Did you know my oldest boy was a preschool drop-out?

Yes, it’s true.  Seven years ago, I was fairly new to the parenting world, with a soon-to-be 3 year old boy and an 8 month old baby girl. My Boo was what I called a “Velcro baby”, meaning that he clung to me like the familiar hook and loop tape. When we had to be separated, you could almost hear the ripping. He was a non-stop mover and talker who just loved to be with his family.

So I did what every sensitive, loving mother would do - I put him in preschool.

For the rest of the story and to find out how I started homeschooling, check out my post on the Homeschool Classroom.

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I have been blissfully living a life free of homeschool laws.  In Korea, as the family of a US soldier, the education of children was placed firmly under the responsibility of the parents.  Put them in the school provided on base, or one off base or homeschool - they didn’t care, as long as you were indeed educating them.

Then we moved to DC.  Several years ago, DC attempted to enact some outrageous homeschool laws that included pop home inspections.  Those laws were struck down immediately and the powers that be were way too concerned with other things to bother with better laws.  As a result, all you had to do was notify the schools if you were pulling a child out of a DC school.  That was it.

Well, that all changed last month.  Now we have to notify the Office of the State Superintendent of Education that we are homeschooling.  We have to keep a portfolio of our children’s work and provide a copy of our high school diploma.  If the OSSE determines there is cause for worry, they can request up to 2 portfolio reviews a year.

Through the grace of God, my high school diploma was not in non-temp storage like usual.  Non-temp storage is your stuff the military stores for you when they attempt to cram you into a house too small for your soldier’s rank.  It’s free, but the catch is this - you cannot access those things until they are delivered to your next assignment.  For various and sundry reasons relating to 5 years worth of non-temp storage being delivered at the same time as all our other household goods, having a one month old baby and general unpacking lethargy, we missed the 30 day deadline to send things back into non-temp storage here.

The point is, and I do have one, my high school diploma was available to be copied and sent in as demanded requested.

The funny thing is, this law just came to the table a few months ago and was passed last month.  And yet they set a deadline of August 15th to have your intent to homeschool form in.  Apparently, the OSSE estimates there to be 130 homeschool families in all of the District of Columbia.

Let that sink in for a moment.

With a population of 588, 292 (according to the census), only 130 of them homeschool.  I have to say that on our base alone there are 70 families registered in our homeschool group.  So that means that there are only 60 additional homeschool families in the entire District.

I’m imagining the single filing cabinet that has been set aside to accommodate 260 pieces of paper (intent form plus a copy of diploma).

Someone is going to be very surprised on Friday as the mail starts to pour in.

I did my part to plug up the system and took a moment to fill in the form and copy my diploma.

I may have a slight problem with authority, but I’m not actually going to break the law.

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Angie at Many Little Blessings has started a new blog called The Homeschool Classroom. Guess who’s going to be one of the regularly contributing writers? Well, ME, of course! So if you can’t get enough of me here on the ol’ Mac and Cheese Chronicles, you can read more from me over there every Tuesday. I think I have Tuesdays. I have to double check. Anyway, I’ll be writing about whatever pops into my head that is homeschool related. I’ve got some topics lined up for the next few weeks, but if you’ve got any questions you’d like to see me answer, please let me know.

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There was a bit of a bruhaha when Subway recently announced a writing contest that explicitly excluded homeschoolers.  They got flooded with complaints and promptly issued an apology.

Now they’ve revamped the contest, opening it to “legal residents of the United States who are currently over the age of 18 and the story submitted must be by such entrant’s child in Pre-K - 6.”  Very cool.

There’s some pretty tasty prizes to be had, including $5000 worth of athletic equipment and a $100 Subway gift card.

Get the details and enter here: Subway Contest

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The Boy got an A on his Math-U-See final exam.  Yep, this boy.  The one who can’t do math to save his life.  Got an A.  93% correct.  My Boy.  An A.

I pointed out the questions he got wrong and he was able to explain how to do them correctly.  I showed him all the ones he got right and he beamed.

This is huge.  Boo’s brain is to math like water is to oil. (har har, language arts, science and math example all rolled into one!)  There’s more to it than that, more than I’m ready to talk about right now.  Just suffice it to say that Boo getting an A in math, especially on a final exam that covers material from the whole year, is something I wasn’t sure he’d ever do.

He was so happy that he gave me a big, long hug.  I had to pry him off me to breathe.  Then he gave me another hug.

My Boy.  An A in Math.

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…because where else can you come to class wearing on a snake on your back?

