Besides our oldest who is not in school, this year we have a 5th grader and a College Freshman!
Showing posts with label school. Show all posts
Showing posts with label school. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
Wordless Wednesday~First Day of School
Besides our oldest who is not in school, this year we have a 5th grader and a College Freshman!
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Big Changes!
For the past 14 years, I have homeschooled all three of my kids off and on, but I have always had at least one of them home with me. So when you consider my oldest child turns 21 next month, I have been home caring for and teaching my children for 21 years. That all changed today!
Chad, 9, attended preschool through 1st grade, then was homeschooled for the past two years. Today he began 4th grade at Children's Christian School, a local private school for K-8th grade. I love their small class size (10 in his class!), and we were blessed with a Carson Smith Special Needs Scholarship! The school is just about 1 mile from home, so after we get into the routine, Chad can even ride his bike to school. He was very excited to begin school today!
Alyssa, 17, is a senior this year and continues with Open High School of Utah. She does this program online, which gives her the flexibility she needs with three part-time jobs (nanny, retail dance store, and dance teacher) and her dancing. So although she officially is home to do school, I don't see her too often during the day.
So, it appears I'm going to have some time on my hands!!! As much as I will miss my kids, I am looking forward to getting some long-awaited projects done. Six hours a day sounds like a long time, but I'm sure it will fly by! We also have an addition to the family that I will happily spend some of my time with-you will find out who that is in a future post (very soon, promise!).
Monday, October 3, 2011
Our Curriculum for 2011-2012 School Year!
Alyssa is enrolled in 11th grade at Open High School of Utah (OHSU), which is a virtual High School we are very pleased with so far!! She is attempting to get most core classes taken care of so next year she can take the community college dental hygienist program, which covers 4 electives. So far it's straight As! I'm also considering using the Dave Ramsey Foundations in Personal Finance program for teens. Here is a recent photo of my sweet girl, doing schoolwork while on vacation!!
Chad is officially a 3rd grader, but is at a 1st-2nd grade level in most areas. He's consistently stayed about 1-2 years delayed since he became ours at age 2, but this past summer we found out he has numerous learning disabilities, including Dyslexia and Dysgraphia. You can read that post here. So, armed with this information, we've tailored a curriculum to really focus on reading and writing much more than anything else. We are also getting some special education assistance-speech therapy and reading/writing help as needed.
I decided to go with a school district in Southern Utah (we are northern), for their state-wide K12 program, Washington Online School Utah (WOSU). We are using them for the special ed, Math, History, and Science. This is a program we used in the past with my oldest two, and were very impressed. Chad will have lots of opportunities for field trips and fun which he needs having no siblings at all close in age. Plus I get the special support I need to learn how to teach him effectively. They also have awesome online classes and teachers there when you need them. Some homeschoolers have big issues with what I am doing, as the state school system gets money for our being enrolled. I believe you do what you feel/know is best for your child, and reassess that each and every year for each and every child. Even after homeschooling for 14 years, I know when I need help, and the private kind is way too pricey. I love that I can still involve special ed. assistance and tailor my own curriculum! Our curriculum may change later in the year based on how he is progressing. This year I decided to try out my own version of a workbox system. This is getting long, so our workbox system will have to wait for another post.
K12 Math, Science, and History (all 2nd grade) through WOSU.
Reading Horizon's Discover Intensive Phonics (K-3 program on computer, Orton-Gillingham based)
Susan Barton's Reading and Spelling program
Writing With Ease
Handwriting Help for Kids (will be Handwriting without Tears next)
Building Christian Character/60 Day Wonder Devotional
Later in the year: Read, Write, and Type
Occasionally: First Language Lessons, All About Spelling (click button on right sidebar for more info)*
Plus, we have so many wonderful products we get to use and review through the The Old Schoolhouse Crew throughout the year. And after homeschooling for so many years I have lots of good unit studies and crafts to do at a moment's notice!
*I love the All About Spelling Program, and Chad had completed level 1. We decided to start back at the beginning, now knowing his diagnosis, with the Barton program and see how that goes. I would like to eventually get back to AAS.
