Every homeschooler is a Christian. Nope! Folks homeschool for many different reasons and their faith is just one of them. There are many homeschool support groups specifically for non-Christians. And I know of some families that have not joined our group because we are a Christian group.
All homeschools are alike. So wrong!!!! There are traditional homeschoolers, relaxed homeschoolers and even a group called unschoolers. We would fall into the traditional group with a little bit of relaxed mixed in. We use a curriculum for each subject that we cover. But we do fit the lessons to our family. For instance, in Language right now Amy and Will are studying good sentence and paragraph construction. This is something everyone needs to know and is a skill they will use over and over. But, why do all the examples in the book when they also need to complete an assignment in Geography writing a short story. Combine the 2 and get them done at one time. As their teacher, I have that option. Unschooling is a whole new ballgame. From what I understand, they don't use any textbooks and learning is done when a situation arises that they need that knowledge. It just happens. To me, this is scary and I don't think we would get alot of learning done. I haven't figured out how you would present this on a college application or score reasonably well on the ACT.
All curriculum is the same. This is laughably (is that a word) wrong. There are so many curriculum choices available it is mind-boggling. Going to a homeschool convention is pretty confusing if you don't have any idea what you want or need. Everything looks great but not everything works for each child. I like to find out what others use and works for them. My friend Amy recommended Teaching Textbooks for higher math. Her son Josh used it and they really liked it. We bought it last year and Katie really liked it. All 3 are using it this year! For the "math challenged" Mom that I am, this is a blessing. Different Options: You can buy a whole years curriculum from one publisher complete with grade book and teachers manuals. You can do all of your schooling on-line, with textbooks. You can pick and choose language from one company, math from another, history from another and so on. The last is what we do. I personally don't like all the "fluff" that some boxed curriculums insist the kids need.
People begin homeschooling or pull their kids out of school for the same reason. This makes no sense to me. You can't lump a whole group of people into one category, its not that easy. We chose to homeschool in 1996. James had been in public school and then 2 years in a private school. He is my ADHD/dyslexic child. After Amy was born and I quit work, we couldn't afford the private tuition anymore. We chose homeschooling because if he had gone back into the public school system, they wanted to put him in a "self contained" classroom with other children with disabilites and not in a regular class like before. This wasn't an option for us because I wanted him challenged more and more expected of him, this wouldn't happen at school. So we started with James in 6th and Allen in 2nd (Amy was a newborn). And we kept going, and going and going. Then we married Greg and moved to Miss. I cont. to homeschool Allen and Amy and the "Jackson kids" cont. in public school. We chose homeschooling for Will with many of the same reasons as I originally did with James. Will wasn't applying himself, concentrating, completing assignments, etc. because of some learning issues and needed the extra one on one time. And hey, Katie came home because we wanted her too. The 3 younger kids are on the same schedule, we can travel with Greg, we can work at our own pace (with K that is accelerated, thats how she is grad. a year early), we can minister together, etc. So just within my own family are different reasons for homeschooling.
My dear sis-in-law left a comment on one of my posts that I forgot that homeschoolers were weird. But I think its true! Weird in the sense that we have chosen to be in the company of our children 24/7 and weird in that we do stuff together all the time. Weird in that we want to shelter and protect our children from some outside influences (gangs, drugs, school violence, peer pressure) as long as we can. And weird in that, I want to teach my children with a Christian, politically INcorrect curriculum. Our "weirdness" was the family norm 100-200 years ago. Many men and women were homeschooled and went on to accomplish enormous things. Many of the Founding Fathers of our country never sat in a formal classroom. So I don't mind being weird, its really a compliment!
Showing posts with label homeschool. Show all posts
Showing posts with label homeschool. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
More Homeschool Myths Debunked
Homeschoolers are smarter...humm, there are a couple of ways to look at this. There are incredibly smart children that homeschool, or attend private or public school. Homeschooling itself does not make kids smarter (God does that). As homeschoolers, our children can concentrate on a subject as long as they need to thoroughly understand it or complete the lesson and move on. I have read some wonderful family testimonies of children graduating highschool at 14 and college at 18 and making straight A's. It does happen. Homeschool children generally do score higher on standardized tests than public school students. I think they can focus better on the task at hand and not have worries about other things. But thats just my thought. But homeschooling doesn't mean you won't have learning challenges and difficulties. I've had 2 children attention problems, 2 that struggle with multiplication facts and 1 that has difficulty with spelling. But before anyone comments and says the public school could help them...know this, they were there for 5-7 years and it didn't help. The stuggles have lessened with homeschooling not gotten worse.
Homeschool families are perfect. NOT! Don't know where this one started but I don't know any family that is perfect. We generally get along better with each other than other folks but its because we are together all the time and we have learned to get along. If you watch the "Kids by the Dozen" or "18 Kids & Counting" shows on TLC, keep in mind its not realtime, the shows are taped and edited.
Homeschool children are all well-behaved and respectful. Generally, I think this is true. We do tell our children before group field trips to act respectful, listen, etc. Unfortunately, if any kids don't behave on a field trip then that tends to label all homeschoolers as rowdy. As a family, a number of times when we are out in public I've had people ask me if we homeschool. This has specifically happened 3 different times at National Parks. When we answer yes, they nod and say we thought so. This is followed by "they are so nice and they listen when others are talking."
However, I have also seen some real stinkers who are homeschooled. Children are not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. My adorable 13 year old used to throw some huge temper tantrums. And by huge I mean kicking, screaming and rolling on the floor fits when she was 2 or 3 years old. If she was gonna pitch a fit, she did it right, nothing halfway for this child. Praise the Lord, that didn't last too long but it certainly was challenging at the time!
Homeschool families are perfect. NOT! Don't know where this one started but I don't know any family that is perfect. We generally get along better with each other than other folks but its because we are together all the time and we have learned to get along. If you watch the "Kids by the Dozen" or "18 Kids & Counting" shows on TLC, keep in mind its not realtime, the shows are taped and edited.
Homeschool children are all well-behaved and respectful. Generally, I think this is true. We do tell our children before group field trips to act respectful, listen, etc. Unfortunately, if any kids don't behave on a field trip then that tends to label all homeschoolers as rowdy. As a family, a number of times when we are out in public I've had people ask me if we homeschool. This has specifically happened 3 different times at National Parks. When we answer yes, they nod and say we thought so. This is followed by "they are so nice and they listen when others are talking."
However, I have also seen some real stinkers who are homeschooled. Children are not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. My adorable 13 year old used to throw some huge temper tantrums. And by huge I mean kicking, screaming and rolling on the floor fits when she was 2 or 3 years old. If she was gonna pitch a fit, she did it right, nothing halfway for this child. Praise the Lord, that didn't last too long but it certainly was challenging at the time!
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Disspelling Myths about Homeschoolers
In my 14 years of homeschooling, I have heard alot of assumptions that people have about homeschooling and wanted to de-throne some of them. So in doing this, I am giving my opinion and sharing about my family but every family is different so this isn't a universal opinion.
Myth #1
All homeschool Mom's have to be smarter than their kids in order to homeschool.
Absolutely not, it is a well known fact in my family that I am not the person to ask questions about higher Math. Above Algebra, I am lost. The kids can ask Dad. That is the reason we are doing math on computer this year, Teaching Textbooks is a wonderful tool for just this reason. There is one Abeka Math that I really like and all of the kids will do it before they graduate and this is "Consumer Math". Its insurance (car, life, health, home, etc., I worked for State Farm for 10 years so I know this), banking (checking, savings, loans, credit, etc), budgeting (we've all done Dave Ramsey), how to read a meter ( water or electric), and many other practical, you need to know this life skills. We all learn, everyday. Learning is a lifelong experience and what I don't know to answer a question they come up with, I can find out.
Myth #2
I can never homeschool my children.
My reply would be why not? Who taught them how to sit, walk, stand, talk, put together puzzles, behave in a restaurant or grocery store, be polite, table manners, tie shoes, color in the lines, go potty! This is mostly all learning done at home with Mom and Dad and older siblings. Why miss out of the fun of reading, writing, research, field trips, and being together. And if your kids are coming home and doing 2 + hours of homework everynight, then you are homeschooling. You just get the leftover attention and fidgeting from 8 hours of school.
Myth #3
My kids won't listen to me.
Hummmmmm, that is a family issue and not a homeschool issue. If your kids have been in school away from the home and you bring them home, you may need to "unschool" from the teachers, routines, books, etc. that they have been accustommed too and establish yourself in that role. Sometimes this is tough, but you can do it.
