Try FlyLady's Daily Focus Concept to Get Things in Order! #LessStressMoreFun

In doing some paper decluttering recently, I came across some papers I'd printed in 2017 from FlyLady's website. If you're not familiar with FlyLady, she's the queen of organization and decluttering! 

The papers I had printed and put into my ARC system were all about Daily Focus, which means focusing ONLY on a certain task each day. I remember my mom telling me that my Great Aunt Eva would do this, as well, assigning only certain days for doing laundry, changing sheets, baking for the week, etc. In more detail and an updated version goes something like this (and of course you can switch around the days so they work better for you and your family situation):

Monday is for the weekly home blessing hour. Set a timer for an hour and just spent maybe 10 minutes on each of the following: vacuum (middle of floor only), dust, quick mop, polish mirrors and doors, purge magazines and catalogs, change sheets, empty all trash cans.

Tuesday is for planning the week in the following ways: menu, activities, date night and family fun time, wardrobe, checking prescription refill needs. The rest of the day is for fun!

Homeschooling during Coronavirus? Help for the Non-Homeschooler!

Worried about working from home or just being home for weeks on end (akin to summer break) WHILE educating them? I've been doing it for almost 19 years and, yeah, it's a lot to handle!

Thankfully, Rage Against the Minivan has help for you in the form of this awesome blog post and checklist called COVID-19 School Closure Homeschool Checklist!

When it was shared on Facebook, there were some rude comments, like "good luck with that" and "don't be disappointed when it doesn't work out," but I chose the high road of encouragement:

"I homeschool 5 kids ages 10-18 and have from the beginning. This is a great schedule! I think the 2-page paper is a lot for some kids, but the rest seems reasonable to me! You go, girl! Plus for a lot of kids who are in school 7 hours a day plus homework, this is going to be a walk in the park but they will still be learning!"

You can also check out my article titled Bust Indoor Boredom over here at Calgary's Child if you need more ideas for how to keep kids occupied while home!

And if things get too stressful during this already-crazy time, just toss it all out the window and PLAY, watch movies and documentaries, read to your kids (check out Read-Aloud Revival), bake together, snuggle up and eat popcorn. Have fun!

Or your life right now might more closely resemble this every now and then (shrug):

Senior Year Homeschool Plan 2019-2020

Joel turned 18 in June and I love homeschooling so much I wanted to keep him an extra year. It's going to work out that way for my oldest three kids, but I should have my younger two on track to graduate sooner. We'll see. Maybe I will try to keep that last kid around several more years LOL

This kid can now officially be called an Eagle Scout as of August 15, 2019.

Here's Joel's senior year plan:

Math
Finally going to kick Algebra's butt using a workbook with tons of problems because he doesn't work best with a program like Teaching Textbooks. Then we'll move on to a Geometry workbook so he has some basic knowledge of these two concepts as he heads out into the world.

Literature
Here's what I have so far on the list for all the kids, but for now I'm checking into The Outsiders, some sort of classic, something Shakespeare, some short stories, something contemporary. First up is The Great Gatsby.

I either read these books aloud to Joel and his brother (10th grade) or we listen to an audiobook. We talk about the book, sometimes write papers, discuss things like plot, structure, foreshadowing, etc. We will try to do this 3 times a week.

Taking certain things into consideration, and it's hard to choose since I only have one more year with him, (in the past we've read quite a varied list, like Okay for Now, Station Eleven, Fahrenheit 451, Wednesday Wars, etc.):

Here is what PrepScholar says are the 31 best books for boys to read in high school.

Here is how BuzzFeed weighed in with 26 Contemporary Books That Should be Taught in High School

I also have a list that I'm going through based on The Read-Aloud Family and Honey for a Child's Heart.

I also highly recommend Time4Learning for their English for high school; amazing short story and book ideas and great teaching to back them up. Please tell them Kerrie McLoughlin sent you!

Grammar
Easy Grammar (4 times a week)

Writing/Composition
We work on this a couple of times a week, incorporating the literature into it. This year we'll also write a research paper.

Science
Apologia Exploring Creation Biology, utilizing the student notebook for homework and experiments

History
Our Pioneers and Patriots during Morning Time (which can be any time of the day when we can all come together) just to cement some of the history concepts. He has learned about Government and all sorts of history already so this is just a refresher, not really a necessity. Plus he may end up taking a History at the community college, and one semester counts as a full year of credit for high school.