Well, that about covers it!! I really don't have a good enough feel yet for how these products are going to work out for us, so I'll check in again a month or two down the road. Happy Homeschooling!!
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Goodbye Summer, Hello School!!
I can't believe summer is coming to a close!! It went by so fast. We had a very quiet summer, with no trips or adventures. Just lots of time at home, swim lessons all summer for Chad (he passed off level 3!), and I worked a lot on organizing in the basement and getting ready for the school year. It was enjoyable to not have to be running around crazy the past few months. We did have an exciting (and exhausting) week doing respite foster care for two little ones. They were lots of fun and sweet, but I'm not used to chasing toddlers around anymore! Alyssa had the busiest summer, with clog camp, Hemophilia camp where she was a counselor assistant for the first time, and some fun day trips to water parks. She also got a lot of driving time in with her learner's permit! Jeff worked all summer-they are so short-staffed that he just couldn't get vacation time. We are considering a quick family getaway in the Fall.
So, last time I posted about my kids and their schooling, Nick had graduated High School (whew!), Alyssa was a Freshman in UTVA, and Chad was in 1st grade at the local elementary school. Things have changed! Nick is still at Job Corps but is going off-campus to the local Technical college to train to be a Composites Material technician. He is doing great and we are very proud of him! Alyssa just started her Sophomore year at UTVA yesterday. Chad is the big change-at the end of his 1st grade year, we pulled him out of public school. We were quite frustrated and unsatisfied with many aspects of his education there. We had hoped to keep him in public school for at least a few more years because he has no siblings close to his age to play with. There came a point where we knew he needed to come home for school. So he had a nice, long summer off of school (he would have only had 3 weeks off for summer break had he stayed in school) and we are ready to go next week.
I must admit, it has been many years since I homeschooled a young one, and I am apprehensive. Nick was in 1st grade 12 years ago and Alyssa 9 years ago. It seems like forever! A lot of the curriculum has changed, and there are some great new things out there! I poured through my Rainbow Resource catalog (the Homeschool curriculum bible), spent a lot of time on the internet, and finally made my choices. I'm excited for this upcoming school year-Chad is quite delayed in most every subject, so even though he is beginning 2nd grade I am starting out with 1st grade curriculum. I hope to get through 1st grade quickly and onto 2nd grade this year. He's a smart little guy-just needs the one-on-one I will be able to give him to catch up. I'm really not worried about Chad having to keep up exactly with the public school, but I know his potential and that he was lost in the crowd in school, so it is time to get busy!
I'll go into more detail on curriculum and what I'm doing in other areas in my next post.
So, last time I posted about my kids and their schooling, Nick had graduated High School (whew!), Alyssa was a Freshman in UTVA, and Chad was in 1st grade at the local elementary school. Things have changed! Nick is still at Job Corps but is going off-campus to the local Technical college to train to be a Composites Material technician. He is doing great and we are very proud of him! Alyssa just started her Sophomore year at UTVA yesterday. Chad is the big change-at the end of his 1st grade year, we pulled him out of public school. We were quite frustrated and unsatisfied with many aspects of his education there. We had hoped to keep him in public school for at least a few more years because he has no siblings close to his age to play with. There came a point where we knew he needed to come home for school. So he had a nice, long summer off of school (he would have only had 3 weeks off for summer break had he stayed in school) and we are ready to go next week.
I must admit, it has been many years since I homeschooled a young one, and I am apprehensive. Nick was in 1st grade 12 years ago and Alyssa 9 years ago. It seems like forever! A lot of the curriculum has changed, and there are some great new things out there! I poured through my Rainbow Resource catalog (the Homeschool curriculum bible), spent a lot of time on the internet, and finally made my choices. I'm excited for this upcoming school year-Chad is quite delayed in most every subject, so even though he is beginning 2nd grade I am starting out with 1st grade curriculum. I hope to get through 1st grade quickly and onto 2nd grade this year. He's a smart little guy-just needs the one-on-one I will be able to give him to catch up. I'm really not worried about Chad having to keep up exactly with the public school, but I know his potential and that he was lost in the crowd in school, so it is time to get busy!
