School Update
We just finished week 6 (out of 36) of second grade and kindergarten. It's fun to see how much things change over time in the way we do school. This spring I started adapting the booklist and schedule over at Ambleside for our school reading. So far this has been a good move.
I have really appreciated the discipline that having a reading schedule has brought to our school routine. I tended to somehow let the reading aloud portion of our school day slide off the day's agenda when things got busy (which was most days). Finally I became alarmed enough to do something about it. I think that reading out loud (and reading in general) should form a major part of the school day. Every school day. The books on the Ambleside list don't have very spectacular covers for the most part, but the stories are so engaging, and I really can't think of any that I didn't enjoy. I think my second grader enjoys them too, although he pretends not to.
One of our favorites so far has been Viking Tales, by Jennie Hall. I'm not sure how much a little girl would enjoy these stories, but my boys love them. Full of adventure, history, and geography. Plenty of violence. We also like Our Island Story, by H.E. Marshall, which is British history told in story form. We're just starting to read about Duke William of Normandy, a.k.a. William the Conqueror. If you read this stuff in a history book it would be dull dull dull. But in a story book, it is sometimes hard to put down.
I am still enjoying our schedule of 3 weeks of school, one week off, year round. I thought I might get tired of it. I think it's a good thing. It brings a certain amount of flexibility to the school year, yet doesn't destroy your momentum to the point where you ever get very far behind. Plus, you tend to not forget what you have learned when you don't have a huge break.
I just looked back over my blog archives and realized that yesterday was my 2-year blogiversary. Let the bells ring out and the banners fly. How about that. ;-)
I have really appreciated the discipline that having a reading schedule has brought to our school routine. I tended to somehow let the reading aloud portion of our school day slide off the day's agenda when things got busy (which was most days). Finally I became alarmed enough to do something about it. I think that reading out loud (and reading in general) should form a major part of the school day. Every school day. The books on the Ambleside list don't have very spectacular covers for the most part, but the stories are so engaging, and I really can't think of any that I didn't enjoy. I think my second grader enjoys them too, although he pretends not to.
One of our favorites so far has been Viking Tales, by Jennie Hall. I'm not sure how much a little girl would enjoy these stories, but my boys love them. Full of adventure, history, and geography. Plenty of violence. We also like Our Island Story, by H.E. Marshall, which is British history told in story form. We're just starting to read about Duke William of Normandy, a.k.a. William the Conqueror. If you read this stuff in a history book it would be dull dull dull. But in a story book, it is sometimes hard to put down.
I am still enjoying our schedule of 3 weeks of school, one week off, year round. I thought I might get tired of it. I think it's a good thing. It brings a certain amount of flexibility to the school year, yet doesn't destroy your momentum to the point where you ever get very far behind. Plus, you tend to not forget what you have learned when you don't have a huge break.
I just looked back over my blog archives and realized that yesterday was my 2-year blogiversary. Let the bells ring out and the banners fly. How about that. ;-)
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