Mind Games

Week 12 in our year of homeschooling was all about the Three Little Pigs! We played it, and read it, and chanted it, and sang it, and finally got to the opera. It turned out to be the focus of our week, though we did a few other things too.

If you’re interested, you can find my summary of the week’s learning notes behind the cut.

Math

• Math-U-See Beta, Lessons 11 and 12 - dvd segments, student pages, and tests (rounding to hundreds, multiple digit addition with regrouping, adding money)
• played “On the Number” - Right Start Math game A55 - adding cards from your hand to make a target number (16 the first day, 21 a different day)

History

• The Story of the World Volume 1: Chapter 11: Ancient Africa, reading and review questions
• map work SP33 Africa
• read many Anansi stories including the Gerald McDermott version , Anansi Does The Impossible! retold by Verna Aardema, Anansi Finds a Fool retold by Verna Aardema, Ananse and the Lizard retold by Pat Cummings, Anansi and the Magic Stick retold by Eric Kimmel, Anansi and the Moss-Covered Rock retold by Eric Kimmel, Anansi and the Talking Melon retold by Eric Kimmel, Anansi Goes Fishing retold by Eric Kimmel, Ananse’s Feast retold by Tololwa Mollel

Science

• observed the spiders around our house
• observed the changing leaves and changing weather
• picked several kinds of wildflowers

Language Arts

• Handwriting Without Tears p.35-38, practice alphabet of capitals 3 different days
• read four of Aesop’s Fables from Learn to Read With Classic Stories, Grade 2 - “The Ants and the Grasshopper,” “Belling the Cat,” “The Boy Who Cried Wolf” and “The Fox and the Grapes”
• completed the worksheets on this story p.225-238 - skills included compare/contrast, comprehension (summarizing, story details, cause and effect, using illustrations, sequencing, main idea, characterization), critical thinking: problem solving, phonics: rhyming, word structure: syllables, grammar: verbs, writing: a newspaper ad)
• read and watched many variations of The Three Little Pigs, listened to songs, told the story ourselves, then went to see an opera version - talked at length about different ways to tell the same basic story
• read: The Three Little Pigs by James Marshall, The Three Little Pigs by Paul Galdone, The True Story of the Three Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka, The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig by Eugene Trivizas, The Three Little Pigs by Steven Kellogg, The Three Little Pigs by Margot Zemach, The Three Swingin’ Pigs by Vicky Rubin, Three Hungry Pigs and the Wolf Who Came to Dinner by Charles Santores, Where’s the Big Bad Wolf? by Eileen Christelow, Yo, Hungry Wolf! A Nursery Rap by David Vozar, The Three Little Javelinas by Susan Lowell
• discussed the use of different voice and illustrations in Pigs stories as well as Anansi stories (history)

Spanish

• reviewed introductions and greetings daily
• he also continues to use the phrase “No es justo!”

Misc.

• played with the Chessos all day Wednesday
• soccer game on Saturday - scored the first goal of the game! very focused and played well
• went to a bowling birthday party on Saturday
• Friday night went to his first “real” soccer game, got to walk on the field with the university team
• celebrated “Talk Like a Pirate Day” on Friday
• watched Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat

Reading

• Like last week, most of the books JediBoy remembered to make note of were the readers in his playroom, where it’s easiest to make an I-read-this pile. He did read all the versions of The Three Little Pigs and the Anansi stories, many, many times on his own throughout the week. The Three Little Pigs books were out in the living room, and the Anansi books were out in the office, and those became his default books for the week! Besides those 20 books, here are some of the other books that I know JediBoy read this week:

1. Sir Cumference and the Dragon of Pi
2. Lego: Castle Under Attack
3. Arthur’s Honey Bear
4. There is a Carrot in My Ear
5. Lion King: Bug Stew
6. Amelia Bedelia’s Family Album
7. Mr. Putter and Tabby Walk the Dog
8. Star Wars: Anakin to the Rescue
9. No Fighting, No Biting
10. Calling Doctor Amelia Bedelia
11. Murmel, Murmel, Murmel
12. The Land Before Time: Cera’s Shiny Stone
13. Star Wars: Anakin’s Pit Droid
14. Good Work Amelia Bedelia
15. Mr. Putter and Tabby Pick the Pears
16. Case of the Great Train Robbery
17. Star Wars: Journey Through Space
18. The Amelia Bedelia Treasury
19. Adventures of Little Bear
20. Morris Goes to School
21. TMNT: Ghoul Hunters
22. TMNT: Turtle Rescue!
23. Harry and the Lady Next Door
24. Clara and the Bookwagon
25. Pirate School
26. Poppleton
27. George Washington and the General’s Dog
28. Space Rock
29. Star Wars: Queen in Disguise
30. Tiger Tales and Big Cat Stories
31. Robin Hood: The Tale of the Great Outlaw Hero
32. Nice New Neighbors
33. A Day in the Life of a Musician
34. Fantastic Four: The World’s Greatest Superteam
35. Lego: Mission to the Arctic
36. Kung Fu Panda: Meet the Masters
37. Mrs. Brice’s Mice
38. Star Wars: Star Pilot
39. The Fire Cat
40. Morris and Boris at the Circus
41. Amelia Bedelia Goes Camping
42. Harold and the Purple Crayon: Race Car
43. What a Hungry Puppy!
44. Teach Us, Amelia Bedelia
45. Shrek 2: The Potion Plan
46. Poppleton Forever
47. A Bargain for Frances
48. Oliver
49. The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry and the Big Hungry Bear
50. Geronimo Stilton and the Valentine’s Day Disaster
51. Geronimo Stilton - Cacklefur Castle
52. Geronimo Stilton - The Mummy with No Name
53. Junie B. Jones - Pet Day
54. Junie B. Jones - Shows Off Her Big Mouth
55. Magic Tree House - Deep Dark Sea
56. Magic Tree House - Revolutionary War