MediaWiki as a tool for High School

This school year, I've been using MediaWiki to track my work, and it's been going very nicely. Anybody on my local network can see what I've been up to in school, and there are no papers to lose.

Last year, my mom had me use a special paper that I would use to record my work. However, I didn't really like it, there wasn't enough room to write everything I wanted on it, and because each paper looked the same as the next, they were easy to lose and hard to find. So, this year I decided I was going to find a solution.

MediaWiki has not failed me yet. It's great for saving any kind of information in a way that it is accessible from any computer on your local network, or if you want, just accessible from your computer.

I use the category "9th Grade" to set my school-related pages aside from the other pages on my wiki (the one I'm using now has been set up for a long time, and I've done a lot on it). I still need to make a schoolwork index page, where you can find links to all the important pages related to school.

Since about half of my schoolwork requires some level of computer use, it's nice to have everything in one spot. I'm working on making a special page for myself (not on the wiki, but still on the same server)  that will give me convenient links to all computer-based work.

Throughout the year, I don't doubt that my Wiki will change a whole lot. Right now, it looks almost nothing like my first concept for a LAMP-based schoolwork tracker, and I'm always making slight modifications.

One Day of High School, Already Changes

Day One of 2012 - 2013 School Year

One day of our new homeschool year in the books, time for some changes.  Monday when I came home from work, we had a family  briefing of how things went.  As it turns out, it became apparent quickly that a couple of items weren't meeting our highschooler's expectations and needs.  Here's what happened to us:

Ryan reports that Alpha Omega's 9th grade History and Geography Lifepac is not challenging enough.  The workbook and fill in the blank approach did not work for him.  Don't think of this as a bad review for Alpha Omega's Lifepacs.  Instead, we're going to hold onto our copy of 9th grade History and Geography for Grace's 8th grade work next year.

The other problem is shame on us for not doing due diligence and finding out that the course covers only United States history and geography.  We already plan on studying American History in depth next year with Sonlight's "Core 100" in 10th grade, with Ryan's 8th grade sister and 6th grade brother following along.

That being said, Ryan wants and needs moree.  Fortunately, we already have a copy of Streams of Civilization, Volume II from Christian Liberty Press available.  So U.S. History came out of the lesson plan and World History went in.  From day two through today, all appears to be going well.

Language Arts is also off to a rough start.  Language Arts has always been a challenge, not only for us but for the homeschool community in general:  How to do basic grammar work like plurals and prepositions without getting bored with drills?  Any ideas?  Anybody who figures out an interesting, engaging Language Arts plan will corner the homeschool market, I tell ya! We tried letting Ryan work at his own pace, even testing out, but that didn't work.  So we're following through with our plan there and that's the best we can do so far.

At least the rest of the courses are off to a good start, especially Apologia's Biology.  We're supplementing that with the book Microbe Hunters by Paul di Kruif, which we downloaded to our nook.

Don't think of this as a bad review for Alpha Omega's Lifepacs.  Instead, we're going to hold onto our copy of 9th grade History and Geography for Grace's 8th grade work next year.

As homeschooling families already know, flexibility and customization are perks we enjoy.  We can make changes and customize lessons to our childrens' strengths.  Even if you are only through day one, if you find your best laid plan astray, don't hesitate.

How soon have you had to change your plans?  Are you already making adjustments?  Should you?

Grade Nine: Thoughts From a Student Entering High School

Ninth Grade. Although I had always thought I would be homeschooled all the way to college, I'm still amazed that I've made it this far. Today, my parents and I went over all the subjects I would be taking, including Latin, Algebra, and Biology, among plenty of others. All the preparation has been made, and the anticipation is rising. On Monday, when school starts, I will be ready.

I am very excited about this school year. I've always been excited at the beginning of school, but this time more than others. This year, I have more work, but also more interesting things to learn about.

Also, this Thursday, Karate will be starting up again after the summer break. I have really missed Karate, as it is always the highlight of my week. It's nice that Karate is starting the same week as school, as Karate is also counted towards physical education for me.

Today I also set up a webpage on my local network's server that allows me to track my school progress, and print out status reports to deliver to my mom. It uses HTML tables and CSS. If it goes well, I'll probably post a how-to guide on my website sometime later.

This year, I don't plan to change how I approach schoolwork. Just like last year, I'm going to start the average day with a stack of books that need my attention, and I'll pick whichever one I feel like doing at that particular time. After that subject is done, I'll set it aside and choose something else. In no time, it's all done. If this plan doesn't work as well this year as it did last year, I guess I'll adapt my approach as needed.

