Brenna wanted to help so I put her in charge of handing Dad tin screws. She thought it was pretty cool being up on the ladder. :)
I will have to take a picture of the finished result and post it soon.
Friday, October 24, 2008
Porch Roof
We finally finished putting up our porch roof last weekend! Yea! It looks soooo much better then the old one did. No more rotten boards and it looks so clean (the white paint was getting ugly). I am actually pretty proud of Brendon and me - I think we did a good job for people who had no clue what they were doing! We sure did learn a whole lot though. Now we need to finish painting the rest of the house so the porch will match! LOL
Brenna wanted to help so I put her in charge of handing Dad tin screws. She thought it was pretty cool being up on the ladder. :)
I will have to take a picture of the finished result and post it soon.
Brenna wanted to help so I put her in charge of handing Dad tin screws. She thought it was pretty cool being up on the ladder. :)
I will have to take a picture of the finished result and post it soon.
Field Trip
Brenna and I went on a field trip on Wednesday with the homeschool group to the Sea Turtle place on the island. It was very interesting and a lot of fun. Brenna was fascinated with the turtles and really wants to go back again. My friend Mieree and her two daughters came with us. I had two car seats and Brenna's booster seat all in my back seat. That was pretty interesting (and a very tight fit!) but we managed. LOL
After our visit to the sea turtle place we all went down to the beach and had a picnic lunch at one of the pavilions. All the people in our homeschool group stayed for about an hour or two but Mieree and I had decided to stay all afternoon. We have both been wanting to do a beach trip very badly and made a whole day of it. We brought our chairs, lots of food and drinks, an umbrella and a small tent for baby Maisy to take naps in. It all worked out wonderfully and the girls had such a great time!
After our visit to the sea turtle place we all went down to the beach and had a picnic lunch at one of the pavilions. All the people in our homeschool group stayed for about an hour or two but Mieree and I had decided to stay all afternoon. We have both been wanting to do a beach trip very badly and made a whole day of it. We brought our chairs, lots of food and drinks, an umbrella and a small tent for baby Maisy to take naps in. It all worked out wonderfully and the girls had such a great time!
Brenna's Drawings
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Basketball
Brenna and I went and signed her up for basketball yesterday!
Basketball, of all things.
No, I am not against her playing sports at all but Brenna has never really been the sporty kind of kid. She tried soccer when she was 4 and hated it. We've had a basketball hoop in our driveway for about four years and she never plays. Yes, she goes outside and kicks a ball around but other then that, she's not very athletic.
I got an email through my homeschool group the other day about basketball sign-ups and I mentioned it to Brenna (thinking she would say no) but she surprised me and really showed an interest in it. She insisted that she wanted to sign up.
So off we went yesterday to the Boys and Girls Club and got her name down. They said that they were not sure if she would be able to get on a team or not since they were pretty full.
Today I got a call from her coach and she is going to be on the team of the school that she went to pre-school and the school that I used to work at. Her coach is actually going to be one of my Mom's good friends and someone that I have known for years so I think that is wonderful! I will not feel weird about leaving her at practice if I have to run to the store or something.
Yesterday Brenna and I spent about an hour outside and she practiced dribbling and making some baskets. She did way better then I expected and I think she's really going to like this a lot.
Her practices start Monday and they are twice a week. Her games will be on Saturday mornings. I will post some pictures on here soon.
Basketball, of all things.
No, I am not against her playing sports at all but Brenna has never really been the sporty kind of kid. She tried soccer when she was 4 and hated it. We've had a basketball hoop in our driveway for about four years and she never plays. Yes, she goes outside and kicks a ball around but other then that, she's not very athletic.
I got an email through my homeschool group the other day about basketball sign-ups and I mentioned it to Brenna (thinking she would say no) but she surprised me and really showed an interest in it. She insisted that she wanted to sign up.
So off we went yesterday to the Boys and Girls Club and got her name down. They said that they were not sure if she would be able to get on a team or not since they were pretty full.
Today I got a call from her coach and she is going to be on the team of the school that she went to pre-school and the school that I used to work at. Her coach is actually going to be one of my Mom's good friends and someone that I have known for years so I think that is wonderful! I will not feel weird about leaving her at practice if I have to run to the store or something.
Yesterday Brenna and I spent about an hour outside and she practiced dribbling and making some baskets. She did way better then I expected and I think she's really going to like this a lot.
Her practices start Monday and they are twice a week. Her games will be on Saturday mornings. I will post some pictures on here soon.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
100th Post, Co-ops and a little less stress! LOL
So I just realized that my post that I wrote yesterday was my 100th post on my blog!! That's pretty cool and I never thought I would get this far. :) Eventually I would like to turn this into a book so I will have it to look back on when Brenna is grown with a family of her own. I'll have to find a place on-line that I can do that. I have so many thoughts and struggles and things that have happened, all in this one place. It's the closest thing that I have to a diary I guess.
So today we had our third co-op with the homeschool group. I haven't been writing much about that. We've been having a great time though and the kids are all so wonderful. Like I said before, we are doing a patriotic theme this time and they've been learning about George Washington, our flag, money and the symbols of the USA. The kids in Brenna's class are voting as well - for their snacks for the following week. They have a good time doing that. :)
Next week we are not doing co-op (it's a one week break between the six weeks that we are doing). We will be going to the island for a field trip to the sea turtle place. I've already 'called off' for that day at my Grandma's so Brenna and I will be able to stay the entire time and participate in the picnic afterwards. I have not been able to take Brenna on a field trip in quite a while. Lisa has taken her the past few times because I have had to go to my Grandparents. I called my Grandma today and told her that I will not be there next Wednesday.
My predicament that I am in, with taking care of my Grandpa, does make it kinda hard to do the things that I would like to do. But Brenna and I deal with it though and she knows that we have to take care of her Papa and that's our 'job' (and a very rewarding job I might add that teaches her a lot). She's such a big help too. She has her jobs there and usually helps me with her Papa's lunch and helps me clean a little as well. Not very many kids can say that they get to spend just about everyday with their Great-Grandparents. She will remember that for the rest of her life.
Today at co-ops we had our Mom's chat, as usual, and discussed the different grammar curriculum's that we all use. Since I do not use a grammar curriculum just yet (most Mom's in my chat have kids that are older then Brenna), I just sat and took in all the information. I did get quite a few great ideas for things when Brenna gets a little older.
I also was able to have a one-on-one conversation with a mom who has five daughters and has been homeschooling for about 13 years. Through our Mom chats I have come to realize that we are very similar in our homeschooling methods. She is not one to force anything on her daughters, just like me, and when she sees one of her kids really struggling with something, she backs off. She is the one that I actually got the idea from with Brenna's spelling curriculum. When I talked to her today she told me that she did not start spelling with any of her kids until they were either in the 2nd or 3rd grade. I told her about all of the trouble that I have been having with Brenna and she told me to stop and to not push it.
So I think that I have decided to back off of our spelling curriculum. I actually had a conversation with Brenna tonight about it and she told me that she "does not like a book telling us what to do" and she thinks that we need to come up with our own spelling list. So I think what we will do from now on, for the rest of the school year, is work together on her spelling list and come up with about 10-15 words a week to study and then take a test on Friday's. We'll see how that works.
As for her math though, I told her that we will continue to do that on a daily basis and she seemed fine with that. It really is very easy and things that she already knows how to do. That just means we should be able to fly right through it.
OK, time for me to go to bed. I could stay up for another couple hours debating what I should or should not be doing but I need to rest my brain. LOL This stuff has really been stressing me out. I guess I should just follow my heart a little more and not stress out so much about this stuff.
Like one Mom in my group said, "You have six years to teach reading, writing and basic math. Anything else they learn is wonderful but don't stress out about it that much."
So today we had our third co-op with the homeschool group. I haven't been writing much about that. We've been having a great time though and the kids are all so wonderful. Like I said before, we are doing a patriotic theme this time and they've been learning about George Washington, our flag, money and the symbols of the USA. The kids in Brenna's class are voting as well - for their snacks for the following week. They have a good time doing that. :)
Next week we are not doing co-op (it's a one week break between the six weeks that we are doing). We will be going to the island for a field trip to the sea turtle place. I've already 'called off' for that day at my Grandma's so Brenna and I will be able to stay the entire time and participate in the picnic afterwards. I have not been able to take Brenna on a field trip in quite a while. Lisa has taken her the past few times because I have had to go to my Grandparents. I called my Grandma today and told her that I will not be there next Wednesday.
My predicament that I am in, with taking care of my Grandpa, does make it kinda hard to do the things that I would like to do. But Brenna and I deal with it though and she knows that we have to take care of her Papa and that's our 'job' (and a very rewarding job I might add that teaches her a lot). She's such a big help too. She has her jobs there and usually helps me with her Papa's lunch and helps me clean a little as well. Not very many kids can say that they get to spend just about everyday with their Great-Grandparents. She will remember that for the rest of her life.
Today at co-ops we had our Mom's chat, as usual, and discussed the different grammar curriculum's that we all use. Since I do not use a grammar curriculum just yet (most Mom's in my chat have kids that are older then Brenna), I just sat and took in all the information. I did get quite a few great ideas for things when Brenna gets a little older.
I also was able to have a one-on-one conversation with a mom who has five daughters and has been homeschooling for about 13 years. Through our Mom chats I have come to realize that we are very similar in our homeschooling methods. She is not one to force anything on her daughters, just like me, and when she sees one of her kids really struggling with something, she backs off. She is the one that I actually got the idea from with Brenna's spelling curriculum. When I talked to her today she told me that she did not start spelling with any of her kids until they were either in the 2nd or 3rd grade. I told her about all of the trouble that I have been having with Brenna and she told me to stop and to not push it.
So I think that I have decided to back off of our spelling curriculum. I actually had a conversation with Brenna tonight about it and she told me that she "does not like a book telling us what to do" and she thinks that we need to come up with our own spelling list. So I think what we will do from now on, for the rest of the school year, is work together on her spelling list and come up with about 10-15 words a week to study and then take a test on Friday's. We'll see how that works.
