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Back-to-School :: 2013-2014
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| Back-to-School Schultutes |
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| Playmobil Child’s First Day of School |
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| The boys were surprised by a little extra treat in the bottom of their cones… |
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| … Series 11 Minifigures! |
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| Pretty Pink and Pink Princess Crayons for my little pink lovin’ princess! |
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| Patron of Students Back-to-School Treat |
Back-to-School Schultütes {Simplified}
Directions:
- Apply glue to one end of the paper. I used a glue stick (instead of a hot glue gun) since my cones were smaller this year.
- Roll the paper into a cone shape and trim the point off the top of the cone to make it flat.
- Secure the top with a couple staples.
- Cover the seam with a strip of decorative tape if desired. (I cut a piece of patterned duck tape for the boys cones and some pretty nesting doll tape for the girls similar to this!)
I had a few fun school themed supplies and snacks (they haven’t had before) for each of the children (you can see Twinkle Toes’ pictured above) but the notebooks and color pencils ended up not fitting. I kept them out and gave those to each of the children separately. I didn’t use them this year, but you can find my printable Schultütes treat tags in this post.
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| Playmobil Child’s First Day of School |
Back-to-School Daybook :: September 10, 2013
Outside my window…
we must be having the annual “Fall Needle Drop.” There are pine needles everywhere! Sean just showed the boys how to operate his Stihl Gas Blower and it only takes them a few minutes to clear the deck and driveway. Yay! Now that the smoke has cleared from all the wildfires we are hoping to spend lots of time reading outside on the porch this fall and enjoying our beautiful weather!
I am thinking…
about our school plans and the best way to fit everything into our schedule, yet still leave plenty of free-time for play and exploration. That’s important too!
I am thankful…
that our busy summer has come to an end! It was so exhausting much fun but I am looking forward to more time at home, reading lots of great books with the children, and working on re-establishing good habits and routines.
Learning all the time…
Have I mentioned lately how much I love IEW’s Student Writing Intensive courses? They have been perfect for our children! Last week Chiquita wrote her paper on Desert Tarantulas. This week I think I will substitute the “Pillbug” assignment for a paragraph on Crater Lake. I love that it can easily be modified to incorporate whatever it is we are studying.
Celebrating the liturgical year…
We headed back to the coast for another Latin Mass the Sunday before last. All the traveling has been difficult (especially since we still don’t have a vehicle with enough seat belts for everyone – at this point I’m tempted to skip the big van and just go with a small motorhome!) but it has definitely been worth the extra effort.
From the kitchen…
Apple Puff Pancakes, our absolute favorite breakfast this time of year! I need to make sure and pick up some more apples the next time I am in town.
I am working on…
responding to emails and comments. It is going to take a long time to catch back up, since so many other obligations come before my time on the internet. I’m doing my best. Thank you all for your patience and understanding!
I am creating…
back-to-school treats and a simple (much smaller) version of our usual Schultütes to give the children today, to celebrate the beginning of our new school year. I’ll try and post a few more pictures later today or tomorrow.
I am going…
to try and post some pictures from Twinkle Toes’ birthday this week. We’ll see if I can squeeze it in…
I am hoping…
to find an alternative to Scribd for document hosting, since so many of you have been having difficulty downloading my Little Flowers Documents.
I am praying…
for Rascal’s godparents who are expecting another baby next spring, after an 11 year gap following their 5 boys. We are all so excited for them!
I am reading…
more about Crater Lake in B is for Beaver and M is for Majestic: A National Parks Alphabet!
Pondering these words…
from the second reading at Mass a couple weeks ago:
I am listening…
to The King of the Golden City with the children. Next we will move on to The Magician’s Nephew. Oh, how I love good audiobooks!
Around the house…
Back-to-School Blessings
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| Panoramic Picture of Crater Lake taken from the Observation Station with my iPhone |
The first week of our 2013-2014 school year may not have included our usual “back-to-school traditions,” (perhaps we will get to those this week) but it sure was nice to spend Tuesday-Sunday with dear friends who happened to be visiting from the midwest!
We may not have celebrated Our Blessed Mother’s birthday this past weekend with our usual birthday cake, but we did visit the breathtakingly beautiful Crater Lake (the cleanest and bluest lake in the world) and pray the rosary for peace!
Today we have been enjoying some much needed downtime and tomorrow will be our “official” first day of school for the new school year, even though the children are really learning all the time… One of the many benefits of homeschooling!
