So even with my husbands schooling, possible job change and the idea that I may be going back to work in some capacity we are still homeschooling. So grabbing the paper two Sundays ago I picked up the ads and start flipping through the school supplies. I used to get excited about the sales and buying brand new supplies for a fresh start each year that even when Owen was too young I'd still browse the back to school stuff. Even when I went to Culinary school I bought supplies as if I was going to high school. So for years I've had folders and notebooks and a tiny dictionary and thesaurus that I've had little to no use for.
This year I noticed something really quickly as I looked over the ads......I don't need any of it. Except maybe a pack of cheap markers and a 1 penny pack of pencils just in case.
I looked again this week as if they'd have a cheap science kit on sale or books on Leonardo DaVinci (whom we've been reading about in prep for a local exhibit).
Instead a lot of my supplies have come from the thrift store or the library and an amazon gift card. I have had to suppress the urge to buy insane amounts of books because there will always be a new book we want to read and I can't buy them all. I did invest $2.99 into a children's dictionary though to encourage Owen's reading and understanding. I'm trying to get items that I know we will get good use out it and are relevant to our learning experience.
I'm excited to say that Owen read me a couple pages out of a favorite book the other day. They were pushing hard to have them all reading by the end of Kindergarten but it was turning him off to it a bit. So if we asked him to read something short at home he'd say, "I can't, I can't you read it!" and get all flustered that we even asked him. I'm trying to give him a little room because I figure he has time and an insatiable need to know things so he's got to start reading eventually. So I keep asking him to pick out books or grabbing something I know he wanted to learn about at the library and leaving it with him. We read together a lot( we finished the reading quota one month into the summer reading program this year amazingly).
I'm wondering about recommendations for chapter books for boys as I know they can lead to further interest and learning on a variety of topics.
Noah is right there alongside his brother as we've begun to learn about dinosaurs, numbers, flying, shapes and patterns, writing and drawing. He dances, plays and repeats just about everything we say. He loves uncovering dinosaurs and fossils, trying to say parallelogram, and covering his eyes counting between 7 and 8 only and yelling "Here I come!"
So we haven't officially started yet and yet we have. We've been opening our eyes to see the learning opportunities all around us. Figuring out a rhythm to this homeschooling stuff. I'm excited and at some points I've already worried. Worried about how we are going to do all this. Or contemplating 2nd grade through 12th as if I have to have a set plan for his whole life for this one year to be successful. So I'm happy to say that is not true and I know we can take things bit by bit and change to meet Owen and Noah's needs. I have seen that Owen can lean towards the ADHD side of things but in different environments this does not seem so serious. He has to be comfortable with how he learns and know how to manage himself and we are here to guide him, to keep encouraging and to lead him in the way he should go. So God please help us to know how to lead and where to lead and give us patience and Joy in the process. Please help me not to take everything so seriously that I can't enjoy and truly be apart of things.
I realize though that my love of school supplies is tied to my love of learning and delving into new things and new adventures. So as sad as it may seem to toss aside the back to school frenzy I'm excited for new prospects. I think this attachment can be redirected into our new learning endeavors and creativity within that. Joy! :)
Maybe I can have a Back to Homeschool party to satisfy my need to celebrate.
Too adorable joyful pic-link below
1 comment:
here for the 1st time great blog..! :) Nice blog, keep posting.From crazzy trends
Post a Comment