Weekly Wrap-Up: Fingerprinting and a Voice from the Distant Past

Whew!  What a busy week!  Not only did we have our usual schedule of lessons, but we also had a meeting at church, orthodontist appointments, and a doctor appointment to add to the general chaos.  (You know, it's really not all that chaotic, but it's certainly busy!  And I tend to feel chaotic when I'm busy.)

Here are a few highlights:

We've been reading Tennyson's poems, and, while they are good when read by mere mortals (i.e., me), we all enjoyed listening to Tennyson himself read "Charge of the Light Brigade," a recitation recorded in 1890 on a wax cylinder.  You can hear it, too, here at The Poetry Archive website.  We thought it was amazing that we could listen to something recorded 120 years ago!  (Note:  If you're interested in reading a bit more about early recording technology-- wax cylinders! --  here's a link to an informative Wikipedia entry.)

I typically shy away from scientific pursuits.  It's not my forte, and the girls take science classes at Timothy Ministry.  But this year, I've upped the ante, and we are studying anatomy.  Last week and this, we've focused on the dermal system.  One of the small experiments we did was about fingerprints.  Here's what my right thumbprint looks like:

The girls and I discovered that Tiny Girl and I both have whorl patterns on our thumbs; but Miss Priss has the loop pattern.  We wondered about Daddy's thumbprints, and found out later that day that he has the loop pattern as well.  Two excellent books helped us in our inquiry:  Head to Toe Science, by Jim Wiese, and How the Body Works, by Steve Parker.

In other studies, we finished Story of the World, Volume 2; both girls are enjoying the Mind Benders puzzles in logic; we began The Age of Fable and Madam How and Lady Why (neither girl was enthusiastic about either, but since it was the prefatory material I can't say I blamed them); both are better enjoying math at their own pace; we are all in love with Heidi; Miss Priss and I reviewed more Latin with the wonderful worksheets I blogged about earlier this week; and we devoted more time than I have in the past to our Bible and prayer time, using the Keys for Kids devotion.  It's been wonderful thus far.  The girls continued with French, piano practice and their lesson on Tuesday, cursive copywork (Charlotte Mason's motto "I am, I can, I ought, I will"), and the Scott Foresman grammar and writing program.

As for reading, the girls have spent a lot of time on frivolous books this week and last.  While I'm not against a bit of frivolity now and then, I've recently assigned some other selections for "school-time" reading.  Miss Priss began The Shakespeare Stealer, by Gary Blackwood, and Tiny Girl is about to start Lassie Come-Home, by Eric Knight.

My zinnias made me happy this week, so I thought I'd share a photo:

They are the only things that did well in our garden this year.  I must face it: I have a black thumb.

That's our week in review!  I can't wait to read about yours on Kris's blog, Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers.