It was just about a year ago when I officially decided I was going to homeschool our kids. I was totally bummed when I found out I had just missed the 2011 Homeschooling Conference and Curriculum Fair, but I must tell you that someone was looking out for me. Had I gone last year, I would have been totally overwhelmed without a clue as to what I should be doing. Who knows, it could have been enough to make me start doubting my decision.
I am truly thankful that I have had a year to research as much as I possibly could. I have been able to read a lot of books and blogs, come to an understanding of the different teaching approaches and the curriculum that goes with them, plus I have met a lot of homeschooling families who have been able to answer the massive amount of questions a new homeschooler may have.
Going into the conference, I was feeling pretty good. I had basic knowledge of what I needed to know, but I also knew the people I wanted to talk with and the questions I wanted to ask. Luckily, I was able to flip through different books that I had been interested in and be able to make a more informed decision on what I should be purchasing for the fall.
I was also able to go to a couple of workshops and listen to what those speakers had to teach me. One was actually called How to Homeschool. I thought this would be a perfect place to start. Sitting through that class made me feel pretty good about where I am at. I actually had some knowledge of everything they were talking about. It is always great to hear other peoples personal stories and how they want their days to go and how they actually go!
Leaving the conference I felt energized (my goal) and very excited for the upcoming school year. If new baby wasn't so close to being here, I would start the kids up now. However, I am smart enough to know things are going to get a little more crazy around here before we can get back on a "schedule" of any kind.
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Math Curriculum
Well, I am not sure where I really want to start with my blog, but I know I want to have a record of what is going on at this point in our journey.
A couple of months ago I started my oldest on Horizons Kindergarten Math and she absolutely loves it! Almost every afternoon she asks if she can work on her math lessons. After the initial introduction, I have never asked her, she is always the one wanting to do them. We typically sit down and she does 2 or 3 lessons at a time. She is flying through the first workbook and is almost ready for the second. As I looked through the second workbook and noticed she could probably do every lesson today without a problem, I started to think about my next move. Do I really want my 4 year old doing 1st grade math in the fall and at the rate she is going 2nd grade math before she is 5??
I started thinking about Horizons Curriculum and so far, I have found the lessons to be very repetitive, but I continued to just go with it until one day Addison said "this again?" that is when I knew I needed to look into some other options. As I started researching I found there are 2 different approaches, spiral and mastery. Horizons is, of course, spiral meaning it gradually teaches you something by doing it again and again. You learn new things along the way, but the old stuff is always brought back into the lessons. The other option is mastery. Basically they teach you a skill and you don't move on until you have mastered it.
I am thinking she needs to be doing a mastery curriculum since she is catching on so quickly. Granted you can ask her what 13+6 is and she won't know the answer without thinking about it, but she knows how to get to the answer and that is the most important part. My personal favorite is when you give her a problem and she taps her pencil against her head like she is thinking, but she is actually counting the numbers.
Our homeschooling conference is coming up next week so I am super excited to be able to talk to a couple of different companies about their math curriculum and which direction I should take my daughter. I will keep you posted.
Monday, March 19, 2012
Your Baby Can Read
I have received a lot of questions lately on how I got my kids to read so early. The honest answer is they wanted to and just absorbed the information. When my oldest was about 18 months, I noticed her reading a few words here and there so I bought Your Baby Can Read to see what it was all about. Fortunately, my daughter loved these videos and would sit perfectly still and watch when I turned them on. They recommend 2 videos a day, so we would do 1 in the morning and 1 in the afternoon. The program also came with flashcard and flap books which we did on occasion. Before she turned 2, she knew all of those words and so we moved on!
I knew she had memorized the words from the videos, but wasn't exactly sure what she "knew" until she randomly would start reading signs when we were driving and talk about things around the kitchen while she was having a snack that I knew something had clicked. Your Baby Can Read was a great place for us to start.
I did use this program with my second daughter as well. I started her quite a bit earlier (around 13 months) and I don't think that was quite as affective. We tried it for a couple of months, then stopped until she was a little older. She didn't have quite the interest as my first, but she still caught on. She didn't watch the videos as often and would never sit still for an entire video, so we just had to break it up. She is now 2 1/2 and can read simple sentences, so I know it has worked!
Watching a read video together
Every kid is different and I have had a couple of friends who this program didn't work for, but for us, it worked!
On a side note...
Once they knew all of the words from the Your Baby Can Read program, we introduced them to a few others they loved. Sight Words, Bob Books, as well as phonics books including Dora, Diego and Biscuit. Hope this helps!
I knew she had memorized the words from the videos, but wasn't exactly sure what she "knew" until she randomly would start reading signs when we were driving and talk about things around the kitchen while she was having a snack that I knew something had clicked. Your Baby Can Read was a great place for us to start.
