Our Homeschool Notebooks

I mentioned our "Homeschool Notebooks" in a previous post.  They are new to us, and yes, I totally made that name up.

I really wanted to teach each of the boys to work independently this year.  I saw this idea on Pinterest and knew I had to incorporate it somehow.  Doing so with Elias would be quite difficult, so I really had to work on his Homeschool Notebook.  Each child has a binder with their individual work in it.

What helps them work independently is their own Assignment Page, and they mark off their assignments as they finish them with a dry erase marker.  I have written on them with a sharpie and inserted the page into a page protector.  

Daniel and Samuel have sight word work in theirs.  Each week, they are working on the pre-primer, primer, and 1st grade Dolch sight word lists, and I have printables for them to do.  They reinforce what they are learning as they visualize their words over and over.  I LOVE seeing them do these, and I actually let them choose these online out of a few choices.  These are from a site I love as a former educator!  I am also having them do sight word sheets I created as a teacher.  :)

Elias' notebook/binder is quite different!  It's more interactive, and he uses his the entire time we are in the homeschool room. It's in three sections:  shapes, colors, and letters.  I found different printables online that were free or inexpensive to print at home, then I divided them into sections using labeled tab dividers.  I will say that I know how rough and tough Elias is, so I opted to print on nice, thicker paper - not cardstock - but it is of a thicker quality.

Elias does one page out of each section a day.  I am also coming up with other ideas and activities for him from my days of teaching Pre-K and Kindergarten to supplement.  I do believe I will add to the binder because he LOVES it.  

Here are the printables I use and found online.  I am so thankful and blessed by the women who created these!  What a blessing they have been thus far!  

Shapes:

Do a Dot Shapes Set 1 by Honey Homeschool Mama (small cost - totally worth it)

Shape Coloring Pages by Cassie @ 3Dinosaurs (not shown)

Shape Trace & Color by Cassie @ 3Dinosaurs (not shown)

Colors:

Color Dot Marker Words by Cassie @ 3Dinosaurs 

Color Coloring Pages by Cassie @ 3Dinosaurs 

Color Word Playdough Mats by Cassie @ 3Dinosaurs

Color Preschool Printables simplified for Elias but created by Jenna Johnson

Letters/Alphabet:

ABC Do-a-Dot Marker Printables by Homeschool Creations

A-Z Do-a-Dot Worksheets by Confessions of a Homeschooler

ABC Coloring Pages by Cassie @ 3Dinosaurs 

ABC Letter Find by Cassie @ 3Dinosaurs

ABC Tracing & Dot Find by Cassie @ 3Dinosaurs

If you have any questions at all, please contact me.  I can take NO credit for this myself.  

Credits:

http://www.3Dinosaurs.com/

http://www.homeschoolcreations.net/

http://www.confessionsofahomeschooler.com/

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Honey-Homeschool-Mama

Homeschool 2015-2016 Curriculum

We've begun a new school year in our little classroom.  God had put it on our hearts during our oldest son's Kindergarten year that we needed to make changes regarding our family's education plans.  Just a few weeks after getting this impression, our middle son began having headaches, and things drastically changed for us.  It is clear now that though we thought we were making changes for our first born, God was leading us to do what was best for us all.  

We are now homeschooling, and though the days are not always easy, we fully believe the Lord has given us the direction we need for now.  With that in mind, here are the curriculum choices we have prayerfully made for our 2015-2016 year:

Daniel (Age 6) - 1st Grade

 

He excels in critical thinking, fine motor skills, and math.  We will focus on his reading and phonics this year because he does not enjoy them as much.  He is extremely energetic, active, and social!

Bible:  The Big Picture Interactive Story Bible

Math:  Saxon 1

Handwriting:  A Reason for Handwriting A

Reading:  The Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading (Lesson 50 and on)

Phonics:  Explode the Code 1 1/2, 2, and 2 1/2 (we did book 1 1/2 this through the summer; he's quickly finishing it up)

Spelling:  A Reason for Spelling A

Geography:  Evan-Moor Beginning Geography (Tuesday and Thursday)

Homeschool Notebook*:  Sight Words

Samuel (Age 5) - Kindergarten

He loves learning and asks every morning for us to hurry up to get to the classroom.  We will focus on his math and phonics this year.  He is extremely eager to learn and finishes his subjects in 2 hours despite how much I teach or extra I give him to work on!

