Homeschooling for His Glory

It's been 2 weeks since my last update. Nothing much has change since then. For some reason school has not been going as smoothly as hoped at the beginning of the year. I have not been able to do things as set in the schedule and not everything I wish to cover gets covered. So what have we been doing? Last week was supposed to be a week off, but since we were behind in our Writing with Ease and Zach wanted to move on in TOG to Knights and Castles, we covered these subjects and added Math, Grammar Island practice and Handwriting. This week we covered math, handwriting, started on the study of the Crusades, did Grammar Island practice and handwriting and that's about it. We really only had 2 1/2 days of school this week. Monday we had a fieldtrip to a pionner history museum and today we had a visitor. Thursday is usually our day off which we spent at the Zoo in honor of my zoo-loving youngest whose birthday is this coming Tuesday. I have been blessed in participating in a Good Go

" . . . God is Light and in Him  is no darkness at all." 1 John 1:5

Another week has come to an end. It's been 5 weeks since we started school and things are going well overall. We are in the last stretch of our Grammar Island. The boys enjoyed doing the book. We will soon start the Practice Island book to cement all the concepts covered in GI . First Language Lessons is moving along as well. Same story goes for Writing with Ease , although somehow we got behind a week, but that's ok because if need to I do not have a problem skipping a narration or copywork. Math, we have been doing some practice problems and the boys seems to be doing well. Zach is so much more responsive to the no workbook approach, even if I still give him worksheets to do. In music appreciation, we looked at Johann Sebastian Bach and listened to Well Tempered Clavier . In history we delved into Vikings times and the boys had a blast. I think I have like 25 books about Vikings in the house. (I am putting together a list of extra resources we use along side TOG. I'll

What is Big IQ Kids? Big IQ Kids is an online educational program designed to " help children develop the skills needed to perform to his/her full potential ." (Quote from their website). It is designed for students in grades K-adults and promote spelling efficiency, vocabulary building, math fact mastery and US geography knowledge via multimedia reinforcement and independent learning. At Big IQ Kids you will find  FREE spelling, math, vocabulary, U.S. states programs and vocabulary games, as well as a PREMIUM program for Math, US Geography and Junior program spelling. I was given a premium membership for review and the difference  lies in " the ability of the PREMIUM program to monitor the progress of the student and advance that student only when mastery of the subject matter has been achieved. Additionally, PREMIUM members have their progress tracked, saved, problem areas identified and these findings are reported via email to parents and/or teachers.

Another week with 2 letters for the ABC's of Homeschooling. V for Video. This letter was a no-brainer for me, although I am still a week late posting about it. Videos and DVDs are a staple in our classroom. The boys learn so much through visual media and the list of publishers with great educational video is way too long to start one here. I use videos and DVD mainly for Science, History and Math. These are fun, some interactive, fact-filled and engaging. Not all are equal but I have been blessed to have laid hands on on a few pretty good ones so far. My favorites series, you ask? (all of these are courtesy of our local library) Discovery School: Journals Through History Series Lost Treasures of Ancient World series Ancient civilizations for children Series Eureka : Science Please The Way Things Work Light Speed Math Planet Earth videos Visual Education Centre Limited Videos Works: They have titles like: Looking Good, On the move, Fabulous Food that show you how things work or ar

Time 4 Learning is an interactive web-based online curriculum for grades pre-K- 8. Web-based means that you can log in from any computer anywhere. Description: Time 4 Learning is designed to be used either as a stand alone curriculum, as an add-on, as a supplement or after-school program, or even as a summer refresher. It covers, rather comprehensively , subjects such as Math, Language Arts, Science and Social Studies . To see an overview of the topics covered for each grade you can go here. Once you sign up you have access to a full scope and sequence for each grade. Here is  a screenshot  of a 2nd grade Math lesson: Here is a screenshot of a 3rd grade vocabulary lesson: It is a paid subscription curriculum priced at $19.99/month for the first child, and $14.99 for each additional child. Here is what you get for your subscription: More than 1,000 interactive animated lessons Self paced lessons Math & algebra tutorials & printable worksheets

God Moves in a Mysterious Way Music and additional lyrics by Bob Kauflin Lyrics by William Cowper God moves in a mysterious way His wonders to perform He plants His footsteps in the sea And rides upon the storm Deep in His dark and hidden mines With never-failing skill He fashions all His bright designs And works His sovereign will  So God we trust in You O God we trust in You O fearful saints new courage take The clouds that you now dread Are big with mercy and will break In blessings on your head Judge not the Lord by feeble sense But trust Him for His grace Behind a frowning providence He hides a smiling face So God we trust in You O God we trust in You When tears are great And comforts few We hope in mercies ever new We trust in You God’s purposes will ripen fast Unfolding every hour The bud may have a bitter taste But sweet will be the flower Blind unbelief is sure to err And scan His work in vain God is His own interpreter And He will make it plain [youtube]http://www.youtube.com

Our school days have been running less effectively as I would have wish but that is all due to me not waking up early enough and not being as firm as I should. However we are making it through our 3 Rs: First Language lessons is coming along. we are at lesson 11. Writing with ease is coming along as well. We did not get to finish week 3 yet, but tomorrow is going to be a school day and I see that I will have to be doing some catch up during our week off scheduled for the week after next. Grammar island is coming along as well. I find that the kids are not remember the material as well as I was hoping but I guess that's why following the book is 100 sentences in practice island for practice. That is where the retaining will happen. i also need to make up some posters for reminders. In math they have been using Time 4 learning (review item) exclusively as we only one month subscription and I wanted to make the most of it. The boys have covered money, operations, shapes quiet