1 Down, 2 To Go

Pre-K finished his school year last week. He did very well this year and is more than ready for kindergarten. I completed a basic skills test with him that was in the back of his Handwriting Without Tears workbook and he did great. This summer he will do Summer Bridge.

2nd grade is in the last unit of all of his subjects. With our 4 weeks in Nassau and our 2 week spring break, 3 foster kids and 1 sickness, we just got behind. He is working hard to finish by the end of this week. There is the distraction of the 2 little kids, but we press on. This summer he will do some Summer Bridge, but I intend to let him start school a little early as his computer skills are needing work and the SOS program is more intense than Lifepacs.

6th grade just has a few more writing assignments to do before she is done. This year her lack of motivation to do school has affected her ability to demonstrate her actual skills. She will do Summer Bridge also.

Our 5 year old foster child has very few skill, particularly small motor skills. This child is also very overweight and lacks self care skills such as pottying, dressing, and washing them self. This summer I will be teaching lots of basic skills.

Our motor home, Big Bertha, has been repaired and I cannot wait for our 1st camping trip.

Healed!

I think we are free and clear now. I can say that I have seen enough of that pink antibiotic to last a lifetime. ~Smile~

The chaos is still a bit high, but not out of control. Just getting two little ones to adjust to a schedule takes time. My kids have been GREAT helpers and I am so pleased with how they have shared our home, their mommy and toys.

The end of school has been delayed by about 3 days, but I am feeling good about our school year. James has been practicing his computer skills so I feel better about our choice to use S.O.S for him next year.

Peace!

Happily Overwhelmed

I finally made a decision on kindergarten curriculum and found a brand new set for half price! I told Jackson about it and he was excited. It came in the mail today and my 6 year old boy started jumping and pumping his arms and yelling, " Yes! Yes!Yes!" He was so happy that he was moved to tears! Amazing!

The other amazingly overwhelming news is we received an emergency placement on Thursday night of 2 children who happen to have Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and ringworm. Fun, fun!!! (so not!)

New Stumbling Block

Jackson has Auditory Processing Disorder (APD) which makes speech and language difficult for him, but he has come such a long way. We are working on rhyming words which is giving us a bit of trouble right now. Researching strategies to help, but there seems to be very little information out there.

The Big Black C.Ds

When 1 of my kids was little I was cleaning out my entertainment center and reorganizing my record collection when little kid said, "What are those big black c.d. things?" I laughed hard. Today while out and about on errands, we had a chance to see a real live pay phone. The "oooos" and "aahhhhhs" from the back seat had me cracking up. My 12 year old's cell phone died last week and she has been in mourning and my 9 year old was amazed that you would only have 3 minutes to talk before having to put more money in to continue.

11 more days of school.

To The Bat Cave

I am thinking about putting bats in my backyard. The "mus-kee-toes" as my kids call them are out in full force and I hate using pesticides where they play. Besides the fact that the mosquitoes in my neighborhood seem to be Bl*ck Fl*g Addicts and sit at the bar like its happy hour waiting for me to spray, so I have been researching the use of bats. I know I don't have many readers, but have any of you ever had bats on purpose? (Not the kind in your belfry, I've had those kind for years now LOL!)

My mom bought the kids yet another yard toy today from Disc*very K*ds; an In flat able Sprink ler Gl*be. I think I will count this as history and geography!

Testing 1, 2, 3...

I have never been much into standardized testing as I always felt there was a certain unintentional bias in them. I remember in early elementary taking a test that used the word, "davenport". I had never heard that word before and had no clue what it meant. When I later learned that it was a synonym for "couch" or "sofa" I felt robbed.



Anyhoo, I decided to let 6th grade take the practice Terra Nova Test for the experience as she missed most standardized testing during the years she was in traditional school. She strongly dislikes them and thinks "...everyone should not be forced to take the same test as everyone else 'cause some kids are not strong in some areas like math and science." My little rebel. LOL!