We have finally decided what we are doing with the kids for school next year. It has been a very difficult decision. The school they attend now is a very small private school which is great because they get good one-on-one. More importantly, I have grown to really know the staff there over the years, and I trust them with my children.
However, we realized some time ago that we needed to make some changes. Grant has a true love of school and a love of learning. He does math problems for fun, people! He enjoys being a part of chess club, and enjoys the classroom in general. We are not making a change for him. He will continue with the same school.
Allyson, however, needs a change. She will be in the 6th grade next year and will be homeschooled. She will be enrolled in a homeschool program at her present school so she can attend school functions, play on the basketball team, field trips, etc. She is also enrolled in a homeschool program (along with her dearest cousins!) that offers her a study skills class, history, science, art, and cooking/sewing class. She will attend this weekly and come home with "homework" to do throughout the week with me. I will teach her math and language arts at home along with a devotional "study" for Bible. We are both excited about our new adventure! I'm looking forward to finding the Allyson I know she is. School is overwhelming for her and we both are always under too much stress with her studies. I think this may be a good option to stay connected with her, spend some one-on-one with her, and learn how she learns material the best way. She is excited about her new adventure. Her only concern is that she wouldn't see her friends. However, we explained that she would still play on her soccer team seeing them several times a week, go to school with her cousins on Thursdays, see her friends on field trips, basketball practice and when I volunteer at school. She seemed fine with that. Besides, although social interaction is very important and certainly a part of school, the whole objective is to learn. Really, she is interacting with her friends when she should be interacting with them anyway. During the last week of school, I could see her stress level diminishing by leaps and bounds. She is offering lots more hugs, reading her books (that girl LOVES to read!), returning to her helpful disposition, her funny personality, and just has a different demeanor.
Jake will be still be attending the pre-K class he has been while I'm helping out at school and will also be attending a local preschool program that I just love. It is a preschool that is three mornings a week and concentrates on social interaction and structured play. Yes, they know their letters, sounds, numbers, and can recognize their names by the end of the year as well. The teacher there is an older woman who has taught Allyson and Grant as well and really enjoys "her kids". We decided not to send him to school full time because we just feel like he needs time at home and doesn't need to be in school a full day just yet. The plan is that he will attend kindergarten the following year unless he just isn't ready. If he isn't ready for kindergarten, we'll put him in the full day K4 program. We decided that giving him ample time to adjust and develop bonds, security, and trust with his new family is a higher priority now than to push the learning. The learning will come in time. He has plenty of years to finish his schooling, but we have a limited of time to develop strong bonds and trusting relationships with him.
This has been a tough decision for me; I've been thinking about home schooling for years now. I'm hoping this is the best thing for Ally, and think it is worth a try for a school year. If she wants to continue home schooling after a school year, then we will. If she wants to go back into traditional school, we'll do that too! Either way, I think it is giving us an opportunity I wouldn't normally have with her considering the amount of time spent on schoolwork before and after school. Thanks to all of my bloggy homeschooling friends that have given their input on this decision. I know I have emailed several of you, and you all were so kind in emailing me back with your experiences! I have asked a thousand questions to my cousin Shelley who is an experienced homeschooler herself. Oh, my! I have so much to learn and she has patiently answered all my questions! Great to have such fabulous and helpful friends! Thanks!
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Grant has ALWAYS loved the beach and thinks the more you're tossed around the waves the better! He'd make one heck of a surfer! Man! When is Snaggletooth going to lose the other tooth?
