Nearing the End of Week 1

The Little Dude is getting better at getting up earlier, working on his own & not freaking out about long division. I looked over our assignment sheets and did the math - we will complete the required lessons well before the end of the quarter if we work at our usual pace. I am structuring our work so we can cover what is needed without overwhelming either of us.

Our newest tool in home schooling is Turntable. We leave it open in another window so we can have music in the background. The classic rock room really helps keep Little Dude motivated. Neither of us likes silence unless we are doing a lesson with audio.

For his free reading he has actually begun to read the first book of the Harry Potter series. I am going to let him read these books without any sort of writing attached. Tomorrow, I am sending them to the library (or taking him) and he will need to checkout at least 3 chapters books. I may have him just write something different for each one, or a basic one page book report for each. I don't want him to be bored or negative about having to do more writing, but he needs it. I don't think the blog is enough writing for him, but I will add more slowly. Using his mind isn't the issue, but actually writing down thoughts with good sentence structure, proper grammar and decent printing is. I know he wants to start doing cursive, but his printing is still very sloppy and lazy. Lots more practice writing and doing printing worksheets are in the boy's near future.

I feel we are close to finding a rhythm, and of course now we throw the wrench in - his father is back this weekend and we have to deal with visitation next week. I am going to try a combination of our actual visitation schedule and maybe a day over there during the week. If they can't get whatever home work I send with them then I pull back to the occasional afternoon and overnights. While I seriously need a day off here & there, I am not willing to sacrifice schoolwork for my peace of mind.