Fall has always been one of my favorite times of the year and it is definitely upon us now!  We have been enjoying such pleasant weather these past few weeks.  Temperatures have been consistently dropping during the day into the mid-70's and the nights have brought some chilly temps down into the upper 30's!  Wow..I know!
Just wanted to send a little post to say hi and keep the ball rolling here on the pc whilst we continue to school, settle and raise the family. 
Blessings to you all!
Kimi

I love my daughter!!

She is my oldest baby girl and I have to praise her a little here on my blog.  She is a dedicated, young lady of God and spends her days devoting herself to the works of the Kingdom. She is always looking for a moment to share her faith with a hungry soul and she is so well-versed in God’s word.  Currently, she is enrolled in nursing school and is in the process of taking her final classes.  She also works for our local grocer, trying to get as many hours as she can. She plays the piano, sings, and helps out with the computer at church, as well as, teaches music and piano to kids. In her very rare, but spare time, she helps me out with a kids club for our homeschool group.  She is a blessing to everyone who knows her and I haven’t found anyone who doesn’t love her right from the start.  I thank God for sharing her with our family. He has given me the best opportunity of being a Mom, in having you for a daughter-I love you so much Camille! 

A trip to the zoo!

Well, if you are like us, you love any chance you can get to take a trip to the zoo.  Two of our youngest kids are studying

Apologia Science-Land Animals of the Sixth Day,

and they are learning about mammals, creation, animal careers, everything animal!  Right now we have been studying “Predators & Prey”, “Habituation”, and “Camouflage”.  So, we went to our local zoological park this week and visited the areas specifically related to our study. 

This is called a ‘Wild Dog’. It’s a very brightly colored creature with sharp teeth.  Very unusual! 

Of course, these young lions are among the most feared predators around.  Let’s just keep them on the other side of the glass, shall we. Actually, these gorgeous girls, named Asha, Kimba, and Lily, will be traveling down to Mexico soon.  They are part of a species survival program, called the (SSP) Species Survival Plan. The zoo they will be transferring to is also part of the AZA and is an accredited institution.  Labor Day weekend will be the final weekend to view them at the Birmingham Zoo. 

Some of the kids observing the fresh water turtles, large fish and fowl in the pond that’s in the center of the zoo.

 

This is the Red Panda.

As we were walking around this area, a little flamingo began following the girls…it was stretching its neck over the barrier and almost poked them on their shoulders.  When they looked back at it, the flamingo just stared at them and waited.  Then we found some approved animal treats and fed them. 

Apparently, these little guys are used to getting these little treats.  The girls screamed with excitement as the birds poked the food from their hands. 

The zebra is always one of our favorite animals.  There is five in this exhibit and earlier this morning they were feeding on fresh hay.  No two stripes are the same.

We did get to watch the elephants feeding that morning.  They were feasting on a healthy diet of veggies….more specifically: sweet potatoes! 

Elephants are the focus of the Trails of Africa exhibit. It has a cultural themed motif that adds to the whole African experience.   

(above) wonder what these strange animals are called???

There was so many other exhibits and probably too many to show on just one post.  I know it’s just a bunch of animals, but what is so amazing is that we serve the One who has created ALL of them!  We took time with the kids and talked with them about how amazing God truly is to have placed every shape, color, size, ability into all of these gorgeous creatures.  What an absolutely wonderful God we serve! 

Thanks for visiting and come back soon. Kimi

Lesson Plans-Elementary, Middle & High School

Home-schooling, home-educating, teaching at home.

All three bring to mind the same idea: children learning in the environment of their own home. For parents/grandparents, this may bring additional thoughts of curriculum and lesson planning. Finding just the right curriculum can take a little time, but with patience and some research you can find what works best for your children. Then it’s on to making out those lesson plans.  I just wanted to share what I have chosen to use over the years.  And although my lesson books are new this year, they are still the same kind of plans I have used for many years.  I just bought several so I could have one for every grade. We have a 9th gr, 8th gr, 6th gr, and a 1st grader. Plus, 3 who have already graduated.

High school lesson plan book:

(above) 2 students use this lesson book. (9th gr & 8th gr) Each have 7 days on this layout. Each have 1 block (or section) per day. Each student finds his/her day and subject. Each student works from this lesson plan on a daily basis.

(below) You can see where each student finds their own name, subject and day of the week. From here they can begin working on Monday. remember: these 2 students are in high school and they are very capable of working from a lesson plan book.

Middle school lesson plan book:

(above) Now, this lesson plan book is set up a little bit different, in that I am using one (1) entire book per student.  It really makes it easier for me and for the student to read every day. Above is what the cover looks like and you can find them at the Dollar Tree for exactly $1!  I just couldn’t pass this up, so I picked up a few more for the next several years too!

