Just the Nine of Us

Just the Nine of Us

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Homeschooling ROCKS!!

There are days when homeschooling is a real chore. Some days it seems a monumental task just to get through math and reading. Then there are days that make it all so very worth it. I've had several of those days lately and I wanted to share some of these "pros" of homeschooling. :)

As spring arrives and the weather is so perfect, we can take picnic lunches outside, do spelling on the back deck in the sunshine, or squeeze in an hour at the park between science and social studies.

There are so many places in Huntsville for hands-on learning that are fairly cheap, fun for the whole family, and can be done spur of the moment (no signed permission slips and volunteer chaperones needed). :) There is Huntsville Botanical Gardens, where the kids can see and touch butterflies in each stage of life. Early Works, where they can view log cabins and hear a talking tree read the classics. Burritt on the Mountain and Sci-Quest offer science and social studies classes specifically designed for the homeschooler. You can do any and all of this on a rainy Tuesday when you've run out of lesson plan ideas.

With girls, you can also train them as part of their schoolwork to be homemakers. Allie is learning how to do laundry and sort it. She's helping me in the kitchen. We're having some great discussions about the purpose of men and women that we might not have if we didn't have all day together.

Throughout the day, as she's reading or writing something, she asks me, "How do you spell . . . ?" or "what does this word mean. . . ?" Each of these moments are teachable moments. I can add these to the spelling/vocabularly lists, or just make sure she knows them. Either way she is learning.

We try to start our days with praise music and Bible reading. Because of this, many times I hear Allie singing "In Christ Alone" or "Lead of Love" in the backyard. And she knows who Jeroboam is. I'm so thankful for time to do this with her.

Just yesterday she looked at me out of the middle of nowhere and said, "Don't you think it's cool that you were born in October of 1978, and Brian was born in June of 1979? God could have made Brian at any point in history but He made him about the same time He made you so that you two could meet and fall in love. Twenty five years before you even knew it, God made your soulmate, just for you. How cool is that???" :) I don't know about you, but I think it's a pretty smart and soul-connected girl to think that and bring it to my attention.

I love it!!

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