One Month Check-in...

This summer it was decided that we would have a meeting every month to talk about homeschooling.  We wanted to do this to make sure everyone is on the same page and to ensure issues were addressed immediately rather than half way through the year.

Sunday was our first meeting.

There have been some minor hiccups on the way...illness, purchasing the wrong math book for Noah, trying to get use to the new schedule, etc. but so far, so good.

This is the first year in four years that I have not been stressed out about anything homeschool related.  I never thought that would happen. lol  Of course, it is still early in the year so who knows what lies ahead.

I am truly amazed at how much we've already done.  I was concerned that we were biting off more than we could chew with this new schedule but it really is working well.

All of the kids are doing well.  They each have things they need to work on like handwriting, time management, listening, staying focused, etc but I am very happy with the progress I am seeing.

I've added starfall.com for part of Abbie and Noah's required reading time.  I tried using it before but they had no real interest.  This time, however, it really seems to be helping both of them.  I can see Noah's confidence in his reading slowly building.

We are almost through the "try before you buy" lessons of R.E.A.L. Science Odyssey.  I like the program and we will be keeping with it.  My favorite thing about the curriculum is that it is clean, clear and concise   It isn't overwhelming and it is very easy to add to.  Now, don't take that as the curriculum being incomplete, it isn't.  It just so happens that I have three children who would happily do science for hours on end so we tend to explore the topics more.  For example, we've been working on the skeletal system for about two weeks.  After learning the basics from the curriculum, Abbie and Noah have learned the 20 major bones of the body, how many bones babies have versus adults and why, the four bone classifications, basic joint classifications and the anatomy of bones.  Bryce has branched off on his own doing more in-depth research and notebooking.

Abbie and Bryce are loving the Math in Focus curriculum.  The instructions and examples in the student book are very well written.  Bryce is finding it easy to work independently.  Just a note to anyone who may try it -- Don't be put off by the repetition.  If your child has mastered the skill, skip any remaining worksheets.  There's no need to bore them to tears.  Noah is still working through the Math Wrap-up books per his request.

Our grammar curriculum is great.  Another one that covers that topics clearly and is very easy to add onto if you need to.

The kids love the typing program, no surprise.  It's loud, colorful and funny.

I really have no complaints about any of the curriculum choices we've made thus far which is a huge plus since all of them are new.

My only real complaint is not having a camera.  LOL  For some reason, Eric's boss frowns if I insist he keep his phone home all day so I can take pictures of what we're doing. ;-)

How are things going for your family?  Share in the comments below!  

Wondering what our curriculum/schedule looks like?  You can find it here.

Hope everyone has a great day!