I really don't want to have a strict, hour-by-hour schedule dictating what I do when. Those bother me because I feel rushed to complete everything on time, and they also don't allow for lessons that take longer than normal, or lessons that take less time than normal.

So, as the 2012-2013 school year starts, I feel  like I am standing on top of a mountain, watching a storm draw near. Over summer break, I get accustomed to having all the free time in the world, and I know that the first week is always the hardest. But at the same time, I am ready for School. I am excited.

Disc Golf, Summer School

Saturday morning the kids and I had a round of disc golf together.  As a homeschool family, we should have known that a father, son, and daughter outing would turn into some life lessons.  Here are a few, with some ideas on how you can benefit from the final weeks of summer:

We also learned about the consequences of drought.
What's under our feet used to be grass.

In one way, it is not necessarily about disc golf.  Do you know how hard it is to get a 46 year old, 14 year old, 13 (almost) year old, and 10 year old to agree on anything?  Silly question, I'm sure you know.  Not only that, but outdoor time has been harder to come by.  The extreme heat and drought has affected us.  Note the lack of green grass in the photo.  You could say that finding common interests is like finding water (you would say gold, but water is more valuable right now).  We as family members need to learn that just because we are family, we don't always like the same things.  When we do, these opportunities cannot get away!  


Action idea:  What can you plan for your family that can be fun, family building, and that everyone can participate in?  When can you do it?

Summer School Skills Training - Target Practice

This week we got a temporary break in the weather, so we got outside for some target practice - impromptu summer school lesson!

When taking target practice, we prefer to use our Daisy brand BB rifles.  In the 1970s, my brother and I had them, and now my young men have their own.  We also use airsoft BB handguns that we bought on the internet.  The Daisy rifles are great!  The airsoft guns are OK, but not nearly as good.

It's important to get out and do some target shooting, I believe because:

• A chance to get outside
• Father / son activity
• Hand / eye coordination
• Training for handling real firearms someday
• Friendly competition
• Support 2nd Amendment rights

Hopefully, when Ryan and his brother are older, we will have a chance to do some hunting with my uncle.  The offer is out there, they just have to grow up a little bit more.

Are you taking advantage of the summer months to work on some skills other than the typical academic stuff?

The Bicycles are Lonely

Just taking up space in the garage
until it cools down outside.

Once again, the National Weather Service has issued an Air Quality Alert because of high temperatures.  An unusually high number of days with forecast highs in the 90s this season has called for adjustments to our summer recreation ideals.  We, especially me, are big advocates about playing outside. 


As I write this, it is Sunday afternoon.  We've come home from church and had our nice lunch.  The rest of the day is wide open to do whatever we please.  My first choice would be to go bicycling or hiking.  As we drove home, though, we saw on the van's digital readout that it was already in the high 80s before noon.  As a result, Ryan is in his room working on his computer (I did mention a blog he could be writing an entry to), his younger brother and sister are upstairs playing Lego, and Darling Bride is catching up on laundry.  Also, thinking ahead to some planned camping trips, I'm questioning the logic of giving up a nice, air conditioned house for the hot outdoors.  At least we have a nice, air conditioned pop-up camper.

To put it in perspective, though, here in Indiana we are experiencing drought conditions along with hot temperatures.  As Darling Bride pointed out, "we are having our August weather pattern in June."  The weather is creating trials for everybody.  Farmers, first and foremost, are having trouble with their crops.  At the farmers market last week, I wondered to myself how our favorite sweet corn grower was going to make money this year.

The lawn mower is no more than a
photo prop until more rain comes.

On the other hand, we haven't been complete prisoners to the weather.  We have been swimming.  Early mornings have been pleasant.  Some of us went fishing yesterday.  Therefore, it is wise to put things in perspective.  Maybe today would be a good day for some down time?  Not only, that, but with brothers and sisters playing nicely right now, that's something to celebrate.  We can also be thankful for modern conveniences like electricity and air conditioning.  We are well.  Weather patterns do come and go.

Has any extreme weather altered your summer plans?  How have you adjusted?

