Digging for a Clever Title

LOL, not succeeding either. ;)

The schoolroom came in very handy today. We got a very late start in the morning and Cassia was already parked in front of Little Einsteins so instead of invoking Her Highness's Wrath, we just took our schoolwork into the schoolroom. I am ashamed to admit that on Monday I snapped at her a couple times because she would NOT STOP pestering us. I know she was just trying to join in, but she was driving me a bit batty. Much nicer for everyone to just let her do her thing while we do ours. (And lest you think poorly of me for using the tv as a babysitter, she was actually playing more than she was watching tv and she came and joined us once it was time to read history.)

We started with math because Cameron said that he liked it better than reading. I said he still had to do reading, but we could certainly start with whichever one he wanted. Not only did he do math (which included reading the words "ten" through "one hundred" by tens) but when we finished, he said that he didn't want to stop! So we continued farther into chapter 8 and completed another exercise in the workbook.

Next we did a very short phonics lesson on "ou" as the long /oo/ sound (as in you or group) and he messed around a little, like spinning around in the desk chair between reading each word, but all in all it went well. I considered offering a Star Wars reader instead of the phonics lesson, but he didn't put up too much resistance and it was a really short lesson anyway.

Finally we read the second story in the first chapter of SOTWI, What is Archaeology. Cameron pleasantly surprised me by already knowing what archaeology was (that's when scientists dig in the ground and find dinosaur bones!) but I think I surprised him with my myriad of library books full of pictures of archaeological finds. I was glad that I had preread several of the books and knew of an especially impressive picture of a Roman statue both before and after reconstruction. We also finally had the really good library requests come in today: Bill Nye the Science Guy, Archaeology, The Magic School Bus Shows and Tells, and Archaeologists Dig For Clues by Kate Duke. Of the nearly twenty juvenile books that I requested from the library on archaeology, only the Magic School Bus one and the Kate Duke one were suitable for the 1st through 4th grade range. What a coincidence, those were the ones recommended by the SOTW Activity Guide! What also shocked me is that these other books, labeled "juvenile," were written at a higher level than I am used to seeing in most media. Our society is so dumbed down. It's sad.

Anyway, we read SOTW and the Usborne Book of World History and then browsed through a couple of library books before heading off to the grocery store. There we found out that 4 very large gala apples weighed an entire pound more than 4 smaller Braeburn apples. Home again to playtime for the munchkins and reading time for me. (They wanted to watch Bindi the Jungle Girl rather than have me read HP to them.) I am so Harry Potter addicted. I have to finish rereading all the books before I can start the new one. This is great for me, great for the kids to see me reading so much, but very bad for my house. I was slightly humiliated early this evening when someone had to come over to drop something off for 4-H and my house was an utter disaster. Dishes in the sink. Scratch paper strewn all over the floor (thank you very much, Greyson). Half eaten sandwiches on the table. Have I mentioned that I am a horrible housekeeper? At least *I* know that the floor was mopped the other day and that the counters get cleaned off at least a couple times a week, lol. I guess it's my true test of people. If you can come over to my house and still like me, you're ok. ;) *sigh*

Oh, breaking news!! Cameron, after watching Bill Nye the Science Guy and verifying with me that he is, in fact, a real person, wants to make a video!! He wants to make "Cameron the Rammin' Guy." It'll be a LEGO video with the title coming from my earlier observation that rhyming titles make you cool. ;) I really hope he wants to follow through because how fun is that?!?! His Daddy actually has a collection of home movies that he and his cousins made when they were young (10ish). "The Arrival" is a family classic that DH even redid with State of the Art special effects, lol. Ah, to follow in his father's footsteps. :) Makes a mom proud.

And that is the latest from Bermland. Check back tomorrow for more of the mundane. ;)