Friday, February 8, 2013
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Summer Funnin'
(Feel free to hum the title to the tune of Grease's "Summer Lovin'", I did.)
At first, I had plans to make this summer completely school/learning free, but then I thought, 'hey, why not torture them a little longer?' Just kidding.
The idea came to mind as I was pondering unschooling, I have been pretty one sided in my opinion of unschooling, mostly because I believe that kids shouldn't be the ones in control of their learning experience because, well, they are kids. So I decided to do more research, since I am not one to judge without knowing the other side of things. I started by looking up several blogs specifically geared towards unschooling, and although I still stand firm on my previously stated beliefs, I was actually inspired by some of their methods. Hence : THE GREAT SUMMER UNSCHOOLING SPECIAL!!!! AKA lapbooking :)
So, lapbooking. I think that there is something pretty cliche about this in the homeschool world, but then again it seems to be something that makes kids WANT to learn about things, so I decided to give it a try. Fr anyone who doesn't know what lapbooking is, basically it is done by choosing a topic of interest, like baseball, for instance, and the child does research on that subject, formulating new questions as they go,and then seeking to answer them. It is presented in a fold out format, with several little mini-books, drawings, and graphs used to portray the answers to the questions that you researched. It is a colorful, exciting, ADD sort of project that should work well for the kids, since they can use online resources, documentaries, and library books to help them come up with answers, and they aren't tied down to the directional questions that we use to start with, but can learn about new things, and then question them as they go. It's actually pretty fun.
So I took the kiddos to the library the other day, and walked down the ten so aisles of children nonfiction to give them some ideas of things that they could choose as their topic, Julie chose ballet, Jake chose the human body, and Zander chose snakes. I sat down with each of them, and began helping them come up with research questions, like the stories behind famous ballets, how to identify poisonous and non-poisonous snakes, and what the different systems in the body do. The most exciting thing to me, was before we have even started, Jake had a real-life experience that sparked a new direction! Last night, he bumped his arm on the corner of a cabinet door, which instantly caused a little bruise. He then asked my what causes a bruise, and as I explained it to him, I got excited and realized it could be a new question for him to research! We were both pretty excited about it, actually.
(Zander's is more a read and learn, since he will be with his mother this summer, and more than likely will abandon the idea once he arrives there) So, to help with the projects, I have printed out a few lapbook templates on the human body and ballet, and checked out some documentaries. We will also be looking stuff up, perhaps learning hands-on in some cases, and doing interviews and maybe seeing a ballet, I'm not sure. Either way, it is something fun that the kids can do this summer to keep their brains busy, and still be creative, and hopefully not get bored!
At first, I had plans to make this summer completely school/learning free, but then I thought, 'hey, why not torture them a little longer?' Just kidding.
The idea came to mind as I was pondering unschooling, I have been pretty one sided in my opinion of unschooling, mostly because I believe that kids shouldn't be the ones in control of their learning experience because, well, they are kids. So I decided to do more research, since I am not one to judge without knowing the other side of things. I started by looking up several blogs specifically geared towards unschooling, and although I still stand firm on my previously stated beliefs, I was actually inspired by some of their methods. Hence : THE GREAT SUMMER UNSCHOOLING SPECIAL!!!! AKA lapbooking :)
So, lapbooking. I think that there is something pretty cliche about this in the homeschool world, but then again it seems to be something that makes kids WANT to learn about things, so I decided to give it a try. Fr anyone who doesn't know what lapbooking is, basically it is done by choosing a topic of interest, like baseball, for instance, and the child does research on that subject, formulating new questions as they go,and then seeking to answer them. It is presented in a fold out format, with several little mini-books, drawings, and graphs used to portray the answers to the questions that you researched. It is a colorful, exciting, ADD sort of project that should work well for the kids, since they can use online resources, documentaries, and library books to help them come up with answers, and they aren't tied down to the directional questions that we use to start with, but can learn about new things, and then question them as they go. It's actually pretty fun.
So I took the kiddos to the library the other day, and walked down the ten so aisles of children nonfiction to give them some ideas of things that they could choose as their topic, Julie chose ballet, Jake chose the human body, and Zander chose snakes. I sat down with each of them, and began helping them come up with research questions, like the stories behind famous ballets, how to identify poisonous and non-poisonous snakes, and what the different systems in the body do. The most exciting thing to me, was before we have even started, Jake had a real-life experience that sparked a new direction! Last night, he bumped his arm on the corner of a cabinet door, which instantly caused a little bruise. He then asked my what causes a bruise, and as I explained it to him, I got excited and realized it could be a new question for him to research! We were both pretty excited about it, actually.
(Zander's is more a read and learn, since he will be with his mother this summer, and more than likely will abandon the idea once he arrives there) So, to help with the projects, I have printed out a few lapbook templates on the human body and ballet, and checked out some documentaries. We will also be looking stuff up, perhaps learning hands-on in some cases, and doing interviews and maybe seeing a ballet, I'm not sure. Either way, it is something fun that the kids can do this summer to keep their brains busy, and still be creative, and hopefully not get bored!
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Curriculum Choices
So I do things a little bit differently than some people who choose to homeschool, I suppose. but then again, there is no "right" way, which is the freedom of homeschool. This year I had two children who were in public school for the first nine weeks of school in first grade, however, once we started homeschooling, I was able to completely test them out of first grade by the sixth or seventh week. My oldest was starting third grade, and although I was excited for her in this, I knew that there were many things from first and second grade that had been rushed through before she truly got the concept. A lot of newbies to homeschooling like to take the schooling at home approach, and I am one of them, so this is the way that we did it this year and decided to continue doing in the next year.
So, I made the executive decision to teach all three children on the same level, what I would call a split curriculum. I used a four day school week, with the Fridays being used for our homeschool group as well as for testing on that week's materials. I began the week using second grade materials on a certain subject (this applies only to grammar and math); so if we were learning about nouns, we would start with nouns on a second grade level using Abeka, Carson Dellosa worksheets, and online sources, but by the end of the week, I would have integrated third grade level work on nouns using similar resources. So in essence, the children were learning on a second AND third grade level.
This year I used a mish-mash of resources, tapping into as many free things as I could early on, and then as my choices broadened financially, I began to add in new things toward the middle of the school year. Initially, I was using almost exclusively Abeka, which I had from another homeschooling mother, scanned pdf files only (and no printer at the time!!) so at first, school was done from my television screen from my living room floor. We were using either Abeka or Alpha Omega for Grammar, Science, Social Studies, and Math. I started the year out using memory verses randomly as their handwriting, but then began to use the Calvary Chapel curriculum to explore the Bible, and used their memory verses for copy work. I expired my resources in Social Studies, and then introduced "Maps, Graphs, and Globes" as our Geography work, using Book B and C. The kids LOVED it! It was a lot of fun, and I do plan on using the rest of the series in the future. For Spanish, I used "Kids Love Spanish" videos for Language, and those were a lot of fun, but certainly not usable for an entire school year, because we ran out, and I had to improvise using my Spanish textbook from college!
This coming school year will be much, MUCH better! We were able to afford REAL books this time, and in the case of Grammar, THREE books, which means all of the kids get their own copies so I do not have to copy pages for each of them. SO, here is what we are doing this year. This year we will be doing a combination of third and fourth grade. For Grammar we are using Houghton Mifflin Grammar 3; each child gets their own book to work from, and we will also be using the corresponding workbook. I love this book because it is the same book that we used in school, and it is also the same series that the kids would have been using if they had stayed in public school. For Math, we are going to give Saxon Math 3 a shot. This series tends to go way good or way bad, but what I liked about it was that it is repetitive and comprehensive. Every single day you go over a little of each thing that you have learned about (temperature, measurement, sequence, telling time, money), and then the lessons involving addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. This really appealed to me because I think that learning should not be done in blocks, but circles, where new information is added in with old information so all of the things learned can stay fresh.
