Tag Archives: jewish homeschool

Stocking up on school supplies

frugal strategies, homeschooling,

I can’t believe that I’ve forgotten to mention this for you, but it’s not too late! 

Now is the time to stock up on school supplies for the year.  Whether you’re homeschooling or sending your child to school, there are supplies that are going to be necessary.  (Though if you’re homeschooling, you’re going to need a lot less of some things and a lot more of others- like craft supplies- than the schooled kids.  And if you’re sending a child to school – the lists can be frustratingly long and unnecessary.)  You probably won’t be surprised to hear that I don’t like running out at the last minute to buy the odd eraser or protractor.  🙂  Like everything else, I try to stock up when the prices are good.

The month before school begins is when the best deals are around!  I buy whatever is outrageously cheap in each store that I know we’ll use, and buy as many as I can.  The stores are all competing with one another now to get your ‘back to school’ business.  Take advantage of it by buying whatever deals they’re enticing you into the store with.

It probably will mean more running around than you usually do – it does for me, but I arrange my schedule so that I don’t make extra trips.  I pop into whatever store I’m passing that has a sale I want to take advantage of when I’m already out   But even with the more frequent small shopping trips, it’s saving me loads of time and money in the long run.

You can get many, many supplies for super cheap – 1 – 10 cents each seems to be a common price.  I can’t even remember what I’ve gotten in the last few weeks; I just know that I spent pennies for whatever I bought.  I buy it, give the bag to my kids to stick in the desk downstairs as soon as I get home, and I’ll organize it all sometime in the next few weeks. 

Make sure you have plenty of the basics – pencils, pens, erasers, notebooks/filler paper, looseleafs (if your child is old enough to use them), crayons, markers, and glue.  You can’t have too much of them (or at least I can’t)!  I stockpile all of these things, and whenever one of my kids announces they need something, instead of running to the store, I send them downstairs to ‘shop’ in my desk.  I like the money saving, I like the time saving, and I love the convenience of having what I need when I need it!

Check your sale paper tomorrow to see what’s on sale in your area stores!

Avivah

Recommended curriculum for first graders?

homeschooling,

>>I wanted to know if you had any advice for me in regard to a first grade language arts program for my son.  …..Do you have any suggestions for a first grade language arts curriculum that would include reading, writing, spelling, and grammar and punctuation (Calvert includes all this as well as introducing cursive in first grade)?  Your opinion would be greatly appreciated. <<

I have to tell you the truth, as far as structured school in the box type programs, I don’t use them because I don’t think highly of them.  I think it’s the most limited and unstimulating way for kids to learn.  Schools have to rely on things like this to teach many kids at the same time, but it’s a matter of efficiency more than effectiveness.  So I try to take advantage of the freedom homeschooling allows me in finding something that will be more engaging and tailored to each child.

What I do with kids this age is: read to them lots, bake with them and play board games (many games are great for math skills), listen to them read, and use a basic handwriting workbook (I like D’nealian because the transition to cursive is very natural, instead of learning two forms of writing).  Once they know the basic letter forms, they do copywork.  And the rest of the day is spent being part of a busy household – meaning free play and chores. This has worked well for us to help the kids learn all the skills they need in a relaxed and fun way. 

I believe that good grammar and spelling come with lots of reading, and I encourage a lot of reading for my kids.  If I were using a program, I would choose something that was integrated with literature, like Learning Language Arts through Literature.  But I’m more free form in my approach and I at the most adapt materials that I see, not use them precisely as they’re written.  I have yet to find something that so exactly fits my personality, priorities of what to teach when, and my children’s needs that I want to follow it exactly.

I don’t teach reading – I wait for readiness and then help them with sounds of letters, so my first six kids have all picked it up mostly on their own.  There’s a book called Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons, by Siegfried Engelmann, that I’ve heard recommended by many.  If I were going to use something systematic, it would probably be this.  I did try Phonics Pathways quite a while back but didn’t love it.  I have 100 Easy Lessons out from with library now, thinking to show it to my newly turned six year old to see if he was interested, but I haven’t yet gotten around to it.  I have this feeling I probably won’t get around to it, because my style to teaching reading just isn’t so systematic – it seems like a waste of energy to consciously teach something when it is so naturally picked up when they’re ready.

I’m not oversimplifying what I do – this is really all.  Homeschooling a child this young is simple – the hard part is trusting that it’s enough and letting go of our preconceived notions of what learning looks like.

