homeschool 2023-2024

 

 

We have entered our 12th year of home learning! 

This year, Brown Mouse is in 10th grade and Lala Bug has moved out of high school and declared her major in apparel design and merchandising.

After expressing interest in heading to a brick and mortar school for the rest of high school (a door we left open by homeschooling through a charter school), lots of conversations, visiting schools, narrowing down choices, and sitting in classrooms, Brown Mouse opted to continue homeschooling. He's got a full load with geometry, physics, English, U.S. history, life skills/transition, P.E., and driver's ed. He is biking (mountain and road), always, and is back in soccer after an injury, playing with the team he has been part of since he was 8. And he will be assistant soccer coaching with the skills coach he began playing with at age 6!

Lala Bug began taking college classes in high school and chose to continue, selecting math, pattern draping, and fashion sketching for this year, majoring in apparel design and merchandising. So far, we have been impressed with the program, the staff, and the disabled student services, and feel lucky to have a solid niche program so close to home. She has continued building skills and making beautiful items (knits, fashion, books, and more) and I am working with her on her small business and entrepreneurial goals. She is also mountain and road biking. 

That is our little nutshell as we propel into this learning year!

 

graduation

 

Lala Bug has been learning at home since mid-way through 2nd grade, 8 years old. In our homeschool (and let me emphasize that every homeschool is different for so many reasons, most importantly because every human and family is different), we stuck with 'grade levels,' because, for the most part, we homeschooled with the support of charter schools. (Technically, this means that our kids have been public schooled students of the charter schools, and have always been had assignments, accountability, testing, etc.) This spring, Lala Bug completed 12th grade, high school. 

We have been UsSchoolers (once I settled in and let go) and Lala Bug has been loathe to make any sort of 'deal' out of graduating, but as homeschoolers, her education has been my education and it feels like something I/we need to celebrate. I am sharing here, since this has been my space and my record of quite a long (blink!) journey. I have been blogging for over 15 years, so have captured a lot. She graduated with all the things educators worry about (high GPA, plenty of credits, well rounded), yes, but what has mattered far more to us has been helping our kids find passion, direction, interest in learning, self-advocacy, and more. She has been dual-enrolled in an apparel design and merchandising program and has declared that as her major. She'll continue living at home and receiving support as needed, so...grade 13?

So proud of this human who has (and will always have to) overcome a tremendous number of challenges, will always have to work with her differences in a neurotypical world.

2023

Note: I wrote this on New Year's Eve morning, and that is when I am scheduling this to appear as posted, however several days have passed, and, in actuality, it is January 7 today. Since writing this, our area/state has been hit with a series of serious storms, causing significant damage and some loss of life. I don't want to be insensitive to that or to growing concerns about additional storms coming, but I am going to let this post as it was when I wrote it.

 

I am in our dim, early morning kitchen, with a soft, faux lantern on, sitting next to the window in a chair covered with a soft sheepskin (bought for me when I was about 12), listening to the sound of the rain. It is incredibly soothing. Deep in drought, it's filling my soul just a little bit, to hear the rain splatter, although we are anticipating a storm here in our area. 

We've come upon December 31st in a bit of a blink. Usually, I have been mentally toying around with and considering words for the year ahead for a couple of weeks, but this year, it has just been a couple of days. 

For 2022, my word has been Change, and it has been so appropriate. When Brown Mouse graduated from our homeschool charter, we all moved on from that community. M experienced employment change and rediscovering of self (much to the benefit of his health and our family connection). We are now book-ending high school. We experienced our first year with Biscuit dog. Mountain biking moved from something we enjoyed to a primary focus. Lala Bug said farewell (for now) to her long time dance studio. Lots of change.

For 2023, I find I can't limit myself to one word and I am having trouble choosing. Part of me wants to simply say my word for the year is Me. While I know I need to give more attention to myself in a number of ways, the word doesn't feel broad enough to embody how I want to approach the year. To start 2023, I have chosen Strengthen as my primary word. I want to strengthen my self-care, my boundaries, our rhythms, our long-term goals, my connections, etc. I know more Change is coming, though, and with the desire to Strengthen comes a need for an openness to Possibilities and I have a growing desire for Purpose. (Purpose was the first word that came to me, of these three, and I find I am resisting it, which tells me that is all the more reason to explore that a little more.) 

Choosing a word has worked for me for years now (since 2010), instead of setting resolutions. A word is a mental anchor for me. It feels simple and broad enough for those times my mind is getting away from me. I am a deep thinker and feeler, so a word (or, in this case, three words) to meditate on can help me to keep moving forward.

Wishing you all the best in 2023.

homeschool 2022-2023

 

2022 has been such a year of change (my word for the year)! This year, our family outgrew our beloved K-8 charter school. (And our teacher retired...We always told her she could not retire until Brown Mouse graduated! 😘) We went through the process of applying to, visiting, and considering in-person high schools for Brown Mouse. Just as happened with Lala Bug as she moved into 9th grade, it was I who wanted to pursue exploring school and the kids who wanted to continue homeschooling. So...we are still homeschooling and still with a homeschool-supporting charter school, although this charter has a whole different vibe and is not the center of our community. 

This year we have a kiddo in 12th grade (part 1) and one in 9th grade. Two high schoolers! (And a tag-along doggo, who makes the hard stuff more bearable.) Both kids have neuro-differences, but completely different ones! They keep us fresh and creative with how we approach things and it leads to many conversations and lifestyle pivots as we try to address, support, encourage, and grow as individuals and as a family.

Our 12th grader is working through "course work" for Life Skills, language/culture, World Geography, English, Art, and a community college course that covers history and fashion. She will be doing Health and perhaps another community college class during winter/spring. Her neuro-differences means that we work with her to keep the demands and expectations light and in balance with physical activity and her need to counter sensory overwhelm.

Our 9th grader is working through "course work" for Life Skills, World Geography, Biology, Algebra 1, English, and Art. He will be doing Health during winter/spring. He does a lot of tinkering on bikes and remote control cars and we were hoping for a bike mechanics internship, but he is on the very young age for the program, so it might not work out (yet). His learning differences have him working with a specialist weekly and may have us returning to occupational therapy (OT). OT might be the most fun therapy option out there for quirky kids, because it tends to be hands-on and physical!

