Homeschooling - 8.5 Weeks In

   This week... Zoko finished reading Fire Star, and started Fire Eternal (book #4 of the Last Dragon Chronicles by Chris D'Lacey). She's really enjoying the series. I would add in my two cents, but I have yet to read any of the first book even. I know, some mom, right? Oh well, it's on my to-do list, I swear. Right after I finish the booklists and catalogues and get Mom's cd's sorted through, and I actually have enough free time to read. I'm making my booklist a complete version of the ones for the kids, so theoretically, I'll read everything they do, just a question of when. Although, considering that Zoko is currently reading Fire Eternal at the rate of two chapters per day, and reading New Moon at the rate of about 20-30 pages per day, I'm not planning on catching up to her anytime soon. She did alright at keeping up with her assignments this week. But, I can't say the same for myself. This post should have been up Saturday night/Sunday morning. Instead, this is Monday afternoon. Grrr... So, I can either continue to be late and annoyed with myself every single week, or I can change the deadline. Guess which I'm doing. :P Yep, new deadline... The weekly updates are still going to be based on a common calendar week (Sunday through Saturday), but they will be posted the following Monday (like today). If this confises you, then tough. I run the assignments on a Monday to Sunday schedule page, log them on a Sunday to Saturday week, and don't have the free time for blogging until Monday. So yeah, that's just how it's gonna be... Meanwhile, in case you're totally bored with this long rambling, or in case you're ignoring this entire paragraph and jumping straight to the stats, or in case you accidentally stumbled across this post and are wondering what you're doing here to begin wth (the most likely scenario), then here it is, grade 2, progess report 7...

          - Total Hours completed as of August 27th, 2011 -
     Science     30.00
     Math     26.75
     History & Social Studies     29.75
     Language Arts & Reading     101.25
     Daily Review   1.50
     Health & Physical Education     43.50
     Art     14.50
     Home Economics     1.50
     Foreign Language (Latin)     3.00

          - Total Hours   251.75     out of     1,000 mandatory hours -
     Hours Left:     748.25     averaging     17.25/week  -or-  2.50/day

Curriculum used this week (percentage of current status towards completion):
     Science:
          Textbook - Discovery Works (Houghton Mifflin gr 3)     lesson 83 of 129     (64.3%)
          Reading - All Kinds Of Animals (Merrigold Press)     page 60 of 60     (100%)
          Reading - Ancient Forest (Guy J Spencer)     section 1 of 1     (100%)
          Reading - Animals (A+)     page 18 of 30     (60%)
     Math:
          Textbook - Arithmetic 3 (Abeka gr 3)     lesson 125 of 170     (73.5%)
          Reading - Brain Games For Kids (Publications International)     page 91 of 176     (51.7%)
     History:
          Textbook - History Of Our United States (Abeka gr 4)     lesson 6 of 73     (8.2%)
          Reading - U S Mail (Elaine A Kule)     section 7 of 7     (100%)
          Reading - Why The Sun And The Moon...     (Elphinstone Dayrell)     section 1 of 1     (100%)
          Reading - Finding The Titanic (Robert D Ballard)     chapter 1 of 7     (14.3%)
     Language Arts:
          Grammar - Language 3 (Abeka gr 3)     lesson 117 of 163     (71.8%)
          Comprehension - Foot Prints (Abeka gr 3)     lesson 21 of 21     (100%)
          Penmanship - Cursive 3 (Abeka gr 3)     lesson 128 of 175     (73.1%)
          Ind Reading - Fire Star (Chris D'Lacey)     chapter 65 of 65     (100%)
          Ind Reading - Fire Eternal (Chris D'Lacey)     chapter     7 of 34     (20.6%)
          Ind Reading - New Moon (Stephenie Meyer)     page 559 of 563     (99.3%)
          Classic Lit - Outdoor Girls In A Winter Camp (Laura Lee Hope)     chapter 7 of 25     (28.0%)
     Health:
          Textbook - Your Health (Harcourt gr 3)     lesson 11 of 85     (12.9%)
     Foreign Language:
          Latin - Minimus (Cambridge)     lesson 3 of 27     (11.1%)

Completed Curriculum For The 2011-2012 School Year (2nd Grade):
     Science:
          Reading - First Book Of Bees (Albert Tibbets)
          Reading - Polar Bears (Susan Canizares)
          Reading - Rain Forest (Jinny Johnson)
          Reading - True Story Of Corky The Blind Seal (Georgeanne Irvine)
          Reading - To Be A Chimpanzee (Chris Martin)
          Reading - Horses (Harold Roth)
          Reading - Rattlesnakes (ZooBooks)
          Reading - Otter On His Own (Doe Boyle)
          Reading - Day Of The Dinosaur (Stan Berenstain)
          Reading - Kittens And Cats (Intercontinental Books)
          Reading - Creature Questions (Chris Kratt)
          Reading - Bravest Dog Ever (Natalie Standiford)
          Reading - Wild Cats (Diane Muldrow)
          Reading - Where Do Birds Live (Betsey Chessen)
          Reading - Look To The North (Jean Craighead George)
          Reading - Big Dinosaurs (Michael Berenstain)
          Reading - All Kinds Of Animals (Merrigold Press)
          Reading - Ancient Forest (Guy J Spencer)
     Math:
     History:
          Textbook - Spectrum Geography Grade 3 (McGraw Hill gr 3)
          Reading - Stories Of American Life And Adventure (Edward Eggleston)
          Reading - First Dog (Jan Brett)
          Reading - Orient (Tom McMahon)
          Reading - Story Of Jumping Mouse (John Steptoe)
          Reading - U S Mail (Elaine A Kule)
          Reading - Why The Sun And The Moon Live In The Sky     (Elphinstone Dayrell)
     Language Arts:
          Comprehension - Silly Things Happen (Houghton Mifflin gr 3)
          Comprehension - Foot Prints (Abeka gr 3)
          Independent Reading - Fire Star (Chris D'Lacey)
          Classic Literature - Outdoor Girls Of Deepdale (Laura Lee Hope)
          Classic Literature - Outdoor Girls In A Motor Car (Laura Lee Hope)
     Health:
          Reading - It's Not The Stork (Robie H Harris)
     Foreign Language:

Today...

