Our Learning Room

Presenting....Trivium Academy's Learning Room.



the actual banner we have on the wall I didn't photograph,
it just has this above a bulletin board.



I've got art supplies hanging from the door *very back of photo* in a shoe organizer. I've got the beloved bookcase, which I need 2 more. I've got the funky rug to catch any playdoh, paint, etc. I've got my little "teacher's desk" that holds all my stuff. I've got maps, posters and see I've even saved shoeboxes (lined up against the bookcase). Here's another view.

Here's my little bookcase that holds all our curriculum and notebooks. My dry erase board with today's OPG lesson on it and this week's memory verse. (She's got it memorized!) I've got two laminated maps, and posters for DS2 and DD6. Behind the chair to the left of the photo stashed underneath is more notebooks, cardboard boxes, a puppet theatre, our nature backpacks and whatever else I could cram behind there to keep out of sight. LOL

Meeting Sonya, fellow classical homeschooler. I have a date with another homeschooler and her family Saturday! I'm so excited! We talked on the phone tonight and decided to have me bring my homeschooling stuff so we can look at each other's curriculums! Doesn't that sound like fun? Well, maybe it's one of those have to be there moments. I live in RURAL Georgia, and I'm going to drive one hour but I am so excited. I used to live in Savannah, GA so moving to where we are now was a little of a culture shock but I'm a military brat so I adjusted quickly.

About the homeschooling: we're doing okay. I almost don't want to add history, science, art and music because of all the preparations I have to do and the time it will take during our day. It's been fun ending school around 11 am. But we are excited to learn about history, science, art and music. DD and I looked at Drawing With Children today and she's very excited to start.

Our 2nd week of homeschooling

This has been a lot better but I think the visit to Sonya's house really helped. DD6 got to see another homeschooling family and see how other children behave. I would go to Sonya's once a week if I could. I don't know yet how to get my children to behave with joyful first time obedience but I'm searching for the answers.

I want (like most parents) to train my children up in a way that when they are grown they will say "thank you". I want to provide a spiritual foundation and a desire to learn all they can and if possible- a love of reading. Can't I just twitch my nose and have all those things?

DD6 has been polite and answering in full sentences this week. She says "Yes, Mommy." Instead of, "yeah, uh-huh." She comes to me when I call for her instead of yelling throughout the house. We're still having a problem with attention during our lessons but I reminded her today that she has a job to do as a student just like I have a job to do as a teacher.

How many memory verses can a child memorize at 6? She was doing great memorizing them until today. I think 2 a week will be enough. She really had a hard time with Psalm 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God. Declare kept stumping her and so did glory. I thought it was an easy verse but guess not.

She loves Math, Horizons 1 has been great so far. We're still into things she already knew a little about from kindergarten so I'll have to wait until we start new concepts before being able to determine if Horizons is really a great fit. I hope it is.

We did our first Artistic Pursuits lesson. She liked it, we didn't have the ebony pencil but she used some prismacolor pencils. I switched to Crayola once I realized that she was being a little rough with the prismacolor ones. (No I didn't tell her that, I told her that Crayola had more colors).

We start history Monday and science on Tuesday. We're both excited, me probably more than her. I have to keep reminding myself that she doesn't have to "get" it at this age, just be exposed to it.

Our First Day

This is my second time typing about our first day of school. I did a minute by minute recap but realized, who in the world is going to want to read this? So, here it is in a nutshell as much as possible.

Above is our first day of school picture (got the idea from a blogging friend, thank you!) The sign was a last minute decision. What you don't see is ds2 running in front of his sister everytime I tried to take a picture. I took 6 pictures of the same thing! This is the best *smile* I could get out of her but also leave ds2's head out of the picture.

I got a wake up call from ds2 at 6:00 a.m., I wasn't meaning to get up at 6, but I realized it was a good thing. We sat together (he likes to cuddle first thing in the morning) and then we played *cars* in his room. We went to wake up dd6 and she was not happy. I told her she would be late for school if she didn't get up now...she smiled. That was a common thing for me to say when we had to go to public school.

After my *morning* shower (this is rare lately, doesn't usually happen til ds2's nap at 11am), we had breakfast. Then we talked about "school". What is expected, behavior rules, etc. We started our Bible lesson. That went fine except I should have had dd6 repeat the memory verse 3x instead of just 2x.

Handwriting next, had her write the memory verse 4x, she accomplished 3x. She started to complain of stomach ache. I told her to ignore it and finish. I then had her write rule #1, Be Kind, 4x. She liked that one, it seemed short to her. Then to finish off handwriting, she practiced her A's. Handwriting took about 40 minutes, double the time it should have due to her procrastination.

Math. I explained what a number line was and realized I didn't understand it from what I had said. She complained of a stomach ache when I put her worksheet in front of her. I sent her to her room so I could cry. I looked around at our "learning room" and saw all the wonderful books and activities and games we have for "school".

I went to my dh (there are times I am so grateful he's a pastor and he's able to be "around") and told him that about her stomach ache. He wisely told me that the kids (ds2 was causing problems too, getting into EVERYTHING and making a mess) would figure out how things work in time. That I can't just snap my fingers and make them understand a new schedule. There are moments like this that I cherish so much between us.

I went to dd6 in her room and explained that her job was to do the best she can and my job was to show her how to do new stuff. I promised I would try to make things fun but in life not everything is fun and we have to do it anyway. Her job as a student is to do her work, my job as her teacher is to enable her to do it. We went back and did our work, praise the Lord! We finished our Math with no tears and dd6 said, "that was easy".

I'm so glad that we had done some reading lessons over the deschooling break. DD6 picked up right away what we needed to do. I still need to read a selection from A Child's Garden Of Verses for narration but I'm torn whether to use that or a reading from Egermeier's Bible Storybook. We're going to do this when ds2 is taking his nap.

Confession time: I had to turn on Baby Einstein DVD for Ds2, he was being too disruptive during our handwriting lesson so I put the dvd on for our math lesson. I tried reading him a book, playing with the magnetic letters with him, etc. Nothing held his attention long enough for dd6 to finish her work uninterrupted and I didn't want to leave the room. DH said that whatever I needed to do was okay and that ds2 would get used to the schedule soon enough.

I know I could have done somethings differently but I think all-in-all it was a great first day. We started at 8 a.m. and was done by 10:15 am.

I have decided to homeschool, my five year old.

DD is currently in kindergarten at school. Our local school district is not attractive, so we are commuting Mon-Fri to a better school district two counties away (34 miles one way).

