And Gabe? Slow and steady wins the race. :-) He's home to get stronger on his basic academic skills which we felt were getting lost in the public school system in the midst of classes on getting along and spelling "words your way." (That's actually the name of the curriculum they had been using! As if you can make up however you want to spell a word!)
We can't imagine the insanity of having all of them in school while going through Violet's surgery last week and this next month. Talk about craziness! We've been able to concentrate on what really matters each day...sometimes it's reading and math and sometimes it's physical healing.
People have asked me what a typical day looks like for us. We start around 8:30 each day and start with devotions. We follow with spelling taught together. They split up for a personal Bible class. Gabe is studying the book of Matthew and Mia is working through a Junior Catechism. Violet has a simple devotion calendar she works on. Then the kids begin Language Arts and Math. We're back together to finish up with History and Spelling. We're studying the History of the World in a four year cycle, beginning this year with Ancient History. We've mummified a chicken, created clay tablets, made faux stained glass, and more as projects that correlate with what we're reading.
My goal this year for Violet was to "fill in the gaps" I was noticing in vocabulary. Things that weren't obvious. I decided to use Five in a Row as her language arts curriculum because it is centered on classic children's books that I wanted to make sure she got to enjoy before it was too late. Books like Make Way for Ducklings, Ping, Madeline, The Little House, The Snowy Day, Owl Moon, and more. As we read the books, I'm able to stop to make sure she has heard all of the words before and define any she hasn't yet learned. We read the book five days in a row and do thematic learning projects that go with the books. For example, we start Owl Moon next week. We'll be learning about the phases of the moon, doing watercolor resists that mimic the style of the books artwork, learning about owls, sketching owls from the bird collection at our local library, watching videos about different owls and finish with an owl puppet project. What first grader wouldn't LOVE to do those things? Then, of course, there's still math and spelling, etc. She is progressing so well in her reading with this simple approach to reading that we are thrilled! During Advent, she was able to lead our family in our Psalm readings some nights and read directly from the Word. There's nothing better than that!
Mia is a fantastic reader so she is enjoying chapter books. I have her reading "junior classics." They are abridged versions of Pollyanna, Black Beauty, Anne of Green Gables, and so on. She loves them. She also likes to join us for the Five in a Row. Even though she reads on her own, it's fun to snuggle with mom on the couch and listen in. :-)
I rotate in a gentle grammar curriculum, as well. The girls memorize poems with it and are learning to identify parts of speech. It's too simple for Gabe, so he works from a primer I found that was used in the early 1900's. I love the vintage artwork in it. I love that it demands attention to detail and doesn't shy away from classic literature, like Longfellow and Whittier. He loves that the squirrel matches the Duck Dynasty notebook he picked out to write his work in. It says, "Squirrel brains make you smart on the front. Eat Squirrels." Ahem.
If we work REALLY hard, we can finish by lunch, but if we have a bigger hands-on project, we're often working in the afternoon, too. At 1, we have a Silent Reading time. Every day, they make little "reading nest" (their choice) somewhere in the living room. Blankets, pillows, and stuffed animals are all arranged for comfort. Each of them has their own reading basket that holds the books they've picked at the library that week. And then....it is BLISSFULLY SILENT FOR ONE FULL HOUR. I try to read the textbook for whatever class I'm currently taking during that time, but sometimes I just take the hour to read whatever I feel like because moms need a break, too!
Last night, Randall and I talked about how the homeschooling is going. We don't know how long we'll homeschool. The plan is one year at a time. It's what was needed this year...and to be honest, we are really excited to see how much better they're progressing academically at home than they could at school....and i am not blaming schools....it's just easier at home to learn at your speed without waiting for peers if you already understand something or to slow down if you don't. However, the prep time is enormous. Creating the education I would like them to have takes hours each week for me, not counting the daily time to teach them. It's tough taking grad classes on top of it all. So, we'll see.
Right now, this is my ministry and I love being able to do it.
Oh! And the other question I get asked all the time is whether Randall helps at all. The answer is ABSOLUTELY! He's a great principal. And he works right up the hill! :-) We don't find we need that much because the kids are so happy to be home and they mostly enjoy what we're doing (except long division because WHO likes that?!) Randall homeschools the kids nearly every Friday on his day off and I spend the day working on my own homework. He knows exactly what we're doing in almost every subject and has hopped in several times when I've had dr appointments and such. He helps pick curriculum, too. What I most appreciate is his willingness to be a sounding board for ideas and his absolute 100 percent joy in seeing what the kids create and learn.
I'm so glad we went for it this year!
