Gloria in Excelsis Deo: {SQT} Summer Homeschooling (Day #62 Phase I)

Friday, Day #62 Phase I of Reopening

We request continued prayers for my husband's mother D. She has been sick with COVID-19 for six weeks (now negative, but still sick) and is now out of ICU and recovering at a long-term, acute care facility. D. is off her ventilator! Sitting up in a chair! Smiling! Next goals: learn how to speak with her temporary tracheotomy. Praise God!

John entered a photography contest at the local botanical gardens and I'd love for any blog readers to check it out and vote for his Bearded Iris in the Morning if you like it! Click here.

I've planted the columbines at the base of an oak tree . . .

. . . and the mondo grass as an edge to an area where we are rehabilitating the lawn.

Thankfully, I have enthusiastic watering assistants!

I am planning to do light school all summer. My reasons are several:

I like to have us complete some subjects during the summer, during a bounty of time, so that we have more flexibility during the academic year, when time is at a premium. For example, spring is music competition season during which I lighten the children's academic load because they are practicing so much music daily.
During the summers we have truly taken off for a couple of months, it is very challenging to get the children back on a diligent routine. Even when I get them onto a forced routine, it takes so much longer--months!--to get them to be diligent. During the summers when I have maintained the years-long habit of doing school in the mornings, we glide into the full academic year in the fall with much more ease.
We have not much else to do! Idle hands are the devil's playground. Especially this summer, due to coronavirus, most activities are limited or cancelled, so we have absolutely nothing planned and nowhere to go. We simply need to fill our hours with something!

We started our summer school routine this past week. I've designed an assignment sheet for each child which I plan to print out only once per week. The goals are to complete all the work within Monday through Friday. If they want to work ahead and give themselves a day entirely off of school, that's great! But if I'm not going to let a child dawdle and skip work for days and then face doing a week's worth of work on the last day or two of the week.

Below are the weekly goals I've set out for my children. These would be different in every family and based on the needs of each kid.

Thomas (rising Kindergartener)

I don't have a plan for Thomas, but he certainly deserves my attention! He is begging to learn piano, so I think he is going to start taking formal lessons from big brother John. I should start working on his numbers and letter recognition. I will continue reading aloud the Bible and chapter books nightly.

Thomas building Legos

Joseph (rising 2nd grader)

Piano practice 20+ minutes daily
Finish up his last few catechism lessons from the year
Math: 2 lessons per week with Mama
Life of Fred conceptual math: 1 lesson per week (but he will want to do more!)
Phonics: 3 lessons per week with Mama
Spelling: 2 lessons per week with Mama
Science: Listen to MP3 file reading 2 chapters of Apologia Zoology per week
Keyboarding: Do Typesy lessons 2 times per week. (This is so fun that the children want to do this every day all the time, like it is a video game. Therefore, I've set the rule that they may only do it twice and then no more unless all schoolwork has been completed for the week.)
Literature: Read independently from his Seton reader 15 minutes per day. Mama will continue reading aloud the Bible and chapter books nightly. Joseph is also blossoming into reading his own books for enjoyment.

Joseph reading some of his own Apologia science book to me

Joseph worked on a nature scavenger hunt today

Margaret (rising 4th grader)

Piano practice 30-45 minutes daily
Violin practice 30-45 minutes daily
Finish up his last few catechism lessons from the year
Finish up grammar lessons from the year
Math: 2 lessons per week
Life of Fred conceptual math: 1 lesson per week (but she will want to do more!)
Drill math facts: Five Times Five Is Not Ten 2 times weekly
Science: Read 2 chapters of Apologia Astronomy per week.
Keyboarding: Do Typesy lessons 2 times per week. (See rule above.)
Literature: She devours numerous literature novels weekly. I will keep an eye on it over the summer and suggest titles.

Margaret's latest novel

Mary (rising 6th grader)

She teaches piano lessons, which got shut down by coronavirus, but I presume she will resume those over the summer.
Piano practice 45-60 minutes daily
Violin practice 45-60 minutes daily
Tutor Joseph in piano 20 minutes daily
Finish up his last few catechism lessons from the year
Finish up grammar lessons from the year
Math: 2 lessons per week
Life of Fred conceptual math: 1 lesson per week (but she will want to do more!)
Science: Read 2 chapters of Tiner Biology per week.
Keyboarding: Do Typesy lessons 2 times per week. (See rule above.)
Literature: She devours numerous literature novels weekly. I will keep an eye on it over the summer and suggest titles.

Mary going to Mass

John (rising 8th grader)

Maintain his lawn mowing business
Piano practice 45 minutes daily
Tutor Thomas in piano 10-15 minutes daily
Finish up grammar lessons from the year
Math: 2 lessons per week
Life of Fred conceptual math: 2 lessons per week (but he will want to do more!)
Mathability real-life math: 2 lessons per week
Science: Read 2 chapters of Tiner Biology per week.
Keyboarding: Do Typesy lessons 2 times per week. (See rule above.)
Literature: He already has a great list of literature he wants to read this summer.