Although this is a temporary situation due to my husband being a pastor (we'll be moved every 4-6 years), it is still very stressful communting a total of 2 hours a day, and I'm not impressed with the "social skills" she has been bringing home.

DD loves, loves, loves her teacher and we do too. We like the school she is attending. We do not however, like the fact that in order for her to participate in sports in this district, we have to pick her up from school at 3 pm, go home (change clothes, do homework, eat), drive back 34 miles drop her off and stay until practice/game is over and drive 34 miles back home. Gas prices alone would be too much for us as a one-income family.

I have been watching "WifeSwap" periodically on tv and have noticed A LOT of homeschool moms. I always thought I wouldn't be good at homeschooling but after reading various books on the subject, I might actually be the perfect candidate!

I miss DD when she's at school, I miss interacting with her, playing, going places with her. DS misses her too. He's technically 22 months old now and very active.

I know the state rules, state performance standards, the various choices of curriculums, the homeschool group in my area, and have talked to various people of knowledge about the journey I'm able to partake in.

DD's kindergarten teacher, the school principal, a first-grade teacher, other homeschooling moms, the board of education and have read extensively homeschool reviews.

My friend Gina says that if she were to homeschool, she would consider me her only source because I'm the research queen. Sometimes I wonder if all this information is a good thing....

How Fast Does Hair Grow?

My baby. His daddy decided he needed a hair cut. Don't worry, he told me- the shears have a long guide. I knew this was a bad idea but trying to be supportive, and submissive I let it go.


When my ds2 came to me the first time, his hair was uneven with a few "bald" spots. I cried. I really cried. My baby's soft, blond hair was gone and what was left was an uneven crew cut that wasn't even a crew cut. My husband then said, it's okay Mom, we're going to fix it. Well this was his version of "fixing it." Never, never, never again.

Here's the BEFORE Daddy cut my hair picture:

And AFTER Daddy cut my hair picture:





Yes, it's only hair but he's my baby. How fast does hair grow? If I give him LOTS of milk will it help? I have forgiven my dear husband, thankfully he had to go to work. I'm trying so hard to laugh about this! It's a smidgen funny, maybe it'll be funnier tomorrow- or in church when everyone looks at my husband and asks, "What did you do to the poor boy?"

Do you have a similar Oops moment?

Free History Resources Online

I love researching subjects. Here's a list of resources I've found for history. I hope it helps, if it doesn't at least it didn't hurt. Please leave me a comment if you find something useful or just to let me know you were here.

1. Classical Homeschooling's History on the Internet
A very thorough index of links to various sites. You will need to explore the area of history you need to see if there are any FREE links available. Definitely worth exploring. CCH History on the Internet link

2. Social Studies provided by Federal Resources for Educational Excellence (F.R.E.E.)
History is just too vast to give you a run-down of what they have available. Go check it out yourself. You might just find something you were looking for! F.R.E.E. Social Studies link

3. Social Studies Curriculum Resources Poster Sets for K-3
For educational use only, you can download these posters to use as educational aids. Free Social Studies Posters link

4. Mr. Donn's Pages, Free LP for Social Studies
Free Lesson Plans, Activities & Resources. Mr. Donn's link

5. History Teacher
You'll have to see this one yourself. It looked like it had great links for high schoolers too. History Teacher link

6. Hyperlinked World History in Biblical Perspective
From their website: "This network offers a free world history course from a Biblical perspective. Content within a Christian worldview of history believes that from creation to Christ's return, history pivots on His resurrection.

Hyperhistory.net provides structured yet flexible course versions such as "Advanced Placement World History" that may be easily individualized per student needs. All the necessary content is organized on line with no materials to purchase. Our history shows a ministry aimed to benefit the nearly one million homeschool students in the United States, of whom an estimated 80% have Christian affiliations. Additionally, studying throughout 115 countries, are 1,030,000 students of ACSI (Association of Christian Schools International). Nearly half our students are evangelical missionary kids." HyperHistory link

7. Historesearch
From their website: "Welcome! Histor eSearch was created for students, history teachers and history buffs. We now features links to K-12 history lesson plans and activities. All resource material has been previewed for academic content and relevance to national and state history curriculum content standards. The majority of the resources offered herein were created by others. At times, very good sites go offline or change content without any notification. If you find a dead link or wish to submit a site for review, please email us. Use of this site is absolutely free. Just click on any of the topics below. Please support Histor eSearch by visiting any of our sponsors. Our sponsors are the sole funding source of this free research resource."Historesearch link

8. Bible History
From their website: "The focus at Bible History Online is history and the Bible. The Bible is about God's activities in history. It deals with actual people in an actual geographical area during actual specified historical times who had contact with other actual peoples and empires whom we know of from sources outside the Bible. Knowledge of the historical background of the Bible is essential to any serious student of the Scriptures.

Recent archaeological discoveries as well as comparative historical research and philological studies, along with an analysis and interpretation of the Old Testament text have made possible a fuller and more reliable picture of Biblical history than in previous eras. The Lord has allowed our studies of the Bible to be greatly enhanced with the tremendous technology of the computer and the Internet bringing the pictures of the past as well as the work of devoted teachers and scholars right into our homes. Bible History link

I found these sites, and I'm letting you know about them. It's up to you if you want to use them. Personally, especially with biblical subjects, I check to see who's behind it. Sometimes free isn't always free.

Grammar 1 Reading List

I wanted to share something that might help some homeschoolers using the Well-Trained Mind or Story of the World Volume 1 book. I took 3 weeks to create a schedule of reading for our first grade year. Books may be changed out but this is what I came up with. Please let me know if it helps you. Forgive me if it looks strange, I only formatted it for my use not realizing that I might share it with others. I'll answer any questions. Egermeier is scheduled to read alongside SOTW-taken from Paula's Archives.

Also, yes there are 43 weeks. Some may be combined, this list was created to make my life while we were homeschooling easier. I wanted one source to find what books to read/check out from the library or buy. You can copy and paste into your own program and use as you wish for private uses.

Grammar 1: Reading Schedule 2006-07
This schedule is by the weeks of The Story of the World, Volume 1

H= History SC= Science A= Art
IR= Independent Reading RA = Read Aloud
HL= Home Library ESB= Egermeier’s Storybook Bible


WEEK 1, Introduction-What is History:
H: 1. Archaeologists dig for clues. Duke, Kate.
2. Scholastic's the magic school bus shows and tells : a book about
archaeology, Posner, Jackie.
IR: 1. Me and my family tree Sweeney, Joan
2. Bobs Books/Nora Gaydos, HL.
RA: ESB 1-10. A Child’s Garden of Verses.

