Starting College (31/180)

R went to parkour.

D got her sewing machine back from the repair shop and experimented with re-fashioning discarded clothes from various family members.  Here are a hoodie t-shirt made out of two old large men's t-shirts and a dance outfit for J made from a spandex long-sleeve men's t-shirt:

W started his classes at Montgomery County Community College.  He is taking The Movies: Meanings and Method and English 101.

W also purchased a virtual reality headset.  We worked hard to clear out space for it in his and R's room, and everyone enjoyed trying it out.

We went to Camp Canadensis with our church.  Much fun was had by all, including rock climbing, fishing, archery, and boating.

W, D and J worked with LOF.  R worked on multiplication facts.

R, D and J worked with Explode the Code.  D worked with Handwriting Without Tears.

W and R read independently.  D read with support.  J mastered 

Ten Men by Bobby Lynn Maslen

I read to the girls:

Boy, Were We Wrong About Dinosaurs! by Kathleen V. Kudlinski
Boy, Were We Wrong About Dinosaurs! by Kathleen V. Kudlinski
Barnum's Bones: How Barnum Brown Discovered the Most Famous Dinosaur in the World by Tracey E. Fern

This week included 5 days of instruction.

Go, Speed Racers (26/180)

R went to parkour.

He has a much beloved quilt, given to us originally by his great-grandmother (although not made by her - it's from a factory somewhere in Asia as far as I can tell) which is literally falling apart.  R has requested that we replace it as exactly as possible with a new one: same dimensions, same color scheme, same pattern.  We spent some time measuring the original and plotting out how much fabric to buy, and then went to the fabric store to get the materials.  It's going to be a fun project!

D and J went to the Speed Raceway for a birthday party, racing bumper style race cars on a track!

D made a really great card for her friend whose birthday it was, who loves playing basketball:

D and J attended their religious education classes.

W, D and J worked with LOF.  R worked on multiplication facts.

R, D and J worked with Explode the Code.  D worked with Handwriting Without Tears.  R read independently.  D read with support.  J mastered Bed Bugs by Bobby Lynn Maslen

I read to the girls:

Carlos Santana: Sound of the Heart, Song of the World by Gary Golio
Strange Mr. Satie by M.T. Anderson (we listened to recordings of both Santana and Satie's music)
How Big Were the Dinosaurs? by Bernard Most
Pinkalicious by Victoria Kann
Just about a Year: All about Seasons by Lois Ehrin
Purplicious by Victoria Kann

I read to R and D and J: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling.

This week included 4 days of instruction.

Multiplication facts (22/180)

R went to parkour.

The girls attended their religious education class.

D and J worked with LOF.  R worked on his multiplication facts.  I am super duper excited that one of my kids has recognized the importance of learning multiplication facts!

W worked with his physics coloring book.

W and R read independently.  D read with support.  J practiced reading.

R, D and J worked with Explode the Code.  D worked with Handwriting Without Tears.

I read to the girls:  Bird & Diz by Gary Golio
Love, Ruby Valentine by Laurie B. Friedman.

This week included 3 days of instruction.

The Beast of Nubia (19/180)

R went to parkour.

D and J went to their religious education classes.

We went to see The Beast of Nubia, a version of Beauty and the Beast set in Ancient Nubia produced by Theater in the X at Malcom X Park.  Here are W and R there:



W and R read independently.  D read with support.  J practiced reading and mastered Funny Bunny by Bobby Lynn Maslen.  R, D and J worked with Explode the Code.  D worked with Handwriting Without Tears.

I read to the girls:
Grandma Moses by Mike Venezia
Tashi and the Tibetan Flower Cure by Naomi C. Rose

D and J worked with LOF.  R worked with Kahn Academy math but decided that he needs to learn his multiplication tables and started working on that memorization skill.

D and J watched science documentaries.  W made dinner for the family.

This week included 4 days of instruction.

Accuplacer! (15/180)

R went to parkour.

We went to Pennypacker Mills Historic Site with a group of homeschooling friends.  Here are the kids reporting on their attempt to describe archival items (one of two activity centers, followed by a tour of the house):

We went to the pool and for a few walks.  

W took his Accuplacer tests for dual enrollment at Montgomery County Community College.  We are proud of his scores, and possibly prouder that he persisted calmly and effectively for three hours.  We had practiced for the reading and math sections but didn't know there was an essay portion, plus his workstation wasn't working correctly so he had to cut and paste to make corrections to his writing, so it took him an hour to write the essay!  He is now enrolled for English 101 and on a waitlist for Computer Science 1: Programming/Concepts.  If he can't get in to that he may take Music Appreciation or a movie appreciation course, both of which would count for his planned major and would also count as an art or music course for 10th grade.  He is disgruntled to learn that he still has to do math this year (since he still has to do two more years of math for PA homeschool law ....)

D and J went to their religious education classes.

I read to the girls:  

A Computer Called Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Helped Put America on the Moon by Suzanne Slade
Carmela Full of Wishes by Matt de la Pena
Always in Trouble by Corinne Demas

R and W read independently.

D and J began working with LOF, Explode the Code, and Handwriting Without Tears.

This week included 5 days of instruction.

Day's birthday week (10/180)

D turned 10!  For her actual birthday, she baked and decorated herself a cake:

She also had a pool party with a bunch of friends and a sleepover with her bestie.

R went to parkour.

We went to Commonwealth Classic Theater Company's production of Measure for Measure, and Shakespeare in Clark Park's production of King Lear.

J is now confidently swimming in the deep end and going down the slide without a floatation device!

D and J attended their religious education classes.

I read to the girls:

Buddy: The Story of Buddy Holly by Anne Bustard

What Elephant? by Geneviève Côté

R finished reading

I Survived the Children’s Blizzard, 1888 by Lauren Tarshis
independently.

This week included 3 days of instruction.

Year's End & Year's Beginning (7/180)

R continued going to Parkour.

All the kids continued attending their religious education classes.

We fit another trip to an art location in to the end of our year: Philly's Magic Gardens:

And celebrated after evaluations with Rita's:

We enjoyed our annual camping trip to Hickory Run State Park with MAHC and other homeschooling friends!

Then we traveled to Syria, VA outside the Shenandoah National Park where we enjoyed 5 days of time with cousins and aunts and uncles including dam building, pool time, Dungeons and Dragons, horseback riding, fireworks, and a hike up White Oak Canyon:

D and J went to the Franklin Institute with cousins from the other side of the family:

And then we all went to Harvey Cedars, NJ for more time with cousins, aunts, and uncles, wading in tidal pools, climbing Barnegat Lighthouse, and lots of swimming.

The first three weeks of July included 7 days of instruction.