As for our other subjects, we are doing "Christian Kids Explore Earth and Space" for Science. I am very excited about this book set, and if this year goes well, I plan on going into the other "Christian Kids Explore" books. For History, we are beginning "The History of US", books 1 and 2. This is a very story-like history program that also has great online resources and videos to correspond with it. For Reading, we are using two different books within the school year, first we will begin third grade Reading with Sylvan Reading program workbook. I L-O-V-E this book! It teaches the students how to read a little, and then stop and ask questions about what they have read instead of just rushing through and trying to remember everything. Then, once that book is finished, we will begin using the Spectrum fourth grade Reading workbook that has TONS of reading pages and questions.
The last subjects we go over are Bible and Language. I enjoyed the Calvary Chapel curriculum, so this year we will be finishing Genesis and Exodus with that program. We use our Bible memory verses to practice handwriting (and memory) each morning. For language this year, I am glad to say that we are beginning a very cool interactive web-based language program through our library called Mango. We will be continuing Spanish this year, but where we were learning words and phrases this year, in the coming year we will be learning actual use and conversational Spanish, which will come in handy around here :) This program is AWESOME! It is easy and fun to use, and it also incorporates my favorite thing- repetition! Within one little lesson, you repeat sayings and phrases, and then mix them up so that you have to remember what each part was and meant. The best part is that this program lasts a long time, there are three levels of each language, and each level has hundreds of lessons.This might be a tough thing to do with three kids, BUT, we got lucky (blessed?), and this year (as long as we get a table), we have a computer for EACH kid to have as their own for school and entertainment. These are going to be situated right in front of my desk so I can monitor what they are doing, and we are going to be installing a kid-friendly browser.
One more thing will be added this year, once a week, is Art! This is another subject that I am stoked about this year! A friend of mine shared her approach to art in her blog, and I was so excited about it that I 1. wanted to do it myself, and 2. wanted to start right away :) So, we will begin an art journal for each kid, working on Fridays to do projects, method research, art history, and artist methods. It won't be quite as technical as it may sound, because I am no art expert; I actually got some "leads" on some ways to go about this, lesson, and research ideas on the Crayola website. I will be loosely basing our journal on several of these lessons, but putting our own spin on them.
So there you have it, the plan in black and white! In another post, I'm going to outline our summer projects, and how we are going to go about them.
So, I made the executive decision to teach all three children on the same level, what I would call a split curriculum. I used a four day school week, with the Fridays being used for our homeschool group as well as for testing on that week's materials. I began the week using second grade materials on a certain subject (this applies only to grammar and math); so if we were learning about nouns, we would start with nouns on a second grade level using Abeka, Carson Dellosa worksheets, and online sources, but by the end of the week, I would have integrated third grade level work on nouns using similar resources. So in essence, the children were learning on a second AND third grade level.
This year I used a mish-mash of resources, tapping into as many free things as I could early on, and then as my choices broadened financially, I began to add in new things toward the middle of the school year. Initially, I was using almost exclusively Abeka, which I had from another homeschooling mother, scanned pdf files only (and no printer at the time!!) so at first, school was done from my television screen from my living room floor. We were using either Abeka or Alpha Omega for Grammar, Science, Social Studies, and Math. I started the year out using memory verses randomly as their handwriting, but then began to use the Calvary Chapel curriculum to explore the Bible, and used their memory verses for copy work. I expired my resources in Social Studies, and then introduced "Maps, Graphs, and Globes" as our Geography work, using Book B and C. The kids LOVED it! It was a lot of fun, and I do plan on using the rest of the series in the future. For Spanish, I used "Kids Love Spanish" videos for Language, and those were a lot of fun, but certainly not usable for an entire school year, because we ran out, and I had to improvise using my Spanish textbook from college!
This coming school year will be much, MUCH better! We were able to afford REAL books this time, and in the case of Grammar, THREE books, which means all of the kids get their own copies so I do not have to copy pages for each of them. SO, here is what we are doing this year. This year we will be doing a combination of third and fourth grade. For Grammar we are using Houghton Mifflin Grammar 3; each child gets their own book to work from, and we will also be using the corresponding workbook. I love this book because it is the same book that we used in school, and it is also the same series that the kids would have been using if they had stayed in public school. For Math, we are going to give Saxon Math 3 a shot. This series tends to go way good or way bad, but what I liked about it was that it is repetitive and comprehensive. Every single day you go over a little of each thing that you have learned about (temperature, measurement, sequence, telling time, money), and then the lessons involving addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. This really appealed to me because I think that learning should not be done in blocks, but circles, where new information is added in with old information so all of the things learned can stay fresh.
