Goings on round here

We are chugging right along. We have found our groove. The days are easy.

Well...except our "math day." I'm working on it. Thinking about where and why we struggle. No rush. I am slowly turning things around. Hopefully.

This article gives me a lot of comfort when it comes to math.

http://www.besthomeschooling.org/articles/math_david_albert.html

Here's a quote from the article:

"If you figure the actual math time at 30 hours a year for 8 years (accounting for the wasted time in the early years), it totals 240 hours. Lo and behold - if, at age 15 or so, you wanted to learn all the math K-12, weren't inhibited by math anxiety, and were willing to spend 30 hours a week at it, it would take you...8 weeks!"

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I was reading something from Brave Writer (Writer's Jungle?) and Julie Bogart said people don't have original thoughts until they're 35. I thought that was awesome, being 35. So now, ...finally, ...I can have some original thoughts! I actually do have thoughts of my own, but I always think they will alienate potential readers and everyone will shun me lol. However, the writing I am drawn to is that which speaks the truth. People who see situations clearly and clearly write about them. I think the secular free thinking crowd would enjoy my writing, but they are much smaller in number than the religious zealot crowd (there isn't anything between secular freethinkers and religious zealots surely). That being said, I've never really cared about numbers and if anyone was reading (I have cared about offending people). I'm just going to go for it. Write my original thoughts regarding homeschooling in a notebook and one day maybe try to turn it into a book (in 5 years :) If no one reads it, my kids will at least.

For now, here are some lovely thoughts that are not my own (I just turned 35 you know!) from Julie Bogart of Brave Writer:

"Enjoy the periods where the 'school part' feels a little too easy and the lessons, a little short, and the home, relatively functional and happy."

For me, this is the goal. So many parents think that when the day is easy, something should be added. Why should there be struggle? Does struggle mean learning is happening?

"We overvalue struggle as evidence of learning, when if we really think about it, joy and pleasure are much better signs of learning and growth."

"Trust that ease in your day is a sign that you are on the right path."

"What matters...is the feeling that the people you love consider home and education to be pleasant, peaceful, and life-giving."
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My oldest is obsessed with the Broadway musical Hamilton. I'm not sure how she came to even hear about it, but she knows all of the words and asks me 1001 questions about historical figures and events as well as vocabulary such as "revolution" and "revelation." Finally I asked would you just like to do a unit study on Hamilton and she said yes!

Hamilton is coming to Houston but I looked into it and it's impossible to get tickets and even if we could they would be waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay out of our budget. We found this though!

https://www.wired.com/2016/03/watch-hamilton-white-house/

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/gperf/episodes/hamiltons-america/

https://www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/rah11.k-6.histus.formgov.lpdisalexham/discovering-alexander-hamilton/#.WceoFUuGPrc

https://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/03/24/the-ten-dollar-founding-father-without-a-father-teaching-and-learning-with-hamilton/?mcubz=0

http://www.history.com/news/5-things-you-didnt-know-about-alexander-hamilton

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrGi48Kx-As

I'm not sure why some of those links don't work. It works to copy and paste (for my future reference).
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Here are some pictures from the Fall Harvest Party the kids planned.

The kids made fall slime and play dough (slime not pictured).

We had a really great Poetry Teatime with pumpkin cake, white chocolate chip cookies, and apple cider. I was too involved for photos though.

Here is our apple tasting and judging.

Lela loved John Martin and cried when he left.

Our morning time has been consistent and we have been reading some great picture books. I requested them from the library using this list.

Here is Taven's journal entry. I thought it was pretty funny. Talk about writer's voice!

Here is what he wrote for freewrite.

Naia's artwork.

Mirek has been more proud of his work lately and wants me to hang it up all aver the house. My pleasure.

Here he is setting the table for lunch while the rest are outside playing baseball. It has really been hot and humid lately and it is starting to make me angry. I need fall weather!!!! Now!!!!

We made pine cone bird feeders and Cloud couldn't stop eating the peanut butter. She's okay though. Strong stomach.

Taven is loving baseball. There was one minor crazy parent hiccup, but I think that taught him a valuable lesson (parents compete with each other through their children and take the game way more seriously than the kids) and we have moved on.

Tuesday Teatime treats.

The kids wanted to recite Jack be nimble, Jack be quick while they jumped over the candlestick.

Baking cupcakes for Grandpa's birthday.

The kids have been loving the Scrambled States of America game.

Mirek wanted to freewrite with us.

After Poetry Teatime one day he asked if I could write down his poem. Check it out!

The picture is what happens after the poem ends. The person throws his knife at the deer.

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Photo-less moments to remember:

Playing Monopoly with Naia.

Celebrating Oktoberfest at Grandma and Grandpa's complete with German beer, brats, and sauerkraut.

Naia begging me to read more Harry Potter and getting really frustrated that her siblings did not want to listen at the moment. I told her the 2nd book in the series can be our read aloud together and we can go at a faster pace.

I read Harry Potter with a British accent (the kids love it) and Mirek asked "Mom, what's a lettah?" In America, it's what we call a letter.

The Astros winning the ALDS!

Celebrating Grandpa's birthday at Taven's baseball game with cousins, pizza, cookies, and cupcakes. No one even cared that his team was demolished 12-1.

Our fish Sky died and Ade put it outside in a cup so we could bury it. When we went out there the cup was on the ground and Sky was gone. Our cat, Cloud, was standing nearby. We have a new fish, Sunset.