Physical Education
The kid goes to the gym 6 days a week

Spanish
Dabbling in this during Morning Time with the younger kids

Psychology

October through December: 8-week accelerated Psychology course online through our "local" community college (local means it's like 20 minutes away) for dual credit. Eight weeks of this count as a full one-year credit.

Criminal Justice

January through May: Tentative plan will be to take two more classes, maybe History and Law or Criminal Justice. He would like to go into law enforcement, so we are determining the best classes for him right now.

Job/Life Skills
Working for a lawn care business 20-25 hours per week

Field Trips
Art Museum
Truman Library
Still working on this list!

Please see my Ultimate Field Trip List (Kansas City) when I have that live (coming soon!)

How to Create a Homeschool Vision Statement

Holy cow. I received Pam Barnhill's (Homeschool Solutions) Put Your Homeschool Year on Auto-Pilot 10-module course to review and so far just the first step has changed everything for me! The first step is about creating a vision for your homeschool so everything else can progress from there.

The second step is about creating goals for each child and then after that you come up with the subjects and resources you'll need to meet the goals and stay in line with your vision statement. I'm really excited to progress through this course!

Your vision statement might look ENTIRELY different from mine. It might focus more on getting your kids to Harvard and use words like "rigorous education" and that's great for your family! For my family, I like to focus more on a lifelong love of learning so they are always WANTING to learn and also I want them to serve others, be good workers, and have a lot of fun with this life they have been gifted.

Your vision statement might focus more on sports and it might not focus on religion at all. All families are different!

Here's what I came up with for our vision statement after 12 years of homeschooling:

In our homeschool, we refuse to be dictated by man-made timelines and society’s standards of “normal” (bedtime, travel as a family, job as learning, etc.) and have a lot of fun experiencing the world and the people and places in it, including field trips, dates, book clubs, and party school.

In our homeschool, we strive to consistently practice basic skills like math and language arts until we master them, learning at our own pace and finding out about things we are interested in along the way.

In our homeschool, we strive to practice our religion (serving each other and others, volunteering, TOB), equip our kids for whatever God may call them to, and learn life skills (self-sufficiency, good work ethic, chores, cooking, finances, relationships with siblings, extended family and others).

In our homeschool, we strive to foster a love of books and conversations, sharing good stories and discussions, trying to cultivate a lifelong love of learning.

In our homeschool, we strive to love each other well and point each other to God, enjoying our time together as a family and offering a welcoming haven in our home.

What would your homeschool vision statement look like?

7 Things I'm Doing This Year to Make My Homeschooling Work Better with 5 Kids 2018-2019

I'm that slacker homeschool mom. The one who takes a half day off no problem, convinced that it will just be one half day and no more. Then it turns into another and another and soon we're like, "Uh, why don't we know cursive handwriting and multiplication tables?"

So after 11 full years of homeschooling, I'm learning. We are all settled in our new home in the country and we have a lovely little routine that won't likely be broken up by fixing up a house, moving, vacationing, a new baby, etc. It appears to be a smooth-sailing year up ahead. (yes, I know ... the best-laid plans!!!!)

1. Six weeks on, then a break
Teaching for 6 weeks at a time then taking a 1-week break. We'll still get a Christmas break, of course, and one of our 1-week breaks will count as Spring Break. We'll need to go until the end of June, but then we get 8 full weeks off after that (July and August).

2. Teach more than one at a time
Combining them. Brave Writer Help for High School will be done this year with both Michael and Joel (freshman and junior). They'll learn the material together as I read it to them so I make sure I know what's going on as well. They'll write papers and assignments at the same pace.

3. Make them accountable and independent
Emailing links for the week to the high schoolers with videos I want them to watch (e.g., Crash Course Biology, Crash Course History, cool documentaries on Amazon Prime, Netflix or Hulu, etc.) Copying their workbook pages for Easy Grammar and giving them the entire week's worth at once so they can do it all Monday or do it all Friday or throughout the week, working at their own pace and being able to deal with other things they have going on at the same time. I think learning how to manage their course load is important. For the younger kids, letting them know which pages need to be done by Friday in Explode the Code (such a fun workbook series for Language Arts).

4. Make things special
Making things special more often, like we planned to do last year. Today we have Back-to-School Little Debbie snack cakes with a battery-powered candle and some picture books. Yes, I make my older kids sit through picture book time. And I also make my younger kids sit through some things which may or may not be currently over their heads. It all works out in the end. Take time for fun field trips like we've always done, with our friends and on our own.

