Pics (sorry some are sideways)

kids playing in the rain

Brooke 2009

Yes, she has a dirty mouth

She is toooooo cute!

This is some of the kids in Zachary's 3rd grade class playing a game.

Family went to the Arboretum to meet Zachary's TXVA Teacher. Brook looks at a waterfall.

Yep, he likes to pose for the camera.

The arboretum in Dallas is really pretty. Spring is always nice.

Neither one wanted to look at me nor did they want to sit by each other.

Zachary and his teacher Mrs. Layton (3rd grade)

Zachary shooting the bow at Mom and me Cubscout campout

Me shooting a bow at Mom & Me. This was really fun.

Pumpkin patch

Pumpkin patch

Zachary at mom and me (my lil model)

He thinks he is sooooo cute. Watch out girls.

Mom and me campout theme was Circus

Best Friends

Zachary posing in the sun. Oops should have gotten the sun out of your eyes.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

I would like to congratulate my son Zachary. He completed 3rd grade math 2 weeks ago and last week he started on 4th grade math. Good job on all the hard work and keep it up.


CONGRATS Zachary!

General Update

Hopfully I will have pictures up soon. Our old computer, the one that I usually upload pics from, is about to go. I am trying to download everything on CD's before it goes. life has been crazy! School, cubscouts, being a wife, being a mother, cleaning, church, family, deaths, and everything else I'm about to scream.

Mark will be headed out of town this weekend to visit a friend in New Orelans, Louisiana. He better be good! So, I am having a girls night out this Friday. I will be going to watch 2012 the movie (no i don't believe in the whole 2012 prophacy) but the movie should have some really good special effects. I am also thinking about heading to Longview on Saturday to do some shopping.

Shopping now that's another story. At this point I have to think about Zachary's Birthday, Brooke's Birthday and Christmas. To many presants to think about all at one time. November and December just gets crazy around here.

Birthdays will be done differently this year. We have decided to just do birthday parties with family. Then when Summer comes we will have one be Pool party with a bouncy house for Zachary's and Brooke's half birthday. Right now I am thinking no presants but maybe a can food item to donate to the food pantry.

A lot has happened

Well, I can't believe that it has been over a month since I blogged. Sorry guys! Well, this should be a long post.

Weight Lost Jorney:
Well, WW didn't work or I just wasn't into it. Then when school started up so did cub scouts and the ww meetings and cubscouts are on the same day at the same time. So, I couldn't go. Well, I am a huge Biggest Loser fan. I think I have only missed 1 season. Well, you know that thing they were on their arms, I have one. Yes, that is right I have one. So, if you see something on my arm it is called a bodyBugg. It is actually the coolest thing. I long onto my account and input my food for the day. It calculates how many calories I ate then I plug in my bodybugg and it calculates how many calories I burned for that day. If i am in a deficiet I am losing weight if I am in a surplus I am gaining weight. It will also tell me how much protein, fat, carbs, etc.. that I have eaten for that day.



3rd grade school: (Zachary)
Zachary is doing great. He loves the science even through he he way ahead of it. He is moving so fast in it that he will be finished probably by december. I have purchased an online program called www.Exploreelearning.com. It has both math and science. We will use it mainly for science. It goes from 3rd-12th grade for science. It is like doing all the hands-on experiments without actually buying all the materials to do them. He loves it and will actually do it on Saturdays.

He has completed all the math unit assessments but we skipped the lessons assessments and he is 37% finished with 3rd grade. I asked the teacher to move him up but she says he has to be 85% finished. UGH!!! So, we are blazing through the lessons assessments to get to 85% so that he can move up. He has only missed 5 or 6 questions total in 37%. Plus, if he can do the unit assessments then he understands the lessons assessments. I also think he will move fast with the 4th grade curriculum. With this program it looks as if mid-way through 5th is his actually level.
Zachary in Art class.Brooke in her brothers art class

Brooke:
Well, Brooke is growing leaps and bounds. Both physcially and mentally. She is in the 90% for her height. She is really verbal and loves to talk. She has also started potty training. She started when she was 20 months old. I say give her a couple more months and she will be potty traning. Wow!! It will be nice to have a child that is potty trained at 2 years old.

Sewing:

I have started sewing. I love making pillowcase dressing and skirts. Here is one that I made for a friend.

1st & 2nd day of 3rd grade

Ok, Yesterday was the beginning of 3rd grade at Texas Virtual Academy @ Southwest. TXVA is a virtual public school. Yesterday started off with an assembly in the auditorium. Now you may ask how do you do this at a virtual school. We do it on line using the program/website called Elluminate. Elluminate has a whiteboard where you can write or show powerpoint presentations. I can hear the speakers and type in my questions. There where 400 people there. Afterwards we did a small introductory lessons on how to use their online schooling system (which is pretty cool). Then Zachary started taking a reading test. The test will adjust to every question you answer wrong or right in order to pinpoint your grade level. So the test lasted 2 hours.

Today he did the math portion of the test and it adjusted the same way. It took him 2 hours and 40 min. to finish. At one point he had gotten into algebra questions like 4ab + b - a/b= with a=2 & b=4. He knew how to substitute the letters for the numbers but didn't know you multiply 4ab. So, the test adjusted down from that. We then did an introducation to learning their system. This program will be done for the first 10 days. Then he was got onto Study Island. It teaches math, reading and social studies in a game format. He really enjoyed it.

I don't know when we will find out the results of his 2 test. I hope it will be soon. But, we are off to a great start.

G/T in Texas: Is it Worth the Label?

In the state of Texas at some time during a child’s year in Kindergarten they are nominated by the teacher or the parent to get tested. This test will determine if your child is Gifted or not and if so will be placed into the G/T program at your child’s school. But is it worth getting tested?

Most schools have a G/T pullout program. This program is for children who have tested into the gifted range. These children are the top 2% of the children in the school. They are pulled out for 45 min. once a week. The time in which the child is pulled out is during an elective course like P.E., Spanish or Computers. This is the only service that G/T children receive currently.

When the child is pulled out they are normally pulled out during a class in which they would be learning new material or a class in which they enjoy. Children are not pulled from a class during a subject in which they have mastered for that grade.

The G/T pullout program focuses on critical thinking skills. This is a skill that all children G/T or not would benefit from. The G/T pullout program should focus on the subject or area that the child is gifted and help the child to continue learning and advancing in that subject/area.

So, if a G/T child is not being helped in the subject or area that this child is gifted and is being pulled out of classes in which they enjoy and are learning new material then why would any parent allow their child to be label as gifted? There is no benefit to the child’s giftedness when labeled G/T and placed in the pullout program.

If G/T children in the state of Texas really received help in the subject or area that they are advanced in the gifted child would flourish. The state of Texas needs to overhaul how they treat our brightest and smartest children. These children need subject acceleration, grade acceleration, early entrance into Kindergarten, counseling and peers that are on their same academic level be it the same age or not.

Currently the state of Texas is teaching our gifted children that it isn’t what you know it is how old you are that gets you through school. Until the state stops discriminating by age within the schools our gifted children will not receive an acceptable education through the public school system.

Weight Update

Ok, I skipped the last 2 weigh-ins. One I forgot and the second one I went to the doctor. So, I went yesterday. I have gain 1.4 pounds but after a cousins reunion it could have been a lot more. Goal for this week is to write everything that I eat down.