Second Quarter Cycle 2
Information for Tutors
Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him; Talk of all His wondrous works! 1 Chronicles 16:9
I want you to know that I thank God for you. I thank Him for your commitment and dedication to our community. I thank Him for your hard work and creative spirit. I thank Him for your willingness to give so much of your time and energy for your students. I thank you for your patience with me as I learn how best to direct our community. I thank Him for your kindness and encouragement. You are each a lovely blessing in a bouquet of joy.
I pray that your time as a tutor this year is blessing you all in return. We are 7 weeks down, 17 left. And we have just 5 until we are on our two months holiday break. I am praying for energy and joy as we work together for our community. I love how 1 Chronicles 16:9 ties in so well with this quarter. With our tin whistles we sing and praise Him (I know that it didn't sound much like praise on Tuesday hahaha!) and with our science we are blown away by His wondrous works!
As classical educators we set a feast before our children -a feast of the truth, goodness and that which is beautiful. This quarter has so many opportunities for impactful discussion with our children about the wonder of our God's handiwork. As we bring their eyes and minds upon the awesomeness of our God, remind them that we are his prize creation: "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." Ephesians 2:10
Know that I am here for you and want to come alongside you whenever you need it. Whether it be for classroom management or supplies or to pray for you or just meet for an hour to be iron-sharpening-iron -I am here for you.
Thankful for you. Thankful for a Loving Creator who made the Heavens and Earth and made each one of you.
In Him,
Rhiannon
Tin Whistle General
As a tutor I loathed the tin whistle. Honestly. I did. So hard to present something you feel so lost by. Prayers for those of you who feel like I did. Just remind yourself that you are a "Lead Learner" not an expert. And the heart of Classical Conversations is to make classical home education accessible for everyone -not just the experts. So model humility, and a love for learning and learn with your class.
In my red "basket" I have tutor supplies. In it is my Music Trivium Tables -feel free to borrow or use (just remember to bring it back the following week).
Follow the guide -it is all laid out. Just note that if you follow the guide it won't get you to real playing until just before our concert. Students need to begin practicing the song by week 8.
Some good ideas for our youngest kids: http://woodhavenpl.com/2016/10/13/classical-conversations-12-tips-to-survive-tin-whistle/
If I come across more information I will add to it here and note "update".
Hands on Science General
For now, we are exploring God's creation on a BIG scale.
Lookup Bible verses and facts about the solar system and the stars, and rockets and our sun. I will bring with me each week in the red basket the books I used on Tuesday and feel free to bring in some and share amongst each other. (Label anything you leave out.)
As long as we avoid discussions that easily turn into "hair splitting" regarding religious matters, we are safe in really living out 1 Chronicles 16:9 "talk of all his wondrous works."
ASK GOOD questions and do not give them the answers (harder with the younger students, but still possible -"what do you think about how God made the sun for us?"). Tell parents about your discussion and encourage them to follow up.
Breakdown by Week
Week 8
If that feels too time consuming you can do that for review. I never thought of it before, but you could do a special 10 minutes review of the current week's new grammar then 20 minutes for the past 6 weeks. Speaking of: DROP OFF WEEK 1 FROM REVIEW THIS WEEK (every week from now on will drop off another week -we review only 7 in class).
Hands on Science: REMINDER: do the solar system at home first. Find out the best measurements for you class (the guide's is not easy and doesn't really work for objects bigger than a dot). If you have 7 minutes watch the video I put in the newsletter I sent out Wednesday night. It should help excite you about the grandeur of God's amazing creation! (It sure did for me!) You can share scriptures with your class as they work on their model or you can prints some out and have them glue to the back of the black construction paper. (Just some ideas to hopefully spark even better ones. But if you just do the basics and follow the guide, you are doing enough. No stress.)
Tin Whistle: Follow Guide starting on page 157. Each week is broken down for you. If your students are advanced and ready to move on, you can expand or let them take turns teaching to the class. (That's certainly classical!) If your students are needing more time, do your best to stick to the schedule for each week and do not worry about mastery. We aren't their teachers and moms and dads can push for mastery at home if that is what they choose.
Week 9
I am going to bring a few boxes for students to set their prints up (arrange) inside then bring out for sun exposure. You may need to have parents to help a lot with this one and just do a few at a time. I will be out there to help, as well.