Completed Books 3/8/10

Marcus:  Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride, Pam Ryan, The Secret of Droon:  The Fortress of the Treasure Queen (115 pages), Tony Abbott.

Lella:  The Secrets of Droon:  The Coiled Viper (117 pages), Tony Abbott, The Secrets of Droon:  The Ice Caves of Krog (114 pages), Tony Abbott, The Pizza Book, Stephen Krensky, Foxes, Sandra Markle.

Both:  If You Give a Cat a Cupcake, Laura Numeroff, Too Many Toys, David Shannon.

Completed Books 3/6/10

This week the children read two books that were a bit dark, although comical.  Both books warranted discussions about behavior, bad attitudes, blessings, obedience, and worldliness.   

Marcus and Gabriella both laughed out loud reading Sideways Stories from Wayside School (p. 118), Louis Sachar.  The humor is a bit dark and there were a couple of chapters we had to talk about (chapter 20 in particular), but overall, this book is a fun, silly one to read.

Together this week, we read Matilda (240 pages), Roald Dahl.  We listened to Ron Keith narrate this book as we read along.  I am not sure if we would have enjoyed it as much if not for Keith's superb ability to capture the voices and attitudes of each character in the book, particularly the Trunchbull, the headmistress of Matilda's school who is simply awful!  Again, we had to have several discussions about respect for authority, and also what a blessing it is to be raised by loving parents who fear God.

We also just completed Rosemary Sutcliff's Black Ships Before Troy, The Story of THE ILIAD (125 pages).  I read this aloud while the kids followed along.  It took us a while to finish this book, but it was worth it!  Sutcliff has truly created an accessible version of this classic tale and the illustrations are beautiful and appropriate.  I suspect Marcus may re-read this on his own in the near future.  I would recommend reading this out loud the first time through.

Other books completed this week:
Marcus:  The Secrets of Droon:  Flight of the Genie (122 pages), The Isle of Mists (122 pages), Tony Abbott.

Lella:  The Secrets of Droon:  Dream Thief (122 pages), Search for the Dragon Ship (122 pages), Tony Abbott, Fantastic Mr. Fox (Movie Storybook), Roald Dahl, Foxes (44 pages), Emilie Lepthien, One Giant Leap, The Story of Neil Armstrong, Don Brown, King Midas and the Golden Touch (32 pages), Charlotte Craft.

Both:  Bad Kittie Gets a Bath (125 pages, but really easy), Nick Bruel, Mr. Semolina-Semolinus, A Greek Folktale, Anthony Manna.

Time Cat, The Lost Flower Children, and Completed Books 3/2/10

 

Gabriella just finished Time Cat (235 pages), Lloyd Alexander, and said, "It was one of the best chapter books I've ever read."  When asked why, she replied, "Because I learned about Don Diego.  It was funny that the Egyptians thought Gareth was a god. Also, I liked the ending because it was all a dream."

Marcus just finished The Lost Flower Children (188 pages), Janet Lisle.  He said he loved it because, "There was a book within the book that said there was a horseshoe garden and children were playing inside it.  Green-skins did a transforming spell and the children became droopy flowers.  To break the transforming spell, you must find eight cups and one teapot.  This is hard to do.  If you find one or two it does not count.  The story is a 'come true' story because there are eight cups and a little teapot in Aunt Minty's garden."

Other completed books:  

Marcus:  Pirate School-Ahoy, Ghost Ship Ahead! (64 pages), Brian James, Pirate School-Attach on the High Seas (64 pages), Brian James.

Lella:  The Persian Cinderella, Shirley Climo, Snoring Beauty, Bruce Hale, The Rooster Crows, A Book of American Rhymes and Jingles, Maud and Mishka Petersham.

Finally, for those adults (and possibly teens) out there who enjoy a good mystery, I just finished a delightful, very British, book called The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, Alan Bradley.  

