We have been finishing books right and left around here. Mr. Man finished his "Primer" level math book last week and I started him on "Alpha" Monday. We are skipping the first four or five lessons because the are review and he pretty much has addition down pat. I think he will be done with his preschool handwriting book in another month or so and we will move to the kindergarten one. M is still going to speech weekly and OT one time a week. I am getting better about doing speech work on the days he doesn't go and we do OT most days.
N has also been finishing books. He probably has about one week left in his grammar book. Truthfully, I should have started him at grade 3 in Rod and Staff but I didn't know and it has been a comprehensive (if not high level) review of the basic parts of speech. He finished his Primary Math 2B book today so he will be moving onto 3A next week. I really need to work with him on his basic math facts but, unless I trick him into making it "fun", he doesn't want to do it. N is also 3/4 of the way through the last of his "Explode the Code" books that he has been doing online. He is working on about a fourth grade level there--some of the words are just INCREDIBLE. We have settled down into Level 3 of "All About Spelling." I have not done a good job of doing the lessons for that in January, it is usually an afternoon thing and requires both of us and I just give want to give up some afternoons. N started "Life of Fred: Goldfish" today. I ordered "Honey" as well. After he reads those two I think I am just going to have him go back and read them again. There is so much random information in there, how could you ever retain it? And they are neat stories. I have contemplated buying "Apples" and "Butterflies" which are the first two but WOW! do I spend a lot of money on homeschooling.
L has thirteen lessons left in math and the only thing that I have left to order is the new math series for him. We are still slowly making our way through the European countries and the geography puzzle of Europe has been a huge hit. L is also continuing to do Rosetta Stone each day. He just does it for about 10 minutes so I am not sure that is "long" enough for him to do the course in a year (plus we had computer troubles that derailed us for three weeks with Rosetta) but he is moving along and learning. Since he will be going to a Spanish speaking country in July on a mission trip, I am trying to encourage Rosetta Stone each day. He also finished his book that he has been writing last week and is working on editing it, one chapter at a time, this week. I asked him if he wanted me to edit it but he said he really wanted to do it himself. I must say watching him write it each day and the plan he has for it is quite impressive. He finished up the "Wordly Wise" grade level 4 two weeks ago so I went ahead and bought online subscriptions for L and N (since N will be down with Explode the Code soon)-
We are halfway through our science book so I expect to switch to whichever topic L picks in mid-March. On Tuesday we finished our history read-aloud "A Child's Guide to the History of the World" and will start "The Year of the Horseless Carriage" in the next week or so. The Carriage book is a book that takes one particular period in time and looks at all the people living then--presidents, world leaders, inventors, musicians, etc. I am not quite sure how that will work in. Do we do an in depth of each person? Each chapter?
One thing I have slacked on is Composers. We have been listening to music but not really doing the activities. They are just a little below my kids. I check out books on the composers and we read and they are still taking piano too.
The big boys also finished "A Horse and His Boy" last night. Handsome read it with them. I am about to start some book whose name I can't remember right now--maybe "Detectives in Togas"? L's fourth grade class is reading it at school so I figured the boys would love it. I also bought the sequel because the library had neither one of them. (Yes, I am spending a lot of money) Probably my biggest failure was the use of the Progeny Press Study Guides. L hated them. He likes reading the books, just not doing the breakdown and we could never really get into a good routine with them. I think it might be better for middle school when I am forcing him to write more anyway. So, for now, we are just focusing on the books. After "Detectives in Togas" I will let Handsome pick another book or go back to the Little House books. Or I could just steal the book ideas from Progeny Press without buying their study guides. :)
With homeschooling, I just do the best I can. Praying that the Lord will bless it.
