Week 15 – December 11 – December 17



The James Family is enjoying getting ready for Christmas!  They are listening to and reading Christmas books and stories, watching Christmas movies and shows, listening to Christmas music, baking, decorating, doing crafts, and doing many outdoor activities.



Week 14 – December 4 – December 10

Language Arts:

Nathan continues to read LOTS of Hardy Boys books.  He is keeping track of the books he has read and he places holds at the library for the books he wants to read.  He used his handwriting skills to complete the books of the New Testament in the Bible.  He continued learning about some Christmas Carols from Christmas Carols for a Kids’ Heart by Joni.  He learned about The First Noel, Away in a Manger, While Shepherd’s watched their Flocks by Night, and Silent Night, Holy Night.  He heard the information and sang the carols.  He watched some Christmas movies including Mickey’s Once upon a Christmas and Mickey’s Christmas Carol.  He listened to the beginning of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens (original version).  Nate really enjoyed the detailed descriptions and the story! 

Math:

Nathan did lessons 9D, 9E, and 9F.  He watched the DVD for lesson 10 and did some examples of division of fractions.

Science:

Nathan spent lots of time with his dad this week.  He got to help look after the cattle and horses.  He helped feed, water, and care for them.  He also helped work on a fence to keep them in the pasture.

Social Studies:

Nathan is enjoying seeing all the Christmas decorations and recalling our family’s Christmas traditions.  He enjoyed seeing his Christmas music again!  He played Good King Wenceslas, Jingle Bells, and We Wish You a Merry Christmas on the piano.  He is learning Joy to the World.  He is also enjoying learning to play the recorder and is working on The First Noel.

Other Stuff:

Nathan attended home church with family and enjoyed singing some Christmas Carols, Hymns, and fun songs. 

He made a gingerbread man garland with his mom for Christmas.  He helped decorate the living room with the nativity scene and other decorations.

Nathan went to his final swimming lesson for the session.  He will continue in Red Cross Level 7 in the New Year.  He needs to work on his long swim and his front crawl stroke.

Nate got to go to Kamloops with his dad and take cattle to the sale. 

Nathan got LOTS of outside exercise helping his dad with chores and fencing!



Week 13 - Novmeber 27 - December 3 - Term 2 Starts

Language Arts:

Nathan went to the library and took out many books and some DVDs.  He read LOTS of Hardy Boys books this week!  He is really enjoying them.  He watched some Looney Tunes cartoons.  He started listening to Christmas music and watched some Christmas DVDs including The Christmas Shoes, The Christmas Blessing, and The Christmas Hope.  He is enjoying Joni’s Christmas Carols for a Kid’s Heart.  He sang Angels We Have Heard on High, Joy to the World, Hark!  The Herald Angels Sing, O Little Town of Bethlehem, and heard information about them.  Joy to the World’s music was written by Handel who we have been studying this week.  Nathan listened to a CD about Handel’s life and music selections.  So…we listened to For unto Us a Child is Born and the Hallelujah Chorus from Handel’s Messiah.  We also let The Messiah play while he did his math pages.

Math:

WOW!  A wonderful math week!  Nathan completed Lessons 8B, 8C, 8D, 8E, and 8F.  He watched Lesson 9 and completed Lessons 9A, 9B, 9C, 9D, 9E, and 9F.  He learned about multiplying fractions.

Science:

Nathan faithfully does his animal chores which is very important in this cold weather.  He makes sure the animals have food, water, and shelter.  He looked up information about Sir Alexander Fleming who discovered penicillin.

Social Studies:

Nathan worked on his Book of Centuries.  He added some Christmas people.  He added Handel, Tchaikovsky, and Dickens.  He listened to a CD with music selections and information about Handel.  He also listened to some selections from The Messiah including For unto Us a Child is Born, and The Hallelujah Chorus.   He also added Sir Alexander Fleming to the book.

Other Stuff:

Nathan had a fever on Thursday night when he got home from swimming lessons so he spent Friday reading Hardy Boys books and watching Christmas DVDs How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Horton Hears a Who, Arthur’s Perfect Christmas, How the Toys Saved Christmas, Prancer, and Avonlea Christmas.

