27th August, 2009
Organization Part I
I have a tiny house…a teeny tiny red house with crooked floors, a porch, virtually no closets, limited storage, and only one kitchen drawer. Although it sounds like a fairy tale cottage, sometimes it feels more like a haunted house from a horror film. OK, so I don’t actually have any ghosts…just two teenagers, a husband and too many clutter inducing hobbies that make my thousand foot sq house feel like it’s a mere 100 foot square. Mostly I just ignore the clutter and turn a blind eye to the mess. After all, we are all creative beings and usually have about 5 or 6 half completed projects on the go at any one time. We usually mange to kick the laundry out of the way with our feet and precariously balance our plates on our laps as we eat dinner (yes, the place is even too small for a kitchen table). We lived, if not in perfect harmony, at least in perfect truce with our home until the day my husband came home from the bank with the dreaded and heart stopping words, “HOME RENOVATION”. What would bring happiness and glee to so many others, managed to stop me dead in my tracks. My palms tingled…my eyes grew wide and my felt like screaming as I shakily tried to understand what my husband was trying to tell me. “What do you mean? You want me to pack up all our stuff in the porch and store it somewhere until you can renovate the porch into a laundry room and pantry?” I would have an easier time trying to stuff Mount Everest into a backpack. How am I going to get this done before we start school? We have tons of stuff in that porch. We have so much STUFF that I think the STUFF is now collecting its own stuff. How did we get this way…when did our belongings start owning us?
Posted at 4:36 pm | Comment (0)
10th June, 2009
Rats! A Homeschool Conference
I finally got to go to my first homeschool conference and now I am kicking myself for having missed sooo many previous ones. Of course, we always take along a few “friends” where ever we go. So let me present to you:
“The Rat’s Guide to Invading…uh, I mean, Attending Your Local Homeschool Conference.”
It’s very important to find out all the particulars. We checked out homeschool web pages and found that there was a discount if we pre-registered. We also checked out Kate’s blog to see if she was planning to go. She and her family were planning to attend so she offered to drive us all down to Sussex.
We checked the schedule and picked out our seminars. We also scoped out the vendor hall.
There were hundreds and hundreds of books.
We took lots and lots of notes. There was so much new information, we couldn’t have remembered it all.
Snack time…we are partial to peanuts.
A little snack in the middle of the day was essential to keep up our energy.
Shopping was great. The vendror hall was a dream! Too bad we don’t carry money…maybe we can borrow some from Kate…
Back to the sanctuary for one of the afternoon speakers. We’re learning that math can be fun! Lets count our paws…1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6…
Erik sat beside us during the talks…it’s nice to go with friends.
There was even time for questions and answers from our panel of speakers. I think our voices were too squeaky…they didn’t seem to hear us.
This young lady got an award for her heritage project. I wonder if anybody did their project on the history of rats?
Time to return home…tired, happy and hopefully a little smarter and wiser too.
Posted at 3:55 pm | Comment (0)
5th June, 2009
Looking back
Of course I am excited to be attending my first Homeschool Conference and not just because they have a speaker on Organizing your Life, the Universe and Everything. I must admit that I do have an ulterior motive in going to the HENB Conference…the Friday night keynote speakers are the parents of a good friend of ours (and homeschool graduate) and their topic: “Home Education – The Good the Bad and the Ugly” (In truth…what we’re glad we did…what we wish we’d done). Other than the desire for embarassing stories about our friend Owen, I am interested in hearing people’s evaluations of their homeschool. Too much, too little…more of this, less of that…a little reflection is good for the soul, I think…just enough to make us aware of our actions and not enough to inspire needless guilt.
I often wonder what our homeschool journey would have been like if I had only “known then, what I know now” but then I have to remind myself that we are not in the “behind”, but in the “here and now” and when all is said and done, I’m pretty satisfied with the end result.
