Homeschooler's chatter - week of 1/26

[Valgal]

Good morning, girls!

I thought we could start off by introducing ourselves and our families. My name is Val and my dh, John, and I have been married for 17 years and have 3 kids. My boys are 16 (one bio and one is adopted) and are jr's in public high school. Awesome, straight A students. My dd is 12, her name is Eden and she is in 7th grade. She's the one I'm going to start homeschooling again.

I homeschooled my bio kids when they were in 7th & 8th grades (ds) and 3rd & 4th grades (dd). I pulled Eden out of our middle school after Christmas break this year because of anxiety issues. Never thought I'd be homeschooling again!

 

[adi&co.]

I never thought I'd be homeschooling period, haha! I'm Adrienne (but I go by Adi). Hubby Sabin and I just hit our 8 year anni last month. We have 3 kids, Marcus (7), Jamesen (5), and Gemma (2). Marcus is in 1st grade (his communication issues made me hold him back so he wasn't the youngest in the grade and he'll now be the oldest in the grade) and Jamesen is in Kindy. Like I said, Marcus has communication issues and needs to have one on one teaching. Jamesen has Asperger's and is extremely sensitive. I'm sure he'd do ok in a public school setting, but he gets overwhelmed easy and wants to stay home with me. Since I'm already homeschooling Marcus, I keep him home too.

 

[Valgal]

I looooooooooove the name Gemma. It's so cheeky.

My ds is, what I consider, undiagnosed Aspergers, meaning that any professional would spend time with him and see it in a heartbeat but we've never had him officially examined. My dh won't even consider it and I'm tired of arguing with him over it. I have both Aspergers (my 1st cousin) AND Tourettes (my brother) on my side of the family.

So that is EXACTLY why I didn't send him to public middle school. He is very, very smart. He just found out today that he was accepted into the National Honor Society and is ranked #37 in his class of almost 500. :wub:

 

[Valgal]

Ok, got pretty much everything ready to start my homeschool scrapbook, lol! I still LOVE looking at our pages from a few years ago, so I'm ready to dive back in. I took a pic of my dd reading today and she just glared at me and said, "I knew this would happen."

I'm going to use Jenn's School of Rock to start with. It's perfect for my sassy girl and not too little kid'ish

Needed a basic template so I won't spend forever moving things around.

Some journaling cards which I like because they're homey.

 

[adi&co.]

He is very, very smart.

People think Autism= Not intelligent but it's SOOO the opposite! My boys are both on the spectrum (though Marcus is PDD-NOS, not autism, sill on the spectrum though) and while they have issues in areas, they are extremely smart in others! I'm not surprised at all that your son ranked that high!

 

[MamaBee]

I'm Rebecca... married to DH, Dave for 10 years... and we have one son, Jake, who is 7 and in 2nd grade. Yeah - I didn't plan out to homeschool either - when Jake as 6 mon old, I had it mapped out which charter school he was going to be sent to and then at middle/high school, he would to switched to a different charter.

Dave was in a multi-level marketing group and a few of the other families homeschooled, and he loved how connected the families were and the freedom of being able to travel... so when he brought it up to me (Jake was 4), I'm like - "uhm, I don't wear demin jumpers and make my own butter..." But I agreed to look into it... then we found Classical Conversations and that has been awesome for us.

I need to be better at scrapping out our homeschool experiences... I have to add that to my scrapping list!

 

[Valgal]

"uhm, I don't wear demin jumpers and make my own butter..."

Ok, I don't wear demin jumpers, but a few years ago my dd was so obsessed with the colonial era of her history unit that we took a side trail and explored everything we could... which included making butter.

LMAO!

What's Classical Conversations?

 

[adi&co.]

What curriculum do you all use?

 

[MamaBee]

What's Classical Conversations?

It's a Biblical curriculum that follows the Classical Educational Model. My kiddo is only 7, so he is in the grammar stage memorizing his foundation materials. We have a local group that are doing the same curriculum and we get together every Tuesday for 24 weeks of the year... go through the week of memory work (in 7 subject areas), review the last 6 weeks of memory work, do science experiment, and do a fine art project (either drawing, tin whistle, famous artists, or classical composures - changes every 6 weeks). At this age, its heavy on memorizing "pegs" of information and repeated every 3 years (there are three "cycles" of different information).... then when he moves into the next stage, dialectic (middle school) and then rhetoric (high school)... you can join at any time.

