2009-2010 School Pictures

This week for Darcy's blog hop, we are posting student photos. A few years ago, I gave up on professional photography. I just found the process too expensive and too taxing. Instead, I plan a day for the boys and I to spend time at the lake taking as many shots as we can. I don't have high performance equipment but I still manage to get a good picture or two out of it. Plus, we make lasting memories instead me getting a migraine.

Here are our "picture day" photos....

While I scoped out where I wanted to take their pictures, the boys made up a game.

The sailboat in the background of this picture sparked their imagination. Soon, the enemy fleet was headed in our direction and pine cone bombs had to be gathered.

My valiant warriors began bombing the evil "S.S. Sticky" with as many pine cones as they could find.

When the war ended, we completed our art assignment for the week by taking photographs from a variety of perspectives. We took them looking up...

looking down...

and shaking all about!





Wilbur found this feather stuck in the tree trunk and took its picture from an interesting vantage point. Next week, we will attempt to paint replicas of our photographs.



Then I took a few warm-up shots. This one didn't turn out quite as well as I had hoped, but it's my cute Wilbur so I love it!




Orville looks so serious in this one. Notice the S.S. Sticky is fleeing!





I love this picture of them together. They really are best buds.


As the afternoon ended, I finally got the pictures I wanted.



Wilbur
4th Grade





Orville
5th Grade


And in case you missed my post, Through the Years, Michael and I had our school pictures done too at Yearbook Yourself!



Aren't we groovy?

Review: Grapevine Studies

Recently, our family played a round of Bible Trivia. The questions in this game are grouped by category. In the first round, poor Orville drew "Biblical Feasts and Holy Days" as his topic and was stuck with the card for six excruciating questions. He could not answer even one correctly (with multiple choice options). This is a topic that he had never studied, and it was obvious. He was stuck on start while the rest of us zoomed along the game board. He was a good sport but said he was determined to learn this information and be prepared next time!

Soon after that, Grapevine Studies generously allowed me to choose one of their studies for review. They have a good choice of grade-specific or multi-level curricula available, like Old and New Testament overviews and the Birth of Jesus study. When I saw the study on Biblical Feasts and Holy Days, I knew that was the one for us.

I received a hardcopy of the Teacher's Edition ($19.95) and two student workbooks ($14.95 each). These are also available in e-book format for $12.95 and $14.95 respectively. The e- book prices include the rights to print the copies you need for home use only. Pricing for classes or group use can be found here.

The Grapevine mission is to "provide believers with a method and curriculums to study the Bible, using a timeline, stick figures, word, symbols, and colors to teach chronological lessons." Their method is simple and effective. They promote teaching the Bible as if it were a puzzle. Anyone who has worked a puzzle knows the best place to start is putting the frame together. Once the edge is done, a parameter has been set and it acts as a guide for placing the interior pieces.

Grapevine uses a timeline as the framework for their studies. The first lesson in this study teaches when the feasts and holy days were celebrated within the calendar year. Then each subsequent lesson teaches the specifics of the holidays, following the chronological order established in the first lesson, by having the students draw a simple picture representation of the event.

I really liked this aspect of the study. Other curricula I have used call for adding symbols to a timeline as the study progresses which can be frustrating. We often put pictures in the wrong place or don't leave enough room for other events, and it just gets messy and confusing. By creating the timeline before the study, we were able to place the events in a proper order and get a feel for what we were about to study. As a result, the timeline served as preparation for study rather than just being an afterthought.

The program is very well organized and easy to follow. The only preparation I needed to do was to pre-read the provided script and glance at the suggested symbols to be drawn. The script gave me everything that I needed in order to explain the significance of and means of celebrating the holy days. We were able to connect the dots between Old Testament and New Testament events which led to meaningful discussions about the crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension of Christ and the Lord's Supper.

If you are not artistically inclined, you may be thinking that a drawing-focused curriculum is just not for you. However, each symbol is very easy to draw. In fact, they're stick figures. The emphasis is not on the art but on sketching as a way to remember the content.

