Weekly Report

It makes me feel good to know that I am not the only one having a difficult time getting back into the swing of things after Thanksgiving. Most of my friends and several people on the Well Trained Mind message boards were also finding this week challenging. Nonetheless, we are doing what we can and plugging away, even if it is at a snail's pace.

We pretty much let spelling and grammar slide this week, but I'm not too worried about it. There's always next week...or the week after. :0) Besides, we school year round so we'll get through it.

Monday...the boy's had their very first chess tournament. Thane was the youngest, at 4yo. to compete. He is really good, and that's not just my biased opinion either. Several of the older kids came to me and commented on his thinking and playing ability. Magnus is also very good. He is able to think several plays ahead and therefore be very competitive. Out of the 6 players in their beginning category, Thane placed 6th and Magnus tied for fourth. They had a great time and really enjoy playing the game. Collin and I are hoping to get them a nice chess set for Christmas. Right now they are using a board they made with cardstock and pieces made from legos.
Tuesday...We studied Chapter 12 The Middle Kingdom of Egypt. We learned how Egypt invaded Nubia and then how the Hyskos invaded Egypt. Magnus and I have been playing memory/matching games for Math. I just have to say, so far I love our Right Start Math program and I am very happy that I switched from Saxon. This is going to be a great fit for the boys. Thane has being watching/participating and also enjoying it. I plan on "officially" starting the Level A program with him next year, but I have a feeling he will whiz right through it since he is understanding most of Magnus' Level B. Granted, we are not too far into the program yet, but so far it is going great. We also had Biology Club today. Mr. Kyle talked about the constellations and informed the kids about the mythology attached to them. It was interesting for them.

Wednesday...continued learning about Middle Egypt and playing our math games. We also had our book club Thanksgiving feast to prepare for. We made place mats and finished reading The Magic Treehouse Thanksgiving on Thursday. The boys later went to AWANA while Collin and I went to dinner and to our kick boxing class. My left leg kicks are improving and that makes me happy! Collin has a lot of strength and control. I'm pretty impressed.

Thursday...we had our book club Thanksgiving feast. We have been reading TMTH Thanksgiving on Thursday and doing a study about the Pilgrims. The kids made a place mat for the person whose name they drew out of a hat. We had turkey sandwiches, corn, carrots, stuffing, and cookies. I think we are going to do some Jan Brett Christmas stories and activities next. Collin gave me the night off. I went out to dinner with my girlfriend. We had some great conversation and were not interrupted by kids once! The server was, uh, very "attentive" though. We decided we need to do that more often.


Friday...let's just say we had a lot of lessons about obeying mom, being conscientious of others, and sharing. Lots of, dare I say it? SOCIALIZATION. We basically hung out with friends and played. The kids needed it and so did I. ChickFilA playland is a great alternative to the park when it is cold out. Also, after 5 months, we were finally able to get together with some very dear friends. A great time was had by all.

A look ahead to next week...Collin will pretty much not be available. It's the last week of classes so he has a lot of big papers due and then finals to study for. Oh, and preparation for the four classes he teaches at the Homeschool Tutorial plus working at the library. Oh, and I forgot to mention, graduate school applications are due too. And, he is going to have to find some time somewhere to fix the Wrangler. It's not working right now. So, my next week is going to be full of Christmas crafts, story times, puppet shows, book sales, and more SOCIALIZATION. We will also work on spelling, grammar, and more math games. May have to rethink science over Christmas break.