Online Webcourse: Intro to Gravity and Inclined Planes

We've got a scientist in training! Not too shocking, I guess, but very exciting. This all started when Branna was trying to make a balance beam for her stuffed animals, but was putting her "beam" (aka lid to the toy box) on an uneven surface and her animals kept sliding off. This was a big source of frustration. Branyon stepped in and drew a simple diagram while explaining to Branna about an inclined plane and how gravity works. She decided she needed one of her own and then needed to be the teacher.

School!

We are officially in school! We're in our second week and have been having a great time. This is our second year of homeschool and I'm looking forward to it!

Last year, we used a curriculum called Hands On Homeschooling. There were alot of good things about it, but I really felt like it was too slow for Branna and she was getting bored. By the end of the year, our love for school was dwindling.

The curriculum we're using this year is through the creator of the blog Confessions of a Homeschooler. She has lots of good material and I'm really excited about it.

Each day, we have our circle time (reading, reciting Bible verses, singing, identifying patterns, saying the pledge,etc) and then we have our regular lesson. The first 2 weeks have been more of just a letter and number review.

Branna finishing the daily pattern

and then using pattern blocks to make the same pattern

Checking the weather... although it hasn't changed much! I think she had wishful thinking here!

This was such a great creation. Erica, at Confessions of a Homeschooler, made Alphabet Builders. In a nut shell, they are lines and curves that allow for building letters. I printed them off on magnetic paper, and viola!, we had a super-fun hands on activity.

I wish I would have gotten pictures, but when Branna first used these, her imagination when wild. After constructing the alphabet, she also made a boat, a train and a car.

I think Branna's favorite part of the first week was playing the alphabet bean bag toss. We each took turns throwing a bean bag to the letter card that the other person called out. She really got into it!

As part of school, we are also continuing our reading lessons using Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons. I'm very happy to say that we're almost done! The lessons have been a great tool and Branna is really starting to read fluently. To give some incentive, I told Branna we would have an "I Can Read!" party when we got to lesson 100. Pictures will hopefully be posted soon!

And lastly, I mentioned in the first part of the post that part of our circle time is reciting Bible verses. From last year, Branna has memorized 9 verses and we're continuing to add to that. Here is one of her favorites:

I looked back to this time last year when she first learned this verse. I cannot believe what a year has done! She was such a little girl. She has grown so much-physically and mentally.

I look forward to sharing our journey again this year.

Listening Pages

Branyon and I strive to teach Branna and Atlie God's will and to help them understand importance of a Christ-centered life. Sometimes, I find it difficult to keep Branna engaged on Sunday morning during the sermon. I don't expect her to sit still and quite the entire time, but I do like for her to pay attention as much as possible to message being delivered and to participate in the worship service.

I was excited to come across Mama's Learning Corner's Listening Pages. She has designed a worksheet for kids to fill out during the sermon. It has key words like "sing", "Jesus", and "Bible". The child can trace the words and identify a picture associated with it. Branna has enjoyed the few that she's done so far. I wanted to share our great find and hope that you or someone you know can benefit from it!

Wildfire and Texas History

Branyon had Labor Day off and we wanted to take advantage of the day by having a family outing. Our original plan was to go to Brenham and tour the Blue Bell factory. However, we began to hear more and more about the wildfires that were effecting the Bastrop area and decided to stay closer to home. We'd never been to the Bob Bullock Museum and thought that would make for a fun afternoon.

As we got going on the road, we realized that the fire was much closer to our house. We pulled over at the nearby county annex and after talking to other there, decided we had better go home and pack a bag, just in case.

Taken from our car window about 3 miles from our subdivision

That turned out to be a good idea, because as soon as we opened the door, we got a phone call from the emergency management services telling us to evacuate. The fire was still a good distance from our house, but it was still a nerve-wracking experience.

So after we gathered up our things, we decided to continue on with our original plan of the Bob Bullock Museum. It was quite a bit later in the day by now, so we didn't get to go into the actual museum part, but we still had an enjoyable time... except for the Star of Destiny show. Neither of the girls liked it and saying that is an understatement. I guess it had something to do with the lightning, thunder and 4D effects.

I would really like to go back when we have more time to enjoy the exhibits. Hopefully next time it will be a less eventful day!

Daddy and the girls with the "cow-marro"

Underneath the star of Texas

Branna standing with Bob Bullock's statue

The girls making their way across Texas!

We've landed on the moon!

Daddy and Branna way down