So we started MFW1 in August, got to the long vowels, and started slowing down. I figured that would happen, actually, so just continued the history, math, etc. as planned, and did our Spanish curriculum as planned as well. But, then I remembered I loved the integration of the phonics with the history and decided I didn't want to lose that. I got a brilliant idea: I scrapped La Pata Pita Vuelve (our Spanish reading curriculum) and started translating a Spanish Bible reader using MFW's English one as a guide. Yes, I did look for a children's Bible, but could not find one to suit our needs. Of course, I couldn't keep up with translating so much and fell behind. Dd likes being able to read the Bible, but started mentioning how we don't do LPPV anymore (You mean, you LIKED that???).

So, once again, I'm back to the old plan - LPPV, Spanish spelling, MFW1 phonics at her pace. We've been going on with the history as though I'd never changed a thing. She's been doing the Bible notebook and memory verses/copywork in Spanish from the beginning. When we finally get to reading the Reader in English, it'll just be review for her (review is good, right?). She was actually writing more on her own with this plan. She was writing and illustrating her own stories (in Spanish), sometimes asking me to help write. Since the change, she started writing less. She wants me to write almost everything out for her, whether in English (which she cannot write) or Spanish. Why is that?

I changed in her K year too. I started out with Sonlight K (I had already used Prek as is), thought she wasn't really getting the stories, and sold it in December. When I asked her later in the year what her favorite story was, she answered, "The Hundred Dresses," the main story I thought she didn't get! I should have just stuck it out. I obviously didn't learn anything from last year. Thankfully, I don't feel the need to sell it off and get something new. I'm just picking up where we left off.

First of all, we did NOT, I repeat NOT, begin homeschooling to homeschool. Clear as mud?

Our daughter's birthday falls after the Kindergarten deadline, however, we felt she was ready to learn. After spending a semester working in bilingual classrooms helping first grade children read in their first
language, dh and I thought I could perhaps continue that with our daughter. Hubby said that since I would be home anyway (I'd been working as a single mom up to that point), I might as well teach her. She'd have a head start on reading in Spanish, because more than likely the public schools would place her in English class as she is completely bilingual. One of our goals is that she be biliterate,as well as bilingual. I felt more comfortable teaching her in Spanish anyway- although it is my second language- simply because I mentored under teachers who taught in Spanish.

I did not plan any extravagant curriculum; I figured I'd focus on reading in Spanish, and just study things that were of interest to her. She was interested in plants, so at 4.5 years old, we began studying
plants and Spanish phonics. We always intended on putting her in school.

In December of 2003, I started actually reading about homeschooling. I studied up on homeschooling, read books, read websites, and by May the following year was ready to approach the subject with dh about "perhaps" continuing.  We were both concerned about her "socialization" and how she was so easily mislead to do the wrong thing. So, I began the conversation, ready to start in on statistics and all the wonderful things I had read.

Dh simply asked, "Is she learning anything with you?"

Of course she is, ask her anything about plants!

"So go ahead and continue. No child needs to spend so much time with other foolish kids anyway."

WHAT??!!

Let me explain the significance of this. My husband does not like to read, so has never read anything about homeschooling. My husband is an immigrant to this country from one that homeschooling is extremely rare, if not unheard of, so has not heard of homeschooling from anyone he knows. My husband is not a believer, so that is not a motivation for him to keep her out of school. However, I realized at that moment that yes, God does give wisdom to unbelievers to lead their families. My husband basically repeated back everything I had ever read, but had never told him, without hearing or reading anything on the subject himself.

Can you say overjoyed? Can you say humbled?

But, it was still considered temporary, until we felt she was socially ready to survive the onslaught of bad influences she'd be around in school. We figured we would place her the second semester of Kindergarten.

Second semester approached, and hubby decided that if she is still doing well at home, why change in the middle of the year. Just continue until the end of the year, and we'll look at first grade. Well, here we
are in the first grade, and planning curriculum for the second. The subject hasn't even come up as to whether or not we'd continue to homeschool.