Fourth Grade Week 6

We finished up week 6 today, and it was another fun and crazy busy week.  Here’s how it went…
Bible – Our Bible lesson was on “Fighting Against Sin.”  We read Luke 6:27-38.
Latin – This was a review week, so Caleb spent time reviewing everything he has learned thus far.
Vocabulary – This week’s lesson focused on homophones.  Caleb’s words were:  boar, bore, sweet, suite, vein, vain, metal, mettle, boulder, and bolder.
English – This week we finished another section in our Just Write book.  We worked on picking a topic, sticking to the topic, and using a web to organize details.  Caleb used these skills to create a short composition.


Reading – Due to another busy week, we opted to skip our read-aloud time this week.
Math – Caleb worked on borrowing twice, finding how many more or less, using a reference chart, adding one-digit numbers to two-digit numbers mentally, multiplying by 5, parallel lines, and carrying twice.  He continues to do really well with this math program.
Exploration – Caleb chose to learn about leaves and meerkats this week.  We were only able to focus our time on leaves due to the busy schedule.  We’ll work on meerkats next week.  He read several books from the library that discussed leaves, and then he created a simple notebooking page.

We’ve got one more week before taking another break (which will be the week that Caleb goes to his first overnight camp).  So, check back next week to see how our 4th grade learning adventure goes. 

Friends

This has been a tough subject for me in my adult life.  I’ve learned the hard way who my real friends are, and it hasn’t been all fun and games.  In fact, I’ve cried many tears, but I’m thankful for the life lessons.  In fact, as a parent, I have to share those same life lessons with my boys as they go through some friendship heartbreaks.  It’s something we all inevitably face, but I think it’s something we can all learn from.  I’d rather have ONE real, honest, and reliable friend than TEN fair-weather friends. 

My blogging friend Lin, over at Duck and Wheel With String, recently had to deal with a friendship situation with her teenage daughter.  She wrote up a fabulous analogy, and I asked if I could steal it.  She obliged.  So, here it is…

Friends are sort of like a closet of clothes:

• There are some that fit like a glove. Then there are those you have to work to get yourself into. There are a few in there that are a bit loose and you sort of have to cinch them with a belt to keep them up.  Sometimes it's worth the effort, sometimes not. 
• There are clothes that you should have gotten rid of years ago, but memories make you hang onto them--remembering the good times you had with them.
• There are seasonal clothes--the ones you only drag out for certain times of the year. In that category are special occasion clothes too--holiday clothes, wedding clothes, party clothes, camping clothes, etc.  Sometimes these are the clothes that are tried and true--no matter that you have let them sit in the back of the closet the rest of the year. But some of these are just there because you need them only a few times a year.
• There are old clothes and new clothes. There are clothes with tags still on them, as you haven't quite figured out if you like them or not yet.  
• There are warm clothes and cold clothes.  There are clothes with holes from wear and tear, but you still like them.  Some are comfy and easy to wear, while still others are sort of itchy and scratchy.  
• If you are like me, you have some clothes that are missing buttons or they have frayed edges on the sleeves or legs--but you keep those clothes because you love them just the way they are.
• And if you are married, you have to sometimes share that closet--his clothes and your clothes mix and share the space--sometimes crowding each other and wrinkling some things.  But it is a give and take, and you just sort of get used to those wrinkles because you realize it isn't something big to fight about.

How about you?  Have you learned some hard, but valuable, life lessons from your friends?  I hope that like me, it’s been something that you can look back on and see as a learning process.  Yes, it’s hard, and we may shed tears…but in the end, we’re probably better off. 

Fourth Grade Week 5

We returned from our break week refreshed, and week 5 went off without a hitch.    Here’s how week 5 went for us…
Bible – Our Bible lesson was on “Bless and Curse Not.”  We read Exodus 20, Romans 12:14, and 1 Corinthians 4:11-16.
Latin – This week’s practical Latin taught us how to say “Discipulus” and “Discipuli” (student and students, respectively).  Caleb learned that in Latin, most verbs end in the letter “o.”  His vocabulary words for the week were:  libero, narro, pugno, supero, and voco. 
Vocabulary – Caleb’s words this week were compund words.  His words were:  driftwood, waterfront, cardboard, junkyard, sunburn, beanstalk, quicksand, textbook, landmark, and gingerbread.
English – This week we stepped away from Grammar to focus on Writing.  I’m using Just Write, Book 1right now (we’ll use something else once Classical Conversations begins).  This week we discussed the beginning steps to writing a paragraph:  Brainstorming, Categorizing, and Using a Web.  Caleb used these skills to write a simple paragraph on Board Games.  ***He actually wanted to do the writing each day, and that’s a HUGE plus.  He wanted to keep going, but I had to stop him so we could do our other work.***

Reading – This week we opted to not do our read-aloud because Micah had swim lessons, and this gave us a late start each day.  It’ll be the same concern next week, so we’ll probably opt out of read-aloud time, then, too.
Math – This week Caleb worked on multiplication number lines, multiplication tables, changing word sentences to number sentences, simplifying number sentences, and adding or subtracting even tens mentally.  He seemed to be enjoying his math this week, and that always makes me happy.
Exploration – Caleb’s topics of choice this week were Rhinos and Coral Reefs.  So, we picked up lots of books from the library, and he read over them.  I also found several lapbook components on each topic.  We combined these onto a notebooking page (as opposed to doing the entire lapbook).

Caleb is really enjoying his exploration time, and I’m enjoying him being able to learn so very much.  Are you all gearing up for the beginning of school?  The public schools here start August 1st…summer is coming to an end.

Three Weeks from Today…

Caleb will leave for his first overnight camp experience.  I’ll admit, I’m already a nervous ninny, and he hasn’t even left.  He’s going to Camp Twitch and Shout, which is a camp just for children with Tourette’s Sydnrome.  While I know that he’ll be in good hands, I can’t help but worry how he’ll do.  It’s my prayer that he has a blast and makes friends with lots of children who are just like him.  When we first mentioned the camp to him, he was super excited.  His response was based on the fact that he’ll be around others who know exactly what it feels like to have Tourette’s.  They won’t make fun of him or tease him because of his tics…they’ll be totally accepting and loving. 
Caleb has some really great friends here, but it’ll be such a wonderful experience for him to meet others who know what it’s like to have tics.  That is something that Brian and I can’t share with him…we don’t know what it’s like.  So, it’s hard for us to sometimes understand…with God’s help, we try and do our best.  However, I’m so thankful that Caleb will have the opportunity to be surrounded by children who are just like him. 
Please keep us in your prayers as we prepare for this week of fun, which is July 29-August 3rd…like I said, I’m going to be a nervous ninny.  This will be his first time away from home for that long.  Granted, it’s up near Atlanta, so it’s not too far away, but still… 

Caleb’s 9th Birthday

We celebrated Caleb’s 9th birthday with friends today.  We held it at Johnny G’s, which is a local play-place with spin cars, laser tag, mini golf, soft play area, jumpers, token machines, and a few kiddie rides.  All of the kids had a GREAT time, and Caleb had a blast celebrating with some of his closest friends.  It wasn’t easy to take pictures because the children were all over the place and in different areas, but I did manage to get a few…mostly while they were sitting, eating, and watching the opening of gifts. 

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