We interrupt this program for a homeschool update...

I am nearing the end of this little homeschool saga and thinking about how it will be nice to get back to blogging about other things. Funny how I don't seem to have the mental energy to do more than edit and post a chapter at a time, and sometimes it's days between those. Still, for the few who are reading and wondering how it'll end, I will stick it out and finish up! 

They say a snowstorm is on the way tonight, and because snow is somewhat rare where we live in North Carolina, all of our activities have been canceled for the time being. Jokes about the "snowapocalypse" and panicky people at the stores buying bread and milk aside, it's giving me a little bit of a much needed breather.

Somehow, we will make it through the next few months and then I am looking forward to re-thinking a great many things. Until then, I am organizing and planning a Geography Fair for our homeschool group...  as I have for the past few years. There are also birthdays coming up and a big party for my daughter... her Bat Mitzvah. For those that aren't in the know about these Jewish things, it's a right of passage for children turning thirteen. Up until recently, only boys went through this, but now girls do as well in the less conservative communities. In preparation, my daughter has been learning Hebrew, chanting, and Jewish history and customs. She doesn't buy into all of it, and it's been somewhat difficult for me, as I am not Jewish myself. Still, it's a part of her heritage and she chose to learn about that and so I have been trying to support her. There will be a service in which she leads the singing and prayers, and friends and family are expected to come from far and wide to be there. Even trying to keep it small, we are looking at a whole lot of people to celebrate with.

Homeschooling wise, we are distracted from any consistent learning at home by several things. A weekly theatrical performance with a local community theatre is one of them. Both of my kids are in this, and they travel around and do a play for various track-out camps and daycares each week. This is currently taking up our Thursdays.

My daughter is also taking the ACT for the first time in a couple of weeks. I am alternatively freaking out about how unprepared she is and deciding that it doesn't matter too much. She is, after all, taking it early and will have additional opportunities to improve her scores. I hate these tests. She hates these tests. We are having discussions about how stupid it is to have so much riding on a test that doesn't really measure what you know, and yet it must be done. You have to bow to the system sometimes, especially if you are collage bound. 

Finally, she is also supposed to be getting ready for the Science Olympiad, while my son is working with his team on Odyssey of the Mind problems. Both of these events are very worth while, but can also be very time consuming. Odyssey of the Mind is an event that strongly stresses teamwork, creativity, and an ability to think quickly on your feet. These are skills in high demand in the work force and largely lacking in the way we school our kids. The hardest part about this so far is seeing the team try to figure out how to work together harmoniously and come up with solutions without stepping in. The kids are supposed to do everything from coming up with their ideas to implementing them without much adult help. As a parent, it's so hard not to say anything when you are listening to a debate on how they will build something and seeing that they are stuck.  All these ideas are coming into your own head that would solve the problem but you can't say anything. They are working through it, and it's been a tremendous growing experience for my son. As frustrating as the beginning of this year was for him, it is already very much worth the effort. 

Science Olympiad is a bit more academic and science oriented. Kids can compete at Elementary, Middle School or High School levels. Teams are formed, and kids break up into smaller teams where each child will take on 1-4 events out of 20 or so, often pairing up with one or two others. My daughter is only doing two events this year. The first is academic. It's called "Water Quality", and the information she needs to know to compete in this amounts to a college level marine science course. The second event she is doing is more fun. It's called "Duct Tape Challenge". The idea is that the kids will be given a task to complete in a limited amount of time and they will have to build something with duct tape and get scored on it. An example is to build the highest tower possible to hold a golf ball, and you are given duct tape, a cup, some straws, a ball, and twenty minutes. There are other events like building a rocket, building an instrument, or learning about maps or other things like insects or diseases.

These kinds of project-oriented activities are really valuable, but I am finding that we are having issues with time management. I feel like we have lost our focus and balance as a family. When the kids were younger, I was perfectly happy to just jump rather randomly from opportunity to opportunity. I never really had a plan, but somehow we covered a great deal of ground, and the kids racked up a huge store of positive and informative experiences. 

Somehow, the yearly testing just worked out. We covered the basic material, but not always on a plan and not always in any sort of traditional way. Now that I've got one child poised for high school and one about to enter middle school, I'm getting that feeling that maybe a larger plan would be a good idea. The math, writing and science need a little more focus, among other things. I've had "plans" of course. Every summer I come up with a plan. I always seem to chuck it in the trash though. Opportunities come up and it all seems so much better than the book I bought.

Well, time for that will come. For now, we will continue with the commitments we made and do the best we can. If I survive to the summer, I'll breathe a big sigh of relief and re-evaluate and regroup.

Anyway, I guess this is getting a bit long. Here's the thing to remember. As long as your kids are happy and healthy and still look on learning as a good thing, everything will work out in the end. I have to remind myself of this often. Be a mom, not just a schoolmarm.



For those on the East coast especially in this storm, here's to toasty feet and warm hugs, sledding and cocoa mugs.

... and now we will return to our regularly scheduled program.