As for our other subjects, we are doing "Christian Kids Explore Earth and Space" for Science. I am very excited about this book set, and if this year goes well, I plan on going into the other "Christian Kids Explore" books. For History, we are beginning "The History of US", books 1 and 2. This is a very story-like history program that also has great online resources and videos to correspond with it. For Reading, we are using two different books within the school year, first we will begin third grade Reading with Sylvan Reading program workbook. I L-O-V-E this book! It teaches the students how to read a little, and then stop and ask questions about what they have read instead of just rushing through and trying to remember everything. Then, once that book is finished, we will begin using the Spectrum fourth grade Reading workbook that has TONS of reading pages and questions.
The last subjects we go over are Bible and Language. I enjoyed the Calvary Chapel curriculum, so this year we will be finishing Genesis and Exodus with that program. We use our Bible memory verses to practice handwriting (and memory) each morning. For language this year, I am glad to say that we are beginning a very cool interactive web-based language program through our library called Mango. We will be continuing Spanish this year, but where we were learning words and phrases this year, in the coming year we will be learning actual use and conversational Spanish, which will come in handy around here :) This program is AWESOME! It is easy and fun to use, and it also incorporates my favorite thing- repetition! Within one little lesson, you repeat sayings and phrases, and then mix them up so that you have to remember what each part was and meant. The best part is that this program lasts a long time, there are three levels of each language, and each level has hundreds of lessons.This might be a tough thing to do with three kids, BUT, we got lucky (blessed?), and this year (as long as we get a table), we have a computer for EACH kid to have as their own for school and entertainment. These are going to be situated right in front of my desk so I can monitor what they are doing, and we are going to be installing a kid-friendly browser.
One more thing will be added this year, once a week, is Art! This is another subject that I am stoked about this year! A friend of mine shared her approach to art in her blog, and I was so excited about it that I 1. wanted to do it myself, and 2. wanted to start right away :) So, we will begin an art journal for each kid, working on Fridays to do projects, method research, art history, and artist methods. It won't be quite as technical as it may sound, because I am no art expert; I actually got some "leads" on some ways to go about this, lesson, and research ideas on the Crayola website. I will be loosely basing our journal on several of these lessons, but putting our own spin on them.
So there you have it, the plan in black and white! In another post, I'm going to outline our summer projects, and how we are going to go about them.
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
My Favorite Things
Feel free to sing in your best Julie Andrews voice....
I would like to take a moment to ponder the things that have made me glad and proud to homeschool this year.
First, and most important, is the very fact that we have been able to financially afford the opportunity to homeschool our children, and of course, that we will be able to continue doing so next year, and hopefully for years to come.
I am so glad that I have been able to teach my children on their own level, without having time constraints pushing me to rush through things, or having to go along with procedure and due course. My students who excel in school are able to freely learn without being held down, and the ones who have trouble in some areas are able to spend time digesting the new information, or reviewing daily the things that they struggled with. Nothing makes me more happy than knowing that they are getting it.
The grades. Oh, the glorious grades! Can I brag for a moment? My children are doing phenomenal! I have one who has straight A's, two subjects are at a 99 %. Although I don't feel I can really completely claim the glory on that one, there is such a thing as too much ego, haha, I can say that I was at least a part in it. Obviously I have been blessed with three extraordinarily bright children. (And I'm almost certain a little 4 month old will probably follow in her brothers' and sister's footstep on that one.)
No pressure. When I worked, and the kids were in public school, every single morning felt like I was trying to outrun an explosion. I would wake up, feed the kids, and send them to be dressed. Then as we walked out of the door, I would notice someone without socks, or a dress put on backward, or a dirty shirt on them, which would have to be fixed. Then we would run out the door, now late, only to realize one of them had left a backpack , or that in the scramble, I had forgotten to hand out their lunches. So much pressure! But now, if I stay up until midnight, and the baby wakes me every two hours, I can still sleep until 10 to make up for it. The kids have clear outlines on what they can and cannot do in the mornings, if they wake before me. Now it isn't always perfect, or easy, but it is a less better than it was before, I assure you.