   I actually got some sleep last night, thanks to tylenol, benedryl, and sudafed... I'm not tired this morning though, which is a first for a while now. I got B and Odie both ran through the shower this morning, and they made it out to the bus without too much hassle for a change.
   I'm planning on redying my hair today, hopefully the red takes to the bleach better the second time around. I can promise I will never bleach my hair again, it's too much of a pain in the neck...
   I'm making negotiations with Classic Rock Coffee to maybe (hopefully) start up open mic nights so I can read my poetry again. That always helps me to write more as well. I've thought about returning to Big Mama's, but I really don't like the atmosphere there. And most of the other coffee shops in town serve alcohol now. :(
   KiKi is happy today, which is a really good start to the day. Zoko got her room cleaned this morning before we left for town. So far, she's on schedule for school work for this week. She got really excited yesterday, because I found her some new textbooks for really cheap at a local bookstore that we had never been in before.
   Don't really have much more to say right now, my keyboard is messed up and it's time for a walk. Peace out. :)

2011-2012 Curriculum Choices

   When I first started this school year, I had no intention whatsoever of posting my curriculum list for the year up front, I just figured I would post the curriculum as ZoKo got around to doing it, and that was that. But, seeing as how most of the blogs I follow are posting their proposed curriculum up front, I decided that maybe I should join in on the endeavor. Although I doubt anyone reading this really cares to know anyway, here is ZoKo's proposed/planned textbook curriculum for the 2011-2012 school year, 2nd grade...

Science Textbooks:

     -Discovery Works (Houghton Mifflin gr 3) ...finish from last year
     -Understanding God's World (Abeka gr 4)
Math Textbooks:
     -Arithmetic 3 (Abeka gr 3) ...finish from last year
     -Arithmetic 4 (Abeka gr 4)
History Textbooks:
     -Spectrum Geography - Cities (McGraw Hill gr 3) ...finish from last year
     -History Of Our United States (Abeka gr 4)
     -Spectrum Geography - Regions Of The USA (McGraw Hill gr 4)
     -Western Hemisphere (Prentice Hall gr 4)
     -supplemental textbooks (as time allows):
          -People And Resources (Silver Burdett gr 3)
          -Communities And Resources (Silver Burdett gr 3)
          -Cities (SRA gr 4)
Language Arts Textbooks:
     Grammar:
          -Language 3 (Abeka gr 3) ...finish from last year
          -God's Gift Of Language A (Abeka gr 4)
     Comprehension:
          -Silly Things Happen (Houghton Mifflin gr 3) ...finish from last year
          -Footprints (Abeka gr 3)
          -Worlds Of Wonder (Abeka gr 3)
          -Frontiers To Explore (Abeka gr 4)
          -Enchanted Isles (Abeka gr 4)
          -Dinosauring (Houghton Mifflin gr 4)
     Penmanship:
          -Cursive 3 (Abeka gr 3) ...finish from last year
     Spelling:
          -Spelling, Vocabulary, Poetry 3 (Abeka gr 3) ...finish from last year
          -Spelling, Vocabulary, Poetry 4 (Abeka gr 4)
          -Write English Right (Barron's)
Health Textbooks:
     -Your Health (Harcourt gr 3)
     -Developing Good Health (Abeka gr 4)
Latin Textbooks:
     -Minimus (Cambridge Latin Course) ...finish from last year
     -Minimus Secundus (Cambridge Latin Course)

This list is only of the textbooks we will cover for this school year. Supplementary reading books, independent reading, classic liteature, unit studies, and separate workbooks are not included. Those will be listed on the weekly updates as they as being worked on, and on the weekly completed curriculum posts as they are completed. While I do have a large selection of books and supplementary materials on hand, the lists are merely compiled by subect and grade. ZoKo is the one who decides which materials to cover when and which book to read next. I have am under no illusion that she will read everything on these lists well over 2,000 books), but I do believe she will read a majority of them, given enough time and interest, and given the freedom to go through them as her interest levels would require. And I have no doubts whatsoever that she will have read a broader range of materials than 90% of her peers in the public school system, at least around here...

Homeschooling - 7.5 Weeks In

   This week... We started back up with Latin. Only got one lesson done, but it's a start. ZoKo also started a new history textbook (ABeka grade 4) and a new Outdoor Girls book (Outdoor Girls In A Winter Camp). We've been walking an average of 1.5-2 hours a day, 3-4 days a week for exercise. She's also been doing yoga and pilates in her free time, which I keep forgetting to log for her hours time-wise. Oh well. She's ahead for hours still, and keeping up with her daily work about 4 days a week at this point. The day she is falling behind I just carry the work over, so I'm only writing her schedule one day at a time. That way, she doesn't end up having to do four or five math assignments or science lessons all on one day. She is doing the classic literature, core reading, and independent reading on a daily basis, seven days a week. So, here it is, grade 2, progress report 6...

          - Total Hours completed as of August 20th, 2011 -
     Science     25.00
     Math     22.25
     History & Social Studies     25.25
     Language Arts & Reading     84.00
     Daily Review   1.50
     Health & Physical Education     38.00
     Art     14.50
     Home Economics     0.50
     Foreign Language (Latin)     2.00

          - Total Hours   213.00     out of     1,000 mandatory hours -
     Hours Left:     787.00     averaging     17.50/week  -or-  2.50/day

Curriculum used this week (percentage of current status towards completion):
     Science:
          Textbook - Discovery Works (Houghton Mifflin gr 3)     lesson 79 of 129     (61.2%)
          Reading - Wild Cats (Diane Muldrow)     section 1 of 1     (100%)
          Reading - Where Do Birds Live (Betsey Chessen)     section 1 of 1     (100%)
          Reading - Look To The North (Jean Craighead George)     section 1 of 1     (100%)
          Reading - Big Dinosaurs (Michael Berenstain)     section 1 of 1     (100%)
          Reading - All Kinds Of Animals (Merrigold Press)     page 57 of 60     (95.0%)
     Math:
          Textbook - Arithmetic 3 (Abeka gr 3)     lesson 122 of 170     (71.8%)
          Reading - Brain Games For Kids (Publications International)     page 65 of 176     (36.9%)
     History:
          Textbook - Spectrum Geography Grade 3 (McGraw Hill gr 3)     lesson 18 of 18     (100%)
          Textbook - History Of Our United States (Abeka gr 4)     lesson 3 of 73     (4.1%)
          Reading - Orient (Tom McMahon)     section 1 of 1     (100%)
          Reading - Story Of Jumping Mouse (John Steptoe)     section 1 of 1     (100%)
          Reading - U S Mail (Elaine A Kule)     section 3 of 7     (42.9%)
     Language Arts:
          Grammar - Language 3 (Abeka gr 3)     lesson 112 of 163     (68.7%)
          Comprehension - Foot Prints (Abeka gr 3)     lesson 16 of 21     (76.2%)
          Penmanship - Cursive 3 (Abeka gr 3)     lesson 125 of 175     (71.4%)
          Ind Reading - Fire Star (Chris D'Lacey)     chapter 61 of 65     (93.8%)
          Ind Reading - New Moon (Stephenie Meyer)     page 480 of 563     (85.3%)
          Classic Lit - Outdoor Girls In A Motor Car (Laura Lee Hope)     chapter 25 of 25     (100%)
          Classic Lit - Outdoor Girls In A Winter Camp (Laura Lee Hope)     chapter 2 of 25     (8.0%)
     Health:
          Textbook - Your Health (Harcourt gr 3)     lesson 9 of 85     (10.6%)
     Foreign Language:
          Latin - Minimus (Cambridge)     lesson 3 of 27     (11.1%)

Completed Curriculum For The 2011-2012 School Year (2nd Grade):
     Science:
          Reading - First Book Of Bees (Albert Tibbets)
          Reading - Polar Bears (Susan Canizares)
          Reading - Rain Forest (Jinny Johnson)
          Reading - True Story Of Corky The Blind Seal (Georgeanne Irvine)
          Reading - To Be A Chimpanzee (Chris Martin)
          Reading - Horses (Harold Roth)
          Reading - Rattlesnakes (ZooBooks)
          Reading - Otter On His Own (Doe Boyle)
          Reading - Day Of The Dinosaur (Stan Berenstain)
          Reading - Kittens And Cats (Intercontinental Books)
          Reading - Creature Questions (Chris Kratt)
          Reading - Bravest Dog Ever (Natalie Standiford)
          Reading - Wild Cats (Diane Muldrow)
          Reading - Where Do Birds Live (Betsey Chessen)
          Reading - Look To The North (Jean Craighead George)
          Reading - Big Dinosaurs (Michael Berenstain)
     Math:
     History:
          Textbook - Spectrum Geography Grade 3 (McGraw Hill gr 3)
          Reading - Stories Of American Life And Adventure (Edward Eggleston)
          Reading - First Dog (Jan Brett)
          Reading - Orient (Tom McMahon)
          Reading - Story Of Jumping Mouse (John Steptoe)
     Language Arts:
          Comprehension - Silly Things Happen (Houghton Mifflin gr 3)
          Classic Literature - Outdoor Girls Of Deepdale (Laura Lee Hope)
          Classic Literature - Outdoor Girls In A Motor Car (Laura Lee Hope)
     Health:
          Reading - It's Not The Stork (Robie H Harris)
     Foreign Language:

