Remember that I was thinking about an e-book reader? Well, I stumbled across this just now…
I am still here but on a limited basis. One of my little ones spilled some water on my laptop (yikes). I am probably going to get the hard drive fitted into an external case and just get a new one, InshaALLAH. In the meantime, I am using the classroom computer.
It has been extremely hot over the past few weeks and we’ve tried our best to stay cool in different ways. I finally had to give in and install the window air conditioner so that the kids would stop fighting and I could stay sane, lol. Last weekend was the Victoria Day long weekend, so my husband spent a lot of time outside with the kids in the evenings and I was trying (still unsuccessfully) to capture the local fireworks. This was the best I could do. It’s hand-held on a tripod in manual focus but I need to study my photography books to get this right, InshaALLAH.
Since it was so hot, the kids sat on the balcony and read for a while.
We’ve also done a lot more Arabic lately. My daughter is using Rosetta Stone and she’s also reading some Scholastic books in Arabic. Now we need to start using our brains and speak it more frequently around the house, InshaALLAH.
Meanwhile, my son has really picked up his reading and we’re using the Explode the Code series to slowly work on his handwriting. It’s really coming along, mashaALLAH.
Do most of you take a break and stick with the standard school schedule? Will any of you be continuing your studies throughout the summer? I keep trying to take a break but the children push me forward, lol.
Penpals: this week, InshaALLAH, we will be getting something out to you. Hafsa, please email your address and your daughter’s name so that we can write her too.
Do you incorporate any type of organized physical fitness into your homeschool days?
To colds, that is! The weather was pretty hot and then, in typical Canadian fashion, it cooled off and my son got a cold.
So, of course, it passed through our home and one by one, except my husband as usual, all have had our share of coughing and sneezing.
We’re nearing the end of our sicknesses, InshaALLAH, so I should be posting regularly.
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***photo by: roy mattappallil
My children love this because he’s a little ugly, lol.
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I recently purchased The Handbook of Nature Study to go along with lessons from the blog. Are any of you familiar with this massive text? It has over 700 pages! There’s a lot of info inside and without the blog, I don’t think I would want to organize it on my own.
I’ve been peeking at her blog for quite a while and sometimes I just do the activities without reading through all of the lessons, (she also has another blog with art lessons by the way).
Here, we are pressing flowers between pieces of cardboard,(not with the nature study book, lol). We pressed a leaf from the maple tree in our back yard too.
We’ve also bloomed some flowers from the forsythia in the front yard by bringing in some cuttings and putting them in water a few weeks before spring arrived. The kids got a kick out of that and so did I, lol.
You can also see all the other goodies that they brought inside, like the pine cones and pine needles.
This gets us outside to explore ALLAH’s Creation and to spend quality time together. They go outside all the time to play but I feel like they really get a chance to appreciate their surroundings and learn about the place in which they live. It also gives us all a bit of exercise, (ahem, especially mommy).
We will be using Singapore Math 3A and 3B soon and we have the rest of our books already. As a filler,we are using Spectrum Math 5,(it was about $2 through Amazon), and she’s able to do the work without any difficulty so far.
It’s not really a big jump – Singapore Math seems to be ahead of other math programs anyway.
My daughter started homeschooling at three, so she’s on grade 3/4 in math. She’s multiplying and doing fractions and division, AlhamduLILLAH. I want to be consistent so I am sticking with the Singapore Math and we both like it very much.
I am also using Spectrum Language Arts Grade 4, Spectrum Reading Grade 4, and Spectrum Writing Grade 4.
She is doing well so far and she’s getting plenty of practice with writing. What I’ve seen so far is that she can read and write, but needs to develop her imagination. I think that she has gotten so used to rules, (like phonics and math rules and spelling rules, etc) that she hasn’t spent enough time being creative. I guess we should work on that, lol.
She’s also reading book number 44 out of her 50 required chapter books. She has until August but I’m hoping that she does it sooner than later.
The penpals of my children continue to brighten their faces and warm their hearts. JazakILLAH Khairin to all that participate.
By the way, if there is anyone else out there with a boy around 4 or 5, we would be glad to write to him, InshaALLAH. My son is just now learning to read and write but he loves getting mail!
