Last Week's Lessons for Trey

Last week, we finished up all of our units on Washington (see lapbook below...very cool if I do say so myself!) We didn't get to the plant experiments that I wanted to get to because we had a rushed week. For some reason, my brain went all crazy on me (happens a lot, I know), and I didn't account for the last section in each of the units in my lesson plans. So there I was thinking we were in good shape. Then Wednesday rolled around and we only had two more days to finish up everything, and I was STRESS-IN!!!

My original thoughts were to have my mom-in-law do a lesson with Trey on plants, parts of plants, greenhousing, etc.; because my thumb is completely black, and she could grow a plant from a piece of charcoal and a paper clip. Ok, small exaggeration, but the woman can grow anything, and my plants always seem to commit botanical suicide when they see me coming!

Anyway...I was so proud of Trey. I know a lot of mom's don't take grades on the work their kids do, but I have chosen to because Trey may one day re-enter public school. And while Texas is currently completely unregulated with regards to homeschoolers (that is, we don't have to report anything to anyone, once he's appropriately withdrawn from public school), there's no guarantee that it will always be that way. SO...with that possibility in the back of my mind, I thought it safer to go ahead and document everything, even attendance...JUST IN CASE.

At the end of each of our units (we use Alpha Omega LIFEPACS), Trey takes a unit test and we tally his scores for each subject. He already had A's in every subject, but he brought each of them up at least 4 points last week. He worked extremely hard so that we could take our entire Thanksgiving Break off. Sometimes he had a "working lunch," and sometimes he worked through his afternoon breaks. He now has at least a 99% in each subject. I couldn't be prouder of him!!!

This week, all we have planned are some Arts & Crafts projects, and some cookies to take to my mom's for Thanksgiving. He will also be writing a letter to the soldier he "adopted" in Iraq. And of course, we will honor our tradition of reading Thanksgiving Poems, telling Pilgrim Stories, etc. while we're doing our projects. There will be plenty of lessons to be learned this week, but the kiddos will never suspect they are actual lessons!!