I can hardly believe that I've been homeschooling for 4 years now ... wow, how the time flies! This year has been TOTALLY different than the previous years in one respect. While I still have a list of topics that I want to cover and an idea of where I want the year to go, I am more relaxed about how our days go. I used to insist on lots of hands-on learning, but it became apparent to me that this just wasn't as fun for the kids as it was for me. I loved seeing that completed lapbook on each and EVERY topic we studied. Now, I just pick and choose different times each month to do a special page here and there. That History notebook sounded like a grand idea, but it just became one more thing for us to complete and the joy wasn't there, so why continue to insist that everything be done MY way??

I would really like for the kids to be exposed to the extras - fine arts, drawing, etc. but it just isn't happening this year. I'm thinking about making this our summer study - listening to classical music, studying artists, etc. Something that can be done outside in the cooler morning air or inside when it's too hot to go outside! I am not going to let these things slide, but my kids aren't going to DIE if we don't study these extras in 4th and 6th grades. I think they'll appreciate it more when they are older anyway.

I'm beginning to read through Teaching the Trivium by Harvey and Laurie Bluedorns and, man, I wish I had this book 6 years ago! The only part that I've read in-depth is their views on teaching math. They have a LOT of information to support having a child wait until at least age 10 before beginning a formal workbook/textbook-type teaching process. My 10 yo son is having a dickens of a time learning his multiplication facts and I have been very concerned about this. His 12 yo sister (6th grade) is in Saxon 87 already - she is a math whiz! Now, I don't expect him to follow in her footsteps, but noone in my family has ever been delayed in math, so I am on new ground in trying to deal with how to proceed. It was very reassuring to me to read the Bluedorn's advice and thoughts on teaching math later rather than earlier. He and I will spend the rest of the year learning these facts and playing some neat math games from a book I have ... we'll also play multiplication Bingo and some other fun games - hopefully, this will take away from the negativity that he feels about himself because he is having problems with math. He'll even call himself "stupid" and I have to reassure him that he is anything but stupid ... he just needs more time to learn it all.

We have a lot of 4-H contests to enter in the next 6 weeks ... baking, sewing and birdfeeders. It'll be a busy time, but fun watching the kids complete their entries. Jenna has already sewn 2 things for the sewing contest and we know what cookies we'll make for the baking contest. We could use a few new birdfeeders on our backdeck and so I hope I can find a neat pattern online for them. 4-H has been a good thing for the kids to be involved in and they are enjoying it for the most part. It is an "extra" that I am glad we have pursued and stuck with!

I hope that your week is going ok!

... Kris ...