Yesterday was... Yesterday

   Yesterday started off slow and long and rough. B took 40 minutes in the shower, so Odie had to wait for one until after school. Odie lied about having his things ready for school, which resulted in a last minute scramble to make sure he made it to the bus on time...
   I went with ZoKo and KiKi to town to hang out with my mom. While there, we went for a walk and I ran into an ex boyfriend. We were crossing the street and he hollered at me from the pick up I was walking in front of. Chatted for a few minutes, rather frustratingly to the vehicles behind him. Oh well...
   After we got back to mom's house, we made the trip to the bank that has been getting put off since my wedding. I still have to do the official name change on my account there. They had four desks going, all of which were occupied and one guy was in line in front of us. Well, ZoKo was doing a great job keeping KiKi occupied and giggly for the almost twenty minutes that we were waiting, without even one desk clearing up... Then the inevitable happened. Or at least, the inevitable when you've put off something way too long already and have a crammed schedule: kids... KiKi stumbled and hit his head on the corner of an end table. I managed to get him out to the car without too much of a catastrophe, and wiped the blood off his face. He just got a small cut above his eyebrow. You know how the smallest cuts bleed the worst. Yeah. Anyway, as soon as the car started moving, he was giggly again. He still hasn't noticed the cut. That's one thing that really bugs me a lot, is that he doesn't process that stuff the same way as most people, which scares me more because it means he can do secondary damage without noticing it at all...
   We headed home shortly after that. And the plan was that when Mutt got home from work, I'd drive up to our local bank instead, and get the paperwork filed there. Then he texted to say he was working late. So yeah...
   The kids got home from school, Odie got his shower, and B was playing around trying to get out of doing her work. We finally got them semi on track, when it was time for them to leave to go to their mom's house for the weekend...
   After Mutt got home, we relaxed for a bit then went to town and picked up my mom to try out a new coffee shop. Got there just to find they serve alcohol (which isn't posted on their website), and so we went to a different one instead. After that, we decided to go for a drive. In doing so, we passed a coffee shop I'd been waiting on to open for business, and the billboard said they were open now. Mutt knew, he'd just forgotten to tell me. Gee, thanks. So we stopped in there, and I got an almond-milk latte. Very inexpensive compared to their competition around here, locally owned, and the best latte I've had aside from a small hole in the wall in Boulder, Colorado...
   After I got that latte, we took off for a drive. Just out on the roads, see where life takes you, that sort of ride... Well, on the way back into town, leaving Willard, I got pulled over by a cop. I've been driving for 8-9 years and this is the first time I've ever been pulled over. For anything. Turns out the car's tail light was out again. The one we replaced less than a month ago... So I survived that ordeal and headed off again. Still had to go to Springfield to hit Walmart for a new bulb, so our planned route wasn't altered at all, just a stop added on the way to mom's. Less than 10 miles later, I was pulled over a second time, by a Springfield cop. Same reason - bum tail light. After that, I made my Mutt drive. So yes, I was officially pulled over for the first and second time ever after 8-9 years on the road, within 10 miles of each other, in two different cities... Top that! Seriously though, I'm still pretty shaken up about the whole ordeal. I'm just glad everyone else was with me in the car, because otherwise I would have been more paniced and crying more than I already was...

Well, that was all yesterday. I got home late, after midnight, or around it anyway. I don't remember. I stayed up for a few more hours, and eventually went to bed. Didn't sleep hardly at all, and spent all day today trying not to pass out and in a horrible mental fog. I'm finally starting to feel more "me", at 930 pm. Took it long enough. I didn't get ZoKo's school stuff from last week typed up, and I didn't go on the date that Mutt and I have been planning all week. Instead, I stayed on the couch, passed out on Mutt's lap a few times, and tried hard not to think about life, which of course only makes the situation worse. So yeah, that was my weekend so far...

Back To (Public) School

   Public school started on Wednesday, the 17th, this year. So, B and Odie are back to school. B is in 2nd grade, and Odie started Kindergarten.We went to the open house on Monday evening, met the teachers and dropped off their school supplies. They're riding the bus this year, which is quite frankly a total waste, for multiple reasons. For one thing, this school district buses everyone, unless the parent gives them a ride. Walking to school is not an option. Well, for the option of bus versus ride, there's one important factor: time. The bus gets them to school by 8:10, which means they leave my house around 8:05. But, if you give your kid a ride, they are not allowed to be dropped off before 8:10. And, unless you get there by 7:45, you'll be toward the back of the line and have to wait around until about 8:20 for your kid to get out of your car, so yeah... School starts at 8:30.
  Then there's after school pick-up... School is out at 3:30. So be there by 3:10 if you plan on having your kid by 3:45... But if they ride the bus, they are dismissed by 3:20, leave at 3:30, and get to my house around 3:40... So, yes, they are riding the bus... That being said, if I could walk them to school, I would. It's a ten minute walk. But no, that's not allowed until middle school, even if the parent accompanies them. Agh! No wonder our kids are lazy and overweight (speaking of the general populus), not only do we not make them exercise, we actually force them not to. B was very disappointed when I had to tell her that she could not walk to school this year. Oh well, at least we can still take walks after school...
   So far, so good with school. Although, I have to make B take faster showers because she managed to drag hers out to 40 minutes this morning, so Odie's is postponed until after he gets home from school. And I have to make sure Odie is 100% ready for school a long while before he needs to be, which is rather frustrating on days like today, when I tell him it's bus time and find out he lied to me about putting his lunchbox in his backpack and he bails to go put on socks because "B has socks on" (instead of sandals). Let's see, are you B? I mean, B is wearing a dress also, so does that mean you should be?... B has PE today, Odie has PE on Tuesday. So yes, she is wearing socks...
   I am trying really hard to be optimistic about this year, but it's hard considering how terrible the preschool experience was last year, and the difficulties we had with B's 1st grade teacher not being cooperative about the parenting arrangement per the divorce papers. Unfortunately, the first math paper B brought home (on Wednesday) was very sloppy and completely incorrect. The reason? She "didn't feel like doing it"... deja vu... I don't know how to instill a desire for her to do her best on the first try. She knows this at home, because of having to redo the same thing until she gets it correct. She finally decided it was easier to just do it right. But we fought this with school all of last year, and it appears we may still have more work ahead on that issue. :(
   Beyond that, I don't really know what else to say about their schooling. I'm still wishing I could homeschool B, but that's not something I have a choice over at all. As for Odie, I simply don't know...

