NO learning, it's a HOLIDAY

Homeschooling! I sit here on Veteran's Day, and we announced last night, late bedtimes and no alarms, no school today. I am not teaching anything...ha ha I am in my robe, on my second cauldron of coffee and enjoying just playing.

I can't help it, I teach all the time;

1. This morning, Anna and I made egg sandwich with bagels, yummy and fun!
2. Eric and I had a discussion about the sentencing of a man who shot a neighbor two times, hid the body and said his gun misfired (twice). He was sentenced to 15 to life! He is 68years old.
3. Gabriel is on my computer playing zoo tycoon trying to figure out the animal habitat of African animals
4. Abby is hot on the trail in Carmen San Diego...where in the USA? and the little idioms they use, she has asked me 3 of their meanings.
You can have an official holiday on the calender, but it doesn't stop the learning.
See, even I am learning!

Monday and lagging....

Cold came in a whooosh! I am happy we had one gas/electric bill without a/c or heater being turn on! That is huge!
I didn't want to get out of bed this morning...just lazy, lazy, lazy. I knew I had to go grocery shopping and that is enough to cause me to not want to get up! I pushed myself...kinda...growling around the house, shuffling around in robe and slippers...not a pretty sight! ha ha
My kids disappeared (something they have learned when mom is shuffling and growling) and I went outside and the tree trimmer men are doing the tree next door, cutting and grinding it down....a homeschooling moment! They watched and I tried to remember where I put my grocery list!
We finally (list in hand) were off to Walmart...after pledge and bible! Got it done, unloaded and put away. I was beat..the kids were now dragging. So they ate lunch and did math.
blinker blinker
we are looking at Math U See, watched the on-line video last night and the manipulatives look like they will work for us! me included! haha
My dear hubby just took them all, boys need their hairs cut in a bad way...as Gabriel can put his in a pony tail!
I am updating this and then I am going to go take a nap!

Science in our house!

Home schooling is evolving, Eric is now teaching science. So much less stress, well at least for now!
We officially boxed up our science and history curriculum..it was all fill in the blank, then score, and test, and retest. We spent too much time getting the answer right but not knowing why or who this person was or did! I boxed it up.
We are now doing hands on science and reading of books (thank you Charlotte Mason) in the unit studies of American History. Right now we are in colonial time and merging into the westward expansion. We are reading the American diary series outloud; the boys do the boys and the twins read the girls. It is really neat, as their voices bring it alive. The enjoy it. I am then reading out loud the Magic Tree house Revolutionary War book...very quick read. It all goes together.
We made butter last week, (way cool) and had baked beans and cornbread to relive the food of colonial times.
Yesterday we all did the Oregon Trail cd game together...we caulked our wagons and crossed many rivers, climbed steep hills using proper gear, and sadly buried 2 of our party. It was a great way to learn the path.

I am hoping I can add these videos.

I hope it worked...I have another one...but this took forever to upload and process?

Home Schooling Motto

I have a friend Christine, who has home schooled now for a few years. She never once said, "aw Anne, you know you want too, just home school, you can do it!" Because I would have freaked and ran a thousand miles away from her and cowered in a corner shaking uncontrollably.
Home schooling is now my life also! I search catalogs, web sites, listen to others victories and note their complete disasters in my ever growing memory banks.
Christine has this nifty picture for Home School Lounge on her website...(I'm not publishing her homeschool site, as I don't know if it is public, if she gives permission I will link it). I clicked it and what a marvelous place. I have the pic on the sidebar, but have placed it here with a nifty keen-o link so you can play there too!
They have LIVE chat! Now with homeschooling moms, this means tears, fears and encouragement! I seriously have gone in this chat room after kicking the cat, throwing the grammar books out the door and yelling school is out...go somewhere other than here! (okay, I didn't really kick the cat...because I can't get my leg that high, she sleeps on my bed)
There are ladies there with so much patience, and direction for homeschooling!
You see, my kids were public school their whole life. I was a public school advocate, I was schooled in the public schools. So when it came time for me to homeschool, all I did was move my kids location, not their focus.
Now, I hear of home schoolers that say, "oh well, we get up and eat and when we feel like it we start school." My compulsive organizing, schedule your life genes scream in rebellion.
Oh no, we start at 8am. Pledge, prayer, math, spanish, english, break, chores, science, social studies. Change on the hour, 1/2 hour and march with a good posture. My kids were doing fine, I was exhausted. I wanted to read books to them, have them read to me. I wanted to do science experiments, make cookies, go thrift shopping, play games, laugh, and listen to them. This school stuff kept getting in the way....
I babbled to a few ladies on how my girls were struggling in math, my one son was having a hard time getting something, and my oldest was breezing thru faster than I could give him work...what was going on!?! I had appointments come up, phones rang, ants infested my pantry, my husband was still sitting in the living room(why??)...didn't everyone know I was on a schedule??? If they didn't get it in the allotted time we had to move on???
or what??
they would have homework???
I had the same word pop up over and over...be flexible Anne. Go with the flow.
Now this is hard for me...very hard. I crave control, but had to change. so my logo:


I love this~Thursday, only two worked on math, and we worked together and had fun getting it...no stress.
Friday we were back to the schedule, but not with the insane...Time, move on regime I had going before. I even skipped lessons and had Gman do a test before he was officially there...gasp...he missed one!
Mr. E went t his standards there and pulled out the work needed to fulfill his grammar for 8th grade. We are gonna do what we have too, and put that book away. (This is the one that took the flight out the front door).
So just a little update on homeschooling!

home school update

This has been a weird week of schooling, we went to a Walnut Orchard field trip Monday, and then yesterday went to a fellow homeschoolers house to make scare crows!
My brain is slowly unwinding from public school, set times, test on everything and rigid schedules.
So last nite, at 3am, we all piled out of our warm beds and bundled up to stand outside to watch the Orianid meteor shower...it was cold, my slippers got soaked, but this morning, alarms were turned off and we all slept in...I awoke to Abby in her undies, giving me a big kiss! this is a big first and she ran off in a fit of giggles! I lay there and smiled, this is home schooling!
The rain last week, with super high winds...see those ominous trees of my neighbors? His whole house is surrounded by these huge things...very scary to me! But rainy weather is always good for science projects!
this Abby making a series circuit! I tell you, we had watched utube and discover education videos of this same experiment, read the book over and over and the girls could not grasp electricity, loads, paths or any of it. That bulb went on and Abby explained to us, that the path of electricity was complete! It was beyond awesome!!Okay, Eric is now fixing lawn mowers and small engines in the footsteps of my dad!!! I told him he had to keep his area clean and we would keep an eye out for a dresser or something...oh Mom, I know where one is!! Off they went down the street with our other find and old grocery cart to load up the free dresser! They are so hilarious with their treasures!

yeah I know, no pictures

I have them on the other puter, but always forget to bring them over here! Quick update, I am sick...blah, intesteinal weird stuff and post nasal drip to add insult to injury. I called a sub for my classes, so I had to go in, ha ha I'm the substitute teacher too...wow! I want a raise!
We are struggling to get thru persuasive essays. I think my children are just not persuasive beings, they are so easy going, they don't argue!
It is raining so hard and the wind is blowing so that the rain is sideways...pretty cool actually! I am up later than I wanted, but this way I will fall into bed and crash (that is the game plan).
My cursor has disappeared, so I am pondering where it went.
We went to the library today during regular school hours, wow, being homeschooled, really has some perks, no other children, it was marvelous!
Okay, that's all from me tonight, where is my medicines?

wonders wonders wonders!

First off thanks to all you who left such encouraging comments, and sent emails in regards to my dreading of soccer!
It wasn't bad, I kept a good attitude...aka corn nuts!
This morning, my precious girls came to me rather serious, and said, "mom, we aren't having much fun with soccer, and just have no idea what we are doing out there" I said, well what do you want to do? They said, "not go anymore. " I tried to keep from doing the jig right there in the kitchen...
So we tonight, only had Gman at practice and I can leave him, no probs! Eric's is Friday evening, and then two games only on Saturday! Joy, joy, joy!