Posted at 6:33 am | Comment (0)
5th June, 2009
Homeschool Dreamland
I’m sitting here in front of the computer at 7:15 am eating a Moroccan frozen dinner and counting down the hours until we leave for another “first” in my life…my first HOMESCHOOL CONFERENCE! I must admit to having qualms that it may be “too little, too late”. After all, Erik will be going into grade 11 in the fall and that means we only have two years of school left. I don’t think that I’ve messed him up too much…he’s a hard worker, reasonably polite, willing to try new things, even if he does occasionally talk your ear off about WWII. No, it’s not my concern for Erik’s education that has me driving half way across the province…it’s my other weakness. ORGANIZATION (or rather, a lack of it!) Yes, twist my rubber arm…simply tell me that you have speakers speaking on organizing your life, homeschool and house and I am transported into a dreamland of pristine kitchens with matching dishes, white-boards with chores neatly checked off and row upon rows of baskets neatly storing all my stuff. Of course my life is more like a nighmare of chaos and I have a niggling little feeling that I am doomed to become the crazy cat lady with 16 cats and suffer an ignoble death of being crushed by a towering pile of books falling over on to me, since there is no more room in the bookcases. Nevertheless, I continue to pursue the ultimate dream of a neat and organized house, with willing and cheerful family members fighting to take out the trash and do the dishes, while I produce highly educated children with a flick of my wrist. (Can you say “Mary Poppins”?) Ahhhh, daydreams.
Posted at 5:52 am | Comment (0)
23rd May, 2009
Science Day…igniting learning!
The large chip bag was rapidly emptied (he ate it in under 5 minutes) and was turned into a miniature hot air ballon. Then came the discussion of how to add hot air to the top. the feasability of various fuels were looked at and discussed. I vetoed gasoline and kerosene, but allowed him the opportunity to try fondue fuel and alchohol. He decided on an old fashioned fire using toothpicks, woodshavings and birchbark in a small tart-tin, attached to the bottom ot the chip bag. The experiment went well until the strings attaching the tart-tin to the chip bag also caught on fire and detached itself. He wants to try it again this weekend and he is now reading books on Zepplins/blimps and hot air ballons.
The next experiment was to make a paint ball grenade with vinegar, baking soda, tempra paint and a plastic “fuse”. I can’t wait to try that one out.
The last experiement was the easiest, but took the longest. Erik gathered some rocks, grass, etc… and made two islands in a plastic dish filled with water. He then gathered ants and introduced them into the new habitat, and procedded to observe them for quite a while, watching to see wether they would try to adapt. He discovered that they swim quite well, that they use their feelers to check out the water before they swim and that they will sit very still for a while after gettng out of the water. They also immediately started moving sand and dirt in an apparent attempt to start a new ant hill.
He can hardly wait to try new experiments next weekend.
Posted at 12:15 pm | Comment (0)
3rd May, 2009
The Hardest Lessons
Sometimes the hardest lessons don’t come in books. They don’t come with tests or answer keys. There are no teacher’s guides or pre-packaged curriculum.
Today, our family started one of these lessons. Around 8:00 pm we got a phone call that my husband’s mother had passed away. Our family must now learn how to grieve without losing sight of hope and God’s love. We must learn how to draw strength from our heavenly Father…to take joy in memories of happy times. I must learn how to comfort a grieving husband and our two children, and how to pray when words won’t come.
Posted at 9:41 pm | Comments (3)
1st May, 2009
Field trips
I have a friend who works in a living History museum. When I first mentioned that I homeschooled, she exclaimed, “Oh, I hope you’re one of the good ones”! “One of the good ones?” I questioned. Boy, did I get an earful. I was then that I realized that a rundown on some basic fieldtrip etiquette might be called for.
1. Find out all you can about the field trip before you arrive. This will help you prepare for both #2 and #3.
2. Decide whether it is age appropriate for your child or children. There is nothing worse than having a child that is too young to enjoy the trip, whine, run around and get them self into trouble. If your family has a stretch in age ranges, consider hiring a babysitter for the younger one(s), or bring a quiet activity along that they can do if they get board.
3. Dress appropriately, both for the activity and the weather. A cold and wet child can ruin a trip for the whole group. Make sure you bring a change of clothing along. Check footwear. Nothing causes a fieldtrip flop like a sprained ankle due to flimsy footwear.
4. Teach your children manners and respect. Teach them to listen quietly and to follow the rules. One of my friend’s pet peeves is to be speaking to a group and having some children using this time to socialize with each other and others wandering off and touching the antiques (after being asked not to).
5. Teach your children to respect other adults in the group and to obey them. There are occasions where a large group is divided into older and younger groupings. Parents will often have children in both groups and will have to choose which group to accompany. There is a lot of truth in the statement, “When Mom’s away, the kids will play”… Just because your children obey you, don’t assume they will obey other parents. Assign another parent to keep an eye on your kids and to report back to you. Once the kids realise that parental eyes are everywhere, they usually shape up.
6. Do some prior research before the field trip and write down any questions you may want to ask. This will help you get the most out of any fieldtrip.
