Well, after much prayer and much research, we're excited to say that we are now homeschooling Josiah this upcoming fall (only a month away now!) with our first official curricula, the PreK-Kindergarten materials from Catholic Heritage Curricula (
http://www.chcweb.com/)
After looking into the materials more we are so excited for all that we are going to be doing together soon. Josiah is just going to LOVE the lesson plans, the "Little Stories for Little Folks" phonics readers, the Angel Antics coloring pages, and most of all, the time he gets with Mommy, laughing and learning and discovering life together. There's "CORE" subject materials for Language Arts, Math, and Religion, and "Non-Core" Subject Materials for Social Studies, Art, Music, Science, and Physical Education. The greatest part is that everything is laid out for me and already planned, and right now since I'm just beginning, and also have a 2 yr old and 6 month old to care for simultaneously, OH and that pesky little thing called fibromyalgia, this is really looking like it's going to work for us. Some may think I'm crazy... in fact, sometimes I think I'm crazy to try to juggle all these things... so I know where you're coming from ;) But really, this is a calling. This is a vocation that I feel that God has been preparing me to do my entire life.
Trust me... I kinda wish I could just "wave goodbye" as I send my kids off on the big yellow "take a breather" bus for awhile sometimes. But then I remember a few things....
1)- I'm never going to say at the end of this life, "Gosh I spent way too much time with my kids!"
2)- I feel responsible for my children's minds... AND their souls. The latter of which I'm actually more concerned about.
2)- Deuteronomy 11:18:19-- "Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up."
If I send my children to school 8 hours a day... that's a lot of sitting down and getting up and walking about that I miss opportunities to teach them about Christ. As long as I have that opportunity, I'm going to take it.
Michael is excited for our journey too, and here's what Daddy has to say about it all...
"I'm happy that we're homeschooling because my wife is going to be my child's best teacher. She already is. I can leave for work in the morning and know that all day he's going to be in a safe environment and I know what I can expect him to encounter in any given day. He's not going to walk into his classroom and have some kid punch him in the face, or teach him a new word that we didn't want him to hear. I'm also really excited that with this curriculum we can incorporate our faith into everything he learns. He's a smart kid, and this way he won't feel like he's ahead of the class or be bored. Teacher's can't always adjust to the needs of each child, especially a child who is ahead and not behind, because they have so many students."
I realize that homeschooling "isn't for everyone" and honestly, we are taking this one step at a time, one child at a time, one year at a time. We also think that the first few years are the most formative, and if we can give our children a solid foundation, they'll be better prepared to face the challenges and the darkness of sin that this world will throw at them, which we know are many. For NOW, this is what is best for us and our family, and we are really excited and proud to begin this journey. God is starting something amazing in my little boy... and I can't wait to see what he becomes and then to see how he changes lives and the world for the better.
Much more to come! :)