I'll go into more detail on curriculum and what I'm doing in other areas in my next post.
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Celebration and change!
May 20, 2010- Back in December, I wrote a post about the difficult time we had been having with Nick, our oldest son. The condensed version is that once he turned 18, he decided to not continue with his homeschool high school classes, and was very disrespectful, causing a lot of trouble in the home. We moved him outside to a trailer, and applied for Job Corps, with the idea being he would start Job Corps in January. So, here is the wonderful update:
January came and went, with Job Corps not ready to take him. We found out that there were some delays in the system, and that Nick may not even be able to go to Job Corps. After jumping through some hoops and praying a lot, we finally received the call with his departure date. He moved to Clearfield, Utah on April 6th. After the initial things they need to do to get him settled and acclimated, they started working on figuring out how far along he was in High School. They had his transcripts, but they can pass them off by exam on sections of courses. So, they started giving him his tests,and he kept passing them! This went on for several days, until he finished the year's tests. If the student can do this as well as pass the GED, they can get a regular diploma. He then took the GED and passed it in all areas with flying colors! We were flabbergasted! This child, whom I have homeschooled for most of his life, and I *thought* didn't pay attention to anything, actually was paying attention! It feels good to know that, and we are so very proud of him. It was a big confidence booster for Nick as well. The funny thing was that graduation was five days away! Unfortunately, this ultra-short notice meant that no family or friends could make it, but the four of us went up to Clearfield for his graduation on April 22nd. He looked so grown up in his cap and gown, and had a huge smile the entire time!
After graduation, he worked for a few weeks on career preparation. Basically they go through the different careers available and educate them on all aspects of that career. Initially, Nick had chosen Health occupations (CNA), electrician, and computer rebuilding as possibilities. Then he found out about Composites material technician, and got very excited about this career path. It is only open to students who scored high enough on math, which he did. So last week, he started travelling each day to a technology center up near where he is living to train in this field. He has passed off three packets and taken three tests, and has straight As so far!! He is just today beginning the hands-on part of the course. He is so excited about this, and as we listen to him when he calls at the end of the day, it is amazing to listen to this child have so much knowledge and enthusiasm!
He seems to be enjoying life away from home. It appears to be a strict but fun atmosphere, and he has made lots of friends. He is in a dorm with two other young men in his room, and the campus is huge and full of activities. He swims at the pool, and they have stores and a theatre to name a few things. He can stay the weekend or come home Friday evening to Sunday evening. They work through the summer except for a 2-week break in July. We've been really impressed.
We are very pleased and proud. This is certainly a lesson in how things can get better when you think they never will!
January came and went, with Job Corps not ready to take him. We found out that there were some delays in the system, and that Nick may not even be able to go to Job Corps. After jumping through some hoops and praying a lot, we finally received the call with his departure date. He moved to Clearfield, Utah on April 6th. After the initial things they need to do to get him settled and acclimated, they started working on figuring out how far along he was in High School. They had his transcripts, but they can pass them off by exam on sections of courses. So, they started giving him his tests,and he kept passing them! This went on for several days, until he finished the year's tests. If the student can do this as well as pass the GED, they can get a regular diploma. He then took the GED and passed it in all areas with flying colors! We were flabbergasted! This child, whom I have homeschooled for most of his life, and I *thought* didn't pay attention to anything, actually was paying attention! It feels good to know that, and we are so very proud of him. It was a big confidence booster for Nick as well. The funny thing was that graduation was five days away! Unfortunately, this ultra-short notice meant that no family or friends could make it, but the four of us went up to Clearfield for his graduation on April 22nd. He looked so grown up in his cap and gown, and had a huge smile the entire time!