WEEK 2: The Earliest People
H: 1. It's disgusting-- and we ate it! : true food facts from around the world-- and throughout history! Solheim, James.
2. The first dog Brett, Jan
IR: Bobs Books/Nora Gaydos, HL.
RA: ESB 11-18.
1. Odysseus. Rosemary Sutcliffe.

WEEK 3: Egyptians Lived on the Nile River
H: 1. The Nile River Fowler, Allan.
2. Egyptian gods and goddesses Barker, Henry
IR: Bobs Books/Nora Gaydos, HL.
RA: ESB p18-20.
Bill and Pete Go Down the Nile HL.
1. Odysseus. McCaughrean, Geraldine.

WEEK 4: The First Writing
H: 1. Hieroglyphs from A to Z : a rhyming book with ancient Egyptian stencil for kids.
Der Manuelian, Peter.
2.EGYPTIAN CRAFTSMAN Caselli, Giovanni.
SC: Magic School Bus: Human Body & Childcraft: About Me. HL.
IR: 1. Me and my family tree Sweeney, Joan
2. Bobs Books/Nora Gaydos/McGuffey, HL.
RA: ESB 69-72.
1. Odysseus. McCaughrean, Geraldine.

WEEK 5: The Old Kingdom of Egypt
H: 1. Who built the pyramids? Chisholm, Jane.
2. An Egyptian tomb. Moses, Brian.
3. I Am the Mummy Heb-Nefert. Bunting, Eve.
4. DK Revealed Ancient Egypt HL.
SC: 1. Fun with my 5 senses : activities to build learning readiness. Williamson, Sara
IR: Bobs Books/Nora Gaydos/McGuffey, HL.
RA: 1. ESB 20-27.
Magic Tree House: Mummies in the Morning.
2. Mummies and pyramids : a nonfiction companion to Mummies in the morning Osborne, Will.
3.Magic tree house collection. Books 1-4 [sound recording] Osborne, Mary Pope.

WEEK 6: The First Sumerian Dictator
H: 1. Ancient Egyptians and Their Neighbors. Broida, Marian.
2. The three princes: a tale from the Middle East Kimmel, Eric A.
3. Discovering the royal tombs at Ur. Glubok, Shirley, ed.
4.The Great Pyramid of Cheops. Thomsen, Steven.
Biography page on Cheops.
IR: Bobs Books/Nora Gaydos/McGuffey, HL.
RA: 1. Arabian nights: three tales Lattimore, Deborah Nourse 2. ESB 28-33

WEEK 7: The Jewish People
H: 1. Old Testament Days. HL
2. Dance, sing, remember : a celebration of Jewish holidays. Kimmelman, Leslie
3. Angels, prophets, rabbis & kings from the stories of the Jewish people. Patterson, José.
4. Abraham’s Great Discovery. Bernard Zlotowitz (couldn’t find in library catalog, purchase?)
Biography page on Abraham.
IR: 1. Joseph and his brothers. Auld, Mary.
RA: ESB 33-39 (6a), 51-69 (6b)
1. Abraham : the first historical biography Rosenberg, David
2.Abraham and Isaac Storr, Catherine.

WEEK 8: Hammurabi and the Babylonians
H: 1. Ancient Egyptians and their Neighbors. Broida, Marian.
2. The tale of Ali Baba and the forty thieves : a story from the Arabian nights Kimmel, Eric
3. Abu Ali : three tales of the Middle East Van Woerkom, Dorothy.
4. The friends of Abu Ali : three more tales of the Middle East. Van Woerkom, Dorothy.
5. They wrote on clay : the Babylonian tablets speak today Chiera, Edward
6. Ten kings : and the worlds they ruled Meltzer, Milto
Biography page on Hammurabi
RA: ESB 39-43.

WEEK 9: The Assyrians
H: 1. Ancient Egyptians and their Neighbors. Broida, Marian. (HL)
2. Gilgamesh the king. Zeman, Ludmila.
3. The revenge of Ishtar. Zeman, Ludmila.
4. The last quest of Gilgamesh Zeman, Ludmila.
IR: Bobs Books/Nora Gaydos/McGuffey, HL.
RA: ESB 44-51.

WEEK 10: The First Cities of India
H: 1. Exploration into India Ganeri, Anita.
2. One grain of rice. Demi.
3. The little brown Jay : a tale from India Claire, Elizabeth.
IR: 1. Once a mouse-- : a fable cut in wood. Brown, Marcia.
RA: Childcraft: Indian Folktales. Read from Psalms, Proverbs.

WEEK 11: The Far East-Ancient China
H: 1. Growing Up in Ancient China. Teague, Ken.
2. The ancient Chinese world. Kleeman, Terry F.
3. Ancient China. Simpson, Judith.
RA: 1. Maples in the mist : children's poems from the Tang Dynasty. Ho, Minfong.
2. The Story About Ping. Flack, Marjorie.
3. Tikki Tikki Tembo [sound recording]Mosel, Arlene.
Read from Psalms, Proverbs.

WEEK 12: Ancient Africa
H: 1. Misoso : once upon a time tales from Africa. Aardema, Verna.
2. Too much talk. Medearis, Angela Shelf.
3. Anansi the spider [sound recording] : [a tale from Ashanti] McDermott, Gerald.
SC: 1. Magical science adventure [sound recording] : 60 minutes of sing-along fun!
Thompson, Kim Mitzo.
2. What is a mammal? Snedden, Robert.
3. Armored animals .Zim, Herbert Spencer
RA: 1. Great African kingdoms. Sheehan, Sean. 2. ESB 18-20

WEEK 13: The Middle Kingdom of Egypt
H: 1. The pharaohs of ancient Egypt. Payne, Elizabeth Ann.
2. Growing Up in Ancient Egypt. David, Rosalie.
3. Egyptian Gods and Goddesses, Barker, Henry.
4. Rimonah of the Flashing Sword : a North African tale Kimmel, Eric A.
RA: ESB 73-93.

WEEK 14: The New Kingdom of Egypt
H: 1. The pharaohs of ancient Egypt. Payne, Elizabeth Ann.
2. Tut's mummy lost-- and found Donnelly, Judy.
3. Tutankhamun : the life and death of a Pharaoh Murdoch, David
4. Hatshepsut: His Majesty, Herself. Andronik, Catherine
Biography: Queen Hatshepsut of Egypt, Tutankhamen
SC: 1. From tadpole to frog Pfeffer, Wendy
2. What is an amphibian? Schaefer, Lola M.
RA: ESB 95-112.
1. Hatshepsut the princess who became king Galford, Ellen
2. Hatshepsut : the first woman pharaoh Thomas, Susanna.

