Uh…7th and 8th Grade…Yeah

So, I may have slipped a little in trying to get these out in a timely manner. I’m using excuses for real. Jet lag and trying to jump back in to school a few days after returning from Emmie’s appointments across the country.

Alas, here we are now filling ya’ll in on what we’re up to for 7th grade and as a bonus, 8th grade. Josiah is our current star student in 7th grade. He’s doing a little bit of this and that and trying to pass me in height. Liam is very much prepping for high school next year (eeek! 3 in high school)

Here’s what all he’s up to in addition to all we are doing together.

Liam’s doing much of everything that Josiah’s doing except the following:

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Fifth Day Fifth Grade

Ceili Rain is excited that we are actually back in school. One of the few kiddos who is excited, mind you. In addition to all of her academics, she’s taking piano and starting her second year of theater. She’s my only kid who is growing in her love for theater. My little stage heart is so ecstatic.

Silas is a bit more of a challenge. He is really struggling with reading and needs a little more work in getting his math facts down. So, I’m trying to scale back for him and start him a little above where he is and encourage him to work to that and beyond.

  • WriteShop Primary B 
  • A Reason for Handwriting Book D
  • Easy Peasy Reading Grade 1-I felt like we needed a little break from All About Reading. While he could read the stories up to Level 3 slowly, he isn’t comprehending anything he reads. So, we’re working on getting the comprehension down.
  • All About Spelling Level 3-A pretty awesome part of All About Spelling is that you can now purchase an APP that has the spelling tiles on it! It is awesome! It’s worth every single penny if you have siblings who may like to play with tiles and then they disappear…or they just disappear from use!
  • Language Lessons for a Living Education Level 2
  • Math Whizz-I purchased this at a discount through Homeschool Buyers Co-Op. It’s a great place to find reviews and get good group buy prices on curriculum. I like that this math program works at the level the child is at. It rates a child based on their math age and goes from there. Once Silas passes off of his Xtra Math, I’m going to have him go back to Teaching Textbooks Grade 6.
  • Xtra Math

Here’s what we’re using for the other grades:

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Fourth Day Fourth Grade

FYI, I am fully aware that he has a mop on his head. It’s going away today!

Bryant started out doing his thing for fourth grade and he is doing it very well. He’s my child who goes full force into anything and everything and deals with the injuries later…just ask him about his belly flops at the pool. So full force for him in school includes:

Here’s what we’re using for the other grades:

  • Kindergarten
  • 2nd Grade
  • 4th Grade
  • 5th Grade (with special needs modifications)
  • 7th Grade
  • 8th Grade
  • 10th Grade
  • 11th Grade
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Second Day Second Grade

Malachi’s plunging full force into second grade. Even though he’s taught himself to read, he still is about age level for comprehension. So, his curriculum this year looks like this:

  • Language Lessons for a Living Education Level 2-We started this about halfway through the school year last year when I realized that the first level of Language Arts from Master Books was a little too boring for him. So, we’re finishing this one up and will head into level 3 when he’s ready. I like the gentle approach to introducing grammar.
  • Math Lessons for a Living Education Level 2-Again, a nice gentle approach to math which is a bit of a change for what we have used in the past.
  • Vocabulary/Spelling City-We used to use this when it was free but they have revamped the site and I like the age appropriate practice it gives the kids in either spelling or vocabulary.
  • Xtra Math-I can not stress how important it is for kids to get their basic math facts down. Xtra math is a great FREE resource to do just that.
  • Write Shop Primary B-One of my friend’s was asking about this curriculum last spring and I was intrigued. I have been looking for a fun way to introduce writing to the younger kids. So, this year is another trial run for this. Silas and Bryant will be doing this along with Malachi.
  • Easy Peasy Reading Grade 2-Bryant did a trial run with grade 3 last year and I really liked it. It’s not as intensive and workbook driven as what we’ve used in the past but it does introduce great books and stories with comprehension building questions.

Here’s what we’re using for the other grades:

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First Day Kindergarten

I can’t believe Emmie is a kindergartener! She’s growing stronger and smarter every day. With NF, we know there’s a pretty good chance she can deal with learning disabilities. Armed with this knowledge, we take things slow and are making sure she enjoys every bit of her school time. Thankfully, she’s an eager learner. My goal this year is to get her closer to reading. I’d love to see her reading by the end of the year because she loves books. However, if we just see progress, I think we’ll all be happy. Kindergarten, for us, is all about loving to learn and learning to read. So, with that in mind, here’s what the super hero is working on.