After graduation, he worked for a few weeks on career preparation. Basically they go through the different careers available and educate them on all aspects of that career. Initially, Nick had chosen Health occupations (CNA), electrician, and computer rebuilding as possibilities. Then he found out about Composites material technician, and got very excited about this career path. It is only open to students who scored high enough on math, which he did. So last week, he started travelling each day to a technology center up near where he is living to train in this field. He has passed off three packets and taken three tests, and has straight As so far!! He is just today beginning the hands-on part of the course. He is so excited about this, and as we listen to him when he calls at the end of the day, it is amazing to listen to this child have so much knowledge and enthusiasm!
He seems to be enjoying life away from home. It appears to be a strict but fun atmosphere, and he has made lots of friends. He is in a dorm with two other young men in his room, and the campus is huge and full of activities. He swims at the pool, and they have stores and a theatre to name a few things. He can stay the weekend or come home Friday evening to Sunday evening. They work through the summer except for a 2-week break in July. We've been really impressed.
We are very pleased and proud. This is certainly a lesson in how things can get better when you think they never will!
Friday, August 28, 2009
Schooling
I've homeschooled the kids for 10 years now, since Nick was starting 2nd grade. The only exception was that Alyssa wanted to go to kindergarten, and she did. I won't say it has always been easy, but I wouldn't do it any other way. I can't imagine my kids away from me all day for most of their childhood. We've gone through many different curriculum changes, with most of our years of homeschooling being an eclectic mix of different curriculums. Then, once Nicholas started High School, I realized it was important to us that the kids get a diploma. So, we signed Nick up for Abeka Academy, which was an accredited distance high school. He did that program for a year, and it was really hard on both of us. Then, we heard that Utah was starting their own online program you could get a diploma from, using the K12 curriculum. We started that program last year, and have been pleased. My only complaint would be that it is secular, and I would have preferred something with a religious/Christian theme to it.
This year Nick is in 12th grade. Assuming he finishes his six credits for the year, that put him two credits short. So, he is also doing two credits through Electronic High School online. So, he has a full plate. Alyssa is in her first year of High School through UTVA. She did it last year as well, but the High school program is quite different than the K-8 program. In the High School program, they have a different teacher for each subject, and classes they attend online weekly.
Here is my problem. Chad is in 1st grade and I sent him to public school. This has been eating away at me. We have multiple reasons for Chad being in public school (he also went to Kindergarten, but for some reason that 2 1/2 hours a day did not bother me as much). We have always said that we would evaluate each child and each school year individually and meet those needs, even if it meant public school. First, Chad is so much younger than his siblings, he has no one in the family to play with-Nick and Alyssa had each other. Secondly, my health is not as good as it was with Nick and Alyssa at that age. When they were Chad's age and I was homeschooling them, I was very active in the local homeschool groups and we did co-ops, field trips, outside classes, etc. I don't think I could do half as much with Chad. Thirdly, homeschooling Nick (even with it being an independent program and officially I'm not the teacher) is a big undertaking. He is very off-task, distracted, will not do his assignments, and is very argumentative. Much of this has to do with his medical conditions, and of course some is just being a teenage boy. BUT Chad is a VERY active boy, and with Nick needing to get more than the normal six credits done this year, I feel I need to focus on getting Nick graduated before I can really focus on schooling Chad. Even then, I wonder if homeschooling will be right for him.
In the meantime, I feel awful with Chad gone all day. It just does not feel right, and it bothers me so much. But then there are days when I get so much done while he is gone, that feels great too. Also, when I am having a bad health day or flare-up, it is so much better on my body to be able to take my medicine and go back to bed in the morning after getting Chad off to school. This week was the first week of High School, and I realize it would have been much more stressful with Chad at home. I guess what it comes down to is that I have homeschooled for so long, and have always had my kids home with me, it feels not right for one of my kids to be in public school, almost as if he is not as 'important' to me as the older two, and with him being the adopted one as well, I don't ever want him to think that way. We are doing what we feel is best for him, and he absolutely adores school and his teacher. These early elementary years I really don't worry about the things that bother me about public school-those things mostly happen in later elementary and middle school, when other kids are mean and self-esteem can be so low. Unless my health is really poor by then, I hope to homeschool him in the next few years, but I will try to be true to doing what is best for each child, each year. I must say I am already looking forward to his month of being off-track in October!!