Myth #4
All homeschoolers wear denim jumpers or no makeup or don't practice birth control or whatever else you can come up with.
I don't own a denim jumper, there is not a homeschool uniform. Many families are dresses only for the girls, for their own reasons. There is nothing wrong with this. We spend our summer days in capris or shorts and winter days in jeans or sweats. Go with your convictions, not with what others are doing.
I wear makeup and its here to stay. Its my choice.
On the birth control issue, thats between Mom, Dad and God. I am not stepping into this issue. You do what is right for you. I personally am fascinated by the Duggar Family. They have 18 beautiful children and they are being raised in a Christ centered home. Mom and Dad work together to raise the family. Which is the way it should be, whether you have 1 or 2 blessings or 12+ blessings.
Myth #5
We all grind our wheat, cook from scratch, eat dinner together everynight.....ok, for us this isn't a myth but a fact.
We have been grinding our own wheat for over a year. The health benefits are huge. We cook most of our food from scratch, then again great health benefits. Eat dinner together everynight, 6 out o 7 nights per week, yes. The wheat grinding and cooking from scratch will have their own posts one day.
And now my very favorite.....what about SOCIALIZATION?
Do you send your kids to school to socialize or learn?
My kids are involved in youth Sunday School classes, choir, homeschool co-op classes, dance classes, archery practices, and field trips involving all ages. We don't sit at the kitchen table all day, every day doing lessons. However, given the multitude of opportunities available, we do pick and choose what to be involved in. You can do too many activities and not have time for school. My children are with children and adults of all ages and are learning how to relate to everyone. Not just to 25 or 30 other people their own age. Think about this.....since you graduated from high school, have you ever worked or socialized with a group of people your exact same age? I haven't. Even my college classes had guys and gals of all different ages. My kids are friends with each other. They play games, watch tv and work on projects together and most of the time, get along really well with each other.
I grew up in a unique time and situation...I went to the same high school that my dad and my grandmother attended. Yes, 3 generations attended and graduated from the same school. Many of my friends parents went to school with daddy. I even had a teacher that taught my dad, talk about weird! We grew up going to football games on Friday nights and worshiping in church together on Sunday Mornings. Most of our Moms didn't work outside the home and we ate dinner as a family every night. Usually somebodies Mom or Dad was keeping an eye on us and we knew they would report back to our parents if we stepped out of line. We were definately not perfect but you had to work really hard to do something wrong and get away with it. The world is not like that today. Everyone is going in all different directions and they never connect as a family. To me, that is really sad. Families also move alot, depending on jobs. This really didn't happen when I was younger. Its a sign of the times, but not a good sign sometimes.
Whatever you decide is right for your family...go for it! Your school decisions are your choice. I just wanted to talk about some "myths" I have heard that I knew were not accurate in our family!
Myth #1
All homeschool Mom's have to be smarter than their kids in order to homeschool.
Absolutely not, it is a well known fact in my family that I am not the person to ask questions about higher Math. Above Algebra, I am lost. The kids can ask Dad. That is the reason we are doing math on computer this year, Teaching Textbooks is a wonderful tool for just this reason. There is one Abeka Math that I really like and all of the kids will do it before they graduate and this is "Consumer Math". Its insurance (car, life, health, home, etc., I worked for State Farm for 10 years so I know this), banking (checking, savings, loans, credit, etc), budgeting (we've all done Dave Ramsey), how to read a meter ( water or electric), and many other practical, you need to know this life skills. We all learn, everyday. Learning is a lifelong experience and what I don't know to answer a question they come up with, I can find out.
Myth #2
I can never homeschool my children.
My reply would be why not? Who taught them how to sit, walk, stand, talk, put together puzzles, behave in a restaurant or grocery store, be polite, table manners, tie shoes, color in the lines, go potty! This is mostly all learning done at home with Mom and Dad and older siblings. Why miss out of the fun of reading, writing, research, field trips, and being together. And if your kids are coming home and doing 2 + hours of homework everynight, then you are homeschooling. You just get the leftover attention and fidgeting from 8 hours of school.
Myth #3
My kids won't listen to me.
Hummmmmm, that is a family issue and not a homeschool issue. If your kids have been in school away from the home and you bring them home, you may need to "unschool" from the teachers, routines, books, etc. that they have been accustommed too and establish yourself in that role. Sometimes this is tough, but you can do it.
Myth #4
All homeschoolers wear denim jumpers or no makeup or don't practice birth control or whatever else you can come up with.
I don't own a denim jumper, there is not a homeschool uniform. Many families are dresses only for the girls, for their own reasons. There is nothing wrong with this. We spend our summer days in capris or shorts and winter days in jeans or sweats. Go with your convictions, not with what others are doing.
I wear makeup and its here to stay. Its my choice.
On the birth control issue, thats between Mom, Dad and God. I am not stepping into this issue. You do what is right for you. I personally am fascinated by the Duggar Family. They have 18 beautiful children and they are being raised in a Christ centered home. Mom and Dad work together to raise the family. Which is the way it should be, whether you have 1 or 2 blessings or 12+ blessings.
Myth #5
We all grind our wheat, cook from scratch, eat dinner together everynight.....ok, for us this isn't a myth but a fact.
We have been grinding our own wheat for over a year. The health benefits are huge. We cook most of our food from scratch, then again great health benefits. Eat dinner together everynight, 6 out o 7 nights per week, yes. The wheat grinding and cooking from scratch will have their own posts one day.
And now my very favorite.....what about SOCIALIZATION?
Do you send your kids to school to socialize or learn?
My kids are involved in youth Sunday School classes, choir, homeschool co-op classes, dance classes, archery practices, and field trips involving all ages. We don't sit at the kitchen table all day, every day doing lessons. However, given the multitude of opportunities available, we do pick and choose what to be involved in. You can do too many activities and not have time for school. My children are with children and adults of all ages and are learning how to relate to everyone. Not just to 25 or 30 other people their own age. Think about this.....since you graduated from high school, have you ever worked or socialized with a group of people your exact same age? I haven't. Even my college classes had guys and gals of all different ages. My kids are friends with each other. They play games, watch tv and work on projects together and most of the time, get along really well with each other.
I grew up in a unique time and situation...I went to the same high school that my dad and my grandmother attended. Yes, 3 generations attended and graduated from the same school. Many of my friends parents went to school with daddy. I even had a teacher that taught my dad, talk about weird! We grew up going to football games on Friday nights and worshiping in church together on Sunday Mornings. Most of our Moms didn't work outside the home and we ate dinner as a family every night. Usually somebodies Mom or Dad was keeping an eye on us and we knew they would report back to our parents if we stepped out of line. We were definately not perfect but you had to work really hard to do something wrong and get away with it. The world is not like that today. Everyone is going in all different directions and they never connect as a family. To me, that is really sad. Families also move alot, depending on jobs. This really didn't happen when I was younger. Its a sign of the times, but not a good sign sometimes.
Whatever you decide is right for your family...go for it! Your school decisions are your choice. I just wanted to talk about some "myths" I have heard that I knew were not accurate in our family!
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Where to find the time.....
Several people have asked me where I find the time to do everything, so I am going to try an answer that question.
First of all we homeschool. Homeschooling is a lifestyle and education choice that we have made for our family. This is the beginning of year number 14. The fact that its an education choice is evident. But, many may not know its also a lifestyle choice. We are together (for the most part) morning, noon and night. We eat 3 meals together, at least 6 of the 7 days. We run errands, do chores, play games, laugh, cry, argue and make up..sometimes all in the same day. The kids are friends with each other and with me. We are learning many things together such as quilting and canning. We usually get the school work done in the mornings which leaves the afternoons free for other projects or classes.
Second, the kids aren't involved in many different sports and activities daily. Katie and Amy take dance, one day per week. The only time this schedule changes is when its recital time and then its 4 days that week. They also take a homeschool quilting class for beginners, 2 mornings a month. They both love to sew and are learning alot in this class (me too!). Will is doing archery with a group of boys in our homeschool group. This is 2 afternoons a month. Our homeschool support group offers co-op classes for history/geography and science and all three are involved in those...2 mornings a month. Those are the outside activities. This leaves us time to do other activites together such as our food preservation classes we took at the county extension office.
Third, we set up a daily schedule for the kids and I. It has worked out great and we have freed up lots of time by sticking to our schedule. I even scheduled in reading and crafts. So I don't feel guilty sitting down and reading in the morning with the kids or sewing in the afternoon....its in the schedule! I used the book by Steve & Terri Maxwell "Managers of Their Homes" to help set everything up. I would highly recommend it to anyone who wants to be more organized.
