Our school year

I really need to post about Jake's 10th birthday, but I haven't downloaded my pics from my camera yet!

So in the meantime, I'm going to write about our school year.

The past two years we've used Tapestry of Grace. I have absolutely loved the depth and biblical focus of it. I learned a ton. However, the past two years have been the absolute craziest two of my entire homeschooling career. 2008 held 2 sick pregnancies and 2 second trimester miscarriages and 2009 was consumed with mission trips to Mexico and beginning the adoption process in Mexico. Needless to say, I just couldn't keep up with the weekly prep work that Tapestry demanded. It's a shame since it is such a wonderful curriculum, but instead of it helping me, it was making schooling harder.

So, after a lot of indecision (Tara and Mel, I'm so sorry for all my agonizing phone conversations!) I finally chose to go a simpler route.  With the upheaval of the Mexico adoption and the beginning of the Colombia adoption and knowing we will most likely travel for a month in the middle of our school year, I decided to make this year a more "independent study" type of year.

I really felt like I needed to focus on preparing my middle schoolers (7th, 6th, 5th) for the upcoming high school years by solidifying the skills they need to succeed. I did a lot of research to figure out which skills I wanted to heavily incorporate and which ones we already had a good handle on. In fact, instead listing out our yearly line up of subject curricula, I decided to list out the skills I wanted them to work on and then picked and chose our books based on that.

Our list of products we are using hasn't actually changed but I think it helped solidify in my head my purpose for each one. Maybe everyone else already does this naturally, but for some reason it all just clicked in my head this year, and school suddenly became stress free. I think I'd been allowing the curriculum to control us instead of allowing it to serve us.  It's all perspective, huh?

The older 3 are doing most of the same skills, just at the age/developmental level they are in. Makes things easy! Oh, and not everything is done every day!
So, here's our line up:

Memorization- Scripture memory, Science Facts, History Timeline, States and Capitals

Discussion, Inductive Bible Study, Logic- Morning Bible discussion time using inductive method, The Fallacy Detective with real life "debates" since 3 of them are in that phase of life!

Math
Cait and Grant- Prepare for Pre-algebra and begin AlgebraTeaching Textbooks 7 and begin TT Pre-alg. (This has been my best purchase this year. Highly worthwhile!)
Jake- Solidify mult/div facts, grade level math- Teaching Textbooks 5


Independent Study Skills/Test taking skills/Lab Report writing- Apologia General Science for Cait


Writing
Various writing genres- IEW Student Intensive Continuation Course A (she could handle B, but we're doing it all together with the boys so she's getting her assignments beefed up)
Current Event Reports- biweekly 
Beginning Literature Analysis Essays- reading lots of classic lit from a list I compiled, weekly literature analysis papers based of the questions in Well Trained Mind, Figuratively Speaking worksheets on literary techniques.
Outlining other people's writing- Kingfisher History Encyclopedia or other books from the shelf or library
Notetaking- Apologia Elementary Anatomy and Physiology (The boys are doing this in more of a "notebooking" fun format but Cait is doing more normal bullet point notetaking)
Research-short and frequent!- Mostly on history topics. We're all listening to the Story of the World chapter on audio and then each choses a topic to research and write an essay. They do this 2-3 times a week. Each child has varying lengths the essay must be.
Diagramming, Grammar fluency, Spelling accuracy- Christian Light Language Arts (just the grammar portion- LOVE this program!) and All About Spelling, Cait- Spell to Write and Read Wise Guide

Reading Speed, Reading Accuracy, Learning to appreciate varied genre, Vocabulary- 1 hour of reading required a day from a booklist I compiled (also includes lots of discussion time!), Vocabulary from the Classical Roots

Master the Spanish language- No! Just kidding! I'll just be happy if they can introduce themselves to their new siblings!  I do think that Spanish for Children, Spanish for Adoptive Families, and living in Colombia for a month will take care of this important skill! LOL!




Wow, that looks like a TON! But it's not really! In fact we are finishing our days earlier than we ever have in the past. I think it's because I don't have a different curriculum for each subject. It's more integrated. I don't think I could manage complete integration like some curricula do, but for us, this is working really well.

We are almost 4 months into our school year (started beginning of July) and already I'm seeing tons of progress. And attitudes toward our school time have improved tenfold. They all love the research part of the day and go crazy with wanting to report on every nugget of info they find.


And, to end this super long post, Here's Quinn's line-up:

Math- Christian Light 1
Copywork/Narrations- Writing With Ease
Spelling- All About Spelling
Reading- every book he can get his hands on, and Phonics Pathways
Trickle down effect- he tags along with everything else!

13!!!!!

This week Caitlin turned 13! She has been so excited for this day to come!

I have to honestly say that she is such a wonderful young lady! We are so proud of her!

Brent and I have seen sooo much growth and maturity in her over the past few years and noticeably in the past 6 months.

She has a sweet spirit mingled with a bit of spunk. I love it! She has learned how to be hysterically funny in her dry humor, but just as quickly has a tender heart for the underdog.

She is an avid reader, loves to learn (well, except for Math!), and can run the home as well as I can. She cooks a mean baked ziti and tres leche cake! She has a vivid imagination and I love to see her leading her brothers in an imaginary playtime.

This year she has learned to try new things and step out of her comfort zone. It has done a wonder in building her confidence and maturity. She loves her family and thankfully is not dependent on her peers for her acceptance. I'm so thankful for this!

She is quick to repent when corrected and is growing in humility. I love that she is transparent and openly admits to her struggles. I learn a lot from her!  I am so excited to see how she is developing her own personal walk with the Lord. She doesn't need prodding and reminding to read her Bible. And the questions she asks sometimes stump me!

She still has not wavered in her desire to serve the Lord on the mission field one day, which, whether the Lord allows her to do that or not, still warms my heart. She is passionate about our adoption and has had her eyes opened to the plight of the orphan and is charging full steam ahead with helping to advocate for them.

So many parents grumble and moan over the upcoming teen years, but after seeing the treasure that we already have in Cait, we are looking with anticipation and excitement at the years ahead. She is paving the way for our family and we couldn't be prouder.

Happy 13th Birthday, my Catydid!

Spring 2010 Catch up

Cait and Daddy went out with her girlfriends and their daddies for a nice dinner and a browse through the bookstore. They are all getting so grown up. I pray that she sees her daddy's example when she looks for a Godly husband one day.

Being silly!

Caitlin learned how to make the famous Mexican dessert- Tres Leche Cake. Mmmm deliciouso!

We had fun fishing in the neighbor pond and catching frogs and other critters!

There is a dilapidated old farmhouse with barns and outbuildings on the same property. We had fun going exploring in the buildings and traipsing through the fields around the farm.

Presentation Night display

A trip to the Washington Zoo was full of fun!

The Panda bear entertained us for quite a while- up close!

Elsie Dinsmore

This is a very cool story!

A year ago, Caitlin ran a 5K race. She solicited donations and ended up winning a low rider bike since she was the highest donating youth. The bike was not something she was going to ever use, so we told her she could sell it on craigslist.com and use the money to buy the $100 Elsie Dinsmore doll that she has been drooling over for a LONG time. Months and Months passed and that bike just would not sell.

Finally, we got an email from Chad Rizzuto, the missionary in Mexico. He let us know that Karla, Caitlin's pen pal in the Copper Canyon, needed a computer for school but didn't have all the money for it. Caitlin decided to raise money from her friends and family to help out. Also, she agreed that she should relist her bike and use the money towards the computer. I wasn't too hopeful since I'd tried to sell the bike for months with no success. Would you believe that I had a buyer for that bike within 24 hours?!!!!! Of course, you would! That's just how God is! LOL!

