Our Christmas break will begin next Wednesday, but we are certainly short-timers around here! We have had a lot going on in our family, that is no secret. It has been difficult to keep on with our everyday lives in the midst of it. But we have done our best to trudge ahead.
Our week this week consisted of sleeping in a little bit, staying comfortable, and finishing up some units.
Dawson and I have been watching the mini-series Roots. What a great movie! Along with that we have been finishing up Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe. I never knew that this book was so faith-based. If Uncle Tom can be a missionary in his dire circumstances, can't I be one? I feel like Dawson has gotten a real, deep understanding of Slavery and it's impact on our country. Because of the 2 1/2 hours + of movie watching and reading we have done daily this week, we decided to put off our Biology lessons until next week. Dawson has kept up on his other assignments, though, making steady progress.
Brynne has spent her week in her pj's mostly, working on a Christmas unit I received free from SchoolExpress. I highly recommend you register for their free unit studies. She loves them! I print them off, put them in a manilla folder turned notebook, and she works steadily on the pages every day. There is reading comprehension, sentence structure, spelling, word unscrambles, crossword puzzles, word searches, and lots of drawing and coloring. Additionally, the unit is discussed at length. Each unit can easily be completed in a week, doing 3 or so pages a day. She is really into coloring right now, so if I am busy doing work with Dawson, I can sit her down with those parts of her unit study and she is occupied for a long time!
Because of all we have had going on, we kind of abandoned our Christmas Books and Activities. I hate it when I start to follow someone's blog who has a great idea, and then they quit doing it. But there just hasn't been enough time (or energy), so we have just been doing what we feel like doing when we feel like doing it. My mother-in-law sent us some wooden Christmas crafts and Brynne has been loving working on them. She has also worked steadily on her grammar and reading this week. After the new year, we will get back into our science studies by doing a unit on dogs and will resume our states studies.
While I see many homeschool bloggers talking about changes they want to make to their curriculum, I am feeling very confident in what we are doing. I just want to hit it a little harder in the next semester, with a little more consistent focus. Without all of the birthdays and holidays and turmoil (turmoil be GONE, in the name of Jesus!), that should be much easier to accomplish.
I pray that everyone has a blessed and lovely Christmas season. Hold tight to the ones you love.
** Linking up at Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers.
Our week this week consisted of sleeping in a little bit, staying comfortable, and finishing up some units.
Dawson and I have been watching the mini-series Roots. What a great movie! Along with that we have been finishing up Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe. I never knew that this book was so faith-based. If Uncle Tom can be a missionary in his dire circumstances, can't I be one? I feel like Dawson has gotten a real, deep understanding of Slavery and it's impact on our country. Because of the 2 1/2 hours + of movie watching and reading we have done daily this week, we decided to put off our Biology lessons until next week. Dawson has kept up on his other assignments, though, making steady progress.
Brynne has spent her week in her pj's mostly, working on a Christmas unit I received free from SchoolExpress. I highly recommend you register for their free unit studies. She loves them! I print them off, put them in a manilla folder turned notebook, and she works steadily on the pages every day. There is reading comprehension, sentence structure, spelling, word unscrambles, crossword puzzles, word searches, and lots of drawing and coloring. Additionally, the unit is discussed at length. Each unit can easily be completed in a week, doing 3 or so pages a day. She is really into coloring right now, so if I am busy doing work with Dawson, I can sit her down with those parts of her unit study and she is occupied for a long time!
Because of all we have had going on, we kind of abandoned our Christmas Books and Activities. I hate it when I start to follow someone's blog who has a great idea, and then they quit doing it. But there just hasn't been enough time (or energy), so we have just been doing what we feel like doing when we feel like doing it. My mother-in-law sent us some wooden Christmas crafts and Brynne has been loving working on them. She has also worked steadily on her grammar and reading this week. After the new year, we will get back into our science studies by doing a unit on dogs and will resume our states studies.
While I see many homeschool bloggers talking about changes they want to make to their curriculum, I am feeling very confident in what we are doing. I just want to hit it a little harder in the next semester, with a little more consistent focus. Without all of the birthdays and holidays and turmoil (turmoil be GONE, in the name of Jesus!), that should be much easier to accomplish.
I pray that everyone has a blessed and lovely Christmas season. Hold tight to the ones you love.
** Linking up at Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers.
I'm with you on the doing what you want when you want to do it! There are LOADS of cool ideas out there for just about everything! There's just not the time (or energy) to do more than some...and usually it's what the KIDS ask for and want! It can be overwhelming sometimes!
ReplyDeleteSounds like a nice week. I remember loving Uncle Tom's Cabin when I read it as a teenager - well, loving isn't quite right, I remember being deeply moved by it.
ReplyDeleteFor Brynne, there are some good Christmas freebie printables on currclick.com right now too.
I am praying for you ~ and admire you keeping going despite difficult times.
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