Nathan went to swimming lessons.  He went early and did his laps so the pool would be a little quieter.  He is working diligently on Red Cross Swimming Level 7!

Nate went to Public Skating at the arena and had fun skating with other homeschoolers.  On the way to skating we saw a truck in the ditch.  The roads must have been very slippery in the morning.  We took some pictures of it on our way home.

Nate played some games with his mom and siblings.  He especially enjoyed Sorry, Rack-O, and Dutch Blitz.

Nate really loves music and he received a recorder from a friend.  He quickly learned the notes.  He first learned Do a Deer (from the Sound of Music) and then he learned to play The First Noel.  He plays a duet on the recorder with his mom!
Nate was feeling better on Saturday so he helped mom get out some Christmas decorations!  It's beginning to look a LOT like Christmas!!!

Week 12 - Novmeber 20 - November 26

Language Arts:

Nate continues to read LOTS of Hardy Boys books. He is keeping record of the books he reads and then he places library holds on five more books each week.

Math:

Nate played some Hooda Math Games on the computer.  He did Lessons 7E, and 7F.  He watched the DVD lesson 8.  He did lessons 8A and 8E (Review lesson).

Science:

Nate is working on a mold experiment so he read some information about fungi from Brain Pop, penicillin, and yeast.

Social Studies:

Nate worked on his Book of Centuries and got “caught up” on some Canadian people and information including Lois Riel and the Northwest Rebellion.

Other Stuff:

Nate went to his swimming lesson and did very well.  He really enjoys learning to swim and he LOVES his teacher, Claire!!!!  He also stacked wood.

Nate listened to a CD about Beethoven which plays some selected music and also tells information about his life.  He also listened to a CD called Immortal Beethoven that had all his most well-known music on it.

Nate started playing the recorder this week!  He learned the notes very fast!  I’m sure piano lessons helped because he knows the notes and the timing.  He learned to play Do a Deer (from the Sound of Music).

Nate got a haircut in preparation for the wedding he attended on Saturday.  He enjoyed watching the bride and groom get married, the reception, the food, and the cake! 

Nate enjoyed playing some games with his mom and siblings.  He especially enjoyed playing Clue, Dutch Blitz, and Sorry!

Week 11 - November 13 - November 19

It's report card time for me so Nate got to spend time with his dad!  He went to the cabin, helped load cattle, and took cattle to the sale in Kamloops!  He read many Hardy Boys books.  Nate and mom played a game with the pattern blocks! 

He didn't go to swimming lessons because he was sick.  He played darts, MasterMind, Sorry, and Clue.

Week 10 - November 6 - November 12

Well...it has been an unusual week for the James Gang!  Don went to Emergency Sunday morning...couldn't move his right arm - very painful.  We had a bon fire and roasted weiners Sunday night with friends.  Nate got to play with some homeschoolers on Monday.  On Tuesday it was off to Kamloops so Don could go to the Chiropractor.  WOW!!  What a difference it made when his back was aligned properly!!! No more pain!!  Wednesday skating at the arena and lunch at the Blue Sky with friends.  Sarah had a friend stay over for a couple of nights.  The girls took advantage of the beautiful weather and rode horses!  Another visit with a homeschool family on Thursday.  Then it was off to the Hills for Nathan's swimming lessons.   Friday Nate curled up on the couch and read LOTS - Hardy Boys!



 And Saturday Nate did chores and read lots!  And the snow is coming down!  "Schooling" for Nate is unique when mom does report card visits!!!

Week 9 - October 23 - November 5

Language Arts:
And Nathan is reading MORE Hardy Boys books!!!  He watched some DVDs including Beethoven (dog), Cougar, The Amazing Panda  Adventure, and Born to be Wild.  Nate listened to some Adventures in Oddessey tapes/CDs.  He went to the library and picked up lots of books to read.

Math:
Nate watched the DVD Lesson 7 and did the pages.  He is learning about greater than and less than with  unequal fractions.  He also reviewed division with a remainder written as a fraction.

Science:
We had a wonderful Science week!!!  We looked in some Field Guides to identify the plants in our binder.  Nate did a Scientist Report on George Washington Carver.  He is growing some mold and mildew.  He also learned about yeast, penicillin, fungi, mushrooms, and algea.

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We found a fungus!!!

Algae in the ice in the creek.

The squirrel was busy!!!

Social Studies:
Nathan really enjoyed visiting with some homeschoolers from Quesnel.

Other Stuff:
And it was pumpkin carving time!  Nathan made a "two faced" pumpkin.  We toasted the seeds and cooked the pumpkin to make pumpkin pie!

Nathan started Red Cross Swimming Level 7 on Thursday night!  He had to swim 12 lengths of the pool. 
Nate enjoyed playing Super MasterMind with his family!
He made some amazing paper airplanes.
He enjoys playing his own composition, Running River, on the piano.  Nate fixed the "broken" key on my piano.  He did some investigating and found out that there was a pencil beneath the hammer that wouldn't allow the key to press down correctly.  So he got the pencil out and my piano works perfect now!  Thanks, Nate!!!!

Week 8 - October 23 - October 29

Well...Nathan has been sick this week so we haven't accomplished mu.ch "school" this week.  Nathan has read lots especially Hardy Boys Books and he heard "Calico Captive" by Elizabeth George Speare.  He played K'Nex.  Sarah has been knitting a sweater and she taught Nathan how to cast on and knit.  It is a good thing that Sarah is left handed so she can teach Nathan (who is left handed, too)!!!  He watched some movies.  His most amazing accomplishment this week was composing his own song!  He is enjoying playing his own composition on the piano.

Week 7 - October 16 - 22

Here is a quote from our local paper in regards to the recent BC Throne Speech:

The speech promises "additional flexibility and choice" in educating students, noting "these changes will be bold and represent a significant improvement in how, when, and where education takes place."

So...hopefully this will mean "more" for learning at home!

Language Arts:

Nathan has discovered Hardy Boys! He did narration for the first book and enjoyed telling me how the mystery was solved. I asked him if he figured out the solution before the book ended and he did! He finished writing the Books of the Old Testament and made a “sign” and displayed them. He can now sing all the Books of the Old Testament! He watched some DVDs including Heartland, The Rescuers Down Under, and the old Disney Sleeping Beauty.

Math:

Nathan watched the DVD for Math U See Lesson 6. He did the six lessons and learned to cross multiply to make the fractions have the same denominator so he can add or subtract. He consistently gets 100% on his lessons.

Science:

Nate faithfully looks after his animals. He makes sure they have food, water, and shelter especially now that colder weather is here!

Nathan worked on his Considering God's Creation book.  He learned about The Plant Kingdom.  He learned about photosynthesis and parts of a flower. 

                                           

He sorted plants by what part of the we eat:  seeds, leaves, stems, flowers, fruit, or roots.  He did an experiment with a celery stalk and coloured water.  He could "see" how the plant "sucked" up the water!

Social Studies:

Nathan and I checked out some Coast Salish artists and we enjoyed looking at Susan Point's work. Check it out at: http://susanpoint.com/   We looked at some library books about Natives of the Coast and their totem poles, carvings, etc. He continues to work on his Log Cabin. A friend of ours made an Ulu (Eskimo knife) for us to use. It is amazing how it works! It is very sharp!

Other Stuff:

Nathan helped his dad fix fence so the horses can’t get out!

Nathan wasn't feeling very well for part of the week.

We had a flat tire in town and Nathan helped to change it with a guy that helped us change it!

PE:

Nathan completed Red Cross Level 6 in swimming lessons Tuesday night! Congratulations, Nathan, on a job well done! Now…on to Level 7 in the beginning of November!

And it snowed on Thursday!

It was very wet and didn't last very long but Nathan did manage to make a snowman.

