The Nesting Instinct - Homeschool Blogger

Catching Up on Our Homeschooling This Year

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 17:48:00 -0500

I have seen the future of schooling, and it is us.

Let me explain. My oldest daughter, who's 14, is supposed to be going into grade 9. Our province allows students who wish to take their courses online, through one of the school boards. So we decided to have her do Math and Science online, while I continue to teach her English, History, Social Studies, etc.

Last year she took French and Science, and she quite enjoyed it. This year she's doing grade 10 Science and grade 11 Math. She could have done grade 11 Math last year, but there was no room in the class. My younger daughter, who is 12, is ready for grade 11 Math next year, but I'm going to let her wait a year before she takes it online. But teaching them at home just let them whiz through most of Saxon Math's program, and we've loved it. They're so far ahead.

So even though I love homeschooling, I'm letting my daughter do some public school courses (although they still are online). Why? It's simple, really. If she has six grade 12 credits from an acredited school, then getting into university is no problem. We don't have to jump through hoops. And I've decided that this just sounds easier, and I want to make it easy for her.

Besides, I'm still teaching her the important stuff!

We calculated it out, and she'll be finished her grade 12 credits when she's 16. And then she has a year and a half to work full time, or write a novel, or travel, or do missions trips before university.

But as we've been watching this whole process unfold, it has occurred to me that this must be the future of schooling. Think about it: it's much easier to teach online. Sure, you still need a teacher to mark the papers, but there's no physical building. You don't need gym equipment. You don't need a library. You don't need to hire a janitor, or a secretary. It's a lot cheaper.

And then the kids aren't exposed to all the crap they get in high school. Why wouldn't more parents have their kids do it this way? And as governments face more budget cuts, you can bet they'll start to look at more online alternatives.

Of course there are Christian online options for high school, but here in Canada most of them aren't acredited, so we went with something that absolutely was. But it just makes so much more sense. Rebecca has two Science classes a week, of about an hour and a bit each. She submits one assignment a week. And they cover the entire course curriculum. In a regular classroom you'd do 400 minutes a week, instead of their 180. You just get rid of all the wasted time. So the kids have more time for their real life.

Why wouldn't this catch on? Personally, I'm still having fun teaching History and English. We're using Veritas Press' Omnibus curriculum with both she and her sister this year, although I've added some books for her to read. Over the course of the year both girls will read approximately 27 books. Next year she's doing Sonlight's Survey of British Literature, which also has 27 books. That's serious learning and serious reading. In public school English (including online), they read 4. How is that education?

I'm thrilled that I can find the best education that works for my girls, and for our family. We're taking a month long missions trip to Kenya this year, and we don't have to worry about missing school in the middle of it.

I really think more and more people are going to clue in to how much time is wasted in school, how poor an education it is, and how much better your life can be with real educational alternatives. So let's not shirk when people ask why we homeschool. Let's be proud! We, after all, are the future.

Guilt Free Homeschooling

Tue, 19 May 2009 13:08:00 -0500

It's getting near the end of the year, and likely your kids are getting tired of working. I know mine are! And now is the time that we start to question ourselves. Did we really do a good job this year? Did our children learn as much as they would have in "real" school? Am I burning out?

Guilt Free Homeschooling has a great post on the likely causes of burnout in homeschooling, and I encourage you to read it! Some of her reasons: trying to match the curriculum at school; getting overly involved in outside activities; thinking you have to replicate school. I think she's totally right! I visited one homeschooling family once that sang the national anthem, did the Pledge of Allegiance, and made announcements at 9:00 just like in regular school. And then they did their subjects for twenty minutes each. It was so regimented they lost all the benefits of homeschooling!

So if you're feeling tired, read this post, and then browse her site!

And another tip: if your kids just aren't learning anymore, switch curriculum and end with a bang! We got rid of our geology and geography and history recently, and we're finishing the year with a novel study, using my new "Any Novel" Novel Study Guide! You can use it for all grades, 6-12, and study any novel you want! No more need for individual study guides! And you can download it immediately. You don't have to wait for shipping. Find out more here.

Why Homeschooled Kids Still Talk to Their Parents

Fri, 15 May 2009 10:55:00 -0500

I love bubble baths. They're where I relax. I even read all my library books in there (that's sort of hard on the wallet everytime I drop one!). But lately I haven't been able to relax in my bathtub very much because my daughters have decided that my bathroom should now be called "the meeting room".

Whenever I take a bath, they head in to talk. That's where they want to share what's on their hearts, or just chat. And then, when I finally do get out and dry off, they want me to tuck them in. And then they want to talk some more! They're in separate rooms, and whoever I'm not with keeps calling me, saying it's their turn.

My daughters are 14 and 11. It's not like they're 6.

But it's gotten even more intense over the last few years. They want to talk and talk and talk.

At first I was a little perturbed, because I am with my kids all the time. And sometimes I just want some time to myself!

