School Days

Our new year is crawling to a start.  We usually do a big chunk of academics in the summer but this year has been all topsy-turvy.  It will be nice to scoot back toward our normal.  We started off seatwork with math and grammar a couple of weeks ago.  Last week we added in handwriting and Japanese.  We'll add new things each week until the routine is complete, adjusting as we go.

One of their favorite things to do lately is get hold of my camera; so when I download I get LOTS of these.  It makes me laugh and very grateful for free digital film.

• Math = RightStart
• Grammar and Spelling = Language Lessons 
• Science = S.T.E.M. class through our homeschool group, various experiments, field trips, community classes, online sites, etc.  Possibly a few months of Supercharged Science.
• Geography/History =  Story of the World (probably on cd in the car :}), Highlights 'Top Secret', and various materials we choose along the way.  We will also be making a timeline.
• Art = Child Sized Masterpieces -Charlotte Mason style, various art activities and classes chosen through the year.
• Reading = Not even on the list officially.  Honestly it's like putting breathing or eating on our curriculum, it just happens.  My 10 year old recently discovered Harry Potter and read the entire 4,100 page series at about 3 days per book.  Even my kid who started out as a reluctant reader now curls up with a book every day; granted it's usually 'Garfield' or 'Calvin and Hobbes' but it's a start.  He'll branch out.  In the meantime we fit classics in at bedtime.  I think actually 'requiring' reading would probably backfire in a big way.
• Japanese = Totoro, Power-Glide, Byki, LiveMocha, various hiragana workbooks.  We are learning the entire script of 'Tonari no Totoro'.  So far it's been fun.  If we can't actually have a conversation in Japanese by the end of the year, we will at least be able to play the movie in Japanese and know exactly what is going on.
• Typing = Typing Tutor for Kids, then just plain old Typing Tutor.
• PE = Park days, ice skating, tennis, swimming. biking, and hopefully kayaking.
• Project Based Learning =  I am so excited about this!  We've kind of done it through the years in our own way.  Over the summer I picked up a book written by a blog author I've enjoyed, and I am learning!  I see lots of entrepreneurial endeavors, Legos, stop motion, art, sewing, and who knows what else in our future.

An ambitious year but we're capable of tackling it.  It's a good mix of my type A personality and the kids desire for autonomy.  Not expecting things like complete Japanese fluency by May or gallery showings of their artwork in New York, though that could be fun too.  What we are expecting is a lot of exploration, learning, and creativity!  That journey has taken us so many interesting and worthwhile places.