.In my life this week… I am pretty tired with us getting to the end of tax season and am anxious for the 18th to get here so we can finally rest (tax day this year is the 18th and not the 15th, ugh). Our chickens (Sunny, Poppy, Jennie, Effie, Baby, Jennie, and Abby) started laying eggs this week. The kids were so excited to finally find eggs in the coop (and everywhere else as "the girls" learn where to lay them). The chickens have been a great science project and a wonderful lesson in sustainability.
In our homeschool this week…
We decided to continue
Dr. Seuss one more week after finding some great Dr. Seuss craft kits on sale at Michaels. This turned out to be a great decision as the kids are really enjoying the books, and the craft kits made for some great arts and crafts time that also incorporated fine motor. We started our units on Easter and England (kings, queens, etc). We ordered Rosetta Stone sets for both French and Italian.
Places we’re going and people we’re seeing…
The usual suspects...ballet school, ice skating lessons, church class, and Girl Scouts. I will be so happy when tax season ends and Mr. Darcy is available once again to help with the taxiing of the kiddos to their activities. (I'm also looking forward to summer as half the activities go on hiatus)...
My favorite thing this week was…
Far and away, my favorite thing this wee was taking all the kids to the Renaissance Fair. We had such an amazing time. The weather was great, we all dressed up, and it was a great history lesson. To read more about our day at the Ren. fair, click here.
What’s working/not working for us…
I really love using Starfall online with the kids as a supplement to their reading. It's free and they really enjoy it; even the boys who have special needs are able to navigate the site independently and love reading the books online. My little one does starfall and the olders have now graduated to "more starfall". It is a great program to use to keep the 4 yr old busy when I am teaching a lesson to her older siblings and a comfort to me to know she is learning instead of just having downtime while "waiting her turn" for 1:1 time.
Homeschool questions/thoughts I have…
I see the term "special needs" used alot around the blogosphere and cyberworld. Do be careful when using this term. Does a child have special needs or medical needs? There is a difference, and these terms are not interchangable. If your child has a condition such as (for example) food allergies, or diabetes, or receives dialysis, while these may be of huge medical concern, they are not special needs, they are medical needs. If your child has dyslexia, this is a challenge for sure, but this is not special needs.
If your child will live independently, drive a car one day and get married, then this is not "special needs" and to use this term does a huge disservice to those of us who have children with special needs who will live with us always. Most medical personnel will define "special needs" as a child who has difficulty with ambulation or has a condition in which they are cognitively impaired. We need to choose our words carefully, precisefully, and prayerfully.
A photo, video, link, or quote to share…
babies and puppies...
Blessings to you this week,
I do not have a child with special needs, but thank you for saying something anyway. I see so many labels tossed around and over used inappropriately. Kudos to you for saying something!
ReplyDeleteLove the puppy and baby picture!!!
Great post! It sounds like you have had a wonderful week. I'm pretty much convinced that we are the last people on Earth that do not have chickens.
ReplyDeleteHave a great weekend!
Great post! Robin and I are the last people without chickens apparently :) I don't usually like music on blogs, but since yours is my all-time favorite movie, I am letting it play :)
ReplyDeleteWe LOVE starfall - even my 3 year old. It's such a great resource. I love that you have a chicken coop, must be so fun for the kids!
ReplyDeleteOh, I would love to have chickens! I hope you'll post lots of pics of them as they hatch:-).
ReplyDeleteI cannot wait for my now 3 year old to be able to use and enjoy Starfall! It was wonderful with my oldest son while I schooled my daugter.
Blessings for a wonderful upcoming week.
Thank you for your visit to my blog, I'm stopping by from THMJ.
Oh how cute! You really cannot go wrong with a picture that has a baby & a puppy in it ;)
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting for THMJ!
It was great "meeting" you!
Thank you everyone for your comments. I read each and every one. Now that tax season is over and we are home from holiday I hope to improve and be able to answer each and every one. (and no, you can never ever go wrong with a photo that has a baby and a puppy!!!) Blessings to you all, Katie
ReplyDelete