Homeschool 2008-2009 Preview

Well, after some degree of back-and-forthedness about what exactly our year is going to look like with regard to work, commuting across state lines and school, Ive decided to continue to homeschool for now. These decisions were complicated by, and most likely caused complication with regard to, my pretty significant bout of post-partum depression which, thankfully, appears to be starting to subside. What helped was:

1. Deciding that making too many changes at once would be detrimental to my emotional well being and that of my family and
2. Deciding that I would have to be crazy to leave my daughter and return to work at six weeks, especially given my current psychological state.

Once I had these realizations, I started feeling better immediately. That's a pretty good sign that they are decisions that are good for me and my family.

I also think it would be beneficial for me to seek out some therapy in the weeks to come. My husband and midwife both agree.

So, the question of what to do this year in terms of school was looming over my admittedly clouded head, making it really difficult for me to make the decisions I needed to make. Im very pleased to be able to say that I have decided on the following in terms of curriculum.

We will continue the Core Curriculum/ What your x-grader needs to know series, moving on to third grade work this year. ()

I have found that the company has re-vamped their approach to be much more inclusive when it comes to homeschoolers, so that's an added bonus. There are resources available on the web and some in print, which I have purchased, such as a daily planner and teacher's handbook for the the third grade level.

Ive also chosen a new math curriculum, as I really feel like Ian has gone beyond what I am able to accomplish with the Waldorf methods we were previously using. We are going with this program:



It's a manipulative-based, real-world math program that stresses the basics and their real-life application. Some of the processes are carried out in ways that are totally different from what I learned at good ol St. Matthew School and the Institute of Notre Dame, so it should be interesting to learn along with Ian. Tim said the package of goodies arrived in New York today. Im excited but also apprehensive as Im hoping I made a good choice and did not invest our money in something we are not going to end up using.

As far as reading goes, we will continue with the Ian-directed reading choices with a few choices thrown in there by Mama as well and we will start doing some simple book reports this year, too. Ian is reading so far beyond his grade level that Im not sure exactly where to begin in terms of choosing the books he will read, but one of the first ones we will read will be "My Side of the Mountain" which Tim suggested based on his childhood relationship with the book.

We're going to follow the Core Curriculum for History and Geography which means we will use the Pearson book () which I managed to score on ebay for half the retail price. Sweet!

Spelling is an area on which I think we need to focus in a more formal manner this year, so Im still looking for a spelling book. Of course, vocabulary words from other subjects will be studied too.

Our neighbor, Onge Warner, recently a new mom as well, will be teaching Ian Art this year. We will do some theory at home, and of course integrate the arts into the rest of the curriculum, but she will be meeting with him once a week or so for formal art lessons, which I think is FANTASTIC!

i want to focus on the human body and its development in Health as well as fulfill all the stranger-danger-wear-your-bike-helmet stuff the state says we have to do.

In terms of music, Im not sure how we will supplement what's in the Core Curriculum but there's always lots of music at our house.

Honestly, Im feeling overwhelmed and trying very hard to put on my game face and move forward into the Fall Semester. That's probably why Im boring you with this post...If I see it all written in front of me, I can convince myself that I do have a handle on things and that we are going to be successful learners this year.

I do have a handle on things.
And we are going to be successful learners this year.

Pray for us.
Thanks.
H

Throwing up pictures...so to speak

Happy All Souls! We are caught up in a whirlwind here but there's some serious baking going down. Will write more over the weekend, but please enjoy the images of us making soul cakes and day of the dead cookies.
-H

This little guy in the apron is Ian. I found a soul cake recipe online and we followed it...except I changed the white flour to whole wheat pastry flour and added some chopped black walnuts to some of the cakes. When they were finished cooking, I was disappointed to find they had not risen so much as a centimeter. We powder-sugared them anyway and ate them after returning from mass on Thursday night...and lo and behold it turns out they were DELICIOUS and perfect for dunking in milk or coffee. They had the grainy consistency of a shortbread cookie but were just sweet enough to be fantastic with a little bit of jam or nutella spread on them. So, even though the recipe didn't turn out anywhere near the way it was supposed to, it's still a keeper.

These are some of the Mexican Sugar Skull Cookies we made. I used my mom's tried-and-true sugar cookie recipe, cutting the sugar by half and subsituting almond extract for the vanilla she uses. I figured it was fitting, given marzipan's presence in the traditional celebration. We did two trays with lots of decoration and one tray with just the names of our friends and loved ones who have gone on before us written on them. I think my mom got a little choked up. I have to admit, this was more meaningful to me than I had initially anticipated. I definitely plan to do this every year.

Loved-ones remembered.


Ian fashions his cake to look like a donut...