"It is better to light a candle than to complain about the darkness."
This academic school year has begun. I felt ready, ready for a change. We went to Red Butte Gardens our first day. In the Lobby, a few ladies asked the children when they started school. They replied they were homeschooled and this was the first day. I always wonder how people will respond to the different drumming of homeschool. One lady thought a moment and said it was good to learn about nature. Yes, we are grateful to get to learn in beautiful places about beautiful things. We saw caterpillars and chrysalises. We sketched a field guide of our favorite plants. There was imaginative play and friends.
We went to the Ancient Life Museum and Della was enthralled with the exhibit on amber.
We settled into a flow of memory work, exercise (we were all sore) Saxon math, math facts, The Good and Beautiful language arts, the reading and music. It was bumpy of course with cooperation on a spectrum of rebellion to submission.
For the weekend we gathered at grandma's for a scout day camp with merit badges, cousins and some fun memories.
We read a few chapters on ancient history with the Fertile Crescent civilizations and Egypt.
Our science readings were about Fairy rings, shorebird migration, the 100th meridian of longitude and rain shadows, how hurricanes are named, howling grasshopper mice and ovoviviparous snakes.
Art was all about listening skills, waiting for directions and drawing step by step kawaii objects from around the world. They turned out “cute.” Kawaii means cute in Japanese.
We had a poetry tea party with Oreos since our main water line was broken and we were without water for two days. Note the water bottles.
We had an author event with the Read Aloud Revival resources. The children were all laughing with Henry Cole as he shared childhood stories. Mr. Cole taught to follow your passion and have a sense of humor.
Then fevers hit us, one after the other. Grumpy moments, sad moments, and lots of sleep followed. We read an entire book aloud, The Brothers Lionheart. It is tender, treacherous and teaches bravery and brotherhood.
The finish line was creeping our way through writing our letters. Here they are.
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