Quantity of Quality. Ah, quality time. to adults, it means a lot, to kids, not so much. What children really want is quantity of time. It doesn't matter if you don't talk to them, it doesn't matter if you just sit and have a staring contest, children just want to have time with their parents. As I mentioned in my last part, our time was severly limited when I was working and they were in school. We didn't have time to eat together, it was rush and go in the morning. And forget the evenings! As soon as I got home, it was time for dinner prep, cooking, serving, and eating. Yes, we still had dinner together then, but with no time to relax after work, dinner seemed like a chore rather than decompression. Then it was on to homework, which was so frustrating to help with, which brings me to the next point:
I know what they have and have not learned. There is nothing more frustrating than trying to help my children with homework, and hearing them say "we didn't learn that", or "that isn't how she taught us to do it". I love that I can look at a problem they are having, knowing what they learned, how they learned it, and what I want them to get out of it. This allows me to help them in the way they need it, rather than frustrating and confusing them, and gettign riled up trying to explain a concept.
Control. Control can be a dirty word in a lot of cases, but when it comes to being a parent, it is something you just have to exercise. With my children home with me, I have a lot more control of the things that matter to me most:
1. Environment- No more worry of psychos, perverts, masked gunmen, kidnappers, etc when I can see and hear them at all times. Not that I was particularly obsessive with concern of these things, but you never know these days.
2. Friends/enemies- There have been, in the past, some children that I had to smile with grit teeth at when my kids brought them over to meet me. You know the ones. Kids that cuss, fight, flirt, lie, steal, etc. The bad influences. I don't want my children around role models like that, and I have to wonder if their own personality flaws didn't come from being around those kids. Enemies, woo-boy, I almost climbed on that bus myself a couple of times, but restrained myself. Bullies pray on kids who appear weak, and bullies also appear to the strong to be a way to become stronger. Therefore, I had two kids who were picked on, and one who wanted to join the gang and be a bully. No dice, kiddos.
3. What they learn, and to what length. This is, of course, the very reason that we homeschool, is it not? It means a lot to me to be able to choose what the kids learn, and when , and how much. Just the other day, one of the kids got a book in the library that talked about evolution, I was able to explain our stance on it, instead of some atheist teacher out there telling my child about a theory that we do not adhere to. This also means that I can choose to do true American history starting in 3rd grade, and that my children can become fluent in something like 4 languages before they graduate, if we so desire. And we just might.
4. Their health. Blah, blah, blah, gym class, blah, blah, blah, forced basketball, blah. Health is in my hands, not some one size fits all forced curriculum. So that means that outside time is gym class, and tennis lessons are fun, not forced, and my kids have more of a chance to grow up believing that sports and exercise are a part of life, not just something that they are forced to do once a week in P.E. And on the same bill, health regarding their food is also in my control. Obviously if I had prepared lunch every day when they were in school, it would have been the same, but being an imperfect mother, that just didn't happen. so my kids ate things like fried chicken nuggets, pizza, and macaroni and cheese. Every day. Uh... variety, people. There is nothing wrong with that in moderation, but I believe that sometimes chocolate milk should just not be an option, that macaroni and potatoes shouldn't be the only sides they eat.
And so on, and so forth. All of that being said, I am just so grateful for this chance. I am so proud of what we have accomplished this year, and as time goes on, we only get better, and more diverse, and more organized. Homeschooling a family is just like a garden, when you spend time watering it, nourishing it, feeding it good things, and weeding the bad,life sucking things out, all you are going to get is bigger, better, and more beautiful fruit from it. And we may not be there yet, but this little garden is growing and laying down its roots!
I would like to take a moment to ponder the things that have made me glad and proud to homeschool this year.
First, and most important, is the very fact that we have been able to financially afford the opportunity to homeschool our children, and of course, that we will be able to continue doing so next year, and hopefully for years to come.
