Hello October!
This is quite possibly our favourite month of the year! It's always guaranteed to be a lot of fun, and there are so many great learning experiences awaiting us. So many fun lessons, activities and crafts. Bring it on, October!!
Lauren celebrated her 6th birthday yesterday. It was an excellent reason to celebrate and have fun! We spent the day bowling, eating lots of junk food, and of course the kids made time to play with friends. :)
Speaking of friends...one of my biggest pet peeves lately...SOCIALIZATION!!! One of the most common misconceptions about homeschoolers is, we don't get out much. Contrary to popular belief, we don't spend our time locked in the house avoiding the world. Quite frankly, the kids have better social experiences since being home than they ever did in the classroom.
It's absurd how often questions or comments are tossed out. Everybody always wants to talk to the kids - whether it's somebody at the grocery store, or a visiting neighbor. "Oh, you homeschool! That must be so lonely!", "It's too bad the kids don't get to have friends like normal kids.", "How will they know how to talk to people if they ever go back to school?" The list goes on. And on.
The truth is, I've never seen my children so happy. They're able to interact with anybody they run into, whether it's somebody younger, their age, or older. They've very diverse, are able to behave appropriately in every social situation they encounter (and if you stop and think, that's literally EVERY SINGLE TIME they talk to another person, whether it's us, the cashier at Safeway, or their friends), and yes, they do have friends! There are playgroups for homeschoolers, there are classes the kids can go to (dance, martial arts, gymnastics)...the possibilities are endless.
Socialization isn't something you need to be in school to experience. Is it a benefit? I'm sure for some kids it can be. My kids, not so much. With Reese, it was a crappy experience. More often than not, he'd come home upset, spend the night in his room ignoring us, then cry when he had to get up to go back in the morning. He was 'different' than the other kids, the other kids knew it, and he just didn't care that he was. We'd have him home for Christmas break, or during the summer, we'd get him back to feeling confident and happy...then he'd go back to school and he'd be crushed again. Let's face it - some kids are just mean.
Lauren, on the other hand, LOVED it. She'd come home blabbering on for hours about what she did with her friends at recess, or who she ate lunch with, or what she did with so-and-so during class...she had a great time. Her concern with school was that she's an intense perfectionist, and hates being 'wrong'. She'd do her work, act normally in class, then come home and have a meltdown all night because she printed her 'e' wrong, or she colored outside of the lines.
Does Reese still encounter conflict during relationships? Yes, he does. He might get upset when he doesn't get his way, or if somebody says something he doesn't agree with. He still has situations that aren't ideal, so he's learning to deal with those conflicts. HOWEVER, we also have the option to redirect, help him solve the problem, or pull him from the situation. He'll face adversity his whole life...why should it be an 8 hour a day, 5 day a week struggle?
As for Lauren, she's still a perfectionist. She has good days and bad days - meaning, some days she can handle if she makes a mistake, others she tears up her work, throws her pencil and runs away crying. Through her interactions with others, she's learning that life - much like her work - isn't always 'perfect'...sometimes all you can do is give it your best shot.
Now, to the fun stuff.
We've been working on some home improvements (the 70's house is becoming a bit more modern!). When the front porch came down, JP found a HUGE beehive! I've saved pieces to use for our insect unit coming in the Spring. The kids will love having a hands-on experience.
The kids have been working on fall art. They're loving the ability to make what they want during art class. While I do guide some lessons, I do allow 'free art time' - whatever materials and item they choose is fine, as long as they make something. Last week they both decided to work on fall collages.
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| This is Lauren's. She called it 'Autumn Rain'. Her explanation: "The sky is getting ready to turn into winter, so it's blue and white while the snow builds in the clouds. Since it's not ready to snow, it's raining fall colors in different shapes". |
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| Another of Lauren's. This one was "Snow falling on a big pile of fall leaves that I'm raking". |
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| Reese's is called, "Abstract leaf pile". He goes on to say, "I'm standing by the leaf pile that's growing and getting ready to take over the whole city. The blue lines are frost building on the pile". |
...Halloween has taken over the classroom! I have cobwebs and ghosts all over my storage station!
The kids are looking forward to spending the rest of the month making spooky crafts and decorations. :)
