Wow...it's been a month since I've posted and we've been doing a lot. So I thought I'd post a quick catch-up today to offer a brief look into what the past month has held for us.
Kane went to tennis camp in mid-July, and loved it! His coach, Jabari, is great with kids and Kane really likes the tennis games he comes up with. Each day of camp was just two hours, so I stayed and watched while they practiced and played. Some days I brought a book to read, or talked to the other parents there. It was nice.
Kane also finished up his swim lessons and is feeling very confident about his abilities. We're going to try to sign him up for indoor swimming this winter to keep it fresh for him.
We (Kev, Kane and I) went on a brief vacation to Columbia to visit relatives and see the sights. We usually go at Christmas and spend the whole time with family, so it was fun to get out and see some of the city. We loved the State Museum and will probably visit it again sometime. We also liked the hotel we stayed in. For this visit we tried the new Comfort Suites and asked for the room with the jacuzzi tub. (Kane and I are both big fans of the jacuzzi!) Well, the crazy thing was the tub wasn't located in the bathroom where you would think a tub would be....no, it was in the middle of the living room! There wasn't even a curtain or partition to separate it from the rest of the room! It was so bizarre. So, we ended up using it, but I went in with my swimsuit on since it was out in the open. I'd never seen anything like it! The hotel also had a nice pool which we swam in after dinner one night. And they had fresh made waffles (among other items) complimentary for breakfast. It was also nice that the hotel is close to the relatives' house, so driving back and forth was convenient. All in all we had a great time. We skipped the zoo this time because it was so hot outside, but we'd been there before and LOVED it, so I know we'll check it out again next time.
After the camps and the mini-vacation, Kane had to settle in and take his standardized test. Yep, per state requirements, it was time for him to do it since he's just finished "3rd grade." I was a little nervous for him because we'd used a practice test a month or so ago and he didn't do well. Mostly because he tried to get through it as quickly as possible, without taking his time to read the directions or double check his answers. For the real test, we used the CAT (California Achievement Test). Our friend, Abbey, suggested we order it through Seton Home Study and, after checking it out, that's exactly what I did. (Here's where I have to say that I was very happy with Seton. Ordering was easy, the $25 cost was more than reasonable, I liked that I could administer the test myself, and they were so quick getting the test to us and then sending the results). I recommend it to anyone who is looking to use the CAT with their family. If you're interested, visit http://www.setonhome.org/testing/default.php.)
We just got Kane's results back yesterday and here they are:
Vocabulary: 94 percentile • 8 stanine
Comprehension: 96 percentile • 9 stanine
Language Mechanics: 8 percentile • 2 stanine
Language Expression: 63 percentile • 6 stanine
Math Computation: 95 percentile • 8 stanine
Concept & Application: 72 percentile • 6 stanine
Reading Total: 98 percentile • 9 stanine
Language Total: 31 percentile • 4 stanine
Mathmatice Total: 89 percentile • 7 stanine
Composite Percentile: 84
(The percentile figure means the child scored as well as or better than that percentage of students who took the test nationally. Stanine indicates a relative standing: 1, 2, 3 reflect below average; 4, 5, 6 are average; 7, 8, 9 are above average.)
The thing he had trouble with was Language Mechanics (which was mostly capitalization and punctuation), so we're going to focus on that when we get back into our "lessons" this fall.
Other than the testing, camps and trip, we've just been hanging out at home, relaxing, watching movies and planning Kane's 9th birthday. We're all going to Nantahala for a few days (with Kane's Grandma Alice and Grandpa Ted) for his actual birthday on the 16th. We're going to go rafting and spend a few days at the village, and then stop in Franklin for lunch with Kane's Mema Morgan on the way back. We're also going to try our luck at ruby mining while we're there. Hopefully we'll strike it rich! :) Once we're back, we're having a birthday party for Kane and his friends. So, there's a lot to do to get ready.
I think that about covers the last month. I'm sure I've forgotten some things (like having our friends Brian and Stine over for dinner, trying out some new restaurants around town, going to see Pirates of the Caribbean, etc.). I'll try not to wait so long between posts next time.
Until then, Happy Summer!