I am so glad that I have been able to teach my children on their own level, without having time constraints pushing me to rush through things, or having to go along with procedure and due course. My students who excel in school are able to freely learn without being held down, and the ones who have trouble in some areas are able to spend time digesting the new information, or reviewing daily the things that they struggled with. Nothing makes me more happy than knowing that they are getting it.
The grades. Oh, the glorious grades! Can I brag for a moment? My children are doing phenomenal! I have one who has straight A's, two subjects are at a 99 %. Although I don't feel I can really completely claim the glory on that one, there is such a thing as too much ego, haha, I can say that I was at least a part in it. Obviously I have been blessed with three extraordinarily bright children. (And I'm almost certain a little 4 month old will probably follow in her brothers' and sister's footstep on that one.)
No pressure. When I worked, and the kids were in public school, every single morning felt like I was trying to outrun an explosion. I would wake up, feed the kids, and send them to be dressed. Then as we walked out of the door, I would notice someone without socks, or a dress put on backward, or a dirty shirt on them, which would have to be fixed. Then we would run out the door, now late, only to realize one of them had left a backpack , or that in the scramble, I had forgotten to hand out their lunches. So much pressure! But now, if I stay up until midnight, and the baby wakes me every two hours, I can still sleep until 10 to make up for it. The kids have clear outlines on what they can and cannot do in the mornings, if they wake before me. Now it isn't always perfect, or easy, but it is a less better than it was before, I assure you.
Quantity of Quality. Ah, quality time. to adults, it means a lot, to kids, not so much. What children really want is quantity of time. It doesn't matter if you don't talk to them, it doesn't matter if you just sit and have a staring contest, children just want to have time with their parents. As I mentioned in my last part, our time was severly limited when I was working and they were in school. We didn't have time to eat together, it was rush and go in the morning. And forget the evenings! As soon as I got home, it was time for dinner prep, cooking, serving, and eating. Yes, we still had dinner together then, but with no time to relax after work, dinner seemed like a chore rather than decompression. Then it was on to homework, which was so frustrating to help with, which brings me to the next point:
I know what they have and have not learned. There is nothing more frustrating than trying to help my children with homework, and hearing them say "we didn't learn that", or "that isn't how she taught us to do it". I love that I can look at a problem they are having, knowing what they learned, how they learned it, and what I want them to get out of it. This allows me to help them in the way they need it, rather than frustrating and confusing them, and gettign riled up trying to explain a concept.
Control. Control can be a dirty word in a lot of cases, but when it comes to being a parent, it is something you just have to exercise. With my children home with me, I have a lot more control of the things that matter to me most:
1. Environment- No more worry of psychos, perverts, masked gunmen, kidnappers, etc when I can see and hear them at all times. Not that I was particularly obsessive with concern of these things, but you never know these days.
2. Friends/enemies- There have been, in the past, some children that I had to smile with grit teeth at when my kids brought them over to meet me. You know the ones. Kids that cuss, fight, flirt, lie, steal, etc. The bad influences. I don't want my children around role models like that, and I have to wonder if their own personality flaws didn't come from being around those kids. Enemies, woo-boy, I almost climbed on that bus myself a couple of times, but restrained myself. Bullies pray on kids who appear weak, and bullies also appear to the strong to be a way to become stronger. Therefore, I had two kids who were picked on, and one who wanted to join the gang and be a bully. No dice, kiddos.
3. What they learn, and to what length. This is, of course, the very reason that we homeschool, is it not? It means a lot to me to be able to choose what the kids learn, and when , and how much. Just the other day, one of the kids got a book in the library that talked about evolution, I was able to explain our stance on it, instead of some atheist teacher out there telling my child about a theory that we do not adhere to. This also means that I can choose to do true American history starting in 3rd grade, and that my children can become fluent in something like 4 languages before they graduate, if we so desire. And we just might.
4. Their health. Blah, blah, blah, gym class, blah, blah, blah, forced basketball, blah. Health is in my hands, not some one size fits all forced curriculum. So that means that outside time is gym class, and tennis lessons are fun, not forced, and my kids have more of a chance to grow up believing that sports and exercise are a part of life, not just something that they are forced to do once a week in P.E. And on the same bill, health regarding their food is also in my control. Obviously if I had prepared lunch every day when they were in school, it would have been the same, but being an imperfect mother, that just didn't happen. so my kids ate things like fried chicken nuggets, pizza, and macaroni and cheese. Every day. Uh... variety, people. There is nothing wrong with that in moderation, but I believe that sometimes chocolate milk should just not be an option, that macaroni and potatoes shouldn't be the only sides they eat.
