What We’ve Accomplished Today…04/15/10

Wow, we did it all and on time! I'm not entirely sure my recount will be as detailed as my other days since there was a lot today (seemed so anyway).

Bible: Matthew 13:44-52. Parables of Jesus: the kingdom of heaven is like that of the hidden treasure in the field; of the pearl of great value; of the full net; the scribe likened to the householder. Also how those in Nazareth were astonished by Jesus' words but they failed to listen or understand his words because of their stubbornness. They thought they knew who he was and could not believe he was anything more than a carpenter's son. They were offended by him! Jesus did not do 'many mighty works' there because he knew that they would not believe; they had determined in their hearts to disbelieve. The only parable that we (myself included) had a little trouble with was of the householder. I asked for their thoughts on this to see where their understanding was; they said they didn't get it at all. My explanation, which may not be accurate, was that the householder is the 'owner' of the house. The owner is God, or Jesus. The treasures that are 'old' are like the Old Testament, the words of those in the past from God that the householder brings 'out' to be seen. The 'new' treasures are the kingdom of heaven, Jesus' teachings and the death, burial and resurrection that was to be, also brought out to be seen. Either way, the comparison of the kingdom of heaven to the treasures shows that we have something to look forward to. The part of being compared to a scribe, I said, is because scribes back then were the ones that had the ability to read and write and therefore they brought 'out the treasures' for the people who could not read or write. Like I said, it may not be accurate.

Shakespeare: We practiced our lines. We read through it (up to a certain point) and then tried to act our parts without looking. If we needed to be reminded of our line, we said "Line?" Fox has mine down pretty well, as well as his own! I have some work to do :) Lee is working on the long winded last bit that she will be reciting. She had an 'ahha' moment today about what Shakespeare was talking about when Marullus mocks the commoners for celebrating Caesar's victories. I'm sorry that I can't recall exactly what she said but ... it was good. They make me proud :)

Birth of Britain: (Lee) Suetonius has been replaced because the senate feels that he is too bent on vengeance and annihilating the Britons instead of just conquering and subjugating. Also the unrest in Germany has Rome thinking they cannot spare more reinforcements for Suetonius' plans. Nero appoints a new Governor- Agricola. Agricola immediately takes action and begins dealing with the problems with the areas that have been conquered. He also subjugated the island of Mona. Tacitus, who is supplying much information, married Agricola's daughter. Churchill feels that the account of one of the major battles (at Mons Grai..p.? it escapes me now) was exaggerated greatly. Churchill says that it was practically impossible for the Britons to have been able to raise up because they had no 'prepared magazines'. Tacitus' portrayal of the battle is unbelievable, says Churchill. Anyway, Agricola was granted six campaigns of expansion at a time when the senate was set on maintenance, not expansion. On Agricola's third campaign he reached the Tyne; on his fifth, Forth and Clyde. He would have continued to the sea, Churchill says. In his sixth campaign, he turned northward. There is a map on page 23 but we could not find the places mentioned by Churchill. Obviously, he had mentioned that the great battle at Mons Graipus (spelling??) is unknown but near Pass of Killicrankie. We don't see that on the map either. We will need to get out some other maps to figure out where things are taking place. However, in one mention of Agricola's campaigns, he would have appeared to have gotten to the 'wasp-waist' of Britain. We could see, finally, on the map where that was approximately. I found this map a bit ago and located Firth of Forth near the North. I think. :)

Fox did his first written narration today :) I have him starting with Oliver Twist because he enjoys the book (the original- not an edited, abridged version- tried that first- blah!). He did very well. We will have to work on the editing skills as he goes. He will be doing 2 written narrations a week; the rest are oral.

History of English Literature for Girls and Boys: (Lee) We just started this today and will do it once a week. It is wonderfully written! Basically, in the first chapter, Marshall is saying that we have always had stories; first they were told by mouth, later written down. The stories originally were based on war and struggle but as time has gone on, other forms of stories have come about, such as poetry. Many stories, even after it was learned to write them down, have been lost. The monks used to be the schools and libraries of the old world because the rest of the population were too busy fighting or planting to stop and learn to read or write. Each story has its purpose: history tells of what is past; poetry is for the words used and the emotions evoked. As we have grown as cities, nations, countries, the world, the need for various types of writings has changed. As the writings, or stories, change so do people. When we are young we don't necessarily want to read a book about how to grow plants; we want to read about (Lee used a good example but it is not coming to me now!) Winnie the Pooh. As we age we grow and what we want to read changes. We may still like Winnie the Pooh but we also may find a need or pleasure in reading how to grow plants. Marshall likens books to a great palace. In the palace are many doors, or books, that we are given keys to open as we grow. Some doors however, we may never get to open; some we may only just get to open the door and have a peek inside. Others we may never even come to. Very interesting and we are looking forward to more of this book.

A Passion for the Impossible: (Fox) This book we only got 3 paragraphs done... It may have been that it was at the end and attention span was at a low. But it may also be that it is above his comprehension. I stopped often to explain things. I don't mind doing that but I will need to pre-read and make a list of words he may not know beforehand. Not a problem either. We will see how it goes next time. Edited: We did look up Algiers on the globe because that is where Lilias Trotter spent 38 years of her life! There is a slight (by that I mean lightly drawn) map in the front of the book that peaked our interest.

They each did Life of Fred Math, Language Arts, Science, Foreign Language, Daily News and copywork independently.

Was a great day! Lee was very insistent that we stick to school and get it done. I have a little note on their schedules that there is no library, games, or friends until school is done. It is a rule, and has been since we started homeschooling, but...we have all forgotten the rule often :/ Putting the note on their schedules helps them to remember (and myself as well!). If there is anything that is put in the TBC file then that means school wasn't done- no library, games, or friends. Of course, if something that is beyond their control prevents them from finishing then that won't count.