Homeschooling & Life

   So, my Mutt and I were talking today, and he suggested I do something that I've been contemplating for a while now anyway - starting a homeschooling group. Yes, I know there are a ton of those out there already. The problem? I don't fit in with them. At least not any of the local ones. Most of the parents that homeschool around here do so for religious reasons. Either because they don't want their children exposed to some of the less than savory aspects of the diversity in the public school system, or because they want to be able to teach about history and science and language arts while including their fundamental religious views within the curriculum. Either way, it comes down to the same concept: Being able to teach your own kids in your own way. As far as I know, this is basically the root reason for all homeschooling. Or at least, logically speaking, that is what it comes down to - religious or not...
   But that's just the thing - while I believe in teaching my own kids in my own way, and I do use primarily Christian-based curriculum (A Beka), I'm not into the religious benefits of homeschooling, or at least not in the way most people are in my area. I don't fit in with their groups because I don't attend church, and my daughter is not involved in some youth group. We don't even do meal or bed-time prayers. I was raised Christian and, don't get me wrong, I still semi consider myself Christian. I say semi because that really depends on who I'm talking to and what their definitions are compared to mine. Come to find out, we don't generally agree...
   And while I do use the primarily Christian based curriculum for my daughter's schooling, I plan on doing "religious studies" instead of "bible study". I plan on starting with the core fundamentals of Christianity sometime either this school year or next, and teaching common bible stories and things like that. However, I have no intention of stopping at that point. The year after that will be a continuation of her religious studies. Starting with Buddhism, Hinduism, and various New Age/Pagan belief systems, including ancient religious views from societies such as Egypt and the Druids. I fully intend to teach as much about various religions as I can, including the similarities between them, so that my daughter can have a solid foundation upon which to build her own belief system. I feel that her knowing why she believes something is a lot more important than her believing something just because someone else (including me) happens to believe a specific thing...
   I want my daughter to grow into a mature, responsible, independent adult who is able to make her own decisions and isn't afraid of standing up for HER beliefs, versus someone who moves out at 18 and is suddenly faced with a vast world they never knew existed...
   Again, don't get me wrong, Iam not trying to pick a fight. I am not saying that children raised having just one religous foundation are sheltered or in any way inferior to children that are allowed to explore more. What I am saying is just that for me personally, I believe the only way for my daughter to know what she believes is if I allow and encourage her to seek out those answers for herself...
   So, now, why is this a problem? One simple thing. Around here, I am outcast for this train of thought. I am literally shunned by most homeschoolers I have met in person, because we don't go to church, and because my daughter doesn't know the song "Jesus Loves Me". So many people don't look at her and see how beautiful and intelligent and independent she is. They look at her and see a child they should attempt to "save" instead. They don't get impressed that my 7 year old is reading the Twilight series, instead they are upset that I would let her be exposed to a fictional story containing vampires...
   I've been trying to locate a penpal for her for a while now. And most of the parents I have talked to start out with something similar to, "We are looking for a child from a nice Christian home with good morals and character..." Okay, so the Christian part probably wouldn't apply to her. But she knows how to say "please" and "thank you", and how to wait her turn (sometimes with more patience than others), and how to help out others (including her own autistic brother). She knows how to find beauty in a flower petal or a spring rain, and how to respectfully mourn the death of a wild squirrel with as much love and understanding as she would that of her own pet...
   And, even more importantly for a penpal, she can read and write and spend hours discussing everything from My Little Pony figurines to dinosaurs, or even writing her own songs and poems to share. I don't understand what the religious views of a child's household has to do with their ability to communicate about toys or animals or even literature. Sure, you might not want your child exposed to vampires. Fine, I can tell her not to write about that. Come on, is it really that bad to socialize with someone who doesn't agree with you 100% on everything? Even when I did go to church, most people I knew still had their little disagreements on what was appropriate or acceptable for their kids. Heck, you even get that with most married couples.
   Anyway, I've been rambling, probably mostly pointessly, for some while now. And I guess what it boils down to is this: I can't be the only homeschooling parent who is not completely devoted to their religious beliefs to the point of excluding anyone who does not whole-heartedly agree with them. Can I? ...I joined an online group of homeschoolers in St. Louis who seem diverse and willing to accept anyone, regardless as to their views on most topics. The problem? Four hours away makes the afternoon coffee shop meet-ups a little difficult.
   And the local group I'm in is supposed to be devoid of religious opinions. However, there I am criticized every time I post anything. Once, it was for stating my 7 year old was reading Twilight. Another time it was for referring to my own autistic son as "special needs". I'm sorry, I'm not down with the current politically correct term for this stuff. Apparently I should have just stated he was "not average" or some other crap. No one is average, what the heck does that mean anyway? I was after a specific question pertaining only to local homeschooling kids with an ASD diagnosis. To me, if that's not "special needs", then nothing is...
  So, if there are any other homeschoolers out there that don't mind talking to a self-proclaimed "non-religious/ecletically spiritual" homeschooler, hit me up. I won't criticize your views if you don't criticize mine. That being said, a lively discussion of open minds as always welcome. :)

Homeschooling - 6.5 Weeks In

   This week was a long one. We've been getting B and Odie ready to go back to public school, which starts on Wednesday of this week - in two days... On Saturday morning, I bailed the kids out of bed at 5 am, and they got to see the International Space Station and the meteor shower. :)
   As for the actual curriculum portion of homeschooling, it's basically in full swing. ZoKo's been blasting through reading books for history and science this last week, and we're planning on picking up Latin and The Book of Virtues this week. Meanwhile, here it is, grade 2, progress report 5...

