"Canes" in the making??

For two years Dio, you have been asking to play ice hockey.  When you were 4.5 we felt you were too young, and honestly I was afraid of you getting hurt.  Well, now your 6.5 and about six months ago you asked again to play.   We looked in to it and said yes.  Big brother Dominic didn't want you to be alone, so he announced that he would be playing too.  However, the first thing you both need to do is to learn how to skate!  Polar Ice House in Wake Forest has Homeschool Skate Academy and you are in Hockey I, learning how to skate, and some fundamentals for ice hockey.   The class is from 12-12:30 every Wednesday.  Since it falls during lunch time, it is a good fit. 

Their first class was on 9/8, and big Dom took them on Saturday again.  We committed to them that we would take them to open skate on the weekend so they could get extra practice in.  I have to say I was very proud at how brave they were the first time on the ice.  They fell quite a bit, but were so determined, and never once got upset.  They laughed at themselves and kept on going, encouraging each other all the way:

Pausing for a photo - first day!  It is very wierd to be packing backpacks of winter clothes in the Summer!

All suited up!  They wore hockey skates this first time, but then changed to figure skates over the weekend at the suggestion of the instructor.  She said it would be easier to learn on figure skates, and then change to hockey skates in a few weeks.  Dom said they did much better.  Big Dom even got out on the ice and skated.  We were there early and the owner said they could go out on the ice until the lesson began.

Feeling a bit off balance!

Dio on his way

Oops! always with a smile!

The instructor had just adjusted their laces.  Mommy did not do too good of a job.

ahhh..much better.

The first lesson it was only the two of them, which was nice.  There were other students who we were told could not make it that day.  This week we already had a field trip planned, so the boys missed that lesson.  They are on their way though, and we look forward to seeing them progress.  

Week 4 - Creation through Noah

We really liked this week - lots of fun and interesting reading, and lots of projects.  As I prepared for this week, under Geography it said to teach Plate Tectonics, and I thought what in the world is that?!  And after I read what is was, I asked myself where do I even begin?!   Thank goodness for the library!  I was able to take out some fabulouse books in the juvenille section and we exhausted the books - the kids dove in and kept reading.  One of the things we did was, using playdough, we created the layers of the Earth - it was a group project with everyone contributing a layer:

Here the boys are showing Panagea

Here's the cutaways showing the crust, mantle, outer and inner cores (above and below)

Did you know that the Earth's crust is approximately 25-40 miles deep, and the furtherest anyone has drilled is a little over 7 miles!

We also began the week by going outside and measuring and marking off the size of Noah's Ark according to the instructions in the Bible:

It was 50 cubits wide (75 ft), so that would be the distance between Dominc and Dio...

and it was 300 cubits long (450 ft) which is from where the boys are standing almost to the mailboxes in the background.  And it would have been 50 cubits high (75 ft).

Dominic, Dio, Donatella and Maria each held a string that was 18 inches long, which is equal to one cubit, and we measured lining up one string after another.  It was early in the morning and it was, as Donatella would say, "steamin' hot!"

We also talk a lot about art, and color, and drawing.  I need to take pictures of their work.  I did however remember to take a picture of their drawing and caption of Noah's Ark:

Drawn by Dominic

Drawn by Dio

This week the boys and I also finished their Pharaoh costumes from Week 3.  The boys used tempera paints to design their kilts:

Dio's kilt, painted by Dio

Pharaoh Dio

Pharaoh Dominic, with kilt painted by Dominic

I'm still working on girls' dresses, and we have more clothes to make this week (6).

Special Moments

I have enjoyed some of the special moments I've had the privilege to see and be a part of...something I would be missing out on if I was not blessed to homeschool....

Donatella making us lunch

Dom taking a break!

I love the next three photos...where Donatella is teaching Maria the "fingerplay" for the letter B!

Taking a walk around "B"

This was taken one evening after school as I was preparing dinner - the girls just enjoying being outside

Sweet moment of Dominic reading to Maria

and another sweet moment catching Dio reading to Donatella out on the side porch

the photographer is caught! :)

Science

We are using Apologia's Exploring Creation with Astronomy, Young Explorer Series.  I love the content and the pace, however, I did not realize how much science is already in Tapestry of Grace....in the form of Geography.  So I am trying to balance it all as there is so much I want to teach.  For the first week in our Astronomy we studied an overview of God's creation of the planets.  Our project was to create the planets out of balloons and attach them in the order they way they orbit around the sun.  Some of the balloons were SO SMALL that I was closely monitoring the kids as they tried to blow air into them, so not much picture taking during the process.  However, kids you did a great job and knew exactly what to do.  Here is the completed project:

In order from left to right:

Sun - Mercury - Venus - Earth - Mars - Jupiter - Saturn - Uranus - Neptune - and we included Pluto although did you know that Pluto is no longer considered a planet!

Happy Birthday Mommy

Just a quick note on my birthday today -  Dom called early from Chicago to wish me a happy birthday.  He had given me a card the day before since he would not be here.  Very sweet.  Second phone call came from my good friend and her children, all singing happy birthday to me....so sweet!  Thank you friend!  Then I was greeted by the kids all holding one card and walking to me singing happy birthday...I was so touched.  They gave me a lovely card.  Unfortunately little Dom woke up not feeling well. We had Maria's first language therapy appt today.  After all my apprehension, it went VERY well.  I am looking forward to working with the wonderful lady who is helping me and Maria.  The rest of the day was welcomed by loving phone calls from my family and friends - thank you all!

