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NEW YEAR

We are getting ready to embark on another new year of schooling. The girls are excited to have a daily learning ritual again. For me I can't say that I am quite ready.

Six people in the house and six different schedules to navigate around is going to be quite the task to overcome. One in college (commuting) and working, one playing field hockey, one being a soccer queen and the other one getting ready to embark on another drama production means a very busy household. With a big calendar on the kitchen wall we do pretty well with managing everything.

Samantha is starting college on Monday at the University of Southern Maine where she starts her first semester in the nursing field. Richelle will start 11th grade at PRHS and will be studying AP Statistics, Chemistry, Humanities, and some elective courses to satisfy her gym credits she needs. Elesha and Katriana begin the year with BJU 6 Science, Math, Reading, Heritage Studies and English. They will work with Apologia in Anatomy and Physiology and begin a Thomas Kinkade Art Course. It's shaping up to be a great year for learning.

Electives: Astronomy and Botany

We finished up with our "175 days" but learning doesn't end there for us. The girls each chose an elective to work on for the next month. Katriana is working on her elective she chose which is Botany: The study of plants. She is learning about taxonomy and how species are named. She is especially enjoying the notebook that goes along with her Botany course.

Elesha's elective is Astronomy. She just finished a unit on the planets and sun and is working on preparing a speech about the sun. She has decided to incorporate into her speech a poster and a PowerPoint slide show. I am so proud that she has learned how to make slide shows and is willing to use the technology on a project. I was shocked to find her drawing and coloring pictures for a poster today. She is enjoying Astronomy quite a bit... maybe a telescope is in her future?

Government

The girls started their final chapter in History today and it's all about government. Starting the chapter off was information about how we elect our President. I really am not sure if this is their favorite topic in History?

So we have ended the cheer season and were looking forward to some time off before track season starts at the end of the month... think again. The two girls just got cast parts in the elementary school production "Aesops Fables Redux". They have learned their lines and are all set to start rehearsals today. We ended up having "yesterday" as our only official no activities day.

I don't mind though, it keeps the girls busy and they enjoy working with others. We are looking forward to track season starting at the end of the month. Track will continue through the summer along with cheer camp, drama camp, and soccer camp taking place.

From Sound Waves to Light

The girls spent the last week learning about sound waves and light. They even impressed their dad about what the primary colors are for light. Of course a strange look came across his face at first when they listed red, blue, and green as their primary colors. I guess it all depends on what subject you are studying as to what your answer would be. So proud of the girls and the work they are doing in school.

Guys and Dolls Production

Elesha is currently in her second production, the first being "Alice in Wonderland". She is enjoying her part in the "Guys and Dolls" production and happy to be part of the Poland Players. She hopes to continue her journey in drama for a long time. Her published bio is as follows: Elesha is in her second play. She really likes to do track and cheering. Other favorite activities include writing songs and poems, watching movies and eating. She really likes being in plays because it gives her a chance to be dramatic and creative.

Katriana is currently enjoying her first production. She was all smiles after last night's opening performance and is eagerly awaiting the next three nights of performances. Her published bio is as follows: Katriana is nine years old and this is her first production with the Poland Players. She is also involved in cheerleading and likes to snowboard when she can. Her favorite subject is math. But the best thing in the world to her is spending time with her family. She wants to thank her mother for getting her to rehearsal and encouraging her to do the play.

World War II

The girls have taken quite an interest in WWII. They have read about the dictators of that time frame and have studied the facts of WWII. They seem to like learning about the wars that our country has been involved in, which I can honestly say when I was there age I could have cared less. I have been enjoying learning right along side of them though and expanding my knowledge in History, which I was never keen on. Maybe it's my fascination for History these days that makes it enjoyable and interesting for them?

The one part that they didn't care for much, but understand it was part of life back then, are the concentration camps. They honestly can't see why people were treated the way they were just because they didn't have the same beliefs as the government figures. They are truly learning what dictatorship means.

Figuring out the Least Common Multiple

Two ways to figure out your least common multiple (LCM) of two numbers.

Method A: List each number and the multiples until you come up with a multiple that appears in both of the lists.

Example: Find the LCM of 8 and 12
8: 8, 16, 24, 32, 40, 28, 56, 64, 72, 80
12: 12, 24, 36, 48, 60, 72, 84, 96, 108, 120

The LCM for those two numbers is 24 because that is the lowest number that appears in both lists of multiples.

Method B: Make a prime factor tree for each number and then figure out which one has more of each prime number, circle all of that prime number in the one with more, continue with each prime number then multiply all those circled together.

Example: Find the LCM of 8 and 12

8: 2, 2, 2

12: 3, 2, 2

The prime number 2 occurs the most in the factor tree for 8 so I would circle them all and the prime number 3 occurs the most in the factor tree for 12 so I would circle them all. Therefore now I would multiply the numbers I have circled 2x2x2x3 = 24

The girls prefer to use Method B, they say it takes less brain power and is quicker. I never knew Method B existed until I was teaching them how to do it and I have to say I also find it much quicker and easier.

Busy, Busy

Where does the time go? We have been very busy the last two months with school, sports and extra activities.

In school we are working on "Rulers with Iron Fists" in Heritage Studies. This unit will lead us into our WWII unit which we are due to start in another week. The girls are thankful that we don't live with a dictatorship government. Sound and how it is made is our Science unit for now. The girls are finding it fascinating to learn how sound travels. We are at the end of our math unit which was adding and subtracting unlike fractions. The girls struggled at first but have finally mastered finding the least common multiple and simplifying fractions. Tall tales and book reviews are on the agenda for English. They don't typically like the planning that goes into writing but love to write the stories themselves.

For sports; the girls are both getting ready to compete in their second cheering competition of the season. Placing second at their first competition their team has worked and drilled skills for the upcoming competition. Only four more after this weekend. Indoor soccer starts on Sunday for Katriana, she is excited to be playing on the 6th-8th grade team. Mouthguard and shin pads are all ready to go as she anxiously awaits opening day.

Both the girls got minor rolls in the High School play "Guys and Dolls". They are set to go on stage for the production March 17-19th. Excited but scared at the same time best describes their attitudes. They have been asked to be in the local elementary production also, those practices will start in late March. We are unsure what play they are doing this year but know it will be fantastic.

Well that's a quick catch up of what has been going on with us for the past two months!