Both kids are mountain biking and Brown Mouse is also playing soccer this fall. Both kids are signed up for 4-H. Brown Mouse is very reluctant. I previously told him he could have the choice this year, but I am now pushing for him to participate, because our club leaders have been working hard to try to provide more to engage the teens. (Our club lost a lot of members during the pandemic and many members are younger). Also, I am leading an outdoor project and it is his sister's final year. I think this year might be our family's last in 4-H.

Resources we are using and already enjoying and/or simply appreciating include: Guest Hollow's World Geography; Blog, She Wrote's Microscopic Marvels; ck12 online flexbooks for Biology; CTCMath; Write Shop; edX (massive online course - MOOC), and various other resources for...everything!

We are off to a good start, for which I am grateful, and hope your year has begun well, too!

2021-2022 home learning

I kept thinking I would come and post about our school year at some point after posting about the Caldor fire in the mountains, but I never did. The clock kept ticking, tomorrows kept coming and going and here we are. I am writing this a chunk of the way into the 2021-2022 school year (winter break!), but I might post it to the appropriate time period (Aug/Sept 2021), just for my own chronological documentation! I am pretty sure no one reads this blog anymore. (Who even blogs anymore?!) 

(Additional update, summer 2022, school year complete; I never did post this during winter break with a current or August publish date, so I am doing so now, with no edits to what I wrote in December/January. Just the way the school year rolled!)

Before writing this, I went back and read last year's start-of-year post. 2021 proved to be much harder than 2020 for us. It could be the length of the pandemic by this point, growing changing teens in isolation, the strain of tensions and strife in our country, all of the above, and more. But we took a full-on, desperate break from schooling over the summer. We crawled to the finish line of the 2020-2021 school year and I didn't even manage to celebrate the start of summer for or with the kids. 

There was quite a bit of reluctance to begin this 2021-2022 school year. Anxiety and stress were very high, showing up to things was difficult, but there were activities to show up to for the first time in months (over a year!). Also significant for us is that this is Brown Mouse's (and therefore our family's) last year with our beloved homeschool charter. For these and other reasons, we did a slow entry into the school year, and looking back, I refer to the first few months as "fun fall." Basically, we had been socially isolated so long, that if an activity was happening that a kiddo wanted to do, we tried to say yes. We put the priority on social and mental health and growth. It was slow going for Brown Mouse, not the kiddo we had expected to have a difficult time, but by mid-October, he was in a better place and a healthier groove, and I would say that both kids are thriving more now.

This year we have an 8th grader and 11th grader! Both my kiddos have learning differences, both have anxiety, and one was finally confirmed as Autistic (with PDA) this year. These differences deeply affect and shape their educations, our family, and their days.

I have been trying to hang onto Together Time, but it is hit or miss. This is the only piece of our intentional homeschooling that we still do all together and I try and bring content, conversation, books, and games that fill gaps and are short and sweet. One kiddo has really been struggling with auditory overwhelm, which is the primary reason it is hit or miss.

This autumn, our 8th grader got to take an ecosystems science class (in person, outside) with his charter, followed by an incredible series of field trips that included Lala Bug and me. The staff quickly noted how much the (small group of) middle schoolers were struggling post/mid pandemic, and have since also instituted a weekly middle schooler game time. At home, we have been working together through math and writing/language arts most especially. Science and history are easier to touch on naturally in our homeschool. Moving into winter/spring, he has again (4th year for him) joined the Shakespeare class. The students will be performing A Midsummer Night's Dream.

Club soccer resumed this fall and Brown Mouse was thrilled to participate. What we didn't anticipate, however, was how much pain he would experience running the full sized fields after such an epic growth spurt (8+ inches), so we paired soccer with physical therapy. Shortly after soccer season wrapped up, he very happily began mountain biking club, which will roll for the next 5+ months. (Both kids have been mountain bikers for a few years, really ramping it up during the pandemic.) Biking and bike mechanics are his primary passions, so he's a happy kid.

(Resources for him include; ALEKS, All About Spelling, Brave Writer, Write Shop, and others.)

Lala Bug didn't return to club soccer, but she did return to ballet since it resumed in-person. She danced all fall and is continuing to do so, adding club mountain biking for winter/spring. (Unfortunately for me and scheduling, the kids are in different biking clubs.)

For 11th grade, Lala Bug is tackling Algebra II, World History, English, and Italian. In the fall, she also had Psychology on her learning plans and for winter/spring, she's studying Astronomy/Rocket Science. And always, she gets credit for art, which, for her, is sewing, knitting, fashion design, pattern writing, pattern drafting, and more. She is getting more and more skilled and it likely to pursue these passions beyond high school. 

(Resources for her include: Khan Academy, Write Shop, edX MOOC, Mr. D Math, Crash Course, and more.) 

Both kids are also participating in a couple projects in 4-H; hiking and an environmental stewardship project.

I am trying to stay on top of providing resources, encouragement, teaching life skills, supporting mental health, and all the things, but I am also gently beginning to consider what I want to be when I grow up and retire from home educating these kiddos.

 

changing rhythms: homeschool 2020 - 2021

 

This spring and summer have been different (replace with your own adjective here). Even for those of us who have been fortunate enough to avoid COVD-19, even for homeschoolers, life has been twisted on its axis. All activities, travel, social opportunities, and more have been changed or canceled. Exacerbated by the pandemic, our country has had to face a forever-existing racial divide. This year has taught many of us to expect change, be flexible, new ways to relate to and understand each other, and to truly value all we are privileged to have.

And here we are, mid-August, the coming school year looming (that is what it feels like to me this year) upon us. In past years, I have had breaks from my kids (and they from me) in the summer, time to think, clean, organize, plan. I've started the year ready and enchanted. I haven't had that this year and here we are, with (home)school (year 9!) starting tomorrow. (It's Sunday afternoon as I write this.)

Why tomorrow if I am not ready?

