grade 4, block IV norse myths (lang arts)

this month we revisit the aesir gods/goddesses, beginning with the death of balder & moving through ragnorok (the end of the aesir world)

monday, january 4th

(read on own, seal morning, 45 min)

*workbooks (spelling, math & general ed)

main lesson:

*copywork:

"broken were oaths then

bond and swearing,

pledges all sacred

which passed between them;

thor alone smote there

swollen with anger"

*nature study/outdoor hour...

i have stopped formal nature study lessons for the time being, opting for family time together outside. we aim for about an hour, give or take depending on the weather...

lesson b:

form drawing, p. 21, figure 32 d

tuesday, january 5th

(read on own, 45 min, seal morning)

*workbooks (spelling, math & general ed)

main lesson:

*tell story, "the dearth of balder" (d'aulaire's p. 128-136)

(chalkboard, p. 133)

*project, make a dioramma

orin chose to make ours the scene near the end of the story, when hermod goes to hel's realm to beg her for balder's return

lesson b:

handwork, begin work on colored pencil case

(i am sure there are loads of patterns & probably tutorials as well online for colored/pencil rolls. we are using a pattern from amanda blakee soule's book, the creative family)

wedensday, january 6th

(read on own, 45 min, seal morning)

*workbooks (spelling, math, & general ed)

main lesson:

(recall story)

*write 2-3 paragraph summary, on own

(since we just came back from winter break, i helped him by jotting down notes on the board)

*draw picture in main lesson book from story

lesson b:

baking, tuna melts

as much as i love having helpers for baking brad, granola & other snacks/desserts, what i really want is to have someone who can make lunch most, if not all week. so, i am training orin to be my replacement. he can already make a mean pb & j, and of course things like turkey sandwiches, but i am trying to expand his repoitouire a bit :)

thursday, january 7th

(read on own, 45 min, seal morning)

*workbooks (spelling, math, & general ed)

main lesson:

*edit summary (check for spelling, punctuation, complete sentences, etc)

*copy final work into main lesson book

*painting day, 'balder's voyage', p.133

(we didn't actually get to the painting. orin loves, loves, loves math, but absolutely HATES writing! we keep trying to explain to him that writing is oneo those things that you will use each & every day of your life, no matter what you career/lifepath you choose, but...man! he is stubborn & will seriously procrastinate a...l....l........d....a...y...!)

lesson b:

handwork, continue working on colored pencil roll...

grade 1, block IV: four processes (week 1)

i am again taking advantage of mrs. marsha johnson's *free* online resources. she is amazing & her guides/files/guidance are such a blessing to us waldorfing mamas (& papas!)

her yahoo group is waldorf home educators & it is awesome! if you are in any way involved with waldorf education you should join...really!

the following lessons are based on her 'math gnomes' lessons (under age specific curriculum, grade one)


monday, january 4th

main lesson:

*introduce gnome share (divide) with short story...


*make a green salad

*write numbers 1-10 in main lesson book

*read aloud w/ mama (15 min) Frog and Toad are Friends

beginning this week aydin will be spending 15 minute/day with me practicing his reading. he made his way through the bob books last summer, and is now ready for something a bit more. so, we'll be working our way through the frog & toad series, and the little bear series as well.

lesson b:

form drawing...

tuesday, january 5th

main lesson:

(recall story & gnome share)

*draw a portrait of gnome share in main lesson book

*explore sharing with baskets of gems/jewels/nuts & friends

focus on 'sharing' not so much the 'dividing up equally' that will come later...though every time i tried to get aydin to just 'share' he wanted to count out even amounts for each friend. :)

*work with path of 2's, to see '2-4-6-8...' through play

aydin actually did this bit on his own, without any prompting by me...isn't it amazing how much they pick up on from older siblings?? i suppose in a home school setting they only pick up that much more, but these little 'lessons' continue to surprise me...

