We are going to spend most of the rest of the year walking through U.S. History (from 1865 on) through the lives of the Presidents. We had previously studied the first portion of our history and I suspect that it will come up time and again through the years. But the later part is something that I don't remember walking through very often...especially the 1960's through to current events. Personally, I'm excited to tell my kids all about the 70's, 80's and 90's. At least I can speak from experience at that point.
Here's what the plans look like so far:
Week 22: Lincoln (review), Johnson, Grant
Week 23: Hayes and several days on Electricity.
Week 24: Garfield, Arthur, Cleveland
Week 25: Harrison, McKinley, Roosevelt
Week 26: The Automobile
Week 27: Taft, Wilson and maybe some Harlem Jazz too.
BREAK
Week 28: Harding, Coolidge, Hoover
Week 29: FDR
Week 30: Truman, Eisenhower and something to be determined.
Week 31 - 33: Space Exploration
Week 34: Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford
Week 35: Carter, Reagan, Bush, Clinton
Week 36: Bush, Obama and wrap up.
J wanted to study electricity and B wanted to study space so I put those in the appropriate places in the timeline of our study.
We'll continue the boys' Monday Classes in Art and Sports at least through March so those will be half days at home. They...er... We love that.
We'll make Fridays a Project Day from now through April so that we can park on some of the fun discoveries and inventions during these terms. I'm looking forward to how the boys respond to a reliable and free form day of the week.
I just worked on our attendance record (because I'm just THAT way) and listed our field trips for the year. Surprisingly, we haven't done very many. I'm hoping for a good road trip though on which we can get all of our field trips out of our system. We'll see.
It feels good to be back on my game.
Thursday, January 29
This is Why
The day after J took for. ever to do his math I asked, "So, why do you think it took so long?"
He said, "Because I was thinking about what I would be doing if it was a vacation day and what kind of Legos I want to buy and my mind suddenly went 'snap.' "
Gotcha. I totally get it.
He said, "Because I was thinking about what I would be doing if it was a vacation day and what kind of Legos I want to buy and my mind suddenly went 'snap.' "
Gotcha. I totally get it.
Tuesday, January 27
Thursday, January 22
Homeschooling When You're Distracted
Who among us doesn't have to deal with this?
Maybe you're waiting to hear about a medical test. Waiting for your oldest child to call you when they finish that road trip back to college. Worried about the stock market. Hoping to hear good news about your husband's job interview. Wishing you could just break away for the afternoon and work on a special project. Ever heard the phrase, "You're only as strong as your weakest link?" Well, getting the kids focused will only happen to the degree that you remain focused.
I think I've spent the past five years in a state of distraction. And over the next couple of months it will only increase. So what do we do? Here's my pattern:
1. Get something done. First move through the most important parts of the learning day (Math, reading and writing are my choices). If nothing else happens at least you covered the basic foundations.
2. Chunk it up more. If I think we need to accomplish 9 things today and I'm not in a productive state of mind then I will probably do all nine badly. If I think we need to accomplish two and then two and then two more, etc. then it feels possible. Taking breaks in between ideas or concepts or subject is fine.
3. Give in. If what's distracting me is going to keep me from being an effective teacher/parent, then I need to deal with the distraction as best as I can. I can work toward solving a problem that is distracting me or relieve some of anxiety by making a phone call to someone who will let me vent. Once I've given in to it a bit, I'll be able to focus more on what the children need to address for the day. It could mean not starting "school" until after lunch, but it is okay.
4. Put the kids first. There are certain things that weigh on our minds that we can't do a darn thing about. Kids are a perfect way to get your mind off something and they would love to have your complete attention. Let them do something out of the ordinary and call it school. Today I just might pull out the watercolors and we'll all paint. Yesterday we made Chinese food together for our dinner (because we're studying China) and it counted as part of our day. The fact that they were helping me made me more alert, took my mind of other things and made the experience of cooking a meal for the family much more enjoyable.
Homeschooling comes with a lot of freedoms, but it also comes with a lot of distractions. (You all know that you don't have to answer the phone when it rings, right?) Holding myself accountable is one of the greatest challenges I face. Some days more than others. Now, what do we have left to do today....?
Maybe you're waiting to hear about a medical test. Waiting for your oldest child to call you when they finish that road trip back to college. Worried about the stock market. Hoping to hear good news about your husband's job interview. Wishing you could just break away for the afternoon and work on a special project. Ever heard the phrase, "You're only as strong as your weakest link?" Well, getting the kids focused will only happen to the degree that you remain focused.
I think I've spent the past five years in a state of distraction. And over the next couple of months it will only increase. So what do we do? Here's my pattern:
1. Get something done. First move through the most important parts of the learning day (Math, reading and writing are my choices). If nothing else happens at least you covered the basic foundations.
2. Chunk it up more. If I think we need to accomplish 9 things today and I'm not in a productive state of mind then I will probably do all nine badly. If I think we need to accomplish two and then two and then two more, etc. then it feels possible. Taking breaks in between ideas or concepts or subject is fine.
3. Give in. If what's distracting me is going to keep me from being an effective teacher/parent, then I need to deal with the distraction as best as I can. I can work toward solving a problem that is distracting me or relieve some of anxiety by making a phone call to someone who will let me vent. Once I've given in to it a bit, I'll be able to focus more on what the children need to address for the day. It could mean not starting "school" until after lunch, but it is okay.
4. Put the kids first. There are certain things that weigh on our minds that we can't do a darn thing about. Kids are a perfect way to get your mind off something and they would love to have your complete attention. Let them do something out of the ordinary and call it school. Today I just might pull out the watercolors and we'll all paint. Yesterday we made Chinese food together for our dinner (because we're studying China) and it counted as part of our day. The fact that they were helping me made me more alert, took my mind of other things and made the experience of cooking a meal for the family much more enjoyable.
Homeschooling comes with a lot of freedoms, but it also comes with a lot of distractions. (You all know that you don't have to answer the phone when it rings, right?) Holding myself accountable is one of the greatest challenges I face. Some days more than others. Now, what do we have left to do today....?
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