And so on, and so forth. All of that being said, I am just so grateful for this chance. I am so proud of what we have accomplished this year, and as time goes on, we only get better, and more diverse, and more organized. Homeschooling a family is just like a garden, when you spend time watering it, nourishing it, feeding it good things, and weeding the bad,life sucking things out, all you are going to get is bigger, better, and more beautiful fruit from it. And we may not be there yet, but this little garden is growing and laying down its roots!
Desperation- Not Just a Stephen King Book
So I just got done sending out a mass email to my local homeschool group, updating them on my current phone numbers, and not so slightly hinting that I want them to use those phone numbers this summer to set up playdates with my children. As soon as I hit "send", I had a momentary freak-out, wondering if I had crossed a line, or if I appeared too desperate, but then I realized that perhaps sometimes reaching out in desperation is alright. Here is why:
- My children need friends. This is the most important reason for my desperation. Since moving here 8 months ago, my kids have been exposed to only one consistent group of children, and that is the homeschool group. Other than that, there was a few months at one church that I later decided was not the right home for us. Even that did not produce any promising relationships for them. We have been "church-hopping" in hopes of finding a place that suits not only them but us spiritually, and even if that means losing out on opportunities for deep relationships, it is what is best for all of us in the long run.
- I need friends. It may seem like that has nothing to do with my children having friends, but it really does. Consider this, if my children do not make nice with other kids, I won't have the chance to make nice with those kids' parents. I can't assure that the children my kids decide to befriend will actually have parents that I will get along with as well, but hey, it is a start.
- I need a break. If I promise playdates at my house, I can only hope that they will be reciprocated elsewhere. Have you ever tried spending 14 hours a day with no one but your mother to talk to on the phone, wrangling three rambunctious children, and one fussy infant... every day. With no end in sight? My poor husband comes home every night to a screaming, crying, blubbering baby... who just so happens to be 27 years old. It gets old. And I get tired. So Mama needs a break every now and then.
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
The Action vs. The Quiet
It is 10:00 p.m. and the baby is sleeping, the kids are snoring, the cat is lying on the floor watching me, and I am sitting in front of this white screen. It amazes me how different things appear when you are not in the middle of The Action.
Right now, in The Quiet, I am peaceful and relaxed. Everything around me makes me feel grateful- the sweet dark eyelashes of my little girls fluttering on their cheekbones, the twitching and arm flailing and murmured sleep talking of my boys, even the sound of the air conditioning running is peaceful! I can step out of this moment, and look at it and think to myself just how darn lucky I am for these kids, for this house, for this life. the thing is though, I am not in the middle of The Action.
The Action is another story altogether. It is a time where there is NOISE and MOTION and CHAOS! The Action is the time when the baby is squalling- for no apparent reason- the boys are screaming at one another, and there is some loud thumping coming from their room that sounds suspiciously like a wrestling match, my daughter has just slammed her door at me because she didn't like the chore I have assigned her, and the cat has somehow gotten locked in a hall closet.... The Action. The time when my brain feels like it is on fire. My heart has palpitations similar to a an angry canary beating itself against its cage. My voice isn't pleasant, no, in fact I sound as though I have been possessed as I scream and cry out for the peace... that only seems to come after bedtime.
Yes, my life is a contradiction. I have a split personality life. But all I want is to find that middle ground! I know there must be some way to do it, some way to find peace during The Action, to find the appreciation that I can only feel later, when it is calm. And perhaps I will find it some day. I am working on it. I take solace in the fact that I know that God gave me this life for a reason. Somehow, my all-knowing Godthought knew I could handle it. So because of my faith in Him, I will continue to live my two lives until some day they converge into one. A life that will have Quiet, and Action, but will mostly be Peace.
