Elemental Acres
Schooling Update: Well, we are 19 days into November, and all the paperwork has been submitted to pull DS9 out of school next week. The public school scenario lasted even less time than it did when we pulled him out of kindergarten 4 years ago (we made it to the Christmas holidays before pulling him out of kindy).
What happened, you ask? Nothing in particular, to be quite honest with you. We noticed from pretty much Day 1 that he wasn't super happy in the public school environment. Because he is a very free spirit, children who have been indoctrinated into The System (tm) seemed to have a hard time relating to him, and vice versa. They couldn't understand why he wasn't thrilled to be sitting at a desk for the better part of his 6 hours at school. They didn't grasp that he had no interest in "games" that seemed to pick on or belittle others. He didn't appreciate the clique culture, or the mindless way in which his fellow peers seemed only interested in some toy on TV, rather than interesting topics of conversation that he would have at home or amongst our extended circle of friends.
I guess it is true: homeschool kids are "weird". I don't actually believe that, but it would seem that there are often clear ways to tell which kids have had access to a wide age-range of influences, and which kids have only been exposed to a group of children grouped together based on what year they were born in.
I don't mean to demean all public schooled children. DS9 has met a few kindred spirits at school, but not enough to make his experience there fulfilling. He grew weary of the "busy work" that was handed down by an overbearing teacher who had very little in the way of creativity and imagination. Now, to be fair, I'm sure her hands were tied a long time ago by a system that no longer seems to allow any deviation from the script. She seems very similar to the kind of bitter and beaten down teachers that I used to work with in my previous employment (which seems like eons ago to me now).
As for DD7, she will still attend public school for her therapies (we finally got a full-fledged diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder, along with her MERLD diagnosis that we already had for her). DS9 will be able to attend a special one day a week, and he has been given open access to any school activities that excite him, which I felt was very progressive of the principal. She told us that there are several homeschooling families in the town who take advantage of some of the school's activities, which I think is probably what has made the difference in how pleasant our conversation with her about pulling DS9 out of school was. I think it helps that this is not her first rodeo, as it were, in dealing with homeschooling families.
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Soooooo.....DS9 will be done next week, except for a once-a-week activity session at the school, and DD7 will be attending several times a week for her therapies.
We have connected with local homeschoolers over the past several weeks, which really made this decision a no-brainer. As I may have mentioned in my previous entry, the major reason we put them in school in the first place was for the social aspect, since we were new to the area and had not found a homeschooling community yet. Now that we have a community around us, and now that we've seen how unhappy DS9 in particular has been in school (and witnessing his abrasive and attitude-filled teacher in action for a couple of months now), really it was time to do what I really wanted to do in the first place: continue our homeschooling journey.
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So, now about the curriculum. Since he's been using a different math curriculum for the past 3 months, I have asked the school if we can just keep his math workbook, since he's already been writing in it (it's not as though they could give it to some other student down the road, now that it's been written in so much). So, I'll just continue where he's left off in class. I would have liked to have used the next level of Math U See, but it doesn't make sense to start a year program in Mid November, only to make it halfway through it by May. The math curriculum he's using at school is Everyday Math. I'm familiar with it from my days as an educator, so I should have no real issues helping him make his way through most of that workbook.
As for English, I'll be ordering a grammar package for him, and he'll be using the Waldorf curriculum I already had purchased for his writing. We'll be going to the library once a week, so he'll have plenty of books to read. I also downloaded a "Morning Work" digital download. It has a daily sheet, which has a couple of grammar exercises, reading selection, a few math problems, and alternates between science and social studies...all on one page. It should take only about 30 minutes to complete, but give him a nicely rounded sampling of skills each day.
We'll use Turtle Diary to fill in a few gaps in all academic subject areas. He's also taking a dance class once a week (satisfying physical education), his weekly special activity at school (satisfying music), and homeschool group for social activities as well as local field trips.
As for DD7, she will get some academic work through the school while she is there as part of her therapies. Since we have decided to consider her to be in 1st grade rather than 2nd grade, she'll do the Waldorf curriculum for 1st grade, which includes Fairy Tales. She'll also be at school for physical education, and we'll likely sign her up for a sport this coming winter if she seems ready for that.
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We're all very much looking forward to a return to full on homeschooling again. It's not as though he had a totally horrible experience in the public school, but DS9 certainly wasn't coming home feeling exuberant each day, let's put it that way. Also, we have a lot going on here at Elemental Acres, and he's been very happy to pitch in, which adds a whole other layer to his education!! He's been helping out very nicely, learning how to swing an ax, draw a rake, clear brush and slowly learn how to use tools and help his dad. When it comes time to start seedlings and then get the garden going next spring, he'll be helping me with that.
We feel that learning how to work a homestead is its own set of very important skill sets that everyone should have. Our world is becoming less certain in some ways, and so learning how to be a bit more self-sustainable is going to be more crucial.
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Speaking of Elemental Acres, Surprise! We have come up with a name for the acreage that we live upon, and we feel so incredibly blessed to have nearly 9 acres of lovely land that include a small stream/brook, flat areas for growing things, hilly and rocky ridge areas for beauty, a great windy alley for a wind turbine (and GREAT air circulation for the gardens and orchards), and a lovely home with plenty of room for all of us.
We've been settling in to this area very nicely, and finally starting to make some friends and settle in.
The more we live way out here on the Far Side Of The World, the more I realize how this is exactly where we need to be. I definitely needed an energy change from the old area we used to live in. It was a rather stifling energy for me, filled with memory and steeped in "resistance". Here, I feel so opened and free. My past is truly far away, and I've been able to slowly heal and find peace here.
If you ever get a chance to "start over" after a period of yuckiness, I would totally recommend that you do so. Take that "drastic measure"! Go on the "crazy adventure"! I found that I needed to go away in order to come back, and when I came back, I certainly was not the same as when I left...and I didn't return to "the same river twice", that's for sure! I am a good 4 hours away from where I started, and this "river" of energy is so much more vibrant and healing for me.
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Please realize that pulling DS9 99% out of the public school, and having DD7 there for mainly therapies, wasn't about fleeing a horrible situation. Sure, DS9's teacher was not what one would hope for, but this really isn't about her. It's about returning to the freedom we had to allow DS9 to pursue more of the things he loves...to work at his own pace....to live life more for the pleasures it brings than the insistence on conformity.
We march to the beat of our own drums here in this house, so why should education be any different?
Don't be afraid to make a huge change. If something isn't working, try something else! It's your life, make it the best, happiest life you can.
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