5. Lunch-n-Learn versus Morning Basket
Instead of a Morning Basket, which is a fabulous concept, I am doing a Lunch-n-Learn since the kids all wake up at different times, which is fine by me. We eat lunch, I read to them a selection of things covering all subject areas, and they are free to create art during this time as well. I don't need their eyes on me at all. They can paint or draw while they listen.

6. Be prepared
Before the kids even wake up, I pull off the main homeschool bookshelf anything I'm hoping to use that day. That way, I can SEE my "workload" for the day and so can the kids. Over the summer, I cleared the entire shelf off so now it's organized like this, and I don't have anything on there that will distract me from the current set of 6 weeks of homeschooling.

7. Check myself before I wreck our entire year

I must have rules for myself, which is something I always rebelled against. This year they include things I can handle: I can do my paid work in the morning after prepping for the homeschool day. I can only check my phone to handle immediate things like if my husband texts, a friend wants to come and play, etc. Otherwise, STAY OFF FACEBOOK and other social media is the number one rule for myself from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Don't go on a 2-hour field trip and call that an entire homeschool day. Oh, and make sure I'm logging their homeschool stuff every single day. I like to look back on it and it's helpful to have records just in case.

Check out our first official day of homeschool, day after Labor Day.

Here's to a fabulous school year! And click here to see how we're starting out with the 2019-2020 school year, starting with my senior!

Homeschool Conference Weekend 2018! Why I'm Not Going and What I'm Doing Instead

So it's Friday, June 1, 2018 and it's the weekend of the Catholic Homeschooler Conference here in Kansas City. It starts as I am writing this post, at noon, and goes until 9:00 tonight. Then tomorrow it goes from 8-4.

*If you are a conference lover, and I know there are a lot of you out there, I RESPECT THAT! I love that you can go and socialize and buy stuff you need at a great price and listen to great speakers and go back home ENERGIZED about your faith and about homeschooling in general. I am not knocking homeschool conferences at all!

With that said, here's why I am not going — and may never go — to a homeschool conference.

1. I am easily confused. I blame my self-diagnosed ADD — or the fact that I'm running a household with 5 kids and a husband in it and also have a side business ... and am almost 47 years old. If you give me a choice of 100 homeschool resources, my head will explode and I will either get very testy and annoyed and buy nothing or I will try to decide and end up buying too much stuff I will never use and that my kids hate.
2. Too much socialization makes me exhausted. I love seeing my friends and making new ones, but I am doing a lot of socializing this summer by having friends over, and I want to be fresh as a daisy mentally for my pals and their kids.
3. Too much information, in the form of speakers, makes my mind shut down. I need things in bite-sized pieces.
4. I want to be with my kids and husband, who are going away to sleepover camp next week. The timing of conferences around here never seems to be just right for our family ... there is always something going on and I just can't commit to even going for one full day of it.
5. We need to save money (gas, conference cost), and the time spent at the conference is time I either need to be working or hanging with my kids and husband.

What am I doing instead (besides saving gas, conference money and time)?

1. I am listening to Pam Barnhill's The Homeschool Solutions Show podcast on planning and organizing. I also love The Homeschool Highschool podcast, Brave Writer podcast, The Homeschool Sisters podcast, and Read-Aloud Revival podcast.
2. I am watching YouTube videos by Pam Barnhill about planning (10 steps, and the first is to have a vision, which I don't think I've done since my oldest was in first grade and now he's going to be a junior), Erica Arndt (Confessions of a Homeschooler), and Julie Bogart (Brave Writer). Also, others I stumble on that might be helpful.
3. I am working on my list of parenting magazine writing markets that writers are asking me for so that I can sell it and put money away for homeschool books and activities and field trips and PARTIES!
4. I am reading Read-Aloud Revival by Sarah Mackenzie for great book ideas for the coming year. The biggest problem is culling the list and saving some for the next year!
5. I am planning for co-op for fall (Creative Writing and Drama for 5/6 graders).
6. I am formulating what I want to do with my own kids this summer (as far as books we want to read and movies and pool parties).
7. I am ruminating on what I'm learning so I can work this month to plan our 2018/2019 in the best way possible instead of winging it.
8. I am preparing my kids for camp next week. Two of them are going to overnight camp so I want to be with them as much as possible before they leave; the youngest is going to Scout day camp and I am going with him, but there are still things to get ready. Also, don't forget about the things we need to buy for camps, like sunscreen, bug spray, and secret care packages I like to send them.
9. Oh, and I am hanging out by our swimming pool in the country with kids and podcasts. It's called Poolside Professional Development!

So ... are you going to a homeschool conference this year or have you already been? Tell me some cool stuff you learn/learned! Also, do you have any great podcasts or books or videos you have learned a lot from that you'd like to share about?

A Simple Plan Family Homeschool Planner for 2017

This post has moved to THIS SPOT over at The Laid-Back Homeschool. Sorry for the inconvenience!

9th Grade and High School Homeschool Lesson Planning ... Getting Ready

It's insane to believe that my oldest is 15 now and hitting 9th grade this fall. Sure, he should be in 10th grade now but we started when he was 5 then slowed down once I started having baby after baby and found myself with limited time and routine skills. "Holding him back" a year wasn't a decision made because he couldn't handle school, but it was my problem, quite honestly. Also, we like to have so much fun around here and do FUN SCHOOL and LIFE LEARNING and even some TRAVEL SCHOOLING and we are all pretty happy with that.

You should see some of the looks I get when people find out I'm planning on homeschooling all my children through high school. They range from amazement and admiration to shock and disdain. Uninformed kids his age sneer and ask him, "Don't you want to go to NORMAL school and be NORMAL?"

Well, for their "normal" school experience, we are heading back to the Catholic coop this year ... one day a week but we get to start about 10:45 and go to 3:15. They get to do 3 classes plus Mass, lunch and recess. They get a yearbook. They get a Christmas and an end-of-year program. It's awesome.

Recently I realized I needed to figure this high school thing out. We didn't want to sign up for virtual school because I heard from several of the teachers and parents that a high school student was doing 40 hours plus of schoolwork per week in that program. That doesn't fit into our idea of school or life. We are not on the fast track to Harvard around here.

So instead of going in totally blind or ordering an expensive pre-packaged curriculum, I am using summer to research and digest information. I sit by the public pool watching my kids play while listening to homeschool podcasts and reading homeschool books. Here are a couple of things I have found so far and I'll share more info as I get it.

Homeschool Highschool Podcast
I started listening to this great podcast on my iPhone called Homeschool Highschool Podcast and am getting some great ideas from it. I feel like you can slack off a little bit and have fun through 8th grade but when it comes to high school you have to get serious. You should have all the basics down (teaching them to read and write and do basic math) and now it's time to really teach them how to think and get some advanced concepts down.

Here's something great from the website 7 Sisters Homeschool that I'm digesting.

Time4Learning
I'm also going to sign up my 9th grader for Time4Learning again this fall because it was terrific in teaching Math so that we both understood it and I could help him with it. The cost is minimal ... about $19.95 per month but lower because I have multiple children enrolled in it ... and so even if he just uses it for Math, it's worth it to me. Yes, I know Khan Academy is free, but it isn't as entertaining as this program and doesn't explain it how we need it to be explained.

HSLDA Resource
Also, I got this FREE because I'm a Kindle Unlimited member but you can get it as an ebook for $2.99.

This is the planner I am going to use, but I just found out that our coop is ordering Catholic planners for the junior high and high school kids, so that would take care of two of my kids. This means I could use TWO entire rows in my new planner for each of my other kids instead of cramming each kid into one row and then having one row left for things we maybe all do together such as library trips and field trips. Figuring out the perfect planner situation you'll stick with is hard!

I'd love to hear your ideas as well!

A Simple Plan Homeschool Planner Review

If you have come across this post to find out about A Simple Plan Homeschool Planner, you can also check out my update here on the blog! Welcome!

I've been using the A Simple Plan Homeschool Planner since the 2013-2014 school year. I immediately fell in love with it when I found it at Mardel. I loved how it holds an entire year of planning and has plenty of space for big families to add all their education and activities. I like to plan ahead, but I also like to fill some things in later after we do them, and this is perfect for that. Yes, it's got Bible verses in it, but if you aren't feeling the religion thing, just ignore them and use this planner anyway!

So I kept checking Mardel's website to find out when the new planner would be available for order. I know it's not even May yet and I want a planner that starts July 1, but I love to have it and don't want them to run out!

I don't like to pay full price for things. This planner is $19.99 through Mardel.com but through trial and error I found a coupon code (HSPROMO38) that would work at checkout and I saved FIVE WHOLE BUCKS! I got the coupon code here but you might want to play around because they do expire. Find one that works because saving 25% is so worth it!

Here's a terrific YouTube review of the planner so you can see it in action!

