Well, we are halfway through week 9 of our school year. Baby #5 is due any week now. I think it's a good time to look at my previous goals and see if I need to adjust anything.
When I open my really cool Homeschool Planner from Homeschool Creations ( I think the link on the sidebar still works??). Where we are and where we are supposed to be are lined up- mostly. P has two books to read for History (finish Three Ships Come Sailing and Pocohontas-he's been enjoying reading more these days), C actually needs to catch up on art and poetry (won't be a big deal- she's great at these), and S is actually ahead in a lot. So, for someone who is organizationally challenged and dropped the ball on way too many schooldays last year, this is a BIG DEAL. It is very comforting to have an answer (other than silence) for my hubby when he asks about the school day.
The school day itself still takes far.too.long to finish.
1) P has shown that a desk in his room with a stack of drawers (like workboxes) and a "to do" list just doesn't work. He gets randomly distracted -- like he spent 45 minutes "looking" for a pencil (it was under his desk) when I went to check in on him. So, I have him sit at the kitchen table with me and we trudge through it together. Is this normal for a boy turning nine this next Wednesday? I wonder if this is a clue that we need to look deeper. I had really hoped by now that at least half of his work could be done on his own. He cannot even work on his work while I whisper instructions to a sibling sitting far from him!
2) S always wants to do her school work right.now. and three weeks worth of it. She's in kindergarten, for Pete's sake! I am so grateful for her enthusiasm. I wish I had more school-like activities for her that are self-directed, and don't need me. Then she'll feel she's getting her time, and will be happy doing her normal day's allotment with me.
3) C is doing great in 2nd grade. She gets through her work, and usually works her best-- she cannot stand it if she misses even one problem on her math speed drills, which is encouraging, because I can tell she will always strive to be the best she can. She has been getting lazy in cursive penmanship, and I have had to have her redo it for awhile, but she's back on track (and excellent at writing).
B (toddler now) is also wanting to be a part of school, and do her "kool" everyday. For some time, she would happily draw away on the large whiteboard (on our wall) or the lap board, and "race" it, too. Then, she got into the habit of trying to do her sisters' books, which has given us a challenge to figure out what's under the marker on their lessons. I have activity books for her, but they don't seem good enough. Sometimes I'll let her have her siblings' pre-filled worksheets (after I've graded them) and she seems okay with that. My belly is so huge right now, that I just cannot fit her on my lap.
I am currently so exhausted every moment of every day that I think I'm going to set aside our school work early. I scheduled to do 10-11 weeks before the baby, but my fatigue combined with the time it takes to get through the day is too much. I will maybe still do a couple subjects a day with each of them, just to keep a sense of order and responsibility. I do have a lot of pre-baby things I need to focus on, and so I need to trim down other obligations to get these things crossed off my list. I just hope the savages don't turn the house upside down in the meantime!
All in all, I am happy and grateful that we are where we are. I hope and pray I can pick things up again after the baby comes.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Monday, August 22, 2011
Thus It Begins
I have been quiet on the internet blogosphere for a while-- with a purpose. Today, we began our second week of school. I'm still not "ready" for it, but I don't know if I'll ever be fully ready for school to start-- so we began.
The former dining/school room is now completely a school room, with the infrequent use as a dining room. Making this decision gave me a lot of freedom and broke down some obstacles in planning the space and organization.
I wish 1) I could post some pictures. I'm just not quite comfortable with the space yet to post it. It's sort of between the "before" and "after". When I get to (or closer to) the "after", I'll post some pics. 2) That I was better at personal time management. Despite working very hard (I mean it!) to get ready, there are still things I'm rushing around finishing each day that makes it more tiring.
Some things I have done, with which I am happy, or getting there: 1) My son has his desk in his room. We purchased a rolling cart with 10 drawers for a modified "workbox" system, and he has a basket that holds whatever he isn't using that day, and is his "inbox" as well. The girls have their own column of wire shelving in the school room with their own baskets at the top. 2) The girls use the dining room table and I have a place at the end. We pushed the table against one wall, and protected it with a vinyl tablecloth. They also have one of those cheapy little kids tables they can use, too. 3) I print out a check list for my son each day, and once my 2nd (!) grader becomes a more confident reader, she'll have one, too.
