Delayed

Well, we had planned to start school this week when the older kids went back, but because of some unexpected medical problems it has been delayed.

Last week we went to the area "not back to school" picnic and it was nice to meet some others who have made this choice for a variety of reasons! They plan to meet every two weeks and also do a few field trips. I also signed the kids up for storyhour at the library, which will be Wednesday mornings this fall.

This week I am finishing up the schoolroom, gathering a few last minute supplies (found some great items at the Dollar Tree today!) and finalizing the first weeks plans and materials. I am anxious to begin!

Once we get started I hope to post more often. Looking ahead: Our first two weeks we will be doing a unit on pets, learning the letter L and T, and focusing on the color red.

Our Schoolroom

Our "school" space is not quite ready but I'll show you the general area.

Like many of you, our space is pretty limited, so we don't have a room just for school. I divided the toyroom and created an area that we could use for our "calendar" time and to store items we are working on each week.

Along one wall we have our alphabet, weather frog, calendar, pocket charts for our letter and color of the week, and a flannel chart for our counting jar. I will also be adding a chart for our pattern of the day. Along the other wall I have crates that will hold special items for our theme, etc. To the side I have a bench that will hold books (and my son uses it when he plays with his tractors :). ) We have our Chicka Boom Boom Tree in the center where we will add letters as we learn them. The wall you can't see holds our family computer so we can watch videos from youtube, listen to our calendar songs, etc.

The other side of the room is the toyroom. The top of the shelves will hold items I use regularly. There is also a little table where we will work on things and an easel for drawing and painting.

We will do things throughout the house, the kitchen table, outside and away from home as well.

I accumulated A LOT of stuff over my years of teaching and they are spread throughout the house as well, taking up bookshelves in our living room, closets, the attic, and half of my daughters bedroom. I try to down-size but somehow end up seeing things at garage sales, Goodwill, and ebay that would be perfect for a certain skill and are such a good deal - and somehow they end up at our house!

Anyway, we plan on starting school on August 22nd, when the older children head off to public school and my oldest starts college. Next week there is a Not Back to School Picnic in a nearby town and I am SO excited to meet others and maybe get some tips and support as we start our homeschool journey!!

Curriculum

This year I will be doing a combination of things. I have planned out fun themes that will last about two weeks each. We will also be doing a letter a week following the Handwriting Without Tears order of letters. I also ordered some Kumon books for cutting and pasting - something we have not done at all!

We'll also incorporate things I have collected during my teaching years, as well as ideas from 1+1+1=1, Homeschool Creations, and Confessions of a Homeschooler. (and many other talented bloggers out there!)

I would love to have an IPAD to incorporate some technology but I don't think that will happen this year. It's on my super klong wish list!

My only concern is trying to get some social activities for both kids. My husband and I aren't very social, our families all have older children, and we don't have any neighbors with young children. Last fall there was an ad in the paper for a Not Back to School Picnic near us and I am hoping that will be something they continue this year! It would be great for the kids as well as support for me. There are not a lot of homeschool families in our area - that I'm aware of!

Most of our activities will be geared for SJ but I think PM can also get something out of it and I will include open-ended toys for her as well.

August 2, 2011

Welcome to the Adventures of Super Jack and Princess Molly! (SJ and PM) for posting purposes) I was just reading the curriculum choices from the "Not" Back To School Blog Hop and finally decided to take the plunge into the blogging world! This is fairly new to me but hopefully I'll learn along the way.

I quit teaching when I had my soon-to-be four year old (next week!) and after just being a stay at home mom, I have recently taken over the running of our dairy farm while my husband is working at a job in town. When it came time to enroll my son in preschool, I found I just didn't "feel right" with that choice. So after much debate, and prayer, and worry, and criticism.... I have decided to take this opportunity to homeschool my preschooler this year. He and his sister are 16 months apart so I think she is ready to be a part of some of those activities too.

When the idea first started forming in my head last fall, I was fortunate enough to come upon this blog hop and by following many of your blogs, I have learned a lot of things that have helped in my planning and decision making!! So thank you to all of you who participate!!

Here is my Super Jack and Princess Molly, as they are referred to around our house: