Home School Week 2

This week went really well. A lot of the difficulties from week one have been smoothed out, and the kids are settling into the idea of schooling at home. My body is getting used to the extra work and I do not feel as tired as I felt the previous week. Everyday seemed calm. The kids worked quietly and efficiently most days. I have worked on how to fit things in better so that we have time for more fun things. Ruth is finishing her online school in 4 to 5 hours so she has more time for reading her own books and drawing. I had laryngitis all week and have learned that a quiet voice works just as well as a loud one. I need to remember this little lesson. I think that added to the peace of the week.

We still have a couple of changes to make for next week. Ruth has a Shakespeare class on Thursdays from 1 to 3. I want to make sure all of the rest of us have finished school by 12:30 that day so we can use that time for the park in good weather and the library in bad. Johnny needs me to be more consistently checking his work and making sure he is not just goofing off. To do this, I have made a daily check list for both Kate and Johnny that I will go over with them halfway through the day and they will have to turn it in at the end the day with all of their completed work.

Cooking went better this week because I bought food. It is funny how having food on hand and not having to rack my brain helps. The laundry is still in the figuring out phase. I guess I should have the older kids help, I just feel guilty when they have their school work. By giving all of the kids more written work, we are consolidating our time better.  I have given up on the "don't interrupt me." I let them interrupt and whoever is most urgent gets me. Oddly enough his is working pretty well. Thanks for all of the advice here.

I really like the freedom of home school. I like that I have Johnny working on programming, We are hoping to get him a real job when he turns 16 rather than a burger flipping job. I like that Johnny can be mainly working at a 7th grade level. I like that history is mainly a lot of very interesting reading rather than a boring textbook full of dates and battles. Kate who has never liked reading much is enjoying her history reading a lot! I like that I have the time to help my first grader with reading rather than having to fit that in after 6 hours of school with a tired kid.

Our Whoopie Pie Moon Phases. Adam and Rachel are currently learning about the moon for science.

Kate typing her book report.

Ruth has her own laptop and likes to do her school at the kitchen table while listening to music-- mainly Taylor Swift.

Adam, Rachel, and Anya playing together after they finished school. Anya has been a little unhappy when Rachel has to work rather than play, but I am sure she would be more unhappy if  Rachel was away at school.

Kate on Girls in Movies

About girls in movies, Kate said,  "They're french kissing boys they meet the next day as long as he's got a cool back story and a gun."

You Know You Have Big Family When

1. Whenever you meet anyone within 10 years of your own age, you have kids their kids ages.
2. You have as many loads of laundry in one day as there are days of the week.
3. You shop like a hoarder but the stuff you buy only lasts a month.
4. You have a five year old who can change diapers.
5. The librarians, principals, and all the teachers know your names, but you can NEVER remember their names.
6. Your that neighbor with bikes all over your lawn and still most of the bikes are put away in the garage.
7. The old man in the grocery store asks you if you know what causes it, and you have your reply on hand to embarrass him because you have been there before.
8. Even though you just cleaned up from dinner your kitchen is a mess.
9. You are the only family at church that takes an entire center pew, and sometimes you still feel squished.
10. Your food bill is half your years salary and your kids are still hungry.

Go ahead, add to the list...

Homeschool Week One and Some Questions

I have a new respect for homeschooling moms. If you are not one, I have to say do not criticize. These women WORK HARD! I am exhausted!!!! I can't believe the amazing amount of work this whole thing takes and I have 8 kids and have not found that hard. When people say, "I can never do that," maybe that is true. I am feeling that way now.

We have had a few glitches that I am beginning to work out.  Glitch number 1: Kate did not like the online school because she wanted more freedom and because she misses the attention from a teacher. So Kate has decided I will be her teacher and write her curriculum. I am still working on finding her books. Right now, we are testing out a few books from the library. After looking through history text books, I have decided she would learn more just from children's nonfiction books in the library. That will be a start and I am making her do American History. We are also trying a 90's algebra book from the library, but we may still buy her a newer text. For science she is using Ruth's science book. For English she is using Diana Hacker's guide for writers.