Avivah

Our daily schedule

homemaking, homeschooling,

I completed planning our daily schedule for the coming year last week, and we’ll start to ease into it now, with the plan being that within a month, our days will be running along the timeline that I’ve scheduled. I’ve found that a gradual transition from the summer schedule of late mornings, late nights, and days that are wide open smooths the way, instead of making abrupt changes from one week to the next at the end of August. The hardest transition is going to be for me, not the kids, because the success of the schedule depends on me getting up early enough, which depends on me getting to sleep at a decent hour, something I continue to struggle with.

Here’s the basic schedule for Monday through Thursday (Sunday and Fridays have a number of differences, and those are addressed on the academic schedule, that I still have to finish):

7:30 am – wake up, get dressed, clean room

8 am – morning prayers

8:30 am – breakast

9 am – chores (according to what’s listed on chore chart on fridge)

9:30 – 1:30 – academics

1:30 pm – lunch

2 – 3 – independent reading

3 – 5:30 pm – free play

5:30 – clean up of main living area

6 pm – dinner

7 pm – readaloud

8 pm – bedtime – baby, toddler, 6, 7, 9 year olds

9 pm – bedtime – 12 and 13 year olds

9:30 pm – bedtime  15 year old (he gets us earlier than the rest of us)

10:30 – bedtime for me (I had to write this in for myself to make me feel more committed!)

When I look at this schedule, it looks so sterile to me! I know how many things go on every single day, with each of the kids being busy with their own activities, but it looks cut and dried and dull as it’s written, doesn’t it?

When I write the schedule, I allow more time than I think necessary for everything, because it’s better to have extra time left over than to not have enough time and then be feeling like I’m running behind the entire day.  I know, though, that almost all of the kids will finish everything they have to do academically, including their mandatory daily reading, by lunchtime.  My daughter who is entering 9th grade is the one most likely to need some of the extra time after lunch to complete her reading, which is why I officially scheduled reading time, so she doesn’t feel like she has to keep working and working when everyone officially has free time.  I think I’ll probably encourage the others to do free reading then or to listen to an audio presentation, something the 7 and 9 year olds love. (Somehow the six year old doesn’t enjoy them…maybe I need to look for more simple presentations for him, as his listening skills aren’t as advanced as theirs and he gets bored by their selections.) Those who are finished all of their work have the option to use any of the time left before lunch however they want, which usually means playing outside. 

My 9, 12, 13, and 15 year olds all have daily mandatory reading.  I have a shelf of books that they can choose books from, each on their level.  These books usually correspond to the historical period that I want to cover, but not always.  I’m still wavering about how long to have them each read for on a daily basis.  Last year they all had to read for an hour (that didn’t include their own reading that they chose to do later on), and I’ve been thinking about if there’s any benefit to increasing it two hours for the older ones, which I told them a while back was what they should expect this year.  But now I don’t think the benefits justify making the change, so I’ve written this schedule for only an hour of daily reading. 

During the morning academic hours, I’m available to help the older kids with their work when they have questions, but this past year have shifted the emphasis to be more actively involved with the younger kids (ages 7 and down).  Part of this time we have a read aloud that is different from our evening read aloud, and it’s geared towards the 6, 7, and 9 year olds.  Right now we’re reading the Little House on the Prairie series, again.  I read it with my oldest three, and now it’s time for the next three children to enjoy it!  The two year old often snuggles up with us, and the baby is either taking a nap, playing on the floor, or in my lap. (I love Little House on the Prarie, and my kids are relating to it differently this year than their siblings did when we read it in the past, since they relate to things that we do which are similar to what we’re reading about, things we either didn’t do in the past, or didn’t talk about so the kids weren’t conscious of it.)   

So that’s the basic schedule of our days!  I find that as basic as it is, it gives a feeling of structure to even the most relaxed of days, and that is reassuring to everyone. I already know that there are a number of things that may shift throughout the year, but the general outline will remain the same.

Avivah

Husband and wife who disagree on homeschooling

homeschooling,

“What do you do when the husband and wife disagree on the importance of homeschooling, or how the homeschooling should be done?” 

I’m a strong proponent of clear and honest communication between spouses when it comes to homeschooling (and everything else, actually!). I think that in the vast majority of cases, one parent feels more passionately than the other about it, but it really helps when both are on the same page.  Trying to homeschool without at least the passive support of the less enthusiastic spouse is a recipe for disaster.  So I don’t support a family homeschooling if one parent is antagonistic.  Homeschooling isn’t just about an academic option to school; it’s about an entirely different way of life that is family centered.  And the family needs to positively centered on the same things!

I recently read something in which the writer stated that in their family, they had areas that each spouse was responsible for, and when there was a conflict in that area after open and honest discussion, the spouse whose jurisdiction it wasn’t deferred to the one whose it was (eg, the husband made the choices regarding the family business and the wife made the decisions regarding the raising of the kids). This comes to mind because the parent who is responsible for the homeschooling should be the one who is trusted with the final say about it, in my opinion.

