I thought it might be fun to blog about what we are doing in school this year. At times I think some extended family members might be thinking “those poor York kids… their parents are schooling them AT HOME (gasp)… and do you know that neither one of them finished a four year degree… those children are gonna be dumb as rocks!”
So how about I post some things we’re learning each week? It may not change the minds of those appalled by the thought of homeschooling, but at the very least it will keep me writing!
Our school year started the second week of July. I pretty much school them year-round. We go 9 weeks, then take off 2. By then it’s September and it’s cool enough to enjoy outdoor activities. Plus, most every other family is back in school and that means prime vacation spots are not only practically empty, but they are CHEAP too!
After a 2 week break, we hit the books again for another 9 weeks and that puts us right up to December. We take off the whole month and start back again in January, doing the 9 weeks on, 2 weeks off schedule. This finishes up our school year in May, and then it starts over again in July.
Now that that’s out of the way, let’s talk curriculum. Savannah chose the first topic. She is our little budding artist. She get’s it from her dad. I am challenged by stick people.
Knowing that this is a passion of hers, I was determined to teach her an actual art class this year. I dug into my favorite “all things homeschooling” reference book (The Well Trained Mind) and found out that they recommend the book “Drawing with Children“.
I have to say, this book eats up more of my lesson planning time than anything else. It’s not hard, but trust me when I say I know NOTHING about drawing. So I read, and I re-read. And I prepare the lesson by pretending I am the student. So I do all the work that I will be asking them to do. And whatdaya know…I can draw too! :)
Although, in all fairness, we aren’t exactly sketching self portraits or anything yet. It’s more along these lines:
and
We’ve learned the 5 Elements of Shape, the importance of being *quiet* during art time, and we took a day to play with all our new markers to see what they will do, how they will blend, and which ones are our favorites.
We do art once a week. Savannah loves every minute of it (unless Emery dares to sneak a peek at her page and, God forbid, copy it!) The boy gets his skills from me and get frustrated very easily when his picture doesn’t turn out quite like he expected. My goal for him is simply to relax, enjoy drawing, and stop sitting against the back of the chair with his arms crossed, lip sticking out. My goal for the girl is to teach her some new ideas that she can use with her God given talent, giving her the ability to improve her pictures on her own.
Happy Drawing!!!
One Comment