January 16th, 2017

Just a little
bit of learning...









​When learning is not mandated it's unstoppable! Here in NYS we have to put it into subject categories for school district quarterly reports. Here's just a little bit from the last two weeks... 

English - We got this awesome word-a-day calendar and have been using lots of fun new vocabulary! Helena's joined a bookclub and is finishing up the 2nd Harry Potter via Audible.com with two other exciting sounding books for the next few weeks coming up. She's also been asked to write an article for a super cool kid's magazine iGen21.com so look for that in the Februrary issue. She's taking a writing class weekly with local award-winning children's author Jennifer Roy who we adore. Helena's also been further indulging her love of fantasy fiction watching all of the Hunger Games movies, taking an outschool.com class called Girl Power: Females in Myth and Theism, another called Pirates: Swashbuckling or Swashbuckled and a third about vampires and bloodsuckers in world myth. 

Math - It's not been a heavy math season, just a few figures here and there for bio labs. Helena always goes in waves with math, binging on it, leaning deeply into learning, then backing off to give her brain time to integrate it all. As of the latest "score" on Prodigy math game she's at an 8th grade level. 

---

​Science - Helena started Paws for Herbs, an animal herbalism video series and business; she's rescued a pitbull (2 months ago) that she's been treating; and she rescued a rat three days ago. She's slowly working her way through all of the basic bio concepts in the textbook she requested. Monthly wilderness school and several weekly hikes adds to the natural science. 

Social Studies - IndyKids.org is our latest lovely discovery - a magazine by kids, for kids, focused on social justice issues. We've watched more BBC historical fiction series on Netflix than I can count this year... currently watching Mrs Fisher's Murder Mysteries about a 1920's flapper era lady detective. We've learned about Lativian anarchists, Zionism and more from this series. We try to keep on top of current events and today we're reading and talking about MLK and The March on Washington along with watching the civil rights era American Girl movie. 

Music/Art - non stop drawing, listening to music, upcoming theater events but none too recently... 

Health/PE - Resumed taekwondo and began Kumdo, Korean sword fighting; Teen mindfulness class this week; monthly wilderness school, several hikes per week; daily walks; talking all the time about health; listening to mom proof read her health writings on phytochemicals and how herbs work; discussions about brain development, mental health and emotional awareness. 

---