We homeschool through a public charter school. Actually, this year, we are homeschooling through 2 charter schools, which is part of the reason I am feeling unprepared. Our son's (K-8) charter technically began last week, but I know the school and patterns well, felt informed, and was able to start preparing early. Our daughter got into a charter school for her high school school experience this year and I didn't have much information until a week or so ago. The bottom line is that, as of tomorrow, both charters have begun and Lala Bug has her first math class.

Our kids are learning all the time. I am accepting that, while I hold Waldorf Education in my heart and mind, our homeschool is more of an us-school experience now. I know, with that in mind, that we can dive in tomorrow and adjust to our new groove, our new rhythm, more slowly.

This year I have a 7th grader and 10th grader! Both my kiddos have learning differences and one is additionally differently wired. In addition to the school year starting, we will begin a more thorough evaluation for one kiddo and resume occupational therapy for the other.

We will start our days with Together Time, during which I read a shared book, we might watch CNN10, read poetry, have important conversations, or do other shared activities.

Our 7th grader will be taking several classes online with our charter. This is not how I want to approach schooling for either of my kids, but this is an atypical school year, we know the school and teachers well, they have been thoughtful about what will work for the kids, and since this is our main homeschool community, he will be with friends, even if not in person.

Brown Mouse will be starting the year slowly, adding up to math, a writing group, Constitution class, crpytography, Spanish (he expressed enthusiastic excitement about this one), and a Shakespeare book group (Julius Caesar). This is plenty, so science will be nature study and playful experimenting to start. Language Arts, for him, is a set selection of materials to address his learning differences.

Our 10th grader, based on how distance learning did and did not work for her in the spring, will take 2 classes online, with the live online portion being only an hour for each class; Geometry and American Government. For English, we will be reading texts of my choosing and pairing it with writing materials to help her build and feel more confident with her writing. Science is Chemistry. Her charter teacher approved our covering chemistry through fiber arts, with the support of texts, some kits, and her grandparents (a chemist and a former fiber artist). She is excited about that. I suspect much of the rest of her time will be spent dancing (although not in person!) and working on various fiber projects. She has switched from knitting to sewing with the warmth of late summer, but is prolific with both, as well as other crafts. She's got some goals in this area.

And me? I am working to not forget myself in the mix. I am trying to remember to lean into my strengths, not sacrifice myself (and my energy) for everyone else, and that, for me, means ongoing work around expectations, limits, and boundaries. What better to model for my growing kids this year?!

Wishing you well as we collectively launch into a strange new, current normal.

creative light less at home through a pandemic

 Beloved Hawthorn tree, which has transformed in the last 2 weeks. A flock of Cedar Waxwings cleared the remaining berries, nudging the new leaves to show themselves.

While I have had a lot of things to say and seemingly plenty of time to say them, the thoughts in me haven't been organized or fluid for months now. For this reason, I post less and less often.

Even now, I am not sure that my jumble of thoughts will be well written, but I want to get something onto the blog to mark this time in history and our lives. Our family has been socially isolating for nearly 4 weeks. Yesterday marked 3 weeks since health officials in our area (the first to do so in the country) declared shelter-in-place due to COVID-19. My thoughts now are very different from that first week.

During week 1, this whole situation felt unreal. As our movement in the world became more limited, it seemed surreal, as though it would be temporary. I wondered if the view of homeschooling might change for the better as schools closed one by one. My thoughts of that have shifted the past few weeks. I worry for the families that are trying to juggle kids at home with work-from-home jobs, kids who don't have a safe haven at home, and families who have lost jobs. I know there are teachers struggling to pull together home lesson plans (this being harder the younger the child), parents struggling to know how to bring a class teacher's lesson plan to life at home, and kids pushing back and resisting work. Now in week 4, I wonder...when we are all let back out into the world and schools reopen, if homeschoolers will be more criticized than before. And at some point I realized; No one is homeschooling right now, not even the homeschoolers. What we are doing is pandemic-schooling. Or just surviving. (I like what Carrie of The Parenting Passageway and Shawna of Different by Design Learning have to say.) The reality is that no-one has been where we are now. We are trying to find our footing while figuring out how to acquire the basics for living, get enough movement while deprived of big nature, and support each other. All while we wait for an unknown. We are a world spiking in physical, emotional, and mental health strain.
Week 1, one of my biggest emotions was guilt. Guilt that we were okay and totally soaking in the time at home. My family had desperately been needing some down time, together. M's work and commute had been nutty, and when he was home, he often had conference calls. His absence had, in all honesty, created some painful Dada rejection for one kid. The kids and I had been very busy, one kid sick in February and the other counting the weeks until spring and summer breaks. The first week home, we connected, we relaxed, we had time to be creative. We had some hard adjustments too. It turns out live-stream online classes (distance-learning) are not a good fit for one kiddo, our Internet coverage is clunky, and our house is tiny, so there is no-where for M to work. (He has a stool pulled up to the side of our bed, and as of last summer, our bedroom is a finished basement room - a through-way to the garage. He had to connect his computer to the Internet with hard wire to have a connection down there.) Work continues to be stressful, with new dimensions of intensity.

But these are first world problems. So far, he is still employed and we are still healthy, as are our families. So far. The 'not knowing' what is to come is hard. I read an article in week 2, written by a counselor to parents of high needs children. Some excellent points were made that we parents of kids with special needs are experienced with 'no knowing.' Very true. Now in week 4, I see that the reality is the whole world is on pause right now. No one knows how long any given place will need to stay home to stay healthy. There is so much worry, with health and financial worry topping the list. And while humanity struggles, Mother Earth keeps turning, the sun keeps rising, the birds are singing, the air quality is much improved, and wildlife can be seen roaming now-quiet streets. These are the beautiful things, along with health and bounty, that keep us all moving forward. Not seeing friends and the more solid understanding that kids won't resume or be reunited with classes, sports, and friends anytime soon has been hard. Sibling relationships have gone from playful to strained.

Week 1 we needed the down time. Week 4 we are needing outside-the-family time. This month has been an incredible spyglass on the balance my family needs.