This might seem obvious, but I speak to mothers who are trying to balance what they want to do and how their husbands want them to do it, and there’s an impossible conflict.  A homeschooling parent isn’t a hired worker to the other parent, implementing the bosses ideas regardless of their feelings or thoughts on the matter.  And you can’t have two bosses. Of course you should create a vision for your children together, but it’s not fair for one spouse to expect the other to do it the way they want it done and not give them the trust and latitude necessary to find their own style. So I think that once the decision is made to homeschool, the parents need to agree to defer in the case of disagreement to the one who is doing the homeschooling.

Avivah

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Tonight’s dinner entertainment

homeschooling,

Today my 7 and 9 year olds completed the Junior Rangers program run for the month of July by the state park service.  I was very pleased with the quality of the programming.  They met once a week for every week in July (5 times total) for 2 1/2 times each meeting.  Each week, they had a different topic they learned about, and did learning activities and games connected to it.

The first week was an introduction to wildlife management.  The second week they did insects, the third was fishing (they made their own fishing rods out of bamboo), the third they learned about camping, and today was first aid/basic survival (they made their own first aid kits for hiking trips and a trail mix).  They learned so much very solid information!  And in such a relaxed and enjoyable environment, too – I appreciate that kind of learning.  There was so much science they learned, and fortunately, me telling them that doesn’t make the program less appealing to them.  🙂  There is also an award ceremony and family campout scheduled for the night of August 2 at 7 pm, but that unfortunately won’t work for us, since our family would love to go.

Tonight at dinner they told us all about how to help someone suffering from heat stroke, hyperthermia, and how to flip over someone to their side who is unconscious.  They went on to demonstrate the method on each other while we watched.  They they used their 6 year old brother to show us how to carry someone injured.  I was so impressed at how much important information was given over clearly enough for even young kids to feel confident and comfortable with it.

Then my 13 year old daughter, who did cpr and first aid certification last year at camp, showed us how to do the Heimlich maneuver, using her 15 year old brother as her ‘dummy’.  I think that real life skills like these are important to have, and am glad my children are learning them.  And it made for an interesting dinner, too!

Avivah

Recommending books on homeschooling

homeschooling,

People sometimes ask for books that I would recommend on homeschooling.  Though I have lots of books I’ve found valuable, my book recommendations are to go to your library and read everything that you can find on homeschooling.

You’ll find things that resonate with you, and other things don’t fit you. I have found certain books helpful to me because they speak to my way of doing things. There are other widely recommended books, like The Well Trained Mind, that would a very poor fit for my family and make me neurotic.

I personally have an eclectic approach, and have gained from a variety of sources. I’ve liked Ruth Beechik, Mary Hood, Karen Andreola, Raymond and Dorothy Moore, and another married couple whose name escapes me right now (Charlotte Mason approach, I think the book was called The Wholehearted Child). I usually recommend Linda Dobson’s early years book for new homeschoolers of young kids. I like the Robinson approach as far as independent learning goes (that’s an online resource). I like the unschooling materials for a reminder that learning is natural and should be joyful.

I’ve read just about everything that’s been written on homeschooling, and come to the conclusion that there’s always someone who some book will be helpful to, even if that person isn’t me. I’ve thought alot about all that I’ve read, and crafted an individualized approach for my family based on all of my thinking and reflection.

So I hesitate to recommend any book or approach to everyone because each person needs to find what’s right for them.

Avivah

New chore chart

homemaking, homeschooling, parenting,

It’s that time of year again, when I pull out some paper and a pen and start making up our schedules for the coming year.  You might think that entering our ninth year of homeschooling, that our schedule is all worked out and doesn’t change much.  But you’d be wrong. 🙂

Every year I reevaluate.  This includes, what I feel is important for them to learn, what’s been been working for each child and what could use improvement, how to keep the house running as smoothly as possible with as little possible unnecessary stress on my part, etc.  I look at what’s working and put more of that in, look at what wasn’t as effective as I wanted and take that out.

Today I finished the yearly chore schedule, set to begin in a few days, in August.  It is written out for through the end of July, and will go on the fridge tomorrow.  I won’t make another chore chart for a year.  What I did last year was break the jobs up into more frequent changes from child to child, because I was concerned that they might feel overwhelmed.  For example, one child would do the dishes for the day.  We do laundry three times a week, and each day, a different child would do that laundry.  We clean the bathrooms three times a week, and each time a different pair of children was responsible for one of the bathrooms, with all the bathrooms rotated so each team cleaned every bathroom once a week.