We are an artistic family and I wondered if my boys would think stick-figuring was boring. Not at all! They loved it. I drew the symbol on the board, and as my boys copied it to their workbook, I read the script and the accompanying scripture references. We completed each lesson in about 15 minutes, and the boys were able to answer all of the review questions that followed. There are two cumulative review sections, and both boys answered most of those questions correctly as well. There is also a memory verse for each lesson.

Grapevine Studies is also written without a particular theological slant and aims to leave application to the teacher. I am a Reformed believer, in other words, very conservative. I was able to follow this curricula as is and have meaningful discussions with my children as a result. There are, however, a few instances where symbols are to be drawn to represent the Trinity. I thought they were done respectfully and in accordance to what God has revealed about Himself in the Bible; however, I have readers that do not allow for ANY physical representations of God, even crosses or pictures of Jesus in children's Bibles, for instance. I want to make these readers aware of this and suggest you look at the sample lesson before purchasing.

We decided to give Grapevine Studies one last test and determine just how effective it was. We pulled out the Bible Trivia board on game night, and Michael and I purposefully gave Orville the "Feasts and Holy Days" card. He answered all of the questions correctly this time and said that Grapevine Studies is the best!

That makes me a happy mom, and I give Grapevine Studies two thumbs up. Their methodology is effective. The lessons are easy to teach. It leads to retention. The authors are considerate of doctrinal differences and have designed the program in a way that allows each user to stick to his convictions. On top of that, it was fun!

Interested? Now is a good time to buy. Grapevine Studies has graciously offered Olive Plants readers a 30% discount through Sept. 15. Upon check out, simply enter the coupon code: crews.

Not Me Monday: Not Art-gate and Not in English

While driving to the lake last Friday to take photographs to reference for painting (like Degas), Wilbur (the budding artist in the family) did not ask the following question….

Mom, are all artists rich like Degas?

After explaining to him that most artists are indeed NOT rich and that he should prepare for another line of work to be able to support his family (encouraging him to paint on the side, of course), I did not hear the following conversation:

Wilbur: I don't want my family to starve so I guess I will find other work to do, but if I can sell some paintings, I would really like that.

Orville: Don't worry brother. When I return from the mission field in Japan and become President, I'll have plenty of money. You can paint and sell your work to me. I'll pay you a really good price for your paintings, too. Then your family can eat, and the White House will look really nice.

I did not know whether to be pleased with Orville's generosity or concerned that our family legacy could be something called "Art-gate"!

Upon our return from the lake, Orville began work on his Japanese lesson. Soon thereafter, Michael arrived and watched Orville complete it. He did not discover the following:

1. Orville's lesson for the day covered parts of the car.
   
2. Orville did not know what most of these car parts are called in English.
   

Michael then pointed to the pictures of the car parts in the curriculum and asked Orville to name them. He did not say the Japanese words for these items effortlessly while making up names for them in English. These are not the names he came up with, really…. He would know something so basic and common.

License Plate
Japanese: nam-bah
English: thing on the back of a car

Emergency brake
Japanese: ak-say-roo-boo-rak-ee
English: the foot thing that doesn't work in Mom's car

Hood
Japanese: yah-nay
English: thing that holds the engine in

Gas tank
Japanese: quoog-you-no-ri-cha
English: gas container

Glove Box
Japanese: ko-mo-noy-ree-ray
English: the thing Mom puts all her stuff in

Spark Plugs
Japanese: tain-ka-pooh-rah-goo
English: fuel pegs

I guess he will be better equipped to care for his car in Japan than in America!

The Olive Plant Classroom

It is time for those of us participating in Life with My 3 Boybarians's Not-Back-to-School Blog Hop to post a little something about our school rooms. My school room is my favorite room of the house and has undergone many changes over the years. You can read about how I set up centers for the boys pre-K through 2nd years in Room of Many Colors. It truly was a room of many colors since I color coded the centers and painted murals on the walls.

InThe Cubby Hole I wrote about the remodeling work done to the next room we used as a classroom. It is now the boys' bedroom but it was their workspace during 2nd and 3rd grades. You can see how I took a very small space and used every square inch of it for learning. You can also see how their learning environment grew up a little as they did too.