A week or so ago, I was messaging with a local friend, who was feeling overwhelmed (as many of us are) and who said "I just want to go back to how it was." Deep breath. Pause. I texted back; "Me too. There is no going back. It will always be life 'before pandemic' and life 'after pandemic'." That is a huge realization to mentally own and everyone will have to do that in their own time and way. And right now, "during pandemic" feels unfamiliar, isolating, scary, never-ending, anxious, frazzled, insert-your-emotions-here.

"During pandemic" has also had its share of positive emotions; connection, love, deep gratitude, and creativity, caring, friendliness with new meaning. This time has nudged us to to return to the roots of this blog; Creative. Light. Less. When I first began blogging (on my blog titled Which Name?), most of what I wrote about was creative, frugal living. When I moved blogs and chose a new name, I stuck with that and chose a name that reflected my desire to live creatively, lightly on this Earth, and with less (stuff, baggage, etc.) During the past 5+ years, our family has drifted further away from those roots and my blogging has been spottier and more about homeschooling. At the end of 2019, I had decided that I wanted to consciously return to some of these lifestyle fundamentals. For similar and other reasons, I chose the word Light as my word for 2020. So it seems positive to me that, here we are, finding light in this time of darkness in the world, and having to live creatively and with less.  I know that it has helped us tremendously that we were prepared entering into this stay-at-home time. Our family culture being rooted in DIY made this transition easier, as did our preparedness for earthquakes and wildfires because of where we live. (I am linking to another post from Carrie of The Parenting Passageway, where she wrote about how she was preparing for an extended time at home. It is a great prep list.) This time at home has given space for recycled/upcycled craft projects, seed planting, tons more creative cooking, conscious shopping, reusable materials, creative fixes and replacements, and more consciousness to what we are using and doing.  The craze for toilet paper has me worried in only one way...someone accidentally flushing cloth wipes down the toilet. (We already had the stress of having a plumber in during week 2 because of a clog in the pipe that we couldn't clear with our home tools.)

So here we are today, sitting in gratitude for all we have and curiosity about the days ahead.

I hope my rambling, wandering thoughts find you doing whatever you can and are able to do to stay safe and healthy; physically, emotionally, and mentally, and you have a window or an outdoor space that lets you soak in a little springtime sunshine and fresh air.

Stay well.

homeschool day - 9th and 6th grades

Every year for the past few, I have prepared and written a post for the Homeschool Day in the Life series at Simple Homeschool. I love Simple Homeschool. It was one of my first entries into homeschooling, before we even began. And I have loved contributing to this series. This is its 10th year, coming at a time of fewer blogs and more Instagram.

The truth is, this year it crept up on me and I didn't prepare anything.

The truth is, this year I am winding down as a blogger after 13+ years.

The truth is, so much has changed for us this year, as homeschoolers and as individuals, that I am not even sure how to write a homeschool day post.

But...those reasons feel all the more compelling to share something.

So with the link-up reminder arriving in my email inbox this morning, I am blogging about our day today and will link-up late.

Today is a Thursday. Each day of the week looks a little different for us, with a general schedule;

Mondays usually include a 4-H activity for my son.  My daughter will do a make-up of the 4-H activity at a later time, because her class schedule changed at winter break, making Monday one of her long days in the part time program she attends.

Tuesday is also a long day for her, and my son and I work on his various learning needs and desires.

Wednesday is charter school day. Right now, this is Shakespeare class, project, and performance. My daughter graduated from the charter, but is costume assistant. She then goes on to one class in her part time program.

Fridays are a home or field trip day.

Monday, Wednesday, and Friday evenings are ballet for my daughter. Tuesdays and Thursday evenings are karate for my son.

Every morning we have 'together time,' which includes a game, read aloud of some kind (book, poetry, news article, etc.), and CNN 10.

Today is Thursday and usually that means we have our morning together at home for together time and some lesson work and lunch before heading out so my daughter can go to a class and my son and I play at the park and go to the library. Today, though, after our together time, we had the first in a series of orthodontist appointments and when we got home, lessons didn't happen smoothly (or at all for one kiddo). Overwhelm from a lot going on finally came to a head and it was clear that structured learning was done while we worked through some big feelings. I called it a mental health day and we stayed home for the day. My daughter's class and my son's karate didn't happen today. I will be honest, 8 years into homeschooling, I am much better at taking a deep breath and letting it go. An occasional miss for whole health reasons feels right to me.

We spent the day on projects, resting, reading, and even having some time on screens. We played a game of Skip-Bo during dinner and we are winding down to an early bed with some music.

And tomorrow is fresh. I have a general idea what we need to cover, but, as always, we shall see how the day unfolds.

(For more about our homeschool, click here. For a little background (albeit 4 years old now!) on our homeschool journey, click here.)

learning period 3: 2019 - 2020

I am trying to capture each learning period as they happen, which, for our homeschooling arrangement, is a 2-month length of time, August through May. Learning period 3 covered December 2019 and January 2020. The idea of a learning period comes from the charter school that both my kids were in from 2013 onward and just Brown Mouse is part of now. Checking in every two months is doable for me and keeps me on track with both kids. Lala Bug is still homeschooling, but we are independently homeschooling now and she takes a couple classes at a private school, as a part-time student for hybrid-schooling.

Brown Mouse, grade 6:

Math: He is primarily using ALEKS and Key To workbooks for math. 6th grade is when I really backed off and made the year playful with math for his sister and I am keeping it short for him, currently, because I can feel a similar push-back and frustration.

Science: Science is one of his favorite subjects, so we do a lot of playing around with science. Recently, we have really enjoyed exploring science projects from the series of books from DK by Jack Challoner.

Language Arts/English: Brown Mouse is doing a loop of materials to work on different aspects of language arts in short bursts daily. He is using Typing Club, Handwriting Without Tears for Cursive, Editor in Chief, and speech-to-text to more fully get his thoughts in writing. He has also read and is now in a production of Shakespeare's Macbeth.

Social studies/history: We are learning American History. Right now, we are in the Civil War time period. Just to be confusing, we are also re-exploring the Middle Ages and Brown Mouse is beginning to work on a research project to go with his Shakespeare class.

Other: 4-H (all outdoors projects this year; hiking, urban farming, and wilderness skills, for which he is the junior leader), karate (new for him), soccer (skills class and pick-up games with his rec team)

Lala Bug, grade 9:

Math: Algebra 1 at the school. She is doing really well in this, despite years of math-hating, but the homework is time and energy consuming for her, I won't lie.

Science: Biology, with lab, at the school. This is my background, but is definitely not a favorite for her. She is currently having to practice note-taking because of this class and that is a challenging skill for her differently wired brain.

Language Arts/English: This year we are covering Shakespeare - comedy and tragedy and also essay reading (and eventually a little more writing).

Social studies/history: American history with the intention of being ready for American Government next school year. Right now, we are in the Civil War time period. We have also been dipping in and out of current events, because so much has been going on politically.

World language: This is generally on hold, although she has been "playing" with DuoLingo for Italian.

Other: 4-H (all outdoors projects now; hiking, urban farming, and wilderness skills, for which she is the teen leader. Unfortunately, she had to drop a life skills project because her academic school class times changed), ballet, coding, fashion/design, knitting. (Soccer is on break for the season.)


What has your kids schooling and education looked like lately?

learning period 2: 2019-2020

Learning period 2, October and November, 2019. I wrote part of this post back in early November and fleshing out the remainder of a short summary in late December. Clearly, it didn't get posted when it should have, so I will be back-dating the post to be time appropriate.

We spent much of last year really exploring and addressing Lala Bugs differences, needs, and exploring high school options that worked to address those in a healthy way. We made a lot of progress and experienced a lot of growth together, and she is bravely moving forward. Now, it is Brown Mouse’s turn. He and his sister are so different, but they both have some learning differences. So right now, we are working to identify and address his differences. He has possible dyslexia and likely dysgraphia, so evaluations and appointments are taking some extra time.

Both kids are in a group reading Shakespeare's Macbeth.While both kids love Shakespeare, Macbeth has not been a favorite of Lala Bug's. Blood, killing, and greed don't appeal to her and one can sense she is disturbed by Macbeth's selfish acts and Lady Macbeth pushing her husband to do sinister things. Brown Mouse has been more engaged with it. With the kids in two different schooling situations this year, both will be covering Macbeth, but in different ways. Lala Bug has gone to see a local performance of it with her school and will be learning, discussiing, and writing about Macbeth as it compares to Twelfth Night, a comedy. Brown Mouse will be part of a Shakespeare class that will ultimately perform Macbeth.

Both kids are also in soccer and 4-H.

Lala Bug has been adjusting to taking some classes at a small high school and while the adjustment has been challenging, she and we like the school and staff and she is thriving academically. She is getting her math and science (biology) outside the home. She has also been taking dance, her first autumn of doing both dance and soccer. I am hesitant to declare that as a success. She loves both, but has been running very tired and her sleep is 'off.' 

 

Brown Mouse has been taking an ecology class and a tall ships history class through our charter, and both have been a success. for his other subjects, he has been using Key To workbooks and ALEKS for math at home, learning more about American history, and we have been doing a language arts loop of skill-strengthening activities specific to his learning needs.

Onward into December, which boasts a variety of celebrations for our family and a welcomed break from the everyday lesson activities.

learning period 1: 2019-2020

We are in a season of busy! I have been wanting to find a time to blog about how our school is going so far, but time for me to pause, reflect, and write has been so limited. Right now, I am sitting in M’s car next to the soccer field, where Lala Bug has practice. Normally, I don’t wait here, but today, my car is in the shop (again), M is just home from a business trip and worked from home, so he and Brown Mouse are having time together, and with darkness coming earlier, soccer practice end-time feels unpredictable on this field has no lights. So this nets me a little time to write!

I looked back on some of my personal journaling from the past couple of years and the start to the school year has rarely felt smooth. This year felt even less so, as it was very, very drawn out, and growth has made our learning choices different this year. Lala Bug began a part time program at a small high school, which began slowly with orientations and community building, before classes began. The school requires we drive, so this commute is a change, too. Brown Mouse is still in our beloved charter school, and although we had to begin documenting our learning activities in early August(!!), the physical activities and classes didn’t begin until late September. There has been much change with our charter too, bringing more uncertainty. The same late start was true for 4-H, so it felt like we were trying to launch the school year over the span of about two months!

So here we are heading into late October and I feel like we are finally settled into a routine. I hesitate to use the word groove or rhythm, because our schedule just feels too full. We have quite a few things we have to be at, at specific times. It took me several weeks, and a comment from my friend Vanessa (of Wright at Homeschool), for me to realize that I needed a mindset shift to accept that this is our normal right now. We are intentionally busy. We won’t be busy like this all year. (We can’t be. It isn’t sustainable for me or for my differently wired girl.) Right now, we have activities out of the house 4 evenings per week, plus weekend games, in addition to daily classes and/or 4-H, and our homeschool. I have tried to keep Fridays clear, but Lala Bug does have Friday evening soccer practice and we have ended up needing to make appointments on some of the Fridays.

 

So for learning period 1, August and September:

Lala Bug, grade 9, is studying  algebra 1, biology with lab, American History, and English. The first two are classes she is taking and the latter two are been addressed in a less formal way at home with literature, documentaries, and discussions. In addition, she is in soccer, dance, 4-H, and is pursuing her own passions, including knitting, sewing, and fashion design. We haven’t been able to find a way to do block learning with her current classes.

Brown Mouse, grade 6, is doing language arts (rotating through grammar, cursive, typing, and writing, usually through dictation), science (we started the year with a lovely geology block), American History (I can combine with his sister and he is taking a class on American tall ships, navigation, and sailing history), and daily math. (We haven’t settled on a single curriculum for the year. He previously enjoyed Teaching Textbooks, but despite moving him up a couple levels, he is bored. He will likely get practice through Key To workbooks, Khan Academy, and ALEKS.) Brown Mouse is also in soccer, 4-H, and is interested in survival gear and skills.