As for her math though, I told her that we will continue to do that on a daily basis and she seemed fine with that. It really is very easy and things that she already knows how to do. That just means we should be able to fly right through it.
OK, time for me to go to bed. I could stay up for another couple hours debating what I should or should not be doing but I need to rest my brain. LOL This stuff has really been stressing me out. I guess I should just follow my heart a little more and not stress out so much about this stuff.
Like one Mom in my group said, "You have six years to teach reading, writing and basic math. Anything else they learn is wonderful but don't stress out about it that much."
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Frustrated... but working through it
So for the tenth million time I am in the process of really deciding what it is that I want to accomplish in this whole homeschooling journey that I have decided to take on. This stuff sure is a heck of a lot tougher than I ever thought it would be.
Okay, that's it -- she's just going to school!! It would solve everything. NOT!!! LOL
If only it were that easy. *sigh* Do I want to take on this challenge? More than ever!
I am in need of some major re-evaluation though and I am as confused as ever. I guess that's what I get for reading so many books and researching so many different things when it comes to methods of homeschooling. I have so many options and I have a very individual child on my hands. :) And only one to deal with, for that matter, instead of a whole classroom full. I guess that is what is so stressful about it. I can actually cater to one learning style instead of many different ones and I want to do it right. I only have one chance.
Okay, so my whole dilemma.... I soooo want to be a completely relaxed homeschooler (no curriculum at all - just child-led learning). I want to so bad that I feel it in my heart and really think that is what I should be doing. I can really see how my child benefits from that and how much she learns doing that. I mean, she learned how to read, for crying out loud, taking that approach ! I never used curriculum of any kind when it came to teaching phonics and reading. I read to her since she was 6 months old - she picked it up - period. Now she reads at a 3rd grade level. I have learned that she is a sight reader and not a phonics reader. She just knows what the word is - it is actually pretty unbelievable. It has been just amazing seeing her progression. She reads words now that I just could not even fathom having my six year old read. I started out by pushing it when she was about five and she shut down, hated reading and did not want anything to do with it. I stopped being so pushy and within six months she wanted to read and craved it. Now I find her sitting on the couch, at any given day, reading for pleasure. Would she have been doing that right now if I would have continued forcing her? I can't say for sure but if I would have to take an educated guess, I would say no.
So now I wonder if that is the case for math and spelling as well? If I keep making her do our math and spelling curriculum that I bought will she end up hating it? If I just stop forcing her in spelling, for example, will she just all of a sudden get it in a year from now and love it and crave it like she did reading and pick it up very quickly? It is quite a struggle for her right now.
Why is it so important that my six year old knows how to spell anyway? Who am I out to impress? What difference does it make if she learns when she's six or when she's eight? She's still going to learn, right? And if it's easier to do when she's seven or eight then why not wait? She's still going to learn either way.
As for math, she learned by the time she was five to count by fives and tens to 100. She knows addition and subtraction and even some fractions, all without the help of a structured curriculum. We do math every single day just from playing and her asking questions. Is it stopping at all? No way! Math is part of everyday life.
Brenna absolutely craves knowledge. She is so curious and asks so many questions and learns so much each and every day. One reason why I do not send her to school is so that craving doesn't get crushed by curriculum and by the reasoning that "we're not on that subject yet so I'm not going to teach you" (even though you want to know all about it!).
Today I had someone call me regarding my last post. Okay, so I will just say that it was my all-time best mentor and one of my best friends, who happens to be my sister-in-law, Lisa. Thank you Lisa! She is homescholing her daughter, Kastine, and one of the people that made me realize that homeschooling was right for our family. She never pressured me (never even brought it up for that matter or made me feel that is what I should be doing) but because of what she was doing, she really got me interested in it. Anyways, she called me today and gave me the best advise that I have have gotten in a long time. "Do what is in your heart Brandi. You are the only one who knows your child and how she learns best." Very simple but yet very powerful for me and I think that is what I really needed to hear. She told me not to worry about what other people think. But, yes, I do worry about what other people think when it comes to us homeschooling and she's probably right and I probably shouldn't. But this is what I hear ---- "What did you learn today Brenna?" "How is your spelling curriculum going?" "What did you do in math today?" The questions come from everyone. I feel that because I am homeschooling, I am being judged and that my daughter is being quizzed by so many people. Is it in my imagination? Probably. Do I feel inadequate when Brenna answers, "I don't know"? Yes. But she doesn't know that difference between scholastic learning and just living life and learning through that. She learns so much everyday but to her that is such a natural thing that she can't answer the question, "What did you learn today?". That is just way to broad for her. You ask her specific questions and she can answer those much better. I guess my point is that learning is such an everyday thing and she doesn't even think twice about it. Learning is living. That is what the entire 'unschooling' method is about that I love so much.
Then there is the other (small) part of me that feels I should be doing a more "school at home" type thing. We should be sitting at the table everyday and doing math and spelling and science and grammar. She should have something to show for her learning, like workbook pages and math problems on paper. Isn't that what school is all about? Tests and worksheets?
Or is it?