And since I like to use two spaces per kid on some things, I might buy this student planner for my oldest, who will be 13 this summer.

The cool thing is that the planner I'm going to be using has 6 sections of 6 lines, so you could give each kid their own section of 6 lines and plan/fill in later what they do each day or you can make each section a SUBJECT and make each line a kid. Got it? Good. Or if it gets too messy, just get the older ones their own planner, set it up, help them plan and stay accountable and stuff. It's good for them for the future ... somehow, right?

Making Peace With Not Being THAT Homeschool Mom

So recently I posted about homeschooling through the challenge of remodeling.

Today I'm going through boxes of books and papers and things that were on the shelves before we packed everything up to move it out of the living room. The two bookshelves are back in the living room but I don't want them all junked out anymore! We have too many things we don't even use! And I realized the problem is:

I AM NOT THAT HOMESCHOOL MOM.

You know, that totally organized mom who gets it all done most days. Who checks off her lesson planner items like it's no big deal. Then gets the kids to do the chores and makes a lovely dinner before heading out to volunteer.

I maybe used to be when I only had one kid homeschooling and two others who played nicely together most of the time. Then something hit me around the time I had kids four and five. I got overwhelmed. Life took over. Interestingly enough, the kids still learn. Score one point for the unschoolers!

Actually, I don't know many who are THAT homeschool mom. We are all kind of just doing the best we can and we have made peace with the fact that we are not all the same and that our kids won't all know the same stuff.

I came across this piece of paper I had saved for about 6 years for some reason. It was a sample schedule a friend had written up while she was homeschooling her 4 kids. I remember looking at it and thinking WHAT THE HELL? I CAN'T DO THAT! BUT I WILL TRY!

It went something like this:

7:30 breakfast,dishes to kitchen, brush teeth
Prayer
Flashcards
Reading
Phonics
Handwriting
Free Time
English
Snack
Math
Religion
Lunch at noon
Set table, clear table, load dishwasher
Reading
Quiet time for kids and chores
Art or social studies or science
Rosary and Divine Mercy Chaplet
Chore for day
Supper and book on tape
Clear/wipe table
Baths and bed; oldest kid reads

And today it went into the recycle bin. My problem with this was that it did not build in pool time. Or social time with their friends. Or heading to the nature center. Or hanging out with grandparents at the nursing home. Or American Heritage Girls or Scouts. And I think kids learn a lot from all of THOSE things, as well.

I am not that mom who has perfectly structured days. There are days when we get it all done, and sometimes that means I'm reading History to somebody at 9 p.m. while we lounge in bed. But the idea of getting all the homeschooling done between the hours of 7:30 and 3:30 is just not me.

For one thing, my kids need to sleep in so I can work and make money for the family in the mornings when my brain works. Then as they wake up, generally from oldest to youngest, the homeschool fun begins. After lunch is on-the-go time and nighttime picks up a little more schoolwork. That's what works for us. Might not work for you. Good thing we are all different.

P.S. She doesn't homeschool anymore. Maybe got burnt out?!

The Cheap Lesson Plan Book I Use

I'm sitting here looking at our lesson plan book and thinking, "Hmm, maybe I should post a picture of this cheap gem for those who might be looking for a lesson plan book."

I got it at Target for ONE DOLLAR! I need 3 right now and they are each only good for 6 months so you need 2 for a year. So I had to buy 6 for a full year of teaching 3 kids. Most lesson plan books start at the price of $8.

They don't hold together well so I use a binder clip but for a buck, you can't complain!

This book is good for pre-planning or post-planning.This means it's great for the Type A personalities who like to plan in advance and it's great for those who  keep records AFTER they've done something. I'm a mix of both! We don't have to keep records in Kansas, but my Type A part of my brain likes to do it, just in case. Also, because I'm nostalgic and like to look back on all the stuff we've done for learning and for fun. I include social stuff in here, too! A bonus is that you can look back and say to yourself, "We ARE learning! We ARE doing stuff!"

I put subjects at the top like Math, English, Science and History then the other 2 spots are for miscellaneous stuff. I have to cram weekend learning in the Friday spot ;-)

Of course, I am always looking for something new. I would love something that could include ALL my kids and their different ages. I tried the Well-Planned Day but there wasn't enough space on each page for all the stuff we do, so it's best for me to have one planner for each kid at this point, I suppose. This site shows a ton of options for lesson plan books. I was floored!

What do you use, if anything?

Do You Lesson Plan?

Shannon asked me the other day why I lesson plan and log what my kids do when we don't have to in Kansas. She has a point. Then we figured out that she doesn't like to do it or want to do it, while I love having a record of what we've done (I log doctor visits, social stuff, everything in our lesson planner).

I realize everyone plans their homeschooling differently. I happen to make a lot of plans and then we do lots of other things instead, add things here, get rid of things there, take days off and then catch up, and so on. I think we're pretty normal. We're not unschoolers and we're not rigidly structured. I'm somewhere in between.

This system I'm trying out is new to me. I have previously had stuff EVERYWHERE all over bookshelves and it was a pain to find what I needed so I'm doing something different and sharing it with you.

First I had to TRY (key word) to block out some time and space so I could concentrate. I took frequent breaks and had my favorite beverage on hand and make sure I was eating regularly. I put on some music or talk radio. You might want to try to get the kids out of the house if you can. Get all your supplies together: trash can, pens, pencils, markers, paper, sticky notes, white-out, labels for notebook dividers and so on.

Step One is to get rid of what is not working. Weed out stuff you don't need anymore or need to update. File away things you want to get to sometime/deal with later.

Step Two is to find a system and get started organizing it. I have one binder with folder dividers that I got at Target (they are dividers that hold stuff on two sides) which holds papers by subject (like English, Math, Science, History, PE, Art, Music). Instead of loose papers everywhere, I have them all organized and can whip out a worksheet if someone wants to do one or if I need to demonstrate a concept and need help doing it. For instance, in my Math tab I have worksheets for different grades, math game ideas and funny math problems I make up. In Art I'll keep the snowflake making cheater sheets the kids love in the wintertime.

In this binder I also keep other misc. things we might want to do like field trips or activities. This page says stuff like "hearing tests x 5" and "Exchange City."

In another binder I have a tab for each of my kids. I might file the grade overview I got from the public school to make sure I'm hitting key points. I file a copy of the table of contents of the "What Your X Grader Needs to Know" books by grade and highlight things as we complete them. We skip around, so don't think I'm all anal and perfect. I'm definitely no Homeschooling Nazi.

Now we have a system all set up. Next week we'll talk about the actual lesson planning for multiple grades Kerrie Style. We're a little unschooly, a little structured, very eclectic, like I said, so if this system makes your skin crawl, Google something different or submit a guest post!

Homeschool Harvest Party Planning Meeting

So a whopping THREE of us showed up at the planning meeting. We also brought along 11 kids between us that needed to be occupied while we met. My oldest was sick, so he slept on the stage in the gym of the church with his pillow and blanket. The baby pinched his fingers in the door. I spilled peach smoothie all over myself and the floor.

And we rocked the planning. It's really not hard when you have a plan.

My plan was to find someone to head up DECORATING, GAMES, CRAFTS and FOOD. Then we decided everyone brings their own food since people are so allergic and picky these days. They can dress in costume or not. There are those who LOVE doing crafts and games and decorating, and I leave that to them. All I did was book the venue (I love that word!), send some emails and come to the meeting. Now I'll send out a note to everyone involved about what they are to do for the party.

This will be a snap! On to the Christmas party ...

What Counts as Homeschooling?

My husband thinks I'm fudging it when I do this, but today he asked me if we got our "homeschooling" done today. He knew we were gone pretty much all day long, so I gave him the run-down (sorry I don't have photos; forgot the camera!):

English: Magic Treehouse books on CD in the car on the way to Lawrence, about half an hour away.

Math: figuring out HP on Pokemon games and cards. Figuring out how much money Mommy will make since she got a writing assignment at $25 per week. How much is that per month? Per year? What if she gets fired for being snotty and only has the gig for 3 months?

Debate: watching me argue with the childless mean young woman at the nature center because it was not logical that I could be attending to all 6 kids with me but that I could not have kids older than 4 in the preschool room. Kindly inquiring of the woman why she accused my kids of tapping on snake glass and "tormenting" them when they did not even touch the glass.

Science: nature center and natural history museum and pet store

History: natural history museum

Chemistry: putting capsules in water and watching the gelatin dissolve so spongey dinosaurs would emerge

Social: we had a friend come with us because she was out of school.

PE: playing ball with Daddy in the backyard

Nutrition: talking about how bad our lunch was for us (Lunchables from Aldi)

Music: listening to music in the car and talking about it

Art: they'll probably draw later

Business: watching Mommy concoct new tater tot casseroles so she can put them in the cookbook for to sell