

If you look at my learning notes, you'll see that the 9yo and the 7yo both do 30 timed minutes of Silent Reading.  So, there's a few reasons for this.

1)  Reading aloud is a child's natural default, and reading in your head is a learned skill.  On par with mental math, as a comparision.  To get better at a skill, you need consistent practice.  After years of reading silently, the 9yo can read, and retain, information without saying it out loud under his breathe.  The 7yo is nearly there.  They are much more confident in this skill than they used to be, but it takes effort.  In our case, daily effort.

2)  I try to put the 30 minutes of timed reading in the middle of the day, or quite close to the end.  It's intentional, actually; my kids are pretty easily overwhelmed and a little introverted, and they need a little break from each other and from talking.  This gives them a breather, or at the end of the day, a simple, timed task that they can finish up the school day with when their brains are tired.

3)  For Silent Timed Reading I don't make any demands at all or even suggestions beyond "Did you want to finish this book?" or "Well, what were you reading before?".  This is essentially a portion of their day that is totally their choice and completely up to them.  All I ask is that they read.  I like to think this feeling of independence and choice is good for them.  Usually they make good decisions, and sometimes they don't, and both of those are fine.  You wanna read cupcake recipes?  Okay then.

4)  Finally, throughout the day I need breaks myself to either prepare the next lesson, or handle a child's questions, or even just take a break and make a cup of tea or return a phone call.  It's not like time stops when school is on.  Scheduling little breaks in the day when I can have a minute to not be teaching is invaluable to me, but if I give the kids a 'recess' then they have a tendency to run off and get involved in an activity that derails the whole day.  Rather than deal with tearing people away from Lego, I just don't stop school, I switch to an independent lesson, like Silent Reading.

Learning Notes - Week 1 (August 26-31)

Week One of School is done!  I kept Learning Notes so that I could show how I attempted, with some success, to slowly start intergrating more information instead of my usual method of "here's all the stuff you need to do all at once!  Why are we all crying?!"

Monday

Prayer, singing the doxology.

Our Bible reading was Mark 1:1-3 with a discussion of the role of a herald.

The 9yo read the first section of Ten Boys Who Made A Difference, introducing us to the boy Augustine of Hippo.  The 7yo read us the first section of Ten Girls Who Used Their Talents, and began the story of Anne Lawson, a modern day aircraft mechanic with Mission Aviation Fellowship in Tanzania.  Both of these books, and in fact the entire series, are written by Irene Howat.

We reviewed days of the week and months of the year for memory work.  The 7yo had her piano practice and then her lesson.

We read section one of SOTW 2 - reviewing the Romans and where their empire stretched.  We looked at the map that was in the book and also at this:

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The children set the stove timer and read for 30 minutes on books of their choice.

Tuesday

Morning Time:  Prayer, singing the doxology.

Mark 1:4,5 - we talked about baptism and the Jordan river.

SOTW 2 - we finished chapter one and the review about Romans and began our timeline with the division of the Roman Empire in 286 AD.

The 9yo continued reading to us about Augustine, and in this case his brush with death as a young child and how it made him want to get baptized, which he later changed his mind about.  That tied in nicely with our gospel reading of the morning.  The 7yo read another section of the biography of Anne Lawson.

We reviewed days of the week and months of the year and added in the first line of The Lord's Prayer "Our Father, who art in heaven".  The 9yo got to remember the first book of the Old Testament - Genesis.

The 7yo started learning to knit with two needles and the 5yo how to knit using a circular knitting loom.  Like this:

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We went to the library and picked up this graphic novel:

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The 9yo finished it in a few hours.

Both the 7yo and 5yo worked on their knitting.

Wednesday

Prayer, singing doxology

We read Mark 1:6-8 and discussed poverty, John's attire and food, and how he felt about his mission.

The 9yo read to us about Augustine growing up and discovering how he felt unfulfilled by the material goods and status he had acquired.  The 7yo read to us about Anne Lawson's childhood.

We reviewed days of the week, months of the year, the first line of The Lord's Prayer, and the 9yo added Exodus to his memory work on the 39 books of the Old Testament.

We read the first section of chapter one in SOTW 2 and introduced the Celts.  I pulled out the large world map and we reviewed the extent of the Roman Empire and looked at where the Celts lived.  We also looked at this book from Usborne:

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After reading a few pages we went outside and practiced building a miniature iron age hill fort in the garden.  Then we watched the Time Team episode where they excavate Capitol Hill (Season 20, episode 3, the internets inform me).

The 7yo practiced her piano.

Everyone read for 30 minutes on books of their choice.

Thursday

Prayer, singing the doxology

Mark 1: 9-11.  We discussed why Jesus would get baptized, what the dove represented, and the concept of 'sending out' or 'commissioning'.

The 9yo read about Augustine becoming a Christian.  The 7yo read to us about Anne Lawson's 'Scripture Union Day' at school.  We discussed what a martyr is.

SOTW 2 - We continued chapter 2 and read about the coming of the Angles and Saxons to England and looked at the accompanying map in the text.  We also continued reading in the above book on Celts.  The oldest two followed up our discussion of Celtic foods by watching a segment of the BBC show Secrets of the Castle where they used a quorn to grind grain.   Oh, and we discussed the idea of borders and how they change and used this book to illustrate that concept:

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Memory work - We reviewed days of the week, months of the year, the first line of The Lord's Prayer, and added on the second line and the 9yo added Leviticus to the list of Old Testament books.

We pulled out The I Hate Mathematics Book:

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We discussed the idea of a hypothesis, or prediction, and made a prediction on whether the majority of people in our town would be wearing shoes that had laces, or shoes that did not have laces.  We went for a walk and recorded our findings.  Our educated guess was that more people would not have laces because more people would be wearing sandals since it was warm outside.  We were wrong - 17 people had laces on their shoes compared to 11 without laces.

The 9yo and 7yo read for 30 minutes individually.

The 5yo and I started our review of the previous lessons we covered in Teach Your Child To Read In 100 Easy Lessons.  We made it halfway through lesson 8.

Friday

Prayers and singing the doxology

Mark 1:12,13.  We discussed what 'the wilderness' is and watched a four minute video of the various wilderness areas of Israel from Youtube.

The 9yo read to us about how Augustine helped clarify the Christian faith for the early church.  The 7yo continued the biography of Anne Lawson through her school years.

SOTW 2 - We finished Ch. 2 which included an excerpt of Beowulf.  We looked up the definitions of 'epic' and 'poem' in the dictionary and then talked about what an epic poem is.  I started Michael Morpurgo's Beowulf as a read-aloud:

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The 7yo did 15 minutes of piano practice.

The 9yo and I looked at and discussed the Saxon 5/4 book he will be working through this year.  We did oral review of lessons 1 and 2, and a few practice questions, focusing on showing your work, just flipping through and getting a feel for where he should start.

The 5yo and I continued our review of 100 Easy Lessons.  We finished reviewing up to lesson 14.

The 9yo and 7yo each read for 30 minutes.

The children all did handwriting practice.  The 5yo printed, the 7yo did a few letters in cursive, and the 9yo did an entire cursive page of the alphabet.

Saturday

This will likely be a formal school day in weeks to come but this week, not so much.

Homeschooling Soft Start - Aug. 26th

Tomorrow we're doing a 'soft start' of school.  This means, for us, that we're going to do Morning Time.  It's going to be horrible, as any homeschooling teacher can tell you.  You can pray for me, if you like.

Here's what Morning Time will consist of, according to my carefully planned schedule.

Morning Prayer

Hymn Study - We're actually going to work on The Doxology

Bible Read Aloud - We are reading and discussing Mark 1:1-3

Memory Work - We will do memory work that encompasses SK-Gr. 4, so we're memorizing days of the week, months of the year and the first two lines of The Lord's Prayer.

Christian Biography - The 9yo will read aloud the first page of St. Augustine of Hippo biography in Ten Boys Who Made A Difference.  The 7yo will read aloud the first page of the Anne Lawson biography in Ten Girls Who Used Their Talents.

