The Solar Eclipse

I am glad we got to kick off our home school year with a very exciting science unit, culminating in today's solar eclipse with over 90% coverage in our area.  We studied earth's patterns and the solar system for three weeks.

Then Ella had the opportunity to take a class at the Cincinnati Observatory.  Sitting at the sidelines of this class, I was really proud to see Ella raise her hand to answer questions and knowing such facts as the sun being the center of our solar system, one million earths being able to fit into the sun, and the sun giving us light, heat and energy.

Solar prints

And today, we met up with fellow home schooling friends for an eclipse lunch and viewing.

I think the adults in attendance were even more excited than the kids about seeing this eclipse.  We're already looking forward to 2024 when we will be just a short drive from the path of totality.

Photos Of The Day

First Graders

100 Hours Of Home School

We have completed our first one hundred hours of the 2017/18 home school year.  We're pretty proud of ourselves and Ella earned a treat.

My favorite Ella exclamations from these first five weeks are below.

After watching shadows move for a morning, "Oh my gosh, so the earth moves and we don't even feel it?!"  Clasped hand over mouth.

Completing a work sheet at the grocery store, she answered the question What's your cashier's name and why is it nice to use people's names? with: "Telem. It's nice because then you don't have to say hey, dood."

After taking a look at a proportionate representation of the sun and the earth, "So we're just a speck?  Like Horton Hears a Who?  A speck?!"

This first month of home school has been more fun than not and Ella has certainly learned a lot.  Here's to the next 100 hours - cheers!

Picture Of The Night

Last night, Ella had a home school lesson under the open sky, watching the meteor shower.  We saw several meteors light up the night, talked about astronomy, and made memories.

Both closed their eyes to avoid the flash

Picture Of The Day

Home School 2017/18

For the 2017/18 school year and after very careful consideration, Craig and I have decided to home school Ella as a third grader.  Our school year started officially on July 10 and we are so excited to have logged over 60 hours of instruction already - 900 are required by the State of Ohio for any given school year.  Ella will be working with both Craig and me as well as with a certified intervention specialist who will come to our home for four to six hours a week.  Our beloved Ms. Rie, who is a Montessori certified educator, will take Ella on field trips at least twice a month.

We work daily on math, spelling, writing, reading and PE.  We work in units for art, music, science and social studies.  We have already completed our social studies unit on the Pledge of Allegiance and are now focusing on science with patterns in the sky and the solar system, culminating on August 21 with the solar eclipse.  Health and safety are easy and enjoyable to teach at home - Ella made banana bread for her first lesson in this content area.

Ella working on her spelling

So far, the flexibility of home school is wonderful as we have already had two field trips, can easily incorporate neurological re-organization therapy into our day, and can tailor our lessons to Ella's academic strengths and weaknesses as well as to real life happenings, such as the solar eclipse.  Home school allows us to meet Ella's sensory, social and emotional needs, minimize distractions, work at just the right pace, and give Ella time to continue bonding and attaching.

Wish us luck as we venture down this road for the first time and feel free to let me know of any great resources you might come across for our third grade home schooler.