Right now, with one child of school age (kindergarten), our actual "school time" is very minimal. We do 30 minutes of memory work, and we spend time on math, writing and reading. Then, the rest of the day is spent playing outside, cooking, crafting, and of course, we can not forget story time. My favorite book right now to read to the kids is "Professor Wormbog and the Gloomy Kerplopus," by Mercer Mayer. It is my book from back in the day and the poor scratch and sniff stickers on each page do not have a scent at all......but to replace the book is quite pricey. Last I checked on Amazon, the price was $120.00 I say this fact AGAIN, only to put a stir in your hearts as well! If anyone reads this and finds a reasonable deal (you know, like 10 bucks!!! LOL), Please let me know! Thank you!
One of my favorite parts of our school day is the memory work.
It's latin. It's history sentences (one per week), It's memorizing skip counting. It's geography. What has amazed me is that Finn knows it better than me. No. He has no idea what the Magna Carta is. But, if you asked him, he would answer like a Robot (or he could sing it to you!!!): English King John signed the Magna Carta in 1215, limiting the King's power. Later, England's King, Edward III claimed to be King of France and began the Hundred Years War in 1337.
AND, He is so happy and proud that he can say it to you!
(from math class)
Doesn't that just sound cruel!!? But, it really isn't. He spends only 30 minutes of our day on these memory topics and then we play! He loves to sing the songs we have to the memory work. And I make up lots of actions and flashcard games to keep him engaged. I'm completely shocked at how much he retains. And, he memorizes it way before me and I'm the one who prepares for these lessons. I'm following a model from Classical Conversations which is the backbone of our studies! This program eases my workload quite a bit. Finding the right studies for your child can be very stressful. I don't have to worry about that AND he gets to "go to school" every Tuesday with other children all learning the same material! He loves it.
It is actually tempting to just pour so much more on him, because it is amazing how quickly he picks it up. Today, Ally, 3, was singing the 8 parts of speech to us while we were stuck in traffic. She picks it up just by watching Finn play his games. Very cool.
But, then we take a 180 and the rest of our day is Waldorf style! We play and make believe. We use our hands. We get out in nature (hello beach!) We bake. Finn is my Little Chef. And he loves the movie Ratatouille!
Today, we decided to make a cake.
His snake friend also participated.
Ally brought in her little pet to see what was going on and Eric was also interested.
We made some of MaMa Rooke's Sweet Mint Tea.
2 peppermint
2 Spearmint
2 Chamomile
2 packets sweet and low or sugar of your choice.
While the cake was baking, I looked out my window to see this.
And This...
He has the best laugh.
Keeping Eric entertained during school time is quite easy..... He naps. Eric sleeps more than any other 18 month old on Earth. I'm convinced. He would nap longer but I get him up most of the time b/c I just keep thinking, "Is he OKAY???" But, during the times he does join us, He likes to play dinosaurs in the corner, at his own little school desk:
Or, he also scatters his dinos all over the living room floor...
He loves Math time and plays with pattern blocks!
He does get into mischief sometimes when I'm concentrating with Finn. The naughty deed that brings him the most joy is this:
Looks harmless, however, it is never HIS OWN toothbrush that he has in his mouth. I've had to lock them up in the medicine cabinet!
The cake turned out great.
And these little hands measured, stirred, dumped and waited by the oven, fingers wiggling with pure glee and excitment!
Obviously, this was a good homeschool day, where I felt like the luckiest woman alive. However.....we do sometimes have other days.........
3 comments:
your kids are so lucky :)
Amen to the above comment! What a beautiful post, Rachel. I'm so excited for you and your kids. Are you doing CC, or just using some of the Veritas Press materials? Those history cards are a VERY regular part of our classroom here! ; )
Yay! I do love it! SO curious to hear how Classical Conversations goes for you. I hear great things from people who do it. I've been wondering what on earth I would do with Norah during homeschool activities (starting to do some preschool stuff with Audrey.) And I am JEALOUS of Eric's napping abilities. ;) If I leave Norah unattended for about 30 seconds, I'm usually pulling her out of the oven or catching her dropping Audrey's shoes in the toilet!!
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