Flavia De Luce, the 11-year old heroine in this story, is not only a chemist with a passion for poisons, but also a bike-riding detective who manages to solve a murder mystery even better than the detectives!  This was a very fun and easy read.

Pirate School and Completed Books 2/25

The kids are really enjoying the Pirate School series by Brian James.  They are around 60 pages and on the easier side as far as reading level.  Enjoy!

Marcus:  The Secrets of Droon:  The Coiled Viper (117 pages), Tony Abbott, The Secrets of Droon:  The Ice Caves of Krog (114 pages), Tony Abbott, Annie and the Old One (44 pages), Mishka Miles, Anatole and the Cat (32 pages), Eve Titus, Snoring Beauty, Bruce Hale, Pirate School: The Curse of Snake Island (64 pages), Brian James.

Lella:  The Secrets of Droon:  Voyage of the Jaffa Wind (132 pages), Tony Abbott, The Secrets of Droon:  The Knights of Silversnow (121 pages), Tony Abbott, Adventures of Riley, Panda Project (33 pages), Lumry and Hurwitz, Theodore and the Talking Mushroom, Leo Lionni.

Both:  Babushka Baba Yaga, Patricia Polacco, Airmail to the Moon, Tom Birdseye, I Wonder Why...Greeks Built Temples (31 pages), Reader's Digest, Captain Abdul's Little Treasure, Colin McNaughton.

Ancient Greece

The children and I have been reading about life in Ancient Greece.  One of the things we read about were Grecian children sculpting dolls to play with out of clay.  Lella and Marcus wanted to sculpt their own dolls.  We bought some clay and they came out quite good!  Can you guess who sculpted which doll?  :-)

 

Calvin and Hobbes and Completed Books 2/17

The kids and I have had so much fun reading Calvin and Hobbes, Bill Watterson!  They have read:

The Calvin and Hobbes 10th Anniversary Book

The Days Are Just Packed

It's a Magical World

The children read The Plant That Ate Dirty Socks (128 pages), Nancy McArthur, together and just finished it today.  They laughed out loud throughout this whole book!  It was so much fun.

The kids and I also just finished Ballet Shoes (192 pages), Noel Streatfeild.  This was such a lovely book - set in England, three adopted sisters vow to have their names in history books when they grow up.  One of my favorite books this year!

Marcus' recently completed books:  The Secrets of Droon:  The Knights of Silversnow (122 pages), Tony Abbott, Odd and the Frost Giants (117 pages), Neil Gaiman, Theodore and the Talking Mushroom, Leo Lionni, Katie Meets the Impressionists, James Mayhew, Flamingo Dream, Donna Jo Napoli, Seven Ravens, Brothers Grimm.

Books Completed 2/6/10

Gabriella really liked Pirate School by Colin McNaughton (40 pages, very easy read).  One warning though, this is a pirate book and in pirate school kids are taught, well, how to be pirates!

Marcus:  If You're Reading This, It's Too Late (373 pages), Pseudonymous Bosch (note:  There is a character in this book whose parents are divorced.), The Secrets of Droon:  The Knights of Silversnow (122 pages), Tony Abbott, Sam, Bangs, and Moonshine, Evaline Ness, The Earth Shook, Donna Jo Napoli, Buying Mittens (31 pages), Niimi Nankichi, Applelard and Liverwurst (34 pages), Mayer and Kellogg, The Trogan Horse, Warwick Hutton, In English of Course, Josephine Nobisso, The Dog Who Lost His Bob, Tom and Laura McNeal.

Lella:  The Real Winner, Charise Neugebauer, Nicolas, where have you been?, Leo Lionni, Morris's Disappearing Bag, Rosemary Wells, How Georgie Radbourn Saved Baseball, David Shannon, and her wonderful National Geographic Kids magazines that Gigi provides each year, The Secrets of Droon:  The Mask of Maliban (120 pages), Tony Abbott.