*read aloud w/mama, 15 min (frog & toad)

lesson b:

handwork; begin knitting potholder

basically a rectangle to be folded in half & sewn into a square...we are winging it, casting on 24 stitches (about 6") and knitting until we have 12".

wednesday, january 6th

(recall story, gnome share & yesterday's work)

main lesson:

*introduce division sign with 'living picture'...

i had a knitting needle sitting on the table longways, between aydin and i (as we were sitting across from each other at the table). then, i got out a small, 6" loaf of french bread & asked aydin if he would like some. he, of course, said yes (we are a bread loving family!), and i split it in half. i placed my half on one side of the knitting needles & his half on the other (so that we had made a division sign. the bread halves being the two dots & the knitting needle being the line).

*draw 'living picture' of division sign in main lesson book, draw standard division sign on right

*add division sign to gnome share's portrait (we put it on his tum)

*continue to explore sharing with friends...

*read aloud w/mama, 15 min (frog & toad)

lesson b:

baking, homemade bread...so good!

thursday, january 7th

(recall gnome share & this week's work)

main lesson:

*more sharing...work with new numbers

*share between 2 friends (8 * 6, 7 * 7, 10 * 4...) separate by gold cord/knitting needle...

*pick favorites & add to main lesson book

*write gnome share's poem in main lesson book

*read aloud w/mama, 15 min (frog & toad)

lesson b:

handwork, continue knitting potholder

a few sweet finds...

did a bit of thrifting for the first time in about 2 months...i think this is the longest stretch ever. my theory is that if i don't actually go to all the shops, then i can't bring home all of the amazing deals. :)

that is actually part of it, really...and i think we have saved a bit of money because of it. we, the boys & i, have been spending a bit of time (once again) going through our books, toys, crafting supplies, closets, etc...(is this a seemingly constant part of anyone else's life as well??) and we are making an effort to really par down what we have in our house & our lives for that matter.

we get better at this over time, i think. i have talked to my mom about this as well...somethings that we weren't 'ready' to part with 6 months ago, we are able to part with now. i know that i can be very emotionally attached to my things...but i am learning to let go. with four children & limited space, it becomes almost a necessity...:)

anyway, we have a friend who recently had surgery & can't really wear regular pants/pajamas as they would irritate the incision site. his wife asked me to visit the thrift stores & try to find him some overalls & long underwear...i didn't find either, but i did find a few sweet deals...

a gorgeous wooden cup/plate set for the boys play kitchen...$2.50 for the lot!

keen's for ehren, these are like new, and cost me all of $0.25! he doesn't even notice the pink liner, he is just excited to have shoes that he can put on by himself... (he is soooo 3 years old!)


ok, this didn't come from a thrift store, but it was still a steal of a deal...

i bought this necklace from jlynn creations (on etsy), and she engraved the names on it for free. awesome, right??

something got a bit jumbled in the mail & she ended up sending me a gift certificate. BONUS! as i know that everything is totally crazy during the holidays, and was totally fine with everything. (i think everyone know this). but as a gift certificate is still a gift certificate, i put it towards a necklace of my own.

i absolutely love it! it is so lightweight; it feels like i am wearing nothing...aside from the occasional jingle. and the chain is strong, evyn pulls on it constantly!

hmmm...well, um...that's life, right??

it is so funny that i set out writing this blog to keep a record of our life & all that we do, for both our family & friends, as well as for ourselves.

as you might imagine, being the mother to four little ones keeps life moving at a much faster pace that i might otherwise choose...and the boys are ALWAYS going as well. they don't realize how much we all accomplish throughout our days as well. why?? well, they have INSANE amounts of energy for one thing! :) but as we are a homeschooling family everything is integrated with everything else...we do have 'school days' but it is all different from the life of a public school/working family. we don't have set hours that we need to scurry around & get out the door, you know?? or set times that we are once again a family, at home...our days all meld together.

most days this is a blessing...

i love that i know already that the boys are all going to be amazing papas. they all help out with the younger simblings, aydin is especially taken with little ones (as i have mentioned before). orin is more of the disciplinarian, aydin more of the mothering type & ehren i think has a good mix of both.

but i digress...i have been slacking on my correspondence duties...and am sorry.

from this day forward i vow to be more addament about my posting...:)

but until then here are a few random shots of, well, life...cheers!

poor kitty... :(
actually, he loves it all...caspian is the most amazingly chill cat ever, & oooohhh so fluffy...

sweet baby...getting another tooth (this makes #5 :)

part of a playmobil village the boys built...

the stable...

