8th Grade Update
I'm happy to say this year is going well so far. Kara feels empowered when I give her work to do independently. She has decided to do the Bible History and the Middle Ages History on her own, late at night when her brain is alive and buzzing. She also does Writing then. So, our school day looks like this:
5 minutes of Proverbs Kara does to warm up for the day and get in the Word.
1 hour of Algebra with me. Yes, this is hard. Yes, we have to do one lesson over two days at least once a chapter. She is learning very difficult material here, so we go at her pace. The point is that she learns it, not that we finish in 12 months.
After math, Kara feels the rest of her day is a breeze. She gets right into her Spanish videos and spends about 30 minutes on that work. She got 100% on her first quiz, but in all fairness, it is review.
Science is done whenever she wants - usually alone. We will do labs together.
The rest she does alone!
So, I check in with her about each subject every day, but I am letting her guide how much she wants to take on her own and how much work she wants to do each day. For example, Monday she didn't have anything to do besides school, but Tuesday we had lunch plans, then horse lessons, then she went to my sister's house for dinner. So, she decided to do Tuesday's Spanish, Bible History, Middle Ages History, and Writing on Monday. Wow! She impresses me. I hope she keeps this up.
Even just a year ago, I could not see how she could be this independent. Just like teaching your kid to ride a bike, you have to TEACH your kid to be more independent. This doesn't come naturally. (Yes, some kids are born independent, but Kara wasn't!) So, like teaching to ride a bike, you have to let go and know they may fall. They probably will. So, you stand close, watch eagerly, and pick them up when they fall. After you kiss their boo-boos, you work to give them the confidence to get back out there and try again. It's the same way with teaching independence with school. Sometimes she wipes out, but I am there to help get her back on her feet again.
I'm still so excited about 8th grade. I'm still having so much fun.
* Side note: I have a close friend who is praying about homeschooling her children right now. Please pray for her decision - she wholeheartedly wants to do whatever God's will is. If she does decide, I will be her homeschool mentor, which thrills me to no end. :-)
5 minutes of Proverbs Kara does to warm up for the day and get in the Word.
1 hour of Algebra with me. Yes, this is hard. Yes, we have to do one lesson over two days at least once a chapter. She is learning very difficult material here, so we go at her pace. The point is that she learns it, not that we finish in 12 months.
After math, Kara feels the rest of her day is a breeze. She gets right into her Spanish videos and spends about 30 minutes on that work. She got 100% on her first quiz, but in all fairness, it is review.
Science is done whenever she wants - usually alone. We will do labs together.
The rest she does alone!
So, I check in with her about each subject every day, but I am letting her guide how much she wants to take on her own and how much work she wants to do each day. For example, Monday she didn't have anything to do besides school, but Tuesday we had lunch plans, then horse lessons, then she went to my sister's house for dinner. So, she decided to do Tuesday's Spanish, Bible History, Middle Ages History, and Writing on Monday. Wow! She impresses me. I hope she keeps this up.
Even just a year ago, I could not see how she could be this independent. Just like teaching your kid to ride a bike, you have to TEACH your kid to be more independent. This doesn't come naturally. (Yes, some kids are born independent, but Kara wasn't!) So, like teaching to ride a bike, you have to let go and know they may fall. They probably will. So, you stand close, watch eagerly, and pick them up when they fall. After you kiss their boo-boos, you work to give them the confidence to get back out there and try again. It's the same way with teaching independence with school. Sometimes she wipes out, but I am there to help get her back on her feet again.
I'm still so excited about 8th grade. I'm still having so much fun.
* Side note: I have a close friend who is praying about homeschooling her children right now. Please pray for her decision - she wholeheartedly wants to do whatever God's will is. If she does decide, I will be her homeschool mentor, which thrills me to no end. :-)
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