School: Sept 2013

Homeschool - Sept. 2013

Here we are again at the beginning of another school year.  There is something great about new beginnings and buying new school supplies!  All of my kids are officially in school this year! 

 Kaiden is a senior

  

      Nic - 10th grade

Luke - 7th grade

Afton - 5th grade

Kensi - 2nd grade

Garrett - K

We have found amazing homeschool opportunities in Davis County and our school year looks GREAT!   Kaiden, Nic and Luke are in Vanguard Youth, a co-op for homeschool teens.  There are 5 chapters of Vanguard this year all over Utah and there are about 35 kids (20 families) in our Layton Chapter.  They work on learning the material all week and then get together for class on Weds.  The teacher, or mentors, are the moms and I have the privilege this year of mentoring Leadership and Government one week of the month.  The 4 weeks of the month rotate through Leadership and Government, History/Geography, Eureka (Science and Math) and Imaginative Arts.  What a blessing it is to have great school friends and great neighborhood friends for my kids.  

Afton, Kensi and Garrett are still in homeschool with me full time.  Our focus this year is on the founding of America and the Revolutionary War period.  One week we do science and are working on Earth Science.  We are learning a lot, reading a lot, playing and crafting a lot and making sure we still have time for field trips, theater, and doing great things with our friends!

We had a fabulous first month!  Here are the details...

Math - Individual lessons in Saxon; Kaiden - Algebra 2, Nic - Algebra 1 , Afton -5/4, Kensi - 2, Garrett - 1.  Luke is using Khan Academy online this year.

Field Trips & Fun things -  

• The Da Vinci Museum in SLC
• "This is the Place" Park in SLC

Luke, Afton and Kensi with our friend, Lydia.  Garrett was hiding.  He hates pictures!
at This is the Place Park

• Thanksgiving Point

Afton, Luke, Garrett and Kensi with our friends, Porter and Cassidy
at Thanksgiving Point

• hike near the Dinosaur Park in Ogden
• Celebration of the Constitution in Bountiful.  Nic volunteered and taught the visitors about the Jamestown settlement.  Our family attended and learned all about the founding of America and citizenship.

Mom school - (where I teach them things that I enjoy learning about)

our 3D replica of the Jamestown settlement

• We are learning about the founding of America and the Revolutionary War this year with Afton, Kensi and Garrett.  We covered Christopher Columbus and Jamestown this month.
• For science this month we learned about stars and the sun.

The Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria

Vanguard Youth - Kaiden, Nic and Luke are in Vanguard Youth.  This month they learned about:

Theme:  God, and God's principle of individuality

Scripture: John 16:33 "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."

Books: 
*** = books we will use all year and cover part of each month

"The Miracle of America - Birth of a Nation"

"Promises of the Constitution" ***


"How? Essential Skills for Living the Gospel"***


"Just like Jesus" by Max Lucado***


"Autodidactic" by James W. Parkinson

"Getting Started with Latin"***


"The Story of Liberty" (parts of this book)


"American History in Verse"***


"The Prince" by Machiavelli (parts of this book)


"How to think like Leonardo Da Vinci"***


"Secrets of Great Communicators"***


"A Wrinkle in Time"


"Spiritual Lives of Great Composers"***  - Felix Medelssohn


"Pilgrim's Progress"***


"Stories of Great Artists"*** - Raphael


Articles/Broadcasts:
Mayflower Compact
"Faith and the Scientific Method" by Terry B. Ball
"What is truth?" by Deiter F. Uchtdorf

For  more about Vanguard Youth, you can click over to my friend's blog for a great description.  

Family Reading -  "The Last Battle" by C.S. Lewis 

Individual Reading -

Dad - "Visions of Glory" by John M. Pontias

Mom - keeping up with all of the Vangaurd reading!

Here is what else everyone is currently doing:

Kaiden (Scholar phase) -

• Book of Mormon daily reading
• Weekly trips to the Bountiful temple to do baptisms
• Working on getting his Eagle Scout Award
• Piano
• Show Choir "The Laytones" at Layton High School
• Vanguard Youth
• VIP theater class

Nicolas (Scholar phase) -

• Book of Mormon daily reading
• Duty to God
• Seminary
• Boy Scouts - working towards his Life rank
• BSA Order of the Arrow
• Ballroom dance class
• VIP theater class

Luke (Love of Learning/practice Scholar phase) -

• Book of Mormon daily reading
• Duty to God
• Boy Scouts - working towards his Star rank
• VIP theater class

Afton (Love of Learning phase) -

• Book of Mormon daily reading
• drawing, drawing, drawing,  mostly anime
• Faith in God
• VIP theater class
• Key Academy

Makensi (Core phase) - 

• drawing and cutting and gluing...hopefully not on or to the couch!
• VIP theater class
• Key Academy

Garrett (Core phase) - 

• He loves school as long as I don't tell him he's doing school!
• learning his letters and how to read