French--her favorite, even though she doesn't think she's doing well. It's the Rosetta Stone program, which is considered an "immersion" method. She spends more than the prescribed 30 minutes a day on this one. It's not conversational French, unless saying "the man is on the roof" is relevant to a conversation. She doesn't yet want to practice her vocabulary on a fluent French speaker, but she's coming along!
Literature--Emily loves this one. We have started with a Shakespeare play that she's very familiar with: A Midsummer Night's Dream. She likes to read it aloud, and is enjoying the analytical activities.
Home Ec--this one is fun, too. The current Lifepac unit is on "Christian Character and Appearance". It's pretty simple to read and answer the questions. In addition to this, we've reserved every Friday for cooking and sewing. Last Friday was our first home ec day, and Emily prepared a lovely pasta dinner with salad and garlic bread. We never got to the sewing portion of the day, but were incredibly busy nonetheless. She will create a new recipe collection for herself. We started a recipe notebook when she was in 4th or 5th grade, which we still use regularly, but she likes a fresh beginning, so will now keep a card file. I don't really enjoy cooking or sewing, so this course will offer me a refresher! It's fun to do it with a partner.
Writing and Grammar (Bob Jones University Press)--She surprised me by saying that she likes this one, even though it's hard. She took her first test yesterday and got an "A". Language and writing are her natural gifts, so I shouldn't be surprised, and I am glad she enjoys a challenge.
Geometry (Teaching Textbooks)--After a week, the program is still in the introductory phase, but she says it's fun. The lectures are about logic, inductive and deductive reasoning, and postulates. It reminds me of the Chronicles of Narnia, when the professor scratches his head and says, "Logic! No one understands logic! What DO they teach children in school these days!" (Okay, that was a paraphrase, but you get the idea.) So far the CDs which elaborate on the solutions to the problem set have not been needed, but we're glad to have them available, and will probably use them later.
History (Streams of Civilization: Ancient Times)--Emily likes this one, too. She especially enjoys segments on ancient Egypt and Greece. We haven't gotten to the Egypt portion, but she has devoured two supplementary books, "The Golden Goblet" and "Mara, Daughter of the Nile". Last evening we watched a Discovery channel DVD on "Egypt's Lost Queen". It was fascinating, but viewing so many mummies (up close and personal!) disturbed my sleep a bit. Emily said it disturbed hers, too. Hatshepsut was depicted as a villain in "Mara, Daughter of the Nile", so we were glad to hear what is truly known about her. She experienced much loss in her life, and the conclusion was drawn that it was probably her stepson (also nephew, since she married her half brother Tutmoses II) who had her image eradicated wherever possible. The researchers believed he did this not out of hatred, but to ensure the patrilineal monarchy. In other words, he tried to minimize her impact on history, and make her into a non-entity to ensure that his son (and not her daughter) was regarded as the rightful ruler . The researchers also determined that her cause of death was probably a tooth abscess, and that she experienced osteoporosis, and had a malignant tumor in her hip. She had a prosperous rule, and built many structures. She is a fascinating historical figure!
Religion--Yes, she enjoys this one, too. She's a great reader, and we sometimes wish the old-fashioned class "elocution" was available. I guess it has morphed into a component of drama. For now we are simply reading Patriarchs and Prophets aloud together over the weekend. I have some precious memories of Sabbath afternoons spent at my sister Susan's home, reading The Great Controversy. We seemed to have a room full of people, although I don't remember who was there. We each had our own book, and each person read a paragraph, taking it in turns around a circle. We would discuss as we went. Susan died shortly after we began the Desire of Ages. Our reading last week was regarding the rebellion in heaven. It's odd--it sounded so political, as in fact, it was! It seems like evil should be easily recognizable, but too often it's insidious.
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