In trying to figure out what our homeschooling looks like this past year, we've tried a few different things. One thing I know for sure is that homeschooling is SO MUCH more than what curriculum you plan to use...at least it can be. Over the past year (or longer) I've been slowly making my way through the very long list of amazing books included in my Homeschooling Course and many additional titles found at the library. Two things I now know are that we really want the way we homeschool to be more of a 'lifestyle of learning' approach. And I've realized that we like to work with Unit Studies.
I love to collect resources for current and future use. It's actually a bit of an addiction, I think. It is just incredible to me how much is available to those who want to educate their children at home. And so I find it hard not to collect a gazillion bookmarks because 'you just never know when you might need that bit of information'. I am so thankful for all of the many free homeshooling resources online. This can actually be a bit overwhelming to me if I am not careful, because there is SO MUCH out there, but when I narrow my focus a bit....I am able to find peace and enjoy the journey.
Because our boys are still so young (soon to be 5,3 and 1) we still do alot of playing and reading. This is something I know we'll do for years to come. I had put together a years worth of unit studies based mostly on seasons, holidays and Godly character traits. This, for us, works very well. I feel much more focused when we're working with themes. And it will be a great way to include all three boys in the same studies with adaptation for each one instead of needing to use different curriculum with different age levels.
Now with that being said...my year's worth of unit studies have gone mostly unused since September when I realized how difficult it was to stick to much of a routine with a little baby. We've touched on some of the lessons, but barely. I also began thinking that I was maybe pushing the academics a little too much. They're still so young. And I know they are learning every single day no matter what we do. I am a big believer in play time being a child's work...it's a natural process for them to learn so many things and a great way for siblings to learn communication and Godly character. I also learn alot about their interests and what delights them (or doesn't) by how they play and what they play with. With C's hearing loss the boys and I focus much of our days on the art of good communication, both with speech and ASL.
Now that life is feeling a bit more balanced and I am starting to get a bit more sleep, I am feeling more ready to jump back in to some academic work. Now... when I say academics I mean more activities, using the unit studies I've collected and created and playing fun educational/learning games. O has also expressed more interest lately in "doing more homeschooling". So, I think we're ready to begin again. What's great is that I can just reused the same lesson plans I've mapped out for the year over and over again but go more in depth each year....and adjust as we go along. I LOVE the flexibility of homeschooling this way.
Although we don't have a set schedule yet, our best time of the day for focused learning happens in the morning and when T is sleeping. Each day, for now, is different...and I'm learning to let that go. For us this creates more of the lifestyle of learning approach that we desire anyway. I do need to start having a daily plan though...I find that when I do, our days at least have a direction. And if we get sidetracked, again, they're still learning and there's always tomorrow.
Here are some of my favorite resources:
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Letter of the Week This site also includes "story of the week", "sound of the week", "science of the week" and some great library book lists. We're now moving on to Sound of the. Very exciting!!
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I pull alot of ideas from Child Fun to compliment Letter of the Week.
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Homeschool Share This site has a WEALTH of information on unit studies. Some are theme based and others are children's literature based. I am really excited about this site because it is just loaded with great ideas.
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We started having a Family Night each week using these books. They're designed to bring the family together to learn more about who Jesus is and that He loves us....like a family bible study. They're geared for kids ages 4-10 and they're awesome. Our boys look forward to Family Night each week and just love the fun biblical activities. They are very "object lesson" oriented which seems to work well for us.
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I also love Homeschool Helper Online. There are great unit studies at this site as well. But the thing I love the most are the Godly character lessons.
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And last but not least Signing Time. We will continue using Signing Time videos/DVDs and CDs to learn ASL (all of which we can find at the library). C's ASL teacher continues to visit with us each week and provides us with so many great resources and gives us "homework" to do throughout the week.
And his Speech Therapist, Lauren, is helping him to communicate verbally which is helping us all learn how to communicate better with C. I do consider this and our time with our ASL teacher, Karen, to be a big part of our weekly education as it greatly affects our family communication as a whole. It's good for all of us!!! We've been very fortunate in that they both come to our home, which is wonderful because they help us to use our surroundings in unique and creative ways as well.
After about a year of constant prayer and learning from so many different sources, I think I understand why you really just need to take homeschooling one day at a time. What works this year may not work as well next year...or visa versa...and sometimes this is the case from one day to the next. It helps me to remember that we need to remain open to however God leads and enjoy the journey.
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