As I reflect back to last year, one year ago on my birthday I was at the UPS store mailing our dossier to Kiev, Ukraine, for Maria's adoption!  Wow, look at all God has accomplished in one year in our home.  Praise God for his grace and mercy, and his unfailing love and faithfulness in my life. 

For You created my inmost being...your works are wonderful...my frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth...search me O God and know my heart...test me and know my anxious thoughts...See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.  (from Psalm 139). 

I look forward with anticipation to see how God will work in my life this coming year.

TOG - Week 3

Week three brought working with lots of clay.  We made ancient lamps, and ancient clay pots.  Even mommy got in on that one!

We learning about all the Jewish Holidays and Celebrations this term - something I have been wanting to do for several years.  We are enjoying learning about how they prepare their homes, meals and themselves for their Holy days.   During these Holy days it is customary to have all lights turned off at a certain time and only use candles or oil lamps.  So we made clay lamps which we will pour oil into and light a cotton string for our celebration day.  We used oven bake clay and here they are below:

We also learned how they made clay pots and vases.  They would roll the clay into thin coils and spiral them on top of each other and when they had the width and height they desired, they would then smooth out the sides to make it look like one solid piece of clay.  We used air-dry clay for this project, and Donatella and I chose to leave our pots with the coiled look, while the others prefered to smooth them out.  After they dried we painted them in the traditional colors of deep blue and gold.

Dio hard at work

Maria liked squishing it around

Dom working so diligently to add a handle on one side

and Donatella rolling her clay.

Here they are painted:

and here they are in use holding our hard-boiled eggs!

Dio's creative idea to use them for our eggs..however that soon turned into a bit of egg-possessiveness of people not wanting the eggs in each of their pots to be eaten!  So we had to go back to our traditional bowl and return the pots to their resting place until end of unit celebration!

The kids this week also drew and captioned the Ten Plagues in Egypt.  The ancient Egyptians served many false gods.  It was interesting to learn that the Plagues that were set upon the people of Egypt were relative to the gods of the land demonstrating that God was the true God and that their gods were weak, ineffective and false.  For example, the Plague of turning the Nile into blood (Ex 7:14-25)-  Isis was the Egyptian god of the Nile.

Scheduling

Ahhh..the never ending tweaking of a homeschooling mom's schedule, or at least for me!  Here's a peek at our schedule for the day, however we have sinced tweeked it again, and again, but it gives a glimpse of how a day runs here at The Cornerstone Academy!  We now do our workboxes right after breakfast and math is included in their workboxes.  Then break for TOG group time - the kids are really enjoying it that way.  Thanks Kids for all your input!  Love, Mommy.

I'll need to post more on scheduling....until then..

TOG - Week 2

Wow!  There is sooo much to blog on for our homeschool, so I believe it will be easier for me to keep track of if I name my posts by the Week # we are in.   So for Week 2, here we go....

Pyramid Building!  The kids designed pyramids several different ways - all wonderful and creative:

"blocks" pyramid by Dio

"blocks" pyramid by Dom

"toy room" pyramid by all!

Dom using "plumb" line to line up the pyramid blocks

all the pyramid workers chiseling the pyramid stones

"blocks" pyramid by Donatella

Dom building a model of Khufu's Great Pyramid above, and below.

Dom showing the interior tombs of Khufu's Great Pyramid

"lego" pyramid by Dio (notice the opening in the green legos

for the "burial chamber")

the "mummy" in the burial chamber

the inside of the pyramid - very complex!

Making Mud Bricks!   Well, we saw that Maria did NOT like the paper mache goop from Week 1, she definitely was not thrilled with mud either!  But we (including mom!) took off our sandals and made mud bricks the way they did in Ancient Egypt (and still do in parts of the Middle East today)...here's the process:

First, we bought a baby pool for the mixing.  We added one 50 lb bag of clay soil, another 50 lb bag of sand, water, and finally straw.  This truly is authentic mud bricks making.

Maria prefers to watch :)

Brick makers mixing with their feet

Their faces say it all!

Mastroianni feet - can you pick out mommy's?

Dio's brick ready to be sun-dried!

Maria's brick

Dominic's brick

Donatella's brick

(we'd like to thank Daddy for disposing of the baby pool filled with mud!)

After many, many days of drying in the sun, the bricks are ready to be tested!  In the Ancient days a brick was considered good if:

1) It could be rolled to building sites without crumbling or falling apart:

\

All bricks pass first test

2) if it could withstand the weight of other bricks stacked on top of them, or approximately 50 lbs:

We had Donatella stand on them since she is the closest

to 50 lbs

All bricks pass second test

The third and final test is:

3) if the brick is dried so well it does not wash away in the rain.We submerged each brick in a bucket of water for 30 seconds.  Just before this test Donatella's brick broke in half-

water carriers

Dio holding his brick under water

Dominic holding his brick under water.

and the winner is... Dominic's brick - it was the only one to pass all three tests.  His and Maria's did the best and I realized it was because of the shape of their bricks - they each used an empty tissue box, whereas Dio and DT each used empty milk cartons.  The flatter rectangular shape held up better, and

dried better.  Congratulations Dominic!