Update

The year 2015 is well under way and I'm doing a fine job of keeping busy.

Earlier this week I cooked and created 14 freezer-able meals which means for two weeks I don't need to really think too hard about what to have for supper. I take it that day's supper to thaw, put it in the slow cooker or oven and then I'm done. It's been a great way to reduce some of the late afternoon stresses that come when trying to decide what to feed the family. It also comes in handy when I need to play taxi driver and chauffeur my older kids to their various destinations.

Andrea and Arianna are doing very well in their schooling. They are both quite independent and motivated which makes for pleasant days and quick accomplishments of what they need to do. Andrea continues to work part time at a day home and we love that homeschooling allows this flexibility. She is also keeps busy with two worship teams, one of which she is the lead worshiper. Although there are weekends where both teams require her, she does a pretty good job of balancing the two. Arianna loves making videos with her iPod and has become quite good at what she does. She's also begun reading for pleasure which makes me very happy! Like Andrea, Arianna is becoming a good piano player and growing in confidence with her vocal skills.

Joshua finished his first semester of high school and began the second this week. Unfortunately because his core courses are not semestered, only his options changed and he's still pushing through. One of his new choices; German is his most enjoyed at the time. He still works at Wendy's on Saturday afternoons and this part time job has allowed him to purchase his first car.

Sarah continues to do things at her own pace. Because she is homeschooled and there's no extra support for special needs kids, I am required to look for find, find and create my own curriculum for her. This is not always an easy task for a main reason: I don't really know where she is developmentally. If I had to guess, I'd wager around three years old. Although in many areas, she is moving forward, I see other areas that have not really progressed. Her speech is coming along nicely and I'd guess that other people can understand her almost 50% of the time. The rest of the time, I need to interpret and there's also moments where even I don't understand her. Sometimes her brain knows what she wants to say but her mouth can't come up with the words quickly enough. This will lead to stuttering and at times giving up what she wants to say. I had purchased colored craft sticks and really wanted to find something to do with them. I found patterned printables online but the colors didn't match the sticks I had and the sizes didn't match up. So I took my own craft sticks, and using our 3D printer, I set up the sticks in various patterns and printed them out. The sizes and colors match exactly! I then laminated the sheets and they were done.

The other thing that Sarah began this week was her first "school" type book. I wasn't sure how she'd do with it but for the most part, I'm very impressed. She seems to understand that each object gets colored despite her not being able to stay in the lines. In the moment she remembers the color and we talk a lot about it but it doesn't seem to stick with her for very long. The book quickly moves into shorter lines and the alphabet so I'm not totally sure what will happen when we arrive at that junction. 

Most of Sarah's learning is still coming through play, iPad apps, and sensory bins. Occasionally I need to step back and take a deep breath to remind myself that what she is doing is okay. 

All in all, 2015 is starting out alright. We've managed a few colds (Sarah's lasted 3 weeks) but other than that have stayed quite healthy and I hope to keep it that way.

Enjoy your weekend!

School: My Thoughts, Views and Our Story

~ Homeschooling isn't just about academics, it's a lifestyle. 

And it's what we've chosen for our kids. ~

When Joshua was five years old, I began exploring school options for him. A friend of ours had been homeschooling their son who was a year older than Joshua and really encouraged me to try it out. The thought of it was overwhelming and so we ended up sending him to kindergarten that fall. The year was rough on him. He was frequently bored and spent much time away from others because he'd be done sooner than the others and would become a distraction. The teacher was fresh out of college and this was her first year. I had no idea what to do either and having the mind-set of "finish what we began", he endured the 10 months of kindergarten. I knew I had to do something different for grade one so I did some research and the next year, he was registered for school at home. He flew through the grade one books that I bought and it quickly became clear that moving at his pace was the way to go.

In the meantime, Andrea was in the same kindergarten that Joshua was. Her time in the classroom was alright but she had her first taste of physical bullying at the young age of five. I wish I was bolder and braver then because I wouldn't have made her endure the year. Why nothing was done, I don't know. Even though that is in the past, some of those memories still rise up in her. She too began the homeschooling adventure when she was in grade one.

The year was pretty busy with a grade two, grade one and toddler hanging out but we did it. Lots of reading together, writing and staying on target with their Language Arts.

I have tried lots of different home education formats. From being 100% aligned with the curriculum guidelines to the opposite end of the spectrum, being traditional to a blended program where the kids went to school twice a week and I homeschooled the other three days. For three and a half years, the blended program worked really well. Arianna was in grade one, Andrea grade five and Joshua grade six. In February of 2011, Doug and I made the choice to take the kids out of the school system and begin full time homeschooling again.

Since 2011, the kids have stayed on target with their math and LA skills. For science we did units on astronomy and social looked at some government and Bible history. Last year was a little different as Joshua was preparing to transition into the local high school. He did aligned courses in math, LA and social and did very well. He didn't do the science course. Was he unprepared for what grade 10 had to offer? Probably. Will he succeed? Absolutely.

Andrea is currently in grade nine. She is doing an aligned math curriculum and her LA skills will come out as she writes essays and reports on the medieval history lessons that she's reading about. For science this year, both girls are doing Anatomy and Physiology together. Arianna is working on grade five level vocabulary, spelling, reading and writing and her social is learning about the geography of Canada. Andrea intends to continue and complete her education at home. I don't know what that looks like today... I'm not looking at next fall yet. I also know her character and work ethic and believe with all my heart that she will succeed in whatever she does. If she choses to change her mind, then that will be okay but for now, I'm sure that she will do her high school years in the dining room.

Homeschooling the kids was not a choice that Doug and I made lightly. We prayed about it often, and still do. Until we feel led otherwise, we believe that this is the best choice for our kids and our family.