Preparation

A few months ago we have finally decided to homeschool the kids. Our first intention was to school our son and send our daughter to Grade 1 in Public school. But my daughter who loved being home before Grade R and loved doing "school work" or "homework" as she called it, begged me to also stay home and Homeschool her.  So, after a few weeks of toying with the idea and trying to wrap my head around schooling two kids of different ages at one time, we decided it to be a good thing.

And so our journey began. Firstly we applied at the Pestalozzi Trust, then, we notified the shuttle service that the kids would not be riding with them next year, followed by letting the school know my kids will not be attending. Nerve wrecking as thát was, we were surprised that there was not any opposition to our decision. 
I joined a Facebook group of Homeschoolers from my Provence, as well as a few Yahoo groups. In between all of that I exhaustively researched curriculum - one in particular - and read up on homeschooling. When me made our final decision on our curriculum I spend ours behind the computer and on the phone to compile it.
I've watched a seminar on DVD, and now I am not only reading books on learning styles, I'm also studying the guide to the curriculum we chose.
Some nights I'm up until after twelve reading up and studying and making plans.
We are also making space in our study for (a lot) more books and trying to get things more organized. (I  also cannot wait until we have some aircon in there, just to be able to breathe in summer!)

Of course I'm not all confident. Everyday someone say something, or the kids does something or I just find myself doubting my abilities not only to teach, but to parent or be a good wife or a friend.
However, I do believe that preparation will help with the transition from stay at home mother to homeshooling mother. Of course, time will