Some more details to ponder...

Okay...so time is getting short. I haven't yet finished our homeschool area, but that is okay...our version of homeschool this year is still evolving anyway. So, the dining room table and the big club chair in the living room work just fine for now! :-)

I thought I would just put down onto paper (or computer screen as the case may be) our schedule of sorts. It isn't really a firm schedule, but more of a rough game plan of things we want to accomplish. None of it is etched in stone. The last thing I want to do to my four year old is to put her into SCHOOL at HOME. We are just going to continue learning like we have been, only we have an rough outline to follow now. Some goals.

For the last few weeks I have been thinking so much about where we are heading...my little type A and me. I have discovered a few truths that I will share along as we go...

1-It is hardly going to be just me and my little type A...The TigerLili (who is 2) is right on our heels and WILL NOT suffer to be left out!!! NO WAY-NO HOW!! If Aly is learning it, then Lili expects to learn it next...I mean immediately next!! Some stuff she gets and some she just mimicks, but don't even think of excluding her from the process!!

2-Time on the computer is a WONDERFUL way to get complete obedience out of my little type A.
Example: "Mom, may I PLEEEEAAASSSEEEE get on the computer?" "I don't know...how clean is your play room?" Amazingly, the playroom is transformed from total chaos to spotless serenity in mere moments! The same principle works for finishing her handwriting practice, cleaning her bedroom, making her bed, transporting laundry to and from the laundry room, unloading silverware from the dishwasher and an array of other things that she helps with (usually with a grumble, but now with a smile and a trail of daisys!!)

3- If I put it on an index card and say, "Let's memorize it" they both about fall all over themselves to accomplish it.
Cases in point: scripture, 10 commandments, days of the week, months of the year, books of the bible, Dolch site words...I need to stock up on more index cards!!

As I said a few minutes ago, the last thing I want to do is drag my little ones into SCHOOL at HOME. But, how do we do that? Well, the more I prayed about it and the more I searched for ideas I realized that my first and foremost goal for both Aly and Lili is to lead them and walk beside them as they come into a relationship with Jesus Christ. Everything else...I mean EVERYTHING else is not only secondary, but a waste of time without it.

I found a quote that really brought it all home to me. I found it on my friend Ann's site. It says, "What will it profit my children to gain the whole world of knowledge yet lost their own souls? There is only one things that is necessary...that I lead my children into a closer communion with Christ. That I make a way for them to spend time at his feet. That I am the matchmaker between my children and the lover of their souls!" I love it...it is everything that my heart was feeling and that my brain was trying to put into words.

I continued to search her site for inspiration and found what I was looking for.
"The Seven Rungs of Homeschooling" Wow...talk about inspiration!! This hit the nail smack on the head!!

I haven't asked Ann permission yet, but I am going to attempt to incorporate these seven rungs into our homeschooling. The thing I like most about it is that even in these early stages where we aren't doing too much "formal" schooling...you know algebra, geography, world history kind of stuff...I can still use this format. All of the everyday things that we will be doing...learning to read, bible memorization, narration, discipline, basic math concepts, etc...all still fit beautifully into these "rungs" that all glorify God!!!

Go check them out when you get a chance and see if it changes the way you teach your children.

All of that to say...these are some of the areas that we will be learning through.

1 Reading and writing
2 basic math concepts- incorporating math into everyday things
3 Oral narration/listening& comprehension- LOTS of reading every day.
4 Bible time
5 Computer time- this not free time...it is earned!
6 Work and Service- chores, giving back, teamwork, helping others
7 Discipline- 1st time obedience, attitude, character training, honoring God and family
8 Nature time/outside play
9 Field trips- either special trips or just incorporating everyday life
10 Quiet time


Okay...that is all for now. My daughter is chomping at the bit to do my hair. She has a mirror, a bruch and all of her clips and such and is about to "do" me up right!!! Don't you wish you were here???

In HIS Mighty Grip