Weekly Wrap-up--April 8, 2011

Another week come and gone! This version is currently pictureless. Lazy right now!

Monday was one of the days I watch three extra kids. Tricky days. We went for a walk and heard the first frogs of the spring!

Tuesday was homeschool group day. We hit the zoo to see the farm, which just opened for the season. We also got to see the baby dolphin in an enrichment session.

We spent the day at home Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Daddy had the afternoon off on Wednesday, so I could go to an appointment, which was a special treat for the kids. The weather was beautiful so they went to the park again.

Friday we watched and listened to the birds all afternoon. We even got to see some ducks on the tiny pond we can see from our yard. It was a great lesson in the camouflage of animals. The female mallard was very well hidden in the brown grass and tree branches. She had to move for us to see her!

We also met our new neighbors on Friday! They are coming from New Orleans and have one little girl, a nine-month-old! I am a terrible introvert. Should I do something to welcome them to the neighborhood? Ideas?

Curriculum wise:

• Kiddo is still waiting for Explode the Code 7 to come in (I have to order it...), so instead of moving forward, we have been reviewing the rules from book 6 and practicing them as spelling words. I give him a word to spell, if he gets it right he comes down a step, wrong and we review why it is wrong, and he stays on the step or goes back one--depending on when in the list it falls. Gives my kinetic kid a bit more movement in his learning.
• Kiddo is still doing multiplication and division in math. We'll be here for a while, we start the times tables next week. We are enjoying Khan Academy for math, too.
• We read Chapter 30 in Story of the World, Vol. 1, about the Aryans of India and Siddhartha the Buddha. No special activities this week, just the chapter and the map work.
• We read a little about fish for Unit 20 of R.E.A.L. Science Odyssey, and continued to study mammals. I am waiting for supplies, namely thermometers, so we can move on with some labs. Now that the weather is improving, our science study will be a little easier. I am hoping we can go back to invertebrates and actually get through the labs!
• Kutey did more reading. We have moved into silent e words, but we are still focusing mostly on the short-vowel words. I have also been reading to her quite a bit. Her current favorites are "the pink books." Yes, really. Pinkalicious, The Very Fairy Princess (which I still love!), Princess and Fairy, and A is for Annabelle. You have to read them all, though. One pink book is never enough!
• I went through the Mystery Class clues this week, but Kiddo and I haven't gotten around to discussing them.
• We have also been enjoying some nature study. The birds are really coming back, the squirrels are awake, and the frogs are reappearing. All of that makes it the perfect time to revisit adding nature study more consistently!

We are linking up to Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers. Click to see what others did this week!