Drum Roll Please… unveils the newly remodeled and larger classroom space that we currently use. In Audubon Plush Toys, I wrote about one the favorite elements of our classroom and how it works as a reward system for good work.

In Organizing Materials, Part I and Part II, I explain how I clean out the classroom at the end of one school year to prepare for the next and how I organize the in-coming materials.

I have also posted two recent articles about elements of our classroom. The first is I Think I've Lost My Marbles. It is about a behavior management system that has kept me from losing my marbles. In Stop! It's center time, I explain how I still incorporate learning centers into our 4th and 5th grade studies.

Thanks for dropping by Olive Plants. Take a little time to look around and feel free to leave comments, especially if you have a good tip to share!

Stop! It's Center Time!

When my boys were little, a large portion of their instructional time was spent at learning centers. These "stations" provided lots of hands-on opportunities, great for young learners.

Now that my boys are older (4th and 5th graders) learning centers are no longer at the core of what we do. However, they still have a place in our homeschool.

Before we start each new unit, I brainstorm several hands-on ideas to match the theme or topic to be studied. I also look through story starters, puzzles, logic books, and other enrichment books or materials that I own. I usually create or select one activity for each of the following:

• Drama


• Art


• Writing (prose)


• Writing (poetry)


• Math


• Birding or nature journaling


• Puzzles


• Music


• Problem Solving/Logic


• Bible
  

I write the instructions for each center activity on index cards and assign them point values. More difficult activities, like writing a script for a play on one aspect of WWII, is worth 5 or more points. Simpler tasks, like working a puzzle, are generally only worth 1 point. I place the cards in the apple pocket chart pictured to the left.

Beneath the pocket chart, I have shelves on which I place the materials needed to complete the tasks. I set them in stacks according to the topic. When my boys find themselves at a time in the school day that they need something to do, they go to the pocket chart and select a task. They work on it until it is time for the next lesson. This is particularly helpful at the moments in the day when I need to work one-on-one with one boy or when one finishes an assignment before the other and we cannot move to the next lesson until both are finished.

If the task is not completed when we are ready to move on to the next lesson, the materials are returned to the shelf and the card to the pocket chart. The next time he has a center time, he resumes work on the previous task. This continues until the assignment is finished. Then he places the completed work on my desk along with the assignment card. I grade it and award him the points on a wall chart. When he has earned 100 points, I buy him a special treat (something simple like a candy bar).

My boys really enjoy center time. They do not realize that they are completing school work. It is a good way for me to incorporate enrichment activities and those things that I just never seem to have time to complete with them. It also keeps them productive during times that they could otherwise be disruptive. Plus, it's fun and very motivational.

I Think I've Lost My Marbles!

Does getting your children to complete their work in a timely manner ever make you feel like you've lost your marbles?

Do you ever go bonkers trying to get everyone to pay attention?

Are you looking for a way to motivate your children?

Let me suggest the marble system. A teacher I studied under recommended this system, and it has worked really well for me.

Originally, the system was devised to be a group motivator. Whenever the entire class received a compliment or had a good day, a marble was placed in the jar. When the jar was full, the class was rewarded.

I have modified the system a little to fit my needs. I have two separate jars, one for each boy. I also set the first goal near the bottom of the jar instead of making them fill their jars to the top. I placed a small piece of blue painter's tape on the spot to which they must fill their jar to be rewarded. When they reach the first goal, I move the tape up a little higher. One reason many reward systems fail is that the pay-off takes too long. Kids need to reach the goal quickly at first in order to "get it". Then they should be expected to work a little harder each subsequent time.

I put in different numbers of marbles for different tasks. Certain assignments in the day are worth as many as 2 marbles. If they receive a good grade they get 2. A little lower grade earns 1.

I also reward with marbles for timeliness, good manners, completion of chores, and other desirable actions. When a boy fills his jar to the line, he gets an ice cream cone or doughnut from a local bakery.

If someone misbehaves, I remove a marble (or two) from the jar. Instead of bad behavior causing me to loose my marbles, it leads to the boys losing theirs!

