Learning 4 Life: Fun-schooling :)

Lately, we've just had a lot of learning going on. We are finally getting into a routine which makes for a happier Mommy and happier kids, too!

Lily has now read 13 words! She is just rocking right along with her schoolwork. I originally was worried that I had planned too much work for her to complete, but she is constantly begging me for more! She has been completing her entire week schedule in 3 days. She is doing well learning her letters and her sounds. We have also been studying safety - emergency, fire, stranger danger, traffic, etc. She has also been learning about different kinds of animals with her sissy! They both learned about insects and we had fun making these marshmallow/toothpick insects!

We also made some butterfly paintings and incorporated some math by talking about symmetry!

Below is Lily's butterfly... you kind of have to think abstractly :)

Zora is also doing very well. She is very excited to do her schoolwork every day (except for phonics!) and has a hard time deciding what she wants to do first! She learned about animal classifications in science and tells me constantly that she loves animals so much that she wants to be a vet someday. In history/geography we've completed two units: Ancient Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt. While she found Mesopotamia very interesting, I know she thoroughly enjoyed learning about the Egyptians. Everything about their way of life and culture was fascinating to her. I must say that I really enjoyed teaching it too! We've also begun a new math curriculum with her. The one I originally purchased for this year was way too easy for her and I could tell she was getting really bored. She loves the new book and actually gets excited about her math work for a change. This week she has been completely immersed in books. She's always been an avid reader, but she has actually read more this week than she has played. She completed a 278 page novel in 3 1/2 days!

Besides our "bookwork" we've been very busy with getting together with our two different homeschooling groups. Our co-op (Shine) just completed it's first session of Psychology, Speech & Computer Programming. Our next session begins next week with Science Lab, Spanish & Art. Zora did very well in these classes, but we are going to have to work on the fact that she is a "Chatty Cathy" or "social butterfly". She loves her new friends so much that she can't quit talking!

Our other homeschool group (TIE) had a fun get-together last week as we learned about animals that hibernate. After the discussion, the kids had an opportunity to create their very own creature. They not only made up the kind of animal, but created a story about it and presented their creations to the group. Lily created a crayon bug...

and Zora created a pumpkin eater...

And speaking of artistic things, we had a very artsy, fun day yesterday. We started the day by attending Charlotte's Web at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center with the Jones'. What a fun experience! I must say that no matter how often I hear the story I always cry! Yes, I actually cried at the end of the performance when Wilbur said goodbye to Charlotte. I'm such an emotional cry-baby! Later on that day we attended our second art class with our friend Barbie. This time we discussed color. They experimented with mixing colors to create new ones and discussed primary, warm & cool colors. Another thing Barbie encouraged was being abstract which was really fun because she made them paint some of their pictures blindfolded! Zora (as usual) had to add a little humor to the process...