The Action is another story altogether. It is a time where there is NOISE and MOTION and CHAOS! The Action is the time when the baby is squalling- for no apparent reason- the boys are screaming at one another, and there is some loud thumping coming from their room that sounds suspiciously like a wrestling match, my daughter has just slammed her door at me because she didn't like the chore I have assigned her, and the cat has somehow gotten locked in a hall closet.... The Action. The time when my brain feels like it is on fire. My heart has palpitations similar to a an angry canary beating itself against its cage. My voice isn't pleasant, no, in fact I sound as though I have been possessed as I scream and cry out for the peace... that only seems to come after bedtime.
Yes, my life is a contradiction. I have a split personality life. But all I want is to find that middle ground! I know there must be some way to do it, some way to find peace during The Action, to find the appreciation that I can only feel later, when it is calm. And perhaps I will find it some day. I am working on it. I take solace in the fact that I know that God gave me this life for a reason. Somehow, my all-knowing God
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Order in the Court...er...Class
So, as you know, this is my very first year homeschooling my children. There have been ups and downs, but it has been a tremendous learning experience. Most of the obstacles that I have come to have been things that I could learn a new way to do, find a different approach, or just stop doing altogether. But there is this one thing... classroom order. I don't know how teachers do it! I certainly don't know how other homeschooling parents do it. Maybe it is because I have three children learning at the same time, but my biggest obstacle in the learning/teaching process is trying to get my children to treat it like school.
Now some people might not take the same approach that I do when it comes to homeschool, which is why it is difficult to get suggestions from other homeschooling parents. Our approach is a school-at-home atmosphere. We use a scheduled day, planned out with timeslots and planned breaks. We use some textbooks, and some worksheets, as well as implementing other learning resources such as videos and the web. My children don't choose what they are going to learn about, or at what pace... I do, because I am the teacher. However, we don't necessarily follow structure to a tee. sometimes we start school at 11. Sometimes we skip a subject or two. Sometimes we trade a week day for a Saturday school day. So I am flexible when it comes to routine sometimes, because I understand that it can become obsessive, and one of the things that I hated about public school was the fact that they could not slow down in order to help a struggling student, whereas I can.
So back to my issue. We have school-at-home, but my children don't respect that atmosphere. I have two children who strike up random conversation out loud in the middle of a lesson,therefore distracting their siblings, and getting me off subject. I have one who likes to answer her brother's questions for them, instead of letting ME answer them. I have one who thinks it is funny to roll all over the floor, and do headstands and back bends rather than focusing on the task at hand. I have tried the whole yardstick pop from my chair, yelling, begging, threatening, but to no avail. They continue to treat school as though it is an afterthought. They continue to ask me if we are done after every single subject. They continue to get up and run down the hall to their rooms if they are done with something while someone else is finishing their paper. How on earth do people handle this problem??
Now some people might not take the same approach that I do when it comes to homeschool, which is why it is difficult to get suggestions from other homeschooling parents. Our approach is a school-at-home atmosphere. We use a scheduled day, planned out with timeslots and planned breaks. We use some textbooks, and some worksheets, as well as implementing other learning resources such as videos and the web. My children don't choose what they are going to learn about, or at what pace... I do, because I am the teacher. However, we don't necessarily follow structure to a tee. sometimes we start school at 11. Sometimes we skip a subject or two. Sometimes we trade a week day for a Saturday school day. So I am flexible when it comes to routine sometimes, because I understand that it can become obsessive, and one of the things that I hated about public school was the fact that they could not slow down in order to help a struggling student, whereas I can.
So back to my issue. We have school-at-home, but my children don't respect that atmosphere. I have two children who strike up random conversation out loud in the middle of a lesson,therefore distracting their siblings, and getting me off subject. I have one who likes to answer her brother's questions for them, instead of letting ME answer them. I have one who thinks it is funny to roll all over the floor, and do headstands and back bends rather than focusing on the task at hand. I have tried the whole yardstick pop from my chair, yelling, begging, threatening, but to no avail. They continue to treat school as though it is an afterthought. They continue to ask me if we are done after every single subject. They continue to get up and run down the hall to their rooms if they are done with something while someone else is finishing their paper. How on earth do people handle this problem??
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)