Update: Field Trips and Progress October 29, 2008

It’s been a while, but life is busy.  Let’s update.  We’ll start with field trips. 

A couple Fridays ago, the boys’ teacher at NVVA arranged for a field trip to McKee Ranch.  The kids all had a great time!  There were animals, and pumpkins, and ranch “stuff.”  It was all very exciting!  They got to feed carrots to a goat, donkey, and horses.  They also saw a pig and chicken, which they got to pet.  Logan, Gavin, and Daphne went on a horseback ride.  Genevie was too little, and too tired.  While they were on the horses, they got to learn some interesting things about the horses, which Logan especially liked.  Here’s some pictures. 

                       

Sadly my camera battery died right after that picture of Logan, and I couldn’t get Gavin or Daphne on horseback. 

Also in the last month, NVVA arranged for a field trip to the Planetarium.  This one was just Logan and me.  It was pretty good.  They had some getting to know you activities for the kids, and they were all pretty shy, but it was still fun.  Then we got to go watch the Planetarium show which was Black Holes.  I was pretty excited about that.  It was actually very good.  (Nerd alert!  The narrator for the movie was John de Lancie, who played Q on Star Trek:  The Next Generation.  I thought that was pretty nifty.)  After the movie, the kids got to ask lots of questions.  It was a fun trip, and one I’d definitely like to do again! 

October was a busy month.  The Library District also held a Scottish Festival and an Autumn Arts Festival, both of which were fun.  Here are some pictures from the Scottish Festival.  (I LOVE the costumes!!) 

               

 

On to actual schooling.  The boys are doing great!  We’ll start with Gavin.  Gavin has 17 math chapters in kindergarten math.  They are meant to last the whole year, but since everything is mastery based, if you know it, you can test out of it, or move through it quickly.  Gavin has gone through the first 9 chapters already, testing out of more than half of it.  He really loves math, too.  Once he finishes kindergarten math, he can move up to first grade math.  He’s had a bit of trouble with phonics, because he says it’s boring, and he’s right.  It really is dry.  But, we’ve got to get through it so that we can get to learning how to read.  I tell him you’ve got to know the sounds before you can read.  So, it has been a bit of a battle getting him to do phonics, but I discovered two great things that have changed things completely.  First, if we do it while he is eating, he doesn’t mind doing it.  Also, if I chunk together 3-5 lessons at a time (which he gets through really fast), it is much easier.  Then, I pointed out to him that when we get through all this, he will be learning to read.  That got him pretty excited, and now he is asking to do phonics!  He came out the other day in the middle of me cooking dinner and asked if he could do phonics right then, because he really wants to learn to read! 

Now, for Logan.  He’s doing really well.  He really likes history and art.  I enjoy doing history with him, too (and Gavin as well).  He’s been learning about Ancient Rome, and is really sailing though the lessons.  At the end of each lesson, he gets to draw a picture about what we’ve learned about.  He seems to enjoy that quite a bit.  I’ve loved it, too.  I’m learning things that I was never taught about, or that I’ve forgotten.  Being a history lover myself, I’m pretty tickled that Logan has taken a liking to it.  Also with his history, I’m able to draw a lot of parallels to our society and politics today.  I love being able to tie things together like that, and I think it helps make it more real for him.  With art, he’s been learning about different artists and styles.  He likes to experiment with all of them.  I love seeing how creative he can be.  He’s pretty talented, too.  Logan had a little struggle with math, but is still ahead of the game with it, and seems to be understanding stuff more.  We’ve just worked with him and done extra practice.  I found that if I make it relate to real life, he does a better job.  For example, one morning I was cooking pancakes, and I asked him something like “If I have 15 pancakes, and Gavin eats 4 of them, how many do I have left?”  It worked well for him. 

So, we are progressing.  Some days I feel like I want to pull my hair out, and other days are just great.  But, such is life.  So far, I’m glad we went with this program, and I’m pretty satisfied with it.

The Old Mormon Fort September 30, 2008

A couple Fridays ago, I took the kids to the Old Mormon Fort.  We had a really great time.  They gave us a scavenger hunt to do, which kept us very busy, and was pretty fun.  The kids thought all the old stuff was pretty awesome, and they liked learning about what the fort was used for.  It was fun watching them explore and take everything in.  Anyway, we took a few pictures. 

      

The prizes for the scavenger hunt were balloons!  This was very exciting for them. 

By the way, they wave the admission fee (which is only $1 for adults) for homeschoolers, who set up a field trip.

Quick Update August 11, 2008

It’s been a while since I have posted on here.  I think it is just a crazy time of year.  Most people I talk to feel that way lately.  Anyway, just wanted to post a quick update on what is happening in the homeschool realm. 

A couple weeks ago I took the kids on a field trip to one of our police substations.  That was pretty interesting.  The kids’ favorite part was getting to see and sit in the police car.  My oldest even got to talk over the loudspeaker.  They really enjoyed it. 

Now, we are focusing our efforts on the Olympics.  We are keeping track and graphing the medal count for six different countries.  We are going to be learning more about China, the Ancient Olympics, and all kinds of Olympic trivia.  In a couple weeks we will cap it all off with our own little Kid Olympics.  It should be a ton of fun.

On Thursday, I got the official approval from the school district, so that’s good.

