Half-baked Homeschool

Most of what I've posted in the past has been in the "wrap-up" category, but over the summer I it was a recap of the whole academic year, and this past week it covered six weeks. Perhaps a weekly review would be better.

Bearclaw finished the novel Pocahontas and the Strangers by Clyde Robert Bulla. Much of the week, then, was spent preparing a project on the book for his humanities class. Despite seeing several on the given list that I thought would be right up his alley, he chose to build a Powhatan longhouse. They always choose the thing that will make the biggest disaster of the kitchen. Anyway, it WAS fun and turned out quite well.

While staying within this general time period, we took a look this week at both Japanese and Chinese history, discussing the shoguns in Japan and the end of the Ming Dynasty in China. We included a literature selection from each country, both of which were retellings of traditional stories. From China came Lon Po Po, which is similar to Little Red Riding Hood in many ways. The Boy of the Three-Year Nap, from Japan, is a fun folktale and a Cadlecott Honor book.

We try to cook at least one thing related to our the time or place of our history study each week, but time ran short on Wednesday, and instead of the homemade Gyoza I had planned, we cooked frozen potstickers. At least this was an option. Last week, when we covered the Thirty Years' War, we made Schnitzel. I don't think frozen would have been an option there. (too bad I missed doing a "wrap-up" that week - we even streamed polka music in on the laptop during dinner from "24-7 Polka Heaven". Check it out for your next Octoberfest!)

Bearclaw spent a good deal of time categorizing sentences and contructing topic sentences in grammar. In Singapore Math, he's working on adding and subtracting money. I'm better at the subtracting, because that's all I do! Tee-hee!

Shortbread's curriculum centers around a different "letterbook" each week in the humities hybrid program the boys attend. The kindergarteners do not progress trough these alphabetically, but in a way that allows them to begin to read and spell simple words. The week's letterbook was "Ss", and I'm thrilled that he is now beginning to sound out words. He's very proud too!

Each day, Shortbread and I sit down to read some of the wonderful children's books we own or have borrowed from the library. We try to pick one theme book (currently that's "autumn") and one book that has the letter of the week in the title. Some of our favorites from this week were:
When I'm Sleepy by Jane R. Howard
The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle
A Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats
The Berenstain Bears Learn About Strangers by Jan and Stan Berenstain

We weren't all work and no play. Dh and my dad took both boys to an airshow at a nearby Air Force Base. Going with "Papa" and their dad is extra fun for the boys, as Paps is a retired Air Force jet and helicopter pilot, and dh is a liscenced pilot as well. They had a great time, and I cleaned the living room carpet (which I thoroughly enjoyed, by the way).

I hope I can make a habit of summarizing our weeks and sharing them with all the other great homeschool bloggers at Weekly Wrap-ups, hosted by Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers