Getting Started
While I am getting started with this homeschool thing , I want to document things. I wasn't going to start a blog, but suddenly it seemed the way to go-- with workbooks to review, figuring out what works for Audrey, interacting with parents who are and others who aren't homeschooling. We are starting simply. I don't have a curriculum, nor am I sure when we will. I like taking what I like from a variety of sources, but especially when the schooling starts to get more underway, I know I will need the support and structure of a curriculum. Perhaps some of you might have some to suggest?
Audrey is, according to public schools, preschool age. I decided to homeschool for the first two years not because of a religious conviction or feeling that schools do not offer good education, rather I looked at my daughter, saw her readiness for some (though admittedly not all) of the kindergarten materials, and that she was interested in learning now. I know her well, and recognized that while I would love the extra year at home with her, she herself would do better when with older (as opposed to younger) children. I don't claim she is a genius (though I would like to meet the parent who doesn't entertain the idea). Her birthday is two months after the cut-off date, so most of the children would be her age whether she starts now or a year from now. And so it is a personal decision I made to play to my daughter's strength and social tendencies.
Today is DAY ONE. Yes, we've worked on some of this long before now, but today is the first day of worksheets, my mental evaluations, and more structured lessons. I thought about how there are the knot websites for those getting married, and the bump for those having a baby. Wouldn't it be great to have a similar website for homeschooling? To have checklists and blogging, a pin board, and a place to note what we have done. I, however, do not currently have money left over for a monthly payment (no matter how low it may be), and I also do not quite have the hang of "lesson plans" and the greater structure. And so what better way to build at our pace than to build our own website, structuring everything out, rating our learning materials (for better or for worse), checking out her growth and finding out how to teach more where she's weaker.
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