gorgeous...;)

ehren loves to be in on brothers' lessons...

orin has been devouring books left & right...i love it!

choco-latte...

there's been a lot of this lately...little peepers! :)

getting pretty darn good @ knitting in the round...

yup...pretty darn good! :)

part of the ten pairs of mitts i knit for friends & family...

doll baby??

braving the elements...

i love it all!

ahhh..the joy of creating & crafting...i love it!

the dilemma?? so many amazing projects & so little time.

now that i have mastered knitting in the round, i feel like the world of knitting has opened it's doors even more to me.

i haven't been knitting a long time, by any means...in fact, the only reason that i started knitting is because knitting is part of the waldorf grade one curriculum. helps to hone motor skills, bring peace & balance to our mind (& souls), counting stitches...i could go on & on.

i really only learned the basics back then (this would have been fall 2006) as i was about to have our third child. it was great though, my favorite book by far, for beginners, is bonnie gosse's, first book of knitting for children. i know, i know...a child's knitting book?? the pictures are amazing, step-by-step, but it is the projects that i got hooked on. loads of simple projects that one can complete relatively quickly, this was an amazing motivation. sweet little farm animals that i could knit as natural toys for our children.

there are also lots of good ideas in the children's year, and my latest discovery ravelry.

i knit up quite a few pairs of mittens for the children for christmas, and am in the middle of knitting loads of fingerless mitts... i have been wanting a pair for awhile, but i was weary of knitting in the round. that is, until i found this little gem! :) i made a pair for my sister & for orin (our eldest) for christmas, then a pair for myself. lance (dh) swiped my first one, so i made him a pair.

now i am finishing up pairs for lance's mom & each of his sisters (x4)...well, except for the sister in arizona...doubt it will ever get chilly enough for her to use them...to mail out with our photo pages.

i am so excited about things to come...already thinking ahead to birthdays, mother's days, etc...shhhhh! ;)

i think my next project will be this great little sweater for evyn, and perhaps one for ehren as well. just darling!

here is another great little find, hand stitched felt. i know it only got 3 stars on amazon, but i love it! it is simple, whimsical, hand sewn felt projects...many would make great gifts & they are perfect projects for the boys to make for their handwork lessons!

i made the mistake of leaving it out on the counter last night & orin & aydin are both already asking requests, "can i make this??" ... "oooh! can we make this??" so, i am now rearranging the boy's handwork schedule for the spring as a result! :)

happy handwork(ing)!

an amazing day!!

i have been feeling a bit off here lately...

feeling like i have (once again) been letting the little things in life get in the way of what is most important to me...my family, especially our children.

i think as moms we have to make a conscious effort, every minute of everyday, to keep everything in check...to maintain the balance. and it's hard, you know!?!

it's so much easier to get sucked into the vortex of the dishes, the house, the lessons, the laundry, meal prep/cooking, diapers, etc...

today, though, was amazing & the best day that we have had in a while!

(aydin & orin, oct 2006...one of my all time favorite pictures.)

why?? i was so hoping that you would ask...:)

our morning looked something like this...

*baby slept thru the night

*i got up at 6am...hot shower (alone)

*hot cup of coffee (NOT microwaved 5x!)

*knitting

*baby up @ 8, 20 min of nursing & snuggling

*boys wake up happy

*no squabbling @ breakfast, or all morning that i can remember!

*after breakfast, puzzle w/aydin while 2 youngest finish eating

*then go fish w/orin when he's done getting cleaned up

*boys began morning lessons w/out me!

*snack/game break (hi-ho cherri-o w/aydin & ehren),

& close the box (an excellent math game, by the way) tournament w/orin

*finish lessons, then lunch

was it a perfect day?? no...

i didn't get dinner made in time for lance to take to work (he works 2nd shift) & the house is totally trashed!

do i care??...no! did i get stressed out about it??...no!

what is important, really, is that everyone had great attitudes today & we got all our lessons done, the boys didn't squabble & we all had a lot of fun!

what was different about today?? hmmm...

-i got up early & had a bit of (long overdue) "me" time

-i made a conscious effort to talk less, let the little things go & have some (also long overdue) fun w/the boys

i am feeling really good about today & looking forward to the many tomorrows...hooray us!