Homeschooling

I really have been enjoying spending time with the boys each morning focusing on their education. I have a new admiration for homeschooling parents.  I love when the boys call me teacher, it is too cute! I thought I'd tell you a little bit about what resources we have been using. We've been using this book to discuss our Catholic faith. Jacob and I just finished "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lesson," and for him it really worked! We are now starting the "Explode the Code" series (thanks Jessica). Raphael and I have been working on the letter sounds and identifying numbers. This week we've been focusing on the five senses.  I introduced the boys to different flavors, smells and sounds.

 

 

  

 Here is Jacob's reaction to trying a lemon.

Raphael tried a teeny tiny bit of horseradish and said "cake?!"

 

Some of our favorite reads lately include:

"Fables" by Arnold Lobel: one of my childhood favorites that the boys have just discovered.

"The Children's Book of Virtues" by William J. Bennett: this includes the stories of Ghangis Khan, St. George and the Dragon and George Washington and the Cherry Tree.

"Eric Carle's the Rabbit and the Turtle" by Eric Carle: another great book of fables and moral lessons

"And then there were Six" by A.A.Milne: we love these poems by the beloved Winnie the Pooh author.

"Polka Bats and Octopus Slacks" by Calef Brown: this was given to us by a dear friend right before Jacob was born and we still love it almost five years later!

"Where the Sidewalk Ends" by Shel Silverstein, another great book of poetry.  Sometimes you just need to read more poems to make your day brighter.

Our favorite musical CD during the past week has been "Baby Beluga" by Raffi. "Joshua Giraffe"  is our favorite song on the CD. "Day O" and "Kumbaya" come in close seconds.

 Every week I try to be ambitious and do one fun art project. This week we made handprint trees.

Raphael loves to paint, he really does.

 

 Theo is such a little snuggle bug. He loves to give hugs and kisses. He also loves to stand by the baby gate and say "outside." Every week he is learning a new word.