I also have a few larger sized marbles available. We call these "super marbles". If one of my boys receives a compliment from someone outside the family or achieves something special, I place a super marble in his jar. Earning a super marble is a big deal in our family, and it has encouraged good behavior in public. They are always on the look out for a compliment.

So don't loose your marbles! Instead gather them and put them to work for you. Your kids will love it and so will you.

Through the Years

It seems that Michael and I would have made a handsome pair no matter the decade. These pictures were enhanced at Yearbook Yourself. They are just too funny....

1950's

1960's

1970's

1980's

1990's

I think I like the 50's the best. Which is your favorite?

Plan-It School Series: Preparing Your Answer

It is now time for another Olive Plants Drama.

The scene opens as Homeschool Dawn, Orville, and Wilbur enter the teacher's lounge at the public school where Dad teaches. The four teachers who are eating their lunches are happy to see the Olive Plant children. Since they are Dad's co-workers and acquaintances of Homeschool Dawn, friendly conversation takes place until….

Teacher Number 4: So Dawn, how long do you intend to homeschool the boys?

HSD: Probably until they graduate.

Teacher 4 (mouth agape): Oh, I would not do that if I were you. Do you really think that you can homeschool them for that long?

HSD: Yes, I do.

Teacher 4: You need to listen to me. I know a lot about children, and in my experience, homeschooling is just not good for them. You are completely neglecting…

Can you guess it?

Teacher 4: their SOCIALIZATION!

HSD (having turned six different shades of red): Well, there are different opinions. I happen to hold one very different from yours.

Teacher 4 (unaware that HSD has a degree in child development and more years classroom teaching experience than she): Yes, but what I am telling you is not an opinion. It is a cold, hard fact coming from someone who has studied child development and has experience teaching children.

HSD (feeling pride and anger well up within): Orville, Wilbur, it is time for us to go now. Goodbye everyone.

I am sorry that my drama is not as amusing as my previous ones. However, this scenario, I am sorry to say, is not fiction or even an exaggerated version of reality. This actually happened just how I wrote it. Orville had just started Kindergarten, so I was a homeschool newbie. In fact, this did not happen at my husband's current place of employment but at a school where he used to teach. I mention this because the Lord has been gracious to open many of my husband's current coworkers' eyes to the benefits of homeschooling and I have only received compliments and encouragement from them. Can you believe that?! Like I said, the Lord has been gracious.

However, what homeschooling family hasn't heard the socialization question? I have heard it from a variety of people and in some of the oddest circumstances imaginable. I have heard it from public school teachers, private school teachers, relatives, friends, friends of friends, folks at church (once again not my current church but the one previous), our hygienist, the cashier at Kroger, the veterinarian, the ice cream man, and total strangers. While bird watching one day, I thought that a bird tweeted, "What about their socialization?". That was probably just my overactive imagination at work again.

That first confrontation is the one that has stuck with me most vividly. I was completely unprepared for it. I have come to realize that the teacher was well-intentioned, though I did NOT think that at the time. I think most who bring this argument do mean well. They don't know that they are the 6,481st person to confront us. They don't realize that we can't go to the store or participate in a community event or even walk our dogs without hearing it from someone. They probably think they are making us aware of an issue we never considered. My teacher friend truly believed that my children were doomed by Michael's and my decision to homeschool them and that she would be wrong to remain silent on the issue.

She was completely unaware of my background and experience, too. Not that it matters, but here's why I bring it up. Her words revealed a sin problem with which I was still wrestling. I had to leave quickly that day because my heart was not right. I felt the wrestle between the Spirit and the flesh and I feared I was on the brink of becoming very confrontational and emotional. After I left, her words echoed through my mind, and I wrestled with my sin for the remainder of the day.

I really believe the socialization argument is a scheme of the enemy to tempt those of us who homeschool for Biblical reasons. How better to tempt people who are set apart from the world than to make them feel weird? Maybe we will believe it. Maybe we will convince ourselves that there is a better way. Or maybe it will prick our egos, and we will react with pride. My way is better than the rest, and I will prove it. I have read many a sharply-worded response to the homeschool dissenters' arguments. I have seen t-shirts, bumper stickers and other paraphernalia that promote homeschooling in an exaggerated light or mock or ridicule public school children. I wanted to do similarly that day and rub Teacher 4's nose in my teaching degree and experience. I wanted to lay out all the statistics that favor homeschooling and call her on the inherent, ugly problems of our public education system.

