Here's the academic wrap-up:
Science is so much more fun now. We did another experiment this week that showed the movement of atoms, this time using hot and cold water. The drop of food coloring in hot water colored the water quickly, while the drop in cold water just kinda stayed there. Doing these experiments while reading about what's happening is clicking well with W. I've always wanted to be creative enough to come up with cool experiments to do that actually correspond with what we were learning. Now I'm happy to say that someone else thought of it for me, lol.
SOTW went well. W read the introduction silently. He narrated back what he remembered and then I asked him the review questions in the activity book. He still has excellent comprehension - whether it's me reading to him or if he reads independently. Also, this seems like a good book for him to do written narrations with. We're still feeling it out, but I like it so far. Next week we'll check out the activities that go with each chapter.
We're on Lesson 16 in Saxon Math and it's still review. That's good, though. I'm all about review. IMO, it's the only way math concepts stick.
W is doing great with the Hake Grammar & Writing. We have covered types of sentences (declarative, interrogative, imperative, exclamatory), subject & predicate (and simple subject, simple predicate, nouns, & verbs), and fragment & run-on sentences. He gets it. All the skills he learned from paragraph editing have carried over and he doesn't forget a thing. This and the dyslexia workbook are improving his reading and writing so much. The handwriting, well, it's ok. It was actually better when he was 7, lol. I think his thinking is that he knows he can write and focusing on being neat has become way less important than understanding the work. Now I just ask for legible. :)
He started a new season of show choir this weekend, too. They're doing lots of classic rock n roll stuff again - which W loves. Eventually I'll see if he'd like to take private lessons there. The other 5 kids in the choir do. They are all 11-13 years old (one is a 9 y/o little brother) and are starting to prepare for performing arts high school auditions. Still not sure what W wants to do.
Sweet Charity at LaGuardia High School was unbelievable, as usual. That morning I watched J's dance classes at the school. K and W took the train in with me since we were seeing the show that night. They went for a nice lunch and then to FAO Schwarz while I was at the school with J. The dancers there are beautiful. It's amazing what they learn. This year besides ballet and modern, they had a semester of jazz. In January, jazz will be replaced by tap. J is looking forward to that. I met up with them around 4:30 in Columbus Circle. I love how gorgeous the area is over there. The Time Warner Bldg with the shops is always crazy decorated. Outside, all the trees are completely wrapped in small, white lights. Across the street is this awesome craft market. There must be 100 booths with thousands of handmade items - from flattened glass wine-bottle art to beef jerky to jewelry to fur hats, they have it all.
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| Photo by Markets of New York City |
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