We have managed to sneak in a couple family camping trips and a weekend in the mountains since this learning period began, which fuels the soul. M has had a couple of business trips. We've attended a harvest festival and a celebration of Monarch migration, which are near and dear to our hearts. So it has been a full couple of months.

I have had to make an intention to include some restorative self-care into my days and be clear and loving with my boundaries, because I know if I am well rooted, my branches are strong enough to help everyone else.

What has been keeping you busy this 'season?'

the 2019 - 2020 learning year

We are gently and reluctantly launching our school year this week. I say reluctantly because we had a very full summer, ending with work happening in our house, throwing things into chaos and leaving me feeling (no, actually being) unprepared. But because of how our school year is framed, it is time to begin.

When we began the school year last year, my oldest, a high needs kiddo, was entering 8th grade. We were really working to determine what the specific high needs were rooted in, with the hope of finding extra support to address them. She knew that she wanted to homeschool high school. I didn't think I wanted to homeschool high school. And so went a year of addressing each of our needs and finding supports.

Oddly (or perhaps not), here we are, a year later, having considered a lot of different options (including a 'gap year'). Now, though, we are making last minute decisions for course work and curricula resources as we descend into another homeschool year, with both kids. Both Lala Bug and I have grown in the past year. The growth and the supports we have both received have lead to more mutual understanding and confidence that we can homeschool high school successfully.

The supplies above, the book stack below, and a handful of other fabulous goodies were free for educators (including homeschoolers) at a local reuse shop!

9th grade:
I want to say I can't believe I have a high schooler. I can, because this transition for Lala Bug has been on my mind for 2 years now and integrated into our lives for over a year, but I can't believe how quickly my kids are growing and, honestly, how hard it is to stay on level with them. I am simultaneously trying to keep up with the changing needs as a slow processor, all while not letting my head get away with me in thoughts of "shouldn't we be doing X by now?" Yes, 14 years into parenting, the "shoulds" can still niggle sometimes.

This year, we have planned for Lala Bug to participate in a part time program in a nearby school that serves kids who need extra support. We had additionally planned to begin a new homeschool charter that serves high schoolers, however, part of our last minutes decisions included releasing our spot. I had a difficult time reaching anyone to answer questions, and when I finally did, I had already spoken with a couple other moms whose families use that charter, and we were already coming to the conclusion that, as scary as it is to fly solo for high school, the charter would not be a good fit for us at this point. (If anyone in my everyday life wants to know the details, please just ask when you see me!)

We only just got the draft schedule for the part time program Lala will be attending and the slow, sporadic, unique orientation will be begin this week. She is nervous, as expected, but I am hopeful that this will be a good fit for her, and the blend of homeschooling with some small school supports will be just right.

So, while I am no longer an over-planner, I would have liked to have had all of the information I gained in the past few days, already in place several months ago.

Math: Lala will likely be taking math as one of her part time school program classes. She has also clicked with the teaching and practice style of ALEKS, so she will continue to practice using this program. She will also be doing some business math this year and she has spent quite a bit of time coding during the summer and I expect this will continue and deepen.

English ~ Literature, Language Arts, and Writing: We will be tying together history and literature and will be covering U.S. history (so we can cover government during elections in 2020) through the books we select. We will be using language arts learning guides such as Boomerang (Brave Writer). We will cover some essay writing, as well. In addition, Lala Bug has been using a spelling program to support some of her learning differences and will continue to practice typing.

History/Social Studies: We will be deepening the learning of U.S. history through literature and non-fiction books, biographies, documentaries, field trips, and discussions.

Science: Lala will experience science with lab in the part time school program.

World language: She has been asking to learn Italian for some time, but I think we will have her begin with Spanish, which is an extremely common language where we live.

6th grade:
Brown Mouse is starting 6th grade this year. We are leaving the elementary years behind, something I can't quite believe! He is still with our beloved charter school, for which I am grateful, although the school, on the whole, is going through significant (to us) changes this year, so we are starting the year curious, but less certain. I am hoping to have Brown Mouse undergo an evaluation through our charter school this year, as he has some differences when it comes to writing and spelling, which are signaling a possible subset of dyslexia or some other language processing difference.

Our plans for him this year are loosely Waldorf based, but with more mainstream resources.
Games and exploration: I just want to start by saying that we play games and do physical exploration for every subject that we can. This goes for both kids!

Math: He would like to continue using Teaching Textbooks for math, however I think he is capable of a bit more challenge, so I would like him to do some practice using ALEKS, which our charter school covers.

Language Arts and Writing: We will be doing both of these through literature, specifically Brave Writer style. I suspect the resource specialist will give us additional materials to work specifically on spelling, the mechanics of writing, and typing. I know there will be additional literature that he will join his sister and I with, in reading, as well, and we will tie into history through some Shakespeare. He and Lala are prolific independent readers.

Social Studies: I would like to cover Roman history and Medieval history with him this year. I think there are some enjoyable ways to explore these periods, despite history not being his favorite subject.

Science: This is Brown Mouse's favorite subject. We are going to be doing a lot of hands on learning this year, exploring some ecology, geology, and physics.

I know I haven't named a ton of curriculum resources, but it is because I am going to be pulling materials from a variety of resources, depending on the subject or project. My key tool is my library card. This allows us access to borrow books, audiobooks, ebooks, and DVDs. It gives us free admission to a number of museums, use of language programs, and more. We also have similar benefits through our charter school.

Other memberships and services we use (some free, some paid) are: Curiosity Stream, Khan Academy, Brain Pop, our local museums, our local parks district, Netflix, Amazon, YouTube, Pinterest, other bloggers, and probably more that I am not thinking of!

Extras:
Both kids participate in soccer, dance, and 4-H (which is comprehensive for leadership, teamwork, community service, and more. The kids will be co-leading a project this year.) There is additional interest in mountain biking, golf, piano, and more, and we are working out what our schedule, budget, and other allowances and limitations will be.

This is a year of a lot of change. I think I won't really know how it is going to go until we are in it and settling into a new rhythm. It will involve a lot of driving for me, and probably some park/cafe-schooling for Brown Mouse and me. I am hopeful and finally feeling at ease with the choices we have made as we move into high school.