Nathan also split and stacked some firewood. He played some running games with Sarah. He rides his mountain bike.  He is really enjoying his bows and arrows, slingshot, and bull whip. Nathan and I took the truck to town for an alignment and we walked around town and enjoyed going to fascination street and other stores that have toys! I think Christmas time is just around the corner and my son is dreaming!

Building:

Nathan is doing lots of building this week.  Not only is his "building" his cabin, he is also enjoying building things with K'Nex. 

He is using the solar panels and motors and batteries to make his creations move!

Sign Language:

Nathan enjoyed doing Sign Language this week.  He used a book called "Sign ABC with Linda Bove. 

 He learned to spell his name and the alphabet letters and some simple "sentences".  He also check out the online ASL program http://www.lifeprint.com

Nate saying "Hi" in sign language.

100 Mile Home Learners Stuff:

Nathan went to Public Skating on Friday and met with some fellow home learners to skate.  He enjoyed playing "tag" with his swimming teacher and her son, Zack.  He went to the library and learned about American and Canadian Thanksgiving.  He did some Thanksgiving Crafts and Thanksgiving worksheets.

Nate made a pick-up, trailer, and boat with K'Nex.

Week 6 – October 9 – October 15, 2011

Language Arts:

Nathan went to the library.  He got out many books and some Looney Tunes DVDs.  He discovered the Hardy Boys Series and started reading them.  He continued singing the books of the Bible and handwriting them.  He watched some Heartland episodes.  He heard the first ½ of The Courage of Sarah Noble and then read the second ½ by himself and then did narration.  He started listening to “Calico Captive” by Elizabeth George Speare.  He made a “Do Not Enter” sign for his bedroom door because Sarah had a friend over and he didn’t want the girls in his room!

Math:

Nathan watched the DVD for lesson 5 and did all the lessons.  He is now learning to change fractions to a “same” or “common” denominator before adding and subtracting fractions.  He watched the DVD for lesson 6.

Science:

Nathan enjoyed being outside and observing the changes in the season.  The leaves are almost all off the trees now.  The squirrels are busy gathering food for winter.  The animal’s coats are thicker now.  It has really windy and he heard many trees falling across the meadow.  There was ice on the creek that last couple of mornings!  The temperature got down to – 10 C. 

Social Studies:

Nathan is now in the process of building a log cabin.  He is notching the logs with his axe and fitting them together.  His cabin is three logs high now.  He learned about the Natives of the Plateau (our area) and the Natives of the North Pacific Coast.  He did very neat map work of the areas studied.  He was able to tell the Principal (Dad) about all 7 native groups in Canada – what they ate, where they lived, how they travelled, and many more interesting facts.  He enjoyed whittling, carving, using his slingshot and bow and arrows. 

Other Stuff:

Nathan worked with his family cutting, chopping, and stacking wood!  He helped his dad clean out the shed.  He also enjoyed playing Battleship with his mom and with the computer.  He played chess with his brother.  He rode his motor bike.  He did his animal chores faithfully.  He helped his dad set up the satellite phone with the speaker and antennae so we can use it in the house.

PE:

Nate rode his mountain bike many times, went on some walks with his mom, and helped his dad fix fence.  He played some running games with Sarah.  He had his swimming lesson on Tuesday night!  WOW!   He is doing GREAT!  Almost finished level 6!  He can only do one more level at this pool because it is too shallow for diving.  So Nate is signed up for Level 7 starting in November.

                                                                                                                                      

Baking:

Nate made pizza pops with Sarah and mom.  They sure were delicious! 

I Pad:

I Pad is still disabled.  We have instructions from the techie guy how to reprogram it but we haven’t had time to do that yet.  So Nathan has been using mom’s computer.

Music:

Nathan enjoyed playing the piano this week.  He also listened to a book about Ludwig van Beethoven from the Library Source:  Library of Famous Composers.  He learned many interesting facts about Beethoven including how Beethoven composed music even when he was deaf.  He also listened to a CD of Beethoven music called “The Immortal Beethoven” which has many of his most famous songs on it.