I'm sure that there are things that Brenna is not learning this year that she would be taught in school but on the other hand, I know there are things that she is learning that are well beyond her grade level. Who's to say what kids should learn and at what age?
Is that what we are just used to and what we feel that school should consist of? Shouldn't learning be more of a natural thing and something we crave? I don't know about a lot of you but a lot of what I have learned, and what matters to me in my everyday life, is what I have learned as an adult (after I got out of school) because I actually cared and was interested in.
I'm not looking for answers or for someone to tell me exactly what I should be doing. I'm just trying to figure things out.
Am I open to suggestions? Absolutely!! (I appreciate everything that everyone has helped me with!)
Am I scared to death about homeschooling my daughter? Maybe, but not really.
I think what scares me is all of the expectations and all of the "this is what kids should learn at this age" kind of things.
Who actually made that timeline? Schools? Teachers? Superintendents? Government?
I'm not convinced.
I'm not convinced because I see my daughter excelling just fine without all of the timelines and expectations.
Maybe I am starting to figure out what it is that I need and should be doing. This blog is a wonderful thing to help me get my thoughts out. :)
Okay, that's it -- she's just going to school!! It would solve everything. NOT!!! LOL
If only it were that easy. *sigh* Do I want to take on this challenge? More than ever!
I am in need of some major re-evaluation though and I am as confused as ever. I guess that's what I get for reading so many books and researching so many different things when it comes to methods of homeschooling. I have so many options and I have a very individual child on my hands. :) And only one to deal with, for that matter, instead of a whole classroom full. I guess that is what is so stressful about it. I can actually cater to one learning style instead of many different ones and I want to do it right. I only have one chance.
Okay, so my whole dilemma.... I soooo want to be a completely relaxed homeschooler (no curriculum at all - just child-led learning). I want to so bad that I feel it in my heart and really think that is what I should be doing. I can really see how my child benefits from that and how much she learns doing that. I mean, she learned how to read, for crying out loud, taking that approach ! I never used curriculum of any kind when it came to teaching phonics and reading. I read to her since she was 6 months old - she picked it up - period. Now she reads at a 3rd grade level. I have learned that she is a sight reader and not a phonics reader. She just knows what the word is - it is actually pretty unbelievable. It has been just amazing seeing her progression. She reads words now that I just could not even fathom having my six year old read. I started out by pushing it when she was about five and she shut down, hated reading and did not want anything to do with it. I stopped being so pushy and within six months she wanted to read and craved it. Now I find her sitting on the couch, at any given day, reading for pleasure. Would she have been doing that right now if I would have continued forcing her? I can't say for sure but if I would have to take an educated guess, I would say no.
So now I wonder if that is the case for math and spelling as well? If I keep making her do our math and spelling curriculum that I bought will she end up hating it? If I just stop forcing her in spelling, for example, will she just all of a sudden get it in a year from now and love it and crave it like she did reading and pick it up very quickly? It is quite a struggle for her right now.
Why is it so important that my six year old knows how to spell anyway? Who am I out to impress? What difference does it make if she learns when she's six or when she's eight? She's still going to learn, right? And if it's easier to do when she's seven or eight then why not wait? She's still going to learn either way.
As for math, she learned by the time she was five to count by fives and tens to 100. She knows addition and subtraction and even some fractions, all without the help of a structured curriculum. We do math every single day just from playing and her asking questions. Is it stopping at all? No way! Math is part of everyday life.
Brenna absolutely craves knowledge. She is so curious and asks so many questions and learns so much each and every day. One reason why I do not send her to school is so that craving doesn't get crushed by curriculum and by the reasoning that "we're not on that subject yet so I'm not going to teach you" (even though you want to know all about it!).
Today I had someone call me regarding my last post. Okay, so I will just say that it was my all-time best mentor and one of my best friends, who happens to be my sister-in-law, Lisa. Thank you Lisa! She is homescholing her daughter, Kastine, and one of the people that made me realize that homeschooling was right for our family. She never pressured me (never even brought it up for that matter or made me feel that is what I should be doing) but because of what she was doing, she really got me interested in it. Anyways, she called me today and gave me the best advise that I have have gotten in a long time. "Do what is in your heart Brandi. You are the only one who knows your child and how she learns best." Very simple but yet very powerful for me and I think that is what I really needed to hear. She told me not to worry about what other people think. But, yes, I do worry about what other people think when it comes to us homeschooling and she's probably right and I probably shouldn't. But this is what I hear ---- "What did you learn today Brenna?" "How is your spelling curriculum going?" "What did you do in math today?" The questions come from everyone. I feel that because I am homeschooling, I am being judged and that my daughter is being quizzed by so many people. Is it in my imagination? Probably. Do I feel inadequate when Brenna answers, "I don't know"? Yes. But she doesn't know that difference between scholastic learning and just living life and learning through that. She learns so much everyday but to her that is such a natural thing that she can't answer the question, "What did you learn today?". That is just way to broad for her. You ask her specific questions and she can answer those much better. I guess my point is that learning is such an everyday thing and she doesn't even think twice about it. Learning is living. That is what the entire 'unschooling' method is about that I love so much.