A Quick Hello and a Giveaway!
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| Dressed up and coloring pictures from Caroline’s Color and Craft on Twinkle Toes’ 10th Birthday |
Anyways, while we are busy having fun with friends, it’s time for another giveaway here at Shower of Roses. Over the past couple years I have purchased a few beautiful dresses for my girls from Cheri at Ashley’s Attic and she has offered to give an Apron and Bonnet set to one of my visitors! You can see my girls wearing the Josefina and Kirsten dresses in the Josefina Birthday and An Early American Pioneer Birthday posts. Twinkle Toes also received the Caroline Abbott dress last Christmas which she wore again last week on her 10th birthday! I have been so impressed with the quality and durability of these dresses and look forward to purchasing more (perhaps a dress for Rose!) from Ashley’s Attic in the future!
The winner of this giveaway will receive a handmade Bonnet and Apron in their choice of either Regular (fits best 5 to 9 year old) or Large (fits best 10 and over). The color will be chosen by Cheri, since this is an extra busy time of year for her as well.
If you would like to be entered in this giveaway, just leave a comment on this post, and make sure your email address is either linked on your profile or included in the comment so that I am able to contact you if you win.
For an extra entry visit Ashley’s Attic and then come back and tell me which dress/item is your favorite, or help me decide which dress I should purchase for Rose! The “Wendy” dress is one of my own favorites… Isn’t it just darling!?! 🙂 (Ooh! I love this one too, and it’s pink! So many beautiful choices, it is so hard to pick a favorite!)
UPDATE: Thank you all for participating! Congratulations to texasgal! I’ll be contacting you soon for your size preference and mailing information. I hope your daughter enjoys her new bonnet and apron!
Our 2013-2014 Curriculum Plans and Checklists
Our new school year begins next week! This coming year our oldest boys will be going into 7th and 6th grade, the older girls will be 4th and 3rd, and Snuggles will be in 1st grade. Rose (3) and Bud (1) will have lots of fun with all sorts of “school time toys” and perhaps some of the Little Saints Pre-School themes. The following is a list of our curriculum plans for 2013-2014:
Captain :: 7th Grade
Math:
Saxon Math 7/6
Various Math Games for Reinforcement including: Math-It, Equate, and Speed!
Student Writing Intensive Continuation Course: A
Supplementing with: Ancient History-Based Writing Lessons
Phonetic Zoo, continue Level B
Fix It! (applied grammar – finish Tom Sawyer)
Editor in Chief B-1 (applied grammar)
The Book of Roots
Novel Inquiries: Ancient Civilizations (The Golden Goblet, Tirzah, Hittite Warrior and The Children’s Homer)
History & Geography:
Connecting with History Volume 1: A Guide to Salvation History
Old Testament and Ancient Cultures
- Bible History with Workbook (Core Text)
- Encyclopedia of Ancient History (Core Text)
- Old World and America (Core Text)
- Additional Literature, Family Read-Alouds and Independent Reading
Maps Charts and Graphs Level G: The World
Continue/Complete State-by-State Scrapbook
Asia and Australia Continent Study (CCM Alpha)
Science:
Concepts and Challenges in Science Book 1 (Physics & Earth Science)
and Concepts and Challenges in Science Book 2 (Metric System, Biology & Chemistry)
TOPS Learning Systems: Electricity 32 and Perfect Balance 31
Snap Circuits
Science Activities and Nature Sketching (CCM Alpha)
Latin:
Latina Christiana 1
Ludere Latin 1
Music & Art:
Lingua Angelica 1
Continue Composer Study
Meet the Masters Track A
Memory Work:
Physical Education & Other Activities:
Scouts of St. George
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| Some of our Core Texts for the year Including: Bible for Young Catholics, Ancient World, Bible History Workbook, Bible History, New Catholic Picture Bible, Encyclopedia of Ancient History, The Old World and America and Founders of Freedom |
Math:
Saxon Math 7/6
Various Math Games for Reinforcement including: Math-It, Equate, and Speed!
Student Writing Intensive Continuation Course: A
Supplementing with: Ancient History-Based Writing Lessons
Phonetic Zoo, continue Level B
Fix It! (applied grammar – Finish Tom Sawyer)
Editor in Chief B-1 (applied grammar)
The Book of Roots
Novel Inquiries: Ancient Civilizations (The Golden Goblet, Tirzah, Hittite Warrior and The Children’s Homer)
History & Geography:
Connecting with History Volume 1: A Guide to Salvation History
Old Testament and Ancient Cultures
- Bible for Young Catholics (Core Text)
- Ancient World (Core Text)
- Old World’s Gifts to the New (Core Text)
- Additional Literature, Family Read-Alouds and Independent Reading
Maps Charts and Graphs Level F: Eastern Hemisphere
Continue/Complete State-by-State Scrapbook
Asia and Australia Continent Study (CCM Alpha)
Science:
Concepts and Challenges in Science Book 1 (Physics & Earth Science)
and Concepts and Challenges in Science Book 2 (Metric System, Biology & Chemistry)
TOPS Learning Systems: Electricity 32 and Perfect Balance 31
Snap Circuits
Science Activities and Nature Sketching (CCM Alpha)
Latin:
Latina Christiana 1
Ludere Latin 1
Music & Art:
Lingua Angelica 1
Continue Composer Study
Meet the Masters Track A
Memory Work:
Physical Education & Other Activities:
Scouts of St. George
Twinkle Toes :: 4th Grade
Math:
Saxon Math 5/4
Various Math Games for Reinforcement including: Math-It, Equate, and Speed!
Student Writing Intensive Continuation Course: A
Supplementing with: Ancient History-Based Writing Lessons
Phonetic Zoo Level A
Fix It! (applied grammar – continue Tom Sawyer)
Handwriting
Roots of English
Additional Literature:
- Olivia and the Little Way (with discussion guide)
- Eight Cousins (One of my childhood favorites, given to me by my grandmother on my 10th birthday in 1988, which had also been given to her when she was 11 by my Great-Great-Aunt Viv on Christmas in 1940! It’s falling apart so I’ve ordered a new paperback copy for the girls to read.)
- All-of-a-Kind Family
- The Secret Garden (I have the 1987 version illustrated by Graham Rust which my parents gave me for Christmas, also in ’88 when I was 10, and the girls will be given copies illustrated by Tasha Tudor and Inga Moore this year.)
- Various other books as time allows…
History & Geography:
Connecting with History Volume 1: A Guide to Salvation History
Old Testament and Ancient Cultures
- Bible for Young Catholics (Core Text)
- Ancient World (Core Text)
- Old World’s Gifts to the New (Core Text)
- Additional Literature, Family Read-Alouds and Independent Reading
Maps Charts and Graphs Level D: States & Regions
Continue 50 State-by-State Study with Baking and Notebook Pages
Continue American Girl Unit Studies (as time allows)
Asia and Australia Continent Study (CCM Alpha)
Science:
Focus on Middle School Chemistry with Laboratory Workbook and Teacher’s Manual
Focus on Middle School Biology with Laboratory Workbook and Teacher’s Manual
Behold and See 4: Human Anatomy and Health
Science Activities and Nature Sketching (CCM Alpha)
Latin:
Latina Christiana 1
Ludere Latin 1
The New Baltimore Catechism No. 1
Faith & Life 4 – Jesus Our Guide
Rare Catholic Stories
Saint Stories
Music & Art:
Lingua Angelica 1
Continue Composer Study
Meet the Masters Track A
Memory Work:
Physical Education & Other Activities:
Piano Lessons
Irish Dancing
Sewing Classes and Sewing With Saint Anne
Chiquita :: 3rd Grade
All About Spelling – Level 3 and Level 4
Wordly Wise Book C
Handwriting
Additional Literature Including:
Latin:
History & Geography:
Connecting with History Volume 1: A Guide to Salvation History
Old Testament and Ancient Cultures
- New Catholic Picture Bible (Core Text)
- Usborne Time Travelers Core Text)
- Founders of Freedom (Core Text)
- Additional Literature, Family Read-Alouds and Independent Reading (including some of these)
Maps Charts and Graphs Level C: Communities
Continue 50 State-by-State Study with Baking and Notebook Pages
Continue American Girl Unit Studies (as time allows)
Asia and Australia Continent Study (CCM Alpha)
Focus on Elementary Chemistry with Laboratory Workbook and Teacher’s Manual
Focus on Elementary Biology with Laboratory Workbook and Teacher’s Manual
Science Activities and Nature Sketching (CCM Alpha)
Religion:
The New Baltimore Catechism No. 1
Faith & Life 3 – Our Life With Jesus
Catholic Tales for Boys and Girls
More Catholic Tales for Boys and Girls
Physical Education & Other Activities:
Irish Dancing
Sewing Classes and Sewing With Saint Anne
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| Our Historical American Girl Lap Books – many are still in progress |
