We’ve been cruising along, working on finding our groove, and I’m still learning to balance “relaxed” with “schedule” in our homeschool. The biggest thing I need to work on right now is getting less dilly-dallying in our mornings. I don’t care exactly what time we start our schoolwork for the day, but an hour’s worth of this-n-that between breakfast and school happens too often and doesn’t start our day the way it needs to go.

Kathryn is still loving her enrichment classes, and I don’t see that changing because she loves the artsy/craftsy stuff. At home, we’ve started a mother-daughter study of the book Beautiful Girlhood, and I hope to make this a fun and meaningful part of each week. Maybe we’ll even reinstate our weekly “tea time.” More and more each day, it seems, I am reminded of the importance of having my children’s hearts — but putting this into practice in real daily life is hard and takes intentional effort.

Other additional activities for Kathryn in the past two weeks included attending a bar mitzvah as part of the classes she recently started at her dad’s messianic synagogue.  At our church, her assignment this week in Girls in Action was to write her own devotion; I’m hoping she’ll let me read it. 😉

For her own free reading this week, Kathryn read Little Lord Fauntleroy by Frances Hodgson Burnett. She enjoyed it and did a great job of narrating the plot to me, along with some of her feelings about the story and her interpretations of the characters.

In math, we’re doing some formal lessons plus fun online games, and Kathryn spontaneously decided to do some Celcius/Farenheit conversions with a formula in the back of a notebook. I like when little things like that come up: real math for use in the real world!

(a few Instagram photos from our week: computer math games, handiwork while I read, and new outfits for clothespin dolls)

I’ve assigned two of our weekly history readings to Kathryn to read on her own. I still read most of them aloud, but there’s only so much I can do before my throat gives out! She is at an age where she needs to do some of work on her own, but we enjoy our readings together, so even if she could easily read them all, I don’t want her to. At least not yet. Sometimes she colors our state map of the week, works on a lapbook project, or does a bit of handiwork while I read. We enjoy that kind of multitasking.

We love God’s World News for current events. Kathryn is always excited to get a new edition, and usually devours the whole thing the first day or two. It often makes for some good conversation starters, too.

We haven’t done any formal nature study this week or last week, but we went on walks most days last week (but not this week because of poor air quality), and have been looking for blooming plants and any early signs of fall. The weather has turned cooler today, so I hope to do walks again most days next week.

Wondering how Lindsey is doing in public school? I gave an update on that here: The Question Everyone Is Asking.

** Visit Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers to link up your own weekly report, or to see what other families have been up to lately! I’ve also linked this post up with “Camera Phone Friday” at My Home Sweet Home; come join the fun!

Jamie

Wife, mom, J-ma. Introvert who enjoys good books, sunshine, and authentic conversation. Often seen with a steaming mug of tea in hand – unless it’s lost yet again in the microwave. Read more »