Chinese Project

Today I went to my third grade teacher's classroom to present My Chinese Project. Originally, the project was supposed to be for 45 minutes, but it ended up taking an hour and 15 minutes. It was fun, and I think I did well. I had a power point presentation and a ton of Chinese artifacts to show. I also taught the third graders some Chinese Characters, and they seemed to enjoy that. Mom keeps on saying that I did awesome, and I couldn't have done better. Maybe so, but I still forgot the Chinese character for 7 and I felt like an idiot. I don't have that much to say, except that I felt good to see my old teachers again. I also felt awkward seeing some of my old classmates. They even asked for my number so that they could call me! It was great fun. I have to say though, it took an awful darn amount of practice to be able to do it well. I spent at least 8 hours making my presentation. Then at least 2 hours practicing it. Now I am wiped out! Well, that is pretty much all. Signing out...

Guinea Pigs: Who Knew?

Today I am going to get a guinea pig, named Max. Max is a friend's guinea pig, but she just found out that she is quite allergic. That means I get a free guinea pig! We once babysat Max, and he was actually fun. I just learned that you can actually train guinea pigs to do tricks. Who knew? I spent a lot of time on the internet researching guinea pigs. I learned what to feed them, how to train them, that type of thing. At first, I wanted an otter. I read a story that had an otter as a character, and it seemed like it would be a cool pet. I looked on the internet about otters, and found out that in order to get an otter, you need to get a permit. Also, they will attack you for no reason sometimes. Then I wanted to see if I could get a mink. That was a no-no too. They have the same problems as otters. Then came the idea of a ferret. I learned that ferrets actually make good pets. Well, they make good pets if they like their owner, and have a good attitude. Mom would not agree to get a ferret. They stink too much, she said. The funny thing is, right after I did all this research, I went to a friend's house for dinner. Guess what? I got a guinea pig while I was there! I guess mom likes guinea pigs and not ferrets. God works in mysterious ways, but still, I did not expect this! I'm a new pet owner!

Tip #4: Curriculum

A curriculum is a big part of homeschooling. I have already talked about making a list, and checking it twice, but you should have a curriculum to use as a reference for your list. For instance, most of the books that I read are on the John Hopkins Reading List. Sure, I pick some of the books that I read, but I have good idea of what I should be reading. Thinks of it as a tower. The curriculum is the base, and what you do for the day is the body. Every structure should have supports. Every essay should have examples. It is just like life. Wait, let me rephrase that; it is life. I am not saying to go out and buy a curriculum to use. Try looking at my curriculum, and use it as an example. Every kid is different. I mean, that is what homeschooling is about. Don't home-school blindly. Some help is nice!


P.S. I will try to put a link to my curriculum. I can't promise anything though. Hope this helps!