A day at the park

An old high school friend and I met up again on facebook and as it turns out,she lives nearby. We decided to take the boys to the park one day and they had such a blast! They were pretty much everywhere, but luckily, there weren't many other people tthere, so we were able to keep up with them quite easily.




Caiden had so much fun on the swing!





My little monkey

2010-2011 schedule

Just wanted to share our family homeschool schedule for the 2010-2011 school year. I have to add that we are very flexible with our schedule. Some homeschoolers are very strict with their schedules, but I have found that with our family, what works one day, may not work the next. So we just adapt as necessary.

Prepping for the 2010-2011 school year

So I have been a terrible blogger to date, but I am hoping to change that. I want to be able to share my homeschooling experience with others and hopefully encourage others to do the same. I know that it is a bit overwhelming at first, but once your routine is established, it really is so rewarding.

We are getting ready to start our schooling for the 2010-2011 school year and I am still picking out/purchasing curriculums. I have been hoping to use Sonlight for awhile, but the cost was a factor. So, I found a used one on ebay and I am happy to say that we will be using Sonlight for American history. (I also found that most of the books associated with this curr are available at the local library which helps to reduce the cost as well)

I have choosen math u see for Tyler as it is very hands on and that is how he learns best. I think it will make a huge differnece in how he feels about math. I CAN NOT WAIT to start using this!
www.mathusee.com

For science, I am pulling from other books and resources online. I think we will start off learning about the human body (biology). Who knows where we will go from there. Tyler is really into nature, so perhaps we'll turn our focus there next.

We plan to purchase spelling power as well and that curriculum will take him all the way to college, whew! I have read only amazing reviews on this program and once again, I think it will work wonderfully for Tyler and I'll even be able to use it with Caiden soon.
http://www.amazon.com/Spelling-Power-Fourth-Beverly-Adams-Gordon/dp/1888827394/ref=reg_hu-wl_mrai-recs

For handwriting, we are using handwriting without tears. Tyler has been using this system since kindergarten when his occupational therapist first started working with him. We have loved it and it just makes sense to stay with it.
www.hwtears.com

I am still looking into some Bible lessons that would be appropriate for the boys. I would like to find something that I could use for both of them. I did however find a super cute book for Tyler. It has the story introduction and then fun activities like acting the story out and a mad lib type story. I think Tyler will really get a huge kick out of that!
http://www.amazon.com/Creative-Stories-Preteens-Storytelling-Library/dp/0784716315/ref=wl_it_dp_o?ie=UTF8&coliid=IPFVSKZXO6BYX&colid=3V9L85OUPWFM0

The artist within

So today the boys were being extra wild, so we thought a little art might help settle them down. I pulled out the art bucket and let them choose their task. Caiden wanted to finger paint, and enjoyed all 5 pictures he made.





Tyler chose to use the stencils because he didn't want to get messy. (Please ignore the marker on his nose, lol!)




Art must have been just what the baby needed. After he got his art on, his fell fast asleep.