WEEK 15: The Israelites Leave Egypt
H: 1. Exodus from Egypt Auld, Mary.
2. Guide to Israel HL.
3. Moses. Fisher, Leonard Everett.
4. Walking the Bible [sound recording] : [a journey by land through the five books of Moses] Feiler, Bruce S.
Biography: Moses
SC: 1. Mollusks. Richardson, Joy.
2. Invertebrates. Silverstein, Alvin.
RA: ESB 113-128.
1. Moses: the long road to freedom. Beneduce, Ann Keay.

WEEK 16: The Phoenicians
H: 1. Writing in ancient Phoenicia. Fine, Jil.
2. Ancient Israelites and their neighbors: an activity guide. Broida, Marian.
3. Fire into ice : adventures in glass making. Houston, James A
4. In search of a homeland : the story of The Aeneid. Lively, Penelope
RA: ESB 129-171, 176-186

WEEK 17: The Return of Assyria
H: 1. Ancient Egyptians and Their Neighbors. Broida, Marian.
2. The story of Jonah Auld, Mary
3. The seven voyages of Sinbad the sailor. Yeoman, John.
4. Illustrated Jewish Bible for children Hastings, Selina.
RA: ESB 187-198, 171-176, 198-233

WEEK 18: Babylon Takes Over Again!
H: 1. Great wonders of the world. Ash, Russell.
2. Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Cox, Reg.
3. Forty fortunes : a tale of Iran. Shepard, Aaron.
4. The king in the garden Garfield, Leon.
Biography: Nebuchadnezzar
RA: ESB 302-330

WEEK 19: Life in Early Crete
H: 1. In search of Knossos : the quest for the Minotaur's labyrinth. Caselli, Giovanni
2. Atlantis Nardo, Don
3. Theseus and the Minotaur. Hutton, Warwick.
4. Ancient Aegean [videorecording] Schlessinger, Andrew.
RA: ESB 234-268

WEEK 20: The Early Greeks
H: 1. Growing Up in Ancient Greece. Chelepi, Chris.
2. How would you survive as an ancient Greek? Macdonald, Fiona.
3. Usborne Greek myths for young children Amery, Heather.
4. D'Aulaires' book of Greek myths / [sound recording] D'Aulaire, Ingri
5. The Trojan Horse, Clement-Davies, David.
RA: ESB 268-285

WEEK 21: Greece Gets Civilized Again
H: 1. Count your way through Greece. Haskins, James
2. The librarian who measured the earth. Lasky, Kathryn.
3. Black ships before Troy: the story of the Iliad. Sutcliff, Rosemary.
4. The ancient Greek Olympics. Woff, Richard
5. The Trojan horse : how the Greeks won the war. Little, Emily.
RA: ESB 286-301
1.She and he [sound recording] : adventures in mythology. Weiss, Jim.
2. Greek myths [sound recording] Weiss, Jim.

WEEK 22: The Medes and the Persians
H: 1. The Persians : warriors of the ancient world Reece, Katherine E.
2. The Persian Empire. Zeinert, Karen
3. The king & the three thieves: a Persian tale. Balouch, Kristen
4. The Red Lion : a tale of ancient Persia.Wolkstein, Diane
RA: ESB 330-338. King Midas HL.

WEEK 23: Sparta and Athens
H: 1. Time traveler, children through time. Bull, Angela
2. D'Aulaires' book of Greek myths D'Aulaire, Ingri
3. How would you survive as an ancient Greek? Macdonald, Fiona.
4. "Paper" through the ages. Cosner, Shaaron
RA: ESB 338-345

WEEK 24: The Greek Gods
H: 1. GREEK TEMPLE (INSIDE STORY) Macdonald, Fiona.
2. Trojan horse : the world’s greatest adventure. Clement-Davies, David
3. Greek gods and goddesses [sound recording]. McCaughrean, Geraldine.
4. The gods and goddesses of Olympus. Aliki. (Buy if unavailable at library)
5. Hercules. Burleigh, Robert.
6. Medusa. Lattimore, Deborah Nourse.
7. Max and Ruby in Pandora's box. Wells, Rosemary.
RA: ESB 345-347.

WEEK 25: The Wars of the Greeks
H: 1. The Greeks. Hewitt, Sally.
2.The X-ray picture book of big buildings of the ancient world. Jessop, Joanne.
3. Discoveries, inventions & ideas. Shuter, Jane.
4. Cupid and Psyche. Craft, M. Charlotte
5. The flying horse : the story of Pegasus Mason, Jane B.
RA: ESB 351

WEEK 26: Alexander the Great
H: 1. Alexander the Great : the greatest ruler of the ancient world Langley, Andrew.
Alexander the Great by Allen
2. The world in the time of Alexander the Great Macdonald, Fiona.
3. The great Alexander the Great : story and pictures Lasker, Joe.
4. Seven wonders of the ancient world. Laliberte, Michelle.
RA: ESB 351.


WEEK 27: The People of the Americas
Stretch into two weeks?
H: 1.Growing up in Aztec times. Wood, Mario
2. You wouldn't want to be an Aztec sacrifice! Macdonald, Fiona
3. The Incas. Wood, Tim.
4. Anasazi. Fisher, Leonard Everett.
5. Who were the first North Americans? Wingate, Philippa.
6. Stories from the Amazon. Pirotta, Saviour.
7. The two mountains : an Aztec legend. Kimmel, Eric A.
8. Thirteen moons on a turtle's back [sound recording] Bruchac, Joseph
9. Thirteen moons on turtle's back : a Native American year of moons. Bruchac, Joseph
10. Jabutí the tortoise : a trickster tale from the Amazon. McDermott, Gerald. Yes, we want the sound recording and the book for thirteen moons.
RA: ESB 351.

WEEK 28: The Rise of Rome
H: 1. Who were the Romans? Cox, Phil Roxbee.
2. Everyday life of the Etruscans. Macnamara, Ellen.
3. The Roman news. Langley, Andrew
4. Romulus and Remus. Rockwell, Anne F.
5. MYTHS AND CIVILIZATION OF ANCIENT ROMANS Malam, John
6. The Time trekkers visit the Romans. Mason, Antony.
RA: ESB 351.

WEEK 29: The Roman Empire
H: 1. Gladiator. Watkins, Richard Ross.
2. Ancient Rome. Roberts, Timothy Rolan
3. Rome antics. Macaulay, David
4. Classic myths to read aloud. Russell, William
5. Androcles and the lion. Nolan, Dennis.
RA: ESB 351.

