And in teaching you will learn.

There is many a true word spoken in a Disney tune 😉 I liked the one above, which jumped out at me from Tarzan. I’m often not sure who has learned the most since we’ve HE’d but it has certainly been good for me. During a conversation at my parents over the weekend, i said something like “there will be people who have an equation for working this type of thing out…” and laughed at myself. Either Max and his endless figures, graphs and databases has finally got to me, or i’ve ceased to be afraid of maths. It will never be something i like, enjoy, find exciting etc but now i do find myself less frightened by it. I can’t always find my way through a problem, but i often can – and helping the kids with it or making use of the information Max produces from it has got easier and easier and far less threatening. And i can now remember the sum for working out VAT; it only took me about 4 years to get it properly stuck into my head! (At which point they did of course change it, but i can live with that!)

Maddy and i cracked area and perimeter today (carpet tiles and fence panels!) and she finished off Singapore 3B; i think she’ll now move on to Galore Park as the 4 levels didn’t do it for us with Fran really. Not quite sure where to place her though, so will have to look at them a bit. Yesterday she and i worked on comprehension answers and i tried (and largely succeeded i think) to help her understand the concept of using part of the question, part of the passage and then adding something explanatory on to show why she had chosen that part. She did okay at it. She’s done handwriting both days; she is great with handwriting practise but struggles to use joined up in her work yet. It will come though. She’s on her next Naughtiest Girl book, having loved the first and decorated a box beautifully with a sugar paper design.

Fran has done some maths, is reading Castle Diary, plugs away at EC and handwriting and has made a good start on her next history chapter, which is on the Normans. After a struggle to accept it was actually not evil to look IN THE PASSAGE to find the answers, she got on well. 🙄 She and i are just about to start on GP Latin. Like Maddy she is set on a ‘100 books in a year’  reading challenge so is working on those in the evenings.

Amelie is happily on new maths, loves to read now and is growing in confidence fast. She likes EC and has been playing Playmobil lots with Josie. I was expecting fights yesterday after i said they mostly didn’t, but although they had one squall and made each other cry, they did then fix it and carried on and i didn’t have to go down to them. The game went on till jazz classes, so considering we also had a visit from Kate and Madison it was a good day. Jazz seemed to go well and Maddy made a new friend at gym; i think Fran was very tired in gym though but did manage a walk over from standing again.

Today Josie’s big achievement is to go to Gymmies at gym and join in. SHe was very excited and then completely panicked and did an olden days Maddy style “lock down” and wouldn’t look up or talk or join in but after a while she got it together and loved doing balances, trying out the beam and then doing cartwheels on the special mat they have. She was very pleased to get to ring the bell for good work. All the others took work while she gymmed and mostly got on pretty well. Now we’re doing some music and then we are going to read. I’ve got a form or 2 to fill in as well and REALLY need to try and find football or rugby for Maddy to try but so far i’ve drawn blanks as all the clubs with girls teams i have approached don’t take them under 10 or 12. Hm.