WRITE ON!

 

 My boys LOVE this writing program.  I must first mention that neither of my boys like writing.  If I sit down with them in other subjects and try to get them to write they will give me the bare minimum.  Sometimes I have to push for even that.  BUT with this program they want to not only do the assignments but to do multiple examples and multiple lessons!  WOW! 

I've owned this program for years and used it with my girls when they were younger.  They loved it too.  I found it at a homeschool convention when it was just coming out.  I had been searching for years for a program like this but my search always came up empty.  I was overjoyed when I talked to the author and she explained how the program worked and her reasons for writing it.  With co-ops and such taking up our time it sat on the shelf for a few years.  But now I've dusted it off and I'm kicking myself for not bringing it down earlier.  It is so much fun!

 The lesson on this day was describing a setting.  The boys each had to choose a book to use for their example.  Bugs chose to use his book he is reading for his literature study.

 Sam the Minuteman

 I had Elvis do two examples since he is older.

 Think, think, thinks!  Hee, hee. 

(He's not having a hard time, I promise.  He is a goofball especially when I get out the camera.  Lol!)

They were busy beavers.  After they have completed their assignments they are always eager to share with me and with each other what they have written. 

Yesterday we learned about the different kinds of plots & then about developing your plot.  Very cool!  I'm looking forward to tomorrow when they put it all together and begin writing their story.

WHAT ARE YOU LEARNING?

It's always fun to hear what other homeschoolers are using & learning during their school year. This week we went to a couple of friend's homes & they shared with me their selections. One of my friends even had a 'Box Day' delivery! How fun! I thought it would be fun to post mine to share too. These are a few of the books we are using this year for science and history.  Maybe I'll post the rest of our studies later. =)

My boys will be in 5th/6th grade & 2nd/3rd grade.  In case you are wondering I list it this way b/c all their studies do not fall into the same grade level.  Elvis is advanced in science, history & math while Bugsy is advanced in math, science & reading.

Princess will be starting pre-school.  She is 3yrs. (A post on her learning soon.) Sweet Pea will be in 11th/12th & Boo Bear in 8th/9th.  Sweet Pea is advanced in literature, writing, history & studies Honors science and history.  Boo Bear is advanced in literature, history & science.  She will be studying honors courses next year in high school.

My boys will be learning from these books.  I am combining them as they are all excellent.  Some will be used as main curriculum while others are more of a supplement.

This is the boys history.  Time Travelers will be our main curriculum with KONOS as a supplement.  I love KONOS and am excited to have it back in our studies.

Boo Bear chose this for her history.  We're excited to get back to literature studies!

After this is completed she will start the Middle Ages guide.

Sweet Pea's science.  She will be Skyping with Grannie too!  Grannie taught this for YEARS and is excellent.

Boo Bear will be studying with a science co-op group this year.  She met everyone a couple weeks ago & is really looking forward to it.

Our resource books for our solar system & earth science studies.

More!

Middle Ages

More Middle Ages materials

And even MORE solar system resources!

Greece

These were hiding downstairs but we found them!  Lol.

And, yes, even MORE solar system books!  Definitely a well-loved subject in our home.

These are for our Civil War studies.  And now my sweet friend has lent me even more books!  Hooray!

We will use the library too (lots!) but I like having books at home as well that the kids can read anytime. 

Winston Grammar

I'll admit it. This has been sitting on my school shelf for 2 years now. Yep, I'm embarrassed to say it. I was intimidated by it and every time I'd pick it up I'd return it to the shelf. All it took was seeing the word "Grammar" and I'd run. Then of course with our move, pregnancy & new baby I had no desire to add something else new to the mix. Keeping things as simple as possible was the key to my survival! After talking with some ladies at co-op I realized it was time to bite the bullet. I struggled with grammar in college. It was NOT the grammar I remembered in high school. Back then I had to ask for extra bonus work to get a decent grade. (And wouldn't you know it after I finished the course they changed the whole thing. They decided it was too confusing & the book too hard.)
I started the first lesson of our Winston Grammar with Sweet Pea. Then Boo Bear finished her chores & joined in. Soon we were working on the 2nd lesson & then the 3rd! It was .....dare I say it......FUN! The girls agreed which is why we did 3 lessons instead of only 1. We'd have done more but other things beckoned. What a fantastic surprise!

Boo taking her pre-test.

This is simply a test to help the teacher, (me), know how much the student, (Boo), knows or needs to learn. Sweet Pea took one too.

These are the parts of speech cards.

This is the first sentence the book tells you to use.

We started off slow in Lesson 1 finding the nouns & articles. We discussed what these were & hints of how to identify them.

Using the sentence above we named labeled each word in the sentence. The black cards are used for words we don't know the name of yet.

A close up of the sentence using the parts of speech cards.

Next we "labeled" them on the white board. Nouns were underlined, articles checked and the rest left alone.


So far I give this program an A+. It is easy to use, easy to understand & my girls love it. I'll be sure to update as we progress in the lessons.

P.S. I bought mine used online. I was able to buy a set which included the Teacher's Manual, 2 Student Workbooks & 2 sets of cards. Great deal!

Goodies

Our order from Discount Homeschool Supplies (DHSS) arrived today! Hooray! I am excited to get our new goodies. Here is what we received:

A Catalog =)

A little advertising for ya, Tami. *wink*

History for Sweet Pea

I ordered the 8th grade History for her.

Handwriting Without Tears (HWT)

The printing one is for Elvis & the cursive is for Boo.

For Elvis

I think he will love these.

Wasn't This Sweet?

She put these in as an extra treat for the kids.

Aren't' These Cool?

Tami put these in as extras too!

More Extra Goodies!

Handwriting Without Tears pencils & flip crayons and DHSS pens!

THANK YOU, TAMI!