Homeschooling in first grade

We have been back to homeschooling for a month now, and it's going very well so far. 

Gabriela is enrolled in more activities than last year when I was giant and pregnant and not ready to commit to driving up and down the East Bay. This fall, Gabriela is taking a cooking class at the East Bay Waldorf School around the corner. The kids are supposed to use fresh fruits and veggies from the school's garden and CSA box to create seasonal dishes. 

Gabriela is also taking an art class in Alameda, which came recommended by some friends and Auntie Liss. We knew it was going to be good when we got there and saw this:

She has been doing some cool projects. The kids have these old books that they paint in directly.  They decorate the covers too. Last week, G decided she was going to put Simone on the cover of her book. 

This week, she will be starting her Lego Engineering History in Flight class along with a bunch of mostly boys in her homeschool group. And the class I am looking forward to most, family band! This is a parent/child class and we both will be playing the recorder and ukelele together. All these classes along with our regular park day with our lovely group of homeschool friends is going to make for an extremely busy yet exciting semester. 

Here are some fun photos from the last month. 

After lots of reading about Ancient Egypt, we got a Barbie at the thrift store so we could mummify her. Of course, G started by removing her brain. 

Daddy helped puncture Barbie's side so her organs could be removed. G rubbed her body with wine and rosemary oil, covered her in salt, and then wrapped her in cloth. She also sculpted some amulets that are placed on Barbie's body. Here she is, drying out. 

And here is Gabriela's ocean habitat that she painted. 

Easton is learning too. Here he is at Crab Cove, working the microscope on his own. 

Gabriela asked to learn how to sew as part of homeschool. Here she is with her first completed project. She chose the fabric, and while I did the cutting and ironing, she did all the pinning and sewing. She was so proud of the finished product, and is already trying to decide what she will be sewing next.