Not Back to School Blog Hop: A Day in the Life

It is the final week of Heart of The Matter's Not Back to School blog hop. It has been an great month of sharing and learning with and about homeschoolers all over the world. Thank you to all the families that open their homes and hearts to the bloggersphere. This Blog Hop is a great database for new homeschoolers and veterans who need a little inspiration.

This week's theme is a Day in the Life. We're supposed to share what our average homeschool day looks like. We do not started school until next week, but I would like to share with you our plans.

I shared last week how this year was based on a visual plan. A way for us as a family to see where we were spending our time. The first draft did not have a lot of time to school.

So we downsized what we were doing outside the home to bring the focus in our the family and learning this year. If we find this schedule is to socially light we can add play dates and other activities to it later.

Key to being happy this year is to start the day with a plan. We have a schedule so then I pulled together my own planner based on the more complicated system from last year. It to was downsized to include monthly calendars, daily work plan with workbox numbers and subjects. I have a section for notes but would like a computer program to log in the books we have read.







So that's what our days should look like. Most importantly this year will be a focus on the students needs and the family needs. Blessings.

Not-Back-To-School Blog Hop: School Room Week

This is "School Room" week Heart of The Matter's Not Back to School blog hop. This gave me a personal goal put our room back together from summer break in time to share it.

We have officially been in our new home here a little over a year. We downsized with last year's move which has been a blessing and adjustment. You will be amazed how simple life can be with less stuff.

The desk we got for TS last year is growing with him and he has added his own decorative boy flare. Next to his desk are the workboxes waiting for work, his telescope for stargazing and crayons for drawing.

Across from that are some of our books which I finally colored coded over the summer.

We learned from last year that some studies can only be completed with minimal or no distraction so we incorporated the Concentration Penthouse upstairs. It is a nice calming space with a lot of sunshine for inspiration or concentration. The art on the wall is all TS's from his art class.

I built myself storage shelf in the basement and organized it by discipline. As the "Back to School" signs went up in stores, I grabbed the family and went through all our supplies. It was great to go through all of the school stuff as a family. We were able to bless a lot of families with our excess and only spent $20 on school supplies.

Have a blessed year everyone.

We have been so incredibly blessed with this move and look forward to an exciting year of learning. If you get a chance check out some of the awesome learning spaces at Heart of The Matter's Not Back to School blog hop.

2010-2011 Homeschool Curriculum HOP

Thanks to the good folks at Heart of the Matter for hosting Not Back To School Blog Hop. This always helps me organize my thoughts and plans.

So here we go……………….

We are introducing new math, grammar, spelling and History program this year. Also we are going to start to focus on more home education and a little less roadschooling.


This is our planned curriculum for homeschool for 2010-2011 2nd/3rd Grade Years:

Core: Five In A Row
Our primary curriculum will be Five In A Row Volume 4. I wanted to move to Winter’s Promise for a theme program because I simply didn’t have time to plan, print and organize FIAR this year. But after going to the local homeschool conference I realized that FIAR can work for us just modified. In the seminar about gifted children the speaker did warn changing everything from year to year. After the BIG MOVE last year where his whole world changed, I think we need to limit the amount of changes this year.

After much prayer we thought it best to leave the spine of FIAR but altered it to fit our needs. FIAR has a bible curriculum which I will be using and adding lapbook elements for scripture.

Grammar
Introducing Grammar with Winter’s Promise Language Arts curriculum and living books from the series “If you were” .



Mathematics
We are excited to start Right Start Math this year. The box arrived last week and we can’t wait to get our hands on the manipulatives.

History
This will be our first year of formal history study using the Story of The World program Volume I, Ancient Times. It covers history from the First Nomads, Egypt, the Jewish People, Abraham and Joseph, Hammurabi and the Babylonians, the Assyrians, Ancient China, Ancient Africa, Exodus, the Phoenicians, the Greeks and Rome.



Physical Education
We are enrolled in a Homeschool Physical Education co-op class, basketball class, swimming and martial arts.

Art
We are enrolled in a local co-op class and visiting museum exhibits throughout the year.

Music/Drama
We are enrolled in a local co-op class and taking part of in free concert/play venues in the area. The search is still on for individual instruction but we do have an at home drum program.

Science
We are enrolled in a accelerated local co-op class and visiting museum exhibits throughout the year.

I am so excited!!!!!!


You can read more curriculum plans and add yours at the Not Back to School Blog Hop.

Fun Fine Motor Skills

One of our summer projects was to work on TS’s fine motor skills. He does not like to color and has some difficulty cutting. This all can be traced back to an over critical and zealous Montessori teacher. Most of last year I incorporated clay, finger-paints, clothes pins and tweezers into our weekly schedule. This summer the goal was to focus on these skills daily. However, after attending the HOTM conference session entitled Teaching Boys and Other Children Who Would Rather be Making Forts All Day by Andrew Pudewa, those plans have been put on the shelf.

I learned that:

• Typical boys develop fine motor skills later than girls do. Most of the experienced homeschoolers in that session shared stories of young boys who were seven, eight and even nine before their fine motor skills matched that of girls their same age.If a boy is criticized about these skills, it takes years to build that confidence back.

• The only way to build that skill is to make it fun and not focus on the outcome but on the adventure of the process.

• As a homeschooler of a tactile learner, I need to embrace TS’s need for movement while learning. I have always fought this because I thought, “He needs to learn how to sit still, because all children sit still in school.” Yet again, I was reminded he is not “in school” and we have the freedom to educate him our way. Sure, he has limits but if he needs a break every 15 minutes to move, we break. If he needs to do math using a Twister mat, we use a Twister mat.

To that end, we have learned so much in the last ten days.

We found these great bumpy seat cushions at IKEA. He uses it at the dinner table and says it makes him feel "planted".

Then he learned how to snap his fingers. We are so excited because that is a fine motor skill and motor planning milestone for a six year old. He was so happy he snapped his way to his first blister on his thumb.

In honor of the Olympics and his love of everything Kung Fu Panda, we learned how to eat with chopsticks. YEAH! We got this little starter kit from a local Chinese restaurant and he has eaten almost all of his meals as well as snacks with chopsticks.

Nothing says "Yum-Oh" like cranraisins, pretzels and grapes.

Oh, we also made our first lapbook. Yippy! I will have to share that later I have to run and finish organizing our office for homeschooling fun.

Energized

The conference last weekend was powerful and life altering. There were too many “Ahh” moments to put in one post. I cannot thank the team from Heart of the Matter enough for their time, incredible talents and openness during this conference. The speakers were AWESOME. Here were experienced homeschooling parents who have followed their callings while educating their children. They spoke as both parents and professionals answering questions and even supplied their email for follow-up questions. The recurring theme was “You are not alone in this adventure. We are more than capable of educating our children. Homeschooling is a great adventure, relax and enjoy the adventure with your children. And remember to be Flexible.”

To that vain I have been reading suggested material, praying, planning and enjoying my child. I will post more later this week as when I complete my 2008 planning.

I leave you with this new fixture in my son’s room.

I am Loved.

I am wonderfully creative

I am safe

I learn and discover new things every day

I love to learn new things!

I am powerful

I have a place of stillness within me

I am whole and perfect just the way I am

“God within me is my power.” We are always loved and safe if we

only turn our awareness to the Almighty in prayer.

I am willing to forgive

God is always with us, surrounding us.

I am living a life of beauty, purpose and promise.

I am made in the image of the Most High

I Believe in Me