4-H:

Nathan and his family attended the final 4-H event of the year – the Awards Banquet.  It was a delicious meal prepared by Trish (one of the leaders).  Nathan and Sarah received many awards!  It was a great evening in recognition of all their hard work this year.

 

Week 5 - October 2 - October 8, 2011

Language Arts:
We watched a few episodes of Christy, Flywheel, and The Cowboys with John Wayne.  Nathan read LOTS of books including two Imagination Station Books he found at the library.  He is learning to sing the books of the Bible and for handwriting he wrote out the first 15 books. 

Math:
Nathan watched the Math-U-See DVD for Lesson 4 and did the lessons.  Nate is learning about equivalent fractions this week.  He would do more than required because he was enjoying math so much!

Science:
The cranes, ducks, and geese are starting to flock together in preparation for the journey south!  There are sooooooooooooooo many around here.  It is a noisy time.  But it is a couple of weeks later this year.  We also saw a hawk and a bald eagle.

It has been very windy again this week.  LOTS of trees down.

We went on a "harvest" walk.  We picked wild blueberries.  They are small but delicious!!!!

We also picked rose hips and made rose hip tea!

Nathan picked some wild mint from the meadow.  We hung it up to dry so we can make tea.

We also harvested the last of our rhubard.

Social Studies:
Nathan is making a teepee!  He has the poles up and now he is in the process of deciding what to cover it with!
   
He found his snowshoes!  I guess he's wanting the snow to come...but I'm happy with the nice weather!!!  He learned some sign language that the Natives of the Plains used to communicate.  He learned more information about the Plains Indians and he did very neat mapwork and a crossword puzzle.  He also heard some information about the Salish people.
We celebrated Thanksgiving with a full turkey dinner together as a family! 

Other Stuff:
Nathan enjoyed going to Williams Lake with his family. 
He enjoyed playing some games with his family including Chess, Chinese Checkers, and Sorry.

PE:
Nate went on a long walk to find the berries for our wild harvest.  He rode his bike.  He went to swimming lessons on Tuesday night and did very well!!!  He is really enjoying learning to improve his strokes and his endurance.  He worked with his young horse, Midnight.

I Pad:
Well...Nathan put a password on his i pad and then couldn't remember the number!  So what do we do???  WE contacted our Techie Guy and I guess we'll have start all over and redo all the apps.  I guess it is a hard lesson to learn! 

Baking:
Nathan made pancakes for breakfast.  He also helped set the table for our Thanksgiving dinner.  He helped peel the yams, too.  Nate baked peanut butter cookies with his sister.

Week 4 - September 25 - October 1

Language Arts:

Nathan went to the library this week.  He got out many books and a Looney Tunes DVD.  Wes and Nathan sure had a great laugh over the adventures!  Nathan also read a Thea Stilton book, a Geronimo Stilton book, and a Hank the Cowdog book.  He is currently reading Focus on the Family - Imagination Station Book #1 - Voyage with the Vikings.  He also heard the novel "Stone Fox".  He finished reading "Bread and Butter Indian" and did narration.  He completed the novel study of "The Sign of the Beaver",  He watched some "Christy" episodes.

Math:
Nate watched the DVD for Lesson 3 and did all the lessons. He is learning about adding and subtracting fractions.  He also watched the DVD for Lesson 4.

Science:
Nathan and I collected some flower samples and taped them into our "Considering God's Creation" binder.  Nate looked closely at the petals and flowers and recorded them in his book.

WOW!  Was it ever windy this week.  Many trees fell down.  God's power is amazing.  Nate reviewed "Considering God's Creation" information on wind.  He also flew his kites and reviewed the information from his Thames and Kosmos Kit "Kite Dynamics".

Nate used the microscope to look at rock samples.  Very interesting observations!

Social Studies:
Nate updated his Book of Centuries with some photos.  He listened to information about Natives - Eastern Woodland Farmers, Eastern Woodland Hunters, and Natives of the Subarctic.  He listened to many library books about the various Native Groups.  He completed a word search and other puzzles using the information learned to date.  He completed his mapwork very neatly and played a matching game about aspects of Native life.  He did a review with the principal (dad!!!)  The principal was amazed at the information and facts Nathan could recall.


