Our first year of homeschool is complete!

We finished Pre-K 4 today! We are planning to take the rest of this month and July off to just read a little and play a lot!

Thomas started out knowing very little and now my boy is reading and even writing in cursive! I am so proud of him.

I am thankful to have had this year to explore homeschooling without a lot of formality, rules or regulations. We took almost a full year to complete the school year. There were several "life happens" weeks where things were stressful for one reason or another and we just chose to table homeschooling for a while (knowing we had plenty of time to complete our work) and other days when we just didn't feel like homeschooling so we didn't.

The beauty of homeschooling is that we are not ruled by the "attendance lady" and don't have to worry about excused or unexcused absences. If one of us was having a bad day, we could just not do school. I hated the days when I knew I was setting one of my older kids up for a bad day at school by sending them because it would have been an unexcused absence. Who wants to get a ticket for truancy? Ugh...

The scary part of homeschooling is that if you aren't too careful, you can fall behind and catching up could be a real bear. I have seen this with a friend...life happened, they fell behind in school and catching up was exhausting. Thankfully I am pretty disciplined in general.

All in all this has been such an amazing year. I have loved spending the morning with Thomas and KK teaching them everything from their ABC's to stories from the Bible. Who would have thought that when reading about Abraham taking Isaac up to sacrifice him that I would get choked up just thinking about the horror Abraham must have felt and wondering if I could do that with Thomas? Or when teaching the kids about Mary washing his feet with the perfume from her alabaster box I could sing CeCe Winan's song "Alabaster Box" to them and they could understand (at their age level) what that song meant?

I am so thankful and feel so blessed to be a part of their journey through education...God has blessed me, my gratitude runs deep.

Next year I will be homeschooling BOTH Thomas and KK. I will definitely have to be more disciplined and focused but I KNOW that I will be doubly blessed!

Thanks for reading...until August! ♥

Thinking about next year...

Blogging has taken a back seat to "life" lately though I plan to try and keep up with it. Its history for the kids and who knows...maybe something I say will be profound. :)

I will be ordering next years curriculum on Tuesday. I am exciting to see what Kindergarten holds for Thomas' little mind and if I am honest, a little apprehensive about teaching Kaleah. My sweet baby gets anxious when it comes to "new" things and when she gets stressed, she shuts down. Where I am sure everything will be fine (it is only PreK4 after all), it will be different teaching both kids and not just Thomas.

This year was our trial run and Charles and I have spent a great deal of time talking about homeschool vs public school (or charter school) and we both agree that for our kids, homeschooling is the way to go. Homeschool isn't for everyone but it is for us.

My plan is to hunker down and stay on schedule...staying disciplined is harder than it looks especially when it is beautiful outside! Yet...I have the two cutest students on the planet who deserve a teacher that will do her very best. I am looking forward to it!

I took a little break from blogging about homeschool because we got just plain busy and I was trying out one thing or another to see what worked best for our family and well...I forgot all about it. There you have it. :)

The good news is that everything is going well. Thomas is reading three letter words, he had a hard time with his blends "hu..le..fi" etc but once he got it, there was no stopping him. Handwriting frustrates him and I am not sure why. We don't stress over it as he is only in PreK4, we have plenty of time to get it right.

As I work with Thomas on his daily work, KK happily colors. She stays very focused on her color page, you would think she was writing a thesis or something. It it adorable.

The kids always enjoy Bible time...many times I will look up from reading their story to see them holding hands as they listen. Thomas likes to talk about the people in the pictures (Abeka has a great Bible program) and KK turns every Bible person into a princess or "mer-mate".

What I have learned that for the Kibbles, we need to stay in a routine. Doubling up one day...taking a few days off for whatever reason is a nice option to have but we just function better if we plan our days around homeschooling than homeschooling around our days. There will be days when we have to make exceptions but Thomas just has better days when we stay on a regular routine so we are going to work hard to make that happen.

Homeschool parents, I would love to hear about your favorite math program. Abeka math bores us silly...we are on lesson 81 and only on the number eleven. There are only so many ways to make numbers exciting. Thomas can count to 100 and can identify numbers in the 20's and 30's by site. Should I just buy 1st grade math instead of Kindergarten next year?

I continue to love homeschooling...it is so wonderful to watch my little ones minds work. I can see why teachers love what they do.

Week 7!

7 weeks completed!

Week of 9.10.12

Monday: All caught up! We are at a place in our curriculum that was very repetitive and no new paperwork so my OCD can calm itself. Teacher mommy is getting BORED with the numbers 1-6! I find myself having more and more respect for teachers who have 20-25 children…oy! I do love it though. I look forward to school every morning! 

We started working on “blends” today. It was made clear to me that the more fun you make class, the better kids like Thomas focus. When I was just teaching him the blends, he really didn’t apply himself. When I turned it into a game where he would get an animal to put on the ark for each correct answer, he became much more interested the blending the letter “t” with each vowel.

