Well, we are on day 2 of our grand kid's sleeping loft adventure. No photos yet, I will post some tomorrow...I forgot the light is gone, since THERE IS NO CEILING in my kid's room right now...
I stumbled upon this Phonics Curriculum, called HeadSprouts Phonics. It looks very, very, well done. I am thinking of purchasing it for Amie, at least. Last night, as I was running through some of their demo lessons- Demi and Amie were stepping all over each other in the attempt to sit in front of the computer and 'play' the reading games. (which were lessons). How I wish I had found this last year...
I just finished reading "Cassandra's Sister- growing up Jane Austen" by Veronica Bennett.
I was pre-reading it for my older girls, and I have to say that I really, really enjoyed it. It would be a really great reading assignment for that time-period, and would also be a great introduction to Jane Austen, before trying out her books. It is historical fiction, taking the events and people of her life and weaving them into a story. While reading it, I kept thinking about the movie "Becoming Jane", which I just loved.
The reading level is listed as "young adult", and the opening chapter is a little intense describing the feelings and thoughts of someone on the way to the guillotine. The rest is much lighter. All in all, it was a good read, and would further a young student's knowledge of Jane Austen's times- family customs, relationships and the sphere women of the time moved in.