The Big White Farmhouse

intentional living, little by little

No.28: Our Farmhouse Schoolhouse in Photos (Week 03)

Week three is in the books!  My biggest problem this week was Internet connectivity issues.  When it rains out here, we lose almost all streaming capabilities, which is frustrating when you’re planning to watch interactive battle maps or documentaries.  Because of this, I’ve had to move my schedule all around to accommodate the weather (#countrylifeproblems) and have to keep reminding myself that I am in charge of the to-do list and not the other way around.  On the toddler front, TJ seems to finally get that this school thing is our new normal.  He’s been generally okay with coloring at the table with us but still has his share of full-on freak outs and tantrums.  Baby steps.


Notes and highlights:

HISTORY

+ The little kids and I finished Leif the Lucky yesterday.  I was so surprised with how much they got out of it!  We’re still working our way through d’Aulaires’ Book of Norwegian Folktales and enjoying those too.  The boys aren’t ready to move on yet, so next week we start Viking Adventure!  Cool website find from the BBC: How did Vikings fight?

+ For M’s modern history, we veered off the Beautiful Feet guide to investigate the Ironclads.  He started reading Iron Thunder and is flying through it.  This week, we started using this daily reading as his written narration work.  Because he finds the book so interesting, he hasn’t complained!  Other activities: he started working on notebooking pages (from Homeschool Share) that correspond with the book, Great Civil War Projects You Can Build Yourself.  

K-3 SCIENCE: ZOOLOGY

+ Another fun week with Sassafras Science!  I love how low-key this early science is.  I read half of the chapter aloud, we check out more facts in the DK Animal Encyclopedia and then I have the kids share their favorite fact about the animal.  After that, we make art!  (Wash and repeat for day two.)  Some of my kids like to follow along with Art for Kids (like this how to draw an elephant), while others prefer that I find an example (like this giraffe project) to copy.  So easy and I’m always amazed at what they remember.  This week, we continued with the African grasslands and learned about elephants and giraffes.  Awesome website: African live safari cameras!

AFRICAN STUDIES

+ Our African Studies took us to Ghana!  We read Pretty Salma: A Little Red Riding Hood Story from Africa and made Ghanian meat pies (but with ground beef instead) and watermelon lemonade for dinner.  Some of my pickiest eaters gobbled this up.  Who knew we’d have to “travel” to Africa to get them to eat?!

Current 1000 Books Project Total: 29/1000
Poetry Teatime Treat: Very Berry Pound Cake

MOTHER CULTURE & SELF-CARE

+ Health: Running a little, but feeling like there’s not much in the tank.  My teething baby has me sleeping poorly and my good eating has totally bombed.  I need to get back on track in this department.
+ Reading: Finished The Way and started Treasure in Clay.  I just have two more chapters left of Anne of Green Gables – it’s one of my favorite books, but one I haven’t read in years!  It’s been funny reading it again as an adult.
+ Fun: Enjoying recording a memory of our school day on my new Instagram account.  It’s also challenging me to pay attention on the hard days – there has to be something good, right?

***********

An opportunity to help fellow homeschoolers in the wake of Hurricane Harvey:  After an entire summer of planning and searching and stocking up materials for our school year, I just cannot imagine how devastating it must feel to have lost it all before you even get a chance to start.  Adopt a Homeschool was created by a fellow homeschooling mom on Instagram and is now on Facebook, connecting families with wishlists with families who’d like to give.  You can send them gently used curriculum if you have it or send directly from Amazon.  I just sent along some Magic Treehouse books!  Anything helps and more importantly, it shows that mama that she’s not alone.  Check it out!

************

No.25: Our Farmhouse Schoolhouse in Photos (Week 02)

Week two went much more smoothly than the first, praise the Lord!  The big kids are beginning to understand what is expected of them and are generally happy to get to work.  But just like Ana, I’m still pretty frazzled about TJ’s “involvement” and his frequent two-year-old trouble making.  Hands down, the hardest part of homeschooling.  


Notes and highlights:

HISTORY

+ After their begging last week, we upped our history to every day.  The Beautiful Feet guide is so gentle at this age that it really doesn’t feel like that much more work.  While I read from Leif the Lucky or d’Aulaire’s Book of Norwegian Folktales, the boys (and sometimes Sophie) drew and colored pictures I found on the Internet.

+ For M’s history, he finished Across Five Aprils.  In terms of pace, the book is much different than what he usually likes to read (Action! Mystery! Fast, fast, fast!), so it took some prodding to get him through.  He really enjoyed watching the animated battles of Antietam and Gettysburg.  He also did his first project from Great Civil War Projects You Can Build Yourself: a lean-to shelter.

K-3 SCIENCE: ZOOLOGY

+ We’re really enjoying Sassafras Science!  This week, we read the chapter on the African grasslands and our first two animals there: the lion and the cheetah.  We investigated both animals in our DK Animal Encyclopedia and then made art!  I love that we can take the time to connect the two subjects.  We also watched the first two episodes of Africa’s Deadliest on Netflix.  

