Journey to Excellence

I didn't get last week's wrap-up done until this past Tuesday. And I'm getting this week's done a day early. You never know how things are going to go. Dawson ~ 8th Grade This was another week where Dawson was just chugging along, with not much excitement to report. I think it gets to that this time of year. It's all business, for the most part. He has written some great essays, and is enjoying his personal reading time for the first time all year. So, things are certainly being accomplished. He has informed me that he thinks he needs a more challenging math program, so we will finish Life of Fred this year and start on Teaching Textbooks . I am excited about that switch, and I think he will enjoy it, too. We are four chapters away from finishing up The Swiss Family Robinson . He is currently working on an ocean diorama of sorts. I think he's still in the planning phase. Really, he's just ready for summer break. And I can't say I disagree. B...

We were out of town this weekend and I have been behind since we got home. Therefore, our wrap-up from last week is late and we weren't prepared to start this new week! Ughhh! I hate that! Here is a short synopsis of what we got done last week. Dawson ~ 8th Grade We are knee-deep in the Age of Exploration . We were learning about Christopher Columbus this week and went to the driveway to draw out the measurements of the Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria with sidewalk chalk. You can't see the lines, but they were basically about the size you see here. Not very big for all they were trying to carry. In science we discussed the different ways water freezes depending on the amount of salt in the water. Water definitely does not freeze as fast or as solid when it has salt in it. The Swiss Family Robinson has actually been boring to Dawson. I think what is frustrating for him is that they basically had everything they needed to survive. And they always seemed to find exactly w...