Well, I’ve decided that this has required too much of my energy to monitor.  And it’s annoying when someone tells me that so and so didn’t wash all of their dishes and left it for them, and they shouldn’t have to do it.  Or something along those lines.

So my new plan is this:  jobs will rotate monthly for most of the kids, twice a month for the 6 and 7 year olds.  I seriously considered making each job a year long commitment, but it seemed too long to me, and this feels like the right balance for this year.  I include only the chores that I think need to be regularly done to keep the house running smoothly, but there are jobs like nightly cleanups, which aren’t listed because we all do them together before dinner.

– bathrooms (clean three – I clean mine) – one child will do this all month, three times a week

– laundry (wash, hang outside, bring it in when it’s dry) – one child for the month, three times a week

– dishes – this is a pretty intensive job because we eat three home cooked meals daily and don’t use disposable dishes, so I’m only making it a two week commitment, meaning two kids a month share this job

So these four jobs are rotated between the oldest four (9.5, 12, 13, 15), scheduled so that each child has one job each month (this doesn’t include cleaning their rooms, which every child is supposed to do each morning).  Obviously some months will be easier for one than another, but that’s okay, since everyone will rotate evenly through all the jobs so they’ll each get their easier months.

– sweep (living room and kitchen once a day, dining room after each meal) – this is for the 6 and 7 year olds – they will share this job, each doing it for two weeks.

– clear table after meals – this job goes to the child doing the sweeping for the two week duration.  I saw last year that sometimes the person clearing the table swept the crumbs onto the floor and made more work for the person sweeping, so now one person will do both and we’ll eliminate that potential conflict.

– Set table – this is a two week job that alternates between the 6 and 7 year olds on the weeks they aren’t doing the sweep/clear table combo.

Part of assigning chores to kids is teaching them how to do the job right.  I don’t expect them to know how to do their jobs.  My 6 year old is really not good at sweeping.  I think he likes to act like he can’t do it so he won’t have to do it.  Guess what?  I tell him he’s going to learn to do it well because if he can’t do it well, it shows he needs lots of practice.  Said with love, of course.  🙂

Teaching the jobs can be time intensive at first, but it’s crucial to spend the time upfront clarifying your expectations and showing them how to do it.  On Friday my 9 year old was baking bread, and I thought to myself that people who tell me how ‘lucky’ I am that my kids are so helpful and competent should have seen what my kitchen looked like.  It was a disaster, with flour covering the counters, floors, some of the dishes in the cabinets above, and my son.  Sometimes even I can hardly believe how big a mess a child who doesn’t yet know how to do something can make.  But it’s all part of the learning process, and if you aren’t willing to let them do a job badly, they’ll never learn to do it well.

So that’s the new chore chart.  Don’t think my kids greeted my comments about the change in how we’ll be doing chores this year with shrieks of delight.  They didn’t, particularly the 7 and 9 year olds.  (The two older girls will be back from camp tomorrow so they don’t yet know the fun that awaits them.  :))  It takes a lot of thought to figure out a system that will be fair and effective, and I’m glad to have this done.  Now I can move on to finishing up their yearly academic schedules, which I’m in the middle of.

Avivah

Homeschooling and making time for self

homeschooling,

A question I frequently hear is: “How do you have time for yourself?”

First of all, I have to say that I truly enjoy spending time with my kids – they’re great company! Enjoying your kids is critical, but you need to learn how to carve out time for yourself and your needs, so that you don’t get burnt out. You must recognize your own needs as valid and find ways to meet them.

Homeschooling doesn’t mean being on active duty all day long. There are lulls and quiet periods. There is early morning or later in the evening time, and if you have a husband who can make himself available, then he can be home while you get out.

How you meet your needs depends on what you enjoy. I didn’t have money for a babysitter when my kids were all little, I didn’t have a husband who had a schedule that made it possible to watch the kids, I didn’t have any friends or family members who could give me a break, but I still found ways to have time for myself. It can be something as simple as some quiet time to read a book, take a relaxing bath, call a friend, or have a cup of tea. The key is to take the time and take it regularly.

Here’s something I did when I had six kids ages 9 and under, and had all the limitations I just shared with you. I found that a short break in the middle of the day kept me going and I didn’t get worn down. I instituted a daily rest time for every child. I would put the infant and toddler in for a nap, then everyone else had to stay in their beds for an hour. They didn’t have to fall asleep, but they had to stay there quietly. They could read, quietly play a game or do a puzzle (they chose it before rest time), but there was no talking or getting out of bed allowed until rest time was over. This gave me regular daily time to know I would have for myself without having lots of little people around. I don’t remember how long I kept that up – but it was a huge help, and something I would do even now if I felt I needed it.

Be very careful that you don’t end up using your free time to clean up. I do stay up in the evenings when the kids are asleep and do some straightening up, but not for long.  I would resent spending my precious quiet time cleaning up the messes of the day. No matter how much you love your kids and spending time with them, you need to have some space for yourself or you’ll end up claustophobic and wanting to put them in school so you get a break.

Don’t give that quiet time up for something that can be done in the daytime when the kids are awake, with them. It’s that space that makes us able to give all day long, and enjoy it. Lose the space, and you lose the enjoyment.

Avivah

Are you a good candidate for homeschooling?

homeschooling,

This is a matter of opinion, and I can only give you mine.

1) You need to enjoy being around your child. This is crucial.  The nice surprise about spending more time with your children is that you will enjoy each other more, so it gets easier and easier to spend time together.

2) Your reason for homeschooling should be because you think your children will benefit.

3) A parent should be home with the children.  This may sound obvious, but I’ve gotten calls from parents working full time who want to leave the child with a paid tutor.  That’s not homeschooling.

4) It’s preferable when both spouses agree, even if one is reluctant, so that it doesn’t become an issue that affects marital happiness.  

5) You should basically be able to cope with daily life before adding the additional demands of having kids home all day.   If you have serious depression, get anxious and hyper stressed by having your kids around, or something similar, leave them in school.  You’ll all be happier.

I also don’t support people whose children have been kicked out of school, who have no desire to interact with their child, are looking for someone else to do it all for them – parents need to understand that homeschooling is about the parent-child relationship, not a way to dump their kids onto someone else. I’ve gotten too many calls like this, and used to spend time helping the parents explore what homeschooling meant, but then it became obvious that they weren’t interested in what was best for their child, just what was an easy solution to their problem. 

I don’t think that you have to be very organized, though it is helpful.  I’ve had two minds about this.  Someone once who was clearly very disorganized asked me about homeschooling, and my first reaction was to discourage her.  But later I heard her interacting with her kids, and she was so incredibly loving that I realized she had the number one criteria in abundance.  Basic organizational skills can be learned, and a chaotic house can reduce the joy of homeschooling for everyone.   So while it’s not crucial to be organized, it is helpful.

You don’t have to be very patient, knowledgeable about whatever you’re teaching, have a teaching background, a spotless house, lots of money.   You can learn to be more patient, and learn new information alongside your children.  A messy house is a sign that things are happening there!  And there are plenty of ways to homeschool on a very small budget. 

It’s helpful to develop a strong backbone and believe in what you’re doing, but this is something that may develop with time and needs to be regularly reviewed and renewed.

Avivah 

Homeschooling support

homeschooling,

The last couple of days in the van, I was finally listening to some homeschooling cassettes I got a year ago!  They were tapes from a homeschooling convention, and the person I received them from had a lending library for their support group, and decided to give them away when the group disbanded.  She made them available at a very poorly advertised curriculum sale last year, and I was one of the only buyers who came.  (And I got an amazing amount of stuff that evening for $25 – that was very fun but it was kind of a fluke and not something that I can count on happening again.) 

I’ve only listened to two of the cassettes so far, but I’m really enjoying it.   While we were listening to the first one, my 9 year old son kept saying, “That sounds like our family!” as the speaker gave examples of the kind of things they do and why.  It really did sound like us.  I think it was just as validating for my son to hear that we do all of these things recommended by this national speaker as it was for me. 

There are so many things about homeschooling that I love, but there’s not often many opportunities to share them with others, or hear it discussed.  So although I could have given these lectures from a position of more years of experience than the speakers and so far I haven’t heard anything novel (though there are a bunch of cassettes to go!), it was still really nice to hear.  Someone today told me she went to a weeklong retreat for homeschoolers, where they had workshops, meals, and activities for their kids together, and how encouraging and supportive it was. 

I can’t go to retreats like the one she attended for religious reasons, but listening to these cassettes gives me a feeling of that kind of support.  Something I’d love to do but have yet to make time for is put into writing my thoughts on a wide variety of homeschooling topics and issues.  I speak to so many people and answer their questions when they call or when I bump into them, and a little bit online, and I keep thinking it would be good if I could point them to something I’ve written about this so I don’t keep answering all the same questions!  I don’t have enough time in the day.  🙂  This week I made the decision to start a blog for it (step one!), but now I have to actually write up some posts!  Then there would be a little more of that much needed support for other homeschooling moms who share my religious beliefs.  (I’ll share the link with you once I get something put up on it, for those of you who might appreciate that info.)

Avivah