I did use this program with my second daughter as well. I started her quite a bit earlier (around 13 months) and I don't think that was quite as affective. We tried it for a couple of months, then stopped until she was a little older. She didn't have quite the interest as my first, but she still caught on. She didn't watch the videos as often and would never sit still for an entire video, so we just had to break it up. She is now 2 1/2 and can read simple sentences, so I know it has worked!
Every kid is different and I have had a couple of friends who this program didn't work for, but for us, it worked!
On a side note...
Once they knew all of the words from the Your Baby Can Read program, we introduced them to a few others they loved. Sight Words, Bob Books, as well as phonics books including Dora, Diego and Biscuit. Hope this helps!
Thursday, February 16, 2012
SNOW DAY!!
So, it finally snowed! We have been anxiously awaiting all winter to try out our new snow gear. It didn't snow a lot, but just enough to play in. The best part about it was schools were not closed and WE were able to take advantage of the day. The kids were super excited getting ready to go out into the cold.
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Daily Chores
Before we officially start homeschooling in the fall, I want to have our daily chores established. I have been thinking about this for a while, but didn't really know what chores to start with for a 4 and 2 year old. We have been starting off slow, but this seems to be very effective. We are doing our chores completely and with enthusiasm. I ask the girls to make their beds in the morning and help set the table for dinner at night. As I am getting out their clothes in the morning, the girls work together to make both of their beds (I just want to say, it is super cute to watch!) They each pick a side and pull up the sheets and comforter and put on their pillows, then they move to the next bed.
When they are finished, they are so happy and proud of themselves! They may not be the best made beds ever, but they sure do look good to me!
As for setting the table, they are all about it. They bring in plates, silverware, napkins and cups. As a side note, this also keeps them occupied while I am trying to finish cooking.
Pretty basic chores, but we like to take it one step at at time around here.
When they are finished, they are so happy and proud of themselves! They may not be the best made beds ever, but they sure do look good to me!
As for setting the table, they are all about it. They bring in plates, silverware, napkins and cups. As a side note, this also keeps them occupied while I am trying to finish cooking.
Pretty basic chores, but we like to take it one step at at time around here.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Back to unschooling...
I can't tell you how many times my husband and I tell each other, "that's another teaching moment." Well, we were outside a couple of days ago (It was 60!!) and the girls found some ivy growing on one of our trees in the backyard. They starting asking a lot of questions and ended up learning all about ivy. They would be by the tree listening to their dad talk about the ivy and couldn't wait to tell me what they had learned. The excitement on their faces when they would come running over to bring me a leaf and tell me all about it was just priceless I don't think it gets much better than that!
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Core "A" sits on the shelf
Well, it's been over a month and I have done nothing with our core curriculum except put it up on the shelf. It could be the timing or it could be I am just not ready to dive in quite yet. The books I ordered look great, I just haven't set apart a time of day to start.
I started talking with a few more families who use Sonlight and tried to take their advice and see how that might fit in with my family. The "cores" cover a range of ages, so I have decided it might be in my best interest to wait on those until I can at least be reading to 2 or 3 of the kids. I can't imagine reading 4 seperate cores in a couple of years, there just wouldn't be enough time in the day!! There are a couple of things we will continue to work on like reading, math and writing. These are subjects I can work on with each kid individually and at their own pace.
I did start Addison on her kindergarten math program. I chose Horizons and I am not totally loving it. It is very repetitive and so far she hasn't learned anything. It says to do 1 lesson a day, but she likes to pick it up and do 5 or 6 at a time. I don't push it on her, just whenever she wants, we do it.
The other thing I purchased was a handwriting program that I have been very anxious to start. I did try it out 1 day a while back, but I decided to wait. I had Addison up at our counter and she just wasn't at the angle and she got very frusterated. I decided it was time to order a preschool table where everything would be just at the right height. We did get the table and I have just been waiting for things to settle down from the holidays to get started.
Our new table
I started talking with a few more families who use Sonlight and tried to take their advice and see how that might fit in with my family. The "cores" cover a range of ages, so I have decided it might be in my best interest to wait on those until I can at least be reading to 2 or 3 of the kids. I can't imagine reading 4 seperate cores in a couple of years, there just wouldn't be enough time in the day!! There are a couple of things we will continue to work on like reading, math and writing. These are subjects I can work on with each kid individually and at their own pace.
I did start Addison on her kindergarten math program. I chose Horizons and I am not totally loving it. It is very repetitive and so far she hasn't learned anything. It says to do 1 lesson a day, but she likes to pick it up and do 5 or 6 at a time. I don't push it on her, just whenever she wants, we do it.
The other thing I purchased was a handwriting program that I have been very anxious to start. I did try it out 1 day a while back, but I decided to wait. I had Addison up at our counter and she just wasn't at the angle and she got very frusterated. I decided it was time to order a preschool table where everything would be just at the right height. We did get the table and I have just been waiting for things to settle down from the holidays to get started.
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