Wednesday, July 26, 2006

Summer Vacation

Yep, it's summer vacation here. Just started, btw. Reading the local news from Omaha and I see all this talk of Back to School, pishaw! No three months here...just one. And packed full too!

You know what I remember about summer vacation? No homework. That is what I remember. Oh, I recall the more fun stuff as well. But I never once did any homework. Here that is the 'thang'. Summer vacation homework. And loads of it.

In one month J must:
①read at least ten books (with reviews)
② pick two projects from a chart and do those (usually reports, pictures, or making things)
③do a set of worksheets an inch thick (reviewing the year so far, math and Japanese characters mostly)
④raise these four minows and the two 'mystery' eggs
⑤wake up at six thirty for two weeks in a row and do radio exercises with his fellow elementary schoolers
⑥water the plants at school for a few assigned days
⑦go to the pool to improve his breast stroke (his left foot isn't right, I hear), as well as go to open it for the other kids on assigned days
⑧study for two hours a day
⑨Actually go to school for two days to study with his teacher
⑩do one big project where he must take daily notes and observe something, research it, write it up (similar to a science project but doesn't necessarily have to be about science).

And that is not even mentioning the stuff HE wants to do.

So me being the wonderful influence I am, I'm like...wanna go to see Pirates of the Caribbean tomorrow? We can have lunch at the fancy Italian restaraunt too.

I haven't taken any pictures of all his stuff or the fish or the mystery eggs so I'll add two that he took. J fancies himself a photographer.

The first is of one of the cats. Soda. She has a thing for him. At night she has to suck on his blanket before she can fall asleep. As soon as he's out though she skidaddles. There have been several him-rolling-over-on-her accidents.



This next one cracked me up when I saw it. I don't know when he took it (he is always swiping my digital camera). It's his finger and those blobby things are actually basil seeds. We had some candy that had basil seeds in it. And I guess he thought they looked like eyes.


5 comments:

Matt said...

When I was in with the nuns, we had a lot of summer homework also, but not nearly that much. Plus we had the three months. I remember between seventh and eight grade we had to read

April Morning
Little Women
Old Man and the Sea
The Good Earth
The Great Gatsby

and a couple other books. It was Little Women that did me in. I was scared for life.

Matt said...

err... scarred. Though "scared" works too.

Kappa no He said...

You know what I remember about my nuns? I remember the one that thought it was a good idea to have us third graders work at our own speed.

While she sat there reading Good House Keeping (I don't think she was really a nun, btw) we would do the work in the text and then borrow her answer book to grade it. To this day it is not a good idea to ask me any of the time's tables. I tend to break down and cry.

I got her though. I hollowed out a bunch of Tootsie Rolls and filled them with some laxitive. Of course it was too little to work or for her to even notice. But for an eight-year old it was a victory of sorts...despite the D in the class.

I wish I had read ANY of those books on your list. I am currently trying to 'catch up' on the classics.

Off topic...so what did you think about CS Lewis?

Matt said...

I really wanted to like the Narnia books, but I stalled out at the one set on the boat. I just don't like his style or how he deals with plot holes by skipping over the scene where they had to be dealt with.

If you haven't read any of those books, I highly recommend The Good Earth and April Morning. I would rather slit my wrists than read Little Women again.

Kappa no He said...

I knew you were a man of good taste. I am not a Lewis fan either. And it seems like everyone else in the world is.

Will do on The Good Earth and April Morning. If I Ever finish Dracula. Bram can sure drag when he wants to.