Homeschool... Already more than a month in!!

I have been meaning to write something about our homeschool time, as it is a big part of our daily life.  The boys are so much fun, which is part of the reason I have wanted to homeschool.  They keep me laughing and I love watching them learn.  They have very different personalities, so that is teaching me a lot right there.  I don't know how public school teachers work with some many different little people in their charge at one time!!

The nice thing is that we have lots of time and one teacher for only two students.  Our day can start whenever we want, although, I find the earlier in the day, the better off and more focused we are.  That gives us maximum time to get through all that we might have to and want to do that day.

First day of school in the new house.  Jackson was studying how to compare how much things weigh, so we made our own "scale" our of a hanger.  Then, we attached the things we wanted to weigh to either side using string.  A little more work than if you had a readily available scale, but the boys had fun and wanted to weigh things all day:)

We made these letter cards using white beans last year to help Max with his letters and fine motor skills.  Trace the letter in glue onto a dark colored cardstock and then have them put the beans along the glue.  This year, we are using the cards for him to make small phonetic words:  cat, pan, bat, bed, etc...  

Jackson surprised me when he came down the stairs shouting, "I can tie my own shoes!!!"  On the first day of school, he mastered a skill we have been sporadically working on for at least a few months.  

Jackson is working on 1st Grade this year, although I think he will finish the actual curriculum pieces I have gotten for him early.  I was on the fence about what I wanted to do with Max.  I had to register Jackson for 1st Grade through the local public school and I hesitated to register Max for kindergarten, in case I wanted to make the year very easy and work on kindergarten stuff next year.  However, I am finding that he is picking up on things faster than I thought he might and I might regret not just going ahead and making it official.  I decided to make it official this week by putting in the form through the school.  After all, we do have a whole year to work and he is definitely capable of at least being close to reading by the end of the year.  Handwriting is what is frustrating for him, but I think it has to do with his size and hand muscle strength more than anything, so time is what we will give him:)

Both the boys LOVE to craft, although I still usually end up finishing for Max whatever it was we were working on, lol.  This is a challenge, even for a scrapbooking person like me.  Arranging something they will both enjoy and is not an over the top amount of work for me takes some planning and searching.

This was the beginning of an easy fall craft I found.  It involved painting, which both boys like.  You print out some leaves and paint.  Then glue them onto a pinwheel thing you also paint.  See below for finished project.  At this moment, I would have to go back and look through some sites to find the right link.  We will see if I actually do that, lol. 

Play doh day!!  And this was Jackson's "setup," which is his lingo for "all the stuff he created."

Finished fall leaf craft, which we hung from the ceiling.

My sister told me there is a lot she feels like I am leaving out, lol.  Of course, that happens when you don't write about these things until days or weeks after they happen.  I hope to be thorough, but if there is something you want to know, by all means, shoot me an email or leave me a comment!!