Some things I still hope to do: 1)finish putting together my "morning board" which will house the current prayer the family is learning, Latin/Greek root words, a letter-of-the-day, and the calendar. I'm pretty excited about this, but have yet to implement a morning routine with it-- sort of an assembly each day. 2)Finish organizing my items so they're not sprawled out everywhere to be stepped on. 3) Finish printing out workbooks that I'm allowed to, and organize a filing system for finished and graded work for each child.
I have other things on my to do list, but I may overwhelm myself if I list them all out. On top of those things, I have projects I want to finish before baby comes-- like diapers and clothes for the baby and the girls (the oldest is already outgrowing what we have bought!), some lounge pants for me (so comfy during postpartem), and finish organizing the house as a whole.
So, we made it through one week and are embarking on the second. We're managing to check off our lists, yet I hope the routine becomes smoother soon.
Here's what our loose routine looks like so far:
5/5:30am Husband and I wake. He empties dishwasher and brews coffee (he's the best!). I look through the lesson plans and spend 30-45 minutes getting prepped for the day. Then we read the paper and have our time to chat over whatever we can't do through the usual chaos.
5:30am Toddler wakes up and snuggles with us. (I hope she'll sleep later one day).
6:30am Hubby brings toddler up to brush her teeth and "shave" while he showers. I try not to get anxious for the day. I check emails and do computer stuff. This is when I would pay bills, too.
7am, kids allowed to come downstairs. If they are just waking up (unusual), they now get ready. They aren't supposed to come down before, or without being ready for the day. We're still working on this one.
7:15am Hubby leaves for work. Sometimes he walks the dog, if he hasn't been running around tending to kids the entire time.
7-7:30am I'm getting ready (I want to move my getting ready to before 7am, but this is where it is right now). The kids manage to entertain themselves. I forget to lock the door, which means my 15 minutes is far from peaceful. Then, the second half of the 30 minutes is for tidying my room and sorting laundry, and corralling the kids to get ready for the day-- and pick up their rooms.
8am(usually) make/eat breakfast. This all seems so clear-cut here on "paper", but we usually, somehow, don't end up eating breakfast until 8:15/30. The kids are pretty good at helping to clean up breakfast.
9am catch the kids before they decide to start playing in order to begin school. Somehow, my son has managed to not start until much later each. and. every. day so far. It can be rather frustrating, because the longer he takes to begin, the longer each item takes. Math is no longer a 20 minute task, but 45! And he LOVES math.
9-ish to 9:45-ish I work with my kindergartner. The 2nd grader either does some artistic thing on her own or (preferably for me) plays with the toddler.
9:45- run and check on son (4th grader) to make sure he's on task (this is a toss up). If he isn't, try to get him back on track and answer questions.
9:45-ish to 10:30-ish I work with the 2nd grader. There is sometimes a thing or two that overlaps for them, and I'll do that at the transfer point.
10:30am the girls are usually done, and I reward them with a snack and playtime. This is about the time that Thomas the Tank Engine is on, and I'm more than happy for them to watch it. I then head upstairs to check on my son again, praying he is staying on track.
[Today, he came down at 10:25 saying he really needed a break, so I granted it. Then, the toddler decided she absolutely needed her nap NOW. I put her down and then drag said 4th grader from the television to walk him through his work]
11:30 leave son to prepare lunch. I say a prayer that he'll finish his stuff.
noon-ish Lunch and cleanup. The kids, again, are pretty good about helping with this cleanup, as long as I'm specific as to what I want them to do.
30-45 minute recess. Must. go. outdoors. don't forget the toddler! lock doors. (I don't lock the doors, but it fit in well here. ) :) sense of humor, people. It's what gets us through these days! Ah, a little peace and quiet. I'm supposed to grade work and start prep for the next day here, but the call for a cup of coffee and quiet is so strong. Plus, I'm pregnant, so I have to obey my body, right?
2pm or so. The kids spend a certain amount of time on each room of the house, because they've managed to dismantle each and every one (I thought they were doing school work? When'd they have time to create disaster? I am becoming a firm believer in children's ability to bilocate. This must be what's happening when I ask them a question about something we've been studying and they say "huh?")
3:30 pm I'm not going to get anything else out of them at this point, so I let them have a snack and pick out their favorite pre-approved show to watch. If there's school work that hasn't been done, and attempt is futile right now.