Then there is the other (small) part of me that feels I should be doing a more "school at home" type thing. We should be sitting at the table everyday and doing math and spelling and science and grammar. She should have something to show for her learning, like workbook pages and math problems on paper. Isn't that what school is all about? Tests and worksheets?
Or is it?
I'm sure that there are things that Brenna is not learning this year that she would be taught in school but on the other hand, I know there are things that she is learning that are well beyond her grade level. Who's to say what kids should learn and at what age?
Is that what we are just used to and what we feel that school should consist of? Shouldn't learning be more of a natural thing and something we crave? I don't know about a lot of you but a lot of what I have learned, and what matters to me in my everyday life, is what I have learned as an adult (after I got out of school) because I actually cared and was interested in.
I'm not looking for answers or for someone to tell me exactly what I should be doing. I'm just trying to figure things out.
Am I open to suggestions? Absolutely!! (I appreciate everything that everyone has helped me with!)
Am I scared to death about homeschooling my daughter? Maybe, but not really.
I think what scares me is all of the expectations and all of the "this is what kids should learn at this age" kind of things.
Who actually made that timeline? Schools? Teachers? Superintendents? Government?
I'm not convinced.
I'm not convinced because I see my daughter excelling just fine without all of the timelines and expectations.
Maybe I am starting to figure out what it is that I need and should be doing. This blog is a wonderful thing to help me get my thoughts out. :)
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Well it's been almost a week since I last posted. I guess I still am a little sporadic BUT I have become better.
Brendon and I have not really got too much done on the back porch since I last wrote. It is a very slow LEARNING process. But the great thing, I guess, is that we ARE learning. LOL We figured out that we needed to put some cross beams between the main beams to support, as well as screw, the tin on to. So that has been our project this weekend. We have more than half of the boards up. We would have finished today but it started to rain. Great excuse to watch the Dallas Cowboys game too. LOL :) Hopefully next weekend we will finally get the roof on. *fingers crossed* I will try to finish the cross boards this week and paint them. I should have known that this would be a 'more than one weekend' thing. It will get finished eventually.
It has been a learning time for Brenna as well --- learning to occupy and entertain herself while Mom and Dad work! :) She is very good at that though and always has been and I think that is very important. I can not stand it when kids are needy and clingy and always need somebody to tell them what to do or entertain them. That's another problem with kids going to school. They are always told what to do, when to do it, how to do it, ect... Kids need time to be by themselves and figure things out and use their imagination. Children in school get very little of that. They can't just be themselves and do things that THEY want to do and discover things that they love and are passionate about. For example, Brenna absolutely loves to draw and will stop doing what she is doing sometimes just so she can draw a picture of what she is doing or what she's learning about. She is a wonderful artist and has become so much better because she's just able to do it whenever she wants - no restrictions. Do you think that if she was in school and learning about Columbus that she would just be able to stop and draw a few pictures about what she thought the Pinta, Nina and Santa Maria ships looked like? Not if it wasn't in the schedule or part of the curriculum.
I have started to become a little obsessed about "unschooling" again, which I think is a great philosophy when homeschooling younger children. I have a book on it that I have read before but am starting to read for the second time. I love reading books again because I think you get much more from it the second time around. It has been a while since I read it anyway. I have talked about unschooling before but for those who don' t know about it, it is basically a child-led learning style. Nothing is forced on the child and they learn about things that they are interested in. A lot of what Brenna and I do right now is considered the unschooling method. She learns so much just by asking questions and being curious about things. Here's a few paragraphs from the book I'm reading that I thought was great:
From the book 'The Unschooling Handbook : How to Use the Whole World As Your Child's Classroom'
Trust That the Child Will Learn
For many people, this last characteristic - trusting that the child will learn - is one of the most difficult hurdles to understanding how unschooling works. "But how do you know that you are covering everything important?" " How do you know your kids aren't missing some crucial topic?" " What if they don't learn all the stuff they're supposed to know?"
This is partly a reaction to our own educational experiences and our observation of school children. Years in school teach most of us to rely on what the experts - teachers, textbook writers, standardized test developers, government officials - tell us what we need to know. Eager, hand-waving "Me, me, call on me!!" first graders become less enthusiastic - even indifferent - by the time they are ten or eleven. Too many times, they are told to settle down, wait until next period, until tomorrow, until next year, we'll cover that later. It doesn't take more than two or three years for kids to quit exhibiting their natural curiosity, to learn to wait more or less patiently - if uninterestedly - to be told what the next "important" thing to learn will be.
Developing the trust that kids can and will learn on their own is usually easier for parents who start homeschooling before their children reach school age. It's hard to watch your children learn to walk, learn to understand and use language, and learn to get into anything and everything within reach, without believing that they are capable of learning about anything they are curious about. Most small children have such a broad range of interests that it's easy to believe they may eventually become curious about almost everything.