I have also edited and updated their educational plans. 

education-plan-kindergarten     education-plan-2nd-grade

Fire Station July 22, 2008

Last Tuesday we had a field trip to one of our local fire stations.  It was very cool.  The kids all loved it!  They got to go into the different trucks and see all the tools.  They got to hold the nozzle on the hose, which looked heavy.  They also got to see one of the firefighters get all dressed up in his gear.  This was great, because it showed the kids that they didn’t need to be afraid if they ever saw someone like that coming to rescue them, because it was just a regular firefighter.  It was amazing how fast he got all geared up, too.  Like, less than one minute.  They also got to see all the insides of the fire station, like where they watch tv, eat and sleep.  At the end, they got coloring books, stickers, and of course a fireman hat. 

They kids really had a great time, and I loved seeing them so excited!  We all learned things, too!  Here’s some pictures from the trip. 

                                       

Anderson Dairy July 12, 2008

Last week we had our trip to Anderson Dairy.  We did their “Barnyard Buddies Tour“.  It was fun, and the kids really enjoyed it.  They have “talking” barnyard animals who are pretty cute and comical.  The kids liked them the most, I think.  They also do a tour around the dairy, to see where everything is made and packaged.  That is actually pretty interesting.  Their favorite part of that was watching the milk get packaged.  We also saw their huge freezer and tons of ice cream stored in it.  After the tour, there is a movie, and we learned lots of really interesting things, like how much a cow eats a day and what kind of cows they use.  It also talks about the history of Anderson Dairy.  Then, at the end, the most favorite part for the kids–ice cream!  Cookies and cream and really yummy!  I also had Logan answer some questions about different parts of the trip.  All-in-all, it was a pretty fun trip.  Now we’re going to make and send them a thank you card.

Homeschool Convention June 25, 2008

I attended the homeschool convention last Friday and Saturday, with my friend and fellow homeschooling mom, Amy.  It was way awesome!  Friday they had a used curriculum sale, at which I got lots of good history and writing books for cheapy cheap!  Amy got some very good stuff, too.  After we did the used curriculum sale, we attended a presentation on the Constitution, by Stewart Rhodes.  So amazing!  I loved it!  And, really that’s putting it mildly.  Of course, those that know me well, know I’m very politically involved and that I’m passionate about the Constitution.  So, that was really great!  Then, on Saturday, we went and all the vendors were set up.  Also very cool!  We got our math program, Math-U-See, purchased, which was the main point in going Saturday.  We were also able to see some other really great vendors, like the Atomic Testing Museum and the Las Vegas Astronomical Society, and get lots of good info, especially about more field trips and educational programs.  So, all in all, I would say we had a really great experience and it was pretty fun.  I’ll definitely be going back in the future!  Thanks to Nevada Homeschool Network for putting it all on! 

Plant World June 18, 2008

Today’s field trip to Plant World was really cool.  We saw tons of animals and plants, and I learned a lot, too!  The kids really loved it.  Mine were especially excited by the waterfall and coy pond, where the turtles live. 

I’m glad we went before it reached 107 degrees, but it was still too hot for one of our little guys.  Amy’s son ended up having heat stroke.  Of course she didn’t know that at the time.  As soon as she saw something was wrong with him, she left and took him to the ER, where they diagnosed him and got him all fixed up.  But, I’m happy to report that he’s doing well, now. 

Here’s some fun pictures. 

  

  

 

 

 

Field Trips! Woo-hoo! June 17, 2008

I love field trips!  I always have.  I remember that when I was in school, I always learned a ton on field trips and they were always fun.  So, with that in mind, I decided to plan some field trips for us (minus the stinky school bus)!  The kids will really get a kick out of them, I think.  Plus, what a great way to expose them to things that they may have otherwise found boring.  So, here’s what I’ve got lined up so far, but hopefully the list will grow. 

• Tomorrow morning, we’ll be visiting a plant nursery here in town.  This place is huge!  Not only do they have tons and tons of different kinds of plants there, they have tons of animals there, too.  They have a tour they take you on, where they teach the kids about all kinds of plants and animals.  The kids even get to touch huge desert tortises.  I did this a couple years ago, and the kids really loved it. 
• In July, we will be going to a firestation, and getting a tour there.  No doubt the kids will be way into this!  What kid doesn’t want to sit in that big firetruck?!  I think it’s really important to teach kids the importance of emergency workers, and that they deserve a tremendous amount of respect.  It’s really great that they are willing to do community outreach things like this. 
• Also in July, we will be going to the Nevada State Museum, here in town.  They are actually sending me a teacher packet so that I can teach the kids about the stuff we will see there, before we go.  Then, for the older kids, they provide a clipboard with questions for them to answer while touring the museum.  I think that is a great way to get the kids to pay a little more attention and be more excited about the exhibits!  (They even waved the fee for us!)
• Then, in August, we will be going to the Old Mormon Fort, and getting a guided tour.  This is great because the fort is such a big part of not only our city’s history, but also state history.  Even though it didn’t always belong to the Mormons, this is a great way to tie in state history with Church history.  This will be an awesome way for the kids to learn about their heritage, in several areas. 

I’m hoping to get more things planned.  I really believe that hands on learning is vital.  It can’t all be out of books and videos.  When you actually get to see things, it makes it much more real.  So, I’m pretty excited about it all!  I’ll report back on each of the trips.