That's about it, folks. I'd really love to hear the routine of others, and any tips and tricks to get kids going in the a.m. with the whole school thing. It seems I use all my patience getting the kids TO school, that there's hardly anything left for the day itself.
Again, I'll post pics soon, I hope.
The former dining/school room is now completely a school room, with the infrequent use as a dining room. Making this decision gave me a lot of freedom and broke down some obstacles in planning the space and organization.
I wish 1) I could post some pictures. I'm just not quite comfortable with the space yet to post it. It's sort of between the "before" and "after". When I get to (or closer to) the "after", I'll post some pics. 2) That I was better at personal time management. Despite working very hard (I mean it!) to get ready, there are still things I'm rushing around finishing each day that makes it more tiring.
Some things I have done, with which I am happy, or getting there: 1) My son has his desk in his room. We purchased a rolling cart with 10 drawers for a modified "workbox" system, and he has a basket that holds whatever he isn't using that day, and is his "inbox" as well. The girls have their own column of wire shelving in the school room with their own baskets at the top. 2) The girls use the dining room table and I have a place at the end. We pushed the table against one wall, and protected it with a vinyl tablecloth. They also have one of those cheapy little kids tables they can use, too. 3) I print out a check list for my son each day, and once my 2nd (!) grader becomes a more confident reader, she'll have one, too.
Some things I still hope to do: 1)finish putting together my "morning board" which will house the current prayer the family is learning, Latin/Greek root words, a letter-of-the-day, and the calendar. I'm pretty excited about this, but have yet to implement a morning routine with it-- sort of an assembly each day. 2)Finish organizing my items so they're not sprawled out everywhere to be stepped on. 3) Finish printing out workbooks that I'm allowed to, and organize a filing system for finished and graded work for each child.
I have other things on my to do list, but I may overwhelm myself if I list them all out. On top of those things, I have projects I want to finish before baby comes-- like diapers and clothes for the baby and the girls (the oldest is already outgrowing what we have bought!), some lounge pants for me (so comfy during postpartem), and finish organizing the house as a whole.
So, we made it through one week and are embarking on the second. We're managing to check off our lists, yet I hope the routine becomes smoother soon.
Here's what our loose routine looks like so far:
5/5:30am Husband and I wake. He empties dishwasher and brews coffee (he's the best!). I look through the lesson plans and spend 30-45 minutes getting prepped for the day. Then we read the paper and have our time to chat over whatever we can't do through the usual chaos.
5:30am Toddler wakes up and snuggles with us. (I hope she'll sleep later one day).
6:30am Hubby brings toddler up to brush her teeth and "shave" while he showers. I try not to get anxious for the day. I check emails and do computer stuff. This is when I would pay bills, too.
7am, kids allowed to come downstairs. If they are just waking up (unusual), they now get ready. They aren't supposed to come down before, or without being ready for the day. We're still working on this one.
7:15am Hubby leaves for work. Sometimes he walks the dog, if he hasn't been running around tending to kids the entire time.
7-7:30am I'm getting ready (I want to move my getting ready to before 7am, but this is where it is right now). The kids manage to entertain themselves. I forget to lock the door, which means my 15 minutes is far from peaceful. Then, the second half of the 30 minutes is for tidying my room and sorting laundry, and corralling the kids to get ready for the day-- and pick up their rooms.
8am(usually) make/eat breakfast. This all seems so clear-cut here on "paper", but we usually, somehow, don't end up eating breakfast until 8:15/30. The kids are pretty good at helping to clean up breakfast.
9am catch the kids before they decide to start playing in order to begin school. Somehow, my son has managed to not start until much later each. and. every. day so far. It can be rather frustrating, because the longer he takes to begin, the longer each item takes. Math is no longer a 20 minute task, but 45! And he LOVES math.
9-ish to 9:45-ish I work with my kindergartner. The 2nd grader either does some artistic thing on her own or (preferably for me) plays with the toddler.
9:45- run and check on son (4th grader) to make sure he's on task (this is a toss up). If he isn't, try to get him back on track and answer questions.
9:45-ish to 10:30-ish I work with the 2nd grader. There is sometimes a thing or two that overlaps for them, and I'll do that at the transfer point.
10:30am the girls are usually done, and I reward them with a snack and playtime. This is about the time that Thomas the Tank Engine is on, and I'm more than happy for them to watch it. I then head upstairs to check on my son again, praying he is staying on track.
