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An Epiphany….

September 21, 2009 by Selena Robinson 1 Comment

After spending last weekend doing a homeschool method book read-a-thon, I got a better idea of what I like and don’t like from all the methods. If you would like a summary of the main methods of homeschooling, check out this link: http://www.successful-homeschooling.com/homeschooling-methods.html. It summarizes them nicely and explains pros and cons of each one.
I’ll be trying out different methods during this year, so you’ll get to see different aspects of each one as we go. You could probably describe us best as relaxed/eclectic, because that way, I don’t have to commit to any particular style and we have flexibility to change when we need to.
To start out, we’re going with school at home. That is usually what homeschooling parents start with, especially parents who remove their kids from school. basically, it’s exactly like school, just….at home. (Hence the clever name.)

We’ve decided on a list of things we would like Tigger to learn by the end of kindergarten (or her educational objectives, if we’re getting technical). She already reads well, so we’re focusing on math, handwriting, and art.

– to count to 100
– to skip count by 2, 5, 10
– to cut paper on a straight line
– to improve handwriting, esp. writing on the lines (ha!)
– to tell time/count money
– to identify lines (straight, curved, wavy)
– to perform basic addition/subtraction
So, to get started, we spent last week working on writing the alphabet and numbers 0-9. In true school at home fashion, I made extensive use of the chalkboard.

I also made use of a Charlotte Mason technique: copywork to teach penmanship AND spelling. So, when we got to writing number words, I asked Tigger how to spell the word and had her sound it out to try to figure it out herself. Most of the times she could spell just by using phonics; other times, words like eight confused her. (Why is eight spelled like that anyway?) But, she grasped the concept well and liked it! I think the chalkboard is a keeper….

Filed Under: Homeschool Curriculum

Look! Mommy Has a Lot to Learn!

September 9, 2009 by Selena Robinson Leave a Comment

So I’m finally posting again after 2 weeks…(head in bag). Christopher Robin went back to work last week for the first time since Roo’s birth and I was completely thrown off guard by the logistics of caring for 3 children under 5!  I had no idea that it literally takes an entire morning to run one errand! So school was completely forsaken last week. Now that I have a better idea of what day to day is like, we started back with school again today; but a modified version of what I originally intended.

For one thing, I had to completely throw out the schedule. Now that everything takes longer than before, it’s difficult to know ahead of time how much can be planned for each day. So I’m going with broad goals for the week instead.

Teach Me Mommy Unit (spread out over 5 days instead of just 3)
Daily Text (every morning)
Bible Story (every morning)
Scripture Copywork (every morning)

As for Reading and Math, I’m far less concerned with reading. Tigger is reading on a 2nd grade level already, so I’m going to focus instead on math. She needs to brush up on counting and skip counting and possibly simple addition/subtraction.

My main area of concern is her attitude toward learning. She doesn’t like to be “taught” per se; she would rather just watch and take things on herself. While that can be good, because it means she’s self motivated, it can also be bad because it can cause her to think more of herself than she should (because she’ll think she learned things on her own). So Christopher Robin and I are spending more time working with her on that. Personally, I’ll be having her join me in doing more household tasks so she can learn as she goes and so she can get used to following directions.

Anyhoo, I’ll keep posting our progress and pics here. In the meantime, I would love to hear your schedules or suggestions as well!

Filed Under: Homeschool Curriculum

Me, Myself and Tigger

August 27, 2009 by Selena Robinson 1 Comment

Our first unit from Teach Me Mommy is “Me and Myself” and it teaches kids all about, naturally, themselves. Day 1 was about learning the day of our birth and our vital stats. We started with Tigger detailing things she likes to do. Running around and playing made the top of the list and I am quite proud to say that watching TV was far, far down the list.

Then we made a growth chart to measure her height. I spent the greater part of an hour carefully taping together cardstock and measuring the correct height off the floor for the chart to be perfectly correct and then, of course, trimming the edges as evenly as humanly possible. (Did i mention I’m still doing the type A rehab?)

After copious effort, I anxiously taped the chart to the wall to measure Tigger and what happened was this….

 

The child is already almost at the top of this thing! Lesson of the day for Mommy: “It does not have to look perfect, especially if it turns out you can only use it for a few months”. On to the next activity:

We baked cookies in the shape of Tigger’s initials. and I’m not ashamed to say I used the store-bought ready-to-bake cookies to do it, so there!Prior to baking the cookies looked like this:

Okay, it’s officially time for a new cookie sheet….and yes, Tigger’s initials spell the word “sir”.

After baking, we had the joy of feasting our eyes on this culinary creation:

 

Say it with me, my fellow type A’s: “It doesn’t have to look perfect, since you’re going to eat it anyway”. Besides, Tigger seemed quite pleased with the result.

 

She was even happier after the initial tasting….

Can’t argue with that face! And now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to put the R cookie out of its misery. (Gruesome, I know.)

Filed Under: PreK Homeschooling

Our Newest Family Portrait

August 27, 2009 by Selena Robinson 2 Comments

Tigger had an assignment during her schoolwork earlier this week to draw a picture of her family. After much creative brainstorming, she produced this masterpiece….

Apparently, Daddy is the biggest, because Tigger said “he’s the tallest”. Then comes me, Roo, Pooh, and finally Tigger herself. You may be wondering why the drawing of me is so little. Well, Tigger forgot me at first, then squeezed me in next to Daddy. (I think little children look at mammas more as home furnishings than people.) Looks like we need to move up art appreciation, huh?

Filed Under: Art Appreciation

Look! We’re Homeschooling!

August 23, 2009 by Selena Robinson 2 Comments

After years of consideration and months of planning, it’s finally time to start homeschooling! We decided on this years ago after having our daughter, but I never thought about what it would be like to actually carry it through…..until now.

I have to admit, I’m a little nervous. Will I be a good teacher? Will I stick with our schedule? How will our children respond? But, with persistence, flexibility, and humility, hopefully we’ll settle into a nice rhythm soon.

In any case, we’ll be posting our progress here and would love any input we can get!

Filed Under: Family Life

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Hi! I'm Selena, a teacher and a veteran homeschool mom to four. I'm so glad you're here!
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