WEEK 30: Rome’s War with Carthage
H: 1. So you want to be a Roman soldier? Macdonald, Fiona.
2. A Roman soldier. Caselli, Giovann
3. Going to war in Roman times. Butterfield, Moir
4. Hannibal and his 37 elephants. Hirsh, Marilyn.
5. Wars that made the western world [sound recording] : the Persian wars, the Peloponesian
War, and the Punic wars. Shutt, Timothy Baker.
6. Famous Romans. Part I-II [sound recording] Fears, J. Rufus.
RA: ESB 351.

WEEK 31: The Aryans of India
H: 1.The Ganges. Cumming, David
2. Buddha. Demi
3. World Religions. Bowker, John Westerdale.
4. India. Dahl, Michael S.
5. Buddha Stories. Demi
6. The Wisdom of Crows and Other Buddhist Tales. Chödzin, Sherab
RA: Read from Psalms, Proverbs.

WEEK 32: The Mauryan Empire of India
H: 1. INDIA (FESTIVALS OF THE WORLD). KAGDA FALAG.
2. Find out about ancient India. Ali, Daud.
3. I once was a monkey : stories Buddha told. Lee, Jeanne M.
4. The ocean of story : fairy tales from India. Ness, Caroline.
RA: Read from Psalms, Proverbs.

WEEK 33: China: Writing and the Qin
H: 1. Long is a dragon : Chinese writing for children. Goldstein, Peggy
2. The Great Wall of China. Fisher, Leonard Everett.
3. Ancient China .Williams, Brian
4. Growing up in Ancient China. Teague, Ken
5. The magic tapestry : a Chinese folktale. Demi
6. The Ch‘i-lin purse : a collection of ancient Chinese stories. Fang, Linda.
RA: Read from Psalms, Proverbs.

WEEK 34: Confucius
H: 1. World Religions. Bowker, John
2. Confucius and ancient China. Rowland-Entwistle, Theodore.
3. The empty pot. Demi.
4. The Chinese book of animal powers. Huang, Al Chung-liang.
RA: Read from Psalms, Proverbs.

WEEK 35: The Rise of Julius Caesar
H: 1. Julius Caesar : great dictator of Rome. Platt, Richard.
2. Ancient Romans. Jay, David.
3. A pirate's life for me! Thompson, Julie.
4. The great pirate activity book. Robins, Deri.
RA: ESB 355-394

WEEK 36: Caesar the Hero
H: 1. ROMAN NUMERALS I TO MM. Geisert, Arthur.
2. Cleopatra, the queen of kings. Macdonald, Fiona.
3. The Celts. Martell, Hazel.
4. Cleopatra : the queen of dreams. Middleton, Haydn.
5. Tales from Shakespeare : seven plays. Williams, Marcia.
RA: ESB 394-422

WEEK 37: The First Roman Prince
H: 1. The world of the Roman emperor. Chrisp, Peter.
2. A history of ancient Rome [CD sound recording] Titchener, Frances
3. Augustus Caesar and ancient Rome. Greenblatt, Miriam.
4. Augustus Caesar's world : a story of ideas and events from B.C. 44 to 14 A.D.
Foster, Genevieve.
5. Sun-day, moon-day : how the week was made. Gilchrist, Cherry.
6. Shakespeare stories II. Garfield, Leon. Read Antony and Cleopatra play.
RA: ESB 422-448

WEEK 38: The Beginning of Christianity
H: 1. The story of Jesus. Batchelor, Mary.
2. The very first Christmas. Maier, Paul L.
3. The tell me stories, volume I : parables Jesus told. Lindvall, Ella K.
RA: ESB 448-471.

WEEK 39: The End of the Ancient Jewish Nation
H: 1. Behold the trees. Alexander, Sue
2. Judaism : worship, festivals, and ceremonies from around the world. Barnes, Trevor
3. Angels, prophets, rabbis & kings from the stories of the Jewish people
Patterson, Jose
4. Jewish holiday stories [sound recording (CD)] Weiss, Jim.
5. Festival of lights : the story of Hanukkah. Silverman, Maida.
6. Miriam's cup : a Passover story. Manushkin, Fran.
7. Celebrate : stories of the Jewish holidays. Berger, Gilda.
RA: ESB 471-489.

WEEK 40: Rome and the Christians
H: 1. I wonder why Romans wore togas and other questions about Ancient Rome. Macdonald, Fiona.
2. What do we know about the Romans? Corbishley, Mike.
3. Pompeii--buried alive! Kunhardt, Edith.
4. Heroes, gods & emperors from Roman mythology. Usher, Kerry.
5. Roman myths, heroes, and legends. Pickels, Dwayne E.
RA: ESB 489-516

WEEK 41: Rome Begins to Weaken
H: 1. Roman aromas. Dobson, Mary J.
2. Step into the-- Celtic world Macdonald, Fiona.
3. One hundred-and-one read-aloud Celtic myths and legends : ten minute readings from the world's best-loved literature. Verniero, Joan C.
4. Celtic fairy tales. Philip, Neil.
RA: ESB 516-528

WEEK 42: The Attacking Barbarians
H: 1. The rotten Romans. Deary, Terry.
2. Attila the Hun. Oliver, Marilyn Tower.
RA: ESB 528-552

WEEK 43: The End of Rome
H: 1. Ancient Rome. James, Simon
2. Science in ancient Rome. Harris, Jacqueline L.
RA: ESB 552-568

As you can probably tell I started planning our science books too. I gave this up and decided to just choose appropriate science and art books as we wanted them from the library.

UPDATE 2/2008: We are not using this anymore, this is just TOO much for a FIRST grader. We are now using Tapestry of Grace which allows me to keep the kids on their on individual levels (appropriate levels) and sharing the learning of a topic as a family. This and many other posts are a part of my rookie first year in which I made many mistakes.

About Lesson Plans

This is my software program (Homeschool Planner) that I purchased to keep records of our homeschool. Which you can click on to check out the software for yourself, it's linked.

This is just Monday, the Homeschool Planner shows up to 5 days of daily plans.

This is a snapspot of a monthly printout, I cropped it to just one week.

For the last two weeks I have been going between this program and an Elan Weekly Lesson Plan book that I found at a school supply store.

It's features include:
Seating plan sheets (don't need)
Supplementary data sheets for student information or special tests
For 8 classes per day (needed this!)
Overview planning sheets (Place for materials list)
Schedule of school events calendar (nifty for year planning)
Planning sheets for 40 weeks (really needed this)

So, I am writing in pencil in my "lesson book" and then transferring it to my computer. I feel a little nuts doing it this way but I really like the lesson plan book because IT'S IN MY HANDS, AND THE HUGE ERASER I HAVE IS COOL. Plus I am mobile with my books and lesson book vs. stuck at the computer.

But the software can print out my weekly lesson plan too, with all the info on it!
Including keeping track of attendance. I'm also scared of overplanning, who knows how DD is going to progress and if we need to redo a lesson...

1. How do you keep records?
2. Do you keep lesson plans?
3. How far in advance do you create them?
4. Do you plan out each subject?
5. Am I going overboard?


Please advise a newbie!


Comments copied over from previous blog.


Friday, July 7, 2006
Posted by Anne
1. How do you keep records? I use Homeschool Easy Records. I feel like there is probably something better, but I haven't found it yet. I like it because I can print out each student's assignments for the week, with a copy for me, too.

2. Do you keep lesson plans? Yep, in my computer.

3. How far in advance do you create them? I try to have them planned at least 2 to 3 weeks in advance. Some subjects are tough to do that with. I never know when we'll have to take it slow in algebra, for instance. I really hate having to go back and change them when that happens!

4. Do you plan out each subject? Not for the whole year at a time. I have a general idea of how many lessons/chapters/etc. that we need to do a week in order to finish, but I haven't planned out more than about 6 weeks in advance.

5. Am I going overboard? LOL. I'm the wrong person to answer that! I LOVE the planning part. Last year I used a lesson plan book, too, and I really prefer writing things down. Like you, I like holding it in my hand. But with my son starting high school this year, I really feel the need to have it all in the computer and easily available for transcripts. I have my doubts that I'll ever find the perfect organizing tool for this task, and I'm not nearly computer savvy enough to make my own.

Can answer a question about Homeschool Planner for me? I emailed them a few weeks ago with a question, and they never replied. You said you can print out the weekly lesson plans. What does this look like? Is it essentially a printed assignment sheet for each child for the week? Is it set up so they can check off what they've completed, and where I can fill in their grade for each assignment? I couldn't find that info on their website.

Happy planning!
Anne
http://palmtreepundit.blogspot.com



A piler who wants to be a filer (0; - Friday, July 7, 2006
Posted by Canadagirl
1. How do you keep records? The childrens folders is my proof (0:
2. Do you keep lesson plans? Yes, rough ones . Sometimes in my head. But I am getting it down better.lol
3. How far in advance do you create them? Over all plan, a year ahead but mainly weekly
4. Do you plan out each subject? Some of my subjects are all planned out. When I did the History of Science , it was planned out for me. I just ticked as I went. Our I will split books up by how many weeks to chapters .
5. Am I going overboard? From someone who is "a piler who wants to be a filer " the extent you are going I don't see myself doing.lol But that is because I am not a detailed planner I am a dreamer. (0:

I could probably help in other areas of planning for you. (0:

But at the same note I am a planner and I start deciding what books and things I want to do for the Fall in January.( 9 months of planning LOL ) I pobably need to be more detailed and I am getting more and more every year. My oldest is 13 and I am going to have him Make a Portfollio in 9th grade.

I wish I could have been more help but I can cheer you on. (0;

In Him,
-Canadagirl


Permanent Link
trust yourself - Friday, July 7, 2006
Posted by jenmcintyre
I stumbled across you from lonestarmama. My kids are about 3 years older but the same age span. I remember worrying so much going into 2nd grade with my Dd who is 9 now. I planned that year out to the 10th degree. lol Well to some degree that worked but it left no room for adding things in as we went along that we found interesting. Each year since I have gotten a little more I won't say exactly lax, but I don't write down a projection page for each day for the next year anymore. It was hard to loosen up, I still wanted to know where I was going. If you read through donnayoung.org website she has some good tips on how to break down the material you have picked out to figure out how to spread it out for the school year. Some things you do every day.... like math other things you might only cover twice a week. The idea is to cover all your material, but not get burned out on the way. Trust yourself. Your kids are young enough, you have plenty of time to figure out what is going to work for your family. And it will possibly change when your son gets older. I am adding a second one to "serious" teaching this year and it is a whole new ball game.
jen

Friday, July 7, 2006
Posted by TRINITYPREPSCHOOL

1. How do you keep records?
Homeschool Tracker: I wrote about it on my blog awhile back. http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/TRINITYPREPSCHOOL/76920/

The feature I use most is moving/editing assignments and printing out daily assignment lists for the kids. Messier to do in a planning book if you want to move everything forward a day because of an unexpected day off.

2. Do you keep lesson plans?
Yes...within this program. Some plans I adopt from the publisher. For example Apologia Science and Saxon Math provides a schedule to complete the curriculum in a year.

Some I write myself....mostly in the history/literature realm.

3. How far in advance do you create them?
I usually spend the summer planning for the following year. Because the kids are in junior high, the pace is fairly predictable.

And the program allows me to make adjustments as we go. I do use a blank composition notebook to create my own plans. I make each page a week so I can plot out what sections of history we are on and which works of literature dovetail into that topic, assigning story pages for our Book of Centuries and audio tapes as needed. Then it's a big picture I can transfer into Homeschool Tracker. I use the $.79 notebook vs the $7.99 teacher planner at this point...it took me a few years to realize it was overkill to use both for me (for my purposes).

4. Do you plan out each subject?
For the most part, yes. I give my reasoning on planning the year out during the summer in my blog entry noted in Question #1.

But my kids are older than yours. When they were younger, I plotted out the themes only for certain subjects and we were more child directed. But for phonics and more black and white subjects which I wanted to complete a certain level of work, I'd plan out ~ 32 weeks of work with a week for review after each quarter.

5. Am I going overboard?
Using both until you "find your groove" sounds logical to me. It took me about two full years to fully transition away from the planning book. Having three students also helped me go automated. But I can print calendars, schedules, assignment lists, reading lists, etc. which I stick in my Franklin if we are van schooling or going to the library....so it is a portable system when away from the PC.

Great topic to survey others on....lots of ways to do it. I think trying several ways while the kids are young is a great opportunity to develop your own personal system.