Here is more information that can explain it better than me https://www.classicalconversations.com/what-classical-conversations I get so excited about it and I trip over my feet trying to explain it... but it has been so good for Jake!

We do other add on to CC at home... we use Math in Focus (Singapore Math), First Languages (grammar), Apologia (Science), Story of the World (History - we are actually switching next month to America is Beautiful to focus more on US History), handwriting sheets from Confessions of a Homeschooler to learn cursive... and many other random books and workbooks to fill in J's weakness areas and to inspire his interests.

 

[Valgal]

It's a Biblical curriculum that follows the Classical Educational Model. My kiddo is only 7, so he is in the grammar stage memorizing his foundation materials. We have a local group that are doing the same curriculum and we get together every Tuesday for 24 weeks of the year... go through the week of memory work (in 7 subject areas), review the last 6 weeks of memory work, do science experiment, and do a fine art project (either drawing, tin whistle, famous artists, or classical composures - changes every 6 weeks). At this age, its heavy on memorizing "pegs" of information and repeated every 3 years (there are three "cycles" of different information).... then when he moves into the next stage, dialectic (middle school) and then rhetoric (high school)... you can join at any time.

Here is more information that can explain it better than me https://www.classicalconversations.com/what-classical-conversations I get so excited about it and I trip over my feet trying to explain it... but it has been so good for Jake!

We do other add on to CC at home... we use Math in Focus (Singapore Math), First Languages (grammar), Apologia (Science), Story of the World (History - we are actually switching next month to America is Beautiful to focus more on US History), handwriting sheets from Confessions of a Homeschooler to learn cursive... and many other random books and workbooks to fill in J's weakness areas and to inspire his interests.

Oh I sooooo wish I would've known this stuff when my kids were little. I've just read two books on classical education (so I figured you were talking about this subject) and I'm fighting the urge to beat myself up. It's too late to 'bring her up' classically educated, but I'm going to try to work some of these standards into our learning. Does that make sense?

I started with this one
The Well Trained Mind

and am 1/2 way through this one
The Core

The first thing I decided for her is to hit the grammar HARD CORE.

 

[Valgal]

What curriculum do you all use?

I actually just blogged this yesterday. Here.

I used a boxed curriculum last time but it didn't work out too well for my older child and I ended up having to piece his together partway through the year. So I just went ahead and pieced hers together as well. I like having more control over what I want to work with.

 

[Valgal]

So we went to an art class today with some friends and it was really cool. The guy travels around and is the CLASSIC eccentric artist you would imagine. It was hilarious. The kids really liked him and Eden produced a really beautiful drawing. It'll end up scrapbooked soon.

 

[Valgal]

 

[MamaBee]

Oh I sooooo wish I would've known this stuff when my kids were little. I've just read two books on classical education (so I figured you were talking about this subject) and I'm fighting the urge to beat myself up. It's too late to 'bring her up' classically educated, but I'm going to try to work some of these standards into our learning. Does that make sense?

I started with this one
The Well Trained Mind

and am 1/2 way through this one
The Core

The first thing I decided for her is to hit the grammar HARD CORE.

The Core - that author is who started Classical Conversations!! They have a Challenge A&B program through CC (that would be middle school) that will be for your daughter's age... at our campus, most in these classes are from public school and not through the all the levels of CC... so it's something to explore to see if you have a group near you that you could go to see what they do, if you want. But looks like you have a great idea on what you want to use already.

I can't wait to see all your adventures... I just love that you are scrapping it all.

 

[Robin Carlton]

Not a homeschooler (I don't know how you girls do it as I LOVE the 7+ hours a day my kids are gone LMAO), but I am loving reading this thread. Super neat insight!

 

[adi&co.]

I pick and choose from different curriculum as well. I'll have to look into those two books you mentioned. I always feel like I'm failing as a teacher, but my boys are learning, so I must be doing something right!

