April 20th

Today was a bit of unschooling and a bit of schooling.

The day started with me finally giving out new allowance amounts. I give a quarter per every year of age, so both boys ended up with new amounts. This meant new maaser. 8 yo figured out his quickly, and then they worked together with base ten blocks to figure out what's one tenth of $1.50. They did figure it out.

Then 8 yo built a couch cushion house for his sister and used Snap Circuits to light it up. Then we went to the chiropractor, and when we got back, we went on a manic cleaning spree. The living room needed it, but mostly, I was annoyed that one component of Snap Circuits was missing and nobody seemed to know where it went.

We had a discussion about how proper definitions. 8 yo said that everything in the world is our slave since it does not charge us anything to be seen. I explained that we have to define what a slave is. Then we talked about how a car could be considered our slave.

Then we did parsha, the only formal school for today. I found a powerpoint on kosher and non-kosher animals, and we went over it slowly. It had pesukim, so I got both boys to read some of them. Then I told them to make a poster divided into kosher and not kosher animals. We have a box of old magazines, so they had plenty of material. All three of them sat down, cutting.

In the afternoon, I cooked and cleaned and told boys to do whatever they felt like. They roamed the backyard, made a tepee. They fought over holding and not holding poles together at just the right angle. Each one came to complain separately, but then they joined forces. 6 yo pulled out weaving loom and worked on a potholder. They used cardboard to make a house for a toy lizard. 2 yo got out stamps and did that; then she pulled out dinosaur stickers. Both boys sneaked around to read.

I was asked what's the most dangerous thing in the world. I said, stupidity. 8 yo piped in, radioactivity. I said that being smart around radioactive material will keep you safe. Then there was a discussion of noble gases and how they are full of electrons.

6 yo sang Maccabeats. 8 yo hummed "Give me Freedom, Give me Fire".

The boys watered the plants. 6 yo caught a ladybug and brought it in to show me on his finger. He and 2 yo wandered in the yard.

If I could only get them to clean up messes which their creativity produces, I would call our situation idyllic.