This is what we have chosen for our family. I realize it may not be for everyone, but even one or two changes could help the busiest of households. So here are some of my suggestions......
How many activites are your children involved in? Baseball, soccer, football, basketball, gymnastics, music lessons, afterschool care, art classes, etc. There is nothing wrong with any of these, but too many is hectic. A question to ask yourself before you make any changes or add any activities to your childs schedule is...does little Johnny really want to play football (or whatever) or does Dad have dreams of little Johnny playing in the NFL and he is going to play football or else. If little Johnny is passionate about the game and lives, eats and breathes football, then that is the game for him. If he would rather pick clover in the football field, then let him lose in the backyard and save your money. Evaluate why you do what you do. Keeping up with the Jones' is exhausting and unimportant.
How many outside the home activites are you involved in? These also add stress to your life, even if they are wonderful activities. No, I am not saying that you should stop doing things you really love, but is it really worth time away from the home? If you are involved in several different ministries at church and you don't have time to cook dinner, then you probably need to re-evaluate your schedule. At this time in our lives, we are involved in 3 ministry opportunities. 2 are at our church and both occur in Dec. The first is our church's huge Living Christmas Tree Production, the first weekend of the month. Greg programs the lights for the tree and 5 of our children sing or play an instrument or perform in the ballet. We all love it, but it does take lots and lots of time. In fact, the first planning meeting for this years production is next Sunday night. The 2nd is our church's Christmas Store for families who need extra holiday help. The kids love shopping for the gifts with the money we set aside for this. The day of the store, I work in the giftwrap and Greg and the older boys help load the cars. My 3 youngest will tell you that shopping for the store is one of their favorite Christmas activities. These 2 busy-filled activites are the main reasons we have no school December. There just isn't time or energy for school this month. The 3rd ministry is our Mission Trip. Greg & I have gone to Honduras twice and this year we did a family trip to Oklahoma to help with VBS at 2 Choctaw Indian Churches. We had a wonderful time with each other and the rest of the team.
We are able to do many things together because we homeschool. They are a priority for our lives and our family. But, every family is different. If your children are in a public or private school, you may need to look at the extras that are on your calendars and evaluate why you are doing them. Do they need to sit in school all day then come home, go to football, eat dinner in the car and then head to karate or wherever. Do the kids really care about all the activites or do you as the parent want them in something everyday? Only you can make the decisions for your own family...but in doing so you are carving out time that could be used for something else.
Honestly, I look at schedules of people at church, family members and neighbors and wonder how they do it all. And these are some of the same folks who say to me...I don't know how you have time to sew or read or blog or cook from scratch, or take a walk. We all have our own lives and we have to live them according to our convictions for our family. The Lord made us all unique individuals and it would be really dull if everyone was just alike!
First of all we homeschool. Homeschooling is a lifestyle and education choice that we have made for our family. This is the beginning of year number 14. The fact that its an education choice is evident. But, many may not know its also a lifestyle choice. We are together (for the most part) morning, noon and night. We eat 3 meals together, at least 6 of the 7 days. We run errands, do chores, play games, laugh, cry, argue and make up..sometimes all in the same day. The kids are friends with each other and with me. We are learning many things together such as quilting and canning. We usually get the school work done in the mornings which leaves the afternoons free for other projects or classes.
Second, the kids aren't involved in many different sports and activities daily. Katie and Amy take dance, one day per week. The only time this schedule changes is when its recital time and then its 4 days that week. They also take a homeschool quilting class for beginners, 2 mornings a month. They both love to sew and are learning alot in this class (me too!). Will is doing archery with a group of boys in our homeschool group. This is 2 afternoons a month. Our homeschool support group offers co-op classes for history/geography and science and all three are involved in those...2 mornings a month. Those are the outside activities. This leaves us time to do other activites together such as our food preservation classes we took at the county extension office.
Third, we set up a daily schedule for the kids and I. It has worked out great and we have freed up lots of time by sticking to our schedule. I even scheduled in reading and crafts. So I don't feel guilty sitting down and reading in the morning with the kids or sewing in the afternoon....its in the schedule! I used the book by Steve & Terri Maxwell "Managers of Their Homes" to help set everything up. I would highly recommend it to anyone who wants to be more organized.
This is what we have chosen for our family. I realize it may not be for everyone, but even one or two changes could help the busiest of households. So here are some of my suggestions......
How many activites are your children involved in? Baseball, soccer, football, basketball, gymnastics, music lessons, afterschool care, art classes, etc. There is nothing wrong with any of these, but too many is hectic. A question to ask yourself before you make any changes or add any activities to your childs schedule is...does little Johnny really want to play football (or whatever) or does Dad have dreams of little Johnny playing in the NFL and he is going to play football or else. If little Johnny is passionate about the game and lives, eats and breathes football, then that is the game for him. If he would rather pick clover in the football field, then let him lose in the backyard and save your money. Evaluate why you do what you do. Keeping up with the Jones' is exhausting and unimportant.
How many outside the home activites are you involved in? These also add stress to your life, even if they are wonderful activities. No, I am not saying that you should stop doing things you really love, but is it really worth time away from the home? If you are involved in several different ministries at church and you don't have time to cook dinner, then you probably need to re-evaluate your schedule. At this time in our lives, we are involved in 3 ministry opportunities. 2 are at our church and both occur in Dec. The first is our church's huge Living Christmas Tree Production, the first weekend of the month. Greg programs the lights for the tree and 5 of our children sing or play an instrument or perform in the ballet. We all love it, but it does take lots and lots of time. In fact, the first planning meeting for this years production is next Sunday night. The 2nd is our church's Christmas Store for families who need extra holiday help. The kids love shopping for the gifts with the money we set aside for this. The day of the store, I work in the giftwrap and Greg and the older boys help load the cars. My 3 youngest will tell you that shopping for the store is one of their favorite Christmas activities. These 2 busy-filled activites are the main reasons we have no school December. There just isn't time or energy for school this month. The 3rd ministry is our Mission Trip. Greg & I have gone to Honduras twice and this year we did a family trip to Oklahoma to help with VBS at 2 Choctaw Indian Churches. We had a wonderful time with each other and the rest of the team.
We are able to do many things together because we homeschool. They are a priority for our lives and our family. But, every family is different. If your children are in a public or private school, you may need to look at the extras that are on your calendars and evaluate why you are doing them. Do they need to sit in school all day then come home, go to football, eat dinner in the car and then head to karate or wherever. Do the kids really care about all the activites or do you as the parent want them in something everyday? Only you can make the decisions for your own family...but in doing so you are carving out time that could be used for something else.
Honestly, I look at schedules of people at church, family members and neighbors and wonder how they do it all. And these are some of the same folks who say to me...I don't know how you have time to sew or read or blog or cook from scratch, or take a walk. We all have our own lives and we have to live them according to our convictions for our family. The Lord made us all unique individuals and it would be really dull if everyone was just alike!
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Oops!
On Thursday one of the kids said...aren't we going to do History this week? Its in our assignment book! HeeHee, I forgot to write it on our schedule, so we didn't do it. Oh well, we will make it up this week. I knew this would take some getting used to!
We are packed and ready to go to Biloxi in the morning! Gulf Coast here we come!
We are packed and ready to go to Biloxi in the morning! Gulf Coast here we come!
Saturday, August 8, 2009
First Week of School
Our first week of school is finished. It went great and we really like the new schedule. Here goes...7:30-8:00 everyone out of bed, get dressed, make bed & straighten room, 8:00-8:30 fix & eat breakfast, K & A clean out the dishwasher and reload, W feed and water the dogs & take out trash if needed, 8:30-9:00 bible reading, journaling, fun book reading, 9:00-10:00 Math (K is usually done in the hour, A & W usually need 1 1/2 hours, 10:00-11:00 K works on Physics, 10:30-11:00 A & W do Language. Then they start the computer classes of Spanish, Typing & Music Theory. 11:45-1:00 cook & eat lunch, cleanup, and tv time (usually watch a show we taped the night before or an episode of the Waltons). 1-? work on anything not finished in the morning or craft time..no tv. Will is working on some wood working projects to enter in the fair, Katie & Amy are working on cross stitch pictures for the fair, and I am working on a quilt top. Its amazing how much we get done when the time is scheduled in. Now, with that schedule in our minds....it will all change when we have to add in our co-op classes and homework in a couple of weeks. Then, we will have more afternoon work. I usually get up at 7 and make Gregs coffee and fix his lunch (if we have leftovers from the night before if not, he usually buys something). Then I start the morning routine.....exception, I haven't been able to sit down for the reading time, but I want to work that in. Usually, I am on the computer, reading email, checking blogs, and looking at facebook (thought I would really be honest with everyone).
I love Teaching Textbooks! It is an awesome computer program for math. Katie is doing geometry, Amy and Will are doing Pre-Algebra. You insert the computer disk and watch the instruction part of the class, stop the disk and work the practice problems, start disk and check problems, stop disk and do
the math problems, then start and check the problems. He does an exceedingly thorough job of going through each problem step by step so you can see where (if) you messed up. And this is why it takes A & W 1 1/2 hours. Today, Katie told them that she fast forwards through the problems to the answer and only watches the explanation if she got it wrong....would have been nice to know this on Monday. I am watching the lessons with Amy & Will so I will know what he is talking about and how he presented it....I could learn pre-algebra this year too!On Monday, we are packing up the books and dvds and computers and headed to Biloxi for the week with Greg. He has to go for work and we are going too! We will hotel school, swim in the hotel pool and hang out till he is done with work...then dinner out!
We always take pictures on the first day of school...........and we have to include the barefooted picture............homeschoolers can go to school with no shoes!
Thursday, July 30, 2009
the end of July
The end of July brings many mixed feelings. It is our end of Christmas in July. I have more movies than month, so that just doesn't seem right. But we had fun watching all the old movies. Yesterday we watched "White Christmas" with Bing Crosby & Danny Kaye. Why don't they make singers like that anymore? Man, Bing could sing! We've also watched Home Alone 1,2,&3, Santa Clause 2 (can't find 1), the Christmas Story, Peanuts Christmas, Jingle all the Way, Flintstones Christmas, Here comes Santa Claus, Jetson's Christmas, Little House on the Prairie - 2 different Christmas episodes, Frosty the Snowman and the animated Grinch. I am not sure what is on the viewing list for tomorrow, but it will be good. Still need to see Rudolf and Muppet Christmas Carol. I have collected these for 25 years, so we have alot!
It is also the end of our vacation from school. we have done alot of planning this week and written most of it down. Some lessons are planned till the Tues. before Thanksgiving. This is a first for me. We did this over 3 mornings and spread the school books out and got it done. Yeah, for us. I say us, because the kids sat and helped me with everything. We have also tried to schedule out our days which is proving to be a bit more difficult than I imagined. We have different schedules for a couple of days, which don't fit into the norm. Still figuring that out.
We are going to try our hand at making sweet pickle relish this weekend. My cucumbers are producing great quantities and they are going to turn into relish. One of them weighs 1 3/4 pounds! This is a further attempt at exorcising High Fructose Corn Syrup from our lives. I have found some organic relish that we like, but our one organic store here doesn't carry it. So, we are trying to learn a new skill.
Before the torrential rain hit today, we pulled up the green bean plants in one of our square foot gardening boxes. They were not at all productive. We replanted with more bean seeds. Then the deluge hit. Hopefully all the seeds didn't wash to one end of the box. I would still like to grow enough beans to can and eat through the winter. But, if not, I will buy them at the Farmers Market and can them. They are locally grown and will be better than anything else I can buy at the grocery over the winter. We went and bought some today and had them for dinner tonight...yummy!
Time for reading and bedtime. Tomorrow is another day!
It is also the end of our vacation from school. we have done alot of planning this week and written most of it down. Some lessons are planned till the Tues. before Thanksgiving. This is a first for me. We did this over 3 mornings and spread the school books out and got it done. Yeah, for us. I say us, because the kids sat and helped me with everything. We have also tried to schedule out our days which is proving to be a bit more difficult than I imagined. We have different schedules for a couple of days, which don't fit into the norm. Still figuring that out.
We are going to try our hand at making sweet pickle relish this weekend. My cucumbers are producing great quantities and they are going to turn into relish. One of them weighs 1 3/4 pounds! This is a further attempt at exorcising High Fructose Corn Syrup from our lives. I have found some organic relish that we like, but our one organic store here doesn't carry it. So, we are trying to learn a new skill.
Before the torrential rain hit today, we pulled up the green bean plants in one of our square foot gardening boxes. They were not at all productive. We replanted with more bean seeds. Then the deluge hit. Hopefully all the seeds didn't wash to one end of the box. I would still like to grow enough beans to can and eat through the winter. But, if not, I will buy them at the Farmers Market and can them. They are locally grown and will be better than anything else I can buy at the grocery over the winter. We went and bought some today and had them for dinner tonight...yummy!
Time for reading and bedtime. Tomorrow is another day!
Sunday, July 26, 2009
The time is coming....
We have one more week of our "Christmas in July" celebration. Greg will have to hook up our VCR so we can watch more of our videos. Everything got unhooked when we rearranged the living room and I don't know where the VCR wires are..they are here somewhere. And its only 150 days till Christmas.
But, its also one week till school starts. Where has the summer gone? We've got all the school books, notebooks, paper, pencils, and new crayons! We are starting school a week earlier than our county but thats ok. In Oct. when they are slogging away at the books, we will be a Disney. Thats worth it to me! The kids are ready to start. Their co-op classes start at the end of the month, so we have a few weeks to get ready for that scheduling. This year Amy will be in the 8th grade, Will in the 9th grade and Katie in the 12th grade. All of my babies are growing up so fast.
But, its also one week till school starts. Where has the summer gone? We've got all the school books, notebooks, paper, pencils, and new crayons! We are starting school a week earlier than our county but thats ok. In Oct. when they are slogging away at the books, we will be a Disney. Thats worth it to me! The kids are ready to start. Their co-op classes start at the end of the month, so we have a few weeks to get ready for that scheduling. This year Amy will be in the 8th grade, Will in the 9th grade and Katie in the 12th grade. All of my babies are growing up so fast.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Life in Mississippi
It took a week but we have recovered from our Mission Trip. I certainly enjoy going but it is exhausting. We all had a great time and Greg and I loved watching Katie, Will, and Amy interact with the other team members and the children at the churches. I think next year, we are headed to Ohio.
4th of July weekend we had an "explosive" good time. On the 3rd, James and Will went fireworks shopping and bought enough to "light the night sky" many times. They displayed the arsenal on the pool table for all to see. Will was quite proud of the fact he had a hand in the pyrotechnic show this year.
Sat. morning, we got up and started working on the floor. Laying tile takes a long time and it ain't done yet. The tile Greg & I agreed on looks great in the kitchen and so does the darker grout. The tile looks like mud to me and the grout, red GA clay. Perfect for a house that lays claim to 7 kids plus friends. We are working on it again on Sunday. Hopefully in a week or so it will be done. We have to do it in stages because hey, we live in this house. My family likes to eat 3 meals a day and I have to be able to get to the fridge and stove. So, tile is getting layed down in states.
After working on the floor, Greg put ribs on to smoke for dinner and we went swimming. After our scrumptious dinner of ribs, corn on the cob and baked beans, we swam again, waiting for it to get dark. The the snap, crackle and pop of the festivities began. The firework shoppers did a great job and the result was beautiful. And....we did not become a 4th of July statistic. a safe 4th is always important. The day would have been perfect if Rob had been able to come. He had to work.
We had a big cookout for Greg's work on Tuesday night. The food was yummy. Greg cooked out pork chops and I set up a baked potato bar. Then everyone else brought side dishes and desserts. We had kids in the pool and kids on the trampoline. It was alot of fun and everyone got to see my partially done kitchen floor and the wood flooring in the living room and dining room.
Katie, Will and Amy are working at our church's VBS this week which is at night. Katie is an asst. crew leader for a group and Will is working with the preschoolers, which he loves. Amy is working at the snack station and is getting some good lessons in crowd control. When we pick them up everynight, we hear lots of kid stories all the way home.
We are getting organized for school to start on Aug. 3 at the Jackson Academy for Gifts Students (JAGS). All of the books have been ordered and the math curriculum was delivered yesterday. Now, we are going to work on a school day schedule, so that we get it all done in a timely manner. Didn't that sound officicial...what it means is no dawdling during class time, lets get er done. We have a week that we will be in Atl. in Sept. and the books are going with us. Then we have a week at Disney in October and the books are staying home! So Disney is our incentive to get started early and work hard through Aug. and Sept. and then go to the "happiest place on earth" Katie raised her ACT score from a 21 last year to a 24 this year, you go girl! Since this will be her senior year, she is going to take it a couple of more times, then we will have some college decisions to make!