 

[Valgal]

Adrienne, I was CONVINCED my dd wasn't learning enough math the two years I had her at home. I mean, I was just sure.

Would you believe that when she started 5th grade in public school she already knew everything they were going to learn that year? LOL! Of course, they were doing all that weird Common Core stuff, so she had to learn a new WAY of doing things.

That's my way of saying that they are probably learning way more than you think they are.

 

[Kara]

So I homeschool my 8 and 10 yo boys. I also have a 5 yo and a 2 yo. My 2 yo has full-time nursing care in the home and my mother-in-law shares the teaching load with me, so it is very manageable. We're still trying to decide what to do with our 5 yo dd next year; either half-day kindy or homeschool.

I've been heavily influenced by the Well-Trained Mind as well, although I don't incorporate all aspects of it in our homeschool. We are currently doing a year-long study of world cultures and geography using My Father's World's Exploring Countries and Cultures as a base. We're branching off quite a bit into countries and topics of special interest and importance to our family. I incorporate much of that into reading and science through living books and documentaries.

For math and language arts, we use Christian Light Education. We do some additional science with Apologia Chemistry and Physics. We read a lot of books, often correlated with our geography. And we've found ourselves fascinated by World War II during our study of Europe, so we're following some tangents into that direction. I'm loving this particular year of study because my academic background is in international relations and it's so amazing to see my kids get excited about the same things that I'm passionate about.

We've also done some Spanish, although that usually gets shoved to last, unfortunately. I want to do more of that in the future.

The boys also attend music and PE classes at the public school they attended previously, and that has been a good balance for us. They still see their friends a few days a week but we still get most of the benefits of homeschooling.

 

[Valgal]

So I homeschool my 8 and 10 yo boys. I also have a 5 yo and a 2 yo. My 2 yo has full-time nursing care in the home and my mother-in-law shares the teaching load with me, so it is very manageable. We're still trying to decide what to do with our 5 yo dd next year; either half-day kindy or homeschool.

I've been heavily influenced by the Well-Trained Mind as well, although I don't incorporate all aspects of it in our homeschool. We are currently doing a year-long study of world cultures and geography using My Father's World's Exploring Countries and Cultures as a base. We're branching off quite a bit into countries and topics of special interest and importance to our family. I incorporate much of that into reading and science through living books and documentaries.

For math and language arts, we use Christian Light Education. We do some additional science with Apologia Chemistry and Physics. We read a lot of books, often correlated with our geography. And we've found ourselves fascinated by World War II during our study of Europe, so we're following some tangents into that direction. I'm loving this particular year of study because my academic background is in international relations and it's so amazing to see my kids get excited about the same things that I'm passionate about.

We've also done some Spanish, although that usually gets shoved to last, unfortunately. I want to do more of that in the future.

The boys also attend music and PE classes at the public school they attended previously, and that has been a good balance for us. They still see their friends a few days a week but we still get most of the benefits of homeschooling.

We used to branch off too because they would get interested in one part of a unit and not want to move on. It was a little hard for me because I have a hard time of deviating from 'the schedule' but I'm glad we did.

Some friends and I are considering going in together and buying Rosetta Stone's Spanish set.

 

[MamaBee]

I LOVE the 7+ hours a day my kids are gone LMAO

hahaha... J is totally my shadow... the times J is not here - the hour for sunday school and 2 hours for midweek (wednesday church classes)... I'm totally like... "oh my gosh, oh my gosh.. what should I do? do I scrapbook? take a bubble bath? Maybe even a nap!" It's getting better now that he is older and he likes his "me" time as much as I like mine...

 

[adi&co.]

hahaha... J is totally my shadow... the times J is not here - the hour for sunday school and 2 hours for midweek (wednesday church classes)... I'm totally like... "oh my gosh, oh my gosh.. what should I do? do I scrapbook? take a bubble bath? Maybe even a nap!" It's getting better now that he is older and he likes his "me" time as much as I like mine...

I'm the same way, haha! It's a bit funny to me when all of my friends complained about having their kids home for Christmas break and I really enjoyed not having to teach the whole time. I was bummed when school began again, haha!

