Monday, March 14, 2011

Decisions Decisions

PreK enrollment was to take place in the first two weeks of March. James and I made the decision to not send Isaac. All day at 4 years old? I didn't go to Kindergarten until I was 5 and then it was only in the mornings. I have some very personal opinions about all day preK, but I might step on some toes.

So lately we've been working on AT and AN words, making patterns, painting letters, puzzles, finished Joseph lessons, started on Daniel, counting, measuring with blocks, building with blocks, sorting items, folding laundry, exploring ants... That is all I can think of right now. I'm very informal about all this. Don't think I'm a drill sargeant with Isaac at 3. We usually spend an hour doing something each day while Eli sleeps.

James and I are looking to attend the homeschoolers state convention in OKC at the end of next month. It is free to first timers. We hope to get some more info to make our decision.

I think one of the biggest factors currently influencing my decision to homeschool is the fact that it gives you so many more opportunities to bond with your kids. It forces me to spend more time with them. Always a plus. I like that we have more time to work on Bible lessons.

Downside I'm beginning to see. We will have to make the effort to get out of the house every day. Weekly library trips, frequent field trips, and simply trips to the park etc. I find this difficult because whenever Eli goes down for a nap, he usually sleeps 3 hours! That gives me so much time to work on lessons with Isaac, do housework, etc. It is tempting to make sure we are home for his nap, so sometimes I dont' want to venture out. I guess if I know I want him to get that good nap in, we gotta get moving of a morning and do our outside stuff before lunch. This will be easier as it gets warmer because the mornings will be the nicest for weather!

I'm working on creating a general plan for next year. Basically I'm looking at the OK Pass Skills for PreK and Kindergarten and trying to decide what I want to cover next year with Isaac.