Seriously, I feel like my insides are heavy. There have been so many things going on lately that my mind has not had the time to process all of it. From abused children, homeless teens who are evidence of a sad world, children killed, religion manipulated, changes in life, exhaustion, decisions…. So many things to think about.
I have been feeling a burning inside to share more of my thoughts… though not all on here. But maybe? Yet another thing to think & decide upon… does it seem like I am excited about that?? I am SO bad at decisions. Well today, I am going to share about our most recent decision!
When we were looking into school options for Asher last year, we had found a school in PDX that is a public charter, French immersion school. Considering that my husband is fluent & that I am striving to be, this was SO exciting to me. We applied (past the deadline) but never got in. We decided to apply again this year, despite my passion to homeschool using a classical method. Cole was 70th on the wait list, and Asher was somewhere around 45th. We knew that if the boys got in, it would be the Lord's doing.
About a month ago, we got an email from the school saying they had a lot of movement in their Kindergarten class & wanted to know if we would like to stay on the wait list. We decided yes, last minute, just because Hey! Who knows? Well, 2 weeks later, what do you know, they had a spot for Cole! After talking with friends, each other, praying & trying to decipher what was best, we decided to enroll him. Then, we found out there was a fee for the all day Kindergarten (which is the only option & was more than other private schools we had looked at) and started the deliberation process all over again. All day Kindergarten when our little man had only just turned 5 was not something we thought we'd ever do. But, we decided it was a once in a lifetime opportunity. We'd continue to homeschool Asher & hope that a spot would open for him as well.
Lo & behold, the next day, they had room for Asher! I had prayed for that very thing the day before, and we were excited to be able to send them together.
The first couple days were fine. The school was not fabulous with communication. Then, we had sickness with 1 kid, then 2, then none, then 1 again, 2 again, and finally, 3 days in a row of school! So, after 2 weeks, here's what we saw….
1 - Asher was struggling big time. Attitude, tears, emotions. Every day - morning, noon & night, literally. This week, we discovered there were occasional tears in class as well.
2 - Driving for 30min in traffic to transport your children 3 miles is infuriating!
3 - Paying for parking to pick up & drop off your children is annoying.
4 - Full language immersion is tough, but also kinda fun… especially if you have people at home who can help practice (we have 3 fluent adults!)
5 - It really stinks when they are sick, b/c you have NO clue what they missed, what they should have been taught, and no way to make that aspect of the classroom experience up.
6 - I really love teaching my kids. And 6.5hrs a day is TOO long for me to not see them.
7 - I am still just as crabby having not seen them all day - I'm just more stressed in the morning, and slightly more rushed in the afternoons.
8 - I hate making lunches every day.
9 - I believe the Classical Method is likely the most effective way to teach children.
I tried to find 10 things to list… but my brain is gone & so 9 is all you are going to get.
Overall, the school experience was not terrible. I had thought about this before & was convicted of it again: when I spend time with just the 2 boys, it is a no-brainer, I would prefer to homeschool over any other option. Jovi is the 1 element that makes it undesirable… she is demanding, unpredictable, often unruly & makes most tasks around the home far more difficult to accomplish. But, I cannot bypass my desires & convictions based on the fact that my 1.5yr old is challenging.
The biggest determining factors in deciding to take them back out of school were these: Asher's constant and drastic distress, and not knowing what exactly the kids were learning each day… leading into not being sure if teachers are teaching in a way that I desire for my kids to learn. Add to that the fact that God is not talked about with them from 8:30am-3:30pm, and we just could not do it. Both boys were asking to stay home each day (Asher was begging with tears) and I truly wanted to grant them that.
When I began Asher's first math lesson back home, he had trouble with a certain "math fact" that he used to know & have memorized. He was struggling with trying to count on his fingers when the answer was higher than 10. I asked him why he was frustrated & reminded him that he knew the answer… "It's a doubles-plus-1 fact bud, you know how to solve that." And voila! Back to the calm, capable & confident kid he was before his experience in school.
I know Immersion is rough & can take time, but we did not feel it was a necessary step for us to push him SO far past his comfort zone & risk killing something inside of him to pursue it. He is sensitive & going through some definite boundary testing… we want to be there to help him through things, not just observe his life & have a few hours a day to try & get whatever else he needs put into him. Cole was doing pretty well, he's so easy-going & enjoys being with people, whether he knows them or not. But we wanted to have both boys on the same page. And we are truly glad for the experience. It has solidified some things in my mind, given me perspective on the challenges of having your children in school & helped me to align my priorities.
So yeah, that's been the last 3 weeks of our lives! Eesh. I hate making big decisions & then feeling like I have to justify them. And it's really hard to choose between 2 things that both have amazing benefits! All of this is to keep you in the loop, and ultimately, I am accountable to God for my choices… I hope to please Him & honor Him in all these things - public, private or home schooled! We are back at CC (Classical Conversations) & catching up where we left off with homeschooling, and we are glad about it. There are definitely challenges & sacrifices, but it is a sharpening process & I need that desperately.