Maureen


rambles on your blog - Friday, July 7, 2006
Posted by javamamma

Yes, absolute HOPE and PEACE knowing God and His holiness and me and my wretchedness. There is forgiveness and LIFE in connecting the two and falling at the Cross!
...Obviously these are thoughts from your comment on my blog. :o)

As for your question about lessons plans. We did text books so things were all laid out as to WHAT we were going to do. I usually did a one-year plan but then "ultra-planned" monthly. Like you, I ALWAYS used PENCIL! I didn't have a "program" but just made my own sheets - in Microsoft Publisher. I printed their blank monthly calenders for my yearly plan and then made up weekly sheets with each subject and what we were doing each day. I'm sure that others using the same method as you will have much better ideas on this and that your planning program is much more efficient than my crude method. :o)

Oh, your comments about how small your town is cracked me up. Not in a bad way but what you described is like the bigger town 15-20 min. away - only it DOES have a Super Wal-Mart. Where WE live is only about 450-ish and we have a bank (no ATM), a Post Office, an auto service station with a gas pump that doesn't accept credit cards, a bar, a nice pool and park and a hardware store...oh, we do have a library of sorts. It's open for 2 hours, 2 days a week and I honestly doubt it has anything I would want to read, though my kids get kids books there. In the fall we will be blessed with a "convience store" opening - atleast then I can get milk and bread if I happen to run out at midnight some day. :o) This is rural Nebraska - land of "what's internet?" and "you gotta laptop what?" Well, maybe it's not THAT bad but I guarentee you the MAJORITY of people here do not own a computer and obviously don't have internet. But, guess what, I LOVE it here! OK, I'll shut up now!

Friday, July 7, 2006
Posted byJavaMama

Jessica, thanks for the advice you left in my comment. I needed to hear it. I do have a tendency to take on to much when it comes to trying to change, I just don't know how to focus on one at a time because I feel that they all need to be worked on right now! Last month I really tried to focus on being a godly wife, this month I am going to focus on being a parent and teacher.
About the planning I am in the process of finding a good system as well so I will be checking back to read more comments from other bloggers on this!

JOYfully in Him,
Kelli


A few comments! - Friday, July 7, 2006
Posted byKyMentor


I love the cute pictures of the cake and sleeping IN the bed :)
I enjoyed and admire your post about your faith and choice of denomination. I have considered doing one similar a few times, but since I am an Episcopalian I hesitated. I know my denomination has been quite 'noteworthy' recently :) I didn't want my blog to be a controversial place.

About you planning and record keeping questions, because I am going to go into some detail I am going to put the answers on my blog to save your comment space.

And about your new lay out, WOW. It is really nice and much easier to find things. You have wonderful resource links and very interesting tidbits! It looks wonderful.

Sandie\


Hello! - Friday, July 7, 2006
Posted byTestimony

I am so ancient. I handwrite my lessons. I just do it. If I have a curriculum, like math, the lessons are planned out in the book. You just have to figure out how much time per day you want to spend on each subject, page or concept. New Concepts, I try to plan them for the beginning of the week. Saturday nights, you have to do some tweeking of your lessons. If a child is stuck on a concept, you may want to take more time. So your plans get pushed back.

If the child is struggling with the subject altogether, then you must stop the lesson for a while and do something else. You will know if the child is struggling, by tears or your frustration level is too high.
Overall, plans come and plans get changed based on your year.

Take care!



Seems like I'm not the only one writing about this! - Friday, July 7, 2006
Posted by
Mamma1420

Check out: http://mothercroneshomeschool.blogspot.com/2006/07/homeschool-planninga-different-twist.html

I am so thankful for all of your comments and suggestions! I hope you keep them coming...
Jessica


Lesson Plans? What are those? - Friday, July 7, 2006
Posted by
lindafay

I don’t use lesson plans. I despise them and I don’t make out a weekly schedule either. Being a lover of efficiency, I just can’t bring myself to write them out every week. Instead, I make a general weekly schedule and change it out every 12 weeks. My children check it off daily. Now I know that doesn’t help you much and I know that you are just beginning your HS journey and want things done right and orderly, so you can just ignore my way of doing things until you get burned out making lesson plans every week. I’ll be around the corner waitin for ya when ya holler. He he..


Hi Jessica! - Friday, July 7, 2006
Posted by
LaMereAcademy

Yes I've been buying too much lately...I need to stop. Buying curriculum can become an easy addiction, let me tell you! I think it's awesome you bought that software!! You're more organized that I am. I don't really have a ver good set schedule. In the AM, the older 2 have to do their self work: math, language arts, handwriting etc...while I work with the little two on their basics and read alouds. After lunch then I read aloud to the older 2 (little 2 sometimes listen in, sometimes go and play) and we do Latin and Bible together.

My goal for this summer break is to reread Managers of Their Homes and make a workable schedule for our family. You look like you have an AWESOME start, you're going to be an excellent mommy/teacher!!


Homeschool planning - Friday, July 7, 2006
Posted by
mamasmurf

This is a bit of a difficult one for me - when I first started homeschooling Ds, I was a planning junkie!! I suppose I was still caught up in the way I used to have to plan when I was a full-time teacher. I used to plan the whole year in great detail during the summer, then I'd break that down into "termly" plans, the a weekly plan and finally a daily plan - all written out by hand to start with but then started using wordprocessor instead. Anyway, it began to get ridiculous as I seemd to be planning all the time instead of just getting on with enjoying seeing my boy learn! Now, I let the scheme we use dictate the overall plan of what we need to cover and just write out a list of what is expected each day (along with comments as to how Ds has done in each subject. Funnily enough, I am now more relaxed and so is Ds!! I suppose that just having the one child makes the planning thing a bit easier (a software programme would be an unnecessary expense for us in my book).

Anyway, that's just my tuppence worth - we don't get regulated so much over here. We've had two visits in three years from the Education Advisor for this area - she cannot tell us what we have to do, and is happy so long as the child is being taught to his/her age and ability level. She knows she cannot win an argument with me because she has not taught children younger than 14!! (Ds is 11 and I used to teach children aged from 4 to 12).

Just a different perspective from over the pond!

~Chrissy



Friday, July 7, 2006
Posted by
Tinakay
1. How do you keep records? I keep everything on paper.

2. Do you keep lesson plans? Yes in my lesson plan book I am thinking of getting a computer program for it

3. How far in advance do you create them? I like to do them 2 to 3 weeks ahead. Sometimes I have to change things around. I do not like doing that.

4. Do you plan out each subject? Yes and no. I plan out everyday, but sometimes we do more or less depending on the day, the subject and my dd attitude

5. Am I going overboard? I do not think so. I keep debating on wether or not to put everything on the computer. That is (to me) putting to much trust in the computer. We have it crash before. Not good. Back up, back up,!!!