I failed that day. My failure was not that I let her have the last word. It was not that I left the room in hurry or that I did not present statistics or a well-formed argument. I failed because 1 Pet 3:13 tells me be ready to give an answer "to every man who asks us a reason of the hope that is within [me] (here's the tricky part) with meekness and fear." My failure was that I did not give testimony to the goodness of God. I did not explain that my hope is in Him. I couldn't be meek or show reverence for the Lord and so I fled the scene, failing to love my enemy by sharing the Gospel of Christ with her.

Later that day, when the enemy continued to remind me of what I left behind to homeschool and to tempt me to worry about my decisions, I failed again. I did not fight him properly. I fought him with my thoughts and my feelings and my logic and not with the promises and Word of God. Likewise, when I felt my own sin rise within me, I did not confess and ask for grace, but instead wrestled.

So what is my response to the socialization argument? It is kind of short, I hope rather sweet, and it is rooted in Phil 1:6. I am confident that He who began a good work in me and my children will be faithful to complete it. No statistics. No counterpoint. Just faith, plain and simple. Jesus is Lord, and my only concern in life is faithfully following Him.

Will everyone understand that? Probably not.

Will it convince them that my children aren't doomed to a life as social outcasts? Only if God opens their eyes.

However, regardless of how others may respond, I pray for the grace to be foolish in their eyes, if need be, and esteem the Gospel higher than the wisdom of the world.

Return soon for Plan-It School Series: The Conclusion!

The 2009-2010 School Year Has Begun

What a grand idea Darcy at Life with My 3 Boybarians has had! She is hosting a "Not-Back-to-School" Blog Hop this week and the three to follow. We have the opportunity to share about our plans for the new school year, with each week focusing on a different aspect of homeschooling. This week is dedicated to the topic of curriculum, so let me tell you a little about what we use and why we love it so.

Our core curriculum is Tapestry of Grace. TOG integrates the study of history, literature, church history and worldview, language arts, and art into a series of nine-week units that cover the four year cycle of world history. A particular era of history is the core of each study and the other topics are woven into that tapestry of time so the other subjects are studied within the relevant time period. Right now, we are learning about the late 19th Century while reading literature, learning about missionaries, and studying works of art from the same era. TOG offers so much. It is a curriculum that is truly rich with learning opportunities. I have a TOG link in the sidebar if you would like to investigate further.

We use Singapore math. This is the federal program of the nation of Singapore and has had consistently good results among their school children. It stresses understanding concepts, mental math and problem solving. My boys have done really well with Singapore. I have used it from the beginning and don't regret it.

For science we are trying something new. We will be completing Christian Kids Explore Chemistry. We are new to the CKE studies but are enjoying it so far. There are a number of good hands-on activities, and the lessons are short and easy to teach.

I have added in several elements to our language arts time. Daily Grammar Practice is a really easy grammar program. Each a student is assigned one sentence to consider at the beginning of each week and must complete a grade-appropriate activity each day (underlining nouns for example). By the end of the week, they have completed dissected the sentence and edited it. Simple and effective... I highly recommend.

Each day my boys edit one paragraph from Daily Paragraph Editing. The assignments are on grade level, and the students must find and correct mistakes that are within their skill set. Self-editing is such an important skill, and this curriculum makes it easy to incorporate.

All About Spelling is a fabulous multi-sensory spelling/phonics program. I know of no other program like it. The techniques are highly effective and enjoyable. My son, a reluctant speller, looks forward to his AAS lessons, and I look forward to teaching them. There's a link to the AAS website in my sidebar.

SpellQuizzer is another highly motivating spelling program. It works in conjunction with any spelling curriculum and is fun too. You can read my review of SpellQuizzer here. There is also a link to their website in my sidebar.

