New arrivals and all about whales

What an exciting day today was! We received a slip for parcel collection in the post yesterday, but got to the issuing office too late, so Nick took himself to the post-office early, since he was expecting an order from Amazon. I was also hoping for something from Amazon, and there was also the off-chance that it might have been the curriculum. Well, ALL of our parcels were waiting! Unfortunately my mandolin DVD isn’t playable on our old TV, so I can’t use it at the moment, but we’re still looking into remedying that. I was thrilled to have next year’s curriculum already, so our routine this morning was completely disrupted, as we were just about to start the read-alouds when Nick came home, and of course we had to unpack the box right away. Next year’s course looks about ten times more intensive than this year’s one, and the schedule is much more complicated. I spent a large part of the afternoon just putting the instructor’s guides into the binders. For all the read-aloud books, there is background information and additional help. It really provides the teacher with a spectrum of information, so as to be prepared for any questions which may arise from the books. There is a markable map, so you can mark off all the places you’ve read about (so we’re learning Geography as we go along), there is a time-line book with a line running through every page, with years marked off from 5000 BC to 2050 AD, so you mark off time periods (history). There is a completely separate Maths course, with a thick teacher’s guide and two full-colour student books (and the manipulatives box from last month). There is also the separate science guide, with activities and experiments (and a whole DVD explaining how to do the experiments, and other bits and pieces), as well as the science kit we received last month. You will probably pick up on the fact that I’m terribly excited about it!! I also ordered a recommended resource, Ruth Beechick’s three R’s, which is three small books explaining the hows and whys of what is done regarding the three Rs. I have been using a photocopy of a photocopy on teaching little ones to read, which has been my only guide on teaching literacy to Caleb. Imagine my surprised delight when I discover that the original of my photocopy is actually one of these books!

Nick’s CD and accompanying book is to help him with his electric guitar technique (Joe Satriani’s Surfing with the Alien for those into electric guitaring). It’s not my favourite style of music, but technically it’s excellent. There is one song that the dude wrote where he doesn’t strum, rather taps on the strings on the fretboard with both hands, producing a very interesting effect. Nick is suitably happy with his delivery and didn’t waste much time in getting to start learning that piece. He will be able to use this resource to teach pupils, which means he can keep a more advanced guitarist for longer.

Caleb has a runny nose, and I bought a “One Day Cure” for him. It’s vile-tasting stuff with cinnamon oil, and it’s the only thing available in the shops that will stop a runny nose. They have lots of cough medicines, and even some blocked nose stuff, but nothing else, and nothing for kids in that line either. This is an adult medicine, but with a children’s dosage allowed (children being people aged 6-12. I reckon Caleb’s close enough though). I have to administer it every two hours, but after the first dose I didn’t think he’d want another one. He bravely had it though.

In school this morning we learned about whales – did you know that there are two main types – the baleen whales don’t have teeth, they have a fringe of bristles called baleen, with which they sweep Krill into their mouths (Krill are shrimp, which the humpback whale particularly lives off). The other whales have teeth. Dolphins are part of the whale family too. Having learned all this stuff, we went to the library and borrowed two short videos – one on sharks and one on mammals. Unfortunately they didn’t have one particularly on whales. But the videos are filled with so much evolution, old-earth and mythology nonsense, that there is more rubbish on it than there is fact. Nevertheless, it’s still interesting to see the things that we’ve been learning about.