Mud Out

At the conclusion of our Creation Introduction in homeschooling I chose instead of starting into the remaining of our year-long session, to have a break day. We had a late night going with Daddy to our old campus ministry where he got the privilege of preaching the night prior. And we decided as a treat to attend the social event afterward, spoiling the kiddos with hot chocolate and a brownie. Consequently, our next morning started a bit slower. And since it was a Friday and a bath day we took a dive…. into the mud.

Now I’m not one to be thrilled about mud on the carpet, in hair, on your nice clothes, BUT I find myself overcoming my own “eww dirt” adultness and letting the kids be dirty kids…. on bath days… before bath. 😉

Needless to say, while the babies took their much-desired morning naps, the big girls experienced the mud… to the full.

It was fun. =)

October 7, 2013 3

Reporting from our Classroom

We have taken the dive head first into this year’s homeschooling. After deciding to wait until Hannah’s first birthday dust settled, we began our intro creation lessons for ten days. Like usual, I did some testing on day one of homeschooling to figure out my launching point. Some simple flash cards and games have been useful evaluation tools. Since kids are kids and some days they guess better than others, I like to repeat my “testing days” with a review game day thrown in every six weeks or so to see where the girls are falling in comparison to the State standards for their grade level. A this point our State does not require homeschoolers to show anything other than “marked progress” on their lessons, but I figure since my girls will be competing with the public and private school graduates for future jobs, I would like to stay informed about the competition’s standards.

That aside, it was neat to compare Rachael’s skills to her first testing days way back at 2.5 years old. I have expanded the original testing material (letters, numbers, oral counting, shapes, colors, etc) and just give each kiddo a shot at the material even if it’s the first exposure on test day.

But my Abi, she sincerely astonished me. I have only formally worked with primary and secondary colors with Abi. And yet somewhere in the mix my little absorber picked up identification of three numbers, six shapes, eighteen (18!!!) letters, and oral counting to 24. Um…. someone’s been listening while playing nearby. Abi may appear to be disinterested or busy, but that kid is soaking it all in like a sponge! And since we began homeschooling a week and a half ago she has managed to add three more numbers to her identification skills.

So I have had my work cut out for me. And they are starving for more and more. It’s so fun to learn alongside of them.

We’ve enjoyed our “My Father’s World” curriculum this year. Compared to last year’s Answers in Genesis preschool curriculum, I have enjoyed the more clear teacher’s schedule at a glance. It’s nice to have the week laid out for me and the total school day’s flexibility is a lot less hands-on for me, the teacher, and a lot more child driven. We’ve taken the opportunity to add on math workbooks to the curriculum, though. Because while the curriculum adds in Math gently throughout the lessons, it’s a bit too simple for my math hungry kids. And they really enjoy doing workbooks with colorful pictures. I also enjoy the opportunity to spend the one-on-one time with each of them when it comes to Math. Rachael identified her Math workbook as “real homeschool” when I first handed it to her. Hehe. And you should see their excitement when they complete the page! I’ve just gone to the dollar store and added the cutest and brightest workbooks I can find that address challenges for my girls but are also not over their heads. Then we do a page or two a day. When we come close to completing that workbook, I find a new one. Sometimes they’re themed (like Rachael’s Little Mermaid phonics workbook that she’s going to flip over when we begin adding it to the lessons) and sometimes they’re generic. But bright and colorful sells itself well in our little world. And the girls really enjoy going and getting their math workbooks, a pencil, and a lapdesk on their own.

Since we’ve been doing homeschooling while the babies nap, it’s provided many opportunities to spread out on the floor. While handwriting and more intense fine motor worksheets find us at the table, the girls have enjoyed learning from their bellies for much of our homeschool morning.

Less helpful Furry moment.

We also have enjoyed the craft-heavy Creation introduction of My Father’s World. The girls have LOVED cutting out magazine pictures, drawing, taping, and gluing until they stick to everything.

Yep, it’s been a wonderful start to the year!

October 4, 2013 1

The Medium of Homeschooling

We’re getting ready to start the homeschooling season again. We have taken the longest break ever from directed teaching due to the boys arrival being mashed in with summer. We moved from more focused academics to more play and discovery. But I have to be honest, I’m really excited to start back into a more directed study time.

Big Guy started school last week so that forced us to become more regulated and routined. Honestly, I am really happy about that. I love Big Guy, but the entire dynamic and hyperactivity level of this household takes a shift back into our discovery norms when he’s at school. Our days kind of slow down and become more natural feeling to me. It becomes less about burning a kid out and more about discovering our world together. I feel more calm because there are more opportunities for quiet in our household and for this introvert that is really important to me. Odd that four kids can feel quiet, but it really is true – especially during the babies’ morning naps. Things allot themselves more naturally to sit-down teaching in the morning and hands-on learning in the afternoon.