Extra Stuff:
Nathan made some cool vehicles out of Lego.  His dad showed him how to sharpen a chainsaw.  He did some fence mending with his dad.  Nate enjoys looking after and playing with his rabbit, Speckles.  He celebrated his parent's 20th Anniversary together with his family.

                                          


PE:

Nathan enjoyed using his left handed gold clubs again this week!  He made a "golf course" to practice on.  He rode his bike a few times including to the gravel pit to work on his "mine".  It is getting quite deep into the hill.  He stacked some hay.  Swimming lessons went wonderful!  Claire said that Natham took 50 seconds off his time from last week!

I Pad:

This week Nate seems to be enjoying Brain Pop!

Bible:
Nate does daily devotions with his family. He is also learning to sing the books of the Bible!

Art:

Nate is enjoying whittling and carving.  He carved a sword and dagger from some wood her found.  He also called a little funnel.  He got to see a friend's wooden table in process.  He watched the sanding and levelling process.  He is also enjoying learning to draw using "The Drawing Textbook".  He is working on shading and perspective.

Week 3 - September 18 - September 24

Happy 17th Birthday, Sarah!!!!

Enjoying a walk in the Cariboo.



Sarah's "Just Because" cake.








Nathan enjoys drawing "country" stuff.

The quartz rock - after the fire.

Great Aunt Edith's watercolour painting of Sarah and her horse.

The original photo taken by Nathan.

Language Arts:
So...what did you read when you were 10? Nathan discovered "Huck Finn" on his i pad and he is now reading Chapter 11! He does narration and is very excited about the adventures he is reading about. He heard Chapters 16 - 19 in "The Sign of the Beaver" and he learned about Cause and Effect. He watched "Wind in the Willows" on DVD. He played Boggle (word game) with his Grandma, mom, and sister. When we got stuck on the spelling or meaning of a word Nate would look of the word on the dictionary on his i pad.

Math:
Nathan is learning about fractions of 1 this week. He did Lessons 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D, 2E, and 2

Science:
Nathan attended the final 4-H meeting of the year and handed in his record books.

He cleaned his rabbit's cage.

Nate collected some samples for his plant book. There are not very many wild flowers left but we did manage to find some for his "Considering God's Creation" plant reports. We taped them in his book.

On our family adventure we went through the fire zone from one of last summer's fire areas. It is amazing how the grass has grown up in these areas. The "trees" are just charcoal spikes. We stopped by a hill that has white stuff all over it. I thought it was garbage but what we discovered was brilliant white quartz that had been through the fire. It was very interesting with little "holes" in the rocks. So...I think we will be exploring this in more detail when we do our rock study!

We added some more rocks to our rock collection.

We saw a little snake slithering across the road so we studied it and then got our Nature's Children book and read about snakes. They really are fascinating creatures.

At the "gravel pit" Nathan had a butterfly on his back. Then the butterfly flew and landed on my leg. We were able to study the details of the wings, colours, antennae, etc. Amazing!!!!

Social Studies:

Nathan is reading "Bread and Butter Indian".

He updated some photos and information in his Book of Centuries...Hubble, Enstein, Beethoven, Charlotte Mason, and Kienan Hebert! We prayed for the safe return of this little boy and God answered our prayer! God is so good!

Nathan went on Google Earth with his dad and saw the Forest Fires in Texas.

Other Stuff:

Well...another busy week. The highlight of our week was celebrating Sarah's 17th birthday!!!!!!! Hope you have a fantastic year, Sar! We went on a family adventure and a picnic. Of course we brought along chocolate cupcakes!!!!

PE:
Nathan was given a set of left handed golf clubs! He is really enjoying learning to golf. And Sarah's dog, Bullet, chases the ball and brings it back to Nate! He rode his bike to the "gravel pit" and dug a "mine" in the hillside. He found some interesting rocks to add to our rock collection. He enjoyed a walk with his grandpa. Nathan did his swimming lessons on Tuesday at the Hills. He is learning lots and is able to swim a much longer distance now. He helped stack some hay.