Group History Read Aloud - We are reading the first half of chapter 1 in Story Of The World volume 2.

The 7yo also has her piano lesson, and the 9yo will do his piano practice for 15 minutes or so.

After this I promise I'll take a break from complaining.

This last little while has been a giant lesson in patience.

The hot water tap in the bathroom stopped working.  Every trip to every store resulted in the store not carryng the thing I went for, or me forgetting to get the thing I went for, or some other ridiculous scenario.

Every appointment was late.  Everything required more paperwork.  Everything took just one extra step to finish.  The garbage people didn't take all the garbage.  The washer was running with the last load of laundry and suddenly someone found the thing they needed washed.  There was always a missing ingredient for every recipe.  There was always a strange smell somewhere in the kitchen, but also nowhere, and what on earth does that even mean??

If I could lose it, I did.  I misplaced essays I was supposed to type, I forgot to call people I was supposed to call, I repeatedly sat down at the computer to do a specific task and stood up a few minutes later, walked away, and realized I hadn't done the task.  Times hundred.  Over and over again.

If a pot could boil over or an oven start smoking - it did.  Did the toilet get clogged and every drain in the house slow down?  Why yes!  Did the defrosting milk develop a hole and leak everywhere? Sure!  Did the cat throw up?  Did all five people in the house get summer colds?  Did I nick myself shaving my legs?  Did we run out of all the things - like baking soda and butter and eggs and bread and balsamic vinegar and fresh vegetables and apparently all of the fruit?  YES!

We planned a family walk and got lost driving there.  We went to a dr. appointment and got stuck behind a road-hogging convoy of motorcycles.  Guests dropped in unexpectedly and I hadn't done any dishes.  Like...any.  The meeting I was prepared for was cancelled.  The ice cream store was closed when we went to get ice cream.  I didn't have enough money with me to do the laminating I had to get done when I was AT the laminating place, so we just went home.

Games crashed on the tablet, clothespins broke apart in my hand as I hung clothes, someone stacked wood on my dahlias, no one changed the sliver of soap in the shower for an actual bar of soap for the next person (ME).  A water bottle got upended in the car and soaked into the upholstery.  Someone told me I needed to be more organized.  I got a migraine.

The berry place closed early and I didn't get to pick blueberries this year.  The fridge is making an odd noise.  The children went crazy in all of the stores I entered.  I had insomnia and tossed and turned.  The 7yo has decided she wants to eat a vegetarian supper once a week and also remembered I said we'd do a nice joint birthday party for all the kids before summer is over.  I have finally admitted that all my beautiful flower seeds resulted in only a few teeny, mostly non-flowering plants.

I just wanted to tell you this because if you also had a terrible couple of weeks, then solidarity.  It ain't easy out there. 

Peace.

Self-Care for the Careless

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It isn't that I don't WANT to practice self-care, because I DO, but the things that fall into most people's self-care categories are often way out of my reach, to be honest.  Having a long, relaxing bath?  How...would that happen?  By the time everyone is asleep and I can sit in a bath alone it is so late I don't want to do that, I just want to go to bed.  Buying myself a treat?  Does this mean I have to get in a car with the whole family and drive the 45 minutes it takes to get to a store I would want to buy something from?  Sob.  When would I, supposing I wanted to, meditate and practice yoga?  And where?  In the non-existent yoga studio here in town?  With my copious amounts of free time as a mother of three young children?

I imagine other people have similar issues, and so here are some of the things I HAVE found I am able to do, as 'self-care', sort of, that help with mental health.

Go outside.  I mean at all, really.  Just out of the house.  Leaning out of the window counts if it must but ideally we're talking on the porch or balcony, preferably even on the grass, in bare feet.  If you feel courageous you can turn this into a walk but let's not get crazy here.  Just go out of the door at all.

Find a thing to look forward to.  Suggestions from my own experience are things like listening to a podcast, making a smoothie, hiding a chocolate bar in the freezer, taping a show, reading a comic strip, checking a blog, etc.  Something that you can look forward to doing in the future that will help you get through the present.