Hope everyone is having a great summer! We are!
4th of July weekend we had an "explosive" good time. On the 3rd, James and Will went fireworks shopping and bought enough to "light the night sky" many times. They displayed the arsenal on the pool table for all to see. Will was quite proud of the fact he had a hand in the pyrotechnic show this year.
Sat. morning, we got up and started working on the floor. Laying tile takes a long time and it ain't done yet. The tile Greg & I agreed on looks great in the kitchen and so does the darker grout. The tile looks like mud to me and the grout, red GA clay. Perfect for a house that lays claim to 7 kids plus friends. We are working on it again on Sunday. Hopefully in a week or so it will be done. We have to do it in stages because hey, we live in this house. My family likes to eat 3 meals a day and I have to be able to get to the fridge and stove. So, tile is getting layed down in states.
After working on the floor, Greg put ribs on to smoke for dinner and we went swimming. After our scrumptious dinner of ribs, corn on the cob and baked beans, we swam again, waiting for it to get dark. The the snap, crackle and pop of the festivities began. The firework shoppers did a great job and the result was beautiful. And....we did not become a 4th of July statistic. a safe 4th is always important. The day would have been perfect if Rob had been able to come. He had to work.
We had a big cookout for Greg's work on Tuesday night. The food was yummy. Greg cooked out pork chops and I set up a baked potato bar. Then everyone else brought side dishes and desserts. We had kids in the pool and kids on the trampoline. It was alot of fun and everyone got to see my partially done kitchen floor and the wood flooring in the living room and dining room.
Katie, Will and Amy are working at our church's VBS this week which is at night. Katie is an asst. crew leader for a group and Will is working with the preschoolers, which he loves. Amy is working at the snack station and is getting some good lessons in crowd control. When we pick them up everynight, we hear lots of kid stories all the way home.
We are getting organized for school to start on Aug. 3 at the Jackson Academy for Gifts Students (JAGS). All of the books have been ordered and the math curriculum was delivered yesterday. Now, we are going to work on a school day schedule, so that we get it all done in a timely manner. Didn't that sound officicial...what it means is no dawdling during class time, lets get er done. We have a week that we will be in Atl. in Sept. and the books are going with us. Then we have a week at Disney in October and the books are staying home! So Disney is our incentive to get started early and work hard through Aug. and Sept. and then go to the "happiest place on earth" Katie raised her ACT score from a 21 last year to a 24 this year, you go girl! Since this will be her senior year, she is going to take it a couple of more times, then we will have some college decisions to make!
Hope everyone is having a great summer! We are!
Monday, June 8, 2009
We caved into Peer Pressure
OK, we have done it now. Greg and I are both on Facebook. This could cause big problems....why didn't anybody warn me how addictive it was? Oh well, the deed is done. Maybe I should set a timer for computer time like I have the kids do!
Last week was "Ballet Week". The girls had practice on Monday (1 hour), Thursday (2 hours), Friday (2 hours) and Recital was Sat. We got there Sat. at about 5 and got home about 8:30. the recital was great. All the dancers were beautiful and the costumes were gorgeous. The theme was Noah's Ark and the little girls were the animals, their costumes were so cutesy! Katie did not get to dance (maybe I should clarify that and say she & I chose for her not to dance, her ankle swells alot). She was in the recital but not a dancer. She will be dancing next year. During the recital, Miss Abigail had a slide show of all the classes, one of the last slides is Katie stretching on the floor with the boot on her foot. Greg, Mom and I laughed when we saw the slide....everyone else groaned! At least now they know why she didn't dance!
The kids had fun all week playing with my neice and nephew and Granny. Bethany is 7 and Ben is almost 11 (gasp!) Lots of Guitar Hero and swimming. Last Christmas, Mom gave my 3 youngest, inflatable whale floats for the pool. They got blown up last week and now I have Shamu's floating in the pool. It evidentally takes practice to stay on the floats and they easily become unbalanced. But the kids had a great time with them.
During the visit, we also started demolition on the dining room floor. It is now finished and looks beautiful. Greg, Will, James, Andy, and Allen did a great job. We moved all the furniture in yesterday. We now have to get pads to put on the bottom of the chair legs so they don't scratch the floor.
Sat. was our homeschool group used book sale. I went with $187 worth of books to sell and sold $132. of them. All of the big stuff is gone! Amy was thrilled that her math book sold.
Greg cooked us yummy ribs for lunch on Sat. He cooked 4 racks and we had some leftovers. Mack and Hershey love the bones and we had plenty of them.
Amy just got a call from our new Michaels Store and she won one of the prizes from the grand opening last week. She is bouncing off the walls with excitement, we will be driving up there today to get it. Its a scrapbooking prize worth $400. Can't wait to see what all it is! Will update later with prize details!
We are looking forward to a hot summer week. I declared no more school this month and we don't do school in July, so the scholars are happy (Katie does have the ACT this week). We are going to work on the floors, rearrange stuff, organize our belongings, and swim in our pool. And get ready for our Mission Trip to Oklahoma in 2 weeks. This will also give us time to get all our new curriculum and organize our next school year. Katie will be a Senior, Will in 9th and Amy in 8th. In 5 years, I will have worked myself out of a job. All the kids will be through highschool. Hummmmm, wonder if I will be any smarter?
Last week was "Ballet Week". The girls had practice on Monday (1 hour), Thursday (2 hours), Friday (2 hours) and Recital was Sat. We got there Sat. at about 5 and got home about 8:30. the recital was great. All the dancers were beautiful and the costumes were gorgeous. The theme was Noah's Ark and the little girls were the animals, their costumes were so cutesy! Katie did not get to dance (maybe I should clarify that and say she & I chose for her not to dance, her ankle swells alot). She was in the recital but not a dancer. She will be dancing next year. During the recital, Miss Abigail had a slide show of all the classes, one of the last slides is Katie stretching on the floor with the boot on her foot. Greg, Mom and I laughed when we saw the slide....everyone else groaned! At least now they know why she didn't dance!
The kids had fun all week playing with my neice and nephew and Granny. Bethany is 7 and Ben is almost 11 (gasp!) Lots of Guitar Hero and swimming. Last Christmas, Mom gave my 3 youngest, inflatable whale floats for the pool. They got blown up last week and now I have Shamu's floating in the pool. It evidentally takes practice to stay on the floats and they easily become unbalanced. But the kids had a great time with them.
During the visit, we also started demolition on the dining room floor. It is now finished and looks beautiful. Greg, Will, James, Andy, and Allen did a great job. We moved all the furniture in yesterday. We now have to get pads to put on the bottom of the chair legs so they don't scratch the floor.
Sat. was our homeschool group used book sale. I went with $187 worth of books to sell and sold $132. of them. All of the big stuff is gone! Amy was thrilled that her math book sold.
Greg cooked us yummy ribs for lunch on Sat. He cooked 4 racks and we had some leftovers. Mack and Hershey love the bones and we had plenty of them.
Amy just got a call from our new Michaels Store and she won one of the prizes from the grand opening last week. She is bouncing off the walls with excitement, we will be driving up there today to get it. Its a scrapbooking prize worth $400. Can't wait to see what all it is! Will update later with prize details!
We are looking forward to a hot summer week. I declared no more school this month and we don't do school in July, so the scholars are happy (Katie does have the ACT this week). We are going to work on the floors, rearrange stuff, organize our belongings, and swim in our pool. And get ready for our Mission Trip to Oklahoma in 2 weeks. This will also give us time to get all our new curriculum and organize our next school year. Katie will be a Senior, Will in 9th and Amy in 8th. In 5 years, I will have worked myself out of a job. All the kids will be through highschool. Hummmmm, wonder if I will be any smarter?
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Pool Party
We had our 1st pool party of the year today. I have been on the Leadership Team of our homeschool group this year. I was the treasurer. I guess everyone thought since I "taught" the Dave Ramsey Financial Peace for our group this year, I could handle the account. I guess I did a pretty good job since I was "re-elected". OK, I agreed to do it again next year and no one else volunteered, so its my job again.
We usually have our leadership meetings at the local yummy McAllisters Deli. We have had some intense meetings that have lasted 2-3 hours. This was our last meeting for this school year and I wanted to do something fun. So we invited everyone over for a pool party.