(below) Down the side you can see Mon thru Fri.  The left side is one week and the right side is the next week.  This student has three (3) blocks per day for his daily lessons.  I like to write out a little more detail for this age  and under, so he will begin to understand what is expected of him. It also helps him because he SEES it in WRITING, and if it’s in writing he can keep up with it. (6th gr)

(below) Here you can see the three(3) blocks I use on Monday. Each subject is written in a certain color, (colors coordinates with text book) to be read easier. The student can then follow all the subjects which are color divided.

(below) As before, each day is set up to use with three (3) blocks. Although this student can not read fluently yet, she is in the process of learning how to read her subjects every day.  By the time she gets into higher grades this will be second nature for her. 

Word to the wise: I plan my lessons out for usually no more than two (2) weeks.  This gives me time to adjust their scheduled lessons, if needed, and to re-write them if they are working ahead faster than schedule. Also, to adjust lessons if they are falling behind in any subject.

A little more of our trip together…

Walt Disney World-Orlando has several theme parks to visit.  We try to go to as many as we possibly can in one day.  And for us, that’s part of what makes it fun!! Parking at one and then riding over to all the others is fun in itself, because we can see the whole park on the way and it’s kinda like a little tour.  And it’s free!  Shuttling to all the theme parks is a guest courtesy.
Here’s a few clips of the 17 hour day we spent there!

1. Our first stop…ANIMAL KINGDOM!! 

IT WAS SUPER!  PROBABLY ONE OF OUR ‘favorite’  theme parks to visit. 

Then we went over to ‘MGM’ Studios to ride the dreaded
Tower of Terror!!
With several 13 story drops, it leaves a person feeling a little light-headed!
Ok, so I took pics –DURING—the ride!!  It was too funny not to snap a few of them and their faces!!! Ha---but the joke was on me…I got so sick from the motion, I nearly threw up!
We got caught in the rain for a few minutes and that was too fun.  We ran through the main street area and got soaked…but it was totally great!  Here’s two of us standing out in the rain.  Hope their clothes dry soon, cause we’re on our way to the next stop…Magic Kingdom.  Yayee!!!Every park we visited, we would travel by bus, boat or monorail to get there from where we actually parked our van.  So here’s a  shot of the girls riding on one of the buses we took.  We’re heading over to the Magic Kingdom.
 And what do you think is the first thing we see upon entering the spectacular Magic Kingdom???   Cinderella’s Lovely Castle
And of course this totally thrilled the littlest member of the family. She got a bird’s eye view from on top of Daddy’s shoulders.  She saw Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto along with Belle, Aurora, and Cinderella herself!! And too many other princesses to name-Wow!! What a little girl’s dream!
All throughout the parks, you can stand under these little spray-mists of water to get cooled off.  Here’s the girls getting a little wet as we continue on our way to the next ride.  We had just got off the river rapid ride.  They got soaked already!! 
  
The Carousel is always fun, but even better when it’s Cinderella’s Magical Carousel!! Cinderella’s Castle is all lit up at night.  It gleams with purple, blue and pink lights shining brightly on it.
We took a break and watched the most gorgeous firework show on EARTH!! Since it was only early evening, we still had time to a quick bite to eat and a few more rides!!  Buzz Light Year’s Laser Shooting ride is one ride we always enjoy! We got to shoot shoot shoot at all the targets and as you hit a target, the laser gun totals up your score. At the end you can see who did best!  So cool!
Mom and Dad got to ride this one together! Dad had the best score!
 Going through a tunnel to fire at more targets!!!  Get ‘em Kiddos!
This was the last ride of the night….SPACE MOUNTAIN…this was even more special because over 35 years ago, their Papa had helped to build this ride for Mr. Disney. 

The end of the night was finally here and we spent it watching the Spectacular Lights Parade and eating some junk food!

Somebody just couldn’t hold out any longer….she had been going since 6:00am. How is she even holding on?? 

I felt like I was on a ride all day myself!!  Since I have had a few mishaps in the recent months…(call me clumsy)…they decided it would be best for Mom to get a little wheelchair for the day.  So that’s just what we did.  And it really made a difference.  Here we are riding the monorail back over to our parking area. Thanks family for taking care of me all day!! 

The fun didn’t end there….we had several more days of things to do.  We got to visit with some family and friends, help with some needed chores that needed to be done around the place and go bicycling and swimming.  Since my family lives in an area that offers so much to do, there isn’t a dull moment for those who like the activities that Orlando offers.  And for those who enjoy a quiet moment, I’m looking forward to posting about our time on the lake at my Grandma’s house.  She is in her 90’s and is still one of the most beautiful lady’s I have ever known! 
Thanks for stopping by to peak in on our blog.  We look forward to seeing you next time! 
Blessings to you~Kimi