Weekly Reports 2008:19&20

It has been a while since I last did a homeschool weekly report since I got busy writing my talk on mothering. So, before I have to do a report on three weeks, here goes:

Circle Time
We kept up with our readings through Acts, covering three stories each week. We covered such stories from the earliest Christians as the choosing of seven men specifically for ministry to the church through service (ch6) and the story of Stephen, who was one of these seven men yet was stoned to death for his ministry of speech (ch7). We read the story of Philip's evangelism of the Ethiopian (ch8), and also read through the story of Saul's conversion and what happened to him in Damascus (ch9, over three days).
The first of our memory verses from these stories is Acts 8:30-31&35 (and Anna seems to have a good handle on v34 from listening to the Bible on CD in the car). This morning, while we were reviewing all our memory verses from Acts, Joshua asked me "Why does the Bible say Jesus was 'led like a sheep to the slaughter'?" I told him it was because Jesus did not try to stop himself from being killed on the cross, even though He is God, and could have if He had wanted to. It was all part of God's plan for Jesus to die on our behalf. I might bring that up at the dinner table for Jeff to address as well. Joshua managed not only to quote the passage correctly, but also to bring up his question while we were reviewing the surrounding verses - that is, in context. (He quoted v32, which itself quotes Isaiah 53:7, neither of which is a verse we have deliberately memorised.) Hmmm. Sometimes my kids astound me. There is no way I would have asked a question like this when I was five.
Song-wise, we seem to have stalled with In Christ Alone at the third verse, although the first two were learnt okay. I might take a break with another song and get back to that one later.

Literacy
Joshua has worked through most of the fourth set of Bob Books readers. He had finished Stunt Duck (a Ladybird Phonics reader) and when he read the first book from the new set of Bob Books, Ten Men, he said afterwards, "That was a fantastic book, Mum!" I think he really liked the uncluttered and single colour pages of the Bob Books. As we progressed through this set, however, the books were taking him longer to read, sometimes 20-30min, which is a big ask of such a little boy. I am glad I have the reward of watching Play School to encourage him.
Anna has worked through the first three short stories from Reading Reflex, Fat Cat Sat, Bug on Jug, and Ben Bun. She is really very good at blending and often blends the last part of the word first: "C-A-T, AT, CAT", which intrigues me.

Literature
Jeff continues to enjoy Wind in the Willows with us so we are only reading it in the evenings, when he is at home and we are not all too tired to appreicate it. Only a few chapters a week at this pace, but the kids have managed to keep some understanding between reading.
This has given me the opportunity to read a few more great picture books to the kids, especially to Abigail. I read two picture books to her most afternoons when she has her nap. With Samuel in a big bed now, I'll soon be reading him picture books before nap time also, but for now I am concentrating on getting him to go down for his nap without wandering from the bed, and this is best done with the least distractions.
Friday Girls' Night with Milly Molly Mandy continues to be a hit.

Mathematics
We worked through Earlybird Mathematics 2A lesson 12 and the beginning of lesson 13, revisiting the sequence of digits 1-10 forwards and backwards and then introducing the words for each of the first ten numbers. Anna is loving maths lessons at the moment; she complains if I call Joshua and not her to a lesson I think will be boring for her because it's mostly writing (which only Joshua does). She doesn't seem to mind that he gets to write the numbers, if she can just help him work out which ones to write.
They are both counting 1-40 smoothly now and also 10-0.

Science and Geography
We have finished our study of rainforest creatures - at last - it dragged on because I wasn't very enthusiastic, I'm afraid. Anyway, we read about Jungle birds and added in some readings on animal offspring and mini beasts. Both Joshua and Anna did a short narration on rainforest creatures.

Extra-curricula
As I look over the last fortnight's notes on my checklist, I can see that we went out quite a bit (not least to the doctor's for immunisations against the flu - we have another two trips booked for more needles over the coming month but at least I have had my only one. Poor Anna and Sam will have three each.) We also had quite a few visitors over for dinner, which is lovely, but I can see upon reflection why I've not been full of energy and enthusiasm for homeschooling lately. And we all have heavy colds at the moment. Ugh!

Church History
This night course continues to be a highlight of my week, although getting the kids fed and in bed ready for the babysitter to take over at 6:45pm so I can get to college and hand the car over to Jeff so he can get to church is a big task! It has been fascinating to hear of the rise of prominence of the idea of a "pope" in Roman Catholicism, as well as the iconoclastic controversy of the Eastern Orthodox church, and the beginnings of Islam and how that almost destroyed the Eastern church. I have appreciated learning how the major doctrines of the church, such as the doctrine of the Trinity (1 substance, 3 persons) and of the nature of Jesus (1 person, 2 substances), were hammered out at the ecumenical councils of Nicea, Constantinople etc. I am appreciating learning why famous people, such as Constantinople and Pope Gregory VII are so important to His-story.