AFRICAN STUDIES

+ This was probably the highlight of our week!  Our first country was Nigeria.  We found and colored it on our huge wall map, read Master Man: A Tall Tale from Nigeria (BIG hit with the kids!), played a Nigerian strategy game called Dara and had a Nigerian feast!  Our menu consisted of peanut chicken kabobs, jollof rice, virgin Chapman cocktails and pineapple ice cream for dessert.  We even listened to groovy 70’s Nigerian music during dinner, which cracked me up.  So random, so awesome.

MATH

+ D (3rd grade) began a section on line segments and angles.  He had some trouble so we played Line Segment Simon Says to reinforce the concept.  

Current 1000 Books Project Total: 27/1000
Poetry Teatime Treat: Blueberry Cake

MOTHER CULTURE & SELF-CARE

+ Exercise: Back to running three days a week!  After a week off, I’m realizing how crucial it is for me if I’m going to do this whole homeschooling thing.  I need that time to be in my own head a bit.
+ Reading: Still working on a few chapters of Anne of Green Gables before bed
+ Fun: Closing Big White Farmhouse on such a high note!  We raised over $500 to donate to the Houston Food Bank.

No.22: Our Farmhouse Schoolhouse in Photos (Week 01)

Whew.  What a roller coaster of a week.  I feel like this is the first time I’ve come up for air!  There were days when I was in that perfect “this is the life” bubble of happiness and then there were days where I was questioning whether to send them all off to the local public school.  After being home with them all summer, I (naively) didn’t expect to experience such a transition period for the beginning of the school year.  Clearly, I have no idea what I’m doing.

All in all, we survived and I think I’m more focused going into week two.  You should see all of my beautifully pre-made schedules and plans!  All marked up and switched around.  God loves to stretch my Type-A, “everything just so” personality.  


Notes and highlights:

MORNING BASKET

Still working out the kinks in our Morning Basket routine.  We are looping Aesop’s Fables (although I’m not impressed with my copy and in need of a new version), Beatrix Potter, and Once Upon a Time Saints.  Morning basket is primarily for the younger kids, but the big boys stuck around to listen and draw.  To keep little hands busy while listening, I brought out the one surprise I’ve kept all summer: gears! (Big hit.)  We also practiced saying the Pledge of Allegiance, prayed the Morning Offering and then started on this month’s poem, “About the Teeth of Sharks” by John Ciardi.  I’m amazed at the ease in which children can memorize things.  After three days, Sophie could say just about the entire thing!  We finish Morning Basket time with our read aloud: The Cricket in Times Square.    
  

HISTORY

+ D and J are loving Viking history!  I had originally only scheduled this twice a week, but they begged and begged to have it everyday.  I spent a few evenings scrambling for more projects and books to read and I think I’m set for the next six weeks.  This week, we read from Leif the Lucky, traced the voyage from Norway to Greenland on the map and colored pictures of a Viking boy and Erik the Red.  I also read a story from d’Aulaire’s Book of Norwegian Folktales, which we really enjoyed.  Last project of the week was creating a Viking ship collage.
+ For M’s history, we got started on the Civil War unit.  He read the first six chapters of Across Five Aprils. (The first chapters are pretty slow-paced, but it picks up if you persevere.)  He also watched an animated map of the battle of Bull Run – I found it so helpful in my own understanding of battle strategy. #visuallearner

BRAVE WRITER (LANGUAGE ARTS)

+ We’re a week into our Brave Writer Arrow guide for A Cricket in Times Square and loving it!  This week, the boys used a passage from Chapter 1 for copywork.  We also talked about onomatopoeia.  I would throw out a situation and they would describe for me the words you could use to describe that sound.  They incorporated what they learned in their free writing later in the week.  I asked for 10 minutes, but they ended up going for closer to 30!

AFRICAN STUDIES

+ I introduced our exploration into Africa (our geography theme this year) and printed a huge map to keep on the wall (I did the 3×3).  The kids colored pictures while I read Africa is Not a Country.  On to Nigeria next week! 

LITTLE KIDS FUN

+ Sophie’s letter of the week was Ee.  We read a bunch of Piggie and Elephant books (her favorite was We Are in a Book!) and cooked hard-boiled eggs.  She’s always dying to peel the eggs when Mark and I make them, so this was a BIG deal.


+ A Year of Playing Skillfully doesn’t technically begin until September, so I just chose a couple activities for these first two weeks.  We read Frog and Toad All Year and then played with water beads and frog and turtle toys!  Huge hit, especially with TJ.  

ARTIST STUDY & FREE ART

+ Winslow Homer is our first artist of the year.  I read a short biography and then we checked out his painting, “Snap the Whip,” from the Simply Charlotte Mason pack.  I explained the game to the kids to help them understand the painting and before I knew it, we were playing the game ourselves!  So many giggles as we ran around crazily in the school room.  It was the highlight of our week.