But we all laugh at how much they want to talk with me. It's a running joke. And lately, when we're taking walks, they want to hold my hand again. They haven't done that since they were little. But lately they just really like me.

I'm thrilled, honestly. But here's my new theory: the more we talk to our kids, the more they want to be with us. They know that we love them, and they really bond with us. It's not that my kids don't have friends; they really do. In fact, they're often gone for much of the weekend, and my oldest daughter is constantly on the computer with her friends. They have a ton of outside activities. But they always want to talk it all over with me.

There's another family I know that seems like a wonderful Christian family. And I'm sure they are. But yesterday their daughter was on the computer with my daughter, and it became clear that she was eating dinner while typing. She wasn't eating dinner with her family, even though they were all home. They were all scattered in different rooms.

When we put in the time, kids open up. When we don't, they start to retreat and they look for their primary emotional support elsewhere. I want my kids to always be looking to me. It's funny, too, because my husband used to homeschool one or two days a week. About a year ago he stopped. And the girls have stopped opening up to him as much. It's really tough. But when he is home consistently for a few weeks, like when we take vacations or something, they're back to bantering with him, too. All of it just shows me that kids need our time and attention. They don't need activities. They don't need stuff. They need us.

Sometimes, though, I really need a bath. By myself. And they're going to have to learn that!

Win a Free Rosetta Stone Software Package!

Thu, 14 May 2009 18:15:00 -0500

Rosetta Stone is the fastest way to learn a language and has been the #1 foreign language curriculum among homeschoolers for a while — and you can WIN the *all new* version 3 Rosetta Stone Homeschool LATIN program… FOR FREE! This is the first year you can get Latin in the brand new Version III update.

This is a $259 program (and believe me it’s worth every penny!)
This is a computer based curriculum and Rosetta Stone will also include a headset with microphone, and a supplementary “Audio Companion” CD so you can practice lessons in the car, on the go, or where-ever! Students participate in life-like conversations and actually produce language to advance through the program. Rosetta Stone incorporates listening, reading, grammar, vocabulary and writing along with speaking and pronunciation lessons. For parents, the new Parent Administrative Tools are integrated into the program to allow parents to easily enroll up to ten students in any of 12 predetermined lesson plans, monitor student progress, grade completed work (the program grades the work automatically as the students progress- I love that!), and you can view and print reports for transcripts. Homeschooling a lot of kids at your house? This program is designed to enroll and track up to ten students (five users on two computers) and will work for nearly all ages — from beginning readers up to college students.

To win this most excellent Latin program copy these paragraphs and post them in (or as) your next blog post, and/OR link to the contest from your facebook page and/OR email the information to your homeschool support group – Then go to the original page http://Jeneralities.com and leave a comment saying that you’ve posted about, or have linked to, the contest. Please make sure the link works to get back to the original contest page when you post. And good luck!

Impromptu Field Trips!

Wed, 18 Mar 2009 07:43:00 -0500

You know those days. We all have them. You struggle to get phonics done. You struggle through math. You're moving about the speed of a slug stuck on something sticky, and the kids aren't moving at all. They keep falling out of their chairs. They keep whining. And at some point, you decide to chuck it. This just isn't working for you today.

I had one of those days yesterday. I peered out the window, and I said, "You know what guys? Let's go to a sugar bush!". And we did.

For those of you not blessed enough to live in the Great White North, where we sit under mounds of snow for months on end, you do not know the joy of maple syrup. For in March, the sap begins to run. And many of our friends operate small maple syrup "factories". So we headed out to the woods, and emptied about 35 10 gallon drums of sap into even larger drums for them, all ready to boil down. It was a lot of work, but a lot of fun, too! And we came home with a whole lot of syrup.

The funny part is that once we arrived home, we did actually finish geography. They didn't get that behind. But sometimes you have to know when to give up, and that's the beauty of homeschooling. When you're in school, you only take field trips on the assigned days, and who knows if those assigned days would have actually been productive ones to work? We can take off anytime when we really need a break.

Our family has several places that we take off to. One is a nature conservatory/wetlands boardwalk where we look at toads and frogs and tadpoles and snakes and turtles and geese, all at different times of year, to see the changes.

Another is the waterfront, where we take bike rides and watch turtles and fish. This time of year we start planning picnics occasionally, when we'll bike somewhere nice to eat, and then come home for the afternoon. I've tried doing school on these picnics, but I always find the paper blows away or someone loses a pencil. So it often sounds more idyllic than it really is!

Field trips are great, but sometimes you need somewhere to disappear to, if only for an hour. That's why I love these little outdoor places we can run to. What about you? Where do you run? I'd love to know!

Cross-posted at The Homeschool Post.

Sheila is the author of four books, including To Love, Honor and Vacuum: When you feel more like a maid than a wife and a mother. She blogs at To Love, Honor and Vacuum!