Wednesday

I'm not sure how today went. Ever had days like that? We began a unit in the Spectrum 6th grade Geography text on straits. We reviewed it, checked Dragon and Monkey's answers, discussed them, and expanded on them. It was interesting.

The kids did their math from MasterPak today. Monkey completed his Singapore Math workbook. Where were those when the boys were younger?! The workbooks are marvelous! Since we began at the beginning (probably far too simple), we haven't really used the textbooks. I bought one textbook for the first level, mostly for Dog Lover, and accidentally bought the textbooks instead of the workbooks for the 2nd one. Dragon tested out of the 1b level so we'll move on. Monkey needs to take the test, but I think he'll pass it too. I'll probably buy one 1b workbook for Dog Lover because that is more her level. (It's actually 2nd grade.) It's a good opportunity to catch what we overlooked for the boys (like fractions). However, for right now I'm using the MasterPak worksheets supplemented by me. I have the CD, and I don't want to buy any more workbooks. By fall, I will, but we will be at grade level by then. I am really impressed with how Singapore Math forces the kids to use their reasoning skills. Apparently, they are known for their story problems, and that is why I'm not totally sure we are going to skip workbooks. I have been very impressed with the reasoning ability they are developing in my kids.

They did no English today except they began their books that they will be writing reports on. That took about an hour. Music took about 2 hours. Dog Lover did her language arts and then read her Clifford books to us. Once again, why didn't I buy those many years ago?! She absolutely adores Clifford--after all, he's a dog! The first day she got them, she would not be separated from them. They come in a cardboard case with a handle--they're the Phonics Fun series. I checked the grade level and it says Baby-Preschool. Interestingly, most babies would probably tear the books because they are just paper. It made me feel badly and really condemn myself for not jumping on it back when the boys were little! They loved Clifford too. The Clifford books are a lot more interesting and engaging than the Bob Books which I used for the boys and somewhat for Dog Lover. She has read the books so many times that it has gotten much faster for her. Yet she doesn't just read them by rote. She sounds out the words. In fact, the words she has to learn by sight still trip her up. So...she is doing preschool reading, 6th grade geography, 4th-5th grade history, and 1st-2nd grade math. I actually think she can handle multiplication but her books are not there yet. (She keeps up with her brothers though.)