Current 1000 Books Project Total: 26/1000

MOTHER CULTURE & SELF-CARE

+ Exercise: I managed to somehow tweak my hip flexor, so I took the entire week off.  It felt so strange not to workout everyday, but I’m sure my body needed the break.
+ Reading: I’m getting in a chapter or two of Anne of Green Gables before bed.
+ Fun: Getting ready for a day out (with P) at the CWBN Mid-Atlantic Conference tomorrow!

No.19: Our 2017-2018 Homeschool Plan – Term One

This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for supporting the BWF!

This year will be our fourth year homeschooling.  I’m doubling my students and will have kids in fifth, third, first and kindergarten!  I am really thankful for our public school experiences, but also excited to see how they grow back at home.  This time around, I have much more confidence in my abilities as a teacher.  I’ve been chipping away at this all summer, picking up books (I got probably 75% used) and marking up lots of blank calendars!  Planning is my jam – now to have the discipline to complete it.

As anyone who has ever even dipped a toe into homeschooling has seen, there are A LOT of amazing choices out there and it’s really tempting to try all.the.things.  My personal goal for the school year is to be confident in the curriculum I’ve chosen and not compare/question my decisions when I see the next shiny new thing.  That said, I am also allowing myself the option to add a few things as we go: Shakespeare, maybe a foreign language, a few extra-curricular activities (martial arts?), a coding program for M, etc.  We don’t have to begin every single thing on Day #1.

Below is the plan for Term One, or the goals of the first twelve weeks of school.  We may complete all of it or maybe just some, but it’s helpful for me to see it all laid out in bullet form.  

—————————————————-


TERM ONE: August 21-November 10


 MORNING BASKET


FIFTH GRADE HISTORY
Spine: Beautiful Feet’s Modern and US History program
I’m stretching this guide out a bit and estimating that it will last us over a year, maybe two.  We’re spending our first term entirely on the Civil War!
Books, Field Trips and Projects:

K-THIRD GRADE HISTORY
Spine: Beautiful Feet’s Early American History program
I’m stretching this guide out too and hoping to complete in two years.  Term one will focus on early explorers and Columbus.
Books and Projects:

MATH

BIG KIDS LANGUAGE ARTS & WRITING


 LITTLE KIDS READING & PHONICS

FIFTH GRADE SCIENCE
Spine: Beautiful Feet’s History of Science program
Books:


 K-THIRD GRADE SCIENCE

RELIGION
The three big boys will also be attending religious education at our parish.


 GEOGRAPHY
We are focusing on the continent of Africa this year, learning about one country a week.  As a family, we will be completing a notebook of all we discover.
Spine: The Africa Book and the Discover Africa Notebooking Packet
Term One Countries: Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, Senegal, Mali, the Gambia, Sierra Leone, Morocco, Sudan, Egypt, and Ethiopia
Books and Projects:

ART APPRECIATION


 POETRY TEATIME
The plan is to bake something delicious on Wednesdays and have special tea (or hot cocoa!) time in the afternoon.  For term one, we’re going to learn about different poem types, enjoy them aloud and maybe even create a few ourselves.  Very low-key and (hopefully!) fun.
Spine: Child’s Introduction to Poetry: Listen While You Learn About the Magic Words That Have Moved Mountains, Won Battles, and Made Us Laugh and Cry


YEAR OF PLAYING SKILLFULLY
This preschool-ish (it’s for ages 3-7) curriculum is primarily for S and TJ, but I think J will be interested in some of the activities too.  I’m having my big boys help with the games.  I’m really hoping this will be the catalyst to making many memories as a family.

————————————————


 A quick note: Just because we have chosen to homeschool our children does not mean that I am anti-other forms of education.  Not at all!  We were very blessed to have wonderful teachers in public school last year and I’m so grateful for the time, effort (and money!) that they invested in my kids.  Having been on both sides of the schooling coin now, if you are sending your kids out into the world this fall, can I offer one little piece of wisdom?  Don’t let the school have all the fun.  If your son comes home exploding with excitement over learning about the Civil War, head to the library to check out tons of books on the subject.  Offer to take him to a live reenactment that weekend.  Maybe your daughter thinks science experiments are really cool and complains in passing that they don’t do enough in the classroom.  Do a quick Pinterest search and grab the ingredients for your kitchen scientist.  Buy a book on Amazon and leave it on her bed to discover.  In this way, regardless of where our children spend the majority of their day, we as parents still get to give our children the gift of curiosity and wonder.  And time.  In our busy busy culture, I think that’s so important too.

Since this is a blog about my life and my family, I’m sure I’ll have many posts about what we’re learning and reading.  My hope is that it may also help mothers, homeschooling or not, with ideas for their families too.  Instead of writing it off as “Snooze! Another homeschool post.  Doesn’t apply to me!”, I hope you’ll instead maybe use it as inspiration or bookmark a few things you know your kids will enjoy.  I’ll do some of the legwork – you enjoy the memory-making!

Amazon Disclosure Policy

The Big White Farmhouse is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

Less Materialism, More Intentional Living

Archives

Copyright © 2025 The Big White Farmhouse · Theme by 17th Avenue