We have been branching out with our writing skills… we’re no longer writing notes because signs are way more fun!

Want to know what Jacqui has to say for her self on this one? Well, come on over to Five Minutes For Special Needs and find out…

See You There!

parenting children motherhood 5 Minutes For Special Needs 5MFSN Magic Marker Monday medically fragile

Want the back story on this one?

Well, come find out at Magic Marker Monday…

See You There!

parenting children motherhood 5 Minutes For Special Needs 5MFSN Magic Marker Monday medically fragile

Image Courtesy Istock Photo

“Wanna know how you can warm up an alligator? You wrap it up inna warm towel and put it in warm water! Iddn’t that cool ?!! Do you fink dair’s enny cold alligators out in the backyard?”

“My next birfday I’ll be six, then seven, then eight, then nine, then ten, then eleven, then twelve, then thirteen, then fourteen, then fifteen, then sixteen then, seventeen, then eighteen, then nineteen, then twenty! Then I’ll have a lot of freckles.” (Huh?)

“I don’t wanna eat my bananas. Can we get a fruit bat? Fruit bats LOVE fruit you know … wouldn’t that be handy?”

“Didja know big red kangaroos can fight by standin’ on their tails like itsa extra leg? An’ blue fliers (that’s a kinda kangaroo too, ya know) jump all ’round so much they kinda look like they’re flyin’. They’re not blue though. So that parta their name’s messed up.”

“I know stuff ’bout porky-pines! Didja know some porky-pines have hensle tails? That means they can hold onta stuff with it. Youda known too if you was payin’ da tenshun wen that lady was talkin’ at the zoo. Wish I had a hensle tail! Then I could climb a tree reely fast when you telled me it was time to come inside for dinner.”

“I don’t think that it should be my bedtime jess yet. I’m nocky-turdle. That means I like to stay up all night an’ sleep all day. Can you get me some of those special goggles that help ya see inna dark? I’m gonna need ‘em!”

“I can’t eat ennymore! I’m not a cow! Cows have FOUR tummies! I jess have ONE! MAY I BE ‘SCUZED??!!?”

“Well, the biggest reason I want a coati for a pet is because you don’t know what one is. I think that’s funny! HAHAHAHAHAHA! Nah-na-na-na-nah! I know wat a coati is an’ I’m not gonna tell you! ”

Yeah, homeschooling is going really well … thanks for asking …

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Wanna know what we’ve been up to lately?

Well, swimming class started up this week for Jacqui…

And she was quite pleased with herself today!

We also started up homeschool this week — Jacqui’s very first week of Kindergarten!

She had so much fun learning new things, looking through the new books, and trying out her new school supplies.

And for all you homeschoolers wanting to know what curriculum we’re using… well, the answer is a bit complicated!

A little bit of everything…

Sonlight for Language Arts and Social Studies

I chose Sonlight for Jacqui’s core curriculum for a number of reasons: It is centered on reading (one of Jacqui’s favorite things in the world to do is to listen to me or Ken read), also this part of the Sonlight Core curriculum includes a solid Bible program and an ABC memory verse program, the lesson plans are well laid out with the option for a four or five day week, and there is a strong history component which can be difficult to find in a kindergarten curriculum. This curriculum comes with a TON of books. Many of them are Usborne Books and are just packed with things to learn. If you don’t like to spend a lot of time reading with your kids, then this is not the curriculum for you.

Sonlight for Science

I went with Sonlight again for science — mostly because of the great organization of this curriculum and the fact that this is a true science program. You get an actual science kit with experiments to work on throughout the year. Most of the science programs for kindergarten are pretty thin. This one has substance and I like that — so does Jacqui. She’s a girl who wants to know the why’s of everything, so this suits her to a ‘T’.

Math U See for Mathematics

I chose this mathematics curriculum because Jacqui is a very visual and tactile kid. She learns by watching and by doing. This program incorporates a very unique teaching method using small blocks to visually illustrate mathematical concepts. Jacqui LOVES this program — today she clapped her hands when the blocks came out and whooped, “YAY!! I LOVE math!” She begged to do more work when I tried to put it away and move on to the next subject. I cannot say enough good things about this program.

