First day of school Grade 1 & JK

September is here and so our school year has started! I was up early before the boys and all ready to start our day.  After breakfast we had morning meeting.  This is for prayer, memory verses, seasonal poems and a review of the day.

Next up was story time.  The boys just loved hearing about Cloud Boy.  This is a lovely story from CederRingMama  made up for her son. It is a wonderful intro to form drawing. I used our great stacker from Simple Gift Toys along with Playmobil.  When we were done MJ took a turn telling me a story using a toy motor cycle and Playmobil.  It was adorable.

While MJ played with his toys TJ and I moved to the classroom to practice some form drawing.  The Cloud Boys story speaks of a young boy who drew pictures in the clouds. We focused today on straight lines.  TJ even made up his own picture for me to follow (bottom left).

During free play times throughout the day the boys played doctor (I make a great patient), Playmobil, Lego, and some new parachute men they received as a gift.  We went to the playground to find a higher spot to launch the parachute men.  TJ was thrilled.  He trying every  surface and height he could find.  We chatted for a while about the forces acting on his parachute man.  It was good for TJ to directly interact with the forces of gravity and drag.

 While at the playground we went on a hunt to look for straight and curved lines.  The boys quickly pointed out all the straight poles of man-made items around.  I asked them to look harder and find the straight things that God had made.  MJ found a mix of natural and man-made items with my camera.  He was rather insightful to tell me how people are straight, arms, and eyelashes are also straight.

 TJ and I looked around the community garden plot.  There were many wonderful examples for vegetables growing straight and tall.  We took a little more time to find horizontal or angled lines.

 Of course there was an abundance of curves too that TJ wanted me to save for later when we work on curved drawings.  Shockingly all this incredible learning happened before lunch time!!

After lunch I read some of a Magic Tree House story, then the boys had quiet time.  Okay it's never really all that quiet...

In the afternoon I introduced project time.  I spent time with each boys separately going over their own project of interest was.  TJ has been into flight recently.  We have read books and watched movies on airplanes and flight throughout the summer.  Today TJ dictated to me what he learned about parachute from playing at the playground.  He also drew a picture in his notebook.  Next we reviewed his past questions and answered them.  TJ told me what to write. I also took a video of his explanation of jet engines.  Sorry it is too big to post here.  After we wrote down his new questions, I asked him what he wanted to do with all this new information.  How could he show what he learned or what did he want to make.  TJ decided to make jet plane from recycling.  It'll be done in a few days perhaps.  I really can't wait to show you all how much he as learned from this topic.  He is actually grasping it all!

MJ's recent passion has been the human body.  He is constantly asking me how different functions of the body work and loves the human body books we have read.  On occasion he will perfectly tell me how the voice works or digestion. I have noticed that looking at the pictures in the books helps him a lot. Of course he just loves to hear about what happens when we drink water (peeeee).  I tried to have MJ tell me what he knew today for a video but he wasn't too into that (rather he was in a silly mood).  He really doesn't grasp what I mean about doing a project or anything with what he is learning.  I have some ideas of great projects for him, that we may do.  For today he made a popsicle stick sculpture which he said was a body of some sort.  I traced MJ on large paper and he then drew a picture of his sculpture on it.  Not sure I understood but it's his project not mine...

Later in the afternoon we played outside in the rain!  The boys played together for a bit.  Then MJ and I made tomato sauce as he's been really into the hand held apple sauce grinder thing.  When I noticed there was lots of time left before dinner we had music lessons.  We have been using Alfred's Music for Little Motzarts.  TJ progressed well through a few lessons and was thrilled to play a song.  MJ had a shorter lesson but stuck with me as I promised he could play with the funny sounds on the keyboard when he was done.  Here is TJ concentrating on listening to the different sounds during his free play music time.

After that I had the boys do some chores, we read more of our book, ate dinner and then played again.  I sent the boys off to play in another room  so I could have some down time before evening routine. And so ends our first day of school.  It was a great day to just be together without the daycare or having to specifically be somewhere else.  I know not every day will run so smoothly, but on a whole I'm really happy with the rhythm of the day.  It's going to be an awesome year!!