Decisions

I'm going to implement that idea of everything set up for the week (only for the one) with the option of having Friday off that work if he chooses to do it all earlier. I think it could kick-start him a bit (at least maybe for a week!). I decided this upon further reflection: most of our talks result in little being done. He knows how to give the 'right answers' and just says what he thinks you'll want to hear. I think if it really got to what he wants out of math, he would only get as far as really not wanting to do math at all. He won't go past the fear. If he doesn't do grade 7 math until next year, or complete it until next year, then so be it. Stronger basic skills will make the later stuff so much easier. So much of the junior high stuff takes forever to learn if they don't have the basics mastered. And that means he'll not really master, without a calculator, how to do the junior high math and that will severely limit his math options in high school. This is not a child who is incapable; in fact, he even quickly, and very closely, estimated, a conversion from stones to pounds the other day. He does little things like that every so often.

What else have I decided? Oh yes, I've posted something that I'm offering music lessons at 2pm 3 afternoons this week. That was inspired from the Free at Last book. Next week, I might offer crochet lessons. :) I'll try this out for a while and see how it works. I can completely foresee at least one of the kids saying, "Can you do lessons on ____?" 2pm is actually after our regular work time. I have two reasons for offering the lessons at that time: to increase the 'work' time and to allow the oldest to be able to participate! Also, I can end up being so divided between kids when they have different work that they're doing, by having it at a time when everybody's done their work means I won't be pulled away to do something totally different.

Oh, I just realized I've goofed in my planning--on Tuesdays, we're usually out at 2pm, off to the library. Maybe I should change it to 1:30. I don't think the oldest has been working past that anyhow. 3 hours in the morning plus 12-1:30 means she's still getting 4.5 hours. Okay, so I'll change that.

[Totally off-topic: I'm watching tv as I type this. A Crispy Minis commercial came on with the woman deciding if she can have a snack based on her exercise level for the day and what she had for lunch. What the...? What happened to having a snack because you're actually hungry? Back to the regularly scheduled program. ;)]

So, what does my week look like?

ds: I'll ask him each day if he wants to work on writing or on reading. He's gotten into reading lately, not lots, but it's exciting for me to see his interest. All because of a Scooby-Doo rebus book he pulled out of the bookshelves. He started reading little words like "le" and "non" and can't remember what else. Then he tried to read some other words on his own. Also, if there are a bunch of random words (like the 'flash cards' you can cut out of the back of the book), if I tell him to find me a particular word, he's pretty good at picking the correct one or seeing why it isn't the word I was asking for. I found some other rebus books at the library and these have the words written in small underneath the pictures. I hope to go through those this week with him. For math, I'd really like to do the Teens Boards with him. I don't know what to call them in French. I'll have to do a search online. Also, he really wants to do more science things from this one kit, so I'll have to make sure he has the time to do that.

dd: I'll prepare some multiplication tables books for her to work on, or maybe do something with the bead bars. Something low stress! We have a French Fairytopia book to work through and I'd like to do a really simple story or maybe work on daily journalling in French. Something simple that doesn't take too long, but will help build up some confidence in writing. And she's got a ton of (English) books from the library, a box of (English) books brought over by her uncle today, her (English) story that she's writing, her Around the World project, piano, of course she'll spend some time drawing... She's a busy girl!

oldest: social studies and math. I've already worked out the questions for Mon-Tues. for math, and for social, she's going to be working on written assignments: one Monday, two on Tuesday, two on Wednesday and a last one on Thursday. Then we get to seeing what needs to be studied more in-depth for her exam the following Friday.

other: I just noticed the French Dr. Noggins packs I bought before Christmas. I'd like to do some of that with the kids this week.

Okay, that's it. Time to do something else!