Happy First Day of School!

Well, today is our first second day of homeschooling!  So far, so good.  I even got my own homework done, a day early.

Now I will proceed to tell you about our FIRST day.

We started off the morning with breakfast, as usual, and then had a bit of a casual morning since I got only two hours of sleep the night before.  After I got things together and the kids had had a little while to wake up and get used to the idea of starting school again, we discussed the year overall and what we hope to accomplish and learn.  Hunter had the opportunity to put in some input on studies and field trips, and we talked about how homeschooling will be different from his public school.  

Then we got in and did some review.  Since our textbooks aren't here yet, I'll just be winging it for a few days; I'm pretty sure I won't have a hard time connecting summer school with new school year, since I made up his entire summer school curriculum myself too.  

I let Hunter choose his first assignment to review writing and spelling, and he chose to write a paragraph (which, I will admit, stunned me just slightly).  The words he struggled with spelling, we used as this week's spelling words, and he proceed to do spelling.  Then we organized our school supplies, took a break for a snack and chores, Hunter did a handwriting assignment, and we all took a little walk outside in the beautiful weather.  While on our walk, we talked about measurements - cups, pints, quarts, gallons - and figured out some math in relation to that.  We also talked about safety when we're away from home, and had the chance to discuss respecting others and their personal property.  Then we came home and had lunch and quiet time, where Hunter did his reading. 

Today we'll add health class to the mix - since that textbook just arrived in the mail! - and tomorrow, we'll get back to the Y for morning P.E.  One thing I need to do is find some additional organizing tools for our school supplies.  Haven't decided on what to use for that yet, since I don't have room for another book shelf anywhere in this house.

Busy... and Not so Busy

So it's been kind of busy around here.  I spent a lot of time this week writing: editing the current novel, reading excerpts of other people's novels, and writing query letters, not to mention doing a bit of setup for the next novel, the writing of which begins in November.  There is much cleaning to get done around here, as we will be having guests for two days this Labor Day weekend: a friend of mine from college and her daughter.  Much fun is planned.  I love reunions, almost as much as I love having guests!

Today I ordered Hunter's school books for this year.  I had a lot of fun researching and selecting books for Reading Comprehension, Health, Science, Spelling, and Bible.  I am also having fun planning my own curricula for Math, Literature, and Social Studies.  I'm sure that as we work our way through the year, our plans will bend and in some cases take paths other than what we originally planned - but that's a HUGE benefit to homeschooling.  I'm really excited about the idea of creating our learning as we go.

And in the midst of the busy-ness around here, I've been giving the kids a week to just relax and not worry about too many responsibilities, as a sort of break before starting school next week.  It's mostly Hunter who is affected by this, as Kaleigh, at the age of four, has few household responsibilities and won't be held to any formal academics this year.  I think they are both enjoying the chance to relax and recharge though.

I guess that's it for now.  More to come as we begin our big adventure next week!