In this recap, I am going to share what we did at home for more hands-on learning related to Classical Conversations Cycle 1 Week 15: Bible, History, Geography, and Science memory work. I will also share my tutor plans, library books, and a preview for the following week.
BIBLE:
Resources: Foundations of the Bible vol. 1 | Free Sample
This week, we studied the life of Moses and his calling from God to save the Israelites from slavery. We discussed how God spent 80 years preparing Moses to lead a nation out of Egypt. Moses’ story is a great reminder that even when we feel unqualified for what God calls us to do, He is the one who does the equipping.
Note: This study pairs with each week of the CC optional Bible memory work, but you can go at your own pace because there is SO much to learn. You can also jump in at any time. Anyone can do this study, not just CC families. Learn more about the Foundations Collection here.
HISTORY:
Resources: Story of the World Book Cycle 1 (Match Up List) | Story of the World Series | Real Cool History for Kids Podcast — Chronological episode guide here,
Activity: Identify Portugal on a map and write a narration journal about Prince Henry after reading Story of the World. I just got these narration journals and really like them.
This week, we learned about Prince Henry of Portugal and read from Volume 2 of Story of the World. I love using the related activity book for narration questions and activity ideas. The kids also used their new narration journals to summarize what they learned about his life.
SCIENCE:
Resources: Learning with Friends Year 1 Bundle (code GRACEFRIENDS for 10% off) | CC Connected Sandbox File | Trifold Printouts
Activity: Watch this video to learn interesting facts about climbing the seven mountains, paint a watercolor mountain scene
We learned about each continent's highest mountain and sang the memory work to "Go Tell It on the Mountain." We watched an interesting video that explained the cost of climbing all seven peaks ($200k total) and the success rates of climbers. To tie in art and science, we painted a mountain sunset!
GEOGRAPHY:
Resources: Trace black line maps from CC sandbox | Drawing Africa | Keppel Trifold Maps on CC Connected
Activity: Trace maps daily, Make Week 15 Crockpot Recipe | Slow Cooker Beef Shawarma
This week’s focus was the Middle East. We made beef shawarma, basmati rice, and cucumber salad for dinner—it was absolutely delicious! We sang the memory work to the tune “Addams Family.”
ESSENTIALS:
Resource: Quarterly Notebooks by Kim Vieley
We are halfway through our first year of Essentials and loving it! This year, I’m focusing on modeling, helping, and offering lots of encouragement. Here’s how we’re structuring our weeks:
Community Day:
Learn all the new info in class. I listen and feel like a student myself so I can absorb the info in order to be able to teach it. I enjoy trying to parse the sentences with the kids, too.
We create our KWO (key word outline) for the week’s paper. We review the charts and new grammar using my friend Kim Vieley's Essentials quarterly workbook. It’s a lifesaver because it has all of our grammar review in an open-and-go format. We also parse and diagram one sentence every day. I choose the sentences from the Essentials curriculum because the sentences help review what you are learning that week. If your child is struggling with parsing, do simply ones from the first quarter and gradually build with the easy +1 mindset. Don't forget the answer guide has it all laid out for you. I try to read the prompt exactly so it's repetitive every week. Example: "Who or what is this sentence about?" to help him identify the subject. I just work through the prompt each day.
Day 2:We practice vocabulary words and new grammar with our workbook. We parse and diagram one sentence. Then, my son reads his KWO out loud, and I type his words for his rough draft. I will purposefully add in some errors for him to edit, such as missing capitalization, wrong end marks, and obvious misspellings.
We will continue to review new grammar and vocabulary words using the quarterly notebook. We will parse one sentence. Then, we edit the paper and add the dress-ups and vocabulary words.
We review new grammar and vocabulary words using our essentials workbook. We parse and diagram one sentence. Then, we will edit the final draft of the paper and highlight all the dress-ups we added. I grade it using the IEW point system.
LIBRARY BOOKS:
Here are some books that relate to this week’s memory work.
- Everest by Sangma Francis (Science)
- Mountains by Charlotte Guillain (Science)
- Egyptian Lullaby by Zeena Pliska (Geography)
- Hiding Baby Moses by Judith Roth (Bible)
- Miriam at the River by Jane Yolen (Bible)
TUTOR PLANS:
How to Make a Tutor Board | Week 15 Tutor Plans | Blank Tutor Template
Here is my tutor board for Week 15.
YOUTUBE PLAYLIST:
Here is a weekly playlist of all the songs and hand motions I use with my kids. This is a great resource for other tutors to use to build their plans for the week.
PREVIEW:
Here is what we will be doing for Week 16.
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Hope you have a great week!
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