Kim, Marie, Nora, Jeannie and Shannon brought their kiddies...John Thomas, Faith, Grace, Amanda, Branuen, Quaden, Shelby, Isabela, Max, Stephen and Carrie plus Katie, Will and Amy. Yep, 14 kids ages 2-17 in our pool and having a wonderful time. One of the benefits to homeschooling is that everyone is used to being with all different ages and they all get along. There were noodles, squirt toys, bubbles, and floaties. Many rides down the slide and lots of goodies to feast on. We even talked about a little "business" but not much.
It has been a great year serving with these ladies. Kim and Jeannie have decided not to be on leadership next year and I am really going to miss them.
We usually have our leadership meetings at the local yummy McAllisters Deli. We have had some intense meetings that have lasted 2-3 hours. This was our last meeting for this school year and I wanted to do something fun. So we invited everyone over for a pool party.
Kim, Marie, Nora, Jeannie and Shannon brought their kiddies...John Thomas, Faith, Grace, Amanda, Branuen, Quaden, Shelby, Isabela, Max, Stephen and Carrie plus Katie, Will and Amy. Yep, 14 kids ages 2-17 in our pool and having a wonderful time. One of the benefits to homeschooling is that everyone is used to being with all different ages and they all get along. There were noodles, squirt toys, bubbles, and floaties. Many rides down the slide and lots of goodies to feast on. We even talked about a little "business" but not much.
It has been a great year serving with these ladies. Kim and Jeannie have decided not to be on leadership next year and I am really going to miss them.
Friday, May 1, 2009
Yahtzee & No School Friday
Ahhhhh, its no school Friday today! Gotta love it!
After the cleaning chores were done, the kids and I sat down to a rousing, rip roaring game of Yahtzee. We tweaked the original game a little and played Triple Yahtzee. Do you remember that? They used to make triple yahtzee score cards and you simultaneously played 3 rows. My Dad and I used to play this. They don't make the triple cards anymore, so we just made our own.
There are advantages to playing the triple game...every roll can count in one of three columns. You have lots of chances for the major point rolls...3/4 of a kind, full house, small/large straight. And YAHTZEE! Pretty cool, Will and I both got 2 yahtzees!
Disadvantage is, it takes a long time to play.
About half way through the game Amy said "hey, this is math!" Well, yeah! But its fun math!
Watch out for cheating though...one of my darlings (who shall remain nameless) will write down whatever in any spot. If this person rolls a handful of junk, they will write it down anywhere on the score card whether it goes there or not. Ummmm, NO, this does not work. Ya still have to be vigilant even in Yahtzee.
At the end of the game, when all the columns are added up, then you add the 3 columns together to get the winner. Today, the winner was................drumroll please.............................ME. Of course the fact that I have been playing yahtzee for at least 30 years probably has more to do with me winning than any skill.
It was a fun hour and yes, it was Math!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
After the cleaning chores were done, the kids and I sat down to a rousing, rip roaring game of Yahtzee. We tweaked the original game a little and played Triple Yahtzee. Do you remember that? They used to make triple yahtzee score cards and you simultaneously played 3 rows. My Dad and I used to play this. They don't make the triple cards anymore, so we just made our own.
There are advantages to playing the triple game...every roll can count in one of three columns. You have lots of chances for the major point rolls...3/4 of a kind, full house, small/large straight. And YAHTZEE! Pretty cool, Will and I both got 2 yahtzees!
Disadvantage is, it takes a long time to play.
About half way through the game Amy said "hey, this is math!" Well, yeah! But its fun math!
Watch out for cheating though...one of my darlings (who shall remain nameless) will write down whatever in any spot. If this person rolls a handful of junk, they will write it down anywhere on the score card whether it goes there or not. Ummmm, NO, this does not work. Ya still have to be vigilant even in Yahtzee.
At the end of the game, when all the columns are added up, then you add the 3 columns together to get the winner. Today, the winner was................drumroll please.............................ME. Of course the fact that I have been playing yahtzee for at least 30 years probably has more to do with me winning than any skill.
It was a fun hour and yes, it was Math!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thursday, April 30, 2009
More signs of Spring/Summer
Ahhhhhh, the weather is getting warmer and we all want to be outside.
Here are some more signs of warmer weather...
1. Greg is barbequing alot. We have 2 grills and a smoker and they are working. I've already typed about how awesome the ribs were but last weekend he smoked a pork shoulder that was the best I have ever had! It was wonderful! That was dinner on Sat. night, lunch on Sunday and lunch on Monday. The rest was split up into 2 freezer packages for dinners later on. Super yummy! Last night he cooked pork chops (can ya tell we are on a pork kick?). So yummy! The grocery store has had some good "managers specials" on meat and we were able to stock up.
2. The garden is green and growing. Our corn stalks are about 3 inches tall. We have basil and bell peppers coming up. 2 tomato plants were planted in containers and they are thriving. The 2 square foot garden boxes of green beans are loaded with plants mostly about 6 inches tall. the blueberry bushes are growing and we have lots of little berries on them.
3. We bought 12 pounds of strawberries the other day to make into jelly. By the way, 12 lbs. of berries will make about 42 half pint jars of jelly. Will claims that will only last him a month. The berries are cleaned and pureed and frozen waiting for our canner to be delivered. Greg ordered us a pressure canner and it was shipped yesterday. We won't need to use the pressure for the jelly just a water bath to can it, but we will need the pressure canner for the green beans and squash and stuff like that. I would like to try making our own salsa and sweet pickle relish. We will have to see how ambitious we get. Our next preserving class is in 2 weeks and its on canning.
4. We are nearing the end of some of our school books. Katie will finish Algebra 2 today!!!!! Her average for the class is 96! Very good! She is going to do economics next and then Geometry in the fall. Amy and Will will be starting Pre-Algebra in the fall. We are investing in the Teaching Textbooks curriculum for all 3 kids. They can teach and explain everything and keep up with the grades...I will supply good lighting, a computer, notebooks, scratch paper and plenty of sharpened pencils. Yesterday was sign up for fall co-op classes for the next school year. Amy and Will are taking Physical Science and Beautiful Feet Geography. Katie will be taking Exploring American History. Hers will count for 3 grades since it covers history, bible and literature. We will be stimulating the Homeschool curriculum economy with our tax refund check when it comes.
5. Amy asks everyday to go swimming. She and Will went last Sat. and loved it. Granny bought Will a floating pool basketball game and they had fun with that. Today it looks like rain so I think swimming is out till the weekend.
6. The farm stands are opening in the area with some great produce. Also, the wheat order form came so we have to figure out what we will need for the next year...the order is once a year.
More economy stimulating going on.
Miss Katie will go back to the dr. on Tuesday, next week. We will go to the hospital first for x-rays and then to the surgeon. She has been exercising her foot everynight. She can move it up and down, sideways, and a slight circular rotation. Hopefully this progress will be enough so that we don't have to do rehab.
Thats all for now! Hope everyone has a great Spring Day! Gotta go do laundry!!!!!!
Here are some more signs of warmer weather...
1. Greg is barbequing alot. We have 2 grills and a smoker and they are working. I've already typed about how awesome the ribs were but last weekend he smoked a pork shoulder that was the best I have ever had! It was wonderful! That was dinner on Sat. night, lunch on Sunday and lunch on Monday. The rest was split up into 2 freezer packages for dinners later on. Super yummy! Last night he cooked pork chops (can ya tell we are on a pork kick?). So yummy! The grocery store has had some good "managers specials" on meat and we were able to stock up.
2. The garden is green and growing. Our corn stalks are about 3 inches tall. We have basil and bell peppers coming up. 2 tomato plants were planted in containers and they are thriving. The 2 square foot garden boxes of green beans are loaded with plants mostly about 6 inches tall. the blueberry bushes are growing and we have lots of little berries on them.
3. We bought 12 pounds of strawberries the other day to make into jelly. By the way, 12 lbs. of berries will make about 42 half pint jars of jelly. Will claims that will only last him a month. The berries are cleaned and pureed and frozen waiting for our canner to be delivered. Greg ordered us a pressure canner and it was shipped yesterday. We won't need to use the pressure for the jelly just a water bath to can it, but we will need the pressure canner for the green beans and squash and stuff like that. I would like to try making our own salsa and sweet pickle relish. We will have to see how ambitious we get. Our next preserving class is in 2 weeks and its on canning.
