Thursday, November 20, 2008

Focus On Science

I have next week scheduled off for Thanksgiving break, so I'm not stressing too much about school this week either. I figure we can catch up a bit during the holiday. We're planning a trip to the zoo this Saturday and we're doing tons of pre-zoo science work. We got this book, The Complete Zoo Adventure, and we're really enjoying it. It's got three sections: Before the Zoo, At the Zoo, and After the Zoo. For a week beforehand you do a daily devotional, and each one talks about the animals and their adaptations and habitats and mannerisms and how God's universe works together. It tells some of the theory of evolution and talks about how it doesn't stand up to the truth. A lot of it is way over her head, but we're having a good time discussing it, and even if she doesn't get all the creationist vs. evolution stuff, she's remembering words like adaptation and habitat.

Then there's a field journal, which she loves the idea of, since Diego keeps one too. She was annoyed that it doesn't talk and look exactly like his, but hey, it's a twelve dollar book. There are sections for each kind of animal and a little scavenger hunt type thing where you fill in spaces with information about each critter as you walk around and see them. Or, if you don't live near a zoo they call this a "field trip in a book", and you can read about all the animals and fill out the journal at home, which is cool.

Then there are word finds and mazes and questions and coloring sheets and all kinds of stuff to do after you get home.

We're all really excited about the trip and I love that we're doing so much prep work. The meerkats were her favorite animal anyway, and now that she knows one of their adaptations is their social life and the way they work in groups, I think she's going to have even more fun watching them.

Robin Hood is excited too. He's learning the names of all the animals and the sounds they make. I can't wait to see the look on his face when he realizes how BIG lions and elephants really are!

Thursday, November 13, 2008

And A Month Has Gone By?

Wow. Things are flying by. I haven't blogged because there hasn't been anything really new or fascinating to say. We're on week 11. Same as usual- doing great on math and Bible, reading plenty of novels, behind on social studies/science...

Most, actually *all* of the other families I know who homeschool do it a few days a week and then do some kind of enrichment program. We're not able to do that right now, so I'm really feeling the burden of making sure she gets EVERYTHING from me. There are more and more days that I feel overwhelmed with trying to get different things discussed or read, and also more and more days that it's like pulling teeth to get her to sit down and listen.

I helped out in her Sunday school class last week and she seems to be right on schedule- there are four kids in there that attend the school we're zoned for, and they were counting by tens and writing their names and talking about a lot of the same things we've been doing. So I don't really feel behind right now. I just worry that I'm not instilling a good work ethic or love of learning. I do want her to really value education and feel that it's always exciting to learn new things. On the one hand, if 3 out of 5 days a week we blow off part of school just because she (or I!) am not in the mood, I don't feel like that's sending a good message. On the other hand, we talk constantly and she asks probing questions and makes connections. We're learning about choices and housework and cooking. I know she's learning from the world around her. And we do at least some daily schoolwork most days, even if we don't get through all of it.

I'm just not sure if it's enough. Sometimes I feel like I'm just not doing a very good job. I suppose it's normal to second guess yourself as a mom, no matter what choices you make. I just wish we knew somebody else around here that we could get together with so that we didn't feel so alone. I want some reassurance that things are going well.