Water Wheel Experiment

Gabe really likes experiments and crafts so I'm making an effort to do more of both and let him choose an experiment.
This was easy and fun!  Afterwards we watched some videos on how water wheels are used and the development of their technology.

Week of September 24-28

I was a little slower embracing the world in the mornings this week due to a nasty cold but emerged one morning to the wonderful site of Lily doing her math at the kitchen table.  She was soon joined by Gabe and John set himself up at the counter while I made muffins. My homeschooling dream come true - only took 7 years!
Lily has shown a lot of maturity this year and has been much more self motivated than I've seen in the past.  There are several subjects that she can  work through on her own (math, French, editing, reading assignments for history and science) and has really shown initiative this year.  She's finished reading most of the novels, histories and fun science books that I bought for this year. 
Gabe and John are making very good, steady progress at their reading and have launched right back into math and spelling with very little review needed.

They've been going on nearly weekly outings with Grandpa Rene to the beach to both explore and draw their observations.  This has been a wonderful bonding time for them and art lessons to boot!

I don't have to make any concerted efforts to make sure they get physical activity. They spend hours outside every day biking, jumping on the trampoline and tramping through the woods.