[Today, he came down at 10:25 saying he really needed a break, so I granted it. Then, the toddler decided she absolutely needed her nap NOW. I put her down and then drag said 4th grader from the television to walk him through his work]
11:30 leave son to prepare lunch. I say a prayer that he'll finish his stuff.
noon-ish Lunch and cleanup. The kids, again, are pretty good about helping with this cleanup, as long as I'm specific as to what I want them to do.
30-45 minute recess. Must. go. outdoors. don't forget the toddler! lock doors. (I don't lock the doors, but it fit in well here. ) :) sense of humor, people. It's what gets us through these days! Ah, a little peace and quiet. I'm supposed to grade work and start prep for the next day here, but the call for a cup of coffee and quiet is so strong. Plus, I'm pregnant, so I have to obey my body, right?
2pm or so. The kids spend a certain amount of time on each room of the house, because they've managed to dismantle each and every one (I thought they were doing school work? When'd they have time to create disaster? I am becoming a firm believer in children's ability to bilocate. This must be what's happening when I ask them a question about something we've been studying and they say "huh?")
3:30 pm I'm not going to get anything else out of them at this point, so I let them have a snack and pick out their favorite pre-approved show to watch. If there's school work that hasn't been done, and attempt is futile right now.
That's about it, folks. I'd really love to hear the routine of others, and any tips and tricks to get kids going in the a.m. with the whole school thing. It seems I use all my patience getting the kids TO school, that there's hardly anything left for the day itself.
Again, I'll post pics soon, I hope.
Thursday, August 11, 2011
The Countdown
Wow, it's been a month since I last posted here. Don't worry, my cyber-silence does not mean I am giving up blogging on our adventure. I've been busily planning and organizing away for a hopeful start of August 16th. (The 15th is the Assumption and a Holy Day of obligation).
I don't have pictures of our school room, because it's in a bit of a "free for all" state, and I'm not quite done. Each bit of better organization intrigues the children--I hope this is foreshadowing of a good year.
My friend over at TrinityAcres just posted about their curriculum, and I love her choices! I also love reading what others do, it's sort of my way of learning. So, in case anyone is interested, I've listed out what we have going on here.
P- is in 4th grade. There are some books we didn't finish last year due to our trip to Ireland, but I'm going to put them aside as summer refreshers for next summer. I will have him finish math, since he uses Math U See, and they base their books on mastery, and not a spiral approach. History: How Our Nation Began and living books from MODG syllabus. Poetry, Geography, Art appreciation, beginning of Spelling- all MODG. Spelling, English Grammar, Science and more art from Seton. Catechism from Neumann Press - Our Holy Faith (LOVE it!) and MODG Bible History. Latin from CHC (Little Latin Readers). Art/crafts also from A Beka.
C- is in 2nd grade. Latin, Poetry, History/Geography, Handwriting, Phonics, Art Appreciation are all MODG. Art, Reading Comprehension, and music are Seton. Science and Grammar are CHC. When she finishes Phonics with MODG, I'm going to use CHC. Math and arts/crafts are A Beka (sigh. Math U See was just not her cup of tea, and she was really taken with the colorful presentation of A Beka. I don't like using A Beka, even in these early grades,b/c they become so ardently anti-Catholic, but this will have to do for now. I'll probably transition to Saxon in later grades, or maybe she'll be ready to go back to MUS).
S- is in Kindergarten. As a November birthday, she could probably still wait a year (according to public school cutoff dates), but she did some preschool stuff last year, and is eager to get going. Soooo, I'll use my FAAV-orite A Beka for Math, Arts/Crafts, and "Readiness" (whatever that is). Neumann Press for Catechism, along with St Joseph's Children's Bible (MODG listed). CHC for handwriting, and a neat book God's Love Story from them, too. I also picked up some number and alphabet dot-to-dot books at the grocery store to supplement, along with a plethora of religious and non- coloring books.
Some other items that will make a showing are Sewing With Saint Anne (CHC), Exploring Creation with Zoology (birds), English from the Roots up, various prayers and singing as a family. I'm in the middle of creating a "morning board" which will house a calendar, prayers and latin words and songs we're learning as a group. I'll give a pictorial tour of the homeschool room when it's ready (please, dear Lord, before this Monday!).
