The Quiet Blogger

So, yeah, I've been a little quiet this month-on the blog that is ;).  But, no, this isn't an 'I'm sorry I didn't feel like blogging' sort of post.  Just the opposite, really.  The fact is, that I blog to let others into our little homeschooling world.  Specifically, I blog to let other homeschooling moms know they are not alone, and know that there is no such thing as a normal, typical, stereotypical, homeschool family.

Which brings me to my quiet blogger month.  The fact is we have had all of about, oh, 7 or so 'official' school days.  'Official' in the sense that we actually pulled out our work plans and did something with them.  'Official' in the sense that there was a book, work page, etc involved.  You know 'looks like a traditional school kinda sorta-official.'  But, we have LEARNED almost everyday this month.

Last school year, you may remember that I purposely backed off of our academic co-op.  I realized it was not what I was really hoping for with the kids, and the commitment needed to keep it going was keeping me from doing some of the other things we had wanted to do.  One of my goals was to, instead, fill our time with field trips, hands-on learning, and lots of 'typical' school kid activities.  I have CERTAINLY made good on that promise!

This past summer, we went on a field trip nearly every week.  We went to a science show, historical landmarks, the zoo, nature walks, and museums.  And, we have continued on with that this fall!

So far this school year, we have taken a field trip (just Mustang and I) to the Molly Brown museum (she was interested in the Titanic).  Charger, Mustang, DADDY! and I all went to our local war museum and spent 4 hours just soaking in all the amazing war relics and information collected by local historians.  The kids and I spent an afternoon checking out the local river-both from right by the riverside and from way up high on the lookout.

We also signed up for swimming lessons and PE class that meets every week for 6 weeks.  This is part of our co-op, so we get to go during the day with other homeschooling students.

Mustang signed up for a pottery class at our local art museum.  All the kids signed up for an art class designed just for homeschooling students at the local art museum.

We have spent at least an hour at the library each week.  One week, Charger even got to participate in a science class at the library.

And, of course, we are signed back up for AWANA and I am seeing some wonderful progress with the kids and their memorization.

As you can see, this translates to lots of time in the car, outside, AWAY from our 'classroom.'  And, also it has become rather difficult to take 4 kids out in public and still have nice pictures lol!  So, not many blog posts.

What I love about this busyness, is that my children are learning how to LEARN, everyday, all day, whenever they want to!  I have been so excited to see how this 'almost' unschooling has panned out to Mustang choosing to read the encyclopedia set in her free time so she could learn.  Or, how Charger has poured over the books we checked out on tanks after the war museum.  These are things they won't forget, because the WANTED to learn them!

If you are a new homeschooler, or a veteran one who is feeling a bit overwhelmed, I encourage you to look for more ways to learn that is not just a 'book' or a 'worksheet.'  To allow yourself to not spend 5 hours a day 'doing school.'  But, rather to realize what about LIFE is school and how you are rushing through it so you can 'get to school.'

When the weather turns colder, we will be turning more to inside 'school' days and we will have lots more blog posts.  But, for now, I may be a 'quiet blogger,' and a 'busy learner.'

God Bless,
Lisa