We haven't even completed our first week of homeschooling here and we have already had our first adventure. The weather has been beautiful all week, so Poogie and I just had to take advantage and head out on the Harley to explore. We rode a familiar route, however we finally took the time to stop and explore some of the awesome sites along the way.
First stop on the Great River Road was the Piasa painting on the side of the cliff. I always found it to be a little creepy. After reading the story of the creature, I confirmed its creepiness. We found that we could link the area and some of the former explorers to Poogie's history lessons, and linked it to science with the mining information.
We then rode up the River Road to one of our favorite destinations, Grafton, IL. We took time to look at many of the historical homes, noting the materials used to build with then vs. now. Explored the river bank and noted the changes from the recent flood and how destructive water can be. This time we also took a moment to stop by an old barn and home along the road that we have loved but never stopped to explore.
An added bonus to this trip, which tends to happen a lot in Grafton, was the view of these very cool replicas of Columbus's ships the Nina and the Pinta. Time and the lack of actual cash on hand did not allow us to explore the replicas, but it was an awesome sight.
This is what I absolutely love about homeschooling. Taking knowledge and learning out into the world. Seeing things with your own eyes, not in a book or on a video. We are having so much fun, can't wait to see what adventures we have next.
2015 will be a year of firsts! And I am so excited about the change. This will be my first homeschooling year with only one student! It's a little sad but also very exciting. My son T has completed high school and moved on to other thing such as work and hopefully college.
So that just leaves Poogie and I to carry on with our homeschooling adventure! And what an adventure this year will be.
This will be our first year of homeschool without having dance as part of our lives. What will we do having every afternoon free?? Well, we plan on going on some awesome field trips, taking some music lessons, and longboarding (Poogie's new obsession). Leaving the dance world was bitter sweet but I must say our lives are better without it.
Of course, I've also made adjustments to our curriculum to suit my girl's learning style. She moves much faster through material than T did and likes moving along at her own pace. I will post a whole post later this week on our curriculum choices. Too much to put in this one post.
I plan on posting more in the upcoming year to share this new chapter in our lives. Stay tuned :)
We started homeschooling in 2007. It would seem by now, 7 years later, that I would not be constantly surprised by the people that do not understand what homeschooling is all about.
The main problem we have had to deal with over the years is when others compare our education to that of traditional education, aka. brick and mortar schools. It is almost absurd to compare the two, especially when you are like us and do not do "school at home". We homeschool. That is an important distinction between the two. In our home we do follow lesson plans so that I can make sure we are on track to complete all, yes all our curriculum for the year. But that is where the comparisons end. I want my children to love the act of learning, to be life long learners that quest for knowledge. That said, comparing the life of my homeschool child to one of a child that attends a brick and mortar school is unjust and small-minded.
My kids do not technically have homework. The reason being is they complete their lesson when it is given. They are not limited to a small block of time. Their lessons are thorough and in depth in each subject. Glossing over is not really allowed, and the kids don't like it. However, since we don't technically have homework many assume that we don't have to do school work in the evening, nights and weekends. This is the farthest thing from the truth. Since our lessons tend to take much longer than one in a school, we put in double the hours of most institutionalized students. We also use those nights and weekends to learn through experience. We attend museums, concerts, historical fairs and whatever else we can find that goes along with our curriculum.
Homeschooling does offer freedom, which we love. We can work around doctor appointments, funerals, family activities when needed. The school work still has to be completed, it doesn't just disappear. Sometimes we get behind due to illness, activities, work, family obligations, or just life in general. When this happens I focus on the kids getting caught back up as soon as possible. So when a my homeschoolers say they have to do school work instead of doing X, Y, Z, it is a legitimate reason. Sometimes that is the only free moment they have.
Finally, I have be asked over the years if I give my kids the answers to their tests, or if I don't really grade their papers and just give them an A. Why would any responsible parent or teacher do that? How would it benefit the child? If my children score below 90% on any test, which happens very rarely, we look at what they missed, I re-teach the material and then retest. But unlike the new rules at many schools, where they go into a test knowing they can retake it, they do not go into the test thinking well if I blow it I can always retake it. If mine really blow a test it usually only happens once. The reason is that they must work through all the material again along with all their other lessons and then retake a different test on the material. My focus is mastery of the material. Mastery in my home means that you know the material, and can apply the material, not just regurgitate it back to me.
I know the comparisons will not end, but I would be nice if the parents of traditionally schooled children would take the time to understand that not all homeschoolers are the same anymore than all families are the same.