This has been a little difficult with me when it comes to Brenna's spelling. She is really doing a wonderful job with it and I know in my heart that she is completely capable of doing the work. There are "moments" though during each lesson that she pretty much has a meltdown and tells me that it is too much pressure and that she hates spelling (usually at the beginning). I push her though and she always completes the lesson. The thing that I have noticed though, is that she is no longer making her little books with stories like she used to before we started the spelling curriculum. She would write things (whether they were spelled correctly or not) and always enjoyed it. She doesn't even TRY to spell anymore. Now it's like she has no confidence in her spelling capabilities. It makes me wonder if what I am doing is completely crushing her desire. Is it better that I stop the curriculum and just let her learn on her own (which was working pretty damn well to begin with and she learned so much)? Or do I continue to force her and end up with a child who absolutely hates writing and spelling?
I really am so torn on this and honestly don't know what to do. On one hand, I love the unschooling, child-led learning but on the other hand it's not like I am asking much of her.
I guess it is really the type of child I have as well. Brenna does learn and retain things very well, which I think is very important (and really is the whole point of learning!), when SHE wants to. For example, she is so into the Magic School Bus episodes right now, which teaches science type things. I have a timer set up and we record all of them. They are pretty much the only thing that she has been watching on TV right now. She watched one on spiders today and while we were outside tonight she saw a spider making a web and was absolutely fascinated. She LOVED it! She started telling me all these little facts about spiders that she learned from the show.
I guess my whole dilemma that I have right now is all of the options that I have when it comes to homeschooling. Do I want to be the type who makes their child sit down and learn things? Or do I want to be the type of parent who lets their child learn things that they are passionate about? Maybe it's a more of an "in-between" kinda thing.
I guess I'll figure all this out just like everything else in parenthood. :)
Brendon and I have not really got too much done on the back porch since I last wrote. It is a very slow LEARNING process. But the great thing, I guess, is that we ARE learning. LOL We figured out that we needed to put some cross beams between the main beams to support, as well as screw, the tin on to. So that has been our project this weekend. We have more than half of the boards up. We would have finished today but it started to rain. Great excuse to watch the Dallas Cowboys game too. LOL :) Hopefully next weekend we will finally get the roof on. *fingers crossed* I will try to finish the cross boards this week and paint them. I should have known that this would be a 'more than one weekend' thing. It will get finished eventually.
It has been a learning time for Brenna as well --- learning to occupy and entertain herself while Mom and Dad work! :) She is very good at that though and always has been and I think that is very important. I can not stand it when kids are needy and clingy and always need somebody to tell them what to do or entertain them. That's another problem with kids going to school. They are always told what to do, when to do it, how to do it, ect... Kids need time to be by themselves and figure things out and use their imagination. Children in school get very little of that. They can't just be themselves and do things that THEY want to do and discover things that they love and are passionate about. For example, Brenna absolutely loves to draw and will stop doing what she is doing sometimes just so she can draw a picture of what she is doing or what she's learning about. She is a wonderful artist and has become so much better because she's just able to do it whenever she wants - no restrictions. Do you think that if she was in school and learning about Columbus that she would just be able to stop and draw a few pictures about what she thought the Pinta, Nina and Santa Maria ships looked like? Not if it wasn't in the schedule or part of the curriculum.
I have started to become a little obsessed about "unschooling" again, which I think is a great philosophy when homeschooling younger children. I have a book on it that I have read before but am starting to read for the second time. I love reading books again because I think you get much more from it the second time around. It has been a while since I read it anyway. I have talked about unschooling before but for those who don' t know about it, it is basically a child-led learning style. Nothing is forced on the child and they learn about things that they are interested in. A lot of what Brenna and I do right now is considered the unschooling method. She learns so much just by asking questions and being curious about things. Here's a few paragraphs from the book I'm reading that I thought was great:
From the book 'The Unschooling Handbook : How to Use the Whole World As Your Child's Classroom'
Trust That the Child Will Learn
For many people, this last characteristic - trusting that the child will learn - is one of the most difficult hurdles to understanding how unschooling works. "But how do you know that you are covering everything important?" " How do you know your kids aren't missing some crucial topic?" " What if they don't learn all the stuff they're supposed to know?"
This is partly a reaction to our own educational experiences and our observation of school children. Years in school teach most of us to rely on what the experts - teachers, textbook writers, standardized test developers, government officials - tell us what we need to know. Eager, hand-waving "Me, me, call on me!!" first graders become less enthusiastic - even indifferent - by the time they are ten or eleven. Too many times, they are told to settle down, wait until next period, until tomorrow, until next year, we'll cover that later. It doesn't take more than two or three years for kids to quit exhibiting their natural curiosity, to learn to wait more or less patiently - if uninterestedly - to be told what the next "important" thing to learn will be.
Developing the trust that kids can and will learn on their own is usually easier for parents who start homeschooling before their children reach school age. It's hard to watch your children learn to walk, learn to understand and use language, and learn to get into anything and everything within reach, without believing that they are capable of learning about anything they are curious about. Most small children have such a broad range of interests that it's easy to believe they may eventually become curious about almost everything.