Snuggles :: 1st Grade
Saxon 1
Language Arts:
Primary Arts of Language: Writing and Reading
All About Spelling Level 1 and Reading Level 1
Supplementing with Explode the Code
History & Geography:
Connecting with History Volume 1: A Guide to Salvation History
Old Testament and Ancient Cultures
- New Catholic Picture Bible (Core Text)
- Usborne Time Travelers Core Text)
- Founders of Freedom (Core Text)
- Additional Literature, Family Read-Alouds and Independent Reading (including some of these)
Maps Charts and Graphs Level A: The Places Around Me
Asia and Australia Continent Study (CCM Alpha)
Science:
Focus on Elementary Chemistry with Laboratory Workbook and Teacher’s Manual
Focus on Elementary Biology with Laboratory Workbook and Teacher’s Manual
Science Activities and Nature Sketching (CCM Alpha)
Apples, Bubbles and Crystals: Your Science ABCs (with our Alphabet Path)
Religion:
First Communion Preparation
St. Joseph First Communion Catechism
Memory Work:
Classically Catholic Memory: Alpha
Continue Along the Alphabet Path *If time allows – We only completed Aa, Bb, Cc and part of Dd last year. As the other children get older, and their school work is more demanding, it is definitely more challenging for me to find the time for all the fun activities for my younger ones! Apparently there is just only so many things I can add before some things have to go… 😉 I am really hoping we can at least continue this year. We’ll see! In the meantime, Snuggles loves loves LOVES PAL (Primary Arts of Language). It is such an excellent program, very solid and yet complete with lots of fun and games too!
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| My crate of file folder games for with PAL – Yes, I used black file folders. I think they look so much prettier than regular manilla file folders, plus I have a whole case of them! 😉 |
- Celebrating the Liturgical Year (as always)
- Connecting with History Volume 1: A Guide to Salvation History
- Classically Catholic Memory: Alpha
- Continue Linguistic Development through Poetry Memorization
- Meet the Masters Track A
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| Z is for Zeus: A Greek Mythology Alphabet and Greek Blocks |
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| For those who don’t want to spend the money on the complete set (though I do think it is worth the cost!), the Teacher Text would be a great place to start and a large portion of the program (minus the Geography and Timeline – though I suppose one could make their own set of timeline cards) can be completed with just this text. |
I have my Catholic Daily Planners all ready to go as well as my current Saints Calendar and Planner (you can purchase the new 2013-2014 version here). I also have a few binders filled with all my lesson plans and checklists. I use the actual lessons plans that come along with the Student Writing Intensive and Continuation Courses. (I keep all the handouts with the lesson plans and give them to the children as they need them.) Another binder has all the new daily lesson plans for Connecting with History! (I am so excited about these! The hardest part when we last used this program was trying to figure out what to do each day. These will be so helpful to use as a guide.) And my third binder (my pretty Black Damask Martha Stewart binder) contains all the color-coded checklists!
Our Little Saints Preschool
I’ve used Little Saints Preschool with all of our children.
When our oldest was in Preschool (back in 2003-2004) I nearly burned myself out on homeschooling that very first year, trying to “do it all!” I remember spending most of the summer in 2003 collecting all the books (all of our local libraries were closed down at that time due to budget restraints), art supplies, and cutting out countless pieces of felt and paper for all the activities in the program, combining Little Saints with Mother of Divine Grace from 2003-2005.
The following year (2005-2006) seemed like a breeze when I decided to just enroll Captain in Seton for Kindergarten, even though Seton (as a whole) ended up not being the right fit for our family… Since then I’ve continued to use bits and pieces of the Little Saints Preschool program with the rest of the children. Of course, like everything we do, I love to modify and expand on the themes with some of our own ideas, books, snacks, and recipes. The themes are a great place to start though, and the book is filled with all sorts of suggestions.
