Mandylubug Posted August 21, 2013 Share Posted August 21, 2013 We are in the middle of our 2nd full week. We took a few days off last week for bdays.. Anyway, I can say, we are finally getting our stride back! Kids are clearing out the brain fog and actually progressing forward again. Woo hoo!! How is it going for everyone else? Starting to feel like you are falling back into the swing of things? We light-schooled this summer which was actually only about two or three days every other week or so for about two months, lol so it has felt like we were fully off for the entire summer. I may pull this kind of fire drill tomorrow just for fun :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lorisuewho Posted August 21, 2013 Share Posted August 21, 2013 So far so good. I'm really happy with the curriculum choices for this school year. This is our third year and I feel a little more confident and I definitely feel like I have a better grasp on where we are and where I want us to go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BakersDozen Posted August 21, 2013 Share Posted August 21, 2013 Wonderfully! For the first time ever I scheduled things right the first time so didn't have to adjust our routine. Everyone is doing very well, things are running smoothly...I even get a nap some days! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SemiSweet Posted August 21, 2013 Share Posted August 21, 2013 This is our third week, but we schooled on and off through the summer. The first week was miserable with dd having full on meltdowns almost every single day, but last week and this week have been very pleasant, we seem to have worked out a good schedule and the kids are really enjoying the new unit study approach to history (and later science as we will be block scheduling) as opposed to just plodding along through SOTW 1. We are finishing at a reasonable time every day and most days we even have coffee/tea/cocoa and breakfast on our lanai and just hang out and enjoy each other before we start our day. I am loving this. I have not enjoyed my kids' company so much in a long time, they are fighting and less and are currently upstairs making a fort in ds room to sleep in tonight. :001_wub: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KarenNC Posted August 21, 2013 Share Posted August 21, 2013 We go year round but I just discovered I bought the wrong edition of the math textbook for the next level! Aaack! And a portion of the science materials had to be returned and reordered......sigh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mandylubug Posted August 21, 2013 Author Share Posted August 21, 2013 This is our third week, but we schooled on and off through the summer. The first week was miserable with dd having full on meltdowns almost every single day, but last week and this week have been very pleasant, we seem to have worked out a good schedule and the kids are really enjoying the new unit study approach to history (and later science as we will be block scheduling) as opposed to just plodding along through SOTW 1. We are finishing at a reasonable time every day and most days we even have coffee/tea/cocoa and breakfast on our lanai and just hang out and enjoy each other before we start our day. I am loving this. I have not enjoyed my kids' company so much in a long time, they are fighting and less and are currently upstairs making a fort in ds room to sleep in tonight. :001_wub: our first day of this school year was crazy and met with meltdowns as well. I had let them have more screen time with the xbox during the summer and WOW it was not pretty cutting it back. During a school day, I won't allow any electronics till 5pm, even if they finish early.. So, it was definitely a lifestyle change for all of them, lol! Your coffee on the lanai sounds lovely! We truly enjoyed those kind of times in AZ where there was no humidity. We are in GA now, so I will get to enjoy those this fall! I am counting down! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mandylubug Posted August 21, 2013 Author Share Posted August 21, 2013 We go year round but I just discovered I bought the wrong edition of the math textbook for the next level! Aaack! And a portion of the science materials had to be returned and reordered......sigh. eek, I hope they arrive in time! I just noticed I only have 8 more lessons of AAR1 before I need the next level. We've been taking it SUPER slow. I'm hoping we have the funding to purchase the next level next week. We have co-op courses to pay as well coming up! I should have planned better! I suppose if I don't have enough money, I can review reading materials for two weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wingedradical Posted August 21, 2013 Share Posted August 21, 2013 It's going well. We are in middle of second week. We are enjoying our curriculum choices so far. We did have an empty vile when we went to do our first Spectrum science experiment. They said it evaporated and offered to fast ship one. DD is taking a music class at the CC and that is going well, too. We decided to wait for spring semester for her to take calculus there because the class we wanted was filled. So...no math! Well, except that chemistry is full of it but it's easy peasy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8filltheheart Posted August 21, 2013 Share Posted August 21, 2013 Well, our day today at least went better than Gregor Samsa's! (that's a literary allusion if you don't know who that is. ;) ) We had multiple interruptions which we couldn't control and it totally threw off our schedule. But.....it definitely could have been worse! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wingedradical Posted August 21, 2013 Share Posted August 21, 2013 Well, our day today at least went better than Gregor Samsa's morning! (that's a literary allusion if you don't know who that is. ;) ) We had multiple interruptions which we couldn't control and it totally threw off our schedule. But.....it definitely could have been worse! Okay, I confess I had to look it up but I have read it - just didn't remember the name. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katilac Posted August 21, 2013 Share Posted August 21, 2013 Okay, I confess I had to look it up but I have read it - just didn't remember the name. Understandable, as most people just refer to him as the cockroach dude. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SunshineMom Posted August 21, 2013 Share Posted August 21, 2013 So far so good, however I haven't been able to find enough space for all my new books. We usually take a beginning of the year photo but haven't gotten around to it yet. Wish everyone a great year!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freeindeed Posted August 21, 2013 Share Posted August 21, 2013 Last week was our first week back, and it was great. So far this week has been awful: attitudes all over the place. Really hoping for a good day tomorrow. The kids have dentist appointments in the morning, and we'll be schooling again tomorrow afternoon. I am praying that this week ends better than it started! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8filltheheart Posted August 21, 2013 Share Posted August 21, 2013 Okay, I confess I had to look it up but I have read it - just didn't remember the name. Understandable, as most people just refer to him as the cockroach dude. LOL! I had to look up his name, too. I have felt like a slug most of the day and in a bad mood to boot. He was the mental image that came to mind. ;) I shouldn't complain, though. This is our 4th week and we have only had a couple of days that haven't been good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heidi Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 I'm on week 5 and everything is going fan-freakin'-tastic! I finally got the kinks worked out in our schedule and curriculum during weeks 2 & 3 and it is all working very nicely now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK_Mom4 Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 We started today. The academics went great, but the rest - Aye Aye Aye! Got caught in two miserable traffic jams because first I forgot what traffic was like dropping off at the jr high in the morning (DD's band class) and second because I forgot how bad the traffic was when picking up from the high school (DS's Calc class). Between traffic and juggling chauffer duties (the car DS drives is in the shop so we are sharing), I'm totally beat. Sigh..... sometimes I wish homeschooling meant actually STAYING at home! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 We are on week 1 and things are going well. We are moving a little more slowly than om suggests but we will catch up over the next two weeks or so. Tabletclass is challenging but well done. Their chemistry class (outsourced)is very good. We havent begun languages. All in all, a good start. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
athomeontheprairie Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 So far so good. I'm really happy with the curriculum choices for this school year. This is our third year and I feel a little more confident and I definitely feel like I have a better grasp on where we are and where I want us to go. This! Except it is our forth year. this is week 5 for us, and things are going well. I wish we had more structure as far as what order we do subjects in ( we do reading and math during my youngests nap time, other subjects happen in whatever order they happen), but all of the bases are being covered so I can't really complain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
threedogfarm Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 We have really increased our academic load this year and working longer. After a shaky first couple of days, we're in a great groove now (week 3). I've introduced independent work and the kids are really, really enjoying that. And typing. . .who knew that typing on a MANUAL typewriter would be such a draw for the kids? Then again, they are typing on an Olivetti Lettera 32 so maybe that explains it. And I absolutely love the idea of "Room time" after we finish school which is usually after a late lunch. Wow, JW and SWB really knew what they were talking about when they suggested this (they called it "Rest Time" though). It was a tough sell at first but I stuck to my guns (we never did it before so there was some resistance). Now we all look forward to it. As my son put it, "I know I can do what I want (read, draw, etc.) and I won't be interrupted." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twilight Woods Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 Our first full blown year of HS.....Week 3 of 2nd grade here. We made some changes early on that seem to be working better for DD. This week I have definitely seen an improvement in her willingness to do work. YAY! She is still anti-writing but is getting a little better with it if I alternate writing for her. We are still working through a medication adjustment. I am hoping in another week or so she wont be so tired in the morning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mandylubug Posted August 22, 2013 Author Share Posted August 22, 2013 Last week was our first week back, and it was great. So far this week has been awful: attitudes all over the place. Really hoping for a good day tomorrow. The kids have dentist appointments in the morning, and we'll be schooling again tomorrow afternoon. I am praying that this week ends better than it started! I'd be tempted to ask the dentist or hygienist to give a little "lesson" on dental health or the anatomy of the tooth to go above and beyond the typical appointment conversation and then call it a health and fitness fieldtrip ;) and call it a day tomorrow ha ha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwickimom Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 