Friday, July 7, 2006
Posted by
Julia

1. How do you keep records?

I have a grid. Five days of the week across. 9 columns down:The date, Bible, history, science, math, LA (language arts), read alouds, IR (independent reading), other. As we complete something I write it down. If I want to write more than I can fit in a block, I continue on the back. It's easy, quick, and more than fulfills my obligation to the state. It's enough to please my need to look back and see what we did. I haven' t looked into computer programs much, so I dont know if this is an issue or not. I wouldn't want to feel stuck writing something in a certain format. For example, for math I could write pg. 45-47 or I could say worked on place value concepts with 100 number chart and blocks or I could say orally reviewed unit 8. I'm not sure if a preset computer program would allow that.



2. Do you keep lesson plans? I do lesson plans for history, science and read alouds, but they are flexible and can be changed as necessary. I want to be able to cover certain books and check them out from the library on time, so it helps to have it all planned out. My plans for other subjects are often to just do the next thing. Sometimes I may have the idea to do a certain amount of work, but it takes longer or quicker than I expected so I don't see the point of over planning.



3. How far in advance do you create them? I made the history, science, read aloud plans a year in advance.



4. Do you plan out each subject? No.



5. Am I going overboard? Everyone is different and has different needs. Your way would be overboard for me, but it might be fine for you. You can always back off later if it's too much.



Julia


www.juliapadg.blogspot.com

Answers to your questions - Friday, July 7, 2006

Posted by
seekingHim

1.How do you keep records? I use Homeschool tracker which looks pretty similar to what you have.

2. Do you keep lesson plans? I do keep them on HT on my computer. I lesson plan every weekend for the coming week and print off an assignment sheet and put it on a clipboard that I can carry around with me wherever I go. I also keep in the clipboard any worksheets, coloring pages, etc that the kids will be working on so that I'm not searching. Another handy tool is a file size rubbermaid container where I place all the books, craft supplies, pencils, etc we will be using for the coming week so I'm not wasting time searching for them every day. The container has a handle on the top so if we go outside to do school I can take it with me(wish I could say I did this more often).

3. How far in advance do you create them? I've found going much past a week leaves me feeling pretty stressed if we don't achieve all of it. It's easy w/a computer system to carry it over to the following week if we don't get to it.

4. Do you plan out each subject? I have a general idea at the beginning of the school year then go week by week.

5. Am I going overboard? Probably not. I'm a planner too. Just make sure you give yourself and your children some flexibility. Know that things will come up and just the fact that they are home with you is giving them an amazing experience that they could never match in ps.



HTH!




Forgive Me! - Friday, July 7, 2006

Posted by
5atkins

I should have gone to your site before I answered via email! Sorry! I did want to add that I also have to have a hard copy! I make my table on the computer empty and then fill it in by hand. That way I can write "see next week" or just cross something off completely if things change!

My cooperative teacher when I was student teaching in college, used to write her daily objectives on the board every day. She said that she felt the kids did better when they knew the plan and where they were headed. I picked that up from her and used in Public school. Last year I did it for myself as I taught 1st grade. By the middle of the year the girls were starting to read it when we would start class and I would mark it off as we finished. This year we are just putting up a general schedule because I am also teaching Mary PreK.

I have a friend who copies the table of contents for each of her books and writes the date they do it on the margin! Just a thought!

May God lead you to do what is best for your family! In Him, Eva



Plan for easy days - Saturday, July 8, 2006

Posted by
Bahamahomeschooler

Hi I love to see how others plan their days. I use to be pretty lazy because I used Sonlight and they do all the planning for you. After a few years and a lot of research I am now putting my own stuff together.



Managers of their Home has helped more then anything for day to day. I have just purchased Homeschool tracker and love it. It allows me to plan all the years lesson and then post them week to week as we complete them. It is very easy to use and I will be able to reuse everythnig for my younger ones.



I always like to get the year in focus and will plan everything (all lessons) for the year. This is after I have selected what text or book I am using for a subject. I then go through the text and note how to divide it so that it can be covered in the year. Then I decide how much time is need for each subject and take out my managers of their home worksheet and work it all in.



By doing it this way (planning out everything) your come to relise how much time you do have extra if you keep to the schedual!!! It is amazing what can be done in 30 mins.



Good luck. Visit sometime. we will chat some more.




Lesson Planning 101 - Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Posted by
Bahamahomeschooler
I just listed all of my subject and texts that I am useing this year on my site. This is the first step to make and then on to the planning. Please stop by again. Can I add you to my friends list???


planning, planning, planning... - Saturday, July 22, 2006
Posted by
mtbriere

I'm only going into my 3rd year, so I guess I'm a bit of a Newbie too. I update my system every year. But for this year:

1. How do you keep records? My kids have weekly agenda pages with their lesson plans printed from Excel. Each day is a column and all the assignments are listed down the column for that day. These pages are printed off of Excel. When they are finished with a week, we put them into their portfolio behind the attendance record. (Which also comes from Excel, btw.)

2. Do you keep lesson plans? Yes. I build them in Excel. Sometimes I write them out & put them into the computer, say while the kids have an activity. Sometimes I sit with the materials at the computer and create them. Sometimes I create them, sometimes I just time when we do them if they are already planned for us in a teachers guide.

3. How far in advance do you create them? I plan them out for the year. In Excel, I build 1 worksheet for each subject. I have one column number the days of the school year (180). Next to that, I have the assignment that will need to be completed. Yet another column is special notes for me & another is where I can log grades. These cells feed directly into the weekly agenda pages that I print for the kids each week. It also allows for flexibility if I need to repeat a lesson with one of the kids by cutting/pasting/inserting/etc. or if I need to take a day off here or there when life happens.



4. Do you plan out each subject? Pretty much. I use some guides that are planned out already. Then I just put a "Complete L1", for Lesson 1. etc. For things such as music or pe, I have a time tracking sheet that they need to turn in weekly. (My kids are middle school & high school)



5. Am I going overboard? Obviously I would say no. :D

Have fun planning!
Trish


If you are reading this for lesson plan ideas/help... - Tuesday, October 3, 2006
Posted by Mamma1420
I have modified my lesson plans after driving myself batty! Check out the checklists on the rightside column

Enjoy Your Blessings
Jessica

Our Flag Cake

Whatever you do, don't promise your little girl that you will post something and then forget! "Mom! Where's the picture of my cake?" Uh, wait a minute...

"Here it is! It just took a minute to load..."
whew!

Our version of the Better Homes & Garden Flag Cake, it was yummy!

Transitioning to toddler bed

Have a wonderful and safe 4th of July!

God Bless America



Can you believe this?

We checked on Little Man last night and here he was,

picture taken at 11:30 pm (with night lens).

He's doing such a great job sleeping IN his big boy bed! Ha!