7. Never underestimate the power of “please” and “thank you”. Manners are never out of date!
8. If food or samples are offered, please teach your child the meaning of moderation. Last week at church, my son brought in a plate of cookies and set them down on the counter. Within a minute, we witnessed one child come up and grab 5 cookies, which he proceeded to eat by himself, while other people had to share a cookie or go without. Bring a small snack along, like a box of raisins or a granola bar, if you think your child may get hungry.
9. Teach your child not to monopolize the presenter’s attention. A short comment related to the subject at hand is acceptable, but going on and on about the names of all their pets, what they did last weekend and the synopsis of their favourite TV show is both frustrating and annoying to both presenter and to the group in general. As well, even if your child knows the answer to every question, teach them to allow others to have a turn answering.
10. A big thank you at the end of the trip, tour or presentation is a sure-fire way to end the trip on a high note. A thank you card is a bonus.
Posted at 5:02 pm | Comment (0)
23rd April, 2009
Don’t Box Me In!
If there is one thing that frustrates me more than ever, it is our human desire to categorize everything. Occasionally I hear the question, “What kind of homeschooler are you?” By this, I take it they mean, “Are you doing this for religious reasons or do you not like the school system?” “Are you super overachieving homeschool mom driving your perfect children to extra-curricular activities from your spotless house or are you a back to nature hippy with organic vegetarian children learning how to weave and raise goats”. My answer…all of the above and none of the above. I don’t like aspects of the school system and I love being able to incorporate God into all we do instead of having to leave him outside of the school doors. My house is never spotless but we do a lot of driving to extra-curricular activities. We’ve raised organic chicken, goats and turkeys, and eat unhealthy nitrate filled foods. So what kind of homeschooler am I?
Answer: A loving and committed one!
Posted at 5:25 pm | Comments (2)
22nd April, 2009
“Free Advice”
At work, we have a little sign next to the circulation desk that says, “Free Advice”. Many times people will request it, so I will dole out a generous serving of advice with the following modifier: “Remember, it says free advice, not good advice”. Keeping this in mind, let me share with you my advice to those just starting down the home school path.
1. Above all else, teach your child how to actively learn. Teach them how to find meaning in what they read, what questions to ask and how to research. Invest them in the learning process and by the time they are in middle school/high school, your job should change from primary teacher to facilitator. As my son grew, our finances shrank and by the time he hit late middle school, I had to return to work full time. I was worried at first that homeschooling was over for our family but Erik begged to stay home for a bit longer. I decided that he might as well stay home until the school year ended and start fresh in the fall. Imagine my surprise and wonder when I realized that Erik simply took over his own schooling. Sure, I still gave him suggestions and asked him to do certain tasks, but all in all, I saw an improvement in both his scholastics and his attitude. Handwriting became a joy when he got to decide what he wanted to write. He wrote a 3000 word essay on a topic of his choice because he wanted to. I embrace my new role as facilitator and even though I now only work part-time , I would never want to step back into the teacher role and see my son lose the satisfaction of learning something new through his own efforts. I’m still there if he has a question or needs guidance. We have wonderful discussions on a variety of topics and we sit down every fall and discuss his goals and learning objectives…and on occasion, when I’m at work, I may get a phone call asking, “What should I write about today?”
2. One size does not fit all. You would not expect your child to wear the same size shoes for all his life, yet many people think that they need to stick with the same curriculum. If it isn’t broken, then don’t try to fix it…but if it isn’t working, then try something new. Sometimes home schooling requires you to think outside of the box. I have homeschooled for 11 years and discovered that what worked for my daughter did not always work for my son. Erik loved worksheets and Emily needed less structure. Erik needed movement and Emily needed music. When they were younger, Montessori worked well. As they got older, and I became more confident in my ability to teach, our style became more eclectic. Unschooling became the method of choice after I seeing the improvements in my son’s school work. Let your home school evolve.
3. Never stop learning !
Posted at 5:51 am | Comment (1)
22nd April, 2009
Public or home school?
I have been homeschooling for 11 years now. It’s all my son has ever known. Every year I ask my Erik, ”Do you want to go to school this year?” Every year, he’ll take a day or so and think it over, and answer, “No”.
“Mom”, he replied “I would probably enjoy the music class and shop, but if I went to public school, I wouldn’t be able to practice my music for 4 hours a day. I wouldn’t have time to work on my violin (he’s making once from scratch) or read as many books. I wouldn’t be able to go out on a plumbing call or work on my house plans. If I went to public school, I wouldn’t have time to learn.”
Out of the mouths of babes…
Posted at 5:46 am | Comments (2)