The other day a neighbor friend said, "Do you homeschool?" Dana jumps in, "Yes we do! Except Millie. She doesn't do anything. Well, she does chores when Mom asks her. That's all." Dana is also proud to be a homeschooler. Her school consists of opening up Explode the Code or her math when she wants to (usually when Levi opens up a workbook, Dana will also for 15 min. or so). I've decided I don't want to force the very young children to do much. Levi was reading well at her age. She is very different from him. While I think she is just as bright, she is more wiggly, squirmy, more in her imagination. She gets frustrated and distracted much more easily. I tried about 3 different reading curriculum with her before we tried Explode the Code. So far, so good; we'll see if it lasts. That's advantage #1: If a curriculum is just not working for my child, I can CHANGE it! Dana does seem to be a math girl.
Another perk: we went to Disneyland in September. Vacationing during the off season is great.
Perk #3: We enjoy the outdoors. When I went to college, I discovered I had to learn to be outside again. I spent time outside in elementary, but it dwindled away as I got older and had more homework. (There is a heavy price tag to being a good student, and I paid that price in full and then some.) Obviously we could enjoy the outdoors after school, but I have fit it into our schedule to have approximately 2 hours for a break mid-morning to go outside. Spending time outdoors is so important for mental and emotional development. My kids love to ride their bikes and all that (Dana btw, just asked to learn to ride a 2 wheeler, which totally shocked me, since she is my timid/fearful child. She learned in an hour and is doing great), but I also like them to play in/with nature (these are the Waldorf ideas coming through), so we try to head to the canyon at least once a week.
Perk #4: Funding! Turns out homeschool is not only not expensive, but we are getting lots of stuff we otherwise wouldn't be able to. Technically Levi is registered as a charter school student (an independent learner student), and we are receiving $800 to reimburse curriculum for him. And I will get that much per year for each child that is school aged. They also took us on a paid-for field trip to the zoo, and we'll see what else they have lined up for us. This does mean he is tested somewhat. I also need to submit bi-weekly assignments. I need to give him the Dibels test 3x a year for the first few grades. Then it gets into more testing. It also means we are part of common core, I guess. But it's not that bad, and I don't feel like we are doing anything different this year than we otherwise would be doing. For the first time I have a budget. I mean, I have had a budget since I got married (I am married to an accountant, remember), but it's always been a "spend as little as we can" budget. Now I have a budget of "spend this on whatever you want, because if you don't spend it, you lose it." It's a weird mentality that I am really enjoying. I have most everything I need, and have only spent about half the money. I think I will be stocking up on literature.
I just love this.
