Science - Week 2 & 3
J.M.J.

 Sorry, forgot to post last week (had in-laws for the week)!

Week 2  - we learned about the 5 types of mountains - fold, fault-block, dome, volcanic and plateau

Week 3 - we learned more about volcanos.

The children were introduced to the main parts of the volcano and all classes except the Benedictines were given a sheet to label.  The Benedictines completed a mini-book.

All the classes were able to make either a clay or tin foil volcano then watch an "eruption" using the following recipe:

1/4 cup vinegar
1 TBS baking soda
several drops of dishwashing liquid
food coloring (optional)

I am so impressed with all the classes.  I was pretty tough on them (maybe too tough - but just wanted to at least start the year trying to learn some new habits for the classroom) as far as raising their hand and classroom etiquette and they have all done great!

I love their enthusiasm and will continue to try to teach to all the levels and keep it interesting and most of all fun but challenging.

Some of the Franciscans may need to finish their labeling sheet and the Carmelites were given an optional mini-book to do at home.

No specific homework.

For Week 4 (in 2 weeks) we will learn the different types of rocks and how they are formed.

History Helps

Just a few things that I have come across and would like to share with you all.

Communion of Saints

Today just happens to be the feast of Sts. Cyprian and Justina on the old calendar. As I was reading about them during our morning prayer, the kids noticed the name Diocletian, who is mentioned in our history sentence this week. It made us interested in learning more about these uncommonly known saints. Don't you love it when the Holy Spirit times things out just like so?

Handwriting Worksheets

I typed up the CCM history sentence for my younger children to copy. I was going to link it here, but realized that I would be breaking copyright laws! So, I will just link to the website I use to create the worksheets instead. The website is called Worksheet Works.

Notebooking Pages

For the older set, you can have them copy the sentence themselves, or have them listen to the CD and write what they hear. (Great dictation practice!) You can use these free notebooking pages at Notebooking Nook.

Make A Shield

Have your industrious child make his/her own Constantine shield. Here is an example of what one looked like. You can follow these instructions on making a shield, and decorate with the Chi Rho.

Read About St. Paul 

Read Mary Fabyan Windeatt's book, Saint Paul the Apostle: The Story of the Apostle to the Gentiles. Then use this wonderful study guide to learn more! (If you've never seen this website, do your family a favor and check it out!)

Watch Ben Hur

If you allow your children to watch movies, and happen to have Amazon Prime, you can watch a cartoon version of Ben Hur for free on Amazon's Instant Video.

Happy Learning!

Latin ~ week 2

JMJ

Things were a bit hectic, but considering we had two classes meet at the same time, I thing it was a success!  We went over the root words nomen, pro, and prae.  We briefly talked about metaphor and how the very definition of our words are sometimes metaphors.  Like when we express understanding a concept as "grasping" the concept.

Dominicans and Franciscans, remember to work on filling in your cards with derivatives and review the roots from last week.   Also, do the workbook pages for chap. 2 in your Little Latin Readers.  I'm sorry we didn't have time to listen to the CD in class for the Franciscans.  I will to try to listen to Chapters 1-3 in class next week.

Carmelites, discuss the three roots and their meanings.  Make the cards at home if you are going it.  Otherwise, just talk about the roots and try to find and point out derivatives throughout the week.

Art~ Week 2

This week in art we continued learning about the importance of color. The students created their colors from the 3 primary colors...red, yellow, blue. We went over how to create various colors. We talked about how adding black and white will change the shade of the color. It was fun to see the many shades of greens and purples the students created!

The Prek-k class created a beautiful stained glass window painting using water colors.

The 1st-2nd grade class continues to work on their paintings of Mary from the previous work. They did an amazing job! I see some future artist in this group.

The 3rd-6th grade students created a stained glass window using the 3 primary colors. They used red, yellow, and blue to a variety of colors for use in their paintings. Each student was able to create their own beautiful stained glass window.

Next week, we will be continuing our lesson on stained glass windows.

History - Week 2

Pre-K through 4th: We reviewed what they will be learning for geography in CCM week 2. Each class learned about the Emperor Constantine, his vision, and the significance of the Phi Rho symbol. They completed a coloring activity (the Phi Rho symbol). Grades 1-4 labeled a map of the Roman Empire. No homework.

