Hello everybody, My name is Kali (collie) and I am thinking about homeschooling my 10 year old and 6 year old this coming school year 2006-2007. Anna will be in 5th grade and Aura in 1st. They've both attended private christian school, but the tuition is becoming too expensive for our growing family. They use the Abeka curriculum now and seem to do well with it. I would love to hear from other mom's with 3-4 kids who have experience in homeschooling. I have another boy who will be 3 next month and I am due to have another boy at the end of this month! Thanks for any responses/suggestions/help you can provide. Kali
Welcome, Kali! I'm Jackie, from Ohio. I homeschool three...two girls ages 9 and 11, and a boy age 6. We've homeschooled from the very beginning. Any questions you have, SOMEONE here will answer for you, so just ask away. If your kids do well with Abeka at school, you might consider continuing with that, especially since you have one preschooler and another on the way. One thing about having a baby NOW is that it will be settled into a routine by the time school will start in the fall! But many of us have dealt with keeping a preschooler and/or infant busy while homeschooling. It CAN be done!!! And you'll be amazed at how much a preschooler picks up! I do history and science as a total group with all my kids, and my 6YO knows how to use words like "carnivore", and can explain photosynthesis. Last year when my dad wanted to put fertilizer on the newly-planted flowers, calling it "plant food", he told him, "Oh, no, Grandpa! Plants make their own food from the sun!!!"
Congratulation with the new baby! Welcome to the homeschoolspot! I have 4 kids, twins that are 8, a 6 and 5 year old. We have been homeschooling since the kids were about 3. I don't use abecka but I know there are others here that love it, and my cousins use it and love it too (I have one cousin expecting her 8th child and homeshcooled all of them all the way up to highschool. Homeschooling can be expensive at times, but there are ways to cut costs, like getting used curriculum, checking things out in the library, trade curriculum with other homeschooling families in your town, go to curriculum fairs also check at e-bay and half.com. I get the older kids going then I start doing stuff with the younger kids. Its fun when there are projects to do that all kids can enjoy too.
Hi, Kali. I homeschool my daughter, Jeannie, who is 5. Have you talked to the school about help with tuition? If the kids have been there all along the school might be willing to help you out.
Here's a good site for math and social studies. http://www.glc.k12.ga.us/seqlps/homepg.htm You might also like www.proteacher.com, www.readwritethink.org, and there are some links at the top of the page that might be helpful.
Thanks for getting back to me. I have never seen myself as a "teacher" in the academic sense. Of course, I teach my children every day, but to have a routine school schedule with a six-month old baby and a 3-year old to tend to, honestly, I don't know if I have that much confidence in myself! Thanks for your encouragement! What time of day do you usually start "school" and how long does it take you? Do you take your kids on field trips/homeschool outings with other homeschoolers? What about sports? Thanks again!
Actually, we have applied for tuition assistance at their school, but now the academy is in a position of having to build a new school and won't be offering scholarships for the 06-07 school year Thanks for your reply and resources!
Hi Kali... Welcome here too! I'm Tina in Texas..This is my 7th year and I'm presently teaching 3 kids, a 11yo, 9yo and 5 yo..... It is very normal to feel overwhelmed or like you can't do it. But you CAN do it! My advice is *keep things simple* this first year....Set realistic goals. This is not the year to say do Latin, Spanish, music, 4H, soccer and yes take art lessons. That will come. Believe me! Don't get burnout! Take like one activity per child and restrict yourself and them so you have time together at home to adjust being around each other and adjust to the new schedule. Don't do like some of us...I sat in on a workshop for teaching highschool in my first year of homeschooling...Did I mention my oldest was only 5yo? <blushing here> :roll: For some reason and it's natural we have to figure out all the way to highschool AND activities, sports and yes college while we are at it?:lol: We want it all laid out instantly... Good thing it doesn't work that way, or else I would have made myself crazy with all the worry.. Homeschool is just like having that baby for the first time...the first one it seems hard, kind of overwhelming..After that we know that we can manage, 3 or 4 at a time because we are EXPERIENCED. It takes time and it will come.. To make your first year easier...get something laid out...it doesn't hurt to do that the first year. Your eventual goal is to tailor make your curriculum to fit your children's learning style. Its hard to do that in the beginning because you need to learn that yourself. I see your kids used Abeka right now...I'm a firm believer if *its not broken, don't fix it*..If they do well now, order it at least for your first year until you get your sea legs.. There are two things that make newbies first year successful. I don't mean all the goals you might have set..I mean surviving! LOL.. The two things that help with your success rate the first year are a good curriculum and support. You need both.. You can use something laid out until you have time on your hands. Take care of yourself and your little ones first. Get recovered! Then see what you might like or don't like about a particular curriculum. Just as with a newborn, you can't learn it all in one day..it takes hands on experience, homeschooling is no different. I read in preparation for my newborn and ask tons of questions...same way w/homeschooling.. Anyway, we are glad your here. Don't isolate yourself! We have discussed all kinds of things here...so no question as a newbie (new homeschooler) is too dumb for us! Again, welcome..so glad your here!
Welcome Kali. I have homeschooled for 3 years now. I have a 11(ds) and a 13 (dd) year old. They love it. You can do this.
[Tina, thank you so much for all your input. I think you have great suggestions, wish you lived closer...I'm in Idaho :angel: I will probably have more questions soon. Thanks again!] Hi Kali... Welcome here too! I'm Tina in Texas..This is my 7th year and I'm presently teaching 3 kids, a 11yo, 9yo and 5 yo..... It is very normal to feel overwhelmed or like you can't do it. But you CAN do it! My advice is *keep things simple* this first year....Set realistic goals. This is not the year to say do Latin, Spanish, music, 4H, soccer and yes take art lessons. That will come. Believe me! Don't get burnout! Take like one activity per child and restrict yourself and them so you have time together at home to adjust being around each other and adjust to the new schedule. Don't do like some of us...I sat in on a workshop for teaching highschool in my first year of homeschooling...Did I mention my oldest was only 5yo? <blushing here> :roll: For some reason and it's natural we have to figure out all the way to highschool AND activities, sports and yes college while we are at it?:lol: We want it all laid out instantly... Good thing it doesn't work that way, or else I would have made myself crazy with all the worry.. Homeschool is just like having that baby for the first time...the first one it seems hard, kind of overwhelming..After that we know that we can manage, 3 or 4 at a time because we are EXPERIENCED. It takes time and it will come.. To make your first year easier...get something laid out...it doesn't hurt to do that the first year. Your eventual goal is to tailor make your curriculum to fit your children's learning style. Its hard to do that in the beginning because you need to learn that yourself. I see your kids used Abeka right now...I'm a firm believer if *its not broken, don't fix it*..If they do well now, order it at least for your first year until you get your sea legs.. There are two things that make newbies first year successful. I don't mean all the goals you might have set..I mean surviving! LOL.. The two things that help with your success rate the first year are a good curriculum and support. You need both.. You can use something laid out until you have time on your hands. Take care of yourself and your little ones first. Get recovered! Then see what you might like or don't like about a particular curriculum. Just as with a newborn, you can't learn it all in one day..it takes hands on experience, homeschooling is no different. I read in preparation for my newborn and ask tons of questions...same way w/homeschooling.. Anyway, we are glad your here. Don't isolate yourself! We have discussed all kinds of things here...so no question as a newbie (new homeschooler) is too dumb for us! Again, welcome..so glad your here![/QUOTE]
[Hi Jo, thanks for the email]Hi Kali, I'm Jo from Australia. I have two kids, Sarah 4 and Daniel 16 months. Welcome to the board. [/QUOTE]
Deena's in Washington...that's not too far from you (relatively speaking, LOL!) One thing that worked well with me with preschoolers is to have "extra" papers on hand. If we were studying states and my older one was drawing rivers or cities on a map of Iowa, then I'd have an extra map for my little one(s) to scribble on. I would also have some worksheets in a notebook for when they decided they wanted to "do school", too. Also, I am a FIRM BELIEVER in "Mommy Time". My little ones took a nap from 1-3 daily. When they get to the age where they sometimes sleep and sometimes not, I make them lie down for a half-hour at 1:00. If they fall asleep, fine. If, at 1:30, they are still awake, then they may read quietly (ie:look at books) until 2:00. Eventually, they stop sleeping altogether. At that point, they STILL have to go to their rooms at 1:00 for a half-hour of Silent Reading Time. My youngest, who is what I call a "pre"-reader, may look at books or listen to a story tape. This half-hour is my "Mommy Time". I set the timer, and the kids know not to bother me until I tell them the timer has gone off. I usually follow this up by reading aloud to them. On Mondays, my laundry day, the kids fold all the laundry that's been piling up all mormimg in my living room while I read!
Hi, Kali! I also have 4 kids. I have one in 4th, one in 1st, and one pre-K (she does some K work). I also have a 2 yo. This is our second year to homeschool. I agree with Jackie. I always have some type of "papers" for my younger two. Even my 2yo will sit with us and color while we do our lessons. I usually get my older one started, then work with the younger ones while he works on his own. We go to a co-op once a week with other homeschoolers. I don't think we are going to do this next year though. It takes time away from our lessons. Our co-op is a whole day once a week. My kids are also involved in dance, karate, Scouting, AWANA, and other church activities. We have a very active support group. We have field trips and play days with them. I would recommend keeping the activites to a minimum at first. We can quickly become overwhelmed with all the things going on. Because we took my son out of ps to homeschool, we had to readjust to just all being home again. You can make it work. We don't have a strict schedule at our house. We try to do most things in the morning, but sometimes we spend the morning doing housework and do "school" after lunch. You have to find what works best for your family. With a little one, I suggest trying to plan activities that require the most attention from you during the baby's nap(s). I still do that. Welcome!
hi kali! my names karen and i'm in the same boat that you are except my son is in public school and i'm not sure which cirrculam to use there are so many out there it's really hard for someone new at this stiff.
To gaggirl Hi Karen, Well, I haven't looked into all the different curriculum out there, but I know that my kids do really well with Abeka. If I homeschool next fall, I will probably start out with that one and go from there. I like the idea that they incorporate God into the studies every day. My kids learn how God created the earth and everything in it, rather than evolution or something like that. I would be happy to have you on my buddylist, and we can chart this new territory together! Take care, Kali
hi! my name is karen i live in georgia and i'm going to homeschool my 10yr old next school term but not sure which cirriculam to use can any give me some suggestions it would maybe help me a lot.
Greetings!!!! I just had to jump in here even though....I really don't have anything extra to add. :lol: I was just feeling left out. ROFL Welcome! Welcome! Just remember that when you want to bang your head against a wall you can come here and get some cyber HUGS. :lol:
hi! shelia, thanks for the e-mail it helps to have someone to talk too i'm trying to figure out what cirriculum to use there are so many out there do you have any suggestions i think i'd rather have work books instead of text books i don't want him to think he's still in public school so if you have any suggestions just let me know. ang again thanks for wanting to talk.
