A Stable Beginning: June 2021

Wednesday, June 30, 2021

Wordless Wednesday

http://astablebeginning.com

Tuesday, June 29, 2021

Words Rock Online from EdAlive ~ a TOS review

Disclaimer: I received a Complimentary copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. All opinions I have expressed are my own or those of my family. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way.

Hey there! How’s your summer been going? Ours has been busy with travel and doing a major home declutter and room swapping. We are also prepping to send Madison and Mikayla off to University in August because that will be here before we know it.

In the mist of all the decluttering and prepping we have also been plugging away with our summer revision work. Micah is my computer game fanatic and he has been enjoying playing the vocabulary building games from EdAlive called Words Rock Online. Let me tell you a little more about it to see if it would be a good fit for your family.

EdAlive is an Australian based company that provides a variety of online learning games to meet the needs of children in grades K-12. We received a one-year subscription to Words Rock online, a vocabulary learning game that also includes grammar activities for elementary students.

Words Rock Online is geared towards children aged 5 to 15. During game play the program adapts to the child’s skills while they play so they get the most from the program. The game covers skills in spelling, grammar, punctuation, vocabulary, and pre-literacy skills.

In the game students are playing a game similar to Battleship as the hunt for slugs around the board. To play Micah would pick the game board size, we always choose the smaller 49 tiled, quick-play board, but there is a larger one with 100 tiles as well. He also always played against the computer but there is an option to play against other students.

Playing was easy. He simply picked a square where he thought a slug would be. If he was close enough he would be rewarded with points and get a language arts question to answer. We had the option of choosing a different question if he found the one presented was too hard. If Micah answered the question correctly, he was awarded points to his tally. The game would continue until all slugs were found and all board pieces were uncovered.

At the end of the game the winner would be tallied up and announced. Micah was so happy when he won his first game! Students are also awarded Agent cards for achieving points during the game.

Overall, this is a great supplemental game to help improve vocabulary and grammar. Micah had a blast with it and we will continue to use it for the rest of our subscription. If you are looking for a fun and educational online game, I definitely recommend for you to check out Words Rock Online from EdAlive. But don’t just take my word for it, be sure to click the banner below to see what my CrewMates thought of this game and the others games reviewed from EdAlive, including Baggin' the Dragon Maths Online and Volcanic Panic Reading Success Online
.

Online Math, Reading, and Language Arts with EdAlive

Company ~ EdAlive

Product ~ Words Rock Online

Format ~ online

Ages ~ 5 to 15

Find EdAlive on these Social Media Sites:

Wednesday, June 23, 2021

Wordless Wednesday

http://astablebeginning.com

Monday, June 21, 2021

2021 ~ 2022 Plan of Study

12 years of home education down

3 high school graduates

1 University graduate

1 University Junior

1 University Freshman

3 children left at home to educate in 9^th, 6^th, and 2^nd grades

Never in a million years did I think we would be in this position when we first started homeschooling back in 2009. We knew we were moving to VA in the fall of 2008 and that’s when God laid it on my heart to keep my then, three school age daughters home. It’s been quite an adventure as we have navigated through Tot School through High School. There have been years where we have been deep in the trenches of homeschooling where I felt as if I were barely hanging on. But you know what? I wouldn’t change it for the world! My children have excelled and been able to pursue the extracurricular activities that interest them whether it be sports, the arts, or Scouting and the fruits of their labor have paid off time and time again.

This 13^th year marks a milestone for us so to speak. You see, my last three children have been educated entirely at home. It’s a huge honor and one that I don’t take lightly. I am excited to see them continue to flourish and achieve their educational dreams over the next 11 years we have left homeschooling.

Once again we are navigating University move-in’s so we are starting later than normal. In 9 short weeks our school year will begin on August 23^rd with a 9^th grader, 6^th grader, and 2^nd grader. It has taken me so long to release this Plan of Study this year because I have had to rethink several curriculum choices for my children. With their input, I have researched and scoured websites, blogs, and reviews to see if the curriculum would be a fit for each child. The biggest change for this upcoming year is that Montana will dive into her first AP course with Human Geography (more about this below).

