Mom vs. the Dot: Making it COUNT!

My previous post may have seemed a little grim in its perspective, but like everything else in life, we have good days and bad days. Some of the most wonderful homeschool days are when I come home from work and my husband has just finished teaching them for the day.  He's so excited to show me what they covered and how well each child did.  One day last week, he brought out his photo album from his trip to Israel.  The biggest takeaway was that the kids got to hold a real, actual rock from the valley where David defeated Goliath.  Hulk Boy was seriously impressed, and my husband took the time to share a passion of his with the kids. When I came home from work today, they had just finished an exciting lesson in entomology.  My hubby had found a really different looking bug while at work one day.  It was dead, so he put it in an envelope and brought it home.  This morning, he dumped the little bugger out of the envelope.  After the girls...

Last week, I watched my kids participate in VBS, particularly the outdoor games.  My camera charger was in a different state at the time (imagine that!  at least i didn't forget my toothbrush.), so I couldn't take pictures, but I can still share what I saw with you. Simple organized games - the best was "Defeating Goliath" where they used a giant water balloon launcher to fling water balloons at a huge face drawn on white tarp.  Riot of a game.  Loved it! With help from an adult, each child was given several tries to bean the giant with a water balloon.  Some walloped it - bullseye!  Others shot too high or too low.  The preschoolers were allowed to take handfuls of balloons right up to the face and lob them.  The elementary-schoolers had to use strength and good aim to launch the balloons fast enough and hit the target. Because my kids are homeschoolers, a lot of our activities include just our 3 kids.  We usually have many trie...

( decorating the fridge to look like a snowman = fun! ) As promised, here are 3 Things I have discovered that make homeschooling a lot more fun and way less drudgery: 1.  REWARDS!!  What kids wants to do page after page of math work with no end in sight?  Or any other subject for that matter?  Last year, I started using rewards and have seen a great improvement in motivation to get the work done. Certificates - I bought these certificates at the Dollar Tree.  I think there are 50 for a dollar.  I set a goal for my child, and when they reach the goal, I write out the certificate.  We have different goals for each child.  Each goal is attainable, but they have to work for it.  I think it helps develop a good work ethic.  It's like working toward a paycheck or a raise.  Put in the work and you will be rewarded.  The certificate is worth $1.00 or can be cashed in for something worth a dollar. Some rewards they lik...

After talking with some knowledgeable people and reading lots of blogs, state education websites, and Overcoming Dyslexia by Sally Shaywitz, M.D., I have decided sending the letter is the right thing to do. As my hubby and I were signing it the other night, I said I was still nervous about it.  He said, "Honey, you've been writing this letter for the last 6 months.  I have full confidence in you.  Send it!"  Okay - point taken (had it really been 6 months?  yep, it had.)  My sister and my cousin encouraged me to get the ball rolling, too.  It was time. And so, this morning, at the crack of 11:00, I loaded up my sickly crew (2 of the 3 have some sort of nasty cold - yuck!) and we trudged through the slushy snow and biting wind to the minivan.  We made the short drive to our local teeny tiny post office, rounded the block until a spot opened up (there are only 3 spots available), and led my 3 little ducks into the building.  Everythi...

When I saw that our local college was offering a science fair for homeschoolers, I said, "Yes!"  What could be more fun than doing a science fair project?  I love science!!  And my kids do, too.  So I signed up. What I didn't think about was the amount of work that goes into a science fair project.  In fact, a week or two ago, I shared that we were going to do the science fair to a mother of much older children and she exclaimed, "Oh!  I hated the science fair!  It was awful!"  What was she thinking?  She's nuts.  This was going to be fun! Doing the experiment was great fun, but then you have to record results, make a display board, and practice the presentation multiple times.  Most of this only occurred after repeated encouragement that we were almost done.  This all took a whopping amount of time, patience, and perseverance. I think it took us about 3 weeks to get it all ready.  My kiddo could only handle 20...

What do you do when you homeschool and you are concerned that one of your children may have a learning disability? I have struggled for months, trying to decide whether or not to have my child evaluated.  I would have to send a formal, certified letter to our public school basically demanding that my child be put through a battery of tests to determine where the problem lies. I don't feel qualified to make this demand of my local school district.  I don't even know exactly what I'm asking for, or what I need.  When a child is in public school and his teacher notices he's having some problems, the special education teacher is consulted and testing may or may not follow.  It's all in house - easy peasy!  (I've never actually been through this process myself, but this is how I picture it.)  The support staff are there, the psychologists and special education staff are there.  This is what they do. When you homeschool, you have to figure it all o...