In Defense Of Church Youth Groups

Graphic credit:  College Park Church, Indianapolis
www.yourchurch.com

Our family is fortunate to be part of a good local church with a quality youth (junior and senior high ages) program.  We know better than to take it for granted.  We say that because we do know that many youth groups earn the right to be criticized.  This past Sunday our church’s Senior Pastor observed that some go their whole childhood, from nursery through high school, without going to the main corporate worship.  Some may even go so far as to say that age segregated worship is unbiblical and should be abolished altogether.  There is a movement called the National Center for Family Integrated Churches.  That doesn't appear wise, and is well discussed in this more technical post by Pastor John White.

While I acknowledge that youth groups have their strengths and weaknesses, I also believe that truth also applies to every local church.

I submit that the question is not either / or, but the solution is both / and.  As we lead our families in the context of a local church relationship, we fail when we use nursery, then Sunday School, then Youth Group as volunteer babysitters while we go to “big church.”  In contrast, we also fail when we don’t provide our kids with access to worship, lessons, and a network of friends.  So why not both?

Here’s what we generally do:  As a family we go to the 8 am worship (our daughter hasn’t been with us because she is serving in the nursery, and I commend her for it).  At 9:45 we get to go our separate classes.  Call them break-out sessions if you like.

This past summer, Ryan participated in our church’s “Extreme Teens” segment of Vacation Bible School.  He met an excellent adult leader who became his Junior High small group leader.  They have similar interests, helpful, but most helpful is this leader's commitment to youth.  Quality.  This connection has been a win/win for everybody as we’ve had him and his fiancée for dinner.  Through this connection, friendships have been made.  Through this connection I’m trying to get an apprenticeship for Ryan.  Point:  if your children’s group is an additional resource (instead of parent outsourcing), it  can be a profitable opportunity.

One good resource about this is the book Parenting in The Pew - Guiding Your Children into the Joy of Worship by Robbie F. Castleman

As you wrestle with these issues, some points to consider:

• Youth and children’s ministries are only as good as your church as a whole.  If Sunday morning worship is well done in spirit and in truth, that example works it way down to all the ministries.  If inadequate, how can Sunday Schools be better?
• Youth and children’s ministries are a supplement to, not a replacement of, your own family. 
• If ministries are indeed a supplement, then we as parents would do well be familiar with what is the subject matter being taught.  Need a conversation starter with your youth?  Practice your "open ended" questions!
• We also need to be familiar with the theological assumptions underlying the lessons.  Is it grounded in Scripture, or in the latest ideas of the day?  Do your homework - read your Bible.
• Don't be surprised when you find that not everyone attending your son or daughter’s group will be the types you would prefer your kids to hang with.  Good news!  Pray that they would hear and respond to the teaching they hear.
• Maybe volunteer to help (regardless of whether your kids are embarrassed to be seen in public with you).

Are youth groups beneficial?  Harmful?  Depends?

Guest Post Published about High School Home School

This week, I had the privilege of writing a guest post for DenSchool, a homeschool blog! Double privilege because this is the first guest post I've written and submitted, hopefully not my last.

The post is The Ultimate Father and Son Project, about how we are transitioning into the high school years, and includes a checklist of items we are (supposed to be) taking care of!

Their blog is a diverse collection of homeschooling essays.

DenSchool describes themselves this way:

One of the best features of DenSchool are the homeschooling parents who help to author the blog and where you will find real homeschoolig moms, and one homeschool dad, share their experiences with homeschooling, homeschooling products, and real life. These parents tell it like it is and share their real life experiences. Not only do they talk about their homeschooling and family journies, but they give honest reviews about curriculum and educational products.

The Grove: Sunday Night Youth Group

I recently went to my first senior high youth group meeting, known as The Grove, and I am very impressed.

At The Rock, the junior high youth group meeting, we met at about 9:45 AM, but at The Grove, we start at 6 PM. This difference is actually quite important to me because I'm not a morning person at all, my mind is sharpest from about five to ten PM. The Grove meets right in the middle of that time, it's almost if it was planned that way; I wouldn't be surprised at all if someone told me it was.

A picture from The Rock's Winterblast event... this picture was probably taken after midnight.

The first night was mostly an introduction to The Grove, but that introduction also included a good section on how young adults can "set the example for an entire church", and a related section on how the members of a youth group control how good of a group it is. To quote Pastor Helton, "I control what is on the website... you control what kind of a youth group this is."

That part of the message really stuck in my head, because The Grove is a perfect example of why that statement is true, the people there really control the quality of the meeting time. I am glad to report the quality there is really good.