As in previous years, each of my children will have a specific area that we will focus on throughout the year. Pouring into their individual focus areas has led to good fruits down the road as they leave the nest for University. This year the bulk of our curriculum budget is going to online classes for Montana and McKenzie. Typically, we don’t start online classes until 10^th grade, but I recognized early last year that I needed a year to regroup after going hardcore for the previous 12 years. The bulk of Micah’s curriculum is material that we already have with a few exceptions.  

This year we will continue our 4-day, Sabbath schooling schedule of 6/1 (6 weeks schooling / 1 week off) with tweaks during meet season. After much consideration we will be keeping McKenzie in the homeschool morning training schedule for as long as the opportunity affords because it fits our evening needs as a family unit and her gymnastic goals. As a new middle schooler with a heavier course load, she knows it will mean she will be held accountable for her time in the mornings and on double day trainings that are dedicated for school. I am excited to see her rise to the challenge and excel during this time of transition.

We are also excited to fully return to our Wednesday Co-Op where the kids will take some pretty neat enrichment courses. I am looking forward to teaching two fun classes and having a Study Hall. Montana may choose to use Wednesday as a catch up day for school because her workload will increase with high school/college courses. As always, the standing rule is if you don't finish your assignments during the week, it must be done by Saturday afternoon.

With our August 23rd start date we will have 15 weeks completed by the start of our Christmas break on December 17th. Let’s dive into what we are planning to study.

This year Montana will continue building on her college prep studies. She has already earned 3 high school credits from 8^th grade year and is excited to officially be a high schooler! This year her focus studies will be in math.

Bible
~ Sonlight Bible 200 ~ Westminster Catechism

Math
~ Saxon Algebra 1 with lecture from Mom and Nicole the Math Lady

Honors Science
~ Apologia Biology online with Veritas Press

Honors English 9
~ Rod & Staff Grammar 9/10, Book 1

~ Wordly Wise 3000, Book 9

~ Composition 1 online with Veritas Press
~ Sonlight Literature Core 200

History
~ Human Geography with AP test

*Montana will be doing a self-study for this course as I am not submitting a syllabus to the College Board for approval. I have found another homeschooler who has created the course and will be following her scheduling to prepare for the May exam.

Foreign Language

~ Spanish: Avancemos 1 online with Veritas Press

Electives

~ Apologia Health
~ Artistic Pursuits, High School Book One

PE
~ Softball, fall & spring through rec league?

Extras

~ PSAT/ACT study 45 min/4 days *I am planning on having her take the PSAT in October to get a baseline score.

~ Girl Scout Cadette

Total credits: 8 credits  

Last year we changed up our history study for my youngest two. Bottom line…it didn’t work and I quickly went back to Sonlight but with a twist. McKenzie was not ready for complete independence of Core G and I really wanted to focus just on Ancients with the Story of the World as our spine with both her and Micah. So, she completed the first half of Core G and will finish Core G, Middle Ages this year. I still plan to add in hands-on learning for them both as we go the Middle Ages. My goal for her this year is to get her ready for Core H in 7^th grade. Also, you may notice that she is jumping into her high school science prep for 6^th grade instead of 7^th. She’s ready and she has a great teacher online to help increase her love for science that has been planted in the grammar level. Her focus this year is on spelling and vocabulary.

Morning Time Recitations *more to come on our plan

Bible
~ Wise Up from Positive Action for Christ

Math
~ Saxon 7/6 with Nicole the Math Lady

Science
~ Apologia General Science online with Veritas Press

Language Arts
~ Rod & Staff Grammar 6
~ Rod & Staff Spelling 6

~ Writing with Skill 1
~ Get to the Root of It Vocabulary

~ Reading List *coming soon

History/Geography/Literature

~ Sonlight Core G, 2^nd half Middle Ages

~ Sonlgiht Core G literature list

Foreign Language
~ Latin Transition online with Veritas Press (Latin Alive 1)

Logic

~ Critical Thinking Skills 2

~ Inference Jones 1

PE
~ Level 8 gymnastics Team, 25+ hours a week

*we are hopeful she moves up to compete Level 8 this season after coming off of injury and repeating Lv7.