Today during our Bible lesson, Thomas remembered that Abram lived in “Ur”… I was happy to know that he was indeed listening since last week just seemed to be a little off. Then he closed our school day in prayer apologizing to God that Abram and Sarai headed to Eeee-GIP instead of staying put where God had sent them. It was precious.

Tuesday: I am wishing that I could get a handle on the days that Thomas just isn’t his usual self. We had such a good day yesterday but today was another story. I was talking with a friend of mine who is also using the Abeka program and we agree that there is A LOT of repetition. I wonder if Thomas is getting bored? Math is a breeze for him…blending consonants and vowels takes a little effort…handwriting is getting there albeit slowly.

So I must rise to the challenge of keeping him engaged and using my imagination to keep Thomas interested.

Wednesday: Woohoo! Changing things up made a HUGE difference in our day! We started with Bible (which we usually do last) and then threw paper plates on the floor with numbers on them and had Thomas running all over the room looking for a specific number and I was sorting laundry as I had him running all over creation. SCORE!

Thursday: Good homeschool day today! Getting imaginative with learning games has made for a great school day! Today during Bible we were talking about Lot leaving Sodom. When Thomas saw the picture of his wife turning into a pilar of salt he said “look mommy…her Crocs came off, she doesn’t have shoes on!” How I love my little boy!

Friday: The end of week 7! It is hard to believe…Thomas is having a high time searching for numbers written on paper plates and putting them in order. KK just runs around the room shrieking, laughing and picking up whatever plate Thomas passes by. It is a hoot but we get our math done. Fun times!

Weekly synopsis: I just find myself thanking God every day for the opportunity to be “Teacher Mommy”. This is the good life!

WEEK SIX COMPLETED (sort of)!

Monday: Today was a bit of an “off” day…we are all a little tired from Kaleah’s birthday celebration last night. We had load of fun but are paying for it this morning!

We got the minimum done and called it a day. Bible review time was a hoot. Thomas and Kaleah could answer most of the review questions for Genesis. We were talking about Noah and Thomas said “They were ugly to Noah and God. They got in the water and they DIED in the water!” He was rather dramatic about it all.

We are looking forward to taking it easy today!

Tuesday: We had to have afternoon school today due to an appointment we had this morning. I really prefer to have school right after breakfast; we all seem to do better…even Teacher Mommy!

We were studying about Abram and Sarai and Thomas saw a picture of a lamb being sacrificed on the altar. Thomas became quite frustrated and asked “what did they put Jesus on the fire for?” Thomas is really getting the whole “Lamb of God” idea…I love it.

Then we were working on phonics and I pointed to a picture of a cat. I asked “what letter is this and what sound does it make?” and of course I was looking for the vowel sound “a” (short sound) and Kaleah said “meow!”

Wednesday: Nice day of school today…Kaleah seems to need more to keep interested while I work on school stuff with Thomas. Coloring is getting boring to her. I may order the Abeka Pre-school kids curriculum just to keep her interest. We are only six weeks into this and I have 24 weeks to go.

Thursday: We didn’t do school today…life got away from us so we will have school on Saturday to make up for today. I love not having to send an “absence note” to the school!

Friday: Yet another slightly off day but we have no new material and Thomas has a GREAT grasp on what we are working on. I was going to try and double up today but there were too many distractions (guy banging on our door to tell us our water would be out, my boss calling and needing something done right away and Thomas not feeling really great). We can catch up tomorrow.

We celebrated “Six Weeks of Homeschool” by taking the kids to “Old MacDonald’s Farm”. They sure had a good time but oddly enough, they didn’t go off to play like I thought they would. They just wanted to hang out with mom and dad…then there was the deer that “snotted” into KK’s hair. She was ready to go after that!

Saturday: Life happened so we didn’t play catch up on Saturday. I will double tomorrow and go from there. Though we started much earlier than most, I don’t want to make it a habit of skipping a day here or there unless absolutely necessary.

Weekly Synopsis: Routine…routine…routine. This is what works best for us. This week has been full of distractions and it shows. I really need to make sure and keep to routine as much as possible. Some variances cannot be helped but there are those that can and it’s time to get disciplined. I forget that I am about 4 weeks ahead because we started so early. I need not stress over a rough day but it is clear that routine is best for us all.

I still see that both Thomas and Kaleah want to be in the same room with me throughout the day. Thomas is content to sit in my office as I work with his Nintendo or coloring book. Kaleah too likes to near me at all times though she was that way before homeschool started. I think this can be good and bad, I want the kids to be independent thinkers and doers yet they are 4.5 and barely 3 years old so being with me gives me the opportunity to teach them and be a proper role model. I am hoping to find other boys for Thomas to play with…most of my friends with young boys either work or put their boys in MDO. Hmmmm

Week 5!  

Monday: Fun morning to say the least. Thomas’ handwriting really scares me but he is trying. He is writing his name on his daily worksheets now and always forgets the “h” for some reason. He is coming along though! 

Today during Bible we were reviewing Genesis. Thomas still thinks Adam and Eve had “Cain and Aiden”! He was spot on as to what happened to Enoch though. I asked what made Enoch different and he said “Enoch walked with Jesus”…close enough for a 4 year old! When I asked him if Enoch died, Thomas said “no…Enoch went straight to heaven!”  I know he is listening and absorbing...what a cool feeling.

I have The Beatitudes on the refrigerator for me…Thomas has decided that he wants to learn them. We are going to learn one Beatitude each week. 

Tuesday: Fun morning…apparently the kids were up too long without school in Thomas’ mind because he said “Mommy, I need school to start now!” Mornings are hard for him but as soon as school starts, he sits nicely (for a 4 year old) and participates fully. A good school day will usually set the tone for the entire day especially if we get our exercise in.

We were reviewing our lesson on Enoch and when I helped them name Enoch’s son name by saying “Me…”, Thomas piped up “Mefooosalahhh.” Then Noah’s sons Ham, Shem and Japeth became “Jam and Hapeth.” So precious… 

Even KK is getting things. I asked today who the Lamb of God was and she said “Jesus!” Can I get an amen?

Wednesday: What a wonderful morning…nothing out of the ordinary, well maybe. Both kids were happy and content even BEFORE school started. Thomas usually has rough mornings but he was a happy camper as soon as he opened his eyes.

We are studying Noah’s Ark right now and Thomas wanted to know why Noah was being mean and not letting the people who didn’t love God into the ark after the rain started. When I told him that God closed the door and not Noah, he wanted to know why God was being mean. Once I explained to Thomas that these people had ample time to turn away from their wickedness and toward God he understood. Thomas just doesn't like MEAN. This, my readers is one of the very reasons that we chose to homeschool. Thomas is many things but mean isn’t one of them. I want the sweet spirit in him to stay as it is. ♥

The concept of asking permission has FINALLY caught on with Thomas and he is doing such a good job. It is so sweet hearing him say “May I have…” and then see this big smile on his face because he knows he made his mama proud and he has increased his chances of getting what he wants!

Thursday: We are taking homeschool with us today as we need to be out and about today. I will have some down time so I packed up our school stuff and it is coming too! I love the flexibility of homeschool!

Later: I am thankful for the flexibility of taking homeschool with us but the setting wasn’t ideal. We were in the lobby of our church and where there was plenty of room for us to do what we needed; there were a lot of distractions as well. This may become a weekly occurrence for us but I know that we will be allowed access to a classroom if needed.

Friday:  The last couple of days either during Bible class when I was teaching the kids about the people who were ugly to Noah and mocked him regarding God and even when we were watching “Beauty and the Beast” and the villagers were being mean to Maurice the Inventor, Thomas looked at me very seriously and said “Mommy, even a child is known by his doings!” Thomas is quoting Proverbs 20:11 which was one of his memory verses!

Thomas seemed a little distracted today…he didn’t seem to have that “focus on” button that he usually does. He got all of his work done and participated but not with the usual zeal that he has. Of course I don’t expect every day to be a 100% kind of day so we press on.

Apparently the Tower of Babel story is not as interesting as the Creation or Noah’s Ark. It didn’t hold either child’s interest at all. We are going to do “Monday” tomorrow and stay a day ahead so that we can take Friday off for a field trip and be right on track.

Weekly synopsis: Charles and I were talking last weekend about some friends of ours…she wants to homeschool, he would prefer that their child go to a “real school.” Charles said “I will talk to him and about it.” I had to stifle a giggle because Charles was not “anti-homeschool” but wasn’t really in favor of it either. Now that we have seen just how much both kids have learned in just four short weeks, he is 100% on board!

I was sharing with someone that the kids could answer questions about the Trinity and this person said “but you know they really don’t get it”…well of course not, yet when the light comes on, it will be information already ingrained in their little minds so when their hearts/spirits catch up the foundation will be solid. I think they “get it” more than one would think they might. ♥

We will have completed our first six weeks next Friday! We will celebrate by taking the day off from school and going to the Children’s Museum. Thomas and Kaleah have never been to the Children’s Museum so it should be a lot of fun

Week 4!

Week Four!

Saturday: We are having school today so that we can take Monday off as Thomas has an eye appointment and we have a date with Ashley, Kaleah and anyone else who wants to join us at the Chocolate Bar where we will eat ourselves silly because it’s my birthday! My last year in my 40’s, let the good times roll!

Last night as we were having school, we were talking about the Trinity. I said, “The Trinity is the Father...the Son and" KK pipes in: "THE MOOOOOON"!