 

[adi&co.]

Adrienne, I was CONVINCED my dd wasn't learning enough math the two years I had her at home. I mean, I was just sure.

Would you believe that when she started 5th grade in public school she already knew everything they were going to learn that year? LOL! Of course, they were doing all that weird Common Core stuff, so she had to learn a new WAY of doing things.

That's my way of saying that they are probably learning way more than you think they are.

Thanks! It's nice to have some reassurance. I know for a fact that my oldest would not be learning as much in public school. He just really needs that one on one ratio to really understand what he's supposed to be doing.

 

[Valgal]

So what do you mean by communication problems, btw? I mean, if you don't mind my asking. I might be too nosy.

 

[YepBrook]

To start off with an introduction:

I'm Brook. I homeschool my son Ben (8.5) and daughter Grace (just turned 6). It all started when I decided to keep Ben at home at 4 instead of sending him to pre-K like many of my friends chose to do. He is a June baby and seemed so little at *just* 4. I loved being with him and wasn't ready to send him off... and I figured I was a sahm anyways, and that I could save some $$ and do the same for him as a preschool could. That year, I connected with some groups of moms and 4-year-olds many of which were homeschool families. It was a natural progression into homeschooling when he turned 5 and I decided not to enter him into Kindergarten. Not because he wasn't 'ready' but because after doing a lot of research (specifically on boys) I came to the conclusion that being the youngest in his class wouldn't be to his advantage, especially as he grew older and hit puberty.

That year, at 5, he was technically Preschool but I started him on some Kindergarten curriculum that I bought. By the time he was 6 and ready for K, he was well past K. So, I kind of HAD to homeschool him at that point. Haha. Now he is officially in 2nd grade (according to records), but we do a mix of curriculum and he is really schooling at the 3rd grade level, mostly. That flexibility is one of the things I love about homeschooling. It is hard when people ask him what grade he's in.

Grace started Kindergarten this year. She is so bright, but I hesitate to push either of them too far ahead of their grade levels. Only because I think studying the basics is very important. It will give them a good foundation. I know many homeschool families who love to say their 6 year old is in 3rd grade. Honestly, that annoys me. Why such a big rush??

 

[YepBrook]

What curriculum do you all use?

I am using My Father's World Kindergarten complete Kindergarten for Grace. It is light in math and I always like to do extra phonics and handwriting, so I supplement it with: Get Set for the Code books A-C (phonics and handwriting), and Singapore Math - Essential Math Kindergarten books A&B, and lastly First Language Lessons level 1 (I plan to do this with her in grade 1, too, so we don't plow through it). She also reads BOB books every day for practice.

Ben does My Father's World - Adventures in U.S. History. I add Spelling Power, Explode the Code (we plan to do books 5-7 this year), Singapore Math - Primary Mathematics US edition books 2A & 2B, Apologia Science - Zoology 2, First Language Lessons level 2, and Pathway Reader/workbook (New Friends). I have a spanish book but, admittedly, we don't do it. It would be nice to do Rosetta Stone but yikes it is $$$!

 

[Valgal]

 

[adi&co.]

So what do you mean by communication problems, btw? I mean, if you don't mind my asking. I might be too nosy.

He's not officially diagnosed with anything except a general communication disorder. We had him tested for Auditory Processing Disorder and while he he passed the test, it was by 2 points, so he was close to failing. They said it was enough that he didn't have it though. When you ask him something or tell him something, he has a hard time understanding what you're saying. If you ask him to do something he's never done before, he just sits there and looks at you like you're speaking a different language. You have to show him what you want him to do. It's hard to explain. He also has trouble with speaking proper sentences. His sentence structure is really off and he doesn't always know how to communicate what he's trying to say.

 

[Valgal]

He's not officially diagnosed with anything except a general communication disorder. We had him tested for Auditory Processing Disorder and while he he passed the test, it was by 2 points, so he was close to failing. They said it was enough that he didn't have it though. When you ask him something or tell him something, he has a hard time understanding what you're saying. If you ask him to do something he's never done before, he just sits there and looks at you like you're speaking a different language. You have to show him what you want him to do. It's hard to explain. He also has trouble with speaking proper sentences. His sentence structure is really off and he doesn't always know how to communicate what he's trying to say.