There you have it for now! Hopefully I can keep up on this blog a bit better… oh the wishful thinking!!! I'm not ready to commit to it yet, but feel like I'm getting closer ;) Here are some recent pics of the kiddos for your viewing pleasure…
I have been feeling a burning inside to share more of my thoughts… though not all on here. But maybe? Yet another thing to think & decide upon… does it seem like I am excited about that?? I am SO bad at decisions. Well today, I am going to share about our most recent decision!
When we were looking into school options for Asher last year, we had found a school in PDX that is a public charter, French immersion school. Considering that my husband is fluent & that I am striving to be, this was SO exciting to me. We applied (past the deadline) but never got in. We decided to apply again this year, despite my passion to homeschool using a classical method. Cole was 70th on the wait list, and Asher was somewhere around 45th. We knew that if the boys got in, it would be the Lord's doing.
About a month ago, we got an email from the school saying they had a lot of movement in their Kindergarten class & wanted to know if we would like to stay on the wait list. We decided yes, last minute, just because Hey! Who knows? Well, 2 weeks later, what do you know, they had a spot for Cole! After talking with friends, each other, praying & trying to decipher what was best, we decided to enroll him. Then, we found out there was a fee for the all day Kindergarten (which is the only option & was more than other private schools we had looked at) and started the deliberation process all over again. All day Kindergarten when our little man had only just turned 5 was not something we thought we'd ever do. But, we decided it was a once in a lifetime opportunity. We'd continue to homeschool Asher & hope that a spot would open for him as well.
Lo & behold, the next day, they had room for Asher! I had prayed for that very thing the day before, and we were excited to be able to send them together.
The first couple days were fine. The school was not fabulous with communication. Then, we had sickness with 1 kid, then 2, then none, then 1 again, 2 again, and finally, 3 days in a row of school! So, after 2 weeks, here's what we saw….
1 - Asher was struggling big time. Attitude, tears, emotions. Every day - morning, noon & night, literally. This week, we discovered there were occasional tears in class as well.
2 - Driving for 30min in traffic to transport your children 3 miles is infuriating!
3 - Paying for parking to pick up & drop off your children is annoying.
4 - Full language immersion is tough, but also kinda fun… especially if you have people at home who can help practice (we have 3 fluent adults!)
5 - It really stinks when they are sick, b/c you have NO clue what they missed, what they should have been taught, and no way to make that aspect of the classroom experience up.
6 - I really love teaching my kids. And 6.5hrs a day is TOO long for me to not see them.
7 - I am still just as crabby having not seen them all day - I'm just more stressed in the morning, and slightly more rushed in the afternoons.
8 - I hate making lunches every day.
9 - I believe the Classical Method is likely the most effective way to teach children.
I tried to find 10 things to list… but my brain is gone & so 9 is all you are going to get.
Overall, the school experience was not terrible. I had thought about this before & was convicted of it again: when I spend time with just the 2 boys, it is a no-brainer, I would prefer to homeschool over any other option. Jovi is the 1 element that makes it undesirable… she is demanding, unpredictable, often unruly & makes most tasks around the home far more difficult to accomplish. But, I cannot bypass my desires & convictions based on the fact that my 1.5yr old is challenging.
The biggest determining factors in deciding to take them back out of school were these: Asher's constant and drastic distress, and not knowing what exactly the kids were learning each day… leading into not being sure if teachers are teaching in a way that I desire for my kids to learn. Add to that the fact that God is not talked about with them from 8:30am-3:30pm, and we just could not do it. Both boys were asking to stay home each day (Asher was begging with tears) and I truly wanted to grant them that.
When I began Asher's first math lesson back home, he had trouble with a certain "math fact" that he used to know & have memorized. He was struggling with trying to count on his fingers when the answer was higher than 10. I asked him why he was frustrated & reminded him that he knew the answer… "It's a doubles-plus-1 fact bud, you know how to solve that." And voila! Back to the calm, capable & confident kid he was before his experience in school.
I know Immersion is rough & can take time, but we did not feel it was a necessary step for us to push him SO far past his comfort zone & risk killing something inside of him to pursue it. He is sensitive & going through some definite boundary testing… we want to be there to help him through things, not just observe his life & have a few hours a day to try & get whatever else he needs put into him. Cole was doing pretty well, he's so easy-going & enjoys being with people, whether he knows them or not. But we wanted to have both boys on the same page. And we are truly glad for the experience. It has solidified some things in my mind, given me perspective on the challenges of having your children in school & helped me to align my priorities.
So yeah, that's been the last 3 weeks of our lives! Eesh. I hate making big decisions & then feeling like I have to justify them. And it's really hard to choose between 2 things that both have amazing benefits! All of this is to keep you in the loop, and ultimately, I am accountable to God for my choices… I hope to please Him & honor Him in all these things - public, private or home schooled! We are back at CC (Classical Conversations) & catching up where we left off with homeschooling, and we are glad about it. There are definitely challenges & sacrifices, but it is a sharpening process & I need that desperately.
There you have it for now! Hopefully I can keep up on this blog a bit better… oh the wishful thinking!!! I'm not ready to commit to it yet, but feel like I'm getting closer ;) Here are some recent pics of the kiddos for your viewing pleasure…
Jovi is a coloring maniac! Always at the homeschool table.
Papa and Jovi during our Beach Trip in Sept.
Trying out new hairstyles…
First day of French school!
On our way to Big Al's for Cole's birthday :)
Post a Comment