          - Total Hours completed as of August 13th, 2011 -
     Science     20.75
     Math     18.00
     History & Social Studies     21.75
     Language Arts & Reading     74.00
     Daily Review   1.50
     Health & Physical Education     30.25
     Art     14.50
     Home Economics     0.50
     Foreign Language (Latin)     -----

          - Total Hours   181.25     out of     1,000 mandatory hours -
     Hours Left:     818.75     averaging     18.00/week  -or-  2.75/day

Current Curriculum (percentage of current status towards completion):
     Science:
          Textbook - Discovery Works (Houghton Mifflin gr 3)     lesson 76 of 129     (58.9%)
          Reading - Rattlesnakes (ZooBooks)     section 3 of 3     (100%)
          Reading - Otter On His Own (Doe Boyle)     section 1 of 1     (100%)
          Reading - Day Of The Dinosaur (Stan Berenstain)     section 1 of 1     (100%)
          Reading - Kittens And Cats (Intercontinental Books)     section 1 of 1     (100%)
          Reading - Creature Questions (Chris Kratt)     section 1 of 1     (100%)
          Reading - Bravest Dog Ever (Natalie Standiford)     section 1 of 1     (100%)
     Math:
          Textbook - Arithmetic 3 (Abeka gr 3)     lesson 120 of 170     (70.6%)
          Reading - Brain Games For Kids (Publications International)     page 15 of 176     (08.5%)
     History:
          Textbook - Spectrum Geography Grade 3 (McGraw Hill gr 3)     lesson 17 of 18     (94.4%)
          Reading - Stories Of American Life & Adv... (Edward Eggleston)     section 47 of 47     (100%)
          Reading - First Dog (Jan Brett)     section 1 of 1     (100%)
     Language Arts:
          Grammar - Language 3 (Abeka gr 3)     lesson 109 of 163     (66.9%)
          Comprehension - Foot Prints (A Beka gr 3)     lesson 13 of 21     (61.9%)
          Penmanship - Cursive 3 (Abeka gr 3)     lesson 124 of 175     (70.9%)
          Independent Reading - Fire Star (Chris D'Lacey)     chapter 56 of 65     (86.2%)
          Independent Reading - New Moon (Stephenie Meyer)     page 403 of 563     (71.6%)
          Classic Literature - Outdoor Girls In A Motor Car (Laura Lee Hope)     chapter 23 of 25     (92.0%)
     Health:
          Textbook - Your Health (Harcourt gr 3)     lesson 7 of 85     (08.2%)
          Reading - It's Not The Stork (Robie H Harris)     section 12 of 12     (100%)
     Foreign Language:
          Latin - Minimus (Cambridge)     lesson 2 of 27     (7.4%)

Completed Curriculum For The 2011-2012 School Year (2nd Grade):
     Science:
          Reading - First Book Of Bees (Albert Tibbets)
          Reading - Polar Bears (Susan Canizares)
          Reading - Rain Forest (Jinny Johnson)
          Reading - True Story Of Corky The Blind Seal (Georgeanne Irvine)
          Reading - To Be A Chimpanzee (Chris Martin)
          Reading - Horses (Harold Roth)
          Reading - Rattlesnakes (ZooBooks)
          Reading - Otter On His Own (Doe Boyle)
          Reading - Day Of The Dinosaur (Stan Berenstain)
          Reading - Kittens And Cats (Intercontinental Books)
          Reading - Creature Questions (Chris Kratt)
          Reading - Bravest Dog Ever (Natalie Standiford)
          Reading - Wild Cats (Diane Muldrow)
     Math:
     History:
          Reading - Stories Of American Life And Adventure (Edward Eggleston)
          Reading - First Dog (Jan Brett)
          Reading - Orient (Tom McMahon)
     Language Arts:
          Comprehension - Silly Things Happen (Houghton Mifflin gr 3)
          Classic Literature - Outdoor Girls Of Deepdale (Laura Lee Hope)
     Health:
          Reading - It's Not The Stork (Robie H Harris)
     Foreign Language:

Pain

   I would really like to know why I hate myself so much. I mean I get the medical stuff. But it feels more like an excuse than an explanation. And I don't know what to do about it. I do want things to be different than what they are. But no, I don't have the slightest clue as to how to even start to maybe accomplish anything in that realm of my existence. So where does that leave me? I guess exactly where I have been this whole time, just like it always has. I've never been able to separate the blackness from the dark, and maybe I'm not meant to. Maybe this world, this chaos I feed off of is meant to be there, just keep tearing at my soul.
   I wrote that yesterday actually, on my phone. But I didn't get around to posting it then, so I'm posting it now. And I guess it still basically holds true. Today has been one of those days. Another one of those days. Oh well, it's my life. I don't know why I'm here. Or at least why anyone would want me to be. I'm sick of all the crap around here. Dealing with the way everyone else thinks life should work. I'm not one of those people. It isn't that easy for me. And I don't know how to explain that. And I don't think I should have to either.
   I've spent a good deal of today crying, or rather, trying to pretend that I haven't been. And I think mostly it's gone alright. Got KiKi and ZoKo out for a walk, and am now watching a movie from my childhood, Ben Wagner. It used to be called The Witching Of Ben Wagner, but apparently they changed the name when they moved it onto VHS/DVD off of TV. Oh well, it's still the same movie, and so now I'm attempting to taint my kids with a dose of the things I used to appreciate - back from those good ol' days... Not that they were really that good, but that's what we say, isn't it? I don't know why, probably just because past pain doesn't seem to hurt quite as bad as the current agonies, kind of like managing to "get over it" somehow in our own little ways. Who knows...
   I don't know what else to say right now, so I'm gonna bail. Be back later with ZoKo's weekly review that's running a day or two behind (depending on when exactly I get around to posting it). Oh, something cool, she did get to see the ISS and meteor shower Saturday morning (5:05 am)... Totally worth bailing their butts out of bed a few hours early :)

B's Progress Over The Summer & Prepping For School

   For being a girl that had no interest in reading (not properly, anyway), and couldn't add 2+2 without using her fingers and still messing up... B has made a ton of progress over this summer. While I am prepping her for the start of public school on August 17th, we have come to the conclusion that this year will not be very revolutionary to her personally. Her new teacher sent home a letter to all the new students (with the invite to the school open house). And her primary concern for this school year (the whole year mind you, not just the first quarter) is to encourage your child to develop a love of reading...
   The problem with this proposition when it comes to B? Today, she started book 2 of the Wizard in Oz series (the Land of Oz)... This is her independent reading book for now, which she reads a chapter a day of. She is also currently working on The Tale Of Snowball Lamb (classic literature), Viking Tales (history reading), and The Burgess Book Of Birds For Children (science reading). All of the above books she reads at the rate of one chapter per day, even on weekends.
   As for her arithmetic skills, she can now do 4 digit addition and 3 digit subtraction with no problems. She can do multiplication via addition, which is still way ahead of the public school system. She's made enough progress over the summer that, at the very least, she'll be ahead of most of her class academically. She's also had countless mini-science and health lessons, and can compute basic arithmetic in her head and add and subtract money of various denominations with no problems...
   Socially, her attitudes towards a lot of things in life has turned around. We no longer deal with the "I'm not getting my way tantrums" or the "I'm not going to share" moods, except for the first evening she returns from her mom's house. By the next day, she's happy and cheerful and running around and ZoKo and her are best pals (for the most part). Honestly, that's been how things are with her for a long while now. I just had to point it out because some days it still amazes me how much she's blossomed over the last year or so...
   And, in case you're wondering if I'm "overwhelming" her with all that reading I mentioned above, she's on a break now, you know, free time. So, what's she doing? Reading a book to Sparkie and Beanie (two stuffed skunks). Yep, that's right, she's reading during playtime. As for her comprehension levels, we had problems at the beginning of the summer. In fact, she was so bad about skipping full lines, substituting random words, and mumbling through the rest of the page, that I started making her read her classic literature outloud. Loud enough that I could actually hear her. And she had to speak clearly so I could understand her. And if she messed up, she had to restart the paragraph. And, yes, it took her a few hours to read a page or two. At first... And, after endless hours of whining and whimpering, after about a week, she stopped fighting and decided to try harder. And within two weeks, she was making about one-fourth the mistakes that she originally was. And by the end of the third week, she was consistently making no mistakes at all. So, after a month of her having to read her classic literature out loud, I told her that she didn't have to read it out loud anymore and congratulated her on the phenomenal changes and progress she'd made...
   And now? Now, she chooses to read out loud (so the stuffed animals can hear her). And she chooses to read during her free time. And she chooses to talk for hours on end about the characters and plot in her current books. And she chooses to draw her own illustrations for her favorite parts in some stories... And she chooses to be happy and smile and be enthusiastic about reading... The point is, it's all her choice now. And I couldn't be more proud of the choices she's making. To listen to a girl that used to cry and whine about having to read one sentence out loud speak so clearly and read with such enthusiasm for an hour to some stuffed animals that ever so patiently hang on her every word is nothing short of a miracle, as far as I'm concerned. As for everyone else, maybe it doesn't mean anything. But it means something to her, and to everyone close to her, so, isn't that all that really matters anyway? Just a thought...
   PS - For anyone wondering, spending over $50 on school & lunch supplies for a child that you have no doubts about needing one-on-one time and emotional support and rewards/praise that she won't get in the public school system is nothing short of depressing. I've spent hours crying over having to let her go back after all the progress we've made. I'm hoping that her teacher this year is more willing to compensate children for their efforts than her one last year was. But alas, all I can do is hope...

Homeschooling - 5.5 Weeks In

   This week was mostly on track for what I anticipate should be something similar to our regular schedule. Or something to that effect, anyway. We spent about 15 minutes this evening star-gazing. And, thanks to a wonderful book entitled 365 Starry Nights, I was able to point out three stars and identify one system for ZoKo :) I really know nothing about this stuff, but there is a certain amount of a feeling of accomplishment and satisfaction in being able to teach her these things anyway. I would so totally recommend the book to anyone at all interested in the stars (assuming you are in the Northern Hemisphere).
   I guess that's probably enough blabbing about stars. Let's see, what else did we do this week? ZoKo made a Japanese paper lantern in art, and also a foam bead house. She finished one science reading book and started yet another. She moved on to a new section of penmanship, and started her first health textbook for this school year. She got a few new school supplies (new crayons, colored pencils, and scissors).
   I'm thinking about having her start a third independent reading book, but so far I haven't decided for sure on whether to do this now or give her some more time to adjust to having a full schedule again. Although, she likes reading enough that I doubt she'd view it as a hardship. Right now reading accounts for an average of 2-3 hours of her work each day.
   Anyway, here it is, grade 2, progress report 4...