Both:  Captain Abdul's Pirate School (40 pages), Colin McNaughton, Count Your Way through Greece, Haskins and Benson, Swimmy, Leo Lionni, The Librarian Who Measured the Earth (46 pages), Kathryn Lasky (note:  I LOVED this book!), Kings and Queens of the Bible, Mary Hoffman and Christina Balit, Tales from the Waterhole (64 pages), Bob Graham, Hotel Jungle (32 pages), D. Napoli and S. Johnston, Cider Apples, Sandy Nightingale, The Rainbabies, Laura Melmed, The Trogan Horse:  How the Greeks Won the War, Emily Little.

Interesting Article From Alpha and Omega Publications

Homeschool View - How to Speak Your Homeschooler's Love Language

After you read the article, this will make more sense.

 

Gabriella said, "First hugs, loves and kisses and then I would want a gift!"

 

Marcus said, "First kisses and hugs, and then I would want you to worship God."

 

Steve said, "I would want to know where in the heck you had been!"  That made me laugh.   

Completed Books 1/29/10

The kids and I are half way through Swallows and Amazons (352 pages), Arthur Ransome.  We have very much enjoyed this book full of joyful adventure!  Our library only has one copy, and because someone put a hold on the book, we had to return it early.  We will pick it back up in a month or so for sure!

Marcus:  The Secret of Droon:  The Mask of Maliban (119 pages) and Voyage of the Jaffa Wind (132 pages), Tony Abbott, Locked in the Library (56 pages), Mark Brown, Stories to Solve (53 pages), George Shannon, Rimonah of the Flashing Sword, Eric Kimmel, Kings and Queens of the Bible (31 pages), Mary Hoffman, The Perfect Nest, Catherine Friend, The Amazing Pig, Paul Galdone, Anatole (32 pages), Eve Titus, The Monkey and the Crocodile, Paul Galdone, Tutankhamen's Gift, Robert Sabuda.

Lella:  You Wouldn't Want to be a Slave in Ancient Greece! (28 pages), Fiona Macdonald, Stuart Little (131 pages), E.B. White, Snake Hair - The Story of Medusa (48 pages), Stephen Spinner, Uno Blue-Ribbon Beagle (47 pages), Stephanie Spinner, Zoo in the Sky, Jacqueline Mitton, Why Can't I Slide Down a Rainbow? (29 pages), Sally Hewitt, The Adventures of Pippi Longstocking (selected chapters), Astrid Lindgren, The Secrets of Droon:  Under the Serpent Sea (113 pages), Tony Abbott.

Both:  There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly Guy, Ted Arnold, Greek Myths:  King Midas and the Golden Touch, Arachne, Perseus and Medusa, Adventures of Hercules, Jim Weiss, Monkey Business (selected chapters, Erik Brooks, The Seven Voyages of Sinbad the Sailor (119 pages), John Yeoman, A Dog of My Own, Jack Canfield and Mark Hanson, The Trojan Horse (48 pages), Emily Little, Ishtar and Tammuz, Christopher Moore, Once Upon a Starry Night, Jackqueline Mitton, Buster's New Friend (54 pages), Marc Brown, Why Can't I Jump Up to the Moon? (27 pages), Sally Hewitt.

Fun Website

A friend of mine gave me this website and the kids love it!  The site is geared mostly towards math, but there are some spelling and grammar games.  Enjoy!

Arcademic Skill Builders

Stories to Solve and Completed Books 1/21/10

Stories to Solve: Folktales from Around the World, George Shannon, is such a fun book to have on hand.   

"Shannon aptly combines folklore and puzzles in this short collection of 14 stories from around the world. The tales, not more than a page or two long, present situations in which someone figures out a problem or solves a mystery. Readers are then asked to suggest how it was done. For those who can't -- and many of the stories are abstract -- solutions are provided."  Amazon

Are you ready for one?  Here is a fun and familiar puzzle from the book.  See if your children can figure it out!