So, Karla got her computer, and Cait was left with the joy of doing something sacrificially for someone else. Still, I knew her desire was for this Elsie doll, but we wanted her to earn the money on her own. We don't give an allowance, so any money earned is above and beyond her regular work. $100 is a lot for her to earn when our jobs pay $.50 to $1.00! Amazingly, we were able to find a new doll for $20 cheaper on Ebay! And she was able to earn, was gifted, and sold her gerbils for just the amount she needed! She has really appreciated this doll so much more with all the effort that went into getting her. She sees the doll as a blessing from God!

Sewing Project

About a year ago we bought a polar fleece quilt kit at Joann's. Cait worked on it for a while, but it was hard using my old sewing machine that bunched up the fabric and broke the thread so often. And, whenever she wanted to sew, I was already in the middle of a project on my new machine. SO, this summer she finally found some free time on my new machine so that she could finish it. She did a great job and learned how to sew some pretty straight lines!

5K

In order to keep up with the requirements of his job, Brent runs regularly. It has gotten difficult to find time that isn't taken away from family time to do this, so he started taking Caitlin along with him. She loved the one on one time and actually found that she liked the challenge.

Recently, she attended a "Do Hard Things" conference where she was challenged by some older teens to "rebel" against the low expectations that culture has for teens. She was encouraged to try new things and do things that she would consider hard. Brent suggested that she push herself and train to compete in a 5K race. Her first reaction was "NO WAY!" but after she considered the "do hard things" mentality, she decided to step out of her comfort zone and go for it. In addition, she decided she wanted to go even further and try to collect $500 worth of pledges to help raise money for a health facility at River Valley Ranch.
This was even further out of her comfort zone as she would have to actually write a letter to family and friends and ASK them for donations! Definitely, not her cup of tea! She learned a lot about trusting God and gaining confidence in Him.


We were so proud of her determination and her ability to raise, not only$500, but $790!!! Tons of family and friends, even people she didn't know but had read the letter, supported her in this unusual plan of hers to "do hard things". What a faith builder!

And, she ran her personal best time! She completed the 5k (3.2miles) in 31 minutes and 30 seconds. That's a 10 minute, 10 second mile! Way better than I could even dream of doing!

As a reward for her efforts, she won an ipod, and for raising the most money in her category, she won a BIKE! She was beaming and I'm so glad she was blessed by her ability to trust God in this circumstance.

In addition to the 5K, Grant and Jacob participated in the 1 mile, Kids Fun Run. They can't wait for their turn at the 5k next year!

Caitlin

Last November, Cait had the wonderful idea that her Daddy should take her on a date- a real date where they dress all up and go to a nice restaurant!



Brent loved the idea and thought it would be even more fun for her best friends and their dads to go too!


So all the pairs met at Olive Garden and shared a fun meal and then strolled around The Avenue for a while. They did end up in Barnes and Noble where Cait got a biography on Abigail Adams- one of her heroines.

Caitlin's History

Here are a few things that I had recorded about Caitlin's early years.


Born 3 weeks and 1 day after due date!!!

Nursed 7 minutes total! Efficient!

Hated to cuddle or snuggle. Loved to be bounced- hard!

Started talking at 6 months! Started walking around the same time!

She never sucked on her thumb or pacifier, but around 6 months she started sucking on a cat stuffed animal. Then, she went to sucking on the scarf of a stuffed snowman Aunt Kimberly gave her (which we lost somewhere on the ride home from an Ohio reunion). Then, she graduated to the YARN crocheted blanket Mrs Vance had given as a shower gift. She shoved probably 6 inches of a corner into her mouth (and halfway down her throat, I'm certain... yuck!) and sucked. The corners turned gray and brown even after repeated washing and bleaching. The worst (and I'm sure everyone in the family will always remember this with a shudder) was when she yanked it out of her mouth to say something and flung it to the side, slapping you in the arm or face with the slobbery corners. This blanket was inseparable from her until she was 6. Finally, we were able to "buy" her blanket from her with the gift of an American Girl sized horse and pony. (Her next obsession- horses) Her blankie "Corners" as she affectionately called it, found it's final resting place in a spray painted basket that is lovingly placed in my hope chest. It is her wish that "one day her daughter can suck on it"!!!!