Glitch number 2: Johnny did not want to do online school either, even though they bumped him to fifth grade. I am going to just bump him to 5th grade too. We have had to get books for Johnny too. I am having him do the same library history route as Kate, but he is studying ancient world history. We are skipping cavemen and evolution and going straight to Ancient Egypt. We have purchased him a math book which hasn't arrived in the mail yet. For now, I am printing up worksheet from the internet. For science we are doing the same as history and letting him pick the topics as long as there will be a variety through the year. Right now he is interested in geology. For English he is learning the parts of the speech and keeping a writing journal. We will have to see how my invented curriculum goes for Kate and Johnny.

Here is a little of what I am doing to maintain order:
1.I get up 1 1/2 hours before my kids to deep clean and read scriptures. If the kids wake up with me they are deep cleaning too. It helps them get a little more sleep.
2.We begin the day reading the Friend and New Era, singing church songs, and having a child present a scripture.
3. Then I read to the little kids, do little kid annoying play songs, and then calendar and weather.
4.Then I start individual lessons. That goes for most of the day. We usually finish after 3.
5. Then I give some piano lessons.
6.Then I try to get PE in. We go to the Rec Center Tuesdays and Thursdays. I think I will up that to Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays.  Johnny will be starting soccer this Tuesday for 6 weeks, and this week I am going to add in dance lessons and gymnastics. We also have Young Womens and Cub Scouts for evening activities. John and I also like to get in the Temple once a week. The evening's will be hard.We are still figuring this out.
7. After PE I have to make dinner. I am not doing very well at this.
8. I am trying to make lesson plans each Saturday and do the shopping then too.

So my questions for all you amazing homeschooling genius's:
1.How do you cook and do home school?
2.What are your ideas on taking care of multiple kids lessons and babies?
3.How do you keep up on your laundry?
4.How long is your school day? And how do you shorten it?
5.Am I worrying about getting too much done?

Anya's Question

Anya came to me and asked, "Mom can you get a trampoline? I am trying to get a trampoline and it is just not happening. So can you get one?"

First Day of Homeschool

FIRST DAY OF HOMESCHOOL

1. Ruth really misses her friends and being around other kids a lot! She worked really hard all day. 
2. Kate misses her friends too. She had a hard time figuring out how to work the online school and feels rather discouraged.
3. Johnny seemed to like it. I did not have enough work ready for him. He is a much faster reader and writer than I anticipated. I will triple his work load for tomorrow. We are not going to put him on the online school. I think I will do a better job at keeping up with his speed learning. He is working from the same books as Kate. He works independently and FAST. I know this is the right thing for Johnny's education.
4. Adam didn't seem to care. He did all of his work without argument or fuss. But he was glad when he completed his days tasks. He doesn't seem to miss school at all.
5. Rachel enjoyed or should I say relished in the one on one time and strict schedule. I think she will do well. I thought she would be really hard to teach. But now I am thinking she will be one of the easiest.
6. I found it tiring, but not hard. My kids were pretty easy going today, albeit Ruth and Kate were a bit melancholy. I missed my free, quiet time in the afternoon.
7. The 3 younger kids did well. Anya and Joseph enjoyed all of the group lessons. I think Anya is feeling afternoon rest time/ TV time deprived.

This will definitely be a listen to the Spirit journey. We are doing this because ALL of us felt like this was what the Lord wanted for our family after I had been prompted over several months. I am glad to have such a firm "This is what you should do, " from the Lord. I am sure Ruth and Kate would be re-registered in school tomorrow otherwise. I feel for them. Ruth has always liked and done exceedingly well in school.

Ruth's Manga Drawings

Ruth drew these pictures for a graphic novel she is writing in Manga style. She even plans on making the book read from the back to the front and from right to left like a true style Japanese graphic novel.

You can see her first manga drawings here.