One fine summer day two fathers and two sons went fishing at their favorite lake.  They fished and talked all morning long and by noon everyone had caught one fish.  As the two fathers and two sons walked back home, everyone was happy because each had a fish even though only three fish had been caught.  Two fathers and two sons.  Only three fish and no fish were lost.  How can this have happened?  

The answer is at the bottom of this post!

Book completed 1/21:

Lella:  Anatole (32 pages), Eve Titus, The Monkey and the Crocodile, Paul Galdone, Hansel and Gretel by the Brothers Grimm, illustrated by Adrienne Adams, The Amazing Pig, Paul Galdone, The Perfect Nest, Catherine Friend,  Tutankhamen's Gift, Robert Sabuda.

Note:  Lella really enjoyed Anatole, Parisian mouse magnifique!

Marcus:  The Secrets of Droon:  Under the Serpent Sea (113 pages), Tony Abbott, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (GIC, 236 pages), Jules Verne, Mummy Math, An Adventure in Geometry, Cindy Neuschwander, from The Children's Treasure of Virtues:  Try, Try Again, The Tortoise and the Hare, St. George and the Dragon, The Lion and the Mouse, David and Goliath, The Minotaur, "America", edited by William J. Bennett.

Both:  The Legend of the Persian Carpet, Tomie DePaola, Temple Cat (31 pages), Andrew Clements, The Secret of Droon:  The Hawk Bandits of Tarkoom (116 pages), Tony Abbott, Jonah and the Whale, Rosemary Lanning, There was an Old Lady Who Swallowed A Fly, Simms Taback, Get Ready for Second Grade Amber Brown (48 pages), Paula Danziger, Amanda Bean's Amazing Dream, A Mathematical Story, Cindy Neuschwander, Four Hungry Kittens, Emily McCully, George Washington's Breakfast, Jean Fritz.

Note:  Gabriella loves reading There was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly and has the whole book memorized.  She actually read it a couple years ago and recently requested it again.  I was amazed she even remembered reading it!  It is such a silly book, but she thinks it is very funny!  She is also in this strange phase where she is requesting touch and feel board books.  She is such a kinesthetic learner!  

Solution to Riddle:  Only three people went fishing.  A boy, his father, and his grandfather:  two sons and two fathers.  

  

Draw, Write, Now

I am not gifted in drawing, so I was very excited to come across this series that teaches kids how to draw using basic steps.  Below is an excerpt from book 8:  Animals of the World, Dry Land Animals. 

Here are Marcus' and Lella's drawings.  Marcus' are pictured first and then Lella's. 

Completed Books 1/14/10

Lella:  The Secret of Droon:  Quest for the Queen, Tony Abbott (91 pages), Lost in Little Bear's Room (32 pages), Else Minarik, Tales of Mystery and Terror (GIC, 238 pages), Edgar Allen Poe.

Both:  The Seven Voyages of Sinbad the Sailor (119 pages), John Yeoman, Mush, a Dog from Space (39 pages), Daniel Pinkwater, Tut's Mummy Lost and Found (48 pages), Judy Donnelly, Laffite the Pirate (48 pages), Ariane Dewey, The Banshee (32 pages), Eve Bunting, The Stinky Cheese Man and other Fairly Stupid Tales, Scieszka and Smith, It's A Fair Day Amber Brown (48 pages), Paula Danziger.

MEDtropolis

This is a fun free site for kids to explore the human body:  MEDtropolis.

You Can't Take a Balloon...

Marcus and Lella really enjoy looking at this series of books (there are three) about art mimicking real life.

A little girl brings her balloon to a museum, but is not allowed to bring it inside.  In each book, someone who works at the museum offers to watch her balloon.  The balloon, by various means depending on which book you're looking at, becomes free.  The museum worker chases the balloon through the city and each scene is similar to a piece of art the little girl is looking at.  We make up our own words for each page!  Very fun!  

The books are written by sisters Jacqueline Weitzman and Robin Glasser.


Enjoy!