A Visit To New York

We took the girls to NYC for a couple days then rented an R.V. for a week and drove all through New York state. We did a few lessons each morning while driving in the R.V., the rest of the time they just soaked everything in. It was a great family trip. For more pictures and details on it, see our family blog.

Teton Dam Site and Museum Fieldtrip

We have a little homeschool group in Teton Valley and we organized a field trip to the Teton Dam Site and Museum. I had always wanted to go see the dam site but we never took the time to do it. It was really amazing to see as was the museum. We got to kidnap Nate and take him with us too, so that was a bonus. The kids enjoyed the trip and I do believe they learned a thing or two. A little information on it: The Teton Dam was built on the Teton River upstream from Rexburg, Idaho. at 11:57 am on June 5, 1976 the dam broke, the resulting flood killed 14 people and some estimates put the damage done by the collapse of the 100 million dollar dam, at one billion dollars. Actual federal approved claims totalled almost 400 million dollars.

Watching the film strip of the clean up was really amazing. People came from all over to help and the community and surrounding communities really pulled together.

Our Schedule and Curriculum

In the mornings after our morning routine, we do what we call "Kid School". We are in kid school for Sophie and Molly about 30 -45 minutes. For Savannah usually we are finished by lunch time. I use material from A Well-Trained Mind and Saxon to teach the children lessons each morning. I am in the process of working towards implementing the Thomas Jefferson Education model (TJEd), but I'm doing it in baby steps. So far what I have implemented is the morning routine, chore chart, kid school - although it is a little more 'require' than 'inspire' right now, and I have begun my study of the classics. My next baby step I plan to make is to arrange a family room consistent with the TJEd model. This of course won't happen until we have a more permanent home. For more information on TJEd go to http://www.tjedonline.com/

I have loved the discovery of this system and hope to be able to implement the whole model into our lifestyle soon.

Currently with the girls we are reading the classic Laddie: A True Blue Story. Over the summer we read Charlotte's Web, Indian In the Cupboard, Little House on the Prairie Series, Sarah Plain and Tall Series, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, some of The Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, and parts of Little Women.

I just finished Uncle Tom's Cabin, Lonesome Gods, and Little Britches and all of the Thomas Jefferson books by DeMille. Ryan just finished The Chosen, and Jane Eyre. We do a lot of reading and we love it! The girls enjoy being read to almost more than anything.