I Pad:
Nate is continuing to read Huck Finn on his i pad. He enjoyed taking photos and adding "stuff" to them to make them funny. He enjoyed learning garage band piano, drums, and guitar. He also explored some drawing programs including Doodle Buddy, Crayola, and Art Sparkles.

Art:
Nathan went to visit his Grandpa and Grandma at Green Lake before they go back to the coast. Nathan had taken a photo of Sarah and her horse and entered it in the fall fair. His Great Aunt Edith used Nathan's photo to do a watercolour painting. This inspired Nathan to do some pencil drawings! He enjoys drawing "western" stuff.

Baking:
Sarah made some sourdough a couple of weeks ago so Nathan and made sourdough bread using the recipe from Barkerville. It smelled and tasted sooooooooooooooooooooooo good!

Nathan also made chocolate cupcakes for Sarah's birthday!

Bible:
Nathan does daily Bible devotions with his family. He likes to hear stories about when I was a little girl so I told him a story of when I was about his age. The pastor of our church encouraged the children to learn the Books of the Bible. He taught us a song and would give a Bible to anyone who could sing or say the books of the Bible. So...my brother, sister, and I practiced and practiced. Padre Pike came over for dinner at our home one night and brought his accordian. We all sang the books of the Bible together and then next Sunday we were presented with Bibles. Nathan went and got my very well worn white Bible off the shelf. Padre Pike even wrote my name in the front of my Bible in Calligraphy. A wonderful childhood memory! So...now Nathan and I are learning the Books of the Bible by singing the same song that I learned when I was his age!

Mechanic Stuff:
Nate helped his dad change a tire and work on an ATV.

Week 2 - September 11 - September 17

Nate's Inuksuk!!!

Nathan at swimming lessons at The Hills.

Nate enjoying his bow and arrow.

Week 2

Language Arts:
Nathan is listened to "The Sign of the Beaver" Chapters 12 - 15 and he did vocabulary, quesetions, and Bible information from the Progeny Press Study Guide - orally. We discussed "The Flood" and how many cultures have "Flood" stories. We also discussed "respect" for people and cultures "different" form our own. Nate started reading "Huck Finn" on his i pad.

Math:
Nathan watched the Math-U-See DVD Lessons 1 and 2 of Epsilon. This year Nate will be concentrating on Fractions. He did Lesson 1A, 1B, 1C, 1D, 1E, and 1F. Nate used his blocks for some of the questions and then he caught on to the pattern and was able to do the questions without the blocks. I am so thankful for the solid background Math-U-See has given Nathan. He knows his multiplication facts and division facts so well!!!!! And the skip counting songs are so helpful for recalling multiplication facts.

Science:
The week before school started Nathan and I started collecting some samples for our plant/tree unit from Considering God's Creation. We just need to buy some wide tape so we can mount our specimins in our Binder. Nate observed teh changes in the seasons...very HOT and dry to LOTS of rain and cooler temperatures. And the leaves falling off the trees and squirrels busy collelction cones for the winter.

Social Studies:
Nate started the Canada's Natives Long Ago unit study by Donna Ward. Nate did some very neat map work and listened to the introduction. The first group we will be studying are the Inuit. We did some internet research on Susan Aglukark. We listened to her sing Amazing Grace in her native tongue. We saw how her name is "printed" in her native language. We also watched some Inuit drummers and dancers and listened to some traditional Inuit music. We went to the library and got out many books about Canadian Native People. He watched "The Sign of the Beaver" DVD and it is VERY different from the book. He learned some more string games and Cat's Cradle. We checked the internet for Inuit Art and we discovered "Inuit Gallery of Vancouver" We especially enjoyed the drawings by Kenojuak Ashevak. He chopped some wood with his hatchet. He used his bow and arrow. He collected some flat rocks and made an inuksuk!!!!!