Thomas says “I can’t do it” when it comes to writing letters by himself. He can trace like a champ and loves to trace the big flash card letter with his finger. Give him a pencil and paper (even with the “road” looking line) and he kind of blanks out. So I told him today that if he did a great job tracing the letters, I would let him do his seat work with a color pencil. He was very excited and chose the blue pencil today. I hope this works!

Tuesday: I think we were all glad to get “back to school” today having taken yesterday off. We had a wonderful day but the kids and I like routine. Thomas’ “a’s” are the most legible of the letters he is learning to write. I think he is going to be a doctor. J I told him today as he was writing are awesome!” to which he replied “yes, I AM awesome!”

He had the opportunity to apologize to Kaleah for some reason this morning and my heart was made happy. “”KK, I’m sorry”….”I give you” replied Kaleah. Sweet and precious exchanges between the two of them that just bless me. Kaleah also announced “Thomas is my brudder.”

Wednesday: It is amazing how school seems to settle Thomas down. He is a lively young boy (and that is putting it mildly!), yet he will sit in his seat and focus on school (as much as a 4 year old can be expected to) for 30 minutes to an hour. Of course he has his moments so I am going to implement a “marble system”…3 marbles per school day…act up and you will lose a marble and if you lose all of them there will be no sticker. The number of stickers he ends up with at the end of the week will dictate his “Fun Friday” treat. So “losing your marbles” is not a good thing (thank you Liz Tims for this idea!). 

Yesterday and today we read about Cain and Abel. When I reviewed the story and asked Thomas what they names of the brothers were he said “Caiden and Aiden”… Thomas was very irritated with Cain for giving Abel a “boo-boo” and when I told him that Abel died, he wanted to know if Abel died on the cross…I am thinking we have Jesus plenty ingrained into Thomas’ sweet heart!

Thomas is at the age where he wants to color everyone a picture and have his pictures displayed all over. It is so precious. As big as our house is, we don’t have enough wall space to accommodate his desire!

Thursday: We got a late start today as I needed to do some running around with Ashley. I prefer to start no later than 9:00 homeschooling.

Thomas does better with routine (Teacher mommy too) and he was pretty cranky as we started. He lost a marble before we even got started but then sucked it up and got through the pledges and the school day proceeded well.

Kaleah didn’t quite make it through school today as we ran into naptime; thankfully Charles was home and put her down for a nap so that we didn’t have to interrupt Thomas’ class time.  Kaleah still thinks the Trinity is “The Father, The Son, and the Mooooon”, I just crack up every time she says that!

When Thomas writes, he likes to be on his knees in the chair and have his upper body leaning on the table. I don’t know if it is his vision or just the way he likes it. Homeschooling parents, how strict do I need to be about posture? I have never seen a businessman on his knees with half of his body on his desk. I think it is safe to say that this is something he will grow out of. Just how important is sitting in the chair in a seemingly uncomfortable position?  

I also made the mistake of leaving the room briefly while the kids did seatwork…my fruit snack incentives disappeared! Thomas confessed before I even made it back into the kitchen. Goofy kid.

As I type this, Thomas is coloring his picture of Enoch and singing “My Country Tis of Thee”…so sweet. ♪

Friday:  Fun day today though Thomas lost all of his marbles within the first 20 minutes of class! He hollered, “I DON’T WANNA LOSE MY MARBLLLLLLLLES!” as he was sent up to his room to gather himself. It didn’t take long for him to pull himself together and school went on as usual. 

As we were working on our memory verse Thomas said “Unto thee oh Lord do we give Stanks!” I nearly fell out of my chair. 

Then we were talking about Enoch and his son Methuselah. I told the kids “say Methuselah” and Kaleah said “the Foosa”….I wonder if we have watched the movie “Madagascar” too many times?

Weekly Synopsis: Hearing the kids say the pledges and the Lord’s Prayer really blesses me. KK will be playing and just talking to herself and I will hear bits and pieces of one pledge or the other. It is precious.

I chose the Abeka K5 Bible program because Thomas knows the Bible well for a 4 year old and we plan to use it for two years. There is a part of me that thinks it is too advanced for even kindergarteners, the concept of the Trinity is hard for even some adults to comprehend. Yet the kids love the stories and even Kaleah stays interested. It will be so neat to see how much they have comprehended when we go back over the curriculum next year.

Preparation…preparation…preparation…next year I will pay closer attention to the teaching materials and begin cutting out little pieces before the school year starts. Abeka has the neatest teaching games and such but you have to cut out these tiny little game pieces. I would have paid more for them to at least perforate the pieces. Thankfully it is early Saturday morning as I type this and the kids are still sleeping as I cut…and cut…and cut. J

I have learned over the last four weeks that I am cut out to homeschool the kids. It was a scary undertaking but I love every minute.