This has been a little difficult with me when it comes to Brenna's spelling. She is really doing a wonderful job with it and I know in my heart that she is completely capable of doing the work. There are "moments" though during each lesson that she pretty much has a meltdown and tells me that it is too much pressure and that she hates spelling (usually at the beginning). I push her though and she always completes the lesson. The thing that I have noticed though, is that she is no longer making her little books with stories like she used to before we started the spelling curriculum. She would write things (whether they were spelled correctly or not) and always enjoyed it. She doesn't even TRY to spell anymore. Now it's like she has no confidence in her spelling capabilities. It makes me wonder if what I am doing is completely crushing her desire. Is it better that I stop the curriculum and just let her learn on her own (which was working pretty damn well to begin with and she learned so much)? Or do I continue to force her and end up with a child who absolutely hates writing and spelling?
I really am so torn on this and honestly don't know what to do. On one hand, I love the unschooling, child-led learning but on the other hand it's not like I am asking much of her.
I guess it is really the type of child I have as well. Brenna does learn and retain things very well, which I think is very important (and really is the whole point of learning!), when SHE wants to. For example, she is so into the Magic School Bus episodes right now, which teaches science type things. I have a timer set up and we record all of them. They are pretty much the only thing that she has been watching on TV right now. She watched one on spiders today and while we were outside tonight she saw a spider making a web and was absolutely fascinated. She LOVED it! She started telling me all these little facts about spiders that she learned from the show.
I guess my whole dilemma that I have right now is all of the options that I have when it comes to homeschooling. Do I want to be the type who makes their child sit down and learn things? Or do I want to be the type of parent who lets their child learn things that they are passionate about? Maybe it's a more of an "in-between" kinda thing.
I guess I'll figure all this out just like everything else in parenthood. :)
Monday, October 06, 2008
Back on track
For some reason we took all of last week off when it came to Brenna's school work. Our week was pretty full though with co-ops and lots of playdates. Today we finally did some of her spelling. I was a little worried that she wouldn't remember some things since we went a whole week without doing it but she surprised me and did wonderful! She is at 25 words now and it takes about 30 minutes. She's getting better at not getting so frustrated and it's not such a fight anymore getting her to do it. I keep reminding her though that there are other kids her age that do waaaay more table work then what I require of her.
So here's her spelling words that she did today:
ups
cupping
my puppy's eye
So here's her spelling words that she did today:
ups
cupping
my puppy's eye
supping
good
wooden
good
wooden
stood
could
would
wouldn't
moods
brooding
could
would
wouldn't
moods
brooding
outing
shouting
about
stout
shouting
about
stout
clouting
flouting
pouting
spouting
routing
shouldn't
couldn't
eyes
Anyways, this past weekend was a pretty busy one for Brendon and I. We tore down the roof of our back porch and are in the process of putting up a new one. The old one was rotten in some places and leaked a lot. Here are a couple before and after pictures. Today we are going to start on the roof.
Next we have to finish painting the back of the house. We got the front painted the beginning of the year and now we need to finish. The thing that was preventing us from doing the back was the porch, so now that that's done hopefully we'll get it all finished very soon.
Saturday, October 04, 2008
Lock down
Another "lock down" today at an elementary school here in the Valley. I turned on the news at my Grandparents house this afternoon to see live coverage at the school. Apparently someone was shooting at someone right by an elementary school. School officials were notified and all the gates and classrooms were locked. No one in, no one out.
Yes, I can understand the safety precautions but can you imagine being a parent and seeing your kids' school on the news with something like that going on? Do they even call and notify the parents in a situation like that or do they (the parents) find out about it from TV? If I were in that predicament I would want to go and snatch my child up right away and take her home!
Things have just become so scary at schools. Makes me grateful that I am able to do what I do.
Yes, I can understand the safety precautions but can you imagine being a parent and seeing your kids' school on the news with something like that going on? Do they even call and notify the parents in a situation like that or do they (the parents) find out about it from TV? If I were in that predicament I would want to go and snatch my child up right away and take her home!
Things have just become so scary at schools. Makes me grateful that I am able to do what I do.
Thursday, October 02, 2008
So I go on this huge posting frenzy and then I don't write for a whole week. I guess that doesn't surprise me (or anybody else who's been keeping up here). LOL
Brenna is at Ben and William's house (the twins that live across the alley from us) so I thought I would get on here and write something. It is way too quiet in the house right now. It always seems so odd when Brenna's gone. I kinda miss her. It's not so bad when Brendon and I are out doing something and Brenna is somewhere else (like my Mom's house). But when I'm at home without her, it's like she's SUPPOSED to be here and when she's not then something is missing. What would I do if she were at school all day?? THAT would be hard to get used to. I just happen to be one of those weird people who actually LIKE being with my daughter all day. LOL It kinda irks me when I hear people say things like, "I can't wait for school to start! My kids are driving me crazy!". To me, that is just sad. I tend to feel a bit sorry for the kids.
It's funny though because when she's here and I'm trying to do something, like post on my blog, I would just give anything to have some peace. It's always, "Mom! I need help!", "Mom! Look at this!", "Hey Mom, come here please!". I now know exactly what my Mom meant when she used to tell us, "I'm going to change my name!". LOL But I would not change what we have for anything.
