Soap in a Ziploc Bag

Today's lesson in All About Spelling involved me sealing dishwashing liquid in a zip-close plastic baggie.  :)

Z1 used his pointer finger to "write" the letters that make certain sounds on this baggie  So, for example, I would dictate the sound "s"  or "ch" and he'd "write" the corresponding letter(s) on it.   He loves how the "goo" feels.  I have to admit, so do I.  It's kind of relaxing.  

I'm going to do the same thing with some shaving cream as soon as I can get to the dollar store to buy some cheap shaving cream. 

Right here, right now.

In my last post I was struggling with the Right Start Math curriculum but I'm sticking with it.  Today's lesson (working with 10s) was actually pretty interesting so I'm encouraged.

Aside from that, we just started the All About Spelling program level 1.  It will be really easy for Z1 since we've covered much of the material (syllables and vowels/consonants) but I'm hoping it'll build his confidence and fill some gaps.  

Last Friday, I went down to NYCHEA's annual meeting at the ROC.  It took us over an hour on the train to get down there.  And then when we got down there, I realized that I could not fully participate since Z2 is just a touch too young to hang out independently with other children (he still hits and bites on occasion) but he is too old (and disruptive) to have stayed quietly in the meeting room.  So I didn't garner much from the meeting at all.  One thing I did hear a little bit more about was the Charlotte Mason method and I'm going to try to get some more information on it.  (Currently, my lean is toward classical homeschooling in the vein of The Well-Trained Mind.)  What I learned from the whole exhausting experience was that it is just not the time.  I have been struggling so hard to get us involved in groups and trying to get us doing things with other homeschoolers.  I have been repeatedly frustrated.  I am now accepting that when the time comes, building our community and getting the support I need will be simple.  It won't be exhausting.  It won't be frustrating or stressful.  As with everything else, I'm learning to be right here, right now.

On a different note, it was so exciting today!  At the library program we go to regularly on Tuesdays, they introduced a new thing.  We can now borrow bags full of materials (puzzles, coloring pages, puppets, books, etc.) all focused on a particular theme.  The theme of the bag we borrowed this week is "Community Helpers" which is awesome because one of the aims for first grade is learning about . . . you guessed it community helpers!  So that was a wonderful discovery!  And I'm reminded that for all the things I don't have, there are many things I do.  So I'm grateful!

So I'm feeling very positive about things right now.

Already learning . . .

I took the huge risk of purchasing the Right Start math curriculum for almost $200.  I wanted something that would be fun, interactive and hands-on while providing a rock-solid mathematics foundations.  It's extremely important to me that the boys develop a deep understanding of math--not just learning what to do and doing it.  I what them to really comprehend why they are doing things.  I think the program is wonderful in that regard but I find it tedious and dry.  Except for the games, there really is nothing fun about it and the materials are really drab.  

I understood it was a risk.  At this point, I kind of wish I had gone with the Math-u-See program like I was going to initially.  But I'm not purchasing anything else for this school year.  I have spent about $275 on curricula this year: Right Start and All About Spelling and that's my limit.  I would rather spend money on museums or classes than on curricula.

So, I'm going to make do with the Right Start math for this year, look into doing Math Mammoth (the free worksheets) and continue to use the School Zone Math 1-2 book I purchased some time ago.  

I'm not sure about purchasing math curricula in the future.  I may give Math-u-See a try but that's really about it.  I have decided to read (and perhaps purchase) Knowing and Teaching Elementary Mathematics to help me become more confident as a math teacher.  I will probably cobble together my own curriculum using many resources.  We really don't have money to waste and so I will have to be more self-sufficient in regards to curricula.   

Where do we homeschool?

The obvious answer would be at home.  But in reality, homeschooling happens everywhere.  Most homeschoolers can honestly say that the world is their classroom. 

But you have to have a control center!  And that, obviously, is the home.