How To Go From Hero To Bum ASAP

With Ryan and his sister at Wednesday night youth group, Mr. 5th Grader and I were good to go for tennis practice.  We worked on rallies, serving, and a little footwork.  He's having a great time and so am I.  He cannot wait until next time, and neither can I.  Tennis partners!  Dad, the hero!

Youth group finishes its lesson at 7:40, then fun and hang out time until 8:30.  Come to find out that Miss 7th Grader got separated from her friends and had a miserable 45 minutes.  After a very emotional discussion, and a declaration that she's never going again, I became Dad the bum.

Next week we will try the plan of discreetly coming by at 7:40 to see how things are going.  Fortunately, we live 5 minutes away and multiple trips are not an issue.

Adjusting from upper elementary to junior high can be a pain.  Adjusting to high school can be a pain too, but that hasn't come up yet.  Be alert, dad!

Applying Summer School Leaning Toward Your Academic Year

Jump into summer!

Summer is here!

This post is about why and how we are applying summer school learning toward our 2012-2013 academic year.

Thoughts on why:
Philosophy.  Consider that homeschooling is an all-day every-day life style (24/7/365), not something we do for 180 days a year and forget the rest.  It just so happens that states require 180 days of record keeping.  One of Jennifer's favorite quotes is, "class is always in session and we are tested every day."

Value.  Worthwhile learning does indeed happen every day.  The summer months are a good opportunity to focus on a summer reading program, improve a skill like spelling, or develop a new interest.  If we are going to be intentional about it, we should be getting credit for the effort!  "We" includes both parents and kids.

How:
What constitutes a school day?  Number of hours?  Completing that day's schedule?  Just getting through the day with your sanity intact?  Or is sanity optional?  There is no right or wrong answer, it depends on the family (the beauty of homeschooling).  We decided that for summer purposes, 5 hours of effort would equal "one school day."

Those 5 hours would not necessarily have to be in one 24 hour period.  For example, math on Monday takes an hour.  Spelling on Tuesday another hour.  Wednesday night youth group is 1 1/2 hours.  Another 1 1/2 hours on Thursday.  5 hours in, 1 day's credit earned.

Use a form to track progress.  Our form is inspired from the book Senior High:  A Home Designed FORM + U + LA by Barbara Edtl Shelton (published by Homeschool Seminars and Publications, Longview, Washington - www.ourhomeourschool.com

Its design:

Course:  Summer School 2012

Classmember:  Ryan

Description:  Participate in various activities during the summer to stay sharp

Value:  5 hours = 1 day

Requirements:

• Finish Apologia Physical Science Course
• Participate in Carmel Clay Public Library Young Adults Summer Reading Program
• Algebra 1 – 1 lesson or systematic review or test or honor lesson per week
• Guitar for Dummies
• Physical Education – 30 minutes per day
• Rockin' the Grove (our church's Youth Group - future posts about the value of youth group coming soon)
• Writing as self-directed, post to blog as appropriate

Come out with school days in the bank!

As the student completes an activity, time is logged.  At the end of the summer, add the number of hours, divide by 5, and you have school!

It does help to have good self discipline to be successful.  This is the first year we're trying this.  Wonder how it will go.

What are you doing to stay sharp this summer?

Homeschoolers Hike Indiana Dunes State Park

Summertime homeschooling is not just about catching up and working ahead in reading, math, and spelling, it is also about exploring creation around us.

What most people see at Indiana Dunes

One great thing about state parks over other campgrounds is that we have found ourselves with a really good interpretive naturalist who can give a good presentation.  It helps to go exploring in an intentional way.  Over last week's Memorial Day weekend at Indiana Dunes State Park, we went on a naturalist-led hike an learned these things about our favorite state park and surrounding area:

What campers see at Indiana Dunes
(full disclosure - we are happy campers)

• The Indiana Dunes region has more bio-diversity (meaning more species of plants and animals) than any place in Indiana.
• The Dunes have more bio-diversity than all national parks in the United States except three:  Great Smoky Mountains, Grand Canyon, and North Cascades.
• This diversity includes 1400 different plants and 365 different bird species.
• Indiana Dunes is the second state park to be established in Indiana, in 1925.  The first was McCormick's Creek in 1916.
• The Dunes has a Civil War tie in:  after Lincoln's assassination, his funeral train passed not too far south on its way to Illinois.  A pro-slavery group called Knights of the Golden Circle conspired to steal Lincoln's body, bury it in the dunes, and collect ransom.  Unfortunately, they talked about their plans too much in the local taverns and the plot foiled.
• The Knights of the Golden Circle also planned to free prisoners of war held in Northwest Indiana in Northeast Illinois, using the high dunes as a lookout point.  Again, loose lips sunk their ships.
• From 1925 through the 1960s, there was a Governor's Cottage in the park for Indiana's governor to use as a retreat center.  Remains (of the cottage, not the governor) can still be found at the site.

