School Is In Session

The 2017-2018 School Year is well underway! We've been at it since early August, slowly adding a new subject each week until Labor Day when everything kicked into high gear. Allow me to introduce the four students I have the joy and honor of learning with...

Jaxton Isaac... this hot mess is curious, eager, loud, and insightful. He is smarter than his three-year old grin suggests and is thoroughly enjoying fun, hands-on activities at co-op each week. (Although, almost any random scientific fact he spews no doubt comes from Curious George, Nature Cat, and Wild Kratts. Thanks PBS.)

Annalyse Joy... this missing-lots-of-teeth second grader thinks learning is fun, especially when it means being home where time is flexible, the demands are light, and her baby dolls can sit at the table with her while she works. She radiates happiness and is a strong leader when she's with five other second graders at co-op each week.

Micah David... this 100% athletic and 100% conniving and 100% ambitious fifth grader is on top of his study game when he can sit partly on the couch, partly on the coffee table, and partly on the floor while reading and writing. Never mind using his desk - that's so old school.  

Grady Lee... this almost-as-tall-as-me with bigger-feet-than-me sixth grader LOVES history and all things reading. It's not uncommon for me to ask him to stop reading and go play and that no, he cannot read several chapters ahead to see what happens next.

Some days science looks like this... my crazy bunch on the driveway. But, the neighbors are used to it by now, promise.

Initially we planned to join friends at the botanical gardens to observe the eclipse and to participate in some hands-on activities. But, after a 10-hour car ride home from New Jersey the day before, we opted to stay home and watch the eclipse via cereal boxes and aluminum foil. And guess what? It worked!

Most mornings by 9:00 our books are opened and we're scattered around the house doing our thing. The boys are 90% independent, Annalyse still needs help with reading instructions and getting started on various tasks, and Jax is a busy-body fury that simply wants in on whatever the big kids are doing.

Homeschooling really is a joy ride! It's a gift and a privilege and my kids have no idea how blessed they are in this regard. We talk about it a lot and relish in the freedoms it allows, but their minds can't grasp being in a classroom for several hours a day, waiting in bus or car pool lines, and completing evening homework during the week.

We've stayed with Samaritan Scholars Co-Op again this year and my kids look forward to it each week. Here are a few random pictures friends shared with me from our first couple of weeks...