Come, Follow Me: Week of Feb 4 - 10

The Call

And...BOOM! It's February already!

How has your first month gone with implementing the Come, Follow Me program into your home? 

Don't beat yourself up it hasn't looked like a Pinterest worthy post! Just keep on keeping on!

Here are my ideas for activities for the week. Remember, these are MY vision of what I would like MY son to learn this week. This may not be what works at your house. I am trying to create a Love of Learning environment, so I use lots of different types of teaching and activities. Most of what I do only lasts around 10-15 minutes per activity. And I hardly ever get to everything on the chart. But I am prepared, and I have found that that preparation makes all the difference. (For an overview of my thoughts and intentions for the creation of these plans, I encourage you to read this post.)

As always, I hope that by sharing what we are doing in our home can help you in yours!

Feb 4 – Feb 10	Day 1	Day 2	Day 3	Day 4	Day 5
Focus	The Spirit of the Lord Is Upon Me
Topics	I can choose the Right as Jesus did. Video: “Jesus Is Tempted”	Jesus Christ is my Savior. Video: “Jesus Declares He Is the Messiah” Video: “Angry People in Nazareth”	Jesus Christ invites us to be “fishers of men.” “Jesus Invites Us to be Fishers of Men” activity. Either use it as a matching game, or children can go “fishing.” Talk about the pictures on the fish.	Jesus set the example for me by resisting temptation Use the scenarios from “A Little Better Every Day” to talk about situations where we can make a wrong choice. Talk about resisting the temptation and choose the better choice.	Fasting can help me feel close to Heavenly Father Write questions about fasting (such as why, when, or how we fast) on pieces of paper, and place in a bowl. Children try to answer questions. Share your experiences with fasting.
Memorization	Matthew 4:19
History and Geography	Map Work: Nazareth, Bethlehem, Tel Aviv Map templates to use Read: Augustus Caesar’s World pgs. 45 - 55
Poetry/Language Arts	Read the French fairy tale “Diamonds and Toads” by Charles Perrault. Compare it to the American folk tale “The Talking Eggs” by Robert D. San Souci.	Video: Action Verbs for Kids start at 2:35	Handwriting Practice: Writing Books of the New Testament (pg. 22) (copywork file)	Reading Practice: CandyLand Sight Word game Different sets of playing cards for different reading levels!!!	Verbs: I “Can” Verbs activity. Pgs. 11-14 I plan on doing this activity orally with my son.
Fine Arts	Composer Study: George Handel Review: Handel at the Court of Kings by Opal Wheeler Optional: Read some additional information from Music Appreciation Bk. 1, Pgs. 81-85. Add “Musical Compositions” “Father of the Oratorio” & “Handel’s Messiah” to the Lapbook. Listen to Music Disc 2, tracks 17-26		Song to Learn: Choose the Right Way CS pg. 160	Picture Study: The Call by Jorge Cocco	Art: Toad Drawing by Katie Marley
Science/Nature	Unit Study: Water and Our World Lesson 5: “Bodies of Water” 🔳- Activity: Bodies of Water Cards 🔳-Activity: Creating Bodies of water 🔳-Activity: Mapping different types of bodies of water
Math	Activity idea: Farm Counting Cards. Use to practice counting or Counting On, which is a skill needed to understand addition.	Activity idea: Bedtime Math: Do the “Explosion of Diamonds” math riddles.	Activity idea: Mathematicians are People too! Read about John Napier, pg. 37, “Magician or Mathematician?”	Activity idea: Game: Math Facts Baseball	Activity idea: Game: The Grapes of Math. Begin by reading the book “The Grapes of Math” by Greg Tang
Extra Resources	“The Talking Eggs” by Robert D. San Souci	A Drop Around the World by Barbara Shaw McKinney	“To Root, to Toot, to Parachute: What is a Verb?” by Brian P Cleary	Earth’s Landforms and Bodies of Water by Natalie Hyde	“The Grapes of Math” by Greg Tang
Chapter Book Read-Aloud	The Dog Who Was There (Chp. 11 - 12)

Books recommended

·         Come, Follow Me-For Individuals and Families 2019 manual

·         Augustus Caesar’s World

·         The Dog Who Was There by Ron Marasco (read every week until done. Then pick another read-aloud.)