Other Stuff:
PE:
Nathan started swimming lessons on Tuesday night. He is now in Red Cross Level 6. He really enjoys his lessons with his teacher, Claire. Claire was very pleased with Nathan's stroke especially his backstroke. Nate also did MANY outdoor activities including chasing the pigs because they got out of their pen, stacking hay, riding his bike, chopping wood, bow and arrow target practice, using his bull whip, and walking.

Music:
I Pad apps - Nate especially enjoyed Beethoven's "Fur Elise". We found an "easy" piano version and Sarah is learning to play it on the piano. We got it from a great site http://makingmusicfun.net/
Inuit music - especially enjoyed Susan Aglukark

Art:
Nate explored many Inuit artists and especially enjoyed Kenojuak Ashevak

I Pad:
Nate discovered an e-book of Huck Finn on his I Pad and began reading it! He also found some interactive books that he enjoyed!

Summer Time

The James Gang had a busy summer! Here are a few things we did......

Nathan tried carding wool by hand at the Barrier Fall Fair.

We watched wool being spun into yarn.

At the Williams Lake and District 4-H Show and Sale in Williams Lake Sarah and her horse, Beauty, won first place for Senior Equitation.

Nathan enjoyed showing his horse, Frisky. They received Reserve Champion for Showmanship.

Nate also showed his dog, Pepsi, and they won the Reserve Champion for Showmanship.

Week 1 - September 4 - September 10 - Back to School

And it's "Back to Learning at Home" time for the James Gang!!

Nathan was sooooooooooooooooo happy to finally get his i pad 2!! He is enjoying learning about it and his favourite app is X Plane 9!!!!

We enjoyed being creative and working on many entries for the 100 Mile House Fall Fair.

We hope you enjoy seeing some of our entries.

Sarah entered 11 projects and won many ribbons and $24.00!!!! This is a crocheted bag she made out of plastic bags for the "recycled" category. She won first place.


Sarah won first place for her Rice Krispee "sculpture" of a mug of hot chocolate.



She also won first for her cake that looked like a plate of Chinese Food!






Nathan entered 7 items and won three ribbons and $7.00!

Nathan won second place for his ceramic wolf.




He also won second place for his pick up made out of recycled materials.




Nathan won a first ribbon for his collection of screws!

Week 1

Language Arts:

Nate listened to "The Sign of the Beaver" Chaptersf 1 - 5 and 6 -11 and he did vocabulary, questions, and Bible information from the Progeny Press Study Guide - orally. We discussed fact versue fictioin. Nate watched "Indian in the Cupboard" DVD.

Math:

Review

Science:

Nathan completed his record books for 4-H - Horse, Dog, and Rabbit. During the summer time Nathan enjoyed picking and eating various berries including wild strawberried, wild blueberries, wild raspberries, and saskatoon berries.

Social Studies:

Nate listening to Indian Captive, Julie of the Wolves, and Julie during the summer. He finished listening to Julie's Wolf Pack this week. Nate LOVED these adventures of the Eskimo girl and the wolves! He enjoyed playing and learning Cat's Cradle and other string games.

Other Stuff:

PE:

LOTS of walking and outdoor activities including playing in the sand pile, riding his bike, riding his motor bike, and riding his horse, Frisky.

Crafts:

Completed seven entries for the 100 Mile House Fall Fair. He won $7.00!

1. Screw Collection - won first place

2. Ceramic Wolf - second place

3. Pick Up Truck from recycled materials - second place

4. Painted a truck on a T Shirt

5. Photo of his sister and her horse

6. Drawing of a kerosene lantern

7. Cat's Cradle Disply - Eifel Tower, Cup and Saucer, Broom

Field Trips:

Nathan enjoyed all the exhibits at the Fall Fair and having the Cattlebelle's delicious Beef on a Bun for lunch.

We went to Williams Lake and we stopped at Lac La Hache on the way home to cool off!

I Pad:

And the biggest news of the week...Nathan got his i pad!!!! He has been waiting all summer for it! He is enjoying exploring apps and his favourite is X Plane 9!!!! He is also enjoying the Garage Band and playing "music" on the i pad.