yesterday, we started back to 7th grade homeschool lessons.

i've decided we would move forward homeschooling like we always have. with living books. i just can't imagine any other way, for us. i did consider purchasing computer curriculum to cover all subjects. but, can't phantom having my son plugged into the computer all day. i did step up to the plate and purchase, teaching textbooks math 7. which is, computer based.

the past couple of days, we've just eased back into it....

here's a little of what we did over the past couple days:

- 4 lessons in math

- tommie read: jacques cousteau short bio.

where spelling words, science and vocabulary words, handwriting were pulled out.

-project and poster on nitrogen narcosis (rapture)

-edited tomi de palo's children's book, "pancakes for breakfast." the book is wordless... i required tommie to write the storyline. he did swell.

-watched the agricultural documentary, "corn king" and "food, inc."

yep, i'm counting it as science and economics.

tomorrow kicks off a new unit study for us... with, island of the blue dolphins.

and my oh my... look what i found to help us!? an interactive island of the blue dolphins interactive and printable activity worksheets!

click here to see what i'm talking about!

every year, i "say" we're going to homechool lightly throughout summer. always with a rip-roaring good intent. we loose momentum around june 18. and then it fizzles out completely by july 4th. a few weeks ago, after six years of homeschooling and suggesting and trying to sell my son on the benefits of plugging along through the summer....

he

decides that he'd like to homeschool during the summer.

now, if you know my sweet boy.... you'll find this hard to believe as i do.

i'm secretly excited... since i love schooling outside in such nice weather. and enjoy nature studies and outside learning so much!

today, we worked on our plant study. the seven principals of living organisms. we also put a mixture of bits and pieces of morel mushrooms under our ash tree for next years harvest.

we had to skip a lesson in math.... couldn't find the protractor.

our self-made unit study, lizzy bright & the buckminster boy... led us into something very personal. death. how to react if ever faced with a terminal illness. this, i'm certain.... no school could cover. i've recently learned, that my favorite motivational speaker, dr. wayne dyer has cancer. so did my dad. both men embraced their uncertain futures as a blessing. deep, i know... but it's conversations like this that are priceless with my son. how not to be a burden to others. how staying positive is more effective then the "why me?" approach. and lastly, life is not fair... no one said it would or should be.

our lesson, also led us into a good discussion and science experiment about the different blood types: which blood type is compatible with which.

we also had the pleasure of hearing two honking (loud!) sandhill cranes... flying overhead and landing in our backyard. both were cinnamon colored-- young birds. both started a flapping fight with a canada goose. we watched it all! live-- in our yard.

these days are rolling by, way to fast!

looking back over the past week, here's a glimpse of what we call education at home:

-continued with the newberry winner book, turner buckminster & lizzie bright:

-discussed racial discrimination

- discussion on capital and investments: what type of businesses would attract tourists on the east coast in the early 1900's? decided a movie theatre for silent films would be a hit.

-discussed charlie chaplin who left u.s.a. for switzerland-and never came back, do to back taxes. discussed the importance of paying taxes on time: penalties, biblical truths & why so many flee to switzerland when in trouble.

-discussed mary pickford. i have a picture in my kitchen of her with a stamped signature.

doesn't it seem like we do a lot of discussion? it's the give and take of oral learning that opens up a flood of questions. my son didn't have a clue what capital meant or back taxes.

-typed two short papers on the california condor and pekin duck

-went to youtube school and we both enjoyed:

silent films

condors in the redwood forest

-another highlight? i had tommie make a big pot of chicken broth to freeze. you know now, if he were in traditional school.. they would call this culinary arts. here at our school we say....

how about making us some chicken broth to freeze?

-now that spring is in full-swing... tommie's been working a few days a week at our neighbors farm. he's enjoying his $$ and is learning "to do what the boss says!"

other subjects: math, spelling, silent reading, on-line spanish.

-i know this post seems like everything is a walk through the daisy's. it is not. i am dealing with a pre-teen, who dislikes reading and writing. and who is breaking out of his shell to become his own opinionated person. we have a lot of eye-rolling happening here and breathing hard. but, we just keep moving ahead.

this week and the forthcoming weeks, we will be pulling lessons-five in a row style from this double- award winner, lizzie bright and the buckminster boy, by gary schmidt... who happens to live here in michigan! i'll be documenting what we did right here....each day. you are more then welcome to use any of the learning activities i'm telling you about....

here's what we did so far this week:

-3/4 page of dictation page 2 last paragraph. commas and hyphen review.

-review hyperbole

-looked up and wrote a short paper on the newberry award and michael prinze award.

-applied math- orally

-a writing/reading/drawing project on the 5 different parts of the atmosphere

vocabulary word look up and writing: reprobate, parsonage.

fieldtrip: drove past several parsonages

-a writing & hand's on project about tides, including spring and neap tides

-watched a very interesting youtube video (on my level) click here!

-discussed "peer pressure"... i can't ever discuss this enough!!

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now, of course we do our regular core subjects: math, spelling and silent reading. tommie's choice for his silent reading is, the last of the mohican's.

time to teach tommie spanish!

i found a couple of good websites to help me! -- and yes, they're free!

here! and here!

explaining watergate, understanding watergate and the fall of president nixon, was easy.... when i used lego men to reenact the scene. truth is... i'm sort of a watergate illiterate...so, i needed to brush up on the facts, with a book i had on my shelf. now, we by no means know all of the nitty-gritty details of this political-era and scandal... but, we both know "just enough," for this point in our lives.