Ten. . .this is my tenth year of homeschooling the kids. Really? (counts on fingers) Yes, really. Drama Boy started kindergarten in September 2001. It really seems like it was just yesterday, when I was full of questions for others. . .now I am sometimes the one being asked questions. Funny how that works.
Anyhow, after Matins I decided to start the school year off by taking a picture of all the kids. Easier said than done.
Wait, someone’s missing!
Ah, there’s Twirly Girl–and George.
But she doesn’t look very happy.
Bouncy Boy has enough smile to spare. . .
Quick! (Don’t) look at Baby Boy!
Hmmm. . .nope, that’s all for today, folks.
In fact, measuring and weighing all the kids was easier than taking a picture. . .ah well! They all continue to grow by inches and ounces. . .Twirly Girl now weighs the same as Boy Genius and is closing the height gap at only 3/4″ shorter–but Drama Boy is a full foot taller than his sister.
But back to the first day of school. I’ve learned over the years not to jump back into school with both feet, but rather to start with select subjects and add the rest next week (or the week after). This year I decided to begin with math, history, probably science, and reading for the little boys/writing for the big kids. We’re also continuing our poetry memorization, so that was our first order of business this morning. After that I worked on history with the middle four kids (that would be grades 1, 3, 6, & 7). We like to supplement Story of the World with the blackline maps from Knowledge Quest and while I debated whether or not to buy the “new” version (we already owned the “old” version) I’m glad I did. They’re much more user friendly, especially for teaching multiple grade levels. Today we worked on a world map, and while Bouncy and Silly Boys labeled continents and major oceans, Boy Genius and Twirly Girl labeled those plus many seas and mountain ranges. Good thing we finally got wall maps for this house because I had never heard of a few of those seas!
Since I wrote for Silly Boy, he was done first and so we quickly did his reading lesson for the day. In between and around doing math lessons, I also handed the kids the directions for making a salt dough map. I’m not usually one for messy school projects, but I figured it was a good way to get the kids excited on their first day. . .
After lunch (which included cake–in recent years that’s been a first day of school treat here), I sat down with Boy Genius and Twirly Girl to start on their first writing assignment.
You might notice I haven’t mentioned Drama Boy much. Most of his work is now independent, something that will require adjustments for both of us. I plan to meet with him on Fridays to discuss what he’s done and learned that week, but I imagine it will take a few weeks before he starts to learn to pace himself (and for me to break the habit of nagging checking on him every day).
Once again, I forgot to take a picture of the measuring process. Many years ago, Dad marked off a 2×4 in one foot increments and that is where we make our pencil marks. It’s a little less handy than the kitchen wall, but it’s far more portable (and parsonage friendly 
)!
