Hitting Our Stride

Things are going really well right now. We've been pretty busy with quite a few activities and ongoing projects, and I feel like I've finally made it to where I want us to be- a place where "school" and life blend into one continuous learning adventure. Some people call this "unschooling", but I'm wary of that term as I think it evokes images of kids sitting around in pjs playing video games all day. I kind of think of it as "parenting on purpose". I'm doing everything I normally would as a parent- teaching my kids new skills, helping them find information, reading to them about interests. But instead of saying, "Yeah, in a minute, I just have to make one phone call...finish these dishes...fold some clothes... I commit the time to interact with them, and make sure they are learning, but in a relaxed, fun way.

We still have a set curriculum for Bible, Math, and Language Arts, but for everything else I've been going with a child-led approach. Right now Gracie is really interested in birds, so instead of trying to follow a curriculum about weather, we're learning about birds. She received a field guide for her birthday, and she reads it (voluntarily) all the time. Last week I sent her outside to play and she took it out with her so she could identify birds in our yard! We learned about Eastern bluebirds and compiled a book about them, and this past weekend Grammy took her to the Forsythe Wildlife Refuge where the Audubon society was doing a lecture on how to participate in a backyard bird count. Now we've moved onto owls. We're reading a bunch of good books about them, including one fictional story called "Owl Moon" by Jane Yolen about a young girl who takes a late night owl-walk with her dad. (Great book. Makes you feel all warm and fuzzy and full of wonder.) We'll also make an owl book and next week it's back to the Forsythe Refuge to dissect an owl pellet!

I also signed her up for a four-week pottery class. If anyone has ever tried to live vicariously through their kid, it's me with pottery right now. I have always wanted to try it, and a few years ago I looked all over for a class and couldn't find any. So when I heard about this one I signed her up without even asking her... I wanted to go! I knew she would love it though, and she has. She's made a pinch pot, a box with a lid, and a turtle. Next week she'll paint them all. And, as a bonus,the studio also has adult classes so I'm signing up for them :)

In addition she also attends a once-a-month class at the Wetlands Institute (I think I mentioned it before), weekly piano lessons, and we just started going to Bible study at another church. We love our church, but it's still growing and we really wanted the kids to be involved in some sort of mid-week program. We visited a few, had some encounters with former teachers *shudder* and finally found a good fit. Gracie already had a friend there, they have a group for Caleb and Luke, and Jeremiah and I can go to adult study at the same time. We help with nursery and Sunday school a lot at our church and sometimes we aren't able to sit through a message, so it's really been a blessing for us to just sit and listen.

So overall I'm really happy with the progress we've been making lately. It took a few months, but like I said, I feel like we've hit our stride. I think Gracie is getting a really well-rounded education. We learn the basics at home, and have had great opportunities to supplement with music and art classes, as well as field trips.The kids are able to interact with friends at classes and Bible study, so no worries about "socialization". Not that I really had any with my kids- they talk to everyone, everywhere!