Teaching & Learning ~ 2016-2017 ~ a year in review

Hurry quick! The 2017-2018 is fast approaching! Hilarious really, this post was started over a year ago BUT, every year of learning with this crew is worth documenting! Here is our year in review. SO MUCH FUN! These pictures were taken in the fall & I can't believe how much the girls changed over the year, especially Charlotte with those teeth or rather without those teeth.  Charlotte was in class with Mrs. Dys & Eloise with Mrs. Nerren. We were very thankful for their care of our children & dedication to equip & work alongside us mamas as we continue down the road of homeschooling.

 The youngest class could seriously not be any cuter! We learned about Biomes with pictures on their heads & guessing what they might be with descriptions by 4 & 5 year olds. You can imagine how entertaining that is ; )

I now teach this class & almost everything I learned was from my friend Sheri. I figured if I could just be a copycat, my little students would be in excellent shape!

Fine Arts time, specifically drawing or painting has been Eloise's absolute favorite since that first year. After learning Oils, the basic shapes of drawing, we moved along to drawing upside down. She creates with ease & I have so much to learn from her!

One of our science experiments toward the end of the year was to build an egg protector with given supplies. The final prototype was dropped from about 9 feet high. The other tested project was to build a bridge with limited supplies, rubber bands & straws. Placed between two tables, it could be secured with tape (if I remember correctly). Neither of these were to be parent directed. We did help with a little of the lacking fine motor skills but they did most of the work.

We found these ladies up late at night constructing plans & even building with things they sneaked up to their room. As you may deduct, the egg protector picture below was not very protective, ha! Eloise came home each of those weeks totally stressed out, expressing how difficult it was to work with certain people. LOL, welcome to real life honey bunny! It was a great learning experience for each of the kids.

The final designs by the two youngest classes in what we call Foundations. ages Pre-K to 6th grade, did incredibly well! Eloise's class actually beat one of the much older group of kids with their egg protector. That was such a boost for the self-esteem!

Here is the ladder they were dropped from.

One of our most favorite things about Classical Conversations is the 24 weeks straight of oral presentations for each child. I WISH I would have had this! While I am happy to write, read or even sing, I am still so uncomfortable speaking in front of certain groups of people. Eloise spent almost two straight years with me sitting in close proximity while she spoke to her class about a favorite book, animal, a beautiful rock or piece of artwork. One week her dad lost his mind ; ) & let her take his drone! She felt pretty cool!

 We learned about the solar system & each kiddo got to be a planet.

We had an instrument petting zoo during our six weeks of learning about the orchestra. This table looks a little boring compared to the brass table but percussion is an important group of instruments!

It is ALWAYS insane to get out the door in the morning so pajama day is my favorite!

 

You may notice this is the first picture of the little bubbies, proof they were there! Here is the proof they were loved on each & every week. So simple...Mrs. Sue. Don't let Little Bit's smile fool you, Arlo cried all 24 weeks! I often had to rescue him. This was new for us. All four older sibling never batted an eye when handed over to loving arms. He likes me, still does! 

There were crafts, silly faces & LOTS of affection dealt out by sweet, over-bearing Arlo. It was darling & most tight hugs were welcomed.

On thing that is fantastic about homeschooling is that our schedule is our own & learning happens just about everywhere! Hiking with the Stillers….that is Arlo's friend, Marlow. The zoo, the backyard, Grammy's house, & so on & so forth. 

We learned all sorts of things at the Nest....

Just for example, how to remove books from Daddy's shelf & how to cut out an absurd amount of scissors as a lefty using right handed scissors. Ironic right? 

 Elo worked on the go during breaks from Nascar. Charlotte learned about rotary phones.

Owen & Anson had a physics lesson or two.

The girls got their own library cards & we spent lots of time learning how to walk in a straight line to get in safely. I think we even got to pay some late fees! Just showing our support for the City of Richardson! Robby loves late fees.

Charlotte read about a million All About Reading flashcards & we even got to put them back in numerical order twice after each of us dropped them on the floor. Gaga got to teach some math. It sure is nice to have a sub every now & then. The kids agree ; )

We did a lot of Geography including some people eating their sandwiches into the shape of the USA. Charlotte at age 7 worked hard to draw the all the states after spending lots of time tracing.   

Owen & Anson practiced some fine motor skills. Some assigned & some as a surprise for the teacher....Owen ; )

Every day is not full of fun & exciting learning opportunities or at least I don't take advantage of them all. I fall into feeling selfish, wanting more alone time, or I am irritable in response to the never-ending neediness. Overall though, I am often reminded of how special it is to shape these hearts and minds day each & every day. It is a difficult task but we know God is working in us & through us as we lead them.

The last day of school is always such a great feeling... Arlo looks like he is ready to jump in the car & get it over with!