I Have A 5 Year Old

So, it's August and I still don't have a plan nailed down. Here comes kindergarten. It's right around the corner. I almost thought I had the answer but I don't. I vacillate between It's kindergarten; we're learning everyday anyways; I know what I'm doing & don't need to worry about whether or not I'm signed up with anything by the first day of school (or ever) . . . . and . . . . OH NO the first day of school's coming and I haven't picked a school or filled out paperwork and oh no, if he's going to go and he misses the first day it'll throw his whole school experience off and be highly detrimental in every imaginable way.

I made a chart. If my technical abilities are up for it tonight, maybe I'll even try to put it at the bottom of this post. That's what my decision-making has boiled down to, a chart. The heart of the matter is gone. There's technicalities, details, pros, and cons but what happened to my heart for my kid's education? In an effort to mix a little heart into my deliberations, I've decided to go back and read all my old blog posts. I hope to find some peace and motivation in the process. I'm starting as soon as I hit post on this brief update.

Perhaps as the school year approaches, blogging will re-enter my universe. I plan to write about my first two children's names sometime in the very near future. Ever since I wrote about baby's name, I've felt guilty that I haven't put anything down about brother and sister.

	A	B	C	D
drive	Minimal +	Minimal +	Hour round trip -	To separate classes?
$* *Probably w/ all will be some $ spent on some curric & outside classes	free +	Free +	Not free, not bad for 1 though -	free +
people	People & atmosphere? -	People & atmosphere? But probably safer than A -	Christian influence & warm atmosphere +	ME, separate classes, various situation
curriculum	Some freedom	Some freedom	Given curriculum, not thrilled about -	Most work & most freedom +
friends	Local neighborhood +	Local neighborhood +	People we already know, good friends
		Brand new -
Class time per wk	6 hrs	18 hrs	… find out....

Seasonal Blogger

I've always loved to write, and to think, and for some serious subjects the two seem to be connected in my brain. Lately, I've realized I am a seasonal writer - and, perhaps then, a seasonal thinker - or at least pertaining to certain subjects or types of thinking. As anyone can see, my posts have dwindled greatly over the past few months. At first it may appear that this is due to a new baby. However, today as I watered trees and meandered through the yard, all I could think about was getting back outside after the kids fall asleep. These thoughts eventually led to the realization that when it's cold outside my post-kid-bedtime relaxation comes in the form of reading or writing. When spring and summer approach the warmth beckons me to the outdoors. All I want to do is stroll or sit with a drink under the bright summer night sky.

All three kids, baby included, sleep and go to bed fairly early. The addition of the third has not put an end to my evenings as cherished alone or couple or friend time (for the most part).

I have this new found love-hate feeling towards summer. It has always been my favorite; probably due mostly to my 26 years on a traditional school calendar. I love the sun, the heat, the water; those coupled with the only time off for the year . . . . . hmmm, time off thinking - at least in the traditional, hoop-jumping style I'd been accustomed to . . . . account for it being my favorite season. This year, perhaps some of the positive time off association is starting to wane AND I've realized that summer means weeds as well as foxtails in sheets, every piece of laundry, and in the dogs which includes the constant threat of a big vet bill AND summer means lots of time watering AND rattlesnakes which means kids in boots and not as much just go play with no worries. BUT in the warm evening air with sounds of crickets and frogs and lighter darkness, there is love. The thinking is different. The relaxing is different. The blog crosses my mind but can't compete. Perhaps I will be a seasonal blogger.

Possible Route

Leaning toward an option: local school district offers two half-days of on-site classes per week paired with home study using their curriculum. When I first looked into this I think there were some small differences in how the program was worded that made me close the window without further thought. This week when I re-read the description the wording enticed me and I saw that we are personally acquainted with one of the school's key people. We can get some insight from someone we know regarding the teachers and nuances of the classes.