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I love Math-U-See! Why didn’t anyone tell me about it earlier? Oh wait, someone did. But most importantly, Boo loves Math-U-See. A recent writing assignment had him listing his favorite school subjects and in the number one position he put Math-U-See (MUS). I asked him what he liked about it and he said that “it’s got blocks to work with and a nice DVD.” High praise indeed from my math-impaired boy. And if you have a child that struggles in math like Boo, then you know how happy this all makes me.

Let’s talk a little more about MUS. First, that “nice DVD.” What child doesn’t love a good DVD? And Mr. Demme is funny and nice and he knows how kids think. He keeps the lessons short and easy which makes everyone happy. I do some additional teaching to reinforce the concepts, using those fun blocks. Then Boo gets busy with his workbook and blocks. He works aloud so that I can see that he gets what he’s doing and not just faking his way through. The worksheets are also quick and to the point and include multiple variations of the concept, including word problems. When I think Boo is ready , he takes a test on the subject and if he passes, he moves on. We stay on a single subject as long as we need to, whether its a day or a week. If you need more worksheets, they are available on the website.

So let me tell you about Boo’s math progress. We’re still keeping up with Horizons Math. He understands what he’s working on and is able to continue to make progress, but we need to go back and learn those math facts. I look at it like earthquake retro-fitting. His foundation is shaky, but there is no need to tear down the house. With a good, strong foundation, his math house won’t come falling down. That’s where MUS is helping.

In a few short weeks, he’s gone from needing to use his fingers to add, which is really counting, not adding, to knowing a good deal of his addition facts. He actually knows his +9s! No finger counting at all! And he doesn’t know the facts by rote, either. He can actually explain to you just why 9+7=16. You know, how 9 really wants to be 10, so it grabs a unit from the 7 and turns the math problem into 10 +6. Let me say it again, The Boy is learning his math facts.

Let me just take a moment and revel in that.

In the meantime, Pumpkin Girl, who does just fine in math, has been quietly watching the DVD and listening in on the lessons. She often stands next to Boo while I help him with the blocks. Just the other day she was finished with her schoolwork and Boo was working on his dictation for the day. Pumpkin had asked to use our little white board and the MUS blocks were sitting on the table. I looked over to her and discovered that she was busy solving for x. She was quietly writing her own math problems like x+8=10 and solving them with the blocks.

Have I mentioned that I love Math-U-See?

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Pumpkin Girl’s writing assignment today was to write a dialogue starting with “I wish I had a…”  Here’s what she wrote:

Pumpkin Girl: “I wish had a dog. Then I could play fetch with it.”

Mama: “That would be an idea.”

Pumpkin Girl:  “And I could also, for it’s birthday, give it maybe, a bone.”

Mama:  “Yes, that would be nice, just, a bone would be probably hard to find.”

Pumpkin Girl:  “Yes, I suppose so.  But with my dog, I could take it for walks.  I even have a dog book about them.”

Mama:  “I know that you have a dog book.  And you probably would take good care of it.  But we would have to leave it behind where ever we moved.”

Pumpkin Girl:  “Maybe when we stop moving, we could get a dog.”

 What’s she trying to say, exactly?

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It’s that time of year again - Back to School Time! We actually school year round, taking breaks whenever it suits us. But every August I “officially” bump up Boo and Pumpkin Girl to the next grade and we continue on our merry way. This year I did something new before starting the new school year. I sat down and evaluated what we did last year, what worked, what didn’t and what new things I wanted to try for this year. I am so glad that I did this because it really brought many things into focus for me. Most importantly, for those things that didn’t work out so well, I was able to plan how to do better.

The main points - I’m using Sonlight Core 1 with two children, 8 yo and 6 yo. We’re spreading Core 1 over 1 1/2 years and we’ll start Core 2 in February 2008.

What worked:

History. We enjoy all the books that Sonlight provides. We added in Mystery of History, mostly to help us in extending the Core. Boo and Pumpkin seem to enjoy it, but I think they’ll get more out of it the next time we hit up world history.

Science. Again, we enjoy the books that come with Sonlight. We particularly enjoy the Discover and Do DVD that they produce.

Reading. Boo and Pumpkin both read way above their grade level. I have them using Pathway Readers and Reading to Learn Readers at their appropriate level. They each read aloud so I can help with pronunciation, phrasing and expressiveness. Boo reads the Sonlight readers that match his Language Arts level as well. He reads those on his own time, then narrates back to me a la Charlotte Mason so I can check his comprehension. Pumpkin Girl will do this as well, as soon as the appropriate readers gets closer to her level.

Math. Pumpkin Girl is doing wonderfully with Horizons. Boo is still struggling with his basic math facts. He is progressing well with Horizons, but essentially, he counts instead of adding. He understands how to add and why, but relies solely on his fingers. At least he stopped thinking the answer to every problem was 20!

Handwriting. We use Handwriting Without Tears and it’s working well for us. I had started using Seton to each cursive to Boo, but he wasn’t getting it, so we’re back to HWT.