What homeschooling families see at Indiana Dunes
(part of the old Governor's Retreat cottage)

One thing we are doing this summer is accumulating time toward our 2012-2013 school year.  Next post will be a discussion of why we are doing that and how.

Field Trip and Camping, Indiana Dunes, Part 1

For Memorial Day weekend, we took a camping trip to Indiana Dunes State Park.  This is post 1 of 2 about little known interesting facts about the southern shore of Lake Michigan, originally cross-posted from www.jeffhoots.net.

Trevor enjoying Indiana Dunes

For a homeschool project, our 10 year old son Trevor was to gather facts to write a report about a place.  The curriculum suggested encyclopedia research about a city or state.  Instead, we chose to have him interview me about Indiana Dunes State Park.

What is the early history of the Indiana Dunes?  Who discovered it?

American Indians originally lived there.  During the 1600s European colonization era, French fur traders, including one by the name Marquette, traveled and traded extensively in the area.  Northwest Indiana is connected to the Atlantic Ocean by the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway.

Why did people first go there?

Around the turn of the 20th Century, some who lived in Chicago would travel by train to the Indiana Dunes area for hiking, picnicing, nature study, and landscape painting.  At the same time, industry - particularly steel mills - realized that the sand and water made the region ideal for factories and mills.  

How did it become a city or state park?

Industry and nature preservation became a fight for the dunes.  For example, in 1915 Bethlehem Steel destroyed a place called Central Dune.  As the debate intensified, Indiana was fortunately beginning to establish its State Park system.  In 1925, Indiana Dunes State Park was established.  One of the dunes in the park, Mt. Jackson, is named in honor of Governor Jackson, in office at the time the park was established.

What important events have happened there?

"Strength and Beauty along the South Shore
Line", John Rush, 1998 (lithograph), scan of back
cover of "Moonlight in Duneland,"
Indiana University Press,
http://iupress.indiana.edu

Dr. Henry Cowles of the University of Chicago would lead his students to the Dunes area to study the extensive variety of plant life.  This area has more plant species diversity than all but 4 of America's national parks.  This study led to the creation of a new discipline, ecology.  Indiana Dunes is often called the "birthplace of ecology."


What is it like now?


Northwest Indiana is an unusual compromise of industry and nature.  The undisturbed areas are beautiful.  By contrast, steel mills are visible during walks on the beach.  Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore was established in 1966, setting aside more land for preservation.  Over 1 million visitors come each year, mostly for the beaches.  Little do they know the rich history and natural wonder of the area.  Growing up there, I certainly did not.  It is regrettable that my science teachers failed to capitalize on this opportunity.

In my opinion, the Indiana Dunes area is as valuable as any other state or natural area in the country.

Why Homeschool High School? Part 2 - Priorities

Why Homeschool, particularly high school?  For us, the choice to live the homeschooling lifestyle, including and especially the high school years, is the living out of our family's definition of success and the application of our core values.  Part 1 was about success.  Success is uniquely defined by each family. We define it as "together we discover, nurture, and fulfill God's call on our lives."  This applies to us parents as well as our kids.

Our family has four core values, and our home education direction is, or at least should be, driven by them.  Our core four are Authentic Worship, Loving Relationships, Worthwhile Learning, and Excellent Life Experiences.

Authentic Worship is valuing God first.  "Authentic" is a summary word inspired by what Jesus told a Samaritan woman (an by its recording in John 4:24, He teaches us), "God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth."  In other words, not only a desire for God, but a desire to know God truly and accurately - sound theology.  "Worship" refers to an attitude of God's supremacy. On Thursdays in the kids' martial arts class, their pledge begins, "Jesus Christ is the supreme master of life.  King of kings.  Lord of lords.  Savior of the world.

Three generations.  As important,
if not more important, than choosing curriculum.

Loving Relationships is valuing one another.  It starts with our immediate family, extends out to our extended family, to friends, community, and so forth.  As anybody who has ever been in a family could attest, this is hard work.  If it wasn't work, we wouldn't need to intentionally value it.