·          Mathematicians Are People Too! Stories from the Lives of Great Mathematicians by Luetta & Wilbert Reimer

·         Handel at the Court of Kings by Opal Wheeler

·         Diamonds and Toads  by Charles Perrault (or a French Fairy Tale collection by Perrault)

·         The Talking Eggs by Robert D. San Souci

·         A Drop Around the World  by Barbara Shaw McKinney

·         To Root, To Toot, To Parachute: What is a Verb? By Brian P Cleary

·         Earth’s Landforms and Bodies of Water by Natalie Hyde

·         The Grapes of Math by Greg Tang

Memorization verse: Matthew 4:19

For a printable version of these plans, go HERE.

Spelling Practice is fun!

Spelling

 doesn't have to be as scary a prospect to practice as you might think!

My little man (Love of Learning phase) has expressed frustration that he doesn't spell well. So I am consciously looking for opportunities to incorporate opportunities to spell in our activities. 

Enter: Games!

I have become a big believer in the whole concept of "game-schooling." (It's actually a real thing!) At least with my son, playing games has been a game changer. He loves playing them, any game, any time! And I love what I have been seeing happen to him. His attitude is much more eager, his strategic thinking has sharpened, he is a better "sport" and is becoming pretty good at accepting losing. Plus he is really gaining skills in core subject areas.

Here is a peek into our Kid School today:

We pulled out the game "Word a Melon" by the Bananagram company. (I recommend all of their games actually!) I found it at Target, and I know it is available on Amazon, and can probably be found many other places.

The game is played by a player rolling the dice. (You'll get a 3,4 or 5.) The player turns over as many letter tiles (seeds) as indicated on the dice. Then the player tries to create words out of the letters revealed. The longer the word, the better. The player then takes the letters that created the word off the game board and keeps them. Turn any remaining letters back over. The object at the end of the game is to have the most "seeds" in your pile.

When we play, creating the words is a team effort. I help him find words out of his letters. We have a lot of fun. I deliberately sound out the letters in an order that creates a nonsense word. And He is learning to do it too. We laugh at all the crazy sounding words. But this is worthwhile because it is teaching him to pay attention to the individual sounds that letters make and to practice blending them.

The first lesson is consonants and vowels. We learned quickly that most words need a combination of both of those. We have a short, little ditty that we sing that helps us remember which letters are vowels. 

As he is gaining confidence, he creates words that are "almost" correct. It is a great opportunity for me to point out spelling rules, but in an off-hand way that doesn't tell him he's wrong.

For example: He turned over the letters P-I-N. He said "pine." I was able remind him of the pesky rule about silent, final e that makes the vowel say it's name. I asked him if the vowel could say another sound. And after thinking a second, he was able to come up with "pin." 

Many times I am the one that finds all the words, but I am modeling how it is done and he stays very engaged in the process. And he gets to keep the letters when it's officially his turn.

Another aspect I added at the end is that when we tally up our letter tiles, I will announce that I am going to count my tiles by 5s or by 2s or by 3s, etc...and model how to do that. He almost always does the same, the little copycat!  So we get a bit of skip counting in too! 

I have a tub full of games that I use for spelling practice. I keep my eyes open wherever I go to see if there is something else we can add. With the Kon Marie movement gaining so much momentum, people are purging their game closets like crazy. Keep haunting the thrift stores and you'll be amazed at what you can find! And if your family doesn't like a game, re-donate it! You will only be out a couple of dollars.

Comment below if you have a game that works really well for spelling at your house!

  

Come, Follow Me: Week of Jan 28 - Feb 3

Prepare Ye the Way of the Lord

Isn't that what we are trying to do? It's worth the effort to prepare a way for the Lord to be able to dwell in our hearts and in our homes. Keep fighting the good fight!

