Core G/ Ancients/ Week 13 "F" Sept. 14-19, 2015 (47th week on this core)

Core G - Ancients
Week 13 "F" 
Sept. 14-19, 2015 
(47th week on this core)

Can you see inside the box? 

Ah, it's our dear old Smedley, being super cute!  BTW, not our box, it was from a yard sale, not sure what Coldwater Creek does and don't know how to blur the print out in photo's!  The point is to see the funny kitty!  

• First week of Marching Band (alto Sax)
• First week of Choir
• First Week of LINK hs Co-op Classes 

A funny story from this week: This week Dd told me that she is NOT excited to go to college anymore.  I ask 'why', and she told me that 'just the idea of you going with me doesn't sound that fun.' Ha! Dh and I had been joking (seriously, joking!) about how I was going to go with her and how I was looking forward to some more fun college math classes; that she thought we were actually serious!  We were only joking with her, but apparently she never figured that out!  She was very relieved when we explained we had been joking!

Speaking of college---a few months ago, Dd told me that "Giz" had been asking her questions on the phone about college and voiced her concerns about 'homeschoolers going to college'.  Giz didn't think we would have a transcript or be able to take any of the standardized tests to show the colleges her abilities.  I thought long and hard - wondering if I should bring it up, or just continue to SHOW Giz (and any other family members that needed convincing) that homeschoolers do go to college.  I decided to not make a big confrontation about this issue, and just be prepared if Giz brought the issue up to me.  While visiting us two weeks ago, the Lord placed homeschool mom after homeschool mom in Giz's path and they each brought up their children to her.  Of course each of these mom's had numerous stories to tell about how exceedingly well their children were going, or did, while at college.  It was just totally providential and amazing.  These women had such super high achievers; medical school, scholarships, and lots of magna cum laud's--or something like that, that they were the highest scoring students in their colleges at their graduation.  I don't have such high goals; just for her to get a fantastic education.  I just was so amazed at how the Lord took care of answering her questions through the people we met at the picnic and at random yard sales...that just happened to be full of local homeschool families sharing their stories to strangers.  I wanted to publicly praise the Lord in taking care of that issue for me.  I didn't have to say anything---they did all the talking for me!

Last week's Indiana house update---

The family that bid for our home in Indiana has some new things to complete in order to get their loan for our home.  They have to get a "Termite Inspection" done---which should totally be easy and not a worry there...and since the wife had only started her job this month they want a full month's worth of paychecks to have proof of her keeping the job and that specific salary to satisfy their requirements for the loan. We are approving the extension of this process, and waiting to see if the bank is satisfied soon.  It should take another week for the wife to have all the paycheck stubs to show proof, and then the bank should be able to move on to the next step of making the loan.  I'm not sure how long that will take, but it does seem like this is still going forward in a positive way, just a bit slower than I ever imagined!

This weekends update: We got some paperwork from our realtor to sign, and this new forms extends the loan to Oct. 16th or 17th, 2015.  And one of the forms was a "FHA" form.  It looks like the people are applying for financial assistance from the government to get the loan.  Dh says this is probably why it is taking so many weeks for them to get a loan; since they are seeking extra help.  I am really growing quite tired of waiting on this family and never knowing if they will indeed get a loan or not; espcially when we might already be done with the whole process if another family had stepped up a few days sooner.  Now that we went down another $5,000 the interest in our home went up--our house was actually "trending" last week on Zillow!  Too bad it wasn't trending 6 weeks ago!  I hope you all keep us in your prayers as we continue to wade through this really long process with this one family.

Dh is finally able to wean himself off the Mucinex as his cold bug is getting better.

We went from having no activities to too, too many activities in one weeks time!  This week we started Dd in the Marching Band classes (playing the alto sax) and Choir at the Homeschool Building.  We also started the homeschool co-op this week; which had a few good points and a few bad points (Dd had a girl be quite rude/mean to her and this isn't something we have had to deal with before and is new for us).  And lastly, she has her "Girl's Night" with some good hs'ing friends.  So, she had an extremely social week!

We have been working on Core G, Week 13 for quite a few weeks now as we had a few different books that we needed to finish before we could move on to Week 14.  We had: Hostage Lands, Flame Over Tara, Bronze Bow, and the Ides of April.  Now that those books are done we can take a step forward.  