See you soon,
Renee
I don't have pictures of our school room, because it's in a bit of a "free for all" state, and I'm not quite done. Each bit of better organization intrigues the children--I hope this is foreshadowing of a good year.
My friend over at TrinityAcres just posted about their curriculum, and I love her choices! I also love reading what others do, it's sort of my way of learning. So, in case anyone is interested, I've listed out what we have going on here.
P- is in 4th grade. There are some books we didn't finish last year due to our trip to Ireland, but I'm going to put them aside as summer refreshers for next summer. I will have him finish math, since he uses Math U See, and they base their books on mastery, and not a spiral approach. History: How Our Nation Began and living books from MODG syllabus. Poetry, Geography, Art appreciation, beginning of Spelling- all MODG. Spelling, English Grammar, Science and more art from Seton. Catechism from Neumann Press - Our Holy Faith (LOVE it!) and MODG Bible History. Latin from CHC (Little Latin Readers). Art/crafts also from A Beka.
C- is in 2nd grade. Latin, Poetry, History/Geography, Handwriting, Phonics, Art Appreciation are all MODG. Art, Reading Comprehension, and music are Seton. Science and Grammar are CHC. When she finishes Phonics with MODG, I'm going to use CHC. Math and arts/crafts are A Beka (sigh. Math U See was just not her cup of tea, and she was really taken with the colorful presentation of A Beka. I don't like using A Beka, even in these early grades,b/c they become so ardently anti-Catholic, but this will have to do for now. I'll probably transition to Saxon in later grades, or maybe she'll be ready to go back to MUS).
S- is in Kindergarten. As a November birthday, she could probably still wait a year (according to public school cutoff dates), but she did some preschool stuff last year, and is eager to get going. Soooo, I'll use my FAAV-orite A Beka for Math, Arts/Crafts, and "Readiness" (whatever that is). Neumann Press for Catechism, along with St Joseph's Children's Bible (MODG listed). CHC for handwriting, and a neat book God's Love Story from them, too. I also picked up some number and alphabet dot-to-dot books at the grocery store to supplement, along with a plethora of religious and non- coloring books.
Some other items that will make a showing are Sewing With Saint Anne (CHC), Exploring Creation with Zoology (birds), English from the Roots up, various prayers and singing as a family. I'm in the middle of creating a "morning board" which will house a calendar, prayers and latin words and songs we're learning as a group. I'll give a pictorial tour of the homeschool room when it's ready (please, dear Lord, before this Monday!).
See you soon,
Renee
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Laying the Groundwork
Like I mentioned in previous posts, we decided to take a break from schooling for a few weeks. This decision had since solidified after reading St. Francis de Sales. Here's the quote that struck me: "Accept peacefully whatever you have to do and try to get things done in order, one after the other. If you attempt to do everything all at once or without order, your mind will be frustrated and grow weary and you are likely to be overwhelmed by the pressure and accomplish nothing."
This is exactly where I was. I was trying to keep a home, raise children, grow a baby, and homeschool all at once. Nothing was getting done well, and I was overwhelmed and easily frustrated. So, St. Francis gave me permission, too.
The first half of the week I did pretty well hitting my 6 daily goals. I have not been perfect, but I just keep getting back up and trying again. The main thing I have noticed is making greater efforts to make sure I get things done, and set an example for the children.
Then, on Friday and half of Saturday, I set about beginning that example in earnest. We spent the time cleaning up our upstairs-- and I mean cleaning . I had two feet of clothing sitting on top of my TWO dressers. The guest bedroom dresser was full of junk-- most of which was just thrown away, the girls had dressers overflowing and a covered floor, and my son had all of his clothes from age 4 to 8 in hie closet. We also have a sitting room adjacent to our master bedroom, which the children had claimed for their forts and many planned sleepovers. Let us not even discuss the bathrooms. Lord. have. mercy.
So, with my husband's help (and the kids put into "slave labor" as they would say-- "dude, I'm just telling you to clean up your room!") I purged two large bags of clothing from my stash, and filled bags with garbage. We filtered through the kids clothing and sent the too small items to the basement for storage. We shifted dressers around to better serve the users. Rooms were swept and vacuumed. Bathrooms scoured. Closets reorganized. It was great!
Our goal this week was to keep it that way. So far, so good.
