W is for Winter

We took a little vacation from our homeschool schedule during the move, but this week we're all settled in and back on track.  We focused on all things W this week. 

Since we've been pretty into Harry Potter lately, when I asked Little Guy what words he could come up with that started with W, "wand" was one of the first things he named.  I figured it would be pretty easy to make our own wizard wands, so outside we went with our wagon to look for the perfect "wands."

Then we just had to decorate them so they'd be more magical!

We subscribe to High Five Magazine, which is like HighLights for the younger crowd, and in it was a "make your own book" about the seasons.  Totally perfect for this week since we are learning about winter.  Little Guy cut and stapled it himself; I just helped make sure the pages were in order.  I think he did really well!

He did the W writing practice page from Confessions of a Homeschooler.

On Wednesday, we checked out our new local library, which is tiny!  The whole thing is about the size of an elementary school classroom, but hey, a small library is better than no library!  There's another one about 10 miles away, so if I'm really pressed to find something, we can always make the drive.  Luckily, both libraries have story time, so we are pleased.

We did a few worksheets, and practiced gluing "snowballs" onto a letter W.

Little Guy also learned about pairs while playing a game of 'modified for 4 year olds' Yahtzee with Grandma!

This week we read:





"My W Book" by Jane Belk Moncure
(love these books.  Great intro into words that begin with your letter sound)

"William and the Dragon" by Harriet Ziefert


"The Wonderful Happens" by Cynthia Rylan
(wonderful book.  Will definitely make you smile.)

"What Makes the Seasons?" by Megan Montague Cash
(Really great book to teach about the seasons and what happens during each one)


"When Winter Comes" by Nancy Van Laan
(we liked it)

"How Do You Know It's Winter?" by Allan Fowler
(good nonfiction)

We also read out of some National Geographic for Kids magazines about woodpeckers and other animals and their behavior during the winter.

*Since it was the beginning of February, we read the February page from "The Turning of the Year," which we usually read every day for the first week of a month, until Little Guy gets used to the new month. 

*We also read from "The Loveables in the Kingdom of Self-Esteem" whenever it contains an animal that begins with our letter of the week.  Since this week was W, and Wong the Whale was one of the animals, we read that page.  The book is filled with different animals that have some positive message for you.  It's really great.