Reframe a task you enjoy as a hobby.  It's all about the mental gymnastics here.  I have a garden, for example.  I have a lot of work to do in it to keep it looking decent, including mowing the lawns, and these are chores that I don't mind doing, in fact I enjoy them, so I've told myself that gardening is a hobby of mine.  Now when I go outside to weed and water plants I am 'having fun with my hobby'.  It actually has really helped give me some breathing space.

Stay in touch with people you like.  Pretty self-explanatory, this.  However you might go about it, a phone call, a text, facebook, whatever - make an effort over the day to check in and say hello to people who fill you up.

Carry food and water.  If you can do this, it helps a lot.  Eat the food.  Drink the water.  Put more in your purse.  If you buy fun food that is just for you and a beautiful water bottle that makes you feel like an Instagram pilates instructor, then you won't forget to bring either.  Just a hint.

Reward yourself constantly.  I have mentioned before that I am a big fan of Gretchin Rubin's theory of 'little treats' - of constantly treating yourself with little pick me ups throughout your day.  Not TREAT treats - but little treats.  Reframing, again, so that little things are treats and you are always being encouraged.  A treat can be anything - standing in front of the open freezer with your eyes closed on a hot day, washing your face with the nice face wash slowly and carefully, eating a peach, using a fancy glass, that sort of thing.

Use your senses.  Nothing gets me more agitated than my feet being hot, and nothing cools me down faster and calms me down better than sticking my feet in a cool bath/pool/puddle/bowl of water.  For me, that's the sense that relaxes me, but maybe you're a 'smell lavender and I calm down' sort of person, or maybe you prefer a head massage, or one of those cooling eye masks?  Perhaps the best way for you to relax is to look at your favourite art or listen to the perfect song or slowly sip a drink?  Whatever sense works for you, do that.

Have an end-of-day ritual.  I have two little books beside my bed and they comprise my end-of-day ritual.  First is my reading notebook, where I record whatever book I finished reading that day, if I did that.  Second is my one-line journal, where I put down two or three jot notes of the highlights of my day.  I try to keep the journal positive because I like to look back in future years to see the joyful things in each day, not the negative.

Keep devotions short, but keep them.  Does this sound familiar?  You have elaborate, exciting plans for Bible reading, devotions, Lenten studies, etc. etc. and they all fall to the wayside?  And then it is a source of stress and anxiety and disappointment because you had such well-laid plans...  Here's the only thing that has worked for me in this: don't make the plans.  Pick one small thing, so small that you can certainly do it, and just only focus on that.  I use the devotional My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers and each day's reading is one small, pocket sized page.  I know I can read it in a minute, so I do, and it makes everything better.  This is not to say I DO read it every day or anything, but I am MUCH MORE LIKELY to do so than I would be if it was in any way more complicated than 1 paragraph in a small book 1 time a day.  (I have friends who have their phones read an audio version of the Bible out loud to them as they wake up and friends who have timers on their phones to ding when they should pray.  My husband listens to sermons while he works on paperwork and while he walks to the post office.  Whatever sort of thing makes it easier, is what I'm saying.)

What I've Been Reading - August 2019

So.  I haven't been reading much this past month, I admit.  I have instead been planning school and preparing for that and also knitting a sweater.  So there hasn't been much spare time around here.

However...here goes

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Troost makes me think of those guys who post a lot of stuff on the Lonely Planet forums about the obscure hill tribe they lived with on March break.  You know what I mean?  His long-suffering wife, who appears to hold a prestigious careers and also keep the home together whilst her husband wanders around China under the guise of 'seeing if they should move there' must be a veritable saint.  Also all his talk about air pollution made my lungs hurt.

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I have an intense love of graphic novel memoirs, and this one is great on so many levels.  Chast gives us glimpses of her structured, rigid, somewhat cold upbringing and her anxious reality dealing with two ill, co-dependent parents who refuse to throw anything away or let their bank books out of their sight or give even a little on such essentials as 'not balancing on chairs' or 'going to the hospital when you cannot get out of bed'.  If you are also living in that reality - the slow progression of aging parents and increased concern for them - you should read this.  It will make you sad but also feel not alone.

