Into the Groove

Now that it's February, I can say we've got our academic mornings in a nice groove. Their schedule each day looks like this:

1. Independent reading
2. Copywork (Poetry)
3. Math (workbook or program)
4. 2 language arts workbooks (3-4 pgs total)
5. 2 or 3 AO readings with narrations (oral and/or written)
6. 1 project (timeline, science, art, etc)
7. 1 weekly subject (composer, artist, nature, Latin, dictation, spelling)

This all takes no more than 2 hours to complete. We also fit in the AO "free readings", trips, homeschool group events, and other activities when we feel like it. W is loving the free Life Science download we found last week. He reads the chapter to me (his idea) and he gets to answer questions, learn new words, and do a project every week. Next to math, that has become his favorite thing to do. And J just got a new penpal - a 12y/o from Texas who is also an avid dancer.

J went to the movies with her friend, S, the other night and I spent that hour-and-a-half in the nearby bookstore. I got whatever AO books we were missing - I figured I might as well since it seems this curriculum is a keeper, plus a few more fun-looking workbooks. With my discount I spent a total of $72. K came with me and we had fun walking around together after that. On Saturday we all got to relax a bit. B put up a couple of our new window blinds and put together our new dining room table. I went to work in the afternoon. Today B took the kids out to my mom's house and I stayed home to get some more cleaning done. I'm still trying to get things organized from the renovation. We're just about done with that, btw. K still needs her new ceiling fan put up, and we need still need handles put on our kitchen cabinets, and a big mirror and pot rack hung.

J's next dance competition is next weekend. It's our first hotel-stay this year and the kids can't wait. The venue is IN our hotel, so that makes things way easy. This is an optional competition, so only 3 of her numbers are going out: her new dance solo and 2 of her new group numbers (tap and contemporary). All the kids will most likely spend much of the time in the pool. I love competition season.