Time is flying by and my baby boy is in 2^nd grade! This year we are going to continue plugging along and laying the foundation in the basics for him. I am switching a few subjects this year to BJU Press because he enjoys the colorful workbooks this curriculum provides. Like his sisters, Micah is strong in math and loves to read. Our focus this year is completing our work without complaining.

Morning Time Recitations

Bible
~ BJU Press Bible Truths: A Servants Heart

Math
~ Saxon Math 2
~ Math Made Fun, Grade 2

Language Arts / Phonics
~ Rod & Staff Grammar 2

~ Writing with Ease 1

~ Explode the Code, Books 4,5, & 6

~ BJU Press Spelling 2

~ Wordly Wise 3000, book 2

~ Sonlight Readers 2
~ A Reason for Handwriting, Transition

~ Reading list * coming soon. I would love to know what some of your favorite reading books are for this age?

Science
~ Sonlight Core C: Geology, Meteorology, Mechanical Technology

History/Geography/Literature
~ Sonlight Core C

Foreign Language
~ Song School Latin 1 with Classical Academic Press

Art

~ Artistic Pursuits, Book 3 Middle Ages

PE
~ Fall & Spring Baseball

Extras
~ Boy Scout Wolf

~ AWANA ?
 

Thanks for making it through this long post! This week I am going to finalize our Morning Time Recitation plans and booklists. We are in the process of a major house declutter and room swap (yes, again) so I’ll be painting and doing that in the next few weeks as well. I’m excited for year 13, our first day will be here before we know it!

http://astablebeginning.com

Wednesday, June 16, 2021

Wordless Wednesday

http://astablebeginning.com

Wednesday, June 9, 2021

Wordless Wednesday ~ 2021 Graduate

http://astablebeginning.com

Thursday, June 3, 2021

Pursued To Eternity ~ a TOS review

Morning friends! Today I am pleased to share with you a new book from John Riley called Pursued to Eternity. This softcover, paperback book shares the travels of two brothers, Conner and Dr Alan Bridges, as they travel the world to Kenya, Egypt, and Israel. Sounds like a pretty regular book, right? Well, it’s not. It’s actually several stories intertwined into a larger story of Connor and his older brother Alan.

You see, Connor, the younger brother who is a biology teacher, is a believer while his brother Alan, who holds a PhD in Geology, is an atheist. Inside the book you will read about the 6-month journey the brothers embark on. Throughout the book you will read of Biblical and scientific references that provide proof of creation all the while seeing firsthand how God’s hand is in everything we do.

Pursued to Eternity is a softcover book with just over 150 pages. It retails for $14.95. With just 17 chapters it is a quick read. The chapters really engage the reader leading you to want to know what happens next. The pages are black and white with the only hand drawn illustrations present at the beginning of the chapter.

The author, John Riley, has a Master of Science degree and has worked as an engineer for 35 years. When he retired he and his wife, Nancy, spent time teaching physics, robotics, and SAT prep classes to thousands of students. Also during this time they taught a course on creation versus evolution which is frequently referenced in the book. You can find the 14 lesson course on the SchoolhouseTeachers.com website.

I read this story out loud to my youngest three kids aged 14, 11, & 7. Since we have covered Ancient history this year they enjoyed the tales of Egypt during the time of Moses. My son enjoyed the story of the dinosaur hunting. Throughout the story we see how Dr. Alan Bridges is being pursued by God on this journey. Ultimately, in the end he accepts Christ as his savior before passing away. In Pursued to Eternity, John Riley takes readers on an exciting adventure while sharing scientific evidence for creation. I would recommend this apologetics book for anyone looking to dive into creation versus evolution.