Quarter One Done
October 28, 2011
As hard as it is to believe, our first quarter just came to an end.
It wasn’t a bad quarter. We’re just about where we should be according to that silly plan that makes my inner school teacher squeal with glee. Leaving the last 2 weeks of a quarter free for catch-up and review still works beautifully for us. No idea where I first picked up that tip but so glad I did! :)
Integrated Algebra continues to be the most difficult thing to keep up with. The girls don’t pick it up as quickly as I did as a kid and I admit, I often find that frustrating. My brain works differently and it’s a challenge to find new and different ways of explaining it all. I just ‘see’ how it works. They need clear steps to follow, formulas to use, …. and lots and lots of practice problems!
I’m soooo glad I bought a large whiteboard. At the time it seemed like a bit of a splurge but now I can’t imagine how we’d get through this math without it. Besides being able to clearly show both girls how to solve a problem, I make full use of the different color markers to highlight each individual step on the way to a solution. They’ve found this helpful and the girls have begun to use colored pencils in their own work as well.
We’ve added a US History trivia contest to help review many of the different topics we’re touching on. I ask the questions and Dad plays along to keep them motivated. We’re pulling questions from this book. They’re challenging but the multiple choice keeps it from being overwhelming. I hand pick 3-5 questions that relate to the time period we’re studying. I love that the book has explanations for the answers and an extensive review section so we can easily look up additional information right then and there. The kids (and Dad too) love the opportunity to win a candy bar. 
Zee’s working through second grade. I still occasionally find myself getting nervous about deficits here and there. Handwriting is a great example. Two months ago his hand writing was pretty atrocious. We didn’t do much writing practice last year at all. Yikes! But I kept calm and reminded myself that we’ve got time. I’m so glad I did.
His handwriting has improved by leaps and bounds these past couple of months with very little effort. He’s also learning and enjoying cursive writing. Slowly but surely his fine motor skills are progressing and his hand strength allows for longer and longer periods of writing without getting pooped out. It’s all worked out.
So we’ll move right into the next quarter plugging along in algebra, picking up history here and there, writing and reading ….and checking off things on the list along the way. Gotta keep that inner school teacher happy 
.
