MAY TERM DAY 1

After our long weekend, we were all tired. K&C woke later than usual. Our school day started at 9:45 instead of 9. We just skipped Story of the World today; which is fine. Today was the first day of a very new session, so today was mainly about talking about the new things we are doing, passing out notebooks and schedules, going over goals and lessons for the month, and getting a start into their new areas of study.

Ki liked the little Schedule are in the front cover of his notebook. He enjoyed using the daily schedule I gave the boys to fill in his Chart in his notebook cover.

He also liked the Cross Word Puzzle. I should him how to find the down and the Across and how to count the spaces and uses letters from already filled in answers to make sure he the correct word. I had him read through all of the Puzzle Clues, so when we are doing our reading and studying throughout the month he’ll remember unsolved clues in the cross word and go fill them in. He actually recalled 3 while we were reading his book and was happy to remember and fill in his cross word puzzle

[LINK FOR THE CROSS WORD PUZZLE] -also click to see the CLUES and print them.

Gavin and Connor did well with their studies. Gavin was excited to show me his notes and progress and tell me what he’s learned and what he plans on studying and including in his reports.

We finished with Morning Session at 11:13 and I sent them out to play a few minutes before the next class (Creative Writing). They do so much better with school when they take breaks to be really active between classes. They did some boffer sword practice for about 15 minutes as their break.

For Creative Writing I had them do a page from the book I have. I made 2 copies of all the pages, so 2 boys can use worksheets and 1 can fill in the pages of the workbook. They’ll take turns with the book if they want. Being that today’s class is short class we just talked a little about good description, using better adjectives, writing things enjoyable to read that make the reader better able to imagine. Then they did the worksheet pages. Ki had a lot of trouble with it. He talked and talked and goofed and gabbed, because he couldn’t think of anything to write. I had to remind him that this was a time for les talk and more writing. But I hate how ‘Public School’ that sounds. They got to get lunch when they finished.

He actually did better after his brothers finished and left the table. He had no one to talk to or at so there was nothing to do but write, so he could go eat lunch.

(Ki had a teensy little sensory meltdown (more like a teensy stubborn fit), but he was able to get over it on his own and it was almost a non-issue. It's a good thing we did the "Physical Therapy Time" before this class!)

LUNCH HOUR- I finished my Bible Study Homework. And ate. Because I was hungry.

SKETCHERS was Post-Lunch.

I must say that I am pleased with how Sketchers Class went. KKi can have a very hard time with feeling like he doesn’t have enough choice and is being told how to do everything. He took an art class once and she tried to get him to use the different art/sketching pencils- NOT just the school pencil. He wouldn’t have any of it. He didn’t want to be told which pencil to use when he ‘knew’ he liked the mechanical pencil best and ‘knew’ it did the best job. And He’s not good with “draw a turtle”- he’ll want to draw what he feels like drawing.. Which is what art is; drawing what you feel and ‘see’, but that I not what art CLASS is all the time.

BUT he did very well and didn’t complain at all about being told the exact things to do.

Gavin is drawing using the CLOSE CONTROLLED GRIP. (above)

(above)- Ki's page using both the CONTROLLED grip and the LOOSE grip with different pencils and the pen. Ki liked using a ruler to separate the areas of his page and he recorded which pencil he used for the different drawings. I had tols the boys to make sure they had their mechanical pencils with them so they could try it for the different techniques as well. I would tell them to use their different 'art pencils' (whichever of the 3 they wanted and to write which it was ) and then would always give them a "Use whatever you want" task after they did their special art pencils.



(above) Gavin's DOODLES using different pencils. Then his Shading and Smudging Techniques.