Well we have finished another fun-filled week of school!! This was actually our first week this school year to have school all 4 days!! YAY!!!
I am going to start this post by saying there has been yet another renovation of the schoolhouse! LOL!! Remember when I posted this picture of my poor laptop sitting on top of an empty diaper box?!?!?
Well thanks to hubby that has been fixed!! After purchasing two different stands to put the laptop on he finally came up with an even better, more brilliant idea!! :-) We realized that our tv in our room has not been hooked back up ever since I rearranged the room a couple of months ago. He asked if I would want it in the schoolhouse. It has capability of hooking up to computer AND the Ipad. Of course I said sure!!
So because of that the other big monitor we were using got to go to my desk!! YAY!!! Now I have a big monitor at my desk!! Looks much better doesn't it!?!?!?
And we are having FUN with the TV. I have hooked it up to the ipad for Aaron and Alyssa to practice writing their letters ... (you will see below the TV is my pile of stuff that is for my co-op classes that I teach...I wish I had a better place to put that stuff).
We have also found fun interactive books to watch on it (from the ipad). Aaron and Alyssa loved the book "The Monster At the End of the Book". Grover kept them in stitches!! So fun! We have watched an interactive version of Dr Seuss' ABC book.
I have even used the ipad hooked up to the TV to help teach Seth his math concepts. There are some really cool apps for that as well!
They can also watch their videos on it. We have a dvd player hooked up to it, or I can hook it to my computer for them to watch videos through Window Media Player (like our Animated Hero Classics). I think this is going to be a GREAT resource in our schoolroom!! THANKS DADDY!!! :-)
We started reading Squanto, Friend of the Pilgrims this week! I am trying out something new for our read-aloud time. I went online and found coloring pages of Indians to print off and made each of the kids a coloring book. You can see from my picture below I put a picture of the cover of the book for the cover of their coloring book and then printed off the pages booklet style and stapled them together to make a book. (Seth's is open and you can see the pictures that he colored)
So while I am reading from the book they can sit there and color their pictures as they listen. I had heard of this idea from a CM site online and thought I would give it a try. And I really do think it helps them to listen better!! I stop and ask questions along the way to make sure they are listening and even Aaron is answering them as we go!! They now can't wait for read aloud time! YAY!!!
Seth finally made an A on a spelling test! WHOO HOO!! He only missed one word this week and was so proud of himself!!
Who's hiding under a blanket inside the storage bench???
Oh that would be silly Alyssa! This has become her new favorite hang out spot! She almost fell asleep sitting inside that box one day this week! Silly silly girl!
I have been very busy this week working on making outdoor journals for the kids. I have found an ABUNDANCE of good material on the Texas Parks and Wildlife website. I have downloaded them and am printing them and putting them into binders for the kids. My plan for these is for days when I decide that we don't need to be in a schoolroom and we decide to go to a state park in the area, or a park, or somewhere outdoors. We will grab our binders and pick out activities to do in them for an 'outdoor school day'!! (and I have realized I think I need bigger binders - I have already filled 1" binders and am not finished printing stuff off. LOL!) But here are the cute covers I made for them!
I am planning on also doing a Zoo journal for the kids as well. Since we are zoo members there will be days that we will be doing school at the zoo!! FUN! FUN!
The kids have enjoyed a bit of play time outside in the mornings before school since our mornings are cooler now :-) Here is what I found one day in the yard. Seth said it was to sit grasshoppers on...ok?!?!
Speaking of outside - Seth has enjoyed working on the table in the gazeebo doing his work, where it is quiet, while I work with Aaron and Alyssa in the schoolhouse.
I signed up for a subscription to the Highlights puzzlemania magazines for Aaron. He is really enjoying working on those during his 'busy box' time!
Tomorrow we are going on a field trip to the Children's Aquarium in Dallas!! I am coordinating this field trip and we have almost 50 kids and 40 adults planning on going!! It will be fun fun!! (of course I will post pics when we return!)
I found some fun activities online for the kids to do at the aquarium. I made them little booklets for them to take! Here are the covers (which I did in cardstock so it made them nice and sturdy)
For Aaron and Alyssa I made a scavenger hunt. I put pictures of the different creatures they would see. At each exhibit they will have to find the picture of the animal in their book and mark that they saw it!
Seth's is a bit more detailed. He has to find an animal he really likes and observe it for a bit. He will also have to find an unusual animal and a camouflaged animal. Since he will be with his friends and I know he will not want to do a lot of writing, I am going to have him take pictures of these animals for his book. Then Monday he is going to look at those pictures and do the writing in his book to complete the book. :-)
Then after a fun day at the aquarium this Mommy is going to get to go to MOM'S NIGHT OUT!! WHOO HOO!! It will be a much needed break for me! :-)
Until next time,
Kellie
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