Woo-Hoo! My goal is to keep up regularly with a Weekly Wrap-up post, this is my 2nd this year, I am off to a good start!
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This year we don’t do much as a whole group, it just wasn’t working. The boys have been participating in some of Ladybug’s Integrity Time lessons, I “make” Krash sit in and I invite Pac when I think he might like it. Recently we did the letter D for Determination lesson and explored magnets together {they stick with it}, as an object lesson.
See our Homeschool Curriculum Choices for this year!
I decided to make a few changes to K’s curriculum. Although we use Calvert through a cyber school, I have a lot of freedom and basically use what I want and change if needed. I am very blessed with my situation. One thing I have always disliked about Calvert is their Calvert Script, so with Pac I used a basic cursive and with Krash I have decided to use Logic of English’s Cursive Handwriting program. I wanted a plan and this gives it to me. I did TONS of reading prior to choosing this one and purchasing it. I am really happy so far and he loves it.
We are learning 2 letters per day, going through the sequence of using the salt tray,
A dry erase marked on large lines…
Finally the pencil and paper practice. We each circle the letter we think he wrote the best each time.
I have decided to let go of the phonics and spelling program that comes with Calvert. It’s not bad, I just like All About Spelling and All About Reading better. I was having him do both, but realized that at this point it’s not necessary. We are now doing two AAS 2 lessons per week and three AAR 2 lessons per week.
Below he was using the AAR/AAR word cards to work on alphabetizing to the second letter.
I am keeping the literature portion of Calvert, which brings in sight words, vocabulary words and awesome stories and themes. I really like this aspect of Calvert.
One thing I love about Calvert this year is the option of using Singapore’s Math in Focus. We are in LOVE so far, it is a great fit for Krash and for my teaching style! This is an aspect of Calvert I am definitely keeping and love. The hands on aspect is a big win for both of us. I won’t say it’s always easy, he does struggle with some of the intense methods that are teaching the WHY behind the problem. However, I am glad he is being taught this way, I think it will benefit him in the long run.
Below was an activity he did, to find the missing number in the addition problem.
Our Continent Box is a fun extension to our homeschool, Krash likes working towards his goals on his Continent Box Challenge. Below he completed the one of the challenges from our Australia Continent Box to create the continent out of a material of his choice, he chose rainbow blocks!
Here he was matching the 3 part animal cards…
Recently Krash had to write a story, to work on writing structure {we use Calvert’s writing portion}. He uses a Try-It notebook for words he has difficulty spelling. It’s a technique I used when I was a classroom teacher. He tries a word on the left side and then brings it to me and I write it correctly on the right side. This enables him to use his phonics and spelling skills while also having the correct end result to reinforce correct spelling.
He had to read his final story aloud, and since it was about Minecraft, PacMan was an eager listener!
We are using Calvert’s science and have been learning about seeds and plants. We soaked bean seeds and investigated them the next day.
He learned to identify the seed coat and the embryo.
Ladybug joins in when she thinks it looks fun!
Best part of homeschool, the cat gets to come!
I don’t get many photos of PacMan, since 6th grade isn’t always a photo-worthy as the younger grades!
Below you can see his study notebook. Calvert uses assessments every 20 lessons and they can sometimes be a bit overwhelming in my opinion. In order to stay prepared throughout the entire 20 lessons, he utilizes printed flashcards I prepare in advance. I use the free flashcard creator software here, and print them out and file them in a study notebook. As we read he looks for key terms and writes the page number and definition on the paper. In the end, before the tests, we cut them out and work through the flashcards to prepare!
He is currently reading City: A Story of Roman Planning and Construction, and learning a lot.
This book as amazing drawings, I learned SO much when I read it this past summer to prepare to teach him! He is enjoying it, but he much prefers novels with more of a story line.
That’s certainly not everything we did, but a glimpse of what my camera captured over the past couple of weeks! To see more weekly wrap-ups, visit…
