I'm going to take a break from all that is CM and share my finds from the CHECC curriculum sale.

I spent a measly $38.00... lets see how it adds up:

Marble run, Car bingo, Big box of craft supplies, Music flash cards, art smocks, a bug book, Stellaluna, Counting Ladybug book, Leaf collecting album The bird book, A Lanyard kit,
365 simple science experiments, 175 amazing nature experiments...

Drum roll please...

and the creme de la creme...

my Math-U-See Manipulatives! God is so good. Linda, math teacher extraordinaire, had stashed them before the doors even opened. They were the only bag there, but as God saw fit her friend didn't need them and I SO DID! I got them for half the retail price....yay!

It was so fun! The hunt, the friendly chatting; the more I'm involved in the Home Schooling community I'm so certain this is the right fit for us.

Thank you Lord for providing JUST the things you wanted us to have. You are so Good. I love you. Amen.

So last week I shared our term 1 outline. Today I'll share our working schedule. After watching the SCM all-day seminar DVD I have a better understanding of how I need to allot our time. I also have come across a schedule that Charlotte's PNEU schools grades 1-3 ran on.


I Know it's hard to read here, BUT Lessons started at 9:00 and were done by 11:30! That is just The same amount of time a good friend of mine and I thought was necessary for a child with a willing mind to learn. There is NO need to do school for 8 hours a day. The repetition gets boring and stale. A subject they loved at noon, becomes pointless to them if they are still doing it by 2:00. So by this lead I will divide our days. Because I have 2 small ones to consider mornings will not be spent on school, so much as being out doors.

Daily:
Bible- 20 min
Reading- 20-40 min (split sessions for each literature and poetry piece)
Copywork- 10 min
Math: 20 min
Drawing: 15 min.
Piano:10 min.

All other subjects divided weekly; with schedule posted on Monday so the children know what to expect, but as a rule allotted times should be:

Histories: 20 min
Science: 20 min
Geography:20 min
Grammar: 10 min. (Charlotte doesn't advocate grammar until the child is older, but coming from public school he has already been exposed to the rules, so I hope to take those abstract ideas and make them real to him)
Communication: 5 min to talk about his week long assignment.( e.g. Having my shy 7 year old introduce himself properly to everyone he meets for the next 7 days.)
Foreign language: 30 min. on the weekend with his Lola
Picture/composer study: 10 min.

...art, handiwork, and nature study will be done in our "non" school hours, because honestly that's how we spend our leisure time now.

As for the layout of this day. This is what I'm thinking.

8:30-9:30 School
9:30-12:00 free time, tot school, independent reading, ect...very flexible.
12:00-12:30 Lunch
12:30-1:00 Read aloud time, girls included.
1:00-? Girls Naps (pray for them to agree about this!), -2:00- AJ school
2:00- school day over

...like I said it's a work in progress. Right now I'm really watching the girls natural moods, rhythms, and schedules. Hopefully doing school around them this year will help ease the frustration for everyone.

But if all else fails I'll listen to Charlotte:

Let everything go when life becomes too tense, and just take a day, or half a day, out in the fields, or with a favorite book, or in a picture gallery looking long and well at just two or three pictures. (volume 3. pg.33)

Here we are; better yet, here I am on Tuesday keeping my word!

Today I'd like to share what we'll be using as the core of our school year. I will link up to what ever I can- I always find that SO helpful when others do it.

We will be doing 3 Terms (you're right Joan- it did sound like pregnancy! But maybe that's how it will be this year hu?) I still have to work out how a CM day looks for our family, so I don't have a day-to-day LP yet, but I do have a rough outline of our first 12 weeks. I ordered this DVD set from Simply Charlotte Mason this week and I'm excited about it. It will give Jay an opportunity to really "get" her ideas and what our school philosophy is all about. I'm also hoping it will help me visualize what day-to-day schooling will look like for our family.

We have 3 children. 1 toddler (I can't believe I just called her that!?), 1 preschooler, and 1 who will be in second grade. I was feeling very apprehensive about the age gap and trying to tackle Home Schooling, then a friend linked me to 1+1+1=1.The meaning behind her sites name is this verse:

I think I'm going to try and make Tuesday be the day I blog about school. I've really been meaning to post information and gather my thoughts here more often; alas I have failed.

Today rings in the 8 week mark. In a mere 8 weeks I will be embarking on an amazing journey. I keep praying for wisdom, and the capability to serve my children and help them realize the people He designed them to be. I'm feeling nervous. I feel prepared, I have a rough guide line for my first trimester all ready; but I know this is going to take some getting used too. AJ is excited now BUT I know the newness will rub off, and he's already took a bit of the apple. Will he throw it at me? Will I be able to balance it all?

I'm also trying to think of our school name. I want it to be something that will last through high school if we decide to go that far. I want it to sound mainstream so his education doesn't get written off by colleges or others because he attended home school. But I still want it to have a profound meaning to us. I want it to symbolize both our families values and our chosen educational philosophy. I've been toying with Wild Oaks, I'm just not sold on it fully. That name fits all the criteria but I just don't know. Here let me tell you what it means to me.

I think all children should be wild. Not in the sense that they are crazy (but mine are) but that they remain in their natural state. This also ties into Charlotte Masons first principle " Children are born persons". They are not people to be, They were created JUST the way God intended them. They already ARE naturally who they should be....miraculously wild.

Then you are left with Oaks. Well we all know that the oak symbolizes strength, that they have many deep roots, and their seeds (acorns) are widely known to symbolize great potential. Those facts in them self made it appealing to me. That is exactly what we want for our children. Then through searching the symbolism of the Oak tree I ran across couple of pages that said the oak tree is considered the tree from which the cross was made, so it became a symbol of Christ. The Oak also symbolizes strength and renewal of life, and therefore, the Resurrection.WOW! Gatta love that.

So what do you think? Should my sweet children attend Wild Oaks Academy?

I'll log in next week and share my modified AO year one first trimester curriculum with you. I'm really excited about it!

I know I keep saying I'll post more about home ed 101 classes, and I will I promise.

Right now I'm just so deeply invested in planning, and applying what we learned there. I can't seem to calm my brain enough for a cohesive blog moment.
I mentioned somewhere else that we are going to be following Charlotte Mason's Principles, and basing our Home School on Living Books. I'm loving her ideas! They spark such a cord with me. Reading her theories of education and children are proving to be life changing for me.

I wanted to share one of her first schools motto with you all tonight:

I am a child of God,
I ought to do His will,
I can do what He tells me,
And by His grace, I will.

Don't you just love that? Someday I will allot more time to share her words, and my goals with you. But tonight I wanted to feel my fingers type that motto- both here for you and across my soul.