August 2019

In August, stone fruits are so sweet.

Peach pie makes a special treat. 

~Nicola

 

 

Well, hello. I have taken a couple months off from blogging and it was so busy it zipped by! We have had a couple of months that were very much of a mix of summer travel and full home time that was not at all summer-like. In fact, some of our usual summer anchors have been missed entirely. August will be a mix like that, too, with some summer activities, but some school related events happening, as well.

 

 

Dates of Interest:




Instead of specific dates this month, I will just say that, this month, we are celebrating a family birthday, have some new-to-us homeschool support school appointments to attend, school 'start' dates on the calendar, a week of day camp, and meteor showers to enjoy!

Homeschooling:







June and July had a homeschooling rhythm broken by trips. Both kids were working on math and language arts programs through the summer and Lala Bug just completed an intensive coding class. In August, the support schools that we homeschool under will begin, although we still have a certain amount of flexiblity. With Lala Bug having graduated our long time charter school, our new situation for her will be a learning curve and transition for us all.

Self-care:


The kids are in an outdoor camp for a week and that is my summer 'vacation.' That is my one week to tackle projects for me, take deep care of myself (massage, haircut, naps, etc.), schedule appointments, read, write, lesson plan, and whatever else fills my cup.

Parenting and Family:

During the next few weeks, I want make sure we get some good family connection as well as fuel each kid with some special time. We are hoping to re-establish the rhythm of a family hike on the weekends. I know the transitions and changes coming are likely to trigger anxieties and I want to prepare for that.

Home life:

I mentioned in my June/July post that we have some major house work to do this summer and it is underway now. It is a bit shocking how long some of these projects can take, even when hiring others to help do them!

I hope your August is lovely and joyous!

learning period 5: 2018 - 2019

I have posted previously about how our charter follows learning periods. (Here is my post from learning period 4, which links to those before.) I shifted into posting monthly at the start of 2019, but since I was specific about subjects in these learning period posts and I started the school year this way, I am doing both to finish the school year.

This learning period, April and May, flew by. My word for the year is present, chosen, in part, because this was my eldest's 8th grade year, so I really wanted to soak up our time together before big transitions. Having spent most of the year addressing extra needs, high school tours and applications, and more, I have only now finally felt able to slow down and be present. Boo. In April, our kids went through state testing, which also took a small chunk of time and a fair amount of emotional bandwidth. 

 

Brown Mouse cut and sewed this knife pouch himself. He wrapped a cordage handle on the knife and put the whole thing on a belt he also made himself. This was one of several things that show his growing independence, capabilities, and interests the past few months.

Social studies: We wrapped up learning about the Great Depression through literature; Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz. We also took a tour on a tall ship, which opened conversation back up on many of the topics and the time period we studied earlier this school year.

 

Lala Bug loves fiber arts of all sorts. This doll outfit is one of a number that she made this year. She made the leggings (from an old t-shirt), then the dress (from an old sheet). She entered the dress in the county fair for judging. Her sewing creations have increased in complexity and speed of completion this year.

Language arts and Writing: In addition to using the Brave Writer Arrow guide alongside Esperanza Rising, there was writing for 4-H for both kids this learning period. In addition, Lala Bug was getting weekly support from a teacher at our charter school and Brown Mouse is still working through a reading and spelling support program called REWARDS.

Math: Teaching Textbooks for Brown Mouse and Khan Academy for Lala Bug. Both kids did the evaluation for ALEKS and Lala Bug liked it, so she will be using that over the summer for some support. We all like Math Antics videos for review and always games! A big highlight in April was participation in their first Outschool class. The one we chose was a math class for review of certain concept under the guide of designing their dream homes.

Science: During this learning period, we continued our nature exploration through 4-H and as a family on the weekends. We also enjoyed several science experiments using the DK Smithsonian books and Mystery Science. We found tiny Anise Swallowtail caterpillars on our fennel. We had to identify them because we have never had them before. We moved fennel and the caterpillars to our butterfly net house to raise. It is amazing watching them grow! Perhaps the highlight, though, has been following (on bird cam) a pair of nesting Peregrine Falcons from when they laid 3 eggs. Two eggs successfully hatched and the chicks are nearly ready to try their first flight now. This bird cam is especially meaningful to my two young birders because they even had a chance to go and speak with an ornithologist about these birds.

And finally, our charter is now finished for the year. Our family participated in and attended a sweet, personal graduation celebration for the dozen 8th graders. It was such a celebration of each child, homeschooling in general, and our charter community. I declared May 31 our final day of school. We still need to bind main lesson books and share them with family. We are ready for a break! That said, both kids will be having mini math and language arts lessons consistently through the summer and we will need to compile record books for 4-H.

Happy end of school year! How are you celebrating?

June and July 2019

 

June brings solstice summer sun

Warmth and light for everyone.

 

We spend July in mountains high.

Canoe, hike, and swim; The days fly by. 

~Nicola 

 

Dates of Interest:

June 16: Father's Day

June 21: Summer Solstice

July 4: United States' Independence Day


Homeschooling:

We wrapped up the year well. We didn't get to all at hoped to and planned for. Not even close. But we also had some important health care appointments series that interrupted our flow substantially.

We usually take the summertime off. This year, our summer break is shorter and we will be enjoying some space and time, but we will also be doing some intentional learning. Our summer is actually far more scheduled (not necessarily full, just mapped out) than usual.

Intentional learning includes some language arts and some math for both kids. In addition, Lala Bug has asked to learn some coding. This isn't something she is normally interested in, but she has idea in mind that this would help with. I love this for so very many reasons! Also, Shakespeare is much loved in this house and there are opportunities around to see local performances, which we plan to take advantage of.

And, of course, I need to spend some time planning. This coming year will look very different, but I don't quite know yet how it will be different. We continue to try and be mindful of where our kids are socially, emotionally, developmentally, and academically, regardless of their chronological age. We are trying to respect their desires, limits, and interests, while keeping the broader view of what they might need for college and beyond. All that feels a bit fuzzy for my planning right now.