This end of week I plan to hit our first floor. I may have to spread it over two weekends. This is because it includes my pile of stuff by the computer, my pile of stuff on the kitchen island, my craft areas, the homeschool area, the kids play area, the mudroom. Yikes- those are scary territories! I may save the school area for it's own jam session.
Next on the list, solidify this next semester of school work, plan, order, and prepare.
Then, at some point, I have to tackle the basement, which deserves a "haz mat" sign on the door. Maybe, just maybe, we'll finish the basement before the baby arrives!
What's on your list? What groundwork have/are you laying? I'd love to hear from you. We'll keep eachother accountable.
This is exactly where I was. I was trying to keep a home, raise children, grow a baby, and homeschool all at once. Nothing was getting done well, and I was overwhelmed and easily frustrated. So, St. Francis gave me permission, too.
The first half of the week I did pretty well hitting my 6 daily goals. I have not been perfect, but I just keep getting back up and trying again. The main thing I have noticed is making greater efforts to make sure I get things done, and set an example for the children.
Then, on Friday and half of Saturday, I set about beginning that example in earnest. We spent the time cleaning up our upstairs-- and I mean cleaning . I had two feet of clothing sitting on top of my TWO dressers. The guest bedroom dresser was full of junk-- most of which was just thrown away, the girls had dressers overflowing and a covered floor, and my son had all of his clothes from age 4 to 8 in hie closet. We also have a sitting room adjacent to our master bedroom, which the children had claimed for their forts and many planned sleepovers. Let us not even discuss the bathrooms. Lord. have. mercy.
So, with my husband's help (and the kids put into "slave labor" as they would say-- "dude, I'm just telling you to clean up your room!") I purged two large bags of clothing from my stash, and filled bags with garbage. We filtered through the kids clothing and sent the too small items to the basement for storage. We shifted dressers around to better serve the users. Rooms were swept and vacuumed. Bathrooms scoured. Closets reorganized. It was great!
Our goal this week was to keep it that way. So far, so good.
This end of week I plan to hit our first floor. I may have to spread it over two weekends. This is because it includes my pile of stuff by the computer, my pile of stuff on the kitchen island, my craft areas, the homeschool area, the kids play area, the mudroom. Yikes- those are scary territories! I may save the school area for it's own jam session.
Next on the list, solidify this next semester of school work, plan, order, and prepare.
Then, at some point, I have to tackle the basement, which deserves a "haz mat" sign on the door. Maybe, just maybe, we'll finish the basement before the baby arrives!
What's on your list? What groundwork have/are you laying? I'd love to hear from you. We'll keep eachother accountable.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Giving Myself Permission
I decided one little thing: that I would no longer mark my children's specific grade level in my form for the DPI. Who would've guessed what that little action did?
It allowed me to give myself permission.
Permission to do what?
1) To pray. I am praying to discern curriculum, the pace of it, and when we will start it. I am praying for wisdom and to gain better self-discipline for myself so that I can then bring that to my children.
2) To catch up with life. In the chaos of demanding myself to get my children to point "x", many other things have been let go: the house (which I never had much of a hold on from the beginning), laundry, projects, fun...
3) To enjoy summer. It is so easy to get caught up in all the things that we can forget about the simple things that probably have more of an effect on our eternity. Where we live, the summers are wonderful, but short. The lessons learned are numerous, and will be better remembered here.
I am sure there are many other things I have initially given myself permission to do, and many more permissions I will give. It is amazing the freedom I am feeling right now, and the ability I have gained to not let things overwhelm me.
Now that we have permission, here's what our day looked like yesterday:
Impromptu crochet class. The three oldest are learning the basics, and trying to decide what they will make. It was such a joy to see them sitting in a group working on a really neat skill that will reward them in more ways than they can imagine. I also witnessed what a great teacher my eldest can be. He patiently would help his younger sister when she was stuck. He really has a gift.
A lovely walk on a lovely, lovely day. As an expectant mother, I truly need the movement, and the sunshine. The kids need it, too. The plus side is it was enjoyable!
The children spent a lot of time outdoors. Swing set, sprinkler, putzing around, roller skates, etc.
I took some time to weed my flower garden and finish planting some mail order perennials.
I was able to put some time in on building my stash of cloth diapers, and finish making my long-desired washcloths.
I was able to start laying out goals for myself, so school would run more smoothly. My current daily list of goals is:
1 load laundry
walk
load dishwasher
have a shiny sink
drink water
clean 1 room
When I can better my self discipline and become better organized, I think school will run much more smoothly, and I will have fewer troubles with "keeping the kids up" with conventional schooling ideas.
All my best to you all, and I hope this summer, you give yourself permission.
It allowed me to give myself permission.
Permission to do what?
1) To pray. I am praying to discern curriculum, the pace of it, and when we will start it. I am praying for wisdom and to gain better self-discipline for myself so that I can then bring that to my children.
2) To catch up with life. In the chaos of demanding myself to get my children to point "x", many other things have been let go: the house (which I never had much of a hold on from the beginning), laundry, projects, fun...
3) To enjoy summer. It is so easy to get caught up in all the things that we can forget about the simple things that probably have more of an effect on our eternity. Where we live, the summers are wonderful, but short. The lessons learned are numerous, and will be better remembered here.
I am sure there are many other things I have initially given myself permission to do, and many more permissions I will give. It is amazing the freedom I am feeling right now, and the ability I have gained to not let things overwhelm me.
Now that we have permission, here's what our day looked like yesterday:
Impromptu crochet class. The three oldest are learning the basics, and trying to decide what they will make. It was such a joy to see them sitting in a group working on a really neat skill that will reward them in more ways than they can imagine. I also witnessed what a great teacher my eldest can be. He patiently would help his younger sister when she was stuck. He really has a gift.
A lovely walk on a lovely, lovely day. As an expectant mother, I truly need the movement, and the sunshine. The kids need it, too. The plus side is it was enjoyable!
The children spent a lot of time outdoors. Swing set, sprinkler, putzing around, roller skates, etc.
I took some time to weed my flower garden and finish planting some mail order perennials.
I was able to put some time in on building my stash of cloth diapers, and finish making my long-desired washcloths.
I was able to start laying out goals for myself, so school would run more smoothly. My current daily list of goals is:
1 load laundry
walk
load dishwasher
have a shiny sink
drink water
clean 1 room
When I can better my self discipline and become better organized, I think school will run much more smoothly, and I will have fewer troubles with "keeping the kids up" with conventional schooling ideas.
All my best to you all, and I hope this summer, you give yourself permission.
Monday, June 27, 2011
Setting and Re-setting Expectations
As I mentioned in earlier posts, I am a more laid back person, and rather flexible-- often more flexible than I should be. I pray the Good Lord will continue to guide me on that journey as I tackle the other challenges of family life and homeschooling as well.
One challenge I have met is my expectations of each child. Our state allows us to either declare grade levels or "ungraded" in our forms each year. Each year I have listed the equivalent grade level. However, I have found that my laid back personality combined with the natural tendency towards laziness and self satisfaction of children, that we are more often than not behind in books with grade level.
Granted, we took a long vacation-- which was also a "Unit Study", if you will. There is no better way to study the culture, geography, religious views, history and artwork of another country than to spend some serious time in it. I think the children learned more in one month there than and entire year of school. It is also something they will retain much better than any amount of seatwork over the years.
Which brings me to my current challenge of setting and re-setting my expectations. I am frantically trying to get the children finished in their books from last year so we can start in the next level this fall. I am also trying to get together a new baby layette set and replenish my diaper stash for the upcoming little one. There are also three older ones who have grown out of most of their clothing. With little money in the bank, I need to make do with what we have. I have a great stash of fabric on hand, and wonderful basic patterns. I just need to make the time to make them! Okay, enough of that, I don't want to turn this into a cloth-diapering, home-sewing blog (yet).
Suffice it to say that there is a lot on our plates, and we have summer! I don't want to lose summer. Here in the upper midwest, summer is short, and winters long. I want the kids to enjoy summer and the warmth and sunshine, not feel like their slaving away day in and out with dreaded school.
I don't want the kids to dread school. I don't want to rush through books just so I can say they are in "x" grade level. I don't want to dread school. I don't want to burn out. And I don't want them to rush through learning, and miss mastery because they "have to" start in their next level of books by August!
This all leads to a lot of stress, and stress leads to unhappiness.
So, I guess I am re-setting my expectations.
The children will be "ungraded" in this year's submission to the DPI. I will space out their lessons to allow for lighter schedules that encourage mastery. There will be more subject-appropriate games and activities for multi-sensory learning. We will do more nature exploration and gardening as we learn about the world God created around us.
I will find a simpler way to organize the school room so what is needed is accessible and labeled.
I will find peace. We will all find it.
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Summer Adventure
We were fortunate enough to spend an entire month in Ireland. This happened in May. It was a wonderful experience as a restful vacation, spiritual journey, and homeschool adventure. We stayed at various houses- one on many acres with cows and sheep as the neighbors, another on the Beara Peninsula in the south with low/high tide and mountains as neighbors, and another in County Mayo with a ruined abbey and the filming location of the Quiet Man as neighbors.
Everything was a delight to the eye. The scenery has an ancient quality to it. The stories told are close to our hearts: Catholics who would die for the Faith, who were forced to leave their homeland in search for a better life, others who continued to stubbornly rebuild their churches, and those who organized protests and uprisings. This was the land of Saints and Scholars.
With this great vacation, though, came the necessity to put formal schooling on hold. This happened much earlier than I anticipated (a month before leaving as opposed to a week!), and we were already trying to cover extra ground to start at conventional school grade levels in the fall. Soooo, we are schooling through the summer- or trying to.
You may remember my mentioning my more laid back and flexible habits. I have a hard enough time keeping myself according to some semblance of order (as anyone who has seen my dresser can attest), but add a house, meals and children who need to be dressed, cleaned, fed and schooled-- I'll leave it there.
So, it would be no surprise that while were on our way to completing our second full week-- my husband's car broke down. On last Wednesday evening, I towed his car behind our mini van into town (WISH I had a picture of that!). So, I was without a car Tuesday and Wednesday. Car came back Thursday a.m., which ended up being a day off. This is because I had shopping to catch up on, a car repair for which to pay, a prenatal appointment to make, and a dog to visit the vet (he recently came down with an ear infection). We did this all on Thursday. And none of the stops were in the same town. According to my personality, I can't have Thursday off school and be expected to jump back in for one day on Friday. It goes against my very being! So, I did school research, and let the kids have another day off. Oh, yes, the car wouldn't stay running on Friday, so I was without my van again. Good thing is that the mechanics didn't charge for the towing and fix even though it had nothing to do with what they repaired previously!
So, our adventure involved map skills, the virtue of patience, behaving in a vet's waiting room and trying not to enjoy Culver's too much for lunch when mom and dad said we spent enough money eating out in Ireland to cover a year's budget at home!
Everything was a delight to the eye. The scenery has an ancient quality to it. The stories told are close to our hearts: Catholics who would die for the Faith, who were forced to leave their homeland in search for a better life, others who continued to stubbornly rebuild their churches, and those who organized protests and uprisings. This was the land of Saints and Scholars.
With this great vacation, though, came the necessity to put formal schooling on hold. This happened much earlier than I anticipated (a month before leaving as opposed to a week!), and we were already trying to cover extra ground to start at conventional school grade levels in the fall. Soooo, we are schooling through the summer- or trying to.
You may remember my mentioning my more laid back and flexible habits. I have a hard enough time keeping myself according to some semblance of order (as anyone who has seen my dresser can attest), but add a house, meals and children who need to be dressed, cleaned, fed and schooled-- I'll leave it there.
So, it would be no surprise that while were on our way to completing our second full week-- my husband's car broke down. On last Wednesday evening, I towed his car behind our mini van into town (WISH I had a picture of that!). So, I was without a car Tuesday and Wednesday. Car came back Thursday a.m., which ended up being a day off. This is because I had shopping to catch up on, a car repair for which to pay, a prenatal appointment to make, and a dog to visit the vet (he recently came down with an ear infection). We did this all on Thursday. And none of the stops were in the same town. According to my personality, I can't have Thursday off school and be expected to jump back in for one day on Friday. It goes against my very being! So, I did school research, and let the kids have another day off. Oh, yes, the car wouldn't stay running on Friday, so I was without my van again. Good thing is that the mechanics didn't charge for the towing and fix even though it had nothing to do with what they repaired previously!
So, our adventure involved map skills, the virtue of patience, behaving in a vet's waiting room and trying not to enjoy Culver's too much for lunch when mom and dad said we spent enough money eating out in Ireland to cover a year's budget at home!
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