Anyway, we have had a fairly good week so far. Monday and Tuesday were pretty uneventful - nothing exciting. Wednesday morning was the first day of co-ops for the homeschool group and that went very well. Brenna LOVES co-ops and I wish we had them more then just twice a year. This time it is only for six weeks (every Wednesday) and our theme is America. It is all patriotic stuff with the elections coming up and all. I am teaching in Brenna's class (K-1st) and we are doing things like George Washington, Lincoln, flags, ect... It has been a little difficult, just like it was last time, getting my lesson plans together for that class. Five and six year olds in the same class can be hard because they are all so different. I have kids that can read fluently and I have kids that can't read at all. So I have to come up with things that they will ALL have fun doing - that can be a little challenging at times. In fact, the first day really gave me a lot of insight on what some can and can't do so I think I am going to have to tweak some of my plans a little for the next five weeks. This time around we have more Kindergarten kids then 1st grade. In fact, from what I can remember, I think Brenna may be the only one in the class that can read this year. The other kids who could read last year have gone on to the 2nd-3rd grade class.
Speaking of Brenna reading, I tested her yesterday with something that I found on the computer and, according to what I used, she is at a 4th grade reading level. I knew she was advanced for her age but never thought it was a 4th grade level. I want to find another reading test and see if it corresponds with the one she took. It's not that I don't think it could be right - I guess I would just like a comparison.
So nothing new with "school" this week. We have not done any math or spelling. Tomorrow my goal is to at least do a spelling lesson. To be honest, "school" for us starts right when she wakes up and ends when she goes to bed. It is our lifestyle I guess. So just because we don't do her curriculum doesn't necessarily mean that she didn't learn anything. In fact, Brenna has been watching a lot of the "Magic Tree House" series on Discovery Kids and learning a lot from them. Today she watched the one about warm/coldbloodedness. They are cartoons and really teach kids about a lot of stuff. I guess you could say that is our science curriculum right now. LOL The cool thing about Brenna though is when she watches stuff like that, she remembers it.
Well Brenna should be home soon. I need to try and get a couple things done before then. :)
Brenna is at Ben and William's house (the twins that live across the alley from us) so I thought I would get on here and write something. It is way too quiet in the house right now. It always seems so odd when Brenna's gone. I kinda miss her. It's not so bad when Brendon and I are out doing something and Brenna is somewhere else (like my Mom's house). But when I'm at home without her, it's like she's SUPPOSED to be here and when she's not then something is missing. What would I do if she were at school all day?? THAT would be hard to get used to. I just happen to be one of those weird people who actually LIKE being with my daughter all day. LOL It kinda irks me when I hear people say things like, "I can't wait for school to start! My kids are driving me crazy!". To me, that is just sad. I tend to feel a bit sorry for the kids.
It's funny though because when she's here and I'm trying to do something, like post on my blog, I would just give anything to have some peace. It's always, "Mom! I need help!", "Mom! Look at this!", "Hey Mom, come here please!". I now know exactly what my Mom meant when she used to tell us, "I'm going to change my name!". LOL But I would not change what we have for anything.
Anyway, we have had a fairly good week so far. Monday and Tuesday were pretty uneventful - nothing exciting. Wednesday morning was the first day of co-ops for the homeschool group and that went very well. Brenna LOVES co-ops and I wish we had them more then just twice a year. This time it is only for six weeks (every Wednesday) and our theme is America. It is all patriotic stuff with the elections coming up and all. I am teaching in Brenna's class (K-1st) and we are doing things like George Washington, Lincoln, flags, ect... It has been a little difficult, just like it was last time, getting my lesson plans together for that class. Five and six year olds in the same class can be hard because they are all so different. I have kids that can read fluently and I have kids that can't read at all. So I have to come up with things that they will ALL have fun doing - that can be a little challenging at times. In fact, the first day really gave me a lot of insight on what some can and can't do so I think I am going to have to tweak some of my plans a little for the next five weeks. This time around we have more Kindergarten kids then 1st grade. In fact, from what I can remember, I think Brenna may be the only one in the class that can read this year. The other kids who could read last year have gone on to the 2nd-3rd grade class.
Speaking of Brenna reading, I tested her yesterday with something that I found on the computer and, according to what I used, she is at a 4th grade reading level. I knew she was advanced for her age but never thought it was a 4th grade level. I want to find another reading test and see if it corresponds with the one she took. It's not that I don't think it could be right - I guess I would just like a comparison.
So nothing new with "school" this week. We have not done any math or spelling. Tomorrow my goal is to at least do a spelling lesson. To be honest, "school" for us starts right when she wakes up and ends when she goes to bed. It is our lifestyle I guess. So just because we don't do her curriculum doesn't necessarily mean that she didn't learn anything. In fact, Brenna has been watching a lot of the "Magic Tree House" series on Discovery Kids and learning a lot from them. Today she watched the one about warm/coldbloodedness. They are cartoons and really teach kids about a lot of stuff. I guess you could say that is our science curriculum right now. LOL The cool thing about Brenna though is when she watches stuff like that, she remembers it.
Well Brenna should be home soon. I need to try and get a couple things done before then. :)
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