  • All About Reading Pre-Reading-I love that this is self-paced and we can split up activities over several days. Emmie is learning to recognize her letters. I stay on a letter until she gets it all while reviewing letters she’s learned previously. After we get letter recognition down, we’ll move on to the sounds. I also use flashcards to review previous letters. We’ve already started to talk about how letters have different sounds.
  • Developing the Early Learner-I’ve had all of our kids work through these fun workbooks and it seems to help quite a bit with their thinking processes.
  • A Reason for Handwriting Level K
  • Later in the year, we’ll add Math Lessons for a Living Education K but it’s not come out in print yet. Hopefully, it’ll be out in September and we can started it our second nine weeks.

Here’s what we’re using for the other grades:

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First Day Series 2019

For the past several years now, I have been posting first school day pictures on the days that correlate with their grade level. Yeah, I know grade levels are considered irrelevant for homeschoolers, but it’s a fun way for us to commemorate the start of their new year.

I decided that since I am so far behind on getting pictures up, I’ll just start where we are. I (hopefully) will get their first of the year pictures up and also a little snippet on what we’re starting off studying. I say starting off, because, if you have homeschooled any length of time, you know that some times what you start off with is not what you end up finishing the year off with. Homeschooling allows me the flexibility to change what isn’t working and to find what works best for each individual child…and that is just what we strive to do.

This year, I’ve picked a verse to help us stay focused and basically give us a mission for our school.

1 Corinthians 10: 4-5

For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ

So, with that in mind, here is what we are studying as a group.

Bible

  • We’re using the SOAK method from Good Morning Girls study. We used this last year and will continue on a two week rotation. We’re currently in John. Mark takes the chapters we are studying and goes over it during our family worship time.
  • After two weeks of SOAK, we will do two weeks of World Religions and Cults. I think this is going to be a great introduction into different worldviews and religions

Fitness

Since Zoe and Ace are in high school, they need to do a one year of physical education. We’re going to try out Family Time Fitness this year. I like that the whole family can get involved in it.

History

Mystery of History Volume II-All but Zoe will be doing Mystery of History. I’m looking forward to adding timeline and lapbooking as we explore history together.

Science

We’re in the stars this year. Well, all of us from Ceili Rain down. We’re using Apologia for Astronomy. They’ve redone their astronomy curriculum and I’m trying to decide, still, if I like it. It seems more short and age appropriate but the jury is still out as to whether we continue with Apologia next year.

Psychology

A recent Bible study I have used mentioned a neuroplastician named Dr. Caroline Leaf. I loved what she was saying about training your mind and taking every thought captive and decided to get her book, Switch on Your Brain to read through with the kids. After we started reading, I realized the workbook would be great at driving discussion about what we were reading. So, we’re slowly getting through the book. Lots of sensible information that I already knew but it’s saturated with God’s word and pretty much is a scientific articulation of what I tell my kids every day, “You cannot control the situation or people around you but you are in charge of your actions and reactions to those situations and those people.”

Other Stuff

In addition to this, our family is also involved in Trail Life for the boys and American Heritage for the girls. We love the Christ-centered focus and the opportunity for the kids to learn more about the world God has created and the amazing people in it.

Here’s what we’re using for the other grades:

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E7 In the Town of Microcephaly

We’re back! Goodness me, moving twelve people and their fur animals and 19 plus years of stuff was a lot of work. Add on sending two of those people to another country for a couple of weeks…phew!

But we’re moved and I’m working on this blog post at our temporary house sitting on the pool deck and watching the kids play! We are blessed to be able to stay at a great place while we wait for the “next thing.”

It’s nice to be back and FINALLY sharing Nikole’s story of her beautiful daughter, Halle. Nikole and Brad have four children, Hannah, Harrison, Hayden and Halle. Listen in as Nikole shares what she has learned in the land of Holland with their youngest daughter. Halle was born with microcephaly and microphalmia. Nikole and I hit all the points about juggling siblings, marriage, and putting Christ as priority even when things are hard. She challenged me to remember that our babies…all of our babies…are precious gifts from God!

Mentioned on the Show

  • Microcephaly
  • Peter’s Anomaly-This is the eye condition that Halle is dealing with in her left eye.
  • Hip Dysplasia-Thankfully, Halle’s days of cast wearing is behind her and she happily runs and plays like most five year olds!
  • Littlest Warrior-I can not say enough good things about their advocacy and awareness apparel. Fun and supportive of all of our kiddos!
  • Seeds Family Worship-God’s Word to song is such a great way to memorize and Seeds does it right. The music is worshipful and the words are always memorable and relevant!
  • Hope Heals-Katherine Wolf created Hope Heals out of the struggles and pain she has suffered. Out of a time of grief and what others would consider a great tragedy, Katherine has created Hope Heals to share how God has written her story and continues to do so for His glory. Her words have challenged, encouraged and lifted me up.