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Complete and total fluff!  Sometimes you need that.  Dirk Pitt is honestly a laughable character, as is almost everyone else, but he's...I mean at one point he ACTUALLY emerges from the rubble of partially destroyed Havana leading a line of orphans he rescued from a huge wave.  There is nothing he cannot do!  He is all knowing!  The women are in love!  The waves!  The waves are rising but Dirk will save us!  He pulls back a blimp from hitting a hotel!

The Great 2019-2020 School Year Curriculum Plan

After quite literally months of planning, here is the plan.

Christian Studies

We're going to read through the gospel of Mark this year.  We're also using the 'Ten Boys' and 'Ten Girls' series by Irene Howat to read biographical sketches of great Christians through the ages.  The 9yo and the 7yo will both be reading the stories and talking about the questions at the end of the chapters.  The 5yo will maybe tag along or maybe not I'm not sure.  Certainly not in any formal capacity.

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For memory work this year all three children are going to memorize the Lord's Prayer, (the 9yo has this somewhat memorized already, but I would like fluency), and the 9yo will also memorize the names of the books of the Bible.  If the 7yo finishes the Lord's prayer I will start her on the books of the Bible as well.

History

We will be reading through Story of the World Volume 2 together, which focuses on Medieval history.  We have multiple extra books to look through on different Medieval topics.  It's possible we will try things like Medieval cooking, attempting an illuminated letter, discussing the monastic movement, etc.  With SOTW2 as the spine, we'll see where our history studies take us.

Geography

We're going to take a world focus this year with Rod and Staff's curriculum Homelands Around The World.  We'll supplement with studies on real life missionaries we know and love and pray for.

Art and Music

The two oldest will be working with piano.  The 9yo will progress from Miss Judy teaching at the church to an instructor at the conservatory of music.  The 7yo is still with Miss Judy.  For Art we will be using this book:

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Science and Nature Study

The 9yo will be studying astronomy this year.  We'll use Exploring the Night Sky as our spine.

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We have a Celestron Telescope for observation and will likely supplement with several other books on stars, space and astronomy in our library.  We'll also be reading D'Aulaire's Greek Myths at the same time, tying in the stories that named our constellations.

The 7yo and 5yo will be using Rod and Staff's Patterns of Nature as their guided nature study.  This is technically a Grade 2 level book, which will make it right on the ball for the 7yo and probably too much for the 5yo, so I'll be adjusting expectations.

Mathematics

The 9yo will get Gr. 4 Rod and Staff math, the 7yo will get Grade 2 Rod and Staff math, and the 5yo will slowly finish the first book in Gr. 1 Rod and Staff math.  This will be supplemented with math games, and the I Hate Mathematics Book and whatever else we feel like doing.

Language Arts - Copywork and Recitation

The 9yo and 7yo will be copying from A Child's Garden of Verses this year and will choose poems from there to memorize.  Undoubtedly my children will be forced to listen to me recite The Swing over and over again.

Language Arts - Oral and Written Narration and Dictation

We're starting with Volume One of English For The Thoughtful Child.  Realistically this is only for the oldest two but the 5yo will tag along.  I have some nerves about this program being 'enough'.  So we'll see.  I may (probably will) supplement somehow.

Language Arts - Grammar

The 9yo will work on Rod and Staff's Grade 3 Building English.  By far this will be our hardest subject.  The 7yo and 5yo will not have anything in this subject area.

Literature

We'll stick with our 30 minutes of independent silent reading a day, because that works out well.  The 9yo and 7yo will also have assigned reading, although I don't have the list of books ready yet.  There may be literature guides, although I haven't actually purchased any so, sigh, who knows.  It's possible.

Reading

The 5yo is finishing up Teach Your Child To Read In 100 Easy Lessons.  She'll practice her reading with Bob books and early readers as she progresses this year.


And that's sort of where we are with the planning now.  I have photocopying and laminating to get done, and one large purchase still to make, but I think....dare I say it?  I think I may be almost ready.