Below you will find links to a few of the weekly themes that have made it on to the blog. I will continue to add to this post as time goes on…. Perhaps by the time all our children my grandchildren have made it through preschool there will be links to all the themes. However, I’m not making any promises! 😉
2008-2009 (Twinkle Toes and Chiquita)
I Belong to God (Theme #1)
Having Fun with the Alphabet (Theme #2)
My Five Senses (Theme #3)
Number Fun (Theme #4)
Winter Fun (Theme #22)
2011-2012 (Snuggles)
I Belong to God (Theme #1)
Alphabet Fun (Theme #2)
Colors/Guardian Angels (Theme #9)
2016-2017 (Rose and Bud)
Alphabet Fun (Theme #2)
Fall Is Here! (Theme #10)
2022-2023 (Grace and Joy)
I Belong to God (Theme #1)
Alphabet Fun (Theme #2)
My Five Senses (Theme #3)
Number Fun (Theme #4)
Colors/Guardian Angels (Theme #9)
Fall is Here! (Theme #10)
Other Links for Preschool:
{pretty, happy, funny, real} :: From My iPhone
From Instagram/Facebook last Sunday: I couldn’t help but smile during Mass this evening (after nearly missing due to one more little cross- aka trouble walking/pinched nerve in my back) when I looked up and realized I was kneeling right next to the fifth station. I immediately recalled the encouragement from a dear friend this past week who said “Look ’em in the eyes (my crosses-we all have them!) and carry them even more resolutely now! Or Jesus will soon send you a Simon of Cyrene for a while;)” I think I’m about ready for Simon to show up… or at least another Advil! 🙂
I’m feeling much better this week. Well, I can walk at least, and I haven’t been moving any more furniture. I don’t know what I was thinking last Friday/Saturday when I decided, after a way too busy and emotional week, that I might as well give the schoolroom to Snuggles and Bud now, before our new school year begins. It started with moving the crib out of the girls new room, and taking the toddler bed to Rose’s new room, which meant I needed to take down down one of the big girls old beds to make room for the toddler bed. Then my desk (from the school room) was moved to my room. The single bed in the boys room was taken apart to set up in the schoolroom (until we can purchase a bunk for the little boys, after Bud is a little safer around ladders). The two white desks from the schoolroom went to the older boys room, under the window where the single bed was before. The changing table/dresser (from Rose & Bud’s old room) went to the school room. Then I reset up the twin bed and crib (as a toddler bed) in the school room for Snuggles and Bud. Oh, I forgot the bookcases! A small wooden bookcase went from the big boys room to the little boys new room, and two of the white bookcases from the school room went to the big girls bedroom. The stacking shelves went out to the dining area (our official new “school room”). Yep, I was a little busy and pushed myself (with the help of our oldest boys) a little too hard. I somehow managed to pinch a nerve and could barely walk by Saturday night. I am still trying to find homes for some of the stuff that had been stored in the schoolroom, which is stacked and lining my hallway at the moment. It is going to be a huge adjustment for me, not having that room anymore (it had started to function as more of an office/storage room for me), but we will make it work.
“C” is for Cookies, Corn, Cowboys, and The Church!
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I wrote the above and started this post back in November… Months later, right when we were about to Continue it was time for a Conclave! After that we just Didn’t get much Done Along the Alphabet Path for the Duration of the school year. We are hoping to continue this fall…
In the meantime here is what we Completed for Cc!
Chocolate Chip Cookies and a Cat drinking Cream
Snuggles colored this picture from My Book of Letters last school year…
I pulled out the rest of the activity pages for the letter C…
He sounded out the names of four pictures and figured out which three began with the sound “c.” He also made the letter C with Wikki Sticks and our Wooden Letter Pieces.
We also read Cowboy ABC and B is for Buckaroo: A Cowboy Alphabet
(while wearing Cute new “Cowboy Clothes of Course!”)
For the letter C Snuggles crafted a clownfish for his Ocean Box.
(The Ocean Box is one of the things we aren’t planning on continuing for the rest of the Alphabet since we are adding in a complete Science Course for Chemistry and Biology this coming year. We will continue the coloring book and Apples, Bubbles and Crystals Science)
… and Choose pumpkins to Carve
Crazy Cowboy!
C is for Church
Show Compassion is the theme for this week’s Writing ABC’s on Little Hearts by Pondered In My Heart. Snuggles colored the picture and added it to his book.
), St. Christopher (An Alphabet of Saints), and St. Charles Borromeo & St. Catherine of Siena (S is for Saints) we also read a few picture books about these saints:
from My A to Z Recipe Box: An Alphabet of Recipes for Kids.
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