When himself and I decided to homeschool he left it to me to pick a curriculum.  I thought it over, did some research and decided that for the first two or three years we wouldn't use any.  Well, not exactly.  We would use things, but just little bits here and there, when we felt it was necessary.  We were going to jump at "teachable moments" and run with them.  Heaven knows they happen often enough.  After talking about it we really didn't think there was any need for "formal school" for kindergarten, maybe not even for first grade.  And we would go easy for second grade.  Just slip stuff in when we thought the time was right, little by little.  I read as many of the Moore's books as I could get my hands on, and I really believed what they had to say.  "Better late than early" I found myself telling people.  And I believed it whole heartedly.  Until recently. 

My local support group has wrapped up for the year, and I took the opportunity to check out some extra library books for the summer.  But the more I read, the more I read.  One book mentions another, and I cross reference and double check.  I jot things down and use post-it-flags like I'm cramming for finals.  And the more I read, the more I second guess my decisions.  I don't regret our kindergarten year, but I'm not so sure about first grade.  Maybe I really need a more structured curriculum?  As I read other people blogs I see more of what other people are doing.  Maybe they know better than I do.  Maybe I should look deeper into My Father's World, Training Wheels, A Bee Sees...   Maybe I should pay more attention to the typical course of study.  Maybe, maybe, maybe.

But as I scribble notes with a feverish hand himself plays outside with the girls.  They make an impromptu catapult with dirt clods and popsicle sticks.  They turn our kitchen scraps into compost.  They sing the "Ipsy Ipsy Spider".  They chase our chickens and feed them worms.  They bring in a plateful of baby "zue-kenny".  They feed a baby lamb with a bottle.  They look for monarch caterpillars. 

Today we played with magnets.  They have a magnetic building set, and as M, age 5, walked past me I stopped her and asked her if that magnet would stick to the coffee table.  We spent more than an hour trying to attach magnets to anything and everything.  No, they don't stick to my nose, but they do stick to my barrette.  No, they don't stick to Daddy's work shirt buttons, but they do stick to steel toed boots.  After himself went to work the fun continued.  We took out a book we have about magnets.  Did you know that the refrigerator is held closed with magnets?  We looked for games that we have that rely on magnets.  Anyone remember Wooly Willy?  Then we made fish with craft foam and added paper clips.  They fished all afternoon.  I'm pretty sure they exceeded their limit.