Thursday, March 19, 2020

Day 4 Homeschool at Home Resources

Sorry we checked out for Day 3.  We took a mental health day.  Sleep has never come easy for the two of us.  Tuesday night was rough, so yesterday was a very low key day.  Gigi did her normal curriculum, then pretty much just chilled for the day.  Books were read, pictures were drawn, Adventure Academy was played, and ukulele was practiced. I even got in some knitting time :) It was perfect!  

Today, I've got the options laid out for G and we shall see what she chooses.  Side note, while core subjects are non-negotiable there is a lot of leeway in how they get done in our house.  Some weeks we do social studies and science everyday.  Some weeks we do two days of science and two days of social studies.  Some weeks we are so into the lesson/subject we do all of the subject in one day.  Therefore, our length of "school day" varies.  We spend anywhere from two and a half to three hours on our core subjects (reading, writing, math, phonics, science, social studies, spanish, ukulele, art).

We attend two co-ops weekly, and usually one additional class or program a week.  All of that is on hold which is why I am providing additional activities.  I'm trying to fill that time.  Too much downtime leads to too much thinking/worrying time.  We are trying to avoid that right now.

Here's what I know we will be doing:

First up, a webchat with friends to do an art project.  I'm super excited for this one!  

Adventure Academy - Gigi is absolutely loving this one.  I want to poke around the site a little more, but I'm pretty sure we will be looking into a subscription for this one.

4pm Live Uke class.  Gigi is really enjoying this class.  I'm happy she's getting some instruction, because I am clueless about the ukulele.  She just started taking classes this year in one of our co-ops.

These are some things I've got for G to pick from, should she need suggestions:

1pm McHarper Manor Chalk Pastel Galaxy

Betty White's reading of Harry The Dirty Dog.

Baking: Homemade Frosted Brown Sugar Cinnamon Poptarts has been on our list of recipes to try for a while.  Tonight we are having soup and salad for dinner.  G has picked this recipe to try: Baked Potato Soup.  

Since G is still sleeping, I'm thinking today will be another pretty low key day.  I'm looking forward to it!

Stay safe and healthy friends!

Tuesday, March 17, 2020

Day 2: 🍀 St. Patrick’s Day 🍀 at home

 Here’s our St. Patrick’s Day at home plan:

 First up, graphing with Lucky Charms at breakfast.





Followed by a St. Patrick’s Day video on BrainPOP.  You can sign up HERE for 30 days of free BrainPOP.  My third grader loves BrainPOP.  There are lots of great videos.

We will continue reading Magic Treehouse: Leprechaun in Winter and working on parts of the activity packet I have downloaded from peanutbutterfishlessons. She has lots of great resources for St. Patrick’s Day posted.



Art time is with Kids Art online today. Gigi wants to make the St. Patrick’s Day folding surprise.  In the background we will be playing tunes like Danny Boy and When Irish Eyes are Smiling. Kids Art online is a regular in our house.  Gigi's art teacher recommended it a few years ago.

This afternoon we will have tea and read our Irish library books.



At 1pm McHarper Manor will be making peg dolls during a Facebook Live class.  Unfortunately, we do not have the supplies for the project so we will save it for a rainy day.

At 3pm the Cincinnati Zoo will be doing another Home Safari.  Yesterday we had some downtime at three, so we have not checked them out yet.  We shall see what today brings.

Gigi absolutely loved uke class yesterday, so we will be tuning in for another live class at 4. The link is on facebook - liveukulele.

Hope this helps!

Monday, March 16, 2020

Day 1 of Homeschool from Home

Sounds funny, I know.  But here's the reality: since we've started to homeschool we spend more time on the go than ever before.  Now that our classes and activities are not an option this momma needs to supplement what we normally do.  

Here are some resources I've used this morning.  As we explore them I will share our thoughts.

1. Adventure Academy

I've signed up for a free account using free code School7771.  I am looking forward to exploring this site with Gigi.  I have heard good things about it in the past, but I normally prefer to limit screen time.  

2. Ed Helper

Edhelper has put together weekly printable books by grade.  My girl loves doing puzzles and worksheets so I chose a few that I thought were appropriate for our needs.  The sheets fit right in with our St. Patrick's Day theme!

3. Online classes we will be taking advantage of today:

1pm McHarper Manor Online Art Class

3pm Cincinnati Zoo Home Safari  

4pm Live ukulele class

These are in addition to our regular homeschool work.  I will check in later with some additional activities we are doing.  

Sunday, March 15, 2020

Welcome!

The little one and I have been talking about starting a blog for a while now.  For those that know us in real life, her screen name is Gigi.  Please use that on the blog.  Thanks :)

We thought it would be a good way to document our new adventures.  We have been in North Carolina for about six months now.  We were finally settling into our "new normal": apartment living, new friends, homeschooling, co-ops, classes, working from home, house hunting... The plan was to share about our activities and explorations in our new home state.  

Due to current conditions, I thought maybe we should switch gears for a bit.  We were able to choose homeschooling (something I have wanted to do since G was school age), therefore I was able to plan for it. I spend my time looking for resources to use on a regular basis.  It is something I truly enjoy. Many of you are being thrown in, without ever having the desire to homeschool.  Even though we homeschool, much of our time is spent out of the home.  We regularly attend co-ops, classes, events and field trips. At this time, our normal activities have been cancelled. So I will be adding some new activities and resources to our daily routine.  I will use this space to share what we are doing while practicing "social distancing".  I hope it is helpful.


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