Day 1 started well on Monday until about 11 am when my ds5 threw up all.over.the.place. Thankfully it was just the once and the rest of the week has been good. We are loving our curriculum and have good attitudes so far. But it's week 1 so we'll see. My dd10 left me a sticky on my computer today saying "I love you mom but I hate school" lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prairiegirl Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 We are on week 3 and are having a great time. We had a few bumps with the oldest as she started high school this year and we had to move things around schedule-wise so she wasn't doing school all day and night. We have things fixed now and are enjoying our time together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SemiSweet Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 our first day of this school year was crazy and met with meltdowns as well. I had let them have more screen time with the xbox during the summer and WOW it was not pretty cutting it back. During a school day, I won't allow any electronics till 5pm, even if they finish early.. So, it was definitely a lifestyle change for all of them, lol! Your coffee on the lanai sounds lovely! We truly enjoyed those kind of times in AZ where there was no humidity. We are in GA now, so I will get to enjoy those this fall! I am counting down! Yeah, we've only been in Hawaii for 8 months and I'm really a season person, but I do enjoy having nice enough weather to get out pretty much any time we want. We were in GA/SC a couple years ago and there are definitely days you can't just hang out outside, so humid! We don't usually allow electronics until after dinner AND baths with occasional exceptions, that seems to work fairly well for us. I think dd behavior problems the first week had to do with dh leaving for a month the weekend before we started. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommy22alyns Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 Kind of rough. We're on our second week right now and yesterday was hectic, so we didn't get to everything, which makes me hyperventilate. Today was crazy too, so hopefully tomorrow will be more calm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamajag Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 We've done 3 partial weeks with going to get DH and now our trip to New Orleans. The day is longer, but we are enjoying K12 and being able to focus on our work without the planning. They are learning things I'd never thought them capable of, so maybe I was underestimating them quite a bit. Spanish is a particularly big hit around here. Oldest DD had a hard time getting place value to the millions. I don't know why. I taught and retaught and taught again, but finally DH stepped in one day and had her understanding it in 15 minutes. :confused1: Youngest DD has figured out (finally!) that if she just sits down and works, the day goes by faster. She zips right through and is happy when the day is over. She told me she's not in "baby" school any more. To her, that's what all the WTM stuff I was doing felt like. DS is doing okay. I have to hold the read alouds until last or he won't do handwriting or phonics with me. Read aloud time is his favorite. Our schedule is getting worked out slowly but surely. Oldest DD starts with math while I work with Claudia on classes she needs me for, and then we switch off. DS gets one on one time in the afternoon which is fine because he takes maybe an hour with K. I could squeeze him in, but he gets frustrated by getting interrupted so we totally work one on one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dustybug Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 This is our third week. We are getting into stride, however I am due with a baby today. lol He'll be born at any time now and we'll be taking at least a few weeks off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alicai Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 Last week was our first week back, and it was great. So far this week has been awful: attitudes all over the place. Really hoping for a good day tomorrow. The kids have dentist appointments in the morning, and we'll be schooling again tomorrow afternoon. I am praying that this week ends better than it started! This was us. First week went great, couldn't have gone better, second week not so much. Hoping for an upswing next week. I am happy with our curriculum choices and we have a lot of curriculum this year so that's saying something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SorrelZG Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 I am four or five weeks in and still feel like I'm warming up. There are continual disruptions to the schedule so I'm working hard to focus on taking it one day at a time, do the next thing, keep putting one foot in front of the other, ... you get the drift. Aside from that, all is well. I am extremely happy with the choices made for this year but I don't feel like I can attribute it to my growing experiential knowledge since I had an existential crises over almost every subject before actually finalizing the choices for this year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abacus2 Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 Academically we are in great shape in the middle of our 4th week. Now the anaphylactic wasp sting reaction in my oldest requiring calling 911 on the third day was not welcome, however. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freerange Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 We' on our 4th week, and it's going pretty well. My only real problem is not being able to find the Elmwood Press maths text that I planned to use, so whilst I'm continuing to hunt for it we're using MEP. DD2 is using an iPad mini to type everything, or write on PDFs and that is proving to be a fantastic investment. I'm trying out 6 weeks on, 1 off this year and although everything is going smoothly I'm also looking forward to that time off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melenie Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 This is our first week back after 4 weeks of vacation and it is going very well. I find our days are running long, but I expected that they would. We have a new reward system and it seems to be motivating them to get their work done without complaints. Honestly, I expect this all to turn around in a few weeks when they get bored of it all, but so far we have had a great week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoot Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 So far, everything is going really, really well. (knocking on wood and crossing all appendages). The schedule is working out beautifully and DS has been getting up and getting ready to go by 7am every morning. I'm pleased with all of our curriculum choices so far with the exception of OM English 9, and so is DS. However, I'm noticing that the teen puberty brain fog is here in full force. Yesterday, DS couldn't remember how to do long division. Today, he couldn't remember how to multiply. :eek: This is going to be a long year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Down_the_Rabbit_Hole Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 We have 6 weeks under our belts so took this week off. It has been going smoothly but during this off week I plan on making some changes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murphy101 Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 Week 3 here. Blogging along the way if you want to know. It's going okay. Mostly good so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daffodil Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 I'm counting this as our third week. Technically we schooled through the summer, but we celebrated Aug. 5 as our first day, and I've made a few changes to our schedule. One of those was cutting back on outside activities. Right now we're "just" doing gymnastics, art class, swimming, and church, so we have three days with nothing scheduled, which is a nice break after our hectic summer! Academically, things are off to a good start. My girls love to learn and are especially thrilled to be starting Song School Latin. Mr. Penderwick (from our summer read-alouds) has them begging to learn Latin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KarenNC Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 eek, I hope they arrive in time! I just noticed I only have 8 more lessons of AAR1 before I need the next level. We've been taking it SUPER slow. I'm hoping we have the funding to purchase the next level next week. We have co-op courses to pay as well coming up! I should have planned better! I suppose if I don't have enough money, I can review reading materials for two weeks. It'll be fine, but it is an irritating bump in the planning. We're edging slowly into fall mode. We're finishing up stuff from summer this week and starting a little of the fall home-based work. One outside class starts next week, two the following, then we add in two more and two clubs in three weeks. We never get really settled into a routine until some time in October. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erin Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 Buck is still on fire for school! Well, OK, maybe not on fire, but not plodding, either... It'll be a few more weeks of this before we begin the wailing and gnashing of teeth when we sit down for the school day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mandy in TN Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 We are on day 4 of week 4 of Doodle's official 2013-2014 school year. However, we do school-lite during the summer and we haven't started Write at Home composition (next week) or his new math text (week of Labor Day). So far, so good- Mandy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheApprentice Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 We are finishing our 3rd week, and while we have found our stride with the new curriculum, my middle ds is having the toughest time. Nothing will be changed, he just needs to get used the the work load expected of an "8th" grader. My younger ds is loving Beautiful Feet's Geography, but just so-so on Elemental Science - Physics (loves the activities, hates the narrations/summaries). Older ds is really enjoying Japanese 1 the best. I would say the best part is that my younger two are becoming more independent in their work. So far, so good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sherry in OH Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 Overall, lessons are going well. Giving ds1 a long break from writing was a mistake. He remembers how to write, but his stamina has suffered. The boys decided they want to do seatwork separately. I work with ds2 while ds1 has a break, then they switch. This is working well although I had to stipulate that the child I am not working with either leaves the room or does something quiet and non-distracting. Thus far most of our curriculum choices seem to be a good fit. The only change I’ve made is that ds2 will be continuing with printing rather than learning cursive alongside his brother. He hadn’t finished last year’s printing book, so we are using that for now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lea1 Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 I think we are finishing up our first month this week. The first couple of weeks were pretty rough because one of my sons can be quite difficult at times. This past week has been our very best week of homeschooling since we began K (we are half way through 2nd grade now). What a difference! Homeschooling is so much more enjoyable when the children are participating nicely:). I hope we can keep it up. In case you are wondering what made the difference, I think it was a