          - Total Hours completed as of August 6th, 2011 -
     Science     14.25
     Math     14.00
     History & Social Studies     18.50
     Language Arts & Reading     59.00
     Daily Review   1.50
     Health & Physical Education     23.75
     Art     14.00
     Home Economics     -----
     Foreign Language (Latin)     -----

          - Total Hours   145.00     out of     1,000 mandatory hours -
     Hours Left:     855.00     averaging     18.25/week  -or-  2.75/day

Current Curriculum (percentage of current status towards completion):
     Science:
          Textbook - Discovery Works (Houghton Mifflin gr 3)     lesson 71 of 129     (55.0%)
          Reading - Horses (Harold Roth)     section 3 of 3     (100.0%)
          Reading - Rattlesnakes (ZooBooks)     section 1 of 3     (33.3%)
     Math:
          Textbook - Arithmetic 3 (Abeka gr 3)     lesson 117 of 170     (68.8%)
     History:
          Textbook - Spectrum Geography Grade 3 (McGraw Hill gr 3)     lesson 14 of 18     (77.7%)
          Reading - Stories Of American Life & Adv... (Edward Eggleston)     section 40 of 47     (85.1%)
     Language Arts:
          Grammar - Language 3 (Abeka gr 3)     lesson 104 of 163     (63.8%)
          Comprehension - Foot Prints (A Beka gr 3)     lesson 7 of 21     (33.3%)
          Penmanship - Cursive 3 (Abeka gr 3)     lesson 119 of 175     (68.0%)
          Independent Reading - Fire Star (Chris D'Lacey)     chapter 51 of 65     (78.5%)
          Independent Reading - New Moon (Stephenie Meyer)     page 338 of 563     (60.0%)
          Classic Literature - Outdoor Girls In A Motor Car (Laura Lee Hope)     chapter 18 of 25     (72.0%)
     Health:
          Textbook - Your Health (Harcourt gr 3)     lesson 2 of 85     (2.4%)
          Reading - It's Not The Stork (Robie H Harris)     section 8 of 12     (66.7%)
     Foreign Language:
          Latin - Minimus (Cambridge)     lesson 2 of 27     (7.4%)

Completed Curriculum For The 2011-2012 School Year (2nd Grade):
     Science:
          Reading - First Book Of Bees (Albert Tibbets)
          Reading - Polar Bears (Susan Canizares)
          Reading - Rain Forest (Jinny Johnson)
          Reading - True Story Of Corky The Blind Seal (Georgeanne Irvine)
          Reading - To Be A Chimpanzee (Chris Martin)
          Reading - Horses (Harold Roth)
     Math:
     History:
     Language Arts:
          Comprehension - Silly Things Happen (Houghton Mifflin gr 3)
          Classic Literature - Outdoor Girls Of Deepdale (Laura Lee Hope)
     Health:
     Foreign Language:

This Weekend

   B's birthday was yesterday. We set up the slip n slide and the kids played most of the day. Didn't really have a formal party (knowing me, is it that surprising?). We had Qdoba for lunch, then ice cream sandwiches, no cake. She got some new clothes, a Tinkerbell pillow and comforter, and a few small dolls.
   My mom came over for the "party", then and we watched a few episodes of Alphas. So far it at least has potential. We've also been watching "Torchwood: Miracle Day". I'm still not sure on that one.
   I broke my poor Mutt's heart when it comes to tv watching, though. I informed him that "Sons of Guns" is labeled as reality tv. So, yes, he does in fact watch reality tv. He wasn't too happy about that one. I don't think he'll ever forgive me.
   Something exciting happened yesterday, at the party. KiKi took my hand and walked down the slip n slide, into the pool at the bottom, and out again. He continued walking all the way back to the beginning and did it a second time. Later, he did it a few more times. Why is this a big deal? Simple. KiKi doesn't like water. He'll tolerate a small splash now without screaming, but this has taken extensive work. For him to walk through the sprinkling water on the slip n slide (and just being on wet plastic itself), and then through the pool of water at the end is just completely shockingly amazing. We were all so stunned at this, that he kind of stole the spotlight for a while. The older kids were all three cheering him on! :)
   Then there was the dog, whom we were are now calling Roog (pronounced "rug"), think cross between Rock and Dog... She had a fun time with the slip n slide, running through the pool at the bottom and splashing the girls. She also decided to lay down in the pool to rest. We had to practically drag her out when it was time to go inside.
   All in all it wasn't a bad weekend. The kids had fun, and the weather was hot but not too humid. As opposed to today, when the humidity decided to make its presence known earlier. Oh well, we still got our walk in. Just had to do it a bit later in the day than normal, since KiKi had a dr appt this morning. We only walked about 2 miles today, but that's not too bad. And the kids got raspberry lemonade, so they were thrilled. Oh, and I got Rango as a free RedBox rental for tonight. The girls are psyched :P