Worthwhile Learning includes the curriculum, such as deciding on a math textbook.  It could also include co-op (when two or more families combine resources - such as scheduled field trips or sharing teaching responsibilities) activities, sports programs, music lessons, and the like.  Notice that we place this as #3 on the list.  Knowing how to read & write, add & subtract, synthesize history & current events and other academics are important, but only as part of a whole.

Excellent Life Experiences are what makes learning worthwhile.  This is where a field trip, a camping trip, a family reunion, a movie night, a day at the swimming pool with friends, even having friends, all come together and create a life worth living.

Proverbs 9:10 explains that, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight."  Wisdom can be defined as "skillful living."  We believe, and challenge you to consider, that God's truth be the foundation under everything.  If skillful living is to be found through God, and public schools are not allowed to teach about God, how can a public school student learn to live skillfully?

What about you?  Do you know why you do what you do?  If you are a parent, do you have strategies and values to guide you in your most important decisions?  If you are a student, do you know why you are doing what you are?

The Joy of Summer

Me, Little League, Summer, 1981.
I was in the starting lineup by then.

When I was 14, the batter in front of me was intentionally walked, loading the bases.  This meant that the other team believed I was an easy out, more so than my teammate.

Here's the setting:  Little League, Senior Division, Woodland Park, Portage, Indiana, Summer, 1980.  Late in the game, runners on 2nd and 3rd bases.  One batter in front of me, I'm on deck.  I suddenly realize that the batter in front of me is getting an "intentional walk," meaning that the other team's catcher stands up straight (instead of crouching per usual), extends his catcher's mitt outside the strike zone, and the pitcher misses four times on purpose.  The purpose of an intentional walk is to avoid the risk of the batter getting a hit and the runners on base scoring.  Instead, the team wants to pitch to the next batter who is more likely to make an out.

I'm the batter likely to make an out.  Fortunately, or not so fortunately, rules in force at that time required all players to have one at bat per game and play in the field at least three innings.  My team was stuck with me, one of the subs who "sat the bench" hadn't gotten a hit yet all season.  I step up to the plate and hear the courteous, if not skeptical, cheers of encouragement.  The first pitch happens to be outside the strike zone for ball one.  Same for the second pitch, ball two.  If that happens two more times, I get a walk and a run scores because all bases have runners and they would all move up.  I conclude that the pitcher doesn't want to risk ball three so he will pitch an easy one right in the middle of the strike zone.

He did, I swung, and got a hit over the third baseman's head into left field, a run scored, I pumped my fist, and somehow found myself on first base.  A joy of summer.

Summer Vacation 2011

When I think of Summer Vacation (words capitalized because they are important), I think of joy, fun, freedom, no school, warm days, playing, friends, swimming, pretty much getting to do whatever I wanted whenever I wanted.  I played tennis, rode my bicycle, went to the beach, hung out with friends.  I had a newspaper delivery route job, so I'd get up in the morning, work, and have the rest of the day to myself.  The freedom was multiplied because my Mom was a teacher, and she was free too, and was not afraid to express how happy she was about it.

Part of my vision as a homeschooling family is that we enjoy the gift that is Summer Vacation.  Today, I still revere this time as special and desire my family to think so too.  I suppose you could call me an "Advocate for Summer Vacation."  That is a challenge because I don't have a three month vacation, I'm still slugging it out in the marketplace, but we have weekends, abundant daylight after work, holidays, vacation days.  I'm call that a blessing and I'm having high hopes for another memorable season.

Still enjoying summers with my Mom

As I write this, our family has just finished school day 180.  Summer Vacation is here!  On the other hand, the homeschooling freedom we enjoy means the journey from school books to back yards and swimsuits is short.  The journey is also blurred because we have some math, spelling, and reading to do.  I wonder what the kids think of Summer Vacation?  I'll ask them this weekend.  Then I'll give them the assignment to enjoy these moments, September will be here before you know it.  This Summer has a special twist to it because Ryan transitions into a bona fide High School Freshman when Summer becomes Autumn.  He is 14 now, just like I was once.  Gotta get him "off the bench" and outside.

Dear reader, the assignment is the same for you.  Will you enjoy your Summer Vacation again this year?

Giodorno's Pizza, Chicago

Next Fall's Freshman Curriculum is In the House!

Thanks to Alpha Omega Publications 20% off sale in April, we got motivated to order the last pieces of the curriculum puzzle needed for Ryan to officially start high school (or, rather, High School) this fall.






Here's the expected starting lineup:

• Language Arts:  Alpha Omega Lifepac
• History and Geography:  Alpha Omega Lifepac
• Science:  Apologia Biology
• Math:  Algebra, Math-U-See (already in process, so we will move up to Geometry during the year)
• Latin:  Getting Started with Latin - Armfield Academic Press - www.armfieldacademicpress.com
• Literature as assigned
• Physical Education:  Weekly martial arts lessons through the Gospel Martial Arts Union
• Bible and Christian Instruction:  College Park Church Youth Group (with parents assuming responsibility and accountability, of course)

Getting Started with Latin

One observation from the above list is that we've found ourselves taking an eclectic approach.  We use Alpha Omega, Sonlight, Math-U-See, and Apologia, among other sources.  We also rely on our church, even our Youth Group (someday I will write an essay in defense of church Youth Groups).  Our eclectic plan comes from eight years of trial and error, finding what works and what doesn't work.  We are still trying and erroring.  What works for one does not for another.  What works for one today may not work tomorrow.

It is a fun accomplishment to finish a school year.  We are looking forward to celebrating the end of 8th grade for Ryan, 6th for Grace, and 4th for Trevor.  Summer will come and go quickly, and even if we plan on a lot of fun, and some summer school.  The next school year will come before we know it.  We're getting ready now.  Are you getting ready?  What are your plans?

Why Homeschool High School? Part 1 - Success

What is "success" as we raise and provide educations for our sons and daughters?  Is it getting into a top college?  Is it getting into college, period?  Is it getting a good job?  Is it the generic "be happy?"  Or is it perhaps something more?  For our family, we define success is quite simply the process of discovering, nurturing, and fulfilling one's calling in life.  What's more, we believe that God is personally involved in the process, so this is more than a school decision, it is a lifestyle decision.  We as a family have adopted this as our family's Mission Statement:

Ryan's kindergarten 1st day, September, 2003

Together we discover, nurture, and fulfill God's call on our lives.

Ryan's 8th grade 1st day, August, 2011

Homeschooling, particularly through high school, is part of a whole family life approach, one part of our family's four core values and strategies:

• Authentic worship
• Loving relationships
• Worthwhile learning
• Excellent life experiences

As many homeschooling families know, the curriculum, reading, math, and unit studies are only the beginning in educating our families at home.  It is a holistic lifestyle.  How many days a year are classes in session?  180?  365, really.  Therefore, we homeschool because the benefits affect every area of each of our lives - worship, relationships, learning, and life experiences.  Accordingly, continuing the benefits of homeschool through high school is a logical conclusion.

But back to the success question.  Success could include college and good jobs (whatever that means).  Parents can have expectations and conclusions about their kids' talents and abilities, but those talents and abilities can take us (all of us, regardless of age) to unexpected places.  Success may not include college or the prestigious job, it really depends upon God's providence.  What better setting to help our soon to be adults navigate this providence than with their parents?

To conclude this post about success, then, our family chooses to homeschool through high school because it helps our kids have the best chance of authentic success in the whole of life.  The next posts will explore each of our family's core values in more depth and how they relate to homeschooling and high school homeschooling.  May this series, and this blog, help encourage you to finish the course.

Part 2 - Priorities

Best regards,
Jeff

Homeschool Highschool Begins

Curriculum for the 2012 - 2013 homeschool year is now arriving!  Today we received boxes from both Sonlight Curriculum and Christian Book Distributors.  True, most of this first wave of books are for our 5th grade son and 7th grade daughter, but Exploring Creation with Biology from Apologia Science also came, so the high school material is coming!  That is, unless we count Algebra from Math-U-See, but Ryan is already working through his Algebra in 8th grade.

In April, according to our Alpha Omega catalog, AOP products will be 20% off!  We will be adding History & Geography and Language Arts.

As you probably noticed, we draw from several different sources in building our homeschool curriculum, not only high school, but also middle school and upper elementary school.  We have been homeschooling since Ryan was pre-kindergarten, and the ups and downs of that experience is helping us as we plan for the upcoming year.

There is more to high school homeschooling than buying the right curriculum, though.  There is recordkeeping, character building, accountability, and more that I'm sure we will think of.  Future posts will address these and more.