Peterson Directed Handwriting for Writing

I chose this program because Jacqui faces some unique challenges with her writing. One of the nerves that connected to her right trapezius muscle had to be sacrificed during one of her surgeries to remove her lymphatic malformation. Because of this, Jacqui’s right arm fatigues quickly (and she is right-handed). This program focuses on learning large muscle group movements for writing before moving on to fine-motor skills. I’m playing a bit of a hunch on this one, but after studying this program it seemed like something that would work well for Jacqui. So far she loves it. I also like that this program has a comprehensive method for teaching left-handed writing. It’s beginning to look like Kyle might be a lefty and so this program might eventually be a good fit for him too.

Spell To Write & Read and Teaching The Classics: A Socratic Method for Literary Education for reading

I chose this program because Jacqui has been having a difficult time understanding spelling concepts. I like the way this program teaches you first how to be a competent speller and just allows reading to naturally follow. I have high hopes for this program and Jacqui seems to like it. When I tried teaching her straight phonics she was completely un-interested. This program seems to make intuitive sense to her and I just love seeing that little light bulb go on!

The Teaching The Classics program is one that we will get into once we have read through a couple of chapter books. It is basically a program for parents to learn how to teach their children to appreciate and discuss classic literature. (My ulterior motive here is to surround Ken with a family that is constantly discussing books so that he will be swept away in the current of literature appreciation and he and I will be able to sit in our rockers and discuss my love of Anne Radcliffe when we are eighty instead of Ken’s love of fly fishing.)

Vocabulary with Very Very Vocabulary

I picked this workbook up as an extra because Jacqui tested out at about a 5th grade vocabulary level. I had flipped through this one and it actually had some higher level words in it even though it says it’s for grades 2-3. Jacqui just loves learning new words and I like the way this workbook is set up to re-enforce memory by having them copy the word in writing, look the word up (I help), use it in a sentence, and illustrate the word. Jacqui loves this book!

Music Appreciation with Themes To Remember

Optional curriculum, but I want my kids to grow up loving music, art and literature. This is an EXCELLENT program! It comes with a book and an accompanying CD. The book teaches different periods in classical music and information about each piece and the composer. The CD is very clever — each track is fairly short and plays first as an orchestral piece and then with some silly lyrics to help the student remember the melody and who composed the piece. Both Jacqui and Kyle have been happily humming Vivaldi’s Four Seasons all afternoon. Love, love LOVE this program!

Music Theory with Theory Time

I’m starting music theory now because Jacqui wants to learn. We’re having a lot of fun with this program — it includes some great games and fun worksheets. We don’t have a piano, but right now a $5.00 keyboard from the Wal-Mart toy section suits our purposes just fine. We’re learning notes and musical symbols and basic musical concepts. I’m hoping this will set her up so that learning to read music will come easy to her. This is a great, comprehensive program that allows for continuation through many grade levels.

Spanish with Teach Them Spanish

I’m including some basic Spanish because Jacqui is a huge Dora The Explorer fan and is constantly asking me how to say things in Spanish. Basically what this comes down to is that I’m teaching myself Kindergarten Spanish so I can understand what my 5-year-old is saying. This is a very simple workbook and I’m combining it with online resources for pronunciation. Looks like it’s going to work just fine for kindergarten.

Art with Artistic Pursuits

I just LOVE this book. It teaches appreciation for classical art, basic art and composition concepts, and includes wonderful art projects based on examples of classical art. It is filled with full-color paintings and tons of ideas on how to teach your child to love art. We’re going to thoroughly enjoy this book!

And there you have it. We are using the four-day curriculum lesson plan on a five-day-a-week schedule and we started several weeks early so we can get a jump on the school year. This will enable us to make allowances for missed school days with Jacqui’s CVS episodes. Well, that and Jacqui has been pestering me non-stop since June to start up kindergarten. It’s so much fun to see the joy of learning in a child’s eyes!

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