Southeast Utah with Kids

Our first stop was a popular hike in Bears Ears called House on Fire. 

Making Paint, Growing Crystals, and Shoveling Snow

K's Mel science kit this week was making paint.

Halloween

The boys made their own Halloween costumes.

Ender Dragon

Crafting Box
The principal approves.

We had a homeschool Halloween Party earlier in the week.

Halloween day, we had our traditional decorate bags, hunt for pictures, which can then be turned in for candy, and watch a movie.

The kids went with Dad to a few houses for trick or treating (we only go visit family and friends), but mostly we stayed bundled up inside...when we could get inside.  

We went to visit a friend across the street and came back to find our house locked. I think the kids' favorite part of Halloween was figuring out how to break into the house. They got as far as into the garage before finding that door locked too. Little A2 volunteered to crawl through the cat door and unlock the door.

We also got our first snow this week. Once day it was even snowing while the sun was shinning. It was beautiful. The kids loved playing in it before it all melted away.

For science we started to grow crystals.

And dug for real gem stones.

The kids also explore static electricity.

And viscosity. Corn starch and water is one of my favorites for learning about solids and liquids. 

For art, the youngest did water wows. The boys did Art Hub for kids.

When they were done coloring, they noticed their markers had bled through and covered the table.  Time for another science experiment!

Dawn Power Wash for the win

For music we pulled out the instruments and silk scarfs. K really loves The Greatest Showman music. We practiced rhythm and movement while listening to his favorite songs.

The kids continue to work on their respective math programs. K loved learning about 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and so on. We also jumped around counting by 2's, 5's, and 10's. A1 has an online math game he plays for multiplication and we were able to find an addition/subtraction one for K.

K finished reading another Princess in Black, too. 

For health we learned about the circulatory and respiratory systems.

A1 also plays chess with Dad both online and with a set we have.

And he is using Duolingo to learn Chinese. 

With how fast J is flying through Language arts, she is on track to finish an entire grade level by the end of November. It's wonderful that she has found a LA program she loves, which creates a lot of self-motivation.

Oh, and we were able to talk to the kids about the election and the importance of voting.  J helped me research candidates for various positions. Next week, they will be able to vote on Mia Academy for the full course they want to see from them next.

Fighting Colds

One of my least favorite things about public school was having to call and excuse my kids when they were sick.  It was always an internal debate whether to send them or not when I knew they were well enough to do work, but still sick enough they had to carry a tissue box around.  I know people don't want to be around others who are constantly sniffling, and we don't want to spread germs, but a cold can last for a couple weeks. That's a lot of school to miss. And since the teaching doesn't stop, if they're absent a week, they could miss important foundational concepts. Sigh.

Fortunately, with homeschool, those worries are gone.

Fun Math and Written Records

J continues to work on Language Arts, Science, Geography, and Art in Mia Academy, and Math in Teaching Textbooks.

A1 continues to work on Math, Language Arts, Science, and Art in Mia Academy.

K is doing Singapore Math and we are reading Dinosaurs Before Dark, the first book of the Magic Tree House series.

All three of them started The Good and the Beautiful Handwriting Curriculum this week.

 We continue to read stories of our state's history.

 And for health we studied the brain and nervous system.

A2 went to story time at the library and played with play dough.

Our School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Welcome to our

School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Here you will embark upon a magical adventure unlike anything you have ever experienced.  Hold onto your wands and broom sticks, were off to a private school solely reserved for the most promising witches and wizards such as yourselves. 

Our rigorous schedule includes a hands on potions lab, where you will learn "to bottle fame, brew glory, and even put a stopper in death."

Discovering Lost Treasure

One morning I woke up to some rustling in the bushes near my bedroom window. Something was in my backyard!

I went to the window scanning the area for the feared black and white stench bomb that too often frequents our yard. Thankfully there was no skunk, but I was in for another surprise. Trimming our bushes was the two cutest baby fawns and their mama.