couple of things. First, I made up a daily checklist of things we have to get done each day. I divided the subjects into the following categories: * Prepare for the day - includes making bed, tidying room, getting dressed, eating, brushing teeth and hair, * Start our day with a prayer (I'm ashamed to admit that if it is not on my list, I frequently forget about it), * Subjects we all do together - includes Grammar, Spelling, History/Science(2 days each) and Memory Work, * Subjects they do individually with Mom - includes Math, Writing and Read-aloud to Mom, * Subjects they do independently - includes cursive practice, typing, piano, fun 30 minute read-to-self. This list has made a huge difference in our day. They understand what has to get done before we are finished for the day and they have some control over the order in which they do things. I try to get the things that we all do together done first and then they can pretty much arrange their day as they see fit. This has been an amazing home run here, for all of us. The other thing that has made a huge difference is that I am getting up just a little earlier so I can be done eating before they are ready to eat. They will normally play for a little while but I manage things such that, when they are ready to eat, I am ready to start school. I am usually able to read our grammar lesson to them while they eat and they repeat back the memory portions of the lesson between bites. They are finished eating by the time we are ready to start the written part of the lesson. As soon as we finish grammar, we move on to spelling, which is also normally pretty fast. So we have been able to get grammar and spelling finished sometimes before 9:00, which is amazing for us. We had been starting our school day at 9:00 in the past. After grammar and spelling we move right into history/science and memory work. By the time we are finished with all of the subjects we do together, it is snack time and they may be ready for a short break. But much of the time they are just ready to jump into math, writing or something they can do independently. I think they really like the sense of freedom they have with ordering their subjects after we finish our lessons we all do together. The last thing that I changed that has made a big difference is we are now doing our Bible/character study before bedtime. This is when I am also reading aloud our fun classics (fictional literature), although I still read aloud during our school day for history and science. I can't tell you what a difference these seemingly small changes has made to our day. I have one child who has always had a big temper problem and it has been so disruptive. These changes (and lots of prayer) seem to have really made a difference to him. He actually told me today that he is starting to like school now. That is nice to hear. I wanted to share this in hopes that it might help someone else out there who struggles with melt-downs and getting done at a decent time. I think getting two quick subjects (grammar and spelling) out of the way right off the bat in the morning has made a big difference because it makes us all feel that we are 'ahead' or moving along very quickly in our day and gives us all hope that we will finish at a decent time. Now I just have to figure out how to fit Latin in our schedule in January! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delirium Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 It's only our first week, but we're doing well. yay! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hands-on-mama Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 eek, I hope they arrive in time! I just noticed I only have 8 more lessons of AAR1 before I need the next level. We've been taking it SUPER slow. I'm hoping we have the funding to purchase the next level next week. We have co-op courses to pay as well coming up! I should have planned better! I suppose if I don't have enough money, I can review reading materials for two weeks. We are right here with you! We just finished up Lesson 41 today. I may just have her read that story again tomorrow to work on fluency. ;) We have the AAR 2 teaching materials, but we still need the student packet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted August 23, 2013 Share Posted August 23, 2013 We are on the 2nd week of school officially and kids have pick up steam. Now they are close to their normal speed. Older boy is more bored with his language arts this year than he was last academic year so now I am keeping a lookout for any fun enrichment for him. My younger boy's school load is still very light so no complaints from him. I wake my boys up earlier this year so they have more time to be awake before we start lessons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julikins Posted August 23, 2013 Share Posted August 23, 2013 We're ending week 3 and feel like we're finally getting somewhere. Our first week, my schedule was derailed by a 1 year old. I just didn't realize how much her little busyness would take time away from our school work. I had to totally redo our schedule to do all the mom-intensive subjects during her nap time. The kids also are more independent this year but needed to be explained everything and that just took time. Then the 2nd week we all came down with a cold and I got pneumonia. Just miserable. Somehow I managed to only take 1 day off of school and they did their independent stuff the other days. This week we're trying to get into the groove with all our subjects. We didn't get to Logic yet nor our read-aloud, P.E. or music. But we'll add that in next week. I'm still recovering and haven't been able to get up and get the day going for everyone as early as we need to, so our days are going long. I'm hoping we'll get into the swing of things next week and find our groove. Hopefully... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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