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!
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