Like I said in my previous post, we spend one hour daily, Monday through Friday on what I call table work.  The rest of our day is spent going places, playing games, reading or listening to stories and just living life.  I'm reminded that in traditional cultures, this is mainly how children learn. They just live life along with their parents. They learn by watching and then doing.  And as far as I can see, this is still a magnificent way to gain knowledge.  

But in our modern times we have the privilege and opportunity to learn about things that may be beyond the scope of our experience.  There are also things we need to learn just to function such as reading and writing.  And so we do take some time to sit down and focus on these things.  (This is my personal belief and I would not purport to represent all homeschoolers.  There are so many styles of homeschooling and people adapt and change their approach many times based on life circumstance and the personality/learning style of the student.)

We have a relatively small house but it is quite comfortable, accommodating all of us easily.  (Though I do not love the town we live in, I am falling more and more in love with this house as I work hard to make it a home.)  Anyway, the only place we have a table large and high enough on which to do work is in the kitchen.  The kitchen is the center of our home.  Always busy, always stuff going on.  So I've had to get creative about how to store things so that they are easily accessible to us when we're "doing school", i.e. sitting at the table doing sit-down work.  I will have pictures soon but right now, I'll just explain. 

I use the walls a lot.  I have many hand-written charts on the walls and doors held with mounting putty or clear sealing tape depending on the surface.  Our alphabet chart is on the fridge.    I have the kids' magnetic calendar hanging on the wall next to our family planning calendar.  I would love for it to be lower but Z2 would definitely make a big mess of it.  I just take it off the wall and bring it to the table when we're ready to do calendar work.

On sentence strips on the top half of the back of the door, I've written out Z1's biographical information: address, phone number, country, name, etc . . . Our number chart is on the bottom half of the door.

To store our materials, I have a wide, clear 3-drawer cart.  It holds a lot of stuff so I've removed the wheels to make it more stable.  I don't move it around anyway.  The top drawer has arts and crafts supplies: glue, crayons, markers, pipe cleaners, glitter, etc.  The middle drawer is the math drawer: flash cards, parts of the Right Start curriculum, counting blocks, etc.  The bottom drawer is for handwriting/reading/spelling.  I guess I could call it the literacy drawer.  

On the table, I have four black plastic magazine files.  Here I store the books and notebooks that we use everyday.  One file is for Z2: sticker books and stuff pertinent to his learning.  The other 3 are for Z1: one for math, the other for literacy and the last for science/social studies. 

I'm pretty pleased with the set-up.  I am constantly thinking of ways to improve it.  I wish there were some way to have their books in the kitchen with us but we really don't have any more space in there.  But I'm thinking.  Even if we can't have all their books, there might be a way to display a few that I'd like to really focus on for the week or month.

When I tell people thaI really enjoyed going to school as a child, they often express surprise that I would then want to homeschool.  They don't understand that for me, school represented a proving ground, somewhere to show what I was worth--not knowing that I was priceless just because I am.  I didn't think learning happened anywhere else but the classroom and I was hyper-focused on doing well there.  I didn't realize until after I left school that there is so much more to education than what happens sitting at a desk at school.  I'm thrilled to be able to give my kids a different experience.  So while we do have a classroom of sorts set up in our house, I'm working hard so my children will understand.

Where do we homeschool?  Wherever we happen to be. 

Weekly Recap (09/20-09/24)

I am going to make it a point to post to this blog every Sunday.  I am confident I can keep up with this resolution.

So this week past was the second week that we have been consistently doing work, officially doing kindergarten.  I am still learning and sometimes it gets frustrating.  But I'm determined to really pay attention and learn what works best for us.

I had the wonderful opportunity to watch a vlog on YouTube about one family's homeschooling approach.  I encourage you to watch.  This mama's blog (Well-Trained Homeschool) is also listed on the sidebar and I really enjoy reading it.  Many of her ideas about homeschool mirror mine.  I'm learning, however, that based on my children's personality, I may have to modify things as we go along.  

So currently, we are doing an hour of sit-down work daily.  I start with the calendar.  Z1 crosses off the date and then we recite/go over the day of the week, the month, the date and the year.  I write it on triple-lined paper and he copies it.  We've also been practicing writing his first and last name.  We also do one letter from the Handwriting without Tears program (wet-dry-try and then writing in the workbook/coloring).  

We then move on to reading.  I've been using some resources from this site.  I also found an old-school reader at the thrift store for $0.19 that I will give a try.  Most of the time, we just read one of the books we've borrowed from the library for 10 minutes or so and then I ask questions.  But I don't necessarily trust myself to ask effective questions so I've been looking around to find some kind of program that I could use.  I did find Headsprout but I would not like to spend $100 on it right now.  Plus, I found it kind of boring (although Z1 liked it).

After reading, we move on to math.  Like I said, I purchased the RightStart Math curriculum and so far, so good.  I started at the very beginning of the program and it's basic for Z1:  he already knows most of it but it's a great review and a good way for him to familiarize himself with the tools the program uses such as tally marks and the abacus.   Also, started at such a basic level increases his confidence.  He thinks he rocks (and he does)!

So this is basically what we do daily.  For social studies, I am keeping it very informal.  Learning about how our neighborhood works and all that.  For science, I really don't know what to do so I think I'll just stick with the typical course of study for kindergarten and go through topic by topic, planning to cover everything by the end of the school year.  I'm keeping my eyes open for an amazing curriculum or something to come along.  I just place More Mudpies to Magnets on hold at the library.  I'm excited to see what it offers.  

My biggest challenge right now is getting Z1 to come to the table and do work.  Like most everything else I ask him to do, he complains and grumbles.  When we finally get into it, he enjoys it but it is like pulling teeth to get started.  I feel like I am forcing him and I don't want to do that.  The other day, I was being laid back about it and told him we needed to do some work that day and that he should let me know when he was ready.  It seemed like he would never be ready.  Eventually, I just had to bring him to the table by telling him that he couldn't play his Leapster all day and not do work.  So I'm just not sure what to do about that.  Generally, if we're going to do work, I'd prefer to do it in the morning while I have the most energy and patience.  I can get some housework done after and then we can head out of doors in the afternoon.  So I'm really meditating and trying to figure out where to go from here.

As for Z2, he sits at the table with us most of the time.  We work on letters, numbers, colors.  I let him play with clay or color or cut up stuff.  Sometimes he works at Starfall.  I try to make him feel included and to involve him as much as possible.  This way he doesn't get bored or interfere with Z1's learning.

So that's it for this week. 

School Starts Monday!

We are officially starting school this coming Monday after taking July and August off.  The school kids in our town start Monday as well so it just seemed like a good time for us to start.  The boys won't see any kids hanging out outside because they'll be in school!  

So let me share what we're going to be doing.  

Math

I was deliberating between Math-u-See and RightStart Math.  After reading tons of reviews, I'm going with RightStart Math.  I'm hoping and praying Z1 takes to it because it was pretty expensive.  My main thing was that many of the reviewers said it was fun for their children and they really enjoyed it.  I really want math to be pleasant for both of us.  Heretofore, it has not been.  I also have a 1st Grade math workbook and a workbook on time and money that I'm sure we'll be able to use for extra practice if we need it.

Social Studies/History

I am using the Year K Guided Journey at Lesson Pathways.  The first lesson is "Community: Where You Live" and this unit lasts one week.  I hope to get some books at the library on Tuesday that reinforce the lesson but I want to be more on top of things and get supporting books the week before.  I'm sure he will enjoy mailing something to himself!

Science 

We are doing the Year K Science Guided Journey.  The first lesson is "What is a Scientist?" which will take another week.  We'll be working on Social Studies and Science twice a week on Tuesday and Thursday.

