Weekly Wrap Up: Still Planning

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In my life this week…Lots of running around (see below) and lots of work.  I’m tired and hope to find time today to rest, as tomorrow will be very busy.

In our homeschool this week… I’m still planning the curriculum we’ll use next year.  As usual, it’s a bigger job than expected.

Other than that, we did some math, lots of reading, and some music.  And, one evening during dishes, the two oldest had a long debate about apartheid and racism that showed an astounding breadth of knowledge.  It was one of those times when I realize: yes, they are learning an enormous amount, and they are able to combine idealism with practical considerations.

Helpful homeschooling tips or advice to share… I’m immersed in homeschool curriculum planning again, scouring the internet for tips, reviews, and more. We’re also keeping university prerequisites in mind for Mr. 17. It’s such a comfort to realize that all our past planning has paid off and that he is easily on track to get all the prerequisites for anything he is interested in!  Do think ahead at the start of high school and make sure you do not make any learning choices that will limit your teen’s opportunities.

Places we’re going and people we’re seeing… Besides the usual list of family, friends, neighbors, stores, and library, we went to the chicken butchery, locks on the Saint Lawrence, therapeutic riding, and a café to drop off samples of Miss 14’s gluten-free baking.

Some of my favorite things this week were…

• Hanging out with my girls separately.  Mr. 17 has been too busy, but we did  photograph and admire a white pincushion-y spider together.
• Our treadmill.
• Walks.

Questions/thoughts I have… There are only 24 hours in the day.  What is a sensible balance between academics and real life learning at different ages?  I suppose it depends on the person.

Things I’ve been working on…

• A bit of summer school.
• Planning next year’s curriculum.
• Numerous errands
• Walking 7500 steps a day.
• Paying for that treadmill ($190.18 so far).

We’re watching…Little Dorrit, at Miss 14’s request, and, yes, it has gotten better.  It’s due at the library by Monday at 2:30, so we have a lot of watching to do.  With the family we’re halfway through Chariots of Fire.

I’m reading… Genesis. I finished Miraculous Movements by Trousdale and started a children’s version of the Aeneid as well as the new 101 Top Picks which is helping me plan our next schoolyear.

Waiting to be read: You Shall be Free Indeed by Ganz, Father Hunger by Wilson, and the Summer Survival Guide.

With the kids, I’m reading Revelation.  We just finished Little Britches, and I may start The Hobbit next.  What do you think?  Is that a good idea?

When my husband is home for meals, we’re still reading Jeremiah.

I’m grateful for … Sleep.  Vitamins.  Fresh garden produce.  A reliable van. A major blessing on my husband’s work.

A quote to share… “Stories . . . really can influence you. If you read the Twilight novels once a month for a year, I think you’d be a different human afterward—and not a sparkly one. Stories are like catechisms, but they’re catechisms for your impulses, they’re catechisms with flesh on.” ~N.D. Wilson, quoted on Semicolon.  

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This post is linked to The Homeschool Mother’s Journal and to Weekly Wrap Up at Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers.