Days 146 - 160 Finished with MFW First Grade!

We are officially done with school for this year!  This picture was on our last day.  We've had a great year, and now we're looking forward to a great summer!  We finished so early because we started the beginning of August, and then didn't take off as many days as I expected.  I found it was much easier to keep the kids in the routine of school instead of taking lots of days off!  We'll still be working on math facts and reading books over the summer, as well as working in our garden and doing some nature studies.

Below are Caleb's last two bible notebook pages.  Sometimes I copy the picture in the bible reader and he colors it and glues it into his notebook.  He doesn't like to draw very much...

Our last science experiment was to grow carrot and beet leaves.  They are actually growing!

And this is our soil separation!

And here is a garden made from pattern blocks.  Joshua really wanted to grab them!

To celebrate the end of the year, we took the kids to Walmart and let them pick out a toy with their chore money.  Caleb picked a Lego set and Rebekah picked a pony that came in a shiny purse.  We had a fun year, and now I'll be ordering MFW Adventures in US History for next year, and also redoing Kindergarten for Rebekah!  She is already starting to sound out letters and reading a few simple words!  I have been so blessed to be able to teach my children at home!

Antique Sewing Machine

My husband's grandmother gave this sewing machine to him (I think it was more for me!).  It's a Domestic Rotary and is electric, and it works!  It doesn't have a foot petal, you can see a lever on the bottom of the cabinet, you push it to the right with your knee instead of pushing a foot petal.  It's really neat!  I figured out where the bobbin goes, and I attempted to thread it, but I must have done something wrong because I can't get it to work.  Any advice?  I'm trying to download a manual, but it's been loading since this morning.  Rebekah was really excited though, she wants it to be her sewing machine since I already have one... we'll see...

Doll Surgery

Sometimes knowing how to sew prevents meltdowns!

Days 122-145, MFW First Grade Homeschool Highlights

Look who's getting in on the school action!  This was Joshua's first time coloring.  He's about 14 months now, and learning so fast.  He can say quite a few words, mostly animal sounds he learned from reading his favorite book!

As for 1st grade, we're still having lots of fun too.  We finished all the phonics instruction (day 125) and are now just finishing up the bible reader and bible notebook, as well as lots of practice reading!  Caleb has really gotten good at reading.  He still stumbles a bit, but I'm impressed with him.  I still can't believe I taught him to read!  Below is a sample from his bible notebook:

In math, we covered time and money, then fractions.  Now we are back to addition, trying to solidify all the math facts!  Below are some paper plate fractions we made after reading a library book.

In science, we finished up Science with Water and moved on to Science with Plants.  It was neat to plant some bean seeds in a jar and watch them grow.  They were planted between the jar and some wet paper towels, this way we can watch the roots grow too!  We also did a celery experiment to see how water travels up into plants leaves.  Next week we're going to take a look at flowers!

We also planted some ivy inside a plastic bottle.  It's been in there a week and it's still looking good.

Lastly, here is Rebekah and Caleb playing with Rebekah's jungle scene she made from her Rod and Staff Book H.  She has finished books A-H, and now she's just starting I.  She really wants to read and has already picked up a few sight words.  I can't wait to start Kindergarten with her!

That's it!  We only have 16 days left of 1st grade!  We will be done by the end of April, then we promised the kids they could go buy a toy with the money they've been saving from their chores all year!  Then it'll be time to order next years curriculum, MFW Adventures and MFWK!

Cast Iron Skillet Handle Holders and Dish Towels

I made this gift set for my mom and gave it to here this past weekend.  (She also got a cast iron skillet!)  The cast iron skillet handle holders are super easy to make, look cute on the skillet, and most importantly, prevent burns!  Here's how I made them:

Cut two squares of fabric and two squares of batting, 6 x 6 inches.  Make a sandwich with them, batting, fabric right side up, fabric right side down, and batting.  Sew along one edge only, this will be the finished edge.  Then turn it right sides out (with the batting in the middle).  Fold the entire thing in half, making sure the finished edge is on the short side.  Then sew along the long side and the other short side.  Trim the corners and trim away any extra batting.  Flip right side out and you're done!

My mom loves this chicken fabric.  I made her a matching apron, recipe binder, and a grocery bag holder a few years ago.

I didn't have enough fabric to make her dish towels like these, which she loved!  So, I bought the same towels from Walmart (they're called bar towels) and just sewed the chickens on.  I used a straight stitch first and then zig zagged around the whole thing.  I thought they turned out cute!