School Update

The kids had parent/teacher conferences in January and February and we haven't really had a school update in a while, so here we go!

Proud he now wants to be dropped off in the car line
 instead of me walking him in..

Makin's teachers had great things to say and said he is "very, very smart" and "good at math" and "ready for Kindergarten." I was sad to verify that the closer friend from his class did move away over Christmas. While he doesn't seem to have any close friends he ever wants to have a play-date with, he really enjoys the school element. I'll often hear him say, "we have that at my school" or sing a song from school. I love hearing the little tidbits and he loves having something that is all his own. He enjoys playing "Catch The Book" which is a game he and his classmates made up similar to tag he plays at recess. He chooses the ipad most of the time for centers and yes he knows his mom does not approve! :) At home he loves learning how to add. He has lost some momentum on his sight words, but I'm not pushing it. (Which is hard for me with this guy, because I know he COULD be reading more by now...) His creative side is coming out a bit more! I love that he seems to finally like drawing, and is writing on his artwork and spelling words out phonetically. It is sooooo much fun to see.

Both love the math "Wrap Ups" (addition)

Hot Wheels page shows more detailed coloring, plus he added the logo at the bottom, asking me to print it special for that page. Top right is a horse, Bottom right is a car with rocket boosters he drew at preschool.

Special School Time At Starbucks When
 Makin had preschool and she had off for conferences.

Lorelei's teacher (who I love and just want to keep FOREVER) said Lorelei is "so sweet" and I loved chatting with her about our girl, who she seems to just adore. (I have to say, I'm glad the sweetness is out full force at school, but I would like her to save a little more for MOM too!!!) As I was talking to Brad about the conference and reflecting, I think "sweet" is a word I should feel very happy is how a teacher is describing our daughter. She really enjoys having her in class and had many positive things to say, so that was great.

General Overview...Lorelei has beautiful handwriting and great journaling skills. Unfortunately, we are still trudging through reading and math. She is technically on-level with reading, but we definitely can't slow down our pace and will be working hard this summer to make sure she is at 2nd grade level in August!

I am feeling like she has grown quite a bit when it comes to both math and reading. She finally said, "I actually like math now." This was so good to hear. We have not been a fan of the math she has been doing, and Mrs. W switched to having them memorize their facts. I thought she would absolutely hate it and hate the timed tests, but she seems to like to be able to see she is making progress! (Now that we have started subtraction she is expressing she is NOT fan of these timed tests...) With the other math she just felt she was always struggling with each new concept. Soon they are moving on to "fun math" which will be a breath of fresh air for us. Reading is coming along well. Although she is on-level, much of her class is above-level, so that stresses me out a bit, but I know it shouldn't! She really likes journaling and can easily fill her page (spaced) in less than 20 minutes time. It seems like many of the subjects are clicking better for her lately. Of course, her favorite thing at school is recess. She loves writer's workshop (journaling) and she especially loves art on Thursdays.

Loving the freedom to work various places around the house, and in her pjs. ;)

You can see some hints of 3D art work here. She described the chalk drawing to me asking if I knew why I was smaller than she was in the wagon. She told me one day in class her classmates were complimenting her drawing a backdrop and that she made it look 3D, so I think that has really made her excited for this type of artwork.

She made a salt dough map of the United States when they were learning about land/water. We always love a creative, hands-on project!

I forgot to get a picture of it finished before she went to school, so thats why the top left of her map has a piece missing.

They both really enjoyed learning more about volcanoes. (Makin loves to get in on these lessons too and asks almost every MWF, "When can we do science?") They made a picture to explain how it works when it erupts and we also did an experiment with a home-made volcano.

After school snack and chat time on a Tuesday, which actually rarely happens although I wish it did!
Usually I start preparing supper and the kids play, but this afternoon we were eating from the freezer so we had some extra chill time and it was so fun having the kids talk about their days with me and each other a little more than usual.