Some presidents had mutton chops (and other things I learned in homeschool this week)

Nothing can make an 8-year old boy cry like some good dictation work.

Instilling character is a lot harder than teaching any academic subject.

Sometimes your child will say things like, "We're reading poetry and discussing rhyme scheme today? YES!" or "Hey! I can use this math in real life!" and your heart melts just a little bit.

Martin Van Buren had some pretty impressive sideburns. Go ahead, Google him.

There is some really fantastic children's literature out there. This week I read Holes by Louis Sachar (ages 10 and up) to judge its content before passing it on to Asher. I could not put the book down.

There's something exhilarating about opening a textbook and realizing you have fewer pages to go than you have already done.

The good, the bad, and the blessings that follow

We're in our seventh week of school. We've already taken a two-week break for our Disney trip, and we'll be taking another week-long break when friends from Bermuda come to visit us in November, and then another holiday week over Thanksgiving. Yet we're still plugging along and exactly where I had wanted us to be by this time.

But it wasn't without a few difficult days.

This week in toddler art...

Asa and I enjoyed our art projects this week. In fact, they were so fun that the big 3rd-grader wanted to take part as well :)

First, Asa colored on sand paper. He enjoyed the rough texture and the way coloring on it wore down the crayons (I bought a pack of Target-brand crayons for 39 cents specifically for this activity.)

First week in review

Our first week of school is over!

All in all, things went really well. There were no tears (mine or Asher's), and I enjoyed each day. Let's hope this feeling stays with us through spring. :)

First day of school in photos

His favorite food is "all types of meat"?? Was sure he'd say it was pizza.

It's almost time!

We're starting school on Monday. After a long trip to Bermuda, several visits to Busch Gardens, many playdates, and a week of sports camp, it's time to get started on 3rd grade.

I can't wait.

Getting ready for 3rd grade

It is truly hard to believe my "baby" will be starting third grade this fall.

And it's also kinda hard to believe I've been homeschooling formally for three years, not including preschool. I am in no way an expert, but I have to admit that the planning part of things gets a little easier each year.

As I've mentioned before, we're following a classical style of education. In a nutshell, that just means we're studying history chronologically in four-year cycles, and our subjects align with the history we're learning that year. I use an incredible book called The Well-Trained Mind as my guide, and then I choose my own curricula based on how my child learns.

After this year's homeschool convention, I read the following statement in a pamphlet:

Man, was I convicted.