The Educational Fizzer and the Release of a Butterfly

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We decided to take our youngest son out of school and to home school him. For obvious reasons it has been an enormous decision and one that has had exceptional consequences.

We are in the de-schooling process  which is for both of us. We are kind of doing bits of school that are interesting and helpful but other wise we are rediscovering ourselves, our space and our relationship. It is enormous fun! Educationally this is blowing my mind . It feels like a fizz inside of me and it really is explosive.  There are amazing curricula available for us to use as home school families . In addition there is a world of wonder ,online!

 Education as we know it is shifting, and shifting fairly quickly. People are able to access free online courses at universities like Harved as an example.

Kids have access to excellent , visual, clear lessons on Maths and Science and much more.

There are ideas and examples and help on platforms like Pintrest.

Khan Academy is absolutely brilliant and anyone can benefit from the excellent visual explanations.

We checked out a few on Time in Maths and came across spectacular way of presenting time, especially for kids who do not quite " get it".

Our son in grade 10 is using Khan for science upskilling.

I keep calling this an adventure and that is exactly what it is for us all.
The adventure includes not only what we are learning but how slowly or quickly we do it and more then that HOW we do it.

Jet is a kid who needs to move. This is the perfect space to experiment with how far and how much we can move and learn new concepts. He is using words like "fun" and "exciting" and "interesting" which he has not used for a very long time - in relation to learning ( enrichment is the exception) but then I think we are doing enrichment most of the time right now.

He is also a kid who get tired easily and so we can have those spaces too. Time to just rest the brain and take a break - just when he needs to.
There is a body of knowledge we need to do and we do not need to get through it all right now. There is time and this choice has afforded us that precious gift.

Time!

People are so encouraging and helpful. Some don't quite get what we have done while others somehow wish they could be as brave.

There are many unknowns but I am choosing to live in the here and now. We are enormously grateful to God for this opportunity. It is absolutely the very best thing for this darling  boy right now! 

He is like a caterpillar escaping its cocoon!

Oh Happy Days

So here we are. Two weeks in...

My emotions have zig zagged from excitement through to thinking. " what have we done".

This is definitely the settling in phase or the de schooling phase.. We are ALL adjusting. In so many ways, small and big, this decision has effected us as individuals and as a family.

We are adjusting.

The biggest and most beautiful change is in our son Jethro. He is happy beyond happy. Jumps and sings about and keeps saying. " this is fun hey mom.". These are the words that make me glad. Learning is fun and if we can bring THAT to him and alive in him then this is well worth it.

These are photos from our week thus far. Clay café which brought some good discussion time and a happy place for us both. 

The others are of Jet doing x table game outside. He loved this." Take a photo for dad" is all he kept saying.

This is good.!

Let all fun begin

So we are two days into the homeschooling adventure.

It has been weird. It has been strangely busy. Day one day an into into woodwork with these two really great men who helped the group build various items.

Day two saw a time with a group of kids for science. Friction. We spent some time talking this evening about how strange a neccesity friction is.

Maths and postcrossing, drawing and reading have filled the spaces.

Jet keeps saying... It is fun!

Long, long may I keep it fun. After all learning should be fun.

Last but not over

So.. We begin.....

This photo is Jets" last day at school" photo. It was a happy / sad day for me but a glorious day for him.

He has not stopped smiling all week.

The second photo is a realisation photo.

We were out for pizza, just the three of us, and Jet was sitting on Doug's lap. As we chatted and shared about this wing of our adventure,, Dougie turned to Jet and. Said,, " I hated school Jet!"

And then it dawned..... This is the experience Doug had at school.. The sore tummy,, feeling sick, anxious and perpetually bored kind of experience.. Not that Jet had this exact response. No, his was different and yet the same.

Phew.

So deeply grateful to give this boy another kind of experience.. A privaledge and blessing. Thank you Lord.

Die Oog - The Eye

I write these records of time for Jethro and for us as a family as a record f this journey. I realise there are hundreds of families that homeschool and there is nothing special about our journey. We are one of the many but for us it is a profound and beautiful journey and one we would not really ever have thought of.

Last night Tom said, " we are almost a homeschool family." How very sweet and inclusive.

Jethro is so finished with school and I am really finished FOR him. He is having some days off already and it feels very, very good and appropriate.

This weekend was our very first art exhibition. There are children from all different schooling environments including some homeschoolers. We had a great time together , as a community and this is my heart beat. All people, no matter where you fit, welcome and sharing life.

My dear friend T has a fantastic school and I teach her children. It is such fun bouncing ideas off her and again this week, we met and she shed some insight and light into my choices for Jet. Thank you!

Jet  and I took a day off last weeek and we visited Die Oog, our local dam/ pond. We were all alone....

The weaver birds were busy weaving and Jet was talking. We had a great time, learning from this little time together.

Afterwards , we visited local , new, PNA and bought a fabulous art book and new set of art pencils. Jet is a great drawer and a keen artisit, but his art light has been a bit dull of late....

He came home and began........ this is the hope that I was hoping for. That the light of learning would come on for him again.....

The adventure continues!

Planing not to plan

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I am a planner of sorts. I plan a great deal in my head and some on paper. If I take on a project I will have done some planning towards it. I do however marvel at my friends who are fabulous at planning the box and ticking it. That, is not me.

So, in coming to this next 10 weeks or so of Jet coming home from school, I have , in the usual way my brain works ( slowly), been considering the notion of de-schooling. Many in the homeschooling world have dropped this word in . The concept is for the child to just shake off school. Take a break and rest from the school way of doing education. 

Since I don't feel strongly that school is wrong or necessarily damaging , this idea did not initially grab me. 

But, we have 10 weeks or so to play with before I am ready and rescheduled in my art work and before , well we get going.

The idea had been bouncing around in my thinking.

I have arrived at a place that will satisfy his need to take some time off to re-fuel and my need to have a plan of sort in place.

I began by writing down all the fun things we could do together. Things like having lunch with daddy in Bo-Kaap and seeing a movie or going to the beach.

I have written all these on bits of paper and popped them into a box.

Jet can choose from the list and pop the activity onto the weeks schedule.

I have also made a weekly schedule so that we can keep doing some maths and schedule at least that in but also other things that we would like to do and might never get around to. planting some vegetables or building a bigger rabbit run or a tree climbing rope and shelter. 

Other fun things like listening to audios and reading some books together or going  Kalk Bay for ice cream.

The list is longer than we need for 10 weeks. 

In this way we can "plan" some super fun things to do together and I can also help him  be busy while I teach. He ccan also have some time to rest and catch his breath.

As for now, he is cultivating his homeschool hair and having some days off along the way to the end.

Comming Home Early

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He is comming home. We have finally taken the decision to bring him home at the end of the term, not the end of the year. Yipeeee!

He is so thrilled and so am I. 

Life is not exactly straight pathed , now is it?

I am totally not ready - but he is.

I am not settled on anything for certain for our learning journey - he is ok with that.

He is ready!

Thats what counts.

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