Bible:  The Big Picture Interactive Story Bible

Math:  Saxon K

Handwriting:  A Reason for Handwriting K

Reading:  The Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading (Lesson 15 and on)

Phonics:  Explode the Code 1 and 1 1/2

Geography:  Evan-Moor Beginning Geography (Tuesday and Thursday)

Homeschool Notebook*:  Sight Words

Elias (Age 3) - Tot School

He excels in being busy and making messes.  We will focus on his fine motor skills, ability to sit, shapes, colors, writing his name, and starting to see and recognize some of the letters (mainly in his name).  He loves to cut, use markers, and all things involving paint!

Bible:  The Big Picture Interactive Story Bible

Math:  Shapes, Colors

Reading:  Alphabet

Handwriting:  His Name 

Homeschool Notebook*: Includes Shape, Color, and Letter Work in ONE PLACE

*I will explain this in a different post!

Daddy's Birthday

Brian turned 35 today, and we celebrated big. The boys made him cards, a video, a painting, and we got him a photo of our family that his sister Kim took on canvas. My dad came this afternoon and surprised him with a new blower! We went to dinner with our family, who gave him such sweet gifts and had a great night. We are incredibly grateful for his big love for us!

Touch a Truck

We have had a week of sitting still and resting. After Daniel's concussion on Tuesday, he was limited to no television or outside playing for 48 hours. I knew we needed to do something fun after so much stillness, but it had to be small and not involve much movement.

The boys and I attended a local park's Fun Friday event, which happened to be Touch a Truck this week. We have gone in the past, but the really enjoyed it yesterday especially since it wasn't crowded and it rained for 10 minutes! The rain cooled us down quite a bit.

Touch a Truck is an event where all the city's service vehicles are in one place. The children are allowed to climb to into the vehicles and explore each one! They get to talk with the drivers/community helpers. It is both educational, fun, and free!

Hard Hit...

Tuesday started off like any other normal morning. The boys were up, had eaten breakfast, and began playing with paper airplanes in the living room while I was cleaning up the kitchen. It was maybe 8:30.

I then heard the worst thud I had heard in a while, and I went running to the living room. I knew that whoever had taken the hit was hurt badly, but in those first moments following the sound I'd heard and dashing to the scene, there was only silence. It was just a matter of seconds, but I quickly realized Daniel had fallen into our coffee table while retrieving his airplane. He was screaming at this point, grabbing his ear.

It was huge, red and swollen, but he wouldn't stop crying. The tears continued to fall after Ibuprofen, ice, and an hour after it occurred. He then started getting really irritated with his brothers... every noise and move they made. I moved them to their room so Daniel could lay in the living room alone.

He was hysterical, though, complaining about my cell phone vibrating and the boys' whispers from across the house. Then, he got nauseated. I knew his ear wasn't the only place that had taken the hit from the coffee table...

The pediatrician said to be there in 20 minutes, and she was incredibly caring. Daniel still hadn't explained how he had fallen, but the swelling of his ear and head was quite noticeable. He was dizzy and not very clear. The pediatrician noticed an indentation on his skull behind Daniel's ear, fearing a fracture. We were sent to Vanderbilt Children's Hospital for imaging, where we learned that the "pothole" on his skull was actually swelling. The CT scan showed bruising and swelling, and he had a concussion.

I am reminded that through these scary moments of the calm I felt... it was never overwhelming. I realized how thankful I was for God's protection of my family and how good it is to rest in His peace through the times that could have been so fearful.

Pictures are:
1) comparison of both ears a few minutes after falling, 2) sleeping for a few seconds on the way to Vanderbilt, 3) sitting with Dad in the waiting area, 4) Daniel beside the CT scanner, 5) the bruising behind his ear the day after the fall, and 6) feeling better more than 24 hours after the fall.