This year Nick is in 12th grade. Assuming he finishes his six credits for the year, that put him two credits short. So, he is also doing two credits through Electronic High School online. So, he has a full plate. Alyssa is in her first year of High School through UTVA. She did it last year as well, but the High school program is quite different than the K-8 program. In the High School program, they have a different teacher for each subject, and classes they attend online weekly.
Here is my problem. Chad is in 1st grade and I sent him to public school. This has been eating away at me. We have multiple reasons for Chad being in public school (he also went to Kindergarten, but for some reason that 2 1/2 hours a day did not bother me as much). We have always said that we would evaluate each child and each school year individually and meet those needs, even if it meant public school. First, Chad is so much younger than his siblings, he has no one in the family to play with-Nick and Alyssa had each other. Secondly, my health is not as good as it was with Nick and Alyssa at that age. When they were Chad's age and I was homeschooling them, I was very active in the local homeschool groups and we did co-ops, field trips, outside classes, etc. I don't think I could do half as much with Chad. Thirdly, homeschooling Nick (even with it being an independent program and officially I'm not the teacher) is a big undertaking. He is very off-task, distracted, will not do his assignments, and is very argumentative. Much of this has to do with his medical conditions, and of course some is just being a teenage boy. BUT Chad is a VERY active boy, and with Nick needing to get more than the normal six credits done this year, I feel I need to focus on getting Nick graduated before I can really focus on schooling Chad. Even then, I wonder if homeschooling will be right for him.
In the meantime, I feel awful with Chad gone all day. It just does not feel right, and it bothers me so much. But then there are days when I get so much done while he is gone, that feels great too. Also, when I am having a bad health day or flare-up, it is so much better on my body to be able to take my medicine and go back to bed in the morning after getting Chad off to school. This week was the first week of High School, and I realize it would have been much more stressful with Chad at home. I guess what it comes down to is that I have homeschooled for so long, and have always had my kids home with me, it feels not right for one of my kids to be in public school, almost as if he is not as 'important' to me as the older two, and with him being the adopted one as well, I don't ever want him to think that way. We are doing what we feel is best for him, and he absolutely adores school and his teacher. These early elementary years I really don't worry about the things that bother me about public school-those things mostly happen in later elementary and middle school, when other kids are mean and self-esteem can be so low. Unless my health is really poor by then, I hope to homeschool him in the next few years, but I will try to be true to doing what is best for each child, each year. I must say I am already looking forward to his month of being off-track in October!!
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Summer Update!
I can't believe how this summer has been flying by! Since my last post was over a month ago, I figure its time to get caught up. I'm going to do a few specific posts to follow up on previous ones, but this is just a general rambling first.
The past month and a half have been kind of crazy. Our oldest has had a rough time, losing his job and just not doing well medically/emotionally in general. Right now we are trying to find a program at the U of U Neuropsychiatric Institute that may be a better fit than what we've been doing for many years, which is meds with counseling. We are just waiting for an opening for an assessment. He also was supposed to be taking two credits this summer through electronic high school, yet they decided to revamp their system at the beginning of summer break, and we just now were able to put in course requests.
Alyssa hasn't been too busy-an overnight yurt/boating trip with youth group (Nick did this as well), some babysitting, a few dance classes, and hanging out with friends. The lucky girl is leaving for 10 days in San Diego with her grandparents soon!
Chad is already back in school! He started 1st grade July 27th.(The older kids don't start until the last week of August) Hmmm....maybe there is some connection between my last post being near his last day of school and this post just after he went back......Anyway, I'm having a bit of a rough time with it, it goes against all my homeschooling spirit to send him to 1st grade for SEVEN hours a day! We've always said that we would treat each child and each school year individually and do what is best for the child/year. Well, for Chad, who has no siblings anywhere near his age and is very social, this should be the right thing. Also, it is Nick's senior year and he needs a lot of help-there is a lot riding on getting a diploma, and school is tough for him. Already, although he has been tired, Chad is loving his class (lots of kindergarten friends in it), and his teacher seems great-a man teacher this year! It just seems that the summer was SO short for him, and we never had time to take any quick trips or anything. Maybe in October when he has his first track break for the month. Chad's short summer break was fun for him-mostly riding his new big bike, playing in the sprinklers, and playing with neighborhood friends. We did squeeze in two sessions of swim lessons, VBS, and a day camp for a few days at the dance studio, where he learned some clogging and tumbling.