Jan 28 – Feb 3	Day 1	Day 2	Day 3	Day 4	Day 5
Focus	Prepare Ye the Way of the Lord
Topics	Who was Mark? Read paragraph given and Bible Dictionary.	What is repentance? I Can Repent & Be Happy story and activity	Pharisees & Sadducees Video: Pharisees, Sadducees & Scribes	Jesus Christ was Baptized Video: Jesus is baptized Video: Jesus is Baptized by John	3 members of the Godhead The Godhead: characteristics of the Godhead activity
Memorization	Matthew 3:17
History and Geography	Map Work: Red Sea, Jerusalem, Damascus   Map templates to use Read: Augustus Caesar’s World pgs. 35 - 44
Poetry/Language Arts	Read Rapunzel by the Brothers Grimm. Compare with other versions of Rapunzel or talk about likes/dislikes.	Read: Enigma: A Magical Mystery by Graeme Base. Try to solve the code at the end!	Handwriting Practice: Tracing Books of the New Testament (pg. 21) (copywork file)	Reading Practice: Self-Correcting Magnet Fun. Use pgs. 13-18 for reading practice	Verbs: Name That Verb game. May be done orally for non-writers.
Fine Arts	Composer Study: George Handel Read Chp. 4 of: Handel at the Court of Kings by Opal Wheeler Optional: Read some additional information from Music Appreciation Bk. 1, Pgs. 73-79. Add “Harmonious Blacksmith” & Water Music  to the Lapbook. Listen to Music Disc 2, tracks 7-16		Song to Learn: Baptism pg. 100	Picture Study: John The Baptist Baptizing Jesus	Art: Foldable 3D Shapes
Science/Nature	Unit Study: Water and Our World Lesson 4: “The Water Cycle” 🔳-“Noah’s Ark” story; Activity: Water Cycle picture 🔳-Art Project: Water Cycle diagram
Math	Activity idea: Build a slide for Rapunzel. (Fairy Tale STEM challenges)	Activity idea: Bedtime Math: A Truly Magic Carpet	Activity idea: Mathematicians are People too! Read about Hypatia, pg. 29, “A woman of courage”	Activity idea: Game: Roll & Read the Time	Activity idea: Game: Explore 3D Shapes
Extra Resources	Once There Was A Raindrop	Let’s Drink Some Water Sir Cumference & the Sword in the Cone	Of Numbers and Stars: The Story of Hypatia Hypatia: Explorer of Geometry	All the Water In the World Make a Wish, Albert!	Captain Invincible and the Space Shapes Cubes, Cones, Cylinders, & Spheres
Chapter Book Read-Aloud	The Dog Who Was There (Chp. 9 - 10)

Resources

Books recommended

·         Come, Follow Me-For Individuals and Families 2019 manual

·         Augustus Caesar’s World

·         The Dog Who Was There by Ron Marasco (read every week until done. Then pick another read-aloud.)

·          Mathematicians Are People Too! Stories from the Lives of Great Mathematicians by Luetta & Wilbert Reimer

·         Handel at the Court of Kings by Opal Wheeler

·         Once There Was a Raindrop by Judith Anderson and Mike Gordon

·         Let’s Drink Some Water by Ruth Walton

·         All the Water in the World by George Ella Lyon and Katherine Tillotson

·         Of Numbers and Stars: The Story of Hypatia by D. Anne Love

·         Hypatia: Explorer of Geometry by Brittany Goris

·         Enigma: A Magical Mystery by Graeme Base

·         Captain Invincible and the Space Shapes by Stuart J. Murphy

·         Cubes, Cones, Cylinders, & Spheres by Tana Hoban

·         Make a Wish, Albert! by Lori Houran

·         Sir Cumference and the Sword in the Cone by Cindy Neuschwander

Memorization verse: Matthew 3:17

Self-Correcting Magnet Fun

Explore3D Shapes

FairyTale STEM challenges

Explore3D Shapes

Name That Verb

Roll & Readthe Time

copywork file

Blank Map template to use

Map template to use

For a printable copy of these plans, go HERE.

For an overview of how to use these plans, and my thoughts behind creating them, THIS POST might be helpful.