Navigating the Library

Wednesday was a loooong, busy day. It started with a dentist appointment at 7am, followed by breakfast out, a trip to turn in Emma's Barnes and Nobles summer reading program (she chose "Traitor in the Shipyard," an American Girl Caroline mystery), then off to Daisy's Deli for a chocolate-pb-expresso cupcake and a chocolate chip cookie. Gluten free baby!

Then we went to the library (then the park, then to Staples, then to do groceries- it was a 9 hour day for us!). I had dragged along my school stuff so I could study while Emma picked out books.

Her book is way more interesting.

She was looking for more American Girl books and after asking the librarian and receiving a pamphlet with a list of American Girl books, Emma and I head to look for a few. She found one she wanted to borrow, then discovered the pamphlet of horse books. As I was actually studying, I explained to her how to find the books according to the code, and off she went.

Emma is pretty excited about her new ability to navigate the library. I'm pretty excited to have found out that the huge bean bag chairs are very comfy for reading big heavy textbooks in. 

So, starting next week Emma and I can be found 2 days a week at the library, then if it's nice, at the park. Wednesday is a for sure library/park day (it's when the homeschool group gets together), but the second day will be as our schedule allows. 

Which seems to be filling up quickly despite our love of lazy stay home days...

Talking Out Loud- References

This post is going to be a bit like talking out loud to myself. I am trying to get this whole, structured thing figured out, and sometimes I just have to "say things out loud" so I can make sure it makes sense.

One of the first things I looked into when we found out that we were moving to Montana, was the library. I browsed their website off and on for the months leading up to our move. Within the first week (possible the second), we made a trip to the library and signed up for a homeschooling library card.

What is a homeschool library card?

It's awesome. We get to check out an unlimited number of items for a month at a time. A regular library card gets us, if I remember correctly, something like 10 books for 2 weeks. No where near enough, especially considering the haul we walked away with today.

22 items. Oh, wait. I think Emma has about 5 or so books in the bedroom with her for bedtime reading. So, 27 books.

What do we need 27 books for?

Let's see. We will use this stack of books;
The White Stallion by Laurel Van Der Linde
Lipizzaner: The Story of the Horses of Lipica by Milan Dolene
The Lipizzan Horse by Sarah Maass
Military Horses by Michael Sandler
to learn about the lipizzaner horses.

We will use this stack of books;
Leonardo Beautiful Dreamer by Robert Byrd
Leonardo Da Vinci by Diane Stanley
Leonardo da Vinci by Barbara Witteman
Leonardo's Palette by Gerry Bailey
The Inventions of Leonardo Da Vinci by Margaret Cooper
to learn about Leonardo da Vinci.

This stack;
Eyewitness Travel: Austria
Austria: Enchantment of the World by R. Conrad Stein
Welcome to My Country: Welcome to Austria
to learn about balloons. Kidding! The Spanish Riding School (where the Lipizzaners learn to dance) is located in Vienna, Austria.

This last stack;
Mozart: Piano Sonatas, Vol. 1 (CD)
Mozart: Chamber Music with Piano (CD)
Mozart: Flute Quartets (CD)
The World of the Symphony: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (CD)
Mozart Finds a Melody by Stephen Costanza
Play, Mozart, Play by Peter Sis
The Magic Flute by Stephen Spender
Mozart's Wig by Gerry Bailey
will help us learn about Mozart, a Viennese.

We have a few random books also; Growing Crystals by Ann O. Squire and Math Curse by Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith. The latter was an impulse borrow. It actually happens to be the only book about math that the library has.

All in all, we are pretty happy with the library. We would like it if there was more selection, but we also have the base library to utilize. I plan to make a stop by the base library tomorrow. I believe they have a few more books on crystals that I would like to check out.

Well, that's about all for now. I might stop back later to talk to myself about the schedule I have planned for next week.

Have a great night!