Lessons

We are in the fourth quarter of our first homeschool year.  Unbelievable.  It's gone so fast on one hand, and on the other I feel like we've been doing it forever.  I have learned so much this year.  When we first started I thought that I had done so much researching and planning that there couldn't be much more out there.  I couldn't have been more wrong.  For the most part things have gone smooth, but we've had our rough spots as well.  I think next year will be even better now that we have our feet wet. Here are some of the things I have learned:

WHAT WORKS

• I have really liked all of the curriculum I chose.  That's pretty rare.  Most people end up experimenting quite a bit before settling on something.  The way I look at it "if it's not broke, don't fix it."  We will be using all of the same stuff next year. 
• We enjoy more relaxed days.  We get our work done in an organized manner, but being too structure stresses all of us out.  I don't have a problem with the girls doing a math test on a clipboard while sitting on the couch.
• Consistency.  They need to know what to expect.  When I have veered from the routine, they get lost.  Midge really needs the routine too.  They like to be able to predict how things are going.
• Reading at lunch.  I don't know why it took me so long to figure this one out, but when their mouths are full they are actually listening.  We have all come to greatly anticipate our lunchtime read alouds. 
• Laughing.  When all else fails just laugh.  So the baby just spilled the cooking oil out on the floor while you were explaining long division....okay, well that's not funny, but still laugh.  In the end you won't remember stuff like that but your kids will remember how you reacted.
 

WHAT DOESN'T WORK

• Doing the same subjects at the same time.  Wow.  We tried this in the beginning and it was an epic fail.  Too many questions and not enough teachers.  It works much better to have a couple kids working on independent work while "teaching" another child their daily lessons.  This is an ever changing thing because subjects vary throughout the year in their intensity. 
• Rushing.  I have learned, the hard way, that some things just take time.  I would rather take our time and relish in a classic than rush through just to say we read it.  We have more than 60 books this year.  We all love this, but it takes time.  I would rather them learn form living books than answer questions at the end of a textbook and than forget everything they just learned.
• Skipping breaks.  It sounds like a great way to catch up, but really it's just a great way to induce major burn-out.  We all need the breaks whether we are behind or not. 
• Comparing our family to others.  This has caused unnecessary panic on more than one occasion.  I have learned to relax in this department.  It really doesn't matter if your child can recite all of their multiplication tables while writing the constitution by memory.  We all have our strengths and weaknesses.  I just look for progress.
• Skipping Bible.  This is so tempting when we are behind in other key areas.  Bible is the foundation of our learning.  It must come first!

Overall we have come so far.  I'm sure next year I will say the same thing, but I am looking forward to starting with more confidence.