LINK homeschool Co-op: 3 classes:
First Period:Intro to Literature/Literary Analysis Teacher: Danielle Olander Class Fee: $8.00 This class will use the course “Teaching the Classics” from Center for Lit, taught by Adam Andrews. Each week we will watch part of a DVD seminar and then practice what was taught. By using short stories as the models and the Socratic approach (asking questions to lead a discussion) as the method, the authors systematically prepare you to analyze character, plot, theme, and other elements of fiction and literary analysis. Students are equipped with literary study tools that can then be used easily on longer works. Skills gained through this program will allow them to study any piece of literature. We will also practice writing about what we are reading and discussing. Homework: 1-2 hours per week for reading and writing assignments.

Secrets of Great Communicators Set

Second Period: Public Speaking - *2 Semesters* Teacher: Jane Heikoop Class Fee: $25 Have you looked at any job descriptions, college programs, or scholarship applications recently? They all include statements such as “excellent communication skills” or “must be a good communicator”. This class will take the fear out of public speaking and replace it with confidence. Public speaking is important for our Christian witness to win others to a biblical worldview. We will give presentations, how to speeches, and eventually short impromptu speeches. We will practice job interviews, college scholarship interviews, group discussions, how to introduce a speaker, etc. This class will include the book Secrets of Great Communicators, By Dr. Jeff Myers. Students also will use the internet to listen to assigned speeches of famous and infamous speakers which influenced others. This class will start with e-mail assignments given at home a week before other LINK classes begin and will have an additional week of class via e-mail assignments after LINK classes end, therefore students will have 12 weeks each semester. Students will learn to relax and enjoy speaking in front of a group! Homework: About 4 hours weekly

Third Period: Behind the Scenes Art Class Teacher: Liane Williams Class Fee: $8 Students in this art class will be exploring different mediums while providing advertisements, backdrops, scenery, and other types of creative support to the drama class. So much goes on behind the scenes of a production besides whispering! Those willing to commit to the performance will have the chance to help with audio/visual/stage crew. Come develop your artistic expression with the drama class, behind-the-scenes!

OUR lessons:

Bible:
In our Veritas Press Bible Program we completed the two cards and assignments on Esther, but I wanted to go ahead and finish reading the rest of the book of Esther and use our Women Of The Bible book, chapter on Esther, to finish off the week.
This week we studied Esther 9 and 10 with our Max Lucado/Life Lessons Study Bible and our Believer's Bible Commentary on those two chapters.

Our Psalm of the Week was Psalm 86:

Psalm 86

A prayer of David.

1Hear me, Lord, and answer me,

for I am poor and needy.

2Guard my life, for I am faithful to you;

save your servant who trusts in you.

You are my God; 3have mercy on me, Lord,

for I call to you all day long.

4Bring joy to your servant, Lord,

for I put my trust in you.

5You, Lord, are forgiving and good,

abounding in love to all who call to you.

6Hear my prayer, Lord;

listen to my cry for mercy.

7When I am in distress, I call to you,

because you answer me.

8Among the gods there is none like you, Lord;

no deeds can compare with yours.

9All the nations you have made

will come and worship before you, Lord;

they will bring glory to your name.

10For you are great and do marvelous deeds;

you alone are God.

11Teach me your way, Lord,

that I may rely on your faithfulness;

give me an undivided heart,

that I may fear your name.

12I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart;

I will glorify your name forever.

13For great is your love toward me;

you have delivered me from the depths,

from the realm of the dead.

14Arrogant foes are attacking me, O God;

ruthless people are trying to kill me—

they have no regard for you.

15But you, Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God,

slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.

16Turn to me and have mercy on me;

show your strength in behalf of your servant;

save me, because I serve you

just as my mother did.

17Give me a sign of your goodness,

that my enemies may see it and be put to shame,

for you, Lord, have helped me and comforted me.

(We read the Psalm in both our bible and the Believer's Bible Commentary.)

Speaking of God--we tried a new church today, and were actually met with such friendliness and kindness!  As it really should be, too!  The other church we have been going to since May has made such little effort to even say 'hello' to us.  It certainly knew the Word really well, but truly failed on the 'heart' issues---such as trying to be any bit friendly or loving to new people.  Poor Dd did not want to chuch hop any more, but we really desire to be part of a church that can be a real church "family" to us.  

We don't have a ton of work to show for our week, as it was a week FULL of new things, and new things really suck the life out of me!  On Wednesday after Dd's classes at the Homeschool Building (http://www.homeschoolbuilding.org/), I was so mentally/emotionally tired that we went home and worked on the house instead of doing our lessons!  We had officially waited the seven days of curing for the floors to be done in the living room and master bedroom, so Dd and I carried/pushed/shoved/rolled the furniture back into their spots---which took hours!  But, now we have a fairly empty dining room; as it was the store room for all our furniture this past seven - ten days!  It is so nice to be able to sit in our living room again!  We managed to get quite a few things done in regard to unpacking and fixing this week as our mental resources were used up in the new things.

Math:
Math U See: Algebra I
7A, B, C, D and test


Science: 
Apologia: Human Anatomy and Physiology:
pgs 231-242 and wrote notes along with it


Current Events:
we skipped CNN Student News the whole week!

Easy Grammar, Plus:
pg's 202-208

All About Spelling 7:
we skipped this week--we were suppose to start back with our spelling this week, and just couldn't manage it yet.  Hoping as we get use to our new schedule we will be able to accomplish more.


IEW Fix-It:
We were *suppose* to start this subject back up this week, but it also fell to the side.  We will try again next week!

She did have writing homework due for her first class of Public Speaking, which she did.

Music:
She had a "Instrument Fitting" at Marshall's Music!  She spent about an hour trying and re-trying all sorts of instruments to find out which one clicked with her.  She was partial to the the alto sax and the french horn, but landed on the sax in the end.  Now she has music practice five days a week, and her book that goes with it.

Reader: Sonlight Reader:

Ides of April (Rome, A.D. 62)

Ides of April by Mary Ray: Completed
Dd really liked this book a lot.  She thought it was particularly good and considerably better than the last few SL books she had as readers.  
Rainbow Resources summary:

Hylas is a young Greek slave in the household of Caius Pomponius, a Roman Senator involved in political schemes. When the senator is found mysteriously murdered, the household slaves (including Hylas and his mother) fall under suspicion. Hylas escapes capture long enough to enlist the aid of a young tribune, Camillus Rufus. The desperate attempt to unravel the threads of the political intrigue carries Camillus into the presence of Nero and brings Hylas into contact with the new secret sect of Christians.

Our FUN Read Aloud:

Hobbit

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien: In Process
We've listened to this book on audio; a few times, and I never got that clear of an image in my brain of the story until my reading it aloud to Dd.  I always liked the book, but now with me reading it aloud, I am super-impressed with it.  It amazes me how some books go so well with an audio, like the Little House on the Prairie books, and others just don't work as well, **for me**.  I have to say, Dd has listened on audio, read it to herself, and now is listening to me read it, and she *got* each version.  But, I have improved my rating of this story after reading it aloud.  So, if you never were super impressed with this book after hearing it on audio; perhaps you could give it a try as a reader or a read aloud?!


SL Read Aloud:

Flame Over Tara

2004

by Madeleine Polland and Omar Davis

Flame Over Tara: In Process
by Madeleine Polland 
We are really liking this book so far--this book is set in Ireland, and the Priest Patrick comes to the land to spread the good news of Jesus.  It has been interesting to read about the druids, and how they must have been so opposed to Christian ways taking over the ground that they had swayed for so long.  It is beautifully written and creates a very picturesque view of the land and sea.


Fun Books that Dd is reading:

Percy Jackson's Greek Heroes

Aug 18, 2015

by Rick Riordan 

Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson's Greek Heroes: In Process 
She is almost done, she just has the last section on Jason to read yet.  She is totally loving this book!

The Maze Runner (Book 1)

Aug 24, 2010

by James Dashner

The Maze Runner by James Dashner: In Process

Princess Ben

May 4, 2009

by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

Princess Ben by Catherine Gilbert Murdock: In Process
She has read this book at least 2 or 3 times already, but it is one of her favorites and she likes to revisit her friend!


Fun Audio:
By the Shores of Silver Lake, narrated by Cherry Jones---who does such a great job on these books!

By the Shores of Silver Lake (Little House): IN PROCESS

Apr 8, 2008

by Laura Ingalls Wilder and Garth Williams

I am working on our Christmas gifts---should be finishing my third gift tonight...so close to being done.  I wish I could share pictures; but the gift I am working on might just be for you!  I'm knitting a lot!

May the Lord bless each of you and fill you with peace and faith!