When I disappear from blogging for days at a time, know that I am with my family.  We are homeschooling.  We are going to see doctors and dentists.  We are at the library, church, or Walmart. Sometimes, ( okay let's be honest here )...almost every time I mention that I homeschool to a parent who sends their kids to school or to someone who is an empty nester, a strange expression and momentary, slightly awkward silence follow.  Most hold back what is ready to burst out of their mouths: "Why in the world would you want to do that?  Are you CRAZY?!!" Yes.  Yes I am. I'm crazy about my kids.  I take pictures and videos of them all the time (like most moms I know).  I buy them foods and snacks that I know they love.  (again, like most moms)  I let them dress in the style that is the most "them." I help them discover and pursue their interests. (yep, everyone does that, too). And then comes the clincher :   I spe...

Last week, we took a day off as a family to travel through history.  A whole lotta history! First, we visited the scale reproductions of the Nina and the Pinta, which were docked in Pittsburgh. I was amazed at how tiny the ships were.  I cannot imagine trusting these vessels to go through uncharted waters for an unknown length of time to a destination that may or may not be where the captain thought it would be.  Did you know that everyone except Christopher Columbus had to sleep on the ship's deck?   He had his own quarters.  Can you imagine having to tough it out on deck when it was storming in the middle of the ocean when all you wanted was a good night's sleep? Did you know his crew were a bunch of prisoners that had been freed to man the ship because no other crew members in their right minds would go on this fool's errand with Columbus?  When they had had enough of sailing endlessly with no land in sight they almost mutinied. ...

    "Why Do You Homeschool?" I can't tell you how many times I've been asked this question. And I can't tell you how many different ways I've answered it. I guess my answer has to do with...what are the really asking? Are they asking, "Why are you keeping your kids at home, depriving them of socialization ?" Are they asking, "Why don't you send your kids to public school?  It's what you're supposed to do. " Are they asking, " Why Would You Make Such a Crazy Choice? "  -or- Are they asking, " Why should I consider homeschooling ?" This evening, I was asked "the question" by someone who is part of a local PTA. She said they are trying to understand why people are taking their kids out of public schools to homeschool them. I knew that this woman was sending her two children to public school this fall.  And the other kids who were at our church event atten...

 Would you believe the first day of homeschool this year was taught by my husband? Yep - he's great! I work only 2 hours a week doing some filing at an office, and that happened to be Monday morning. I missed the first day of school.  Over the weekend, I broke out their books, opened new marker boards, and wrote out their first day lesson plans. My hubby ticked through them like a pro.  The first day teaching two kids?  He rocked it. So today (Tuesday) was my first day of homeschool for the year. I usually have all sorts of expectations built up that first day.  We're going to take on spelling, multiplication, learning to read, resetting the calendar, and climb Mount Everest!  I carefully scoured ebay, amazon.com, and publisher's sites this summer to choose just the right curriculum and products.  I excitedly unwrapped each precious package as it arrived in the mail.  With a gleam in my eye, I knew this year was going t...

Why, in this generation of the 20-30 somethings, are we doing these crazy things? Why have returned to having larger families? Why do we favor organic foods over all others? Why do so many families homeschool their children? In my opinion, from what I have observed, it is because we want to do it better . We don't want to settle for 2 1/2 children. We don't want to settle for truck loads of lab-based, over-processed, fake food. We don't want to settle for a one-size fits all education. We are done settling.  We want to do it better . We want to experience what is like to have large families, and we want to love on each child God blesses us with equally.  We want to help each child in our family to develop to their full potential.  We want them to be able to "discover themselves" in a safe, supportive environment.  We want to have as many as we can - we think children are great! We want to grow our own food - to experience the whole pr...

How many times have I (or any other homeschool mom) heard something or read something that made me wonder: Am I doing the right thing by homeschooling my children? I'm three years into the process and growing more confident each day that homeschooling is right for our family. And then... This week I spoke with a homeschool mom of seven, currently schooling the last of her children, who is in junior high.  Her summary of their experience after investing blood, sweat, tears, and years of her life?  "My older children say I've ruined their lives by homeschooling them." Ugh. We didn't have time to discuss the reasons why her children feel this way...so it left me free to imagine what went wrong, or which facets of homeschool they didn't like. The same things I wonder about on a weekly basis: Am I giving them enough social opportunities? Am I scheduling time for them to participate in big group activities?  (sports/games, choirs) Am I teachi...

When warm weather hits, I like to open the screened windows and let some fresh air blow through the house.  This is my version of spring or fall cleaning.  Let some of those dust particles float right outside, replacing the stale funk of closed-up house with that crisp, fresh outside smell. I also love bed sheets that have been air dried in the sun. Best of all, I love to air out my children.  When the weather has been rainy and cold and we've been stuck inside for days on end, we tend to get tired of each other.  The children are constantly bickering and picking at each other...and crying because so-and-so took such-and-such... When warm weather hits, we spend as much time outside in the sunshine as possible.  Boosting our vitamin D levels from the sunshine probably helps, but more than that, I think playing in wide-open spaces boosts our spirits. The weather man predicted that Tuesday was the last day of warm weather - perhaps for the year in our part ...