We dived right back into our regular routine this week, with a full slate of extra-curriculars and a more-than-full slate (thanks to needing to make up the work missed over the last few weeks) of regular desk work. The whole process was made more challenging by the fact that we didn’t really take time to catch our breath before we took the leap. Our plane touched down at shortly after 9:30 on Saturday night, meaning that it was after 10:00 before we claimed our luggage and drove home. For reasons that seem slightly insane to me now, we decided to get up on Sunday and go to church. (That did not go well, mostly, I suspect, because RobotBoy was both over-tired and overwhelmed by his experiences of the last few weeks.) Then, he was scheduled to go sing a concert with his choir on Sunday afternoon.
So, Monday morning arrived all too soon.
Nonetheless, we’ve tried to forge ahead.
Math:
RobotBoy started working his way through the University of California College Prep open access Algebra One course this week. He did the first three sections of the first lesson—Real Numbers; Variables, Expressions and Equations; Number Operations—with nary a whimper or problem. He earned perfect scores on all three assignments and says he really likes the format. I’m crossing my fingers that it continues to go well.
History & Literature:
At long last, the conclusion of Great Expectations is in sight. I anticipate finishing it by about Tuesday of next week, after which we will move on to our next read-aloud, Around the World in 80 Days. RobotBoy finished The Adventures of Tom Sawyer on Tuesday and is about halfway through Treasure Island. He also read Mark Twain in Lives of the Writers: Comedies, Tragedies (and What the Neighbors Thought) and about Rutherford B. Hayes in Time for Learning: The Presidents. Through the magic of Netflix, he watched an A&E Biography about Thomas Edison.
English:
We did major league catching up in English Prep this week, since this was one of the subjects that got seriously neglected while we were running around. RobotBoy finished the remaining reading comprehension exercise for this chapter, as well as doing all the grammar and vocabulary orally and completing a writing assignment. There wasn’t as much “writing” as I would usually require, but he was so good about tackling it independently and making all the corrections I asked for that I decided to let it be enough.
Science:
He did some more reading from Human Body and Earth’s Waters, with extra helpings of each to get us back on schedule. Wednesday brought the second meeting of his chemistry class at the science center, where they did all kinds of good hands-on activities and attended a show about the many uses of liquid nitrogen.
Latin:
RobotBoy was back to Minimus Secundus, completing most of a chapter this week. He read and translated both picture stories, did an activity sheet about positive and negative imperatives and read the Roman Report about having a baby in ancient Britain. On Friday, we went through the Grasp the Grammar and Latin Roots exercises together.
Spanish:
It just happened that this week’s pages from The Learnables didn’t include any written ejercicios, and I got a bit nervous about how much attention RobotBoy was really paying. So, we sat down together on Thursday and went over all the pages for the week together, just to make sure he was staying on top of things. He did stumble a few times, but I remain impressed with how much he learns and retains from this program.
Music:
RobotBoy spent some time listening to and singing through the two excerpts from “The William Tell Overture” in Themes to Remember. He also watched a Great Composers DVD about Franz Schubert, and made some very interesting comparisons between Der Erlking and the opera in which he recently performed.
Other Stuff:
Why is it I always think that “things will calm down after the holidays?” You’d think by now I’d know that doesn’t happen. Especially when it comes to all the performance activities, it seems like things just get more hectic from February through the end of the academic year. In RobotBoy’s dance classes, they are starting to work seriously on their recital pieces, and his choir has either an extra rehearsal or a performance scheduled at least two weekends a month. Add to that the fact that his Pirates of Penzance performances will happen in late April and that he has a birthday coming up in March, and it becomes clear that there is no calm in sight. It is equally clear, however, that RobotBoy is truly happy and thriving on this routine, so I suppose it’s all worth it.
At least I'm sure I'll think it is once I get some sleep!
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