The Franciscans:

~ Review of previous weeks assignment.  Students each explained their time-line worksheets and discussed cause and effect.  

~Review of the map of the Roman Empire (East/West) cir. 300 A.D.

~Discussion of the division of the Roman Empire into Eastern and Western empires and the role of the emperors.

~Introduction to Emperor Constantine the Great (See page 3 of the Medieval History Workbook)

~Discussion of:

-The Battle of the Milvian Bridge

  -Constantine's vision before the battle, of a Golden Cross in the clouds and a voice exhorting "by this symbol you shall conquer".

  -Constantine painting the "Chi Rho" symbol upon his soldiers' shields and prevailing in the battle

  -Constantine's use of the "Labarum" (Chi Rho symbol) throughout his reign as emperor

        -Constantine's promulgation of the Edict of Milan

  -Declaring Christians free to worship without government interference

  -Return of confiscated church's and church property 

  -Dedication of the Vatican to the Bishop of Rome

  -The archeological mission of Constantine's mother St. Helena to the Holy Land

        -Helena's discovery of Jesus' birthplace in Bethlehem, the true cross, his burial tomb, etc.

  -Constantine's commission of the first great churches and cathedrals (St. John Lateran, Rome; the Hagia Sofia, Constantinople, etc.)

-The reuniting of the Eastern and Western Empires under the sole rule of Constantine

-The calling of the Council of Nicaea

  -The suppression of the Arian heresy

-The establishment of Constantinople as the capital of the Eastern Empire (the "New Rome")

-Constantine's eventual baptism as a Christian prior to his death in 337 A.D.

"Homework" assignment for the coming week:

-color the Chi Rho on page 5 of the workbook and complete the "Fill in the Blank" questions 1-7 on page 5 of the workbook

Religion- Week 2

This week at co-op, we were blessed to have an actual priest come and show us his vestments! Father Beres, from St. John the Baptist, met us at co-op and gave a wonderful presentation on what a priest wears for Mass, and the Latin prayers that are said for each piece.

 The Amice

"Place, O Lord, the helmet of salvation on my head to resist the attacks of the devil."

 The Alb

"Make me white, O Lord, and purify my heart, so that being made white in the blood of the lamb, I may deserve an eternal reward."

 The Cincture

"Gird me, O Lord, with the cincture of purity and extinguish in my heart the fire of concupisence so that, the virtue of continence and chastity always remaining in my heart, I may serve you better."

-

 The Maniple

May I deserve, O Lord, to carry this maniple of sorrow and penance so that I may one day enjoy the rewards of my labors."

 The Stole

"Restore unto me, O Lord, the stole of immortality which I lost through the sin of my first parents and, although unworthy to approach thy Sacred Mystery, may I nevertheless obtain eternal joy."

 The Chasuble

"O Lord, who hast said, 'My yoke is sweet and my burden light,' grant that I may so carry it as to merit your grace."

The kids really enjoyed having Fr. Beres at co-op!

Free Angelus Mini-Book

Looking to teach the Angelus to your kids? Not just to memorize the prayer, but to understand how it states our beliefs as Catholics? Why we should stop what we're doing to pray this beautiful prayer three times a day? Here's a free mini book that could help. :)

Latin ~ week 1

JMJ

I hope you all had as much fun on Monday as I did!  It was the smoothest, least stressful first-day-of-co-op I have experienced so far!  Thank you all for your eagerness and hard work!  Now, I have a confession to make: I don't know Latin.  Latin was the subject I dreaded the most in college.  I've never been good at languages; even English grammar has never been my strong suit.  In college, Latin chewed me up, spit me out, and crushed my hopes of being a philosophy or theology major (at Christendom, you have to take two years of Latin and PASS to go into those majors).  It all works out per God's design, though.  I have no ill-will toward the Language of our Holy Mother Church.  Quite the contrary!  A longing has grown in me for the assistance that an understanding of Latin would lend to using our own English tongue.  I also wish I could get more out the Tridentine Mass by having access to the meaning of the Latin and not having to rely on the English translation.  I wanted to give my children this great treasure and tool, but I thought it would pass me by.  Someone else would have to give it to them because it was not mine to give.  Now, I say with great delight, that I will be learning along with the students at Sancta Familia and I hope, if you missed receiving this treasure, that you will join us! 

I have spoken to all you moms, at least briefly at co-op, about the issues regarding time and work load in Latin.  English from the Roots Up suggests that children as young as 2nd grade will enjoy making their own set of flash cards.  Having the kids write their own cards during co-op isn't going to work for our group.  We aren't meeting every day, so there is no extra time for writing.  Our class time has to be packed with learning!  :)  To streamline things,  I will provide the card with the root word, pronunciation and definition on it for both the Dominicans and Franciscans.  The students can fill in their cards as we go over them in class, or they can save the writing for home work if that is too much pressure.  Either way, some of the card will have to be filled in at home. 

If you have students in several of the classes, you can decide if you want to make a family set or if you want each student to have a set.  If you choose to do a family set, then everyone can participate in the making of the cards, which lessens the work load for each person (and me!) but the whole family can come together to learn these roots.  Or it may be more beneficial for your children to each do a set of cards.  Please let me know how you would like your family to handle the cards: each (older) child makes a set or one set for your family?  If you choose to make only a family set, please let me know with which child I should sent the cards home.  Also, I heard from one mom who is going to start the cards for her kids before our weekly meetings.  If you would like to do this, let me know and I won't start cards for your family.  I will, however, send a stack of blank cards home with you.  :)  There are only 10 families with students in Latin, so I don't mind customizing.  That is the beautiful of homeschooling, right?! 

We will spend the last 5-10 min. of class going over the Little Latin Reader (LLR).  We will listen to the CD and do a lot of repeating out loud, together and individually.  This will help to get them comfortable with saying Latin words and just speaking in front of their peers in general.   

In the future, I will send a handout home with all the information needed to make the cards.  If you have the book English from the Roots Up, then you have the information already; all you will need to know is what roots we are doing on what day.

Carmelites (1st-2nd):  I will NOT be doing the cards with them.  We will go over each root word in class and they will copy them to a piece of paper.  Then they can draw pictures to illustrate the meaning(s) of one or more of the roots we learned that day.  This will be laying the foundation for future years.  Parents, you will have the all the information to make the cards, so if you would like to do this with your child at home, go for it!  I know most of the students in this class have older siblings who will be making a set of cards. 

 I forgot to mention the differences in pronunciation In class.  One mom noted that the Vs are pronounced as Ws in English From the Roots Up.  This is the Classical pronunciation which is used by most of the world, I think, except the Catholic Church.  I'm pretty sure The Little Latin Readers use Ecclesiastical (Church Latin).  I think we should use Ecclesiastical pronunciation because that is what The Church uses.  The only place we will actually hear Latin spoken is in Mass or among clergy (or if you went to Christendom during Latin Lunch Wednesdays where all the more enthusiastic language students sat together and actually SPOKE in Latin.  I was never able to participate but I sure got a kick out of hearing it!)  I changed the pronunciation on the cards, so if you look at the book and see a difference, that is why.  I found this pronunciation guide extremely helpful:  http://www.ewtn.com/expert/answers/ecclesiastical_latin.htm

Hopefully, I will get my schedule of root words typed up for you all can look ahead and even work ahead, if that is your style.  

Science - CCM Week #1

J.M.J.

In Science we learned about the 4 major layers of the earth:

Crust
Mantle
Outer Core
Inner Core

We covered a short lesson then the 2 younger classes made construction paper models and the older classes made clay models of the layers of the earth.  All of the classes were knowledgeable about the subject and had good attitudes.

After seeing the different abilities of the classes, we have decided that the Benedictines will do more assembly projects, the Carmelites will do more cut and paste projects and the Dominicans and Franciscans will take notes in addition to doing their more complex projects.

We are also going to work on classroom etiquette including raising hands, listening without talking and allowing others to answer without talking over them. 

We have a great group of kids and I will try my best to make this a good learning experience for all of them!

No homework.

- Next week we are going to learn about the different ways mountains form on the earth's surface.

Religion- Week 1

This week in Religion we discussed the Sign of the Cross, the Liturgical Year and Liturgical Colors, and Our Lady of Sorrows.

I started off by reminding the children that we should say a prayer before we start anything. We used the prayer written by St. Benedict, which is still said by all Benedictines before they start anything, and also at the beginning of the prayers said during the Divine Office (Liturgy of the Hours).

O God come to our aid,
O Lord make haste to help us.

This prayer is also said during Morning Assembly, and we will be saying it at the beginning of class each week. I'm hoping this will instill a lifelong habit of always seeking our Lord's help before we start something.

I then talked to the children about the Signum Crucis (Sign of the Cross) and how we sometimes say this prayer without even thinking about it. It's easy to forget why we are doing it, because we do it so much.  I reminded the children why it's such an important prayer, and what we should think about when saying it and crossing ourselves. We also talked about different times when we should make the Sign of the Cross. The older children were given a handwriting sheet of the prayer in Latin, to help them learn it. Please check if your child was able to do this in class, and if not, have them do it at home.

The children were then given an explanation of each Liturgical Color:

White- White is the color of Light and represents the Light of the World: Jesus. You see White when we are celebrating a feast in honor of Jesus.

Purple- Purple is for the seasons when we prepare for a great feast. These are penitential seasons, when we should be doing some sort of penance. We listened for all the "P's". Purple, Prepare, Penance

Green- Green is for the Time After the preparations and celebrations. A time where we take all that we learned during the purple and white seasons, and use that information to grow in our love for Christ and His Church. We noticed how Green and Grow both start with "G". (Some children were surprised that we're supposed to be learning during these seasons!) :)

Red- Red represents Love and the Holy Spirit. We see red on the great feast of the Holy Spirit: Pentecost. We also see red when we are celebrating the feast of a Martyr. Someone who loves God so much that they were willing to die for Him. 

I also briefly discussed when the children would see Rose and Black at Mass.

We then talked about the calendars we see in our homes, and how Mother Church has her own calendar, too. The Liturgical or Ecclesiastical calendar. I showed the children a Liturgical Wheel, and they noticed right away that it was colored with the same colors we had just discussed. We talked about the different seasons, and then they were given their own Liturgical Wheel to color. The Benedictines had a simpler version of the wheel with a cover on it, attached with a brad, so that they can spin it and find the correct season that we are in.

Lastly, in the older classes (1st-6th) we talked about Our Lady of Sorrows, and discussed each of her 7 sorrows. They were given a sheet that had a picture of each sorrow and were instructed to color and paste these to the blue paper they had. Most children did not finish this in class, and were asked to finish it at home for homework. They can either use the pictures to make a timeline on the blue paper, or they can cut them out to use as a game. Just shuffle the cards, then try to put them in the correct order of when they happened. The Benedictines were given a coloring page of Our Lady of Sorrows to color at home.

Next week, we will be learning about the Priest's Vestments! :)

History Overview

History Pre K through 4th:

On our first day of History class, we reviewed the CCM map work, which was to locate and name the continents (actually, we did not do this in the little tots class). Since History for this year begins with the Birth of Jesus, we read the Nativity story and followed it up with a craft. All of the younger classes made a little manger with Baby Jesus in it. The Benedictine class started a coloring page in class, and I sent home the coloring page with the other classes to work on at home if they wished to do so. There is no homework for these classes.


History for the Fransicans included:

- Overview of class topic for the coming year:

- Explanation of the 3 general historical periods; Antiquity, Medieval and Modern

- Explained that we will be focusing on major Religious, Political and cultural events and developments between the years 400 A.D. and 1500 A.D. (defined and explained the differences between the 3 different types of events and developments)

-Review of Ancient history from the time of the birth of Christ to 400s A.D. and discussed the prior expansion of the Western Roman Empire and it collapse leading into the medieval period.

- Review of how to create and read a timeline; and discussion of the importance of understanding history as a chronological chain of causes and effects.  Highlighted the importance of understanding historical events as the "causes" of our present state in the world.  Explained to the class that having a thorough understanding of the causes and effects of history, give us a better understanding of how the choices we make today may effect our future. (example used in class...we know from our own past history that if we don't thoroughly brush our teeth, we may get cavities.  Therefore, if we want to avoid cavities we can learn from past experience that we should thoroughly brush our teeth).

-Assigned "homework" - Timeline worksheet.  Student is to choose one day this week and log the days events on the timeline.

note: Mr. McCarthy sent home a brown folder for the parents to review. It also has the sheet on which they will compete their timeline

can you send me a synopsis of your class yesterday?

Art~ Week 1

This week in art, we talked about the famous artist Titian. In honor of Our Lady of Sorrows, we looked at numerous works painted of Mary by Titian.

The Gypsy Madonna

The Assumption of the Virgin Mary

The Presentation of the Virgin Mary

Titian was well known for his use of color. He used color to draw the eye to focal point of the painting. He loved to paint Mary in a bright red gown covered with a bright blue mantle. His use of light often made the paint appear shiny, like silk. The children immediately picked up on this.

Color plays a very important part in creating a masterpiece. It can set the mood and feel of a painting.

We talked about the primary colors.

Red, Yellow, and Blue

We talked about how to create the secondary colors.

Red and Yellow = Orange

Yellow and Blue = Green

Blue and Red = Purple

After learning about how to create colors and why color is important, the children sketched their own masterpiece of Mary.

Once their sketches were done, they mixed together their own colors and started painting their works of art.

A finished masterpiece!

The Seven Sorrows of Homeschooling Moms

The monthly devotion of September is Our Lady of Sorrows.
Here is a wonderful sermon from Archbishop LeFebvre site.

The Seven Sorrows of Homeschooling Moms

1. Loneliness
2. Being Overwhelmed
3. Society! "Are all those children yours?"
4. Financial Issues, learning to do without
5. Husbands, who are not cooperative
6. Catholic Priests who are not supportive
7. Dealing with a challenging child


Here is a link to listen to the whole sermon.....
http://files.audiosancto.org/20130621-The-Seven-Sorrows-of-Homeschooling-Mothers.mp3

Wonderful New Name Changes

We have decided to add something a little extra to the co-op classes this. We are naming each class by a religious order. 

We will have this year...

Benedictines.....Prek-K Graders

Carmelites.....1st-2nd Graders

Dominicans.....3rd-4th Graders

Franciscans.....5th-6th Graders

Living the Liturgical Year: September

The month of September is dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows, which is celebrated on September 15th.

Sorrowful Heart of Mary, Mother of Christians, ora pro nobis!

The Holy Father's Intention's for the month:

General: That people today, often overwhelmed by noise, may rediscover the value of silence and listen to the voice of God and their brothers and sisters.
Missionary: That Christians suffering persecution in many parts of the world may by their witness be prophets of Christ's love.

Ember Day Reminder!
September 18th, 20th, and 21st 

Since man is both a spiritual and physical being, the Church provides for the needs of man in his everyday life. The Church's liturgy and feasts in many areas reflect the four seasons of the year (spring, summer, fall and winter). The months of August, September, October and November are part of the harvest season, and as Christians we recall God's constant protection over his people and give thanksgiving for the year's harvest.
The September Ember Days were particularly focused on the end of the harvest season and thanksgiving to God for the season. Ember Days were three days (Wednesday, Friday and Saturday) set aside by the Church for prayer, fasting and almsgiving at the beginning of each of the four seasons of the year. The ember days fell after December 13, the feast of St. Lucy (winter), after the First Sunday of Lent (spring), after Pentecost Sunday (summer), and after September 14, the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (fall). These weeks were known as the quattor tempora, the "four seasons."
Since the late 5th century, the Ember Days were also the preferred dates for ordination of priests. So during these times the Church had a threefold focus: (1) sanctifying each new season by turning to God through prayer, fasting and almsgiving; (2) giving thanks to God for the various harvests of each season; and (3) praying for the newly ordained and for future vocations to the priesthood and religious life.

Recipe for the Month:
 St. Michael's Waffles
In France, paper-thin sweet wafers called gaufres were baked by street vendors. Serve waffles on St. Michael's Day to continue this tradition.

Michaelmas is celebrated on September 29th.

Liturgical Craft for the Month:
On September 12th, the Feast of the Most Holy Name of Mary, have your children try to draw Mary's monogram and see if they can find the letters that spell Maria within it. Then color it and decorate it!

 Special Announcement:
This Saturday, September 14th, there will be a Traditional Latin Mass at 11:00 in honor of the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, at St. John the Baptist in Front Royal, VA.

 (Explanation of Ember Days and Recipe taken from CatholicCulture.org)

We are growing!

We now have 15 families joining co-op this year!

We are looking forward to the first day of co-op and meeting new friends.

We are growing!

With the start of co-op just 2 weeks away, we are still growing! 

We have two families decide to join us this year. 

We now have 13 families with 40+ kids!

We still have 2 spots open, so if you know a family that would be interested let them know.

See you in a few weeks!