• The most compelling factor here is the ease of the class time. I have always said that my kid needs some structured group learning time - whether it be one or two days a week in a school setting or multiple specialty classes that I choose and take him to on my own. Charter schools with such offerings are a drive; private schools with such are a drive and a lot of money. With the second option, there's cost and to have much variety, there's a drive. The route here proposed is a five minute drive and free. 
• Is it homescholing? No. It's learning at home. It's designed by someone else, overseen by someone else, and simply carried out by me. However it is ME for the equivalent of four school days a week. It is me deciding what approach and perspective to take, where and how to cover the material, how much we sit down, the daily schedule, etc, etc, etc and maybe more, I don't have all the details yet. I was looking at declaring myself a credentialed tutor and homeschooling 100% independently, that's the opposite end of the spectrum from this route. The lack of drive time, drive money, and class money are pro's here. Other definite pro: he is not one in 20 or 30. It is me focused on him; knowing what motivates him, what his strengths and weaknesses are, and caring very much.
• It is not the ultimate idealistic picture of homeschooling I have held in my mind. It is not everything I REALLY want to do that I really think is the best, but it may be very doable and doable counts for a lot - doable through thick and thin, consistent. Also, maybe I will be able to work in an awful lot of mentors and classics and Charlotte Mason; I bet I will. I probably won't be able to work in a lot of delayed academics and we'll just see how that part goes. If my kid is ready for the academics as they come, that's one thing; if not, it may do more harm than good . . . . and . . . . we can always try another route.
• Furthermore, academic concepts need not equal hours on end in a seat with "seat work." This option will hopefully still allow a five-year-old boy plenty of time to do things that I think are crucial - key words are dirt, play, experimenting, family, sunshine, running, climbing, thinking, problem-solving, imagining . . . .
• After spending months feeling a little crazy over kindergarten plans, I have total peace with this possibility. I still have legwork to do and details to learn; decision is not yet made but I have peace and peace counts for a lot. If we choose this route for kid #1's kinder year, that doesn't mean we are locked into this route forever. There are more school-aged kids and many more years of educating them on the horizon. This may be something we try and move away from or we may love it and be settled for a long time.
  

A+

The last two nights my four-year-old has taken a flashlight and books to bed with him, read at bedtime and then tucked them away into special spots "just in case he wakes up during the night or too early in the morning." This morning he woke up, gestured his little sis into his bed, and read to her. (No, he's not technically reading for those wondering but that is a mere technicality.)

In my book, that's an A+ for pre-school this year. (Not that I "did" preschool and if I had, I wouldn't be assigning it a letter grade.) I've been pregnant, having a baby, and recovering from a c-section. Lately, this boy has watched too much TV and very little in the realm of education has been done the way I would ideally do it. Yet, flashlight and books in bed - nothing could be a greater encouragement or valid measure of success to me that his education is on the right track. If this habit will stick and he's still doing this at 18, I will consider the whole deal an A+.

Learning Snapshots. February

Gymnastics

Our bodies. Flight: history & simple science of.

Types of birds

Crafts

Creating his own stories & books (& reading them to the dog), order & sequence


READING



Building, design, painting, simple engineering, problem solving

Calendars; reading calendar & year, months, days

Waiting & Homeschooling Legalities

When you're 9 months pregnant and baby could arrive anytime, thereby changing life as you know it, that's pretty much all you can think about.

Physically I am constantly reminded that I'm very pregnant and baby is just about ready. Mentally it's a continuous stream of thought that centers around the impending arrival . . . . my last bits of time with two children, the end of our family & life as it's been, a new season, a newborn to take care of, my most recent shower and what I'm wearing, things that need to be gathered or packed, where my husband's at, where my mom's at, and on and on. It's such a strange bit of time to be waiting in . . . . everything is just waiting and on the precipice of total change but exactly when it's all going to happen remains a mystery. Yet I want to be ready when it comes.

When my thoughts are able to break free from baby they have focused on kindergarten options for my amazing firstborn. There's the option of homeschooling through a charter that offers fairly local classes once a week. Then there's the option of homeschooling through the charter I used to work for and know well. This week, for the first time, I looked briefly at the option of homeschooling totally independently. In our state, parents who want to homeschool on their own have two legal options.

1) They declare themselves a private school. They file an affidavit to do so annually and keep some records.

2) They have their children instructed by a teacher who holds a valid state credential for the grade taught. This is called the Private Tutoring Exemption and does not require any filing or record keeping. Hmmmm...... very interesting.

In daily practice, none of the above four options would look that different from the others. I will be homeschooling. I'm thinking a lot about Charlotte Mason and perusing dusty books on my bookshelves while gathering random materials. The four options do not dictate practice and method but remain a significant decision for my husband and I to make in the near future. Baby thoughts are center stage and the legal paths to homeschooling as well as other possibilities inherent in the various choices are mulling around in the background.

Learning Snapshots. January

Steam engines



Cotton & how crops are grown, harvested, transported, & ultimately used by consumer. We saw cotton growing in the fields before seeing this truck.



Rocks, minerals, gold.



Gymnastics



Painting & mixing colors


Cutting, fine motor skills



Counting down! Sense of time



Puppy! Puppy care, baby preparation - babies & learning & expectations: babies put things in their mouth, have a lot to learn, etc.



Building, measuring, painting, tools, basic construction, how walls are made, structure, electricity



Reading!