My health has been kind of up and down during this time. Some flares and some days of feeling well. I'll do a separate post soon on the latest developments.
Our family did have a nice Saturday hike up to Donut Falls in big Cottonwood Canyon a few weeks ago. It was a harder hike than we thought it would be, but the waterfall was really worth getting to. We brought a picnic lunch and enjoyed the cooler temps and cold creek water!
Hot-our house! Our A/C broke at the beginning of summer, and even though we kept our home warranty, a lot of what needs to be done is our responsibility, and we are considering not fixing it at all. Way too much money. We have a portable swamp cooler that helps, but with our floor-to-ceiling west-facing windows in our great room and super-high ceilings, most days our main floor is between 90-100 degrees by afternoon, only dropping down by late evening. Our basement seems to be somewhat cooler. Needless to say, we are eating simple, microwavable and crock pot dinners instead of using the oven or stove.
Coming up, I'm planning on posting an H1N1 update, and a sleep apnea one as well.
The past month and a half have been kind of crazy. Our oldest has had a rough time, losing his job and just not doing well medically/emotionally in general. Right now we are trying to find a program at the U of U Neuropsychiatric Institute that may be a better fit than what we've been doing for many years, which is meds with counseling. We are just waiting for an opening for an assessment. He also was supposed to be taking two credits this summer through electronic high school, yet they decided to revamp their system at the beginning of summer break, and we just now were able to put in course requests.
Alyssa hasn't been too busy-an overnight yurt/boating trip with youth group (Nick did this as well), some babysitting, a few dance classes, and hanging out with friends. The lucky girl is leaving for 10 days in San Diego with her grandparents soon!
Chad is already back in school! He started 1st grade July 27th.(The older kids don't start until the last week of August) Hmmm....maybe there is some connection between my last post being near his last day of school and this post just after he went back......Anyway, I'm having a bit of a rough time with it, it goes against all my homeschooling spirit to send him to 1st grade for SEVEN hours a day! We've always said that we would treat each child and each school year individually and do what is best for the child/year. Well, for Chad, who has no siblings anywhere near his age and is very social, this should be the right thing. Also, it is Nick's senior year and he needs a lot of help-there is a lot riding on getting a diploma, and school is tough for him. Already, although he has been tired, Chad is loving his class (lots of kindergarten friends in it), and his teacher seems great-a man teacher this year! It just seems that the summer was SO short for him, and we never had time to take any quick trips or anything. Maybe in October when he has his first track break for the month. Chad's short summer break was fun for him-mostly riding his new big bike, playing in the sprinklers, and playing with neighborhood friends. We did squeeze in two sessions of swim lessons, VBS, and a day camp for a few days at the dance studio, where he learned some clogging and tumbling.
My health has been kind of up and down during this time. Some flares and some days of feeling well. I'll do a separate post soon on the latest developments.
Our family did have a nice Saturday hike up to Donut Falls in big Cottonwood Canyon a few weeks ago. It was a harder hike than we thought it would be, but the waterfall was really worth getting to. We brought a picnic lunch and enjoyed the cooler temps and cold creek water!
Hot-our house! Our A/C broke at the beginning of summer, and even though we kept our home warranty, a lot of what needs to be done is our responsibility, and we are considering not fixing it at all. Way too much money. We have a portable swamp cooler that helps, but with our floor-to-ceiling west-facing windows in our great room and super-high ceilings, most days our main floor is between 90-100 degrees by afternoon, only dropping down by late evening. Our basement seems to be somewhat cooler. Needless to say, we are eating simple, microwavable and crock pot dinners instead of using the oven or stove.
Coming up, I'm planning on posting an H1N1 update, and a sleep apnea one as well.
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