Veritas Press Bible is a very easy-to-implement yet rich, chronological study of the Bible. My kids love the picture card set that is included and the memory songs. I like that it helps me delve deeper into Scripture without having to do a lot of preparation.

Holly Dutton's Westminster Shorter Catechism Songs are beautiful and catchy. We start our morning with one of these, and children and mother are learning from it. I catch myself singing the song throughout the day and reflecting on the teachings of the Bible as a result.

I love, love, LOVE Geography Songs from Audio Memory. I bought these for Orville's Kindergarten year, and he and Wilbur used to request that I sing them as bedtime songs! We are refreshing our memory this year by singing the songs that match our geography studies in TOG.

Lively Latin is just so LIVELY! I LOVE it!!! We have completed about half of the introductory lesson on language families and the reasons for studying Latin, the really boring stuff in other words. However, it has not been boring. My son who has always groaned whenever anyone even says "Latin" is really enjoying it. Click here to visit the Lively Latin website.

Orville is studying Japanese using Rosetta Stone. RS takes a conversational approach, so no grammar. That may make you say "yay" or "boo", depending on your school of thought. For now, it is perfect for Orville because he can study independently. I have never studied Japanese and cannot begin to help him, yet he is able to complete the lessons on his own and is progressing well.

Wilbur is completing Lifepac's Drawing Basics with Thomas Kincaid. He loves this and has learned so much. His artwork has been recognized a few times, including one painting that placed fourth in Crayola's online expo. His piece was published in their Children's Art Exhibition book. I can say with confidence that this curriculum works. The DVD provides instruction from Mr. Kincaid, and the workbooks that accompany provide good practice activities.



That's what we're doing. Visit Life with My 3 Boybarians for links to other bloggers who are sharing their curricular plans too.

Check back next week as we share a little about our school rooms.

Not Me Monday: Not Big Orange!

My dad is not a huge Tennessee fan. And by not a huge fan, I mean not a HUGE fan… one who does not bleed orange.

During my teen years, when we lived near Knoxville, I did not tell him that I was going to go to college at Alabama or *gasp* Auburn just to get his goat. This would never upset him since he was not a die-hard Tennessee fan and he would never have been bothered by his only child attending any reputable SEC school, particularly Alabama or *gasp* Auburn. He did not in turn threaten that should I attend one of these two schools he would come to my dorm room and paint it Tennessee orange. We did not enjoy teasing each other in this way for four years until I left for Memphis and not *gasp* Auburn.

A few years ago, Michael and I did not move into enemy territory. I mean, how could we do that since Alabama and *gasp* Auburn, according to my father, are outstanding schools with the finest football teams? Last year, my parents did not relocate to our hometown which, as I already pointed out, is not in said enemy territory. I have not teased my dad relentlessly for a year about not moving near *gasp* Auburn.

A few weeks ago, I did not learn a lesson about teasing. While I was out shopping, my dad did not convince Michael to go to the local paint store and have a few gallons of Tennessee orange paint mixed. He and my dear husband did NOT paint our newly remodeled house in the color of the Volunteers. Oh no, they didn't!

When I got home, it did not look like a big orange bomb, engineered at Oak Ridge, had exploded. What had been a delicate peach kitchen was not transformed into something akin to an Orange Julius stand. The mint green walls in the bath had not been covered over with the most grotesque color known to mankind, and the white wainscoting had not been striped to look like an orange and white prison suit. All of the beautiful, relaxing, neutral colors throughout the rest of the house had not been replaced with that eye-piercing, atrocious shade of orange.

As I walked in the back door, I was not shocked. I did not become weak and sick and did not have to breathe into a paper bag. I did not walk from room to room, feeling greater and greater pain as each step revealed more orange. I was not in tears by the time I reached my Big Orange bedroom.

About that time, my alarm clock did not sound. I did not jump from the bed and run through the house, checking the color of the walls. I did not breathe a HUGE sigh of relief when I saw my pretty kitchen was still peach, the bathroom was still green, and the rest of the house was some shade of off-white. WHEW! It was NOT a dream!!

P.S. I was not unduly perturbed with Michael and did not tell him that he should never, ever paint our house orange again!