Force and motion

Don't you just love how learning can happen anywhere at anytime? I find it truly amazing how smart my boys are. They can figure things out pretty easily for themselves. Then what they don't know they ask questions. Questions are wonderful tools to facilitate learning. Questions start conversations, and conversations can lead to amazing learning.

I have found that a lot of newer parks are full of amazing pieces of equipment that allow children to explore the use of their bodies through force and motion. Recently we were at a park with this interesting device. I have this thing with hopping on playground equipment before examining what it is going to do. This looked harmless enough right? WRONG! I felt a teeny bit nauseated after this but as I was spinning in circles clinging on for dear life, the boys got interested. They wanted to know how it worked. So while I was trying very hard to not toss my dinner Darling Hubby showed the boys how it worked. Then asked Bug a wonderful question. "Why do you think it works like that?"  " Energy and gravity!" Bug shouted. Gee what smart little boys they have. Darling Hubby is very much into Science and did well in school with all that stuff. He is the go to guy in the house for the advanced math and science things. He did a little explanation and demonstration for the boys and we continued playing. Who knows what they retained but learning by life is so much more fun than learning from a book.

Look for learning options embrace them and let life teach you. The kids are little sponges when they are young. They learn so much just by answering questions.

Summer Learning

I have a plan to keep the learning going through the summer. I don't want to get out of our system too much. Though hot summer days I want the kids outside, enjoying themselves. I know they all are interested and keep learning through play and life. Though I may or may not have a few control issues. I want to keep up on basic reading and writing with Bug. I know his math is good and he does it in play along with Bobo. So I have started a Summer journal for Bug. It's really simple it is just about what he did that day. There is usually something that stands out to him. or special events that we do. So far he is doing pretty good with it.

Reaching New Heights

Well this year has come to a close for us. Today was term end and everything handed in up until today counts towards his Kindergarten year. This for me is a exciting time because it forced me to sit back and look at the year and see where Bug has come this year. In reviewing everything I know homeschooling is the right path for us. He has grown so much but he has grown with us as a family unit still intact. He has grown a sense of independence and knows he is capable of so many things, but on the same token he knows where his roots are and his best relationships are with his family members.
Bug has learned many basic academic skills and has really improved in so many ways. He is really enjoying reading and is so proud when he is able to read something himself. He writes in his journal and can do a good chunk of the spelling and printing independently. He can do some basic addition in his head without the need of his fingers now.
I have learned so much about Bug and his likes and dislikes. I have learned what he enjoys doing so much more than if he was away from me learning all of this. While I'm sure he would enjoy playing with other children all day everyday, that is not what school should be about. Bug has developed great friendships with some other local home learners. I know this has been the best choice for our family and has given Bug such a feeling of greatness. He knows he can do great things if he puts in the work. He knows that if he wants something he just sometimes has to try a bit harder. Bug is going higher and reach new heights all the time, both figuratively and literally. Give him roots and wings, and let him fly!

Finding the balance

Sometimes as a mom you just need to let them spread their wings. Sometimes you just need to let your babies do their thing even if it's not exactly as you would do it.

For many mom things is a hard thing to do. I'm not saying shove them out of the nest and see if they can fly. Though depending on the child that could be an option. We moms need to realize that our children are smart capable people, baring special circumstances, that they are a lot more capable then we like to believe. Given choices and options many kids will surprise their parents.

In regards to homeschooling there are many different families and different values, that you come into contact with. Everything for the fully free range families who allow their children total freedom, to the helicopter families who hover and restrict everything. Neither is wrong but neither is fully right in my opinion, there needs to be a balance.

I'm working on trying to get my own balance in my life.Right now my focus is on trying to find what I want to do for Bug's schooling. I have a vision of what I want but I just don't know how to fully achieve everything I want.

I would like Bug to have a love of learning and have a desire to go out and achieve whatever he wants. I don't want school to be something dreaded. I want him to know how to seek out information. I also want him to know basic academic skills. Reading writing and math are so important and basic skills in these areas are important for any area in life.  I don't want to have the stress of making sure that he is achieving everything that he must according to their standards. At the same time I do want us to be held accountable for making sure that  the learning is in fact happening.

Right now the balance I'm going to work with is guided and unguided days. Where two or three days a week we work on guided lessons which are required for work submissions. These days we will cover and reinforce basic academic skills and develop new ones. This will be time for assignments, worksheet and workbook that I decide that we need to cover. On unguided days this will be the time to see where bug wants to go with his learning. He will get to choose what he wants to work on based on what he is interested in. The unguided days will still have things he is required to do like reading and writing but they may be of his choosing. unguided days allows me to get what I need done because life with three and doing full time guided schooling is just not feasible.

 Bug will only be going into grade one this year and looking at the outcomes of next year we have covered a lot of them already. I'm hoping this balance will work for us and will work into our lives much better then last year.

Wordless Wednesday~~~~~ explorations

Aquarium fun

Checking out the coral reefs

Look out for the sharks

Cute little birds. Bobo liked watching the birds

The resident sloth

 We had a class that the Aquarium put together just for the area home learners. It was a lot of fun and the boys really enjoyed themselves. It is definitely something we will do again. We were able to make it to three of them. It's nice for Bug to get to go to classes at times with such a large range of children.

 Bobo was really excited to participate in the one class that he could. seeing all the sea creatures was really fun for both of them.  Bobo loves to learn from other people and you can usually find him sitting right next to the instructor, in most classes

 Gentle pinky finger touchs only!

 Off to explore the tanks

The dolphins are always a fun thing to watch at the aquarium

Same goes for the belugas. They were actually the boys favorite part of the day

life as I know it

Well jeepers life just whizzes past you when you are busy. Between Christmas extra activities and a bit of school I haven't had a ton of time to write.

So what have we been doing the last few months. Well Bug is really coming along with his reading and printing. We are begining to work with geometric solids and life is moving into 3-D definition.  Farm animals is the talk right now. Names of the mommy daddy and baby animals. It is a lot to remember but he is doing pretty good with it.  We just take it one day at a time and the learning comes through experience.
I just love listening to Bug and Bobo's explorations of the world. They are so inquisitive and just love to explore. They also love to get into things and create stuff. there is usually something on the go with them and they hardly sit still. Maybe when they watch TV if it is really interesting but not usually.
Lil Squish is into full exploration mode. He is walking and on the go. I have to watch him because he wants to explore his world and doesn't really have anything that resembles fear.

Well when i get my thoughts together a bit more I'll get some more posts going.