We’re just over a month into the “official” start of our new school year at home.
Although we schooled through the summer, the schedule was much looser and less… well, full. I liked it that way… and so did the boys. I learned after last summer that taking more than a couple of weeks off at a time inevitably led to lost memory, poor attitudes, and overall difficulty in “getting back in the groove”. So we didn’t stop this time around; we simply took the time to enjoy ourselves along the way.
This summer we spent tons of time playing outside, hiking, and learning to swim (both boys) and ride a bike without training wheels (our oldest). But — along with keeping up with math and reading — we also introduced geography through a fun little Veritas Press unit, had a great time with friends racing through a local park following a homemade strip map to find a “treasure” of ice pops, and learned a memory song about the continents and oceans of the world.
Who says learning can’t be fun sometimes?
Jonah and the Sage kids reading the maps made by Miss Carissa
Treasure hunting is all about the speed, people. 🙂
And now we’re fully “in” to our second full year of homeschooling. It seems both familiar and more difficult at the same time, as Jonah is used to Mommy being the teacher but is now working through real school… not just the basic “reading, writing, ‘rithmetic” of the curriculum we did last year. This fall we added animal science and history to the mix, as well as a formal “memory period” for him to focus on memorization work like the books of the Bible, Scripture verses, animal classifications, and ancient history lists. And Bode is in preschool now, which marks my first year of dividing my attention at least somewhat between two kiddos.
But so far, so good. We have our not-so-good days, don’t get me wrong… but I’m no where near the “hitting my head against the wall” feeling I had last year at this time. This is our life, and I wouldn’t trade it for all the free mornings in the world.
Brotherly love on the first day of school: Jonah (kindergarten) and Boden (preschool)
Bode working on writing his name
Impromptu science lesson on the front porch... A praying mantis paid a visit!
Jonah concentrating on his copywork... gotta love the tongue sticking out!
Well, off to tackle Venn diagrams with our almost six-year old. Wish me luck! 🙂
Starrchasers 