Typing. Boo started using Typing Instructor For Kids. He really likes this and he’s up to typing about 12 WPM. His goal is 15 WPM, which he’ll need to reach before the program will let him into the castle at the end!

Seton Religion. This has been a true blessing! We started midway through last year, so we’re slightly behind, but going year round I know we’ll catch up soon enough.

What didn’t work.

Well, mostly the Charlotte Mason suggested activities. We were off to a good start with Picture Studies, Nature Studies, music and art, but they all fell by the wayside.

Language Arts. We tried using Sonlight LA, but LA 2 was a LOT of grammar for Boo andLAK was way too easy for Pumpkin. I dropped it completely for Pumpkin, who after all, has just finished Kindergarten, and adapted it heavily for Boo.

Rosetta Stone Mandarin. Way. Too. Hard. We’ll try again in about 8 years.

What sort of worked.

Piano lessons for Pumpkin. I need to be much more consistent in having her practice.

Science Experiments. I tend not to do these and just watch them on the DVD. I know they children would like doing them, so I need to try harder. I’d also like to have them start science notebooks.

Phonics. We’re using Explode the Code. I think these are ending up mostly as busy work, just worksheets to fill out. I don’t see either child retaining the information. I hate to drop them completely yet, so we’ll see.

What is new for this year.

Sonlight’s revamped Language Arts. We’ve only been using it for one week and already I like it much better. It’s got a much heavier emphasis on creative writing, even at Pumpkin’s level, but less of the endless grammar rules. Boo spells very, er…let’s say creatively, so we’ll need to put some focus there.

Seton Art. Pumpkin is using Art 1, which centers around the Liturgical Year. A short explanation of the week’s feast day and a simple but fun art project. Boo is using Art 3, which uses about 6 different art media throughout the year.

Rosetta Stone Spanish. Already this is a much better fit for us. Pumpkin Girl scored 95% on her first test.

Math-U-See. We need to do something to help Boo master his math facts. This program is highly recommended all over the place, so we sent away for their informational DVD. Boo was very enthused about it, so we ordered the Alpha level. It arrived today and when he realized what it was, he gave me a big ol’ hug.

When I finished my evaluation, I sat down with All Year Round, Boo and Pumpkin’s art book and my notebook and planned out my Year in Crafts. Don’t laugh! I want to do more crafty stuff with the children, focusing on holidays and the church calendar. I can never seem to get organized enough to pull it off, but I’m going to give it a good try this year.

I also wrote out my Weekly Plan for our first 9 weeks of school. Even though Sonlight provides excellent Instructor Guides, we adapt their 5 day schedule into a 4 day week. Plus, we add in enough of our own stuff like religion and art to make having my own schedule worthwhile. In order to stick with our picture studies and music, I added them to our schedule, which I never did last year. I only did 9 weeks in case I need to make changes. I used a planning sheet from Donna Young and just typed it all up. Each week, I’ll just print out the needed plan.

I use Fridays for Art, Nature Studies and all those fun not-so-extras. Using my Year In Crafts notes, I made up a Friday Plan for the entire year.

Boo’s art book came with a supply list, which I copied and took with me to Michael’s last weekend. I added things from Pumpkin’s art book too so I could shop all at once. I dropped Philip and the older children off at swimming lessons and only took Bip so I could shop in peace. $70 later, this is what I came home with:

And phew! I’m done planning for the year.

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Our Top Reasons to Homeschool

10. Great student teacher ratio.
9. No school shootings
8. Cleaning out the refrigerator can double as chemistry lab.
7. You don’t have to wear shoes!
6. If you get caught talking to yourself, you can claim you’re having a PTA meeting.
5. The teacher gets to kiss the principal in the faculty lounge and no one gossips.
4. You don’t have to fix lunch in the morning.
3. Children will be better adjusted if they don’t learn social skills from the street gangs.
2. No need for a pass to be in the halls or the restroom.

And the number one reason to homeschool is…

You get to go on a Disney Cruise right in the middle of the “school year!”

That’s right, folks. My in-laws are taking our family on a 7 day Disney Cruise to the Caribbean in early December. We are all so excited that we can barely contain ourselves. I just glance at my husband and he says, “Disney Cruise!” which sets me off on a happy dance. No, I won’t show you and yes, I’ll try not to hurt myself.

I see one of those expensive, custom-fit Land’s End swimsuits in my future. And since we’ll have just celebrated our 15th anniversary the week before the cruise, perhaps Philip will be surprising me with the fresh-water pearl necklace with Mickey Mouse pendant for our formal dinner night.

So if I seem more highly distractable than usual, you’ll know why. I’m busy planning our vacation…

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