It is officially day 4 of homeschooling today, and I am really looking forward to it. My worries have all been eased during the past 3 days. My son really seems to be a natural at all of this, and apparently, somewhere deep inside, I seem to be a natural as well.
We tend to do schooling in the evening hours so that my son has run out most of his energy for the day, and the work seems to tire him out from working his mind so much that he's ready to go to bed within about an hour or two of getting done, which gives just enough time to relax and watch a few educational videos on YouTube (he finds them entertaining, so it's a plus-plus).
I'll admit that the first two days tired me out more than they did him, or at least it would seem that way... I was ready to go to bed before the kids were. By day 3, I got enough in the flow to do my dishes (a bit of a feat for me). I just have to remember that this is all about proper time management, and if I work really hard at it, it can be done.
We start the school day with coloring... First letter worksheets, then numbers. After that, I switch between reading books, shape and color worksheets, mazes, puzzles, matching and size worksheets and games, flash cards, art activities, and a few more things. I try to mix it up since he seems to get bored if we do the same thing over and over. He was already able to count from 1 to 10 and name a few colors and shapes before we started homeschooling, so we can skip a bit ahead.
His younger sister (the oldest of the 3 girls, and a year younger than him) is watching him work and picking up on everything. Last night when he was done with his school work, she went over to his desk and said, "Okay, Mommy... Now it's time for me to learn." She's been picking up on all of the things that I have been teaching him, and can count from 1 to 10 and name a few colors and shapes, so I'm thinking of printing out duplicate worksheets and starting her in Kindergarten this year as well. I just need to go out and get another desk and chair before I start her schooling... The dining room table would be a bit of a hassle, as my 2 year old can easily reach it, and I know (from experience) that she will grab and destroy anything within her reach.
We are not using any certain curriculum, as we cannot really afford it. I have found many websites that have free printable worksheets on them, and have done endless hours of research about homeschooling and ideas for kindergarten children (crafts, activities, teaching styles, curriculum outlines, field trip ideas, and more), so I'm just going with the flow and working with what I have. I may buy curriculum sometime in the future, but I'm not planning on it for at least a few years.
I'll do a Friday or Saturday wrap-up (depending on when I have the time). It's time for me to get off of here and start getting things ready for the day.
"Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase." ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Five days to start
I guess I should start by introducing myself... I am Rebecca, a happily married mother of four wonderful children. I am a homemaker, and planning on homeschooling all of my kids. I will begin homeschooling my oldest (my son who is five) in five days, and, as the name of my blog states, it is a leap of faith on my part.
I always wanted to be homeschooled as a child, but as my mother was single and working overnight shifts for most of my childhood, it just wasn't possible. Now that I have children of my own, I have thought it through, and I feel that homeschooling would be best for them. I can't see any downsides to it... They will be able to have a God-centered education, I will be able to teach them in whatever way best suits them, we can focus on subjects that interest them rather than working on a strict outline, we will be able to spend more time together than if they went to public or private schools, and it will save us money. There is also proof that homeschooled children tend to score higher on tests and learn faster because they can move at their own pace, and their teacher can work with what is best for their style of learning rather than what fits into certain time constraints.
I do have to admit, though, that I am rather nervous about all of this. No matter how much I want it, I just can't get past the nagging question in my head... "Can I do it?"
Will I be a successful teacher? Will I be able to teach my children to read and write, and how do I go about beginning? I would join a homeschooling group in my area, but most have meetings, and seeing as all of my children are five and under, it would be extremely difficult for me to make any of the meetings.
I have gotten my supplies together (my husband thinks I'm overdoing it, but I just tell him that he doesn't understand). I have gone crazy buying books on eBay (I think I have bought about 80 total), bought an immense amount of art supplies, stocked up on writing paper and pencils, and printed out a large amount of worksheets (one per subject per day). I don't have the finances to buy certain types of supplies, so I have made them instead. I made a calendar on posterboard (printed out the months, days of the week, and numbers up to 31, drew squares on the posterboard, and bought sticky tack to hold all of the information on). I also went into the paint computer program and made my own wall hangings for the letter, number, shape, and color of the week along with a "What is the weather like today?" wall hanging. I have drawers and a desk... I believe that I am all stocked up.
My only fear now is the first few days... Making sure that I can handle it all and be productive in it. My son is begging to learn; He's actually asking me every day when we start school. I have been singing the ABC song with the kids, as well as "Ten Little Indians" and "Five Little Speckled Frogs". The two oldest (four and five) know "Ten Little Indians" by heart, and near know "Five Little Speckled Frogs"... Those will translate into counting from 1 to 10 and subtracting by 1 from 5 to 0 later on.
My blog will be about our journey in homeschool... The trials and errors, success stories, ideas we have come up with (crafts, field trips, learning tips, and more). I will try to update at least a few times a week, but may struggle at first as I learn to balance homemaking and homeschooling.
"Every tomorrow has two handles. We can take hold of it with the handle of anxiety or the handle of faith." ~ Henry Ward Beecher
I always wanted to be homeschooled as a child, but as my mother was single and working overnight shifts for most of my childhood, it just wasn't possible. Now that I have children of my own, I have thought it through, and I feel that homeschooling would be best for them. I can't see any downsides to it... They will be able to have a God-centered education, I will be able to teach them in whatever way best suits them, we can focus on subjects that interest them rather than working on a strict outline, we will be able to spend more time together than if they went to public or private schools, and it will save us money. There is also proof that homeschooled children tend to score higher on tests and learn faster because they can move at their own pace, and their teacher can work with what is best for their style of learning rather than what fits into certain time constraints.
I do have to admit, though, that I am rather nervous about all of this. No matter how much I want it, I just can't get past the nagging question in my head... "Can I do it?"
Will I be a successful teacher? Will I be able to teach my children to read and write, and how do I go about beginning? I would join a homeschooling group in my area, but most have meetings, and seeing as all of my children are five and under, it would be extremely difficult for me to make any of the meetings.
I have gotten my supplies together (my husband thinks I'm overdoing it, but I just tell him that he doesn't understand). I have gone crazy buying books on eBay (I think I have bought about 80 total), bought an immense amount of art supplies, stocked up on writing paper and pencils, and printed out a large amount of worksheets (one per subject per day). I don't have the finances to buy certain types of supplies, so I have made them instead. I made a calendar on posterboard (printed out the months, days of the week, and numbers up to 31, drew squares on the posterboard, and bought sticky tack to hold all of the information on). I also went into the paint computer program and made my own wall hangings for the letter, number, shape, and color of the week along with a "What is the weather like today?" wall hanging. I have drawers and a desk... I believe that I am all stocked up.
My only fear now is the first few days... Making sure that I can handle it all and be productive in it. My son is begging to learn; He's actually asking me every day when we start school. I have been singing the ABC song with the kids, as well as "Ten Little Indians" and "Five Little Speckled Frogs". The two oldest (four and five) know "Ten Little Indians" by heart, and near know "Five Little Speckled Frogs"... Those will translate into counting from 1 to 10 and subtracting by 1 from 5 to 0 later on.
My blog will be about our journey in homeschool... The trials and errors, success stories, ideas we have come up with (crafts, field trips, learning tips, and more). I will try to update at least a few times a week, but may struggle at first as I learn to balance homemaking and homeschooling.
"Every tomorrow has two handles. We can take hold of it with the handle of anxiety or the handle of faith." ~ Henry Ward Beecher
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)