But one of the things I look most forward to during this school year is returning to reading. Reading a book on my own. Our missions reading before nap times. Oh our snuggling reading on the couch has stayed consistent throughout the summer, but just the calm of enjoying a good read – that I look forward to so much.

It was nearly impossible to instill missions reading over the summer, sadly. Big Guy’s attention span is very, very short. And reading to the girls before nap time always left Big Guy out since sitting in the hallway between the boys and girls’ rooms rocking my nurser created a very fussy nurser that I nearly had to yell over to read. Yeah… less calming.

Rachael actually leapt for joy when I returned to my rocking chair with a missions book in hand at nap time. “YEAH! Mommy’s going to read missions novels to us again!” She couldn’t contain herself. I love that she remembers that about me. I love that she, at such a young age, is already enjoying longer chapter books. And I have noticed that since I stopped reading to the girls at nap time, my Abi’s vocabulary hasn’t built as quickly… and her annunciation just flat-out needs work. Funny but reading aloud to her will help a lot with those things as she is more accustomed to broad vocabulary and listens to my sounding out foreign city names.

But really, even if it had no educational piece to it…. I just love sharing that time with them. I love talking about what God has done in and through people. I love learning, myself! And it’s also a helpful gauge for telling if Rachael is ready to transition from naps. If she can stay awake for the full chapter, then she may not need a nap that day. See, reading has MANY benefits. 😉

I’ve decided to begin homeschooling after Hannah’s first birthday. Summer has been a little hectic and draining, quite honestly, despite the large amount of fun as well. So I’d like to feel ready. I’d like to include Rachael and Abi in decorating the homeschool wall. I’d like to solicit their ownership of their portfolios this year, decorating the cover and putting the dividers in. I’d like to settle into a routine of reading and more consistent morning naps for the babies and in many ways healing from a wonderful, but long summer of greater demands on me for the enjoyment of the kids. I’d like to read ahead in our curriculum, get hyped up and have everything settled really nicely before day 1. And the beauty of homeschooling is… we can do that. We can afford to start our school year whenever we’re ready. Truly ready.

I love homeschooling. It’s a passion of mine. No it’s not for everyone. Yes, it’s draining, but the investment is really an utter delight. I LOVE sitting beside my children and soaking in their worlds. I love discovering life with them. I love hearing the Scriptures return without void. I love praying over their math problems, piano lessons, and puzzle play. I just love doing life with them. And I love knowing precisely what they are learning, from the books to the social interactions to the Scripture. No, it’s not for the purpose of controlling them. It’s for the purpose of training a child in the way they should go… that God would bless their paths to be more straight. I just love being a missionary to my kids. Oh and I pray that light would overcome their darkness, in turn allowing them to be light to the world and sisters in Christ.

So thanks be to God, for this season of preparation. Preparation of our minds and our hearts and our souls for all that He will teach us this year

through the medium of homeschooling.

August 20, 2013 0

Wordless Wednesday: Colorful

Mess and Bliss.

Great combo.

July 10, 2013 2

Encouraging the Label

This may officially label me a dork, but I just wanted to share…

I love homeschooling. I love seeing how far she’s come. I delight in her hack-job cutting showing signs of control. I thrill at her choppy pencil lines taking on greater form. It excites me to hole-punch her work and flip back through two years of building skill.

It’s breathing hope into our upcoming Kindergarten work,

It’s such a delight to sit down with my little blondie and count animals. Or be blown away when she correctly identifies colors and numbers. Things I’ve never formally taught her. Things she has absorbed with a light in her eyes.

I just love homeschooling. I love sitting beside them when the lightbulb turns on. I love overhearing my preschooler educating my toddler because she just can’t help but share her worksheets while I’m transferring laundry.

I love watching the mastery and encouraging the efforts pre-mastery.

I just love the slow mornings… just the three of us. While the babies nap and Big Guy is gone fulfilling the state’s requirement of public schooling.

I just love it.

I really just love it.

The paste and the rice play and the sharpened pencils and the crayons and the worksheets.

Yes, I’m one of those dorks.

And I won’t have it any other way.

What a blessing, indeed!

May 6, 2013 3

Homeschooling

I’m super due for a homeschooling post. We’ve been doing some fun things, but I’ve got to be honest, with the “twins” to balance amongst homeschooling instruction and catering to my two year old, I don’t always have time or hands to take pictures.

So soak in the rarity of these moments. 😉