Language Arts

We'll be doing the Year 1 Language Arts Guided Journey.  The first lesson is Bed in Summer.    We'll be working on Language Arts daily.  Z1 is actually a very strong reader so in terms of phonics and reading, we will just continue to borrow a wide variety of Level 2 and 3 books at the library.  I also have a spelling workbook and we'll probably complete one page daily.  I may purchase the All About Spelling curriculum for him though.  We will see.  

To start school each day, we will do some copywork combined with learning the calendar.  He will write out the day and date each day.  As his writing improves, we will do more copywork (poems, passages, etc).  Once a week, we will do Handwriting without Tears, Level K-1. 

Music

Z1 will be taking violin at the same church he took Kindermusik lessons.  Z2 will be taking Kindermusik lessons again.

Physical Education

Z1 will be taking basketball on Saturdays at the YMCA.  We will also be going on weekly (short) hikes.

For Z2, I've got sticker books (for learning numbers, letters and shapes) and I'm going to be following Brightly Beaning Steps to Reading Program Preparatory Curriculum.  Lesson #1 is about cows/calfs, the square shape, the letter A and the number 1.  Z2 will probably do a lot of coloring and puzzles.  He's 2 after all!!

So that's the plan.  I'll be modifying as we go along (of course).  I'm hoping to establish some strong homeschool ties for us this year.  We'll be headed into the city much more often and I'm considering enrolling Z1 in a class at The Roc.  I'm intimidated by the price but it might be well worth it. 

A good place

Z1 is now reading. I mean, really reading.  He surprises me often with just how naturally reading comes to him.  We've been using Hooked on Phonics which has been a great program for him but honestly, he is moving way faster than the program.  We're still using the program just to solidify the foundational aspects of reading but he is solidly into Level 1 reading books (which is first grade).  I am also pleased with his ability to comprehend what he reads.  He reads on his own without having to be prompted.  Z1 will be 5 in August so this is all very awesome to me!  I am an avid reader and I would be lying if I said it didn't excite me that it looks like Z1 will also be an avid reader.  I would be so happy to have engendered a love of reading in him!

For the past few weeks, I have been taking Z1 to the White Plains Library where they have a story and craft time particularly for older kids.  The drive is a bit long (20 minutes) especially since I am usually in White Plains again on Thursdays but I think the program is so worth it.  Like I said in my previous post, I feel like I have been lacking in the arts area and so this helps to fill in the gaps.  Aside from that, I bought a few art supplies to have on hand and I hope that encourages me to at least do little art projects.  For example, we made some flowers from paper and pipe cleaners and Z1 really enjoyed that activity. 

Our science unit on rocks went well although I feel like it's incomplete.  I lost steam but we were at least able to go out into nature and study rocks.  We've mused on the different types of rocks and talked about it.  It was a good introduction on the pre-school level to rocks.  There's one experiment I want to do (making an island) but the issue is carving out time to do it. 

And on the issue of time:  I have been finding it so difficult to get schooling in because of all the other things I have to do to keep the household running.  I am now staying consistent with doing schoolwork before and after meals.  I feel like I am not able to focus as much as I would like to before meals but Z1 is able to do workbook type stuff or practice his handwriting.  I realized that I really have to prioritize schooling and I think that when he is officially kindergarten age, I will become more strict about certain mornings being devoted to school. 

I have moved all the schooling materials into one rolling 3-drawer bin.  It's good to have everything together in one place although I intend to buy smaller trays to organize the bin a bit better.  I put all kinds of posters and things up on the wall in the kitchen so now it really looks like a learning environment.  I put up the calendar (which I'm trying to do with Z1 consistently) and other learning tools like a word wall and posters about reading rules and money.  Also, the week's spelling words are up. 

About spelling words, I think I'm going to have to wait a bit on going all out with spelling words until Z1's handwriting catches up. 

Last night after dinner, we played addition Bingo which was a lot of fun.  We'll definitely do that more often.

So that's really all that's been going on.  I think we're in a good place right now and moving forward.