15 months- screamed and cried when she was brought in to see Grant after he was born


Age 11 months- put a slug in her mouth while sitting in the garden. Took a whole day to get the slime out of her mouth. No, she didn't actually swallow it! I'm not THAT bad of a mother!

Age 4- Swallowed a penny because, as she told me, "I wanted to know what it would taste like!"

Has the most incredible imagination I've ever seen. Very creative.

Definitely has her own tastes and opinions.

Has an obsession with shoes. The glitzier the better! And lots of them!

Spends a large portion of her day galloping through the house sounding identical to a horse. She has perfected the sound! She will need knee surgery by the time she's 12, but boy is she good at it!

Blogging!

Ok, all this blogging fever is sweeping our family! Now, Caitlin and Grant have their own blogs set up. I decided to let them keep a blog as a way of having an "audience" for their writing. I am hoping that this will help them feel like their compositions are worthwhile to write. So often a child is just assigned a paragraph, while both teacher and student know full well that it will be edited, and promptly stuck in a binder never to be seen again. This way, our few- preselected family members will be able to comment and offer their encouragement and feedback. (If you haven't received an invitation- email me! I just haven't gotten around to it yet!)
The way I see it working is for the child to physically write the paragraph on paper, (still needs practice that way!). Then, edit it. After a week or so of writing assignments (this time period is still being worked out) the child can pick their favorite(s) and type (another worthy skill!) it into their blog. I'm leaving the fun List categories on the sidebar to their fancy- with my permissions given, of course! And, obviously, any self-motivated writing will be welcome! I hope this works! It really could be fun- if they receive enough feedback!

Bittersweet Milestones

I love milestones. I'm not the overly sentimental type, and probably don't make a big deal over the BIG milestones, like most people may. Birthdays aren't huge events, first steps were captured with a few photos, first lost tooth was cute but without much hoopla.
However, it's the little ones that just do my momma heart in! Like, the ability to bake brownies without any help at all from Mommy. Cait just did this a month ago. Read the recipe, got the ingredients, CRACKED THE EGGS with no shells!, poured into the pan, and put it into a PREHEATED OVEN! All without needing me! It was wonderful and terrible all at the same time. My baby is growing up.

Cait is really maturing into a very pretty young lady. We've let her start growing her hair long (as she as been begging for the past few years) and it's probably 2 inches past her shoulders. She is brushing it and fixing it on her own,which was the deal! She has a simple beauty, not glamorous, but that natural kind of glow that each woman wishes she had! I don't like to dwell on external beauty, because honestly aside from a few enhancements, there's not much you can do to change your look. And really, it's not what matters anyway, right! The heart is the key. She is growing hugely in that area too, but that's not what I wanted to write about here!

This past month has brought a new milestone to the forefront.
First, you must understand, Cait (along with Brent and Grant and Jake) take Karate. And, they are NOT wallflowers. They all get into it and and work out hard. She has the biceps and quads to prove it. She is one fit 9year old! But, with the hard work has come "the glistening". You know what I mean, the shine on a proper lady's face after physical exhertion! I mentioned to Cait that ladies glisten. To which, she, in her tomboyish way retorted, "I don't know about you, mom, but I SWEAT!"
So, to help her in her new maturing, we took a trip to Target for some deodorant. Not an antiperspirant, but merely deodorant! Would you believe it is virtually impossible to find!! Finally, I spotted an all natural brand with no harmful chemicals and we got that. I think she was a little bit nervous about the whole thing, but refused to let on that she was. I tried to downplay the momentous occasion, but inside I was Screaming, "NOT YET! FOR CRYING OUT LOUD! SHE'S ONLY 9! MY BABY!"
Well, I guess I need to just deal with the changes. I know they are going to come, but I sure wish it wasn't such a slap in the face when they did! Thankfully, that's the only "body change" going on right now. I need to get myself prepared before I face the future ones!