Self-care:


Self-care this summer will mean me getting some time alone, clearing some of our spaces (this gives me greater inner calm), and reading some books. We will be adventuring and exploring this summer, which is something I deeply need. I need to "get away," even if we don't travel and this just means exploring new and much-loved places nearby.

Parenting:


Our kids need some down time, nature time, and one-on-one this summer! There are plans for them to get all of that. I continue to work on boundary setting and holding and we are being mindful to pour on more positive compliments and observations when appropriate. We have one kiddo who has a hard time accepting supportive criticism, corrections, and also compliments. All of these help us grow when when they are intended in a caring way.

Home life:

We have some major work to do this summer...decluttering, room shuffling, and we need a new roof (and ceiling repairs from where the roof leaked)!



I am combining June and July, because one way in which I am caring for myself this summer is not setting myself up to feel obliged to be online! Have a joyful summer.

May 2019

May brings sun and sandy beach swims,

Before the summer fog rolls in. 

~Nicola

Dates of Interest:

May 1: May Day. We make and deliver anonymous May Day bouquets. (Above photo.)

May 12: Mother's Day

May 27: Memorial Day

May 30: Last day of school (for our charter and I think us, too, this year. Lala Bug graduates our charter this year. Lots of feelings!)


Homeschooling:

April was very off-kilter with, and following, testing. Our one consistent piece through the month was an Outschool math class both kids did and enjoyed. At the end of the month and heading into the beginning of May, our literature choice is Esperanza Rising, which fits in beautifully with our other studies of the Depression (and recovery, and World War II) time period and is poignant for us as Californians. It is a wonderful book!

Fifth Grader: We are continuing with our language arts (Brave Writer and REWARDS) and math (Teaching Textbooks and Key To series), but this month I want to be heavy on nature/botany for Brown Mouse.

Eight Grader: We are continuing with language arts (Brave Writer and one-on-one support from our charter) and math (Khan Academy and Key To series). This month I want to end with a focus on business and entrepreneurship with Lala Bug.

High school...we have a general plan in place now (link to post). Now, Lala Bug and I will begin to shape what her homeschool courses will be and I will dive a little deeper into making sure we are covering what we need to for all of high school, from the very beginning.

Self-care:

If nothing else this month, I am feeling a deep need for some alone time. The list of things I really want to do that would help fuel me seems rather simple; keep increasing my morning journal and exercise time back to what it was, drink more water, finish a couple books I am dragging through, and resume meditating and the anti-inflammatory diet. Ha! That is quite a lot, really.

Parenting:

M and I have gotten a little more time to focus on us, which is good. We can feel and see the growth, positive and challenging, in both our kids, and we are having to discuss and coordinate new limits within our parenting. I am working on not feeling guilty when setting a limit or frazzled when there is push-back to the limit. This is all normal and good.

Home life:

Usually, I am an autumn-cleaning rather than a spring-cleaning type of person, but I can feel my highly sensitive self is deeply needing to clear and clean. I know this won't likely be my focus until school and soccer season are done, but a little here and a little there helps!

Crafting:
Endless projects here...new baby and end of school year gifts being made, house and yard projects being worked, science crafts being done, and long abandoned projects being picked up and finished!

Have a lovely May!

(This post was inspired by Carrie of The Parenting Passageway.)

the path ahead - high school

More than a year ago, I wrote this post about the path ahead. And at the beginning of this school year, I wrote about how planning for the year felt and looked a little different because weren't sure what school would look like for our family in the 2019-2020 year. Well, it turns out that planning for the year (or ~4 high school years) ahead touched and affected almost every aspect of this current school year and yet we didn't know what we would be doing until this past week or so.

We spent the entire 'first semester' of this school year supporting our 8th grader through a series of evaluations to help us better understand and support her. She's a differently wired kiddo and it felt important to have whatever services she might receive, in place, before transitioning to the next stage of learning. (Even if we were to continue homeschooling, the charter school that provides us with support, structure, and community ends with 8th grade, so transitions are inevitable.) It turns out that we know her strengths and challenges really well (i.e. we didn't learn much new) and her differences don't qualify her for support, so we felt as though we were left stumbling a bit. We don't want to reinvent the wheel, but it has felt exceptionally difficult to find the support for her differences. In addition, at winter break, the kids' occupational therapist, with whom Lala Bug had been working and in relationship with for 3 years, moved. It has been an emotional year and emotions are hard to process.

In the weeks and months after winter break, I attended more homeschool high school workshops and learning opportunities, and we attended a number of high school information sessions. Then application time began, including applications from a reluctant Lala Bug, followed by interviews and shadow days. We explored both paths, homeschooling high school and brick and mortar high school options, wanting to know what our choices are, and trying to respect her consistent and strong desire to homeschool, in balance with my uncertainty about providing all she needs at a high school level, without proper support.

I am condensing a tremendous amount of intensity, emotional fluctuation, anxiety, uncertainty, discussion, and decision making into very few words for the sake of this post, but it has been a very full year of considering what is coming ahead, which feels contradictory, considering my word for the year is Present. I have felt anything but.

At this point, we are still waiting to hear from the homeschool charter schools that serve high schoolers in our area, because they don't accept applications and do lotteries until quite late in the year. I suppose this could change our plans slightly, but given the experiences of friends who have forged ahead of us, we are assuming we won't 'win' a spot.

So...next year, we will be doing a hybrid of homeschooling and school. Lala Bug was accepted to a part time program at a school that supports differently wired kids, so we are hoping she has the best of both...community, support in learning and emotional growth as well as some freedom to really pursue her own passions. She will attend the very small high school for a couple of core classes and we will create the rest of her learning plan together. She is reluctant to change what we are currently doing, but I think we are both excited at the ideas of all the amazing classes that we can create, tailored just for her.

As we were exploring schools for her, we explored schools for Brown Mouse, as well, but he too, will continue homeschooling.

I would love to hear what others are doing for the coming year, high school or not. I will link to this post on Facebook and Instagram, where these posts tend to get comments, so feel free to comment here or there, if you prefer!