looking for other homeschoolers

[Kim]

Hi we are in our first year of homeschooling. Looking for others to chat with. We have 3 dd ages 5, 4 and 2. We are using Sonlight K.

[PamE]

We homeschool one daughter, age 9, third grade and plan to eventually homeschool our son and youngest daughter, both of whom will be in Kinder this fall. I've heard of Sonlight and think I've seen it at the homeschool conference. Have you attended your state's conference yet? I always have a blast at them, even though it can be really overwhelming!! There are so many ideas thrown at you at once! And all the curriculum choices.... they can overload your mind! :crazyroll

Right now I am making up most of my own curriculum and am using Switched on Schoolhouse for math. That's a cd program. Dd is really liking it and it's giving her the extra attention to math that she needs. I think we'll be using SOS for most of next year's curriculum. We decided to try it just math wise to see if she got burned out on it quickly, being all computer or not. She's done well with it so far. They have a lot of interesting things, from multiple choice answers to click and drag, video clips, vocabulary games and spelling bee for the math terms.

Do you belong to a homeschool group? There is one in our area but I haven't joined up yet. How are things in the windy city? I used to live in Illinois, growing up, and have several cousins who live there now. I miss the seasons! (in AZ now)

Maybe sometime we can share homeschool links.

:wave:

[Kim]

Our state conference is May 25-26th. I am going. I'll actually be staying overnight. As sad as this sounds I've never gone off and done anything alone since I've been married, so I'm considering it to be my working vacation. There are a couple of things that I might want to change with our current curriculum, first is our math. We are using Saxon 1 and have been since last Sept. My 5yo appears to be getting pretty bored with it. The set up for the lessons is the same every day and I think I may check out Miquon and Singapore however I don't know if they'll be anything at the conf about them.
Have you heard anything about these?

Wow, I'm very impressed that you make up your own curriculum. Initially I thought I would do that, but I got to overwhelmed and opted for Sonlight, because they covered so many subjects and topics and I didn't have to worry about planning so much. The amount of reading can get tough though and I love to read, but there is so much.

I've been searching out a homeschool group. I tend to be on the reserved (adult term for shy) side so I just have to get out there and do it. I have 3 very outgoing kids which kind of blows me away. They obviously get this from their father.

Take care! And thanks for responding!

[PamE]

I'd get so much more accomplished! :D I couldn't sleep last night. Normally rise and shine time is at 6:30 ONLY because ds needs to be at the bus stop by 7:20. The snooze alarm is soooo tempting! :sleep:

We're still undecided on the conference this year. It's in July, in Phoenix. I tend to melt down into my sneakers which makes me really grumpy, :lol: Dh gets frustrated with me because I like everything I see and want just about as much. The sessions are really good though. It's nice to be in such a huge group of people and to know that there are so many in the same boat.

I like that you call yourself reserved. That sounds better than shy, which is what I've been calling myself. That's the reason I haven't joined the hs group. I tend to be really uncomfortable in a group of people. :blush: My children are also outgoing (thank goodness!) and I love it!

One website you might check out is www.chfweb.com/ I haven't seen Miquon or Singapore math but I've heard of it on this message board. The moms there are a great source of information on almost every curriculum available.


:happydnc:

[kat]

We are using Saxon 1 We use Saxon at my school. The calendar is the only thing we do daily and I do try to change it up some to keep it fresh. Actually I do my calendar more like "Math Their Way" The kids love all the hands on activities in Saxon, but it has to be supplemented alot. I think the K program was only written for 1/2 K and we are full day. Ds also uses Saxon in 6th and I absolutely hate it.
Good luck with your homeschooling. It will be very rewarding I'm sure.

[netmechwife]

I am planning to homeschool too. My problem is my children are 2 yrs. old (almost) and 6mos. old and I already want to jump in and start teaching my 2 year old.

[MK]

Originally posted by netmechwife
I am planning to homeschool too. My problem is my children are 2 yrs. old (almost) and 6mos. old and I already want to jump in and start teaching my 2 year old.

I suggest you just keep it simple for now. No more than two hours a day of structured, concentrated instruction. Let your toddlers help you name your "school" and design a "school flag" on a big piece of paper, then hang it on the wall. Come up with a simple school chant, which states in a nutshell what your family is all about . Put a number line on the wall, with numbers 1-10, or higher, if your child is more advanced. Put an alphabet poster on the wall. You can start your "opening exercises" with a story, a song, the calendar (yesterday was...today is..., tomorrow is...), the school chant, the numbers, the alphabet, and some wiggles, in whatever order you choose. After that it's time for "work": Play a math game, like building with blocks and seeing who's tower is "greater" or "lesser", sorting by colors, sizes, etc. Small children love to measure too. Put them in the bathtub, or if the weather is nice, outside with some measure cups and water. The baby can play too! Look around your house, yard, town, etc. for things that have a definite shape, such as the circle of a bicycle wheel, the square of a box, etc. Have some language arts--look for various items from toys to tools to body parts and discuss the letter sounds that make up the words. This will also strengthen speech development. Make word labels to put on things all over the house, such as the door, window, chair, toybox, bookshelf, etc. Around town, look for specific letters of the alphabet on street and store signs. Be sure and do a craft activity (again, the baby can participate too), and get some physical exercise. If your child is restless, shorten the activity. Don't pressure him. He needs to have the idea that play is his work, and that learning is fun. Let him choose the order of the activities, and the game sometimes. He might want to do the same thing everday for a week. That's okay. He's solidifying the concepts in his mind, and mastering skills. He will move on when he is ready.

As always, have fun teaching your children. It is the most rewarding experience a parent can have!

[netmechwife]

I was feeling bad that I was so anxious. I think my 2 year old knows a lot for his age. When we read he names things on pages and tries to talk in sentences some. Your ideas are great! Do you think I should start now or wait for fall? I was homeschooled my senior year so I don't know how most people do younger aged schooling...

[MK]

Some people would say you already started teaching your son the moment he was born, perhaps even sooner, if you sang or read to him in the womb. Just do what comes naturally to you and him, and don't worry so much about the formalities that come with "older school". Just let him grow and enjoy being a toddler by playing with him, reading to him, talk to him, and be sure and delight with him about all the wonders he sees in the world. :) As for the flag and opening exercises I mentioned, you could start now if you are really excited, or you can wait for a "starting point" such as fall. Whatever, it doesn't really matter, as long as your children are happy and excited about it.

[netmechwife]

We had a great time this week. We did finger painting, playdough, and played with water, stones and corks. We are also learning about dinosaurs because he is now fascinated with them. Thanks for your help MK :)