Ok, that makes sense. Sounds like something that just requires a lot of diligence and time, right? I can see how that would make classroom learning REALLY difficult. He would be missing a lot of info!

Brook, I LOVE that homeschool story... too smart for K? That cracks me up!

 

[YepBrook]

Ok, that makes sense. Sounds like something that just requires a lot of diligence and time, right? I can see how that would make classroom learning REALLY difficult. He would be missing a lot of info!

Brook, I LOVE that homeschool story... too smart for K? That cracks me up!

Well.... I guess I schooled him too much that year? I wouldn't say he was too smart, but he definitely would have been bored. Haha.. that's how I knew I loved teaching him myself.

 

[Valgal]

Well.... I guess I schooled him too much that year? I wouldn't say he was too smart, but he definitely would have been bored. Haha.. that's how I knew I loved teaching him myself.

Yep. I read all the time about how many bored students there are that end up labeled as being 'bad'.

 

[Melissa Bennett]

Well it looks like I can join in now. Just pulled my 2 kiddos from public school and will be homeschooling. Pray for me. LOL!! I am Melissa, married 23 years, kiddos Tyler 21 (graduated of course), Nicole 11 (turning 12 this week), and Skyler 11 both 6th grade. We made the choice to homeschool because we live in a not so great school district and with my daughters special needs the school just wasn't getting it and making things worse for her. My son hated going because of bullying and was getting anxiety from it. School won't do anything about it. So ya, time to homeschool.

We tried researching different curriculum's but needed to get them going quick so I ordered Abeka for the remainder of this year and when we go to the homeschool expo this summer I will decide next years then. I am excited and scared all at the same time. LOL!

 

[Valgal]

Well it looks like I can join in now. Just pulled my 2 kiddos from public school and will be homeschooling. Pray for me. LOL!! I am Melissa, married 23 years, kiddos Tyler 21 (graduated of course), Nicole 11 (turning 12 this week), and Skyler 11 both 6th grade. We made the choice to homeschool because we live in a not so great school district and with my daughters special needs the school just wasn't getting it and making things worse for her. My son hated going because of bullying and was getting anxiety from it. School won't do anything about it. So ya, time to homeschool.

We tried researching different curriculum's but needed to get them going quick so I ordered Abeka for the remainder of this year and when we go to the homeschool expo this summer I will decide next years then. I am excited and scared all at the same time. LOL!

WOW! Have you homeschooled before? One of my besties has used Abeka in the past and liked it.

 

[Kara]

Wow, Melissa! Wishing you the best! It has been such a great move for both of my boys although it admittedly I've had to cut way down on my scrapping time (as you know )

If their school experience was difficult, you might want to spend some time de-schooling. It's a weird term but it basically means giving them some time to depressurize while still doing educational things -- just not hard-core school stuff. Things like field trips, educational games, spending time exploring outside, etc. You can probably Google it and find a ton of great ideas.

 

[Valgal]

Melissa, I agree with Kara. I pretty much gave my dd 2 weeks to decompress because he anxiety had been through the roof. The first week she finished up her class work and turned everything in to the school. It wasn't much and it was stuff she knew how to do. The 2nd week we decided on which curriculum to go with and she read a lot. She is MUCH more relaxed and ready to get to work as soon the rest of our books come in.

 

[YepBrook]

Awesome, Melissa!!! You can do it!!!

I did Abeka when I was homeschooled. It is very a very classic school-book type curriculum and will probably be similar to what they are doing at school. I would suggest getting a book to find what style of homeschooling would best suit you, and figure out what type of learners you have. We lean towards the Charlotte Mason style of homeschooling more than Classical. This book is good: 100 Top Picks for Homeschool Curriculum: Choosing the Right Curriculum and Approach for Your Child's Learning Style. I also rely heavily on going to our yearly state homeschool convention and hearing speakers (encouragement & support) and getting my hands on lots of books. I like to see things for myself before I buy them.

I'm so excited for you guys, and your kids! They will love it.