4. We are nearing the end of some of our school books. Katie will finish Algebra 2 today!!!!! Her average for the class is 96! Very good! She is going to do economics next and then Geometry in the fall. Amy and Will will be starting Pre-Algebra in the fall. We are investing in the Teaching Textbooks curriculum for all 3 kids. They can teach and explain everything and keep up with the grades...I will supply good lighting, a computer, notebooks, scratch paper and plenty of sharpened pencils. Yesterday was sign up for fall co-op classes for the next school year. Amy and Will are taking Physical Science and Beautiful Feet Geography. Katie will be taking Exploring American History. Hers will count for 3 grades since it covers history, bible and literature. We will be stimulating the Homeschool curriculum economy with our tax refund check when it comes.
5. Amy asks everyday to go swimming. She and Will went last Sat. and loved it. Granny bought Will a floating pool basketball game and they had fun with that. Today it looks like rain so I think swimming is out till the weekend.
6. The farm stands are opening in the area with some great produce. Also, the wheat order form came so we have to figure out what we will need for the next year...the order is once a year.
More economy stimulating going on.
Miss Katie will go back to the dr. on Tuesday, next week. We will go to the hospital first for x-rays and then to the surgeon. She has been exercising her foot everynight. She can move it up and down, sideways, and a slight circular rotation. Hopefully this progress will be enough so that we don't have to do rehab.
Thats all for now! Hope everyone has a great Spring Day! Gotta go do laundry!!!!!!
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Schooling your Children
This week Greg and I were listening to "talk radio". This radio station was interviewing the State School Superintendent. This man is the highest paid school super. in the country. Our state is ranked 49th for reading and math literacy for elementary grades and ranked 50th for reading and math literacy for 8th grade. Now remember, he is paid the most and the state is ranked at the bottom of the ladder. The interview was about accepting "stimulus package money" for Charter Schools. The super. has said that he hasn't seen any reports that charter schools work so he is not interested in them. Could a charter school be any worse than the 49th or 50th ranking...could we get any worse? OK, I guess we could be 50th for both. Then he went on to say that "he would be for anything that worked" (direct quote). Yeah, right, uh huh!
As parents in the United States, we have the right to educate our children however we choose. We can send them to public schools and there are some great teachers in the school system. I think the kids that do the best in the public schools are the average to above average learners. they fit in and go with the flow. We can send them to a private school, many advantages here...smaller classes, not as many politics as public school, and depending on the school-a Christian based education. Charter schools-I don't know alot about this, but from the interview I think this would be under the same policies and rules as the public school, but there must be some advantage to a charter school. Or Homeschool-every advantage here. No one will love, care for your children like you will. Parents have a very vested interest in their own children succeeding and learning.
I truly believe that it is up to each parent to decide what is best for their own children. I am very thankful that we live in a country where we have these choices available. What is best for my family, may not be best for your family. And your choice, may not be best for my family. There are pluses and minuses for each of the diffent schooling opportunities.
As parents in the United States, we have the right to educate our children however we choose. We can send them to public schools and there are some great teachers in the school system. I think the kids that do the best in the public schools are the average to above average learners. they fit in and go with the flow. We can send them to a private school, many advantages here...smaller classes, not as many politics as public school, and depending on the school-a Christian based education. Charter schools-I don't know alot about this, but from the interview I think this would be under the same policies and rules as the public school, but there must be some advantage to a charter school. Or Homeschool-every advantage here. No one will love, care for your children like you will. Parents have a very vested interest in their own children succeeding and learning.
I truly believe that it is up to each parent to decide what is best for their own children. I am very thankful that we live in a country where we have these choices available. What is best for my family, may not be best for your family. And your choice, may not be best for my family. There are pluses and minuses for each of the diffent schooling opportunities.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Battleship Park in Mobile
This was a fun outing. When we arrived and saw the school buses full of kids we were just a bit worried. It is definately no fun "touring" with unruly children, but we managed to avoid them. We did the battleship first, when we saw they were starting with the submarine (yeah). It was cool to wander all over this ship and explore. Thanks to a helpful worker who was cleaning on the ship, we found out how to climb up under and into one of the big guns on the deck....this was great. All 5 of us climbed up in the "control room" behind the big guns to look at the instruments, sit in the firing seats, and imagine the tremendous noise they must have experienced when the guns fired. (see the picture to the left of the 3 guns) We climbed and climbed many stairs to the different levels of the decks....narrow, shallow, steep stairs. And once you get up there...you have to climb back down. Funny, the doorways and stairs don't look that small and steep when you watch NCIS or JAG on tv.
When we saw the school group approaching the battleship, we quickly decided to go to the submarine. Greg opted not to go into the submarine, but the kids and I went anyway. Talk about tiny doorways and getting over the thresholds between each section. I had to have some kid help getting my leg over the threshold a couple of times. My goodness what close quarter
s, there was definately no place for a sailor to go if he needed to be alone and collect his thoughts. Everthing was compact and close together, you didn't have to worry about packing too much...there is no place to put it. They did try out a bunk and declared they weren't too uncomfortable. I cannot imagine being in the sub and knowing I was fathoms under the sea, especially if someone was firing torpedoes at us and trying to destroy us. Did they "standard issue" valium for these guys?It was a fun field trip for all of us!
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Field Trip
Today the kids and I went on a field trip to the Nissan Plant in Canton, MS. They don't do alot of tours and ours was scheduled through a friend of a friend deal. This plant has been burned by another "christian" homeschool group and wasn't real thrilled about setting one up for another group. the other group just never showed up for their scheduled tour and never called with any explanations. So, we were up against the reputation of a different group.
We were all there in plenty of time for the tour to start exactly on time (we were all fearful of casting a bad light on all homeschoolers, so we weren't going to be late). Our tour started with 2 short films about the plant and the painting process...they don't let you in the painting area. then we were equipped with safety glasses and headphones and boarded the trams. The tram drivers were great at explaining everything we were seeing and what all the workers were doing. Most of the assembly line workers stopped their jobs and turned and waved to all of us. We waved our way through that huge plant. It really felt like we were in a parade, we just needed candy to toss to the workers!
This plant manufactures 5 different vehicles including the Altima and the Titan Truck. The process from stamped autobody parts to finished vehicle takes about 16 hours. We saw most of the steps being done. One of the most fascinating was watching a cab and a truck bed being joined together.
After the tour, it was back to the meeting room for questions and answers. W had 2 tour group guides and they told us that we were one of the best behaved groups that had come to Nissan. Way to go kids. Our group was about 50 people and the kids were ages 10 - 18.
No pictures because recording devices of any kind were prohibited. And they didn't give any free samples...not even a voucher toward a new car! Does that sound fair? Doesn't good behavior count for anything?
We were all there in plenty of time for the tour to start exactly on time (we were all fearful of casting a bad light on all homeschoolers, so we weren't going to be late). Our tour started with 2 short films about the plant and the painting process...they don't let you in the painting area. then we were equipped with safety glasses and headphones and boarded the trams. The tram drivers were great at explaining everything we were seeing and what all the workers were doing. Most of the assembly line workers stopped their jobs and turned and waved to all of us. We waved our way through that huge plant. It really felt like we were in a parade, we just needed candy to toss to the workers!
This plant manufactures 5 different vehicles including the Altima and the Titan Truck. The process from stamped autobody parts to finished vehicle takes about 16 hours. We saw most of the steps being done. One of the most fascinating was watching a cab and a truck bed being joined together.
After the tour, it was back to the meeting room for questions and answers. W had 2 tour group guides and they told us that we were one of the best behaved groups that had come to Nissan. Way to go kids. Our group was about 50 people and the kids were ages 10 - 18.
No pictures because recording devices of any kind were prohibited. And they didn't give any free samples...not even a voucher toward a new car! Does that sound fair? Doesn't good behavior count for anything?
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Why Homeschooling?
I began my homeschooling journey 12 1/2 years ago with a 6th grader, a 2nd grader and a 5 month old baby. My 6th grader was in public school for 6 years and was diagnosed with ADHD and dyslexia. These were both pretty evident, but still hard for this Mom accept. I love to read and struggled and cried with this child who found it so challenging. His last 2 years in school were in a small, private Christian school. The smaller classroom size and less distractions were great for him. We were able to discontinue the medication for hyperactivity and he became much more confident. After Amy was born, I wanted to stay home from work and be a mommy. So, losing my income meant that we couldn't afford the private school tuition anymore. Putting him back in public school was not really an option for us. We had been told that he would be put in a "self-contained" classroom with other special ed kids and not mainstreamed into a regular classroom. That made up my mind quickly...homeschooling it was. Both boys quickly adapted to being at home and doing school at the kitchen table. We joined a support group and got to participate in lots of activities with other families.