Support

  • Subscribe-Subscribing is a great way to stay up to date on our latest episodes and stories. Just search on iTunes for Welcome to Holland or paste the following URL in your favorite podcast app: bunchofcharacters.com/feed/podcast
  • Review-leaving a review on iTunes which will help get the word out and will give us an idea of how we’re doing!
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E6 In Holland with Siblings

This is such a special episode for us! I sit down with five of our kids, Zoe, age 16, Ace, 14, Liam, 13, and Josiah, 11, and talk about what it’s like walking through Holland with Emmie. Ya’ll get ready for some crazy, silliness, and hopefully, some real talk about how life goes around here when we stop everything for an Emmie adventure. I enjoyed hearing from them the raw truth about how they have adjusted to life in Holland and about how much they love their super sibling.

Let’s all freak out at how little all of my kiddos looked! This was February 2016 before Emmie’s spinal fusion surgery.

Josiah was Emmie’s assigned buddy and, while he’s super quiet, he is also super protective of his buddy too.

Support the Podcast

  • Subscribe-Subscribing is a great way to stay up to date on our latest episodes and stories. Just search on iTunes for Welcome to Holland or paste the following URL in your favorite podcast app: bunchofcharacters.com/feed/podcast
  • Review-leaving a review on iTunes which will help get the word out and will give us an idea of how we’re doing!
  • Follow us on Instagram or Facebook

Are you interested in sharing your story in Holland? Drop us an email me at hollandtourist@bunchofcharacters.com!

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E5 In the Town of Auditory Process Disorder

Laura Ann shared her heart when we sat down to talk about her five year old, Carley, their miracle baby due in August, and her wonderful husband Ryan. Carley has taught Laura Ann so much about having peace, love and strength. She’s also taught them to find the joy in the “simple” things.

Mentioned on the Show

Support the Podcast

  • Subscribe-Subscribing is a great way to stay up to date on our latest episodes and stories. Just search on iTunes for Welcome to Holland or paste the following URL in your favorite podcast app: bunchofcharacters.com/feed/podcast
  • Review-leaving a review on iTunes which will help get the word out and will give us an idea of how we’re doing!
  • Follow us on Instagram or Facebook

Are you interested in sharing your story in Holland? Drop us an email me at hollandtourist@bunchofcharacters.com!

*Please note: Laura Ann discusses her experience and the changes that they noticed around a time of a vaccination. This podcast is meant to share mamas faith stories while walking in the land of special needs, not to debate. Please be respectful of this purpose.*

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February 2019 Randoms

Three years ago, Emmie made history and got a strong neck! THREE YEARS! It’s been such an amazing three years looking back at how far she has come.

We celebrated, as usual with a homemade cookie cake (her choice).

We briefly had a ball pit/baby jail and Tobin had a blast.

Emmie loves to explore with scissors and made this person on her own with no prompting.

Four years ago, we “met” a sweet friend who ran in his undies to raise money for Neurofibromatosis with Cupid’s Undie Run. I say “met” because we have only talked on Facebook. Mr. Cliff decided that Emmie was pretty awesome enough to be the one he ran for. And so, four years later, he has consistently been in the top 3 fundraisers for Atlanta. He always runs with a fun heart with Super Ems on it. This year his costume was, well, let’s say, a little lacking and Ems heart kept falling off but throughout the day it always found it’s way back to Cliff. He sent her his medal from 2018 when he got second place in fundraising and Emmie was thrilled beyond belief. Our mission is to make sure we meet Cliff in person one day. Oh, and if you want to hear about the run and see the infamous heart, check out this video by a youtuber who participated this year (Warning…this is people running around in their skivvies…most are covered though. Just preview it for the younger eyes.).

I say “met” because we have only talked on Facebook. Mr. Cliff decided that Emmie was pretty awesome enough to be the one he ran for. And so, four years later, he has consistently been in the top 3 fundraisers for Atlanta. He always runs with a fun heart with Super Ems on it. This year his costume was, well, let’s say, a little lacking and Ems heart kept falling off but throughout the day it always found it’s way back to Cliff. He sent her his medal from 2018 when he got second place in fundraising and Emmie was thrilled beyond belief. Our mission is to make sure we meet Cliff in person one day. Oh, and if you want to hear about the run and see the infamous heart, check out this video by a youtuber who participated this year (Warning…this is people running around in their skivvies…most are covered though. Just preview it for the younger eyes.).

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