The first few days

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.