September Homeschooling

[Gardenarian]

Many of my dd's classes start up this fall. Most of her classes (dance, theater, etc.) are offered at our local park & rec, which is about a block from our house - very low-stress, and inexpensive too. She gets some exercise and some time with other kids (she's an only child.)

We're looking forward to going to the Renaissance Fair in a couple of weeks.

DD would really like to do horseback riding this year. Around here that costs a minimum of $60 per lesson, so, as you can imagine, dh & I are not chafing at the bit! DD has been working very hard at her lessons and all her other activities; I do feel she deserves something extra-special, but...

What would you do? Maybe we could do horses once a month, rather than weekly? We could come up with some more chores for her to do to earn the money.

She has tried various endeavors to make money outside the home, but without much luck so far.

[Stella]

Gardenarian, I missed this thread! I would say once a month and if she wanted to do more she could earn the money. That sounds reasonable to me. I'm jealous. Horseback riding sounds like fun!

We are working on some local history. Right now we are reading Little House in the Woods and the kids are loving it. It ties in with our family history too. Some of my family lived in Wisconsin and Minnesota during that same time period. We've been doing some old fashioned tasks too. We're going to make cheese next week.

We are also gearing up for our trips. We will cover at least 18 states this year, 19 if we take the daytrip we may be taking to Lousiana when we visit FIL and 20 if we really end up going to visit T's Godfather on the reservation in SD. That's a good chunk of learning right there. The kids are helping with the planning, which is a great lesson on geography, organization and budgeting.

One thing I am very excited about is that we are volunteering at the end of the month to host the social hour when our church hosts homeless shelter that moves from church to church. I signed up for the social hour because it's something the kids can help with and I really want to put an emphasis on service with our kids.

[granola19]

I didn't know there was such a thread! DD1 is only 4 and a half but we are most likely taking the homeschooling/unschooling route. We are mainly following whatever DDs interests are. This week it was bugs so we learned about what makes an insect an insect, and the butterfly life cycle. She has a preschool workbook that she really likes (this kid loves worksheets for some reason) and has been enjoying the counting and addition pages. I love homeschooling, I learn so much too!

[Gardenarian]

Stella - I think we are going to do the horse riding once a month for now. It's not that we can't afford it; it is just that it seems like such a luxury. DD is a sweetie pie but I must say we pamper her and I worry about her growing up into too much of a princess. Your trips sound wonderful! Is this going to be one long road trip, or a bunch of them?

Hi granola! Stella got the idea to do a monthly homechool thread. Homeschooling is so much fun. My dd loved workbooks at that age too. Unfortunately we sent her to school for a couple of years (not trusting our own instincts) and it took a while to get back into that peaceful, follow your bliss life. I'm so glad we did!