Week 31 ~ Field Trips, Garden and Computer School

What a great week we had! We were very busy. However, I can see the fruits of our labor coming through into our everyday lives.

Field Trips ~ We had a wonderful time going to a science festival this week. The kids studied coins under a microscope, studied water displacement by pushing pencils through a small plastic bag filled with water, made slime and did lots of other fun science experiments. Tom Sawyer spent most of his time playing in the Lego science area.

We also visited out local extension office with lots of cuttings from trees in our yard. They were able to help us figure out what kind of trees we have. They also gave us soil sample kits so we can find some great places to plant blueberry and raspberry bushes.

Lastly, we went on a field trip to see a local private school's spring performance. They do a play or musical each year and invite homeschoolers to the dress rehearsal. This time, they did The Little Mermaid. We were disappointed that they did the Disney version instead of sticking to the original story. Oh well, the props, costumes and acting was GREAT!

In the Garden ~ We were shocked to find asparagus growing in the middle of our strawberry garden this week! Boy, it grows fast and was ready to cut for dinner in just a few short days. We only got a couple stalks. It will be very exciting to see what treasures the yard will reveal over the coming months. We also are finding tons of rocks all over the yard. I am building a stone wall at one end of the secret garden. It is coming along nicely.

Computer School ~ Goldilocks started Time 4 Learning this week. She is really enjoying it. I have her in second grade across the board. I think I am going to need to lower the math or ditch the math completely. It is shocking to see how much she is struggling with this grade level when she is supposed to be leaving 6th grade. I do worry about her future. What will become of this child? On the bright side, she is sitting still for three hours a day and really paying attention to the computer program. Also, I can see how much easier school is for the other children without her constant interruptions. I will continue with this way of schooling Goldilocks for the next few weeks. She is still doing literature, art, music, science experiments, CNN Student News, and Life of Fred math with us.

What We Are Reading ~

• The Story of George Washington (finished)
• Brick by Brick ~ About how slaves built the first White House
• The Little Mermaid
• American Girl Doll books
• A Boy Called Dickens
• Why is Milk White and 200 Other Curious Chemistry Questions
• Life of Fred - Dogs

Other School ~

• Teaching Textbooks
• Squilt lesson #8 ( We do these lessons very much like FIAR and listen to the piece of music all week long).
• G.W. Carver unit study
• Paragraph Writing
• Journals
• Biology ~ The structure of flowers
• DVD on the building of the Brooklyn Bridge
• CNN Student News
• We are taking care of a newly hatched baby turtle that my Mother found.

Where We Are Going ~

• Field Trips
• Choir
• Dance classes
• Orthodontist (round two of braces is just weeks away for Goldilocks)
• Doctor for Tom Sawyer's 11 year check up (He is 72 pounds, which is finally back on his growth curve at 25th percentile.)

Last Thoughts ~ Between the Boston tragedy and the terrible factory explosion in Texas last night, there have been lots of conversation about these events around our home. I am using this opportunity to discuss with the children that they can only control themselves. They must choose joy every day and spread joy as often as they can (Psalm 43:3 "Send forth your light and your truth"). We talked about having a servant's heart and how they can serve and spread light into the dark corners of this world.

Blessings, Dawn