Both boys played tennis and bowled on homeschool teams/leagues. We participated in Christmas craft fairs, field days, and they both went all the way through Boy Scouts (tiger cub to Eagle Scout). We went to homeschool day at 6 Flags in GA, made numerous trips to Disney World, and went to Space Camp in Huntsville, Ala. James was able to "catch up" his learning and graduate a year earlier than if he had been in a public school classroom.
Homeschooling is a 24 hour a day, way of life, not just an educational choice. This is something I didn't fully understand when we started this journey. You learn to get along with your family through thick and thin, good and bad, richer or poorer, etc. (kinda sounds like marriage vows). We have had the thin, bad (horrible) and poor times and sometimes they happened simultaneously. But we have also had many joyous, happy, fun, encouraging and family strengthening times. Praise the Lord, the good times are much more plentiful than the bad times. This togetherness is what Greg saw with me and my 3 when we made the move to Miss. He didn't understand homeschooling or what it involved but he watched and kept an open mind.
I would continue to homeschool and his would continue in public school.
Our first full summer, the younger 3 kids (Katie, Will and Amy) and I did a unit study on the 4th of July. It was very interesting and we found lots of resources on the internet to use. Do you know when or for what reason the Liberty Bell was rung at 2AM? (Hint: it has nothing to do with the beginning of the war.)
By the 2nd summer, Will had also joined our homeschool classroom. and by the end of the 2nd summer, Katie joined us too. We have had a great time learning and growing together. The 3 of them have formed a close bond and are friends as well as brother and sisters. Now, life is not all rosy and full of laughter...they still bicker and argue, complain about lessons or chores, etc. But on the plus side, they are learning accountability, staying on task, and loads and loads of history. Katie brought up her ACT score by 6 points the last time she took it and she will get to graduate a full year early. We can go at our own pace and her pace is faster than most. She is in her 2nd year at home and has completed 3 math books.
In our travels we have visited George Washington's Mount Vernon, John Adams home in Quincy, Mass, Thomas Jefferson's Monticello, James Polk's home and Abraham Lincoln's home in Springfield, MO. We have walked the battlegrounds of Antietem, Gettysburg, Shiloh, Brices Crossroads, Vicksburg, Chickamauga, and many others whose names have escaped me right now. We have seen coins being minted in Philadelphia and paper money printed in Washington DC. We have spent hours doing the Junior Ranger programs at the above mentioned places and many more. We spent 3 hours in FordsTheatre and honestly, just walking into that place can give you the chills. When we see anything about Lincolns assination on tv, we remember walking all over that theatre. We loved the Smithsonian Museums in Washington. The National Archives was very exciting....seeing one of the original copies of the Declaration of Independence. The National Art Gallery was unforgetable! I had a class in high school about different artists and one of them was Degas. Now I didn't remember the details of his paintings before hand, but they quickly flooded back to my mind, lets just put it this way, he doesn't paint clothes on people. We didn't linger long there. We toured the capital and the Library of Congress. And really cool, was our visit to the Supreme Court. Court was in session and we got to sit in on about 5 minutes of it. We have seen Niagara Falls, toured Williamsburg, Jamestown, and Yorktown. We have seen Plymouth Rock, Lexington and Concord. We have toured the Gateway to the West Museum in St. Louis, eaten fresh cheese curds and cherries in Wisconsin (yummy to both) and enjoyed almost every minute of our journeys. I say almost because we did do way too much on our first Wash. DC trip and ended up exhausted and with bad leg cramps. You can and cram too much into a trip.
The kids are now trying to convince Greg that when we study WWII that we should go to the Pearl Harbour Memorial. Hummmmmmmm, sounds good to me, but we can't float the RV across the Pacific Ocean. We would like to do Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon.
This year, the 5 of us are going to an Indian Reservation in Oklahoma on a Mission Trip and we are going to Disney in the fall. Most of our other trips are bonuses with traveling for Gregs work and I don't know what is in the plans for this year with that.
The biggest compliment I could get came 2 weeks ago when Katie and Amy both told me, they wanted to homeschool their own children. That made it all worth while!
I love being with my children, I love experiencing new things with them, I love working with them through problems and finding solutions, I love playing games with them, I love to hear what they learn and research (just because they wondered about something), I love their help on projects. We are a family designed and brought together by God.
I am very thankful for the freedom to homeschool my children!
Both boys played tennis and bowled on homeschool teams/leagues. We participated in Christmas craft fairs, field days, and they both went all the way through Boy Scouts (tiger cub to Eagle Scout). We went to homeschool day at 6 Flags in GA, made numerous trips to Disney World, and went to Space Camp in Huntsville, Ala. James was able to "catch up" his learning and graduate a year earlier than if he had been in a public school classroom.
Homeschooling is a 24 hour a day, way of life, not just an educational choice. This is something I didn't fully understand when we started this journey. You learn to get along with your family through thick and thin, good and bad, richer or poorer, etc. (kinda sounds like marriage vows). We have had the thin, bad (horrible) and poor times and sometimes they happened simultaneously. But we have also had many joyous, happy, fun, encouraging and family strengthening times. Praise the Lord, the good times are much more plentiful than the bad times. This togetherness is what Greg saw with me and my 3 when we made the move to Miss. He didn't understand homeschooling or what it involved but he watched and kept an open mind.
I would continue to homeschool and his would continue in public school.
Our first full summer, the younger 3 kids (Katie, Will and Amy) and I did a unit study on the 4th of July. It was very interesting and we found lots of resources on the internet to use. Do you know when or for what reason the Liberty Bell was rung at 2AM? (Hint: it has nothing to do with the beginning of the war.)
By the 2nd summer, Will had also joined our homeschool classroom. and by the end of the 2nd summer, Katie joined us too. We have had a great time learning and growing together. The 3 of them have formed a close bond and are friends as well as brother and sisters. Now, life is not all rosy and full of laughter...they still bicker and argue, complain about lessons or chores, etc. But on the plus side, they are learning accountability, staying on task, and loads and loads of history. Katie brought up her ACT score by 6 points the last time she took it and she will get to graduate a full year early. We can go at our own pace and her pace is faster than most. She is in her 2nd year at home and has completed 3 math books.
In our travels we have visited George Washington's Mount Vernon, John Adams home in Quincy, Mass, Thomas Jefferson's Monticello, James Polk's home and Abraham Lincoln's home in Springfield, MO. We have walked the battlegrounds of Antietem, Gettysburg, Shiloh, Brices Crossroads, Vicksburg, Chickamauga, and many others whose names have escaped me right now. We have seen coins being minted in Philadelphia and paper money printed in Washington DC. We have spent hours doing the Junior Ranger programs at the above mentioned places and many more. We spent 3 hours in FordsTheatre and honestly, just walking into that place can give you the chills. When we see anything about Lincolns assination on tv, we remember walking all over that theatre. We loved the Smithsonian Museums in Washington. The National Archives was very exciting....seeing one of the original copies of the Declaration of Independence. The National Art Gallery was unforgetable! I had a class in high school about different artists and one of them was Degas. Now I didn't remember the details of his paintings before hand, but they quickly flooded back to my mind, lets just put it this way, he doesn't paint clothes on people. We didn't linger long there. We toured the capital and the Library of Congress. And really cool, was our visit to the Supreme Court. Court was in session and we got to sit in on about 5 minutes of it. We have seen Niagara Falls, toured Williamsburg, Jamestown, and Yorktown. We have seen Plymouth Rock, Lexington and Concord. We have toured the Gateway to the West Museum in St. Louis, eaten fresh cheese curds and cherries in Wisconsin (yummy to both) and enjoyed almost every minute of our journeys. I say almost because we did do way too much on our first Wash. DC trip and ended up exhausted and with bad leg cramps. You can and cram too much into a trip.
The kids are now trying to convince Greg that when we study WWII that we should go to the Pearl Harbour Memorial. Hummmmmmmm, sounds good to me, but we can't float the RV across the Pacific Ocean. We would like to do Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon.
This year, the 5 of us are going to an Indian Reservation in Oklahoma on a Mission Trip and we are going to Disney in the fall. Most of our other trips are bonuses with traveling for Gregs work and I don't know what is in the plans for this year with that.
The biggest compliment I could get came 2 weeks ago when Katie and Amy both told me, they wanted to homeschool their own children. That made it all worth while!
I love being with my children, I love experiencing new things with them, I love working with them through problems and finding solutions, I love playing games with them, I love to hear what they learn and research (just because they wondered about something), I love their help on projects. We are a family designed and brought together by God.
I am very thankful for the freedom to homeschool my children!
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