The Last Week of Summer Break

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Well, well, what do you know? Summer break is almost over. We start school next week and that means 11th grade and 9th grade for us. What do we do this last week of summer break?

Bear Cub in a yard

Bear cubs in our backyard

To be honest, we have already started SAT prep with our son, who will be a junior this year. He plans to take the PSAT in October. With only eight weeks to go, we thought he might as well get on a regular schedule with his test prep. Continue reading »


The Digital SAT

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As you might know, the SAT is now strictly digital. There is a software one must download called Bluebook, not to be confused with other blue books out there.

Bobcat

Bobcat at my house the other day, while we were preparing for the digital SAT

Bobcat walking in the grass

The College Board will give you more details about it on their website. I can tell you we are finding it easy to use and navigate, but everybody is different. Continue reading »


Rescheduling Events

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We had to reschedule the Spelling Bee for February and TeenPact for March. January seems plagued with winter storms and COVID-19 outbreaks. So we learn to change the schedule and carry on.

Snow on shrub support

Snow in our backyard

Many years ago, I published a post about flexibility. One of my readers said, “Flexibility is easier said than done.” I totally agree. We packed and made plans for several weeks and, frankly, months, about TeenPact and the Spelling Bee. Continue reading »


Lessons from the Eighteenth Week

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We arrived at the middle of the school year with a bang. The kids decided to be completely unruly toward the end of the week, so I could not teach them. I guess we all have bad days. Last Thursday was a bad day for us. I told them I would take one of their days during Christmas holiday to make up the school we did not do on Thursday. In addition to that, they received more chores and 0 screen time for the next few days.

CT7 Candy Cane Art

My son’s art will be displayed at Candy Kitchen behind The Pancake Pantry, along with other art. Some are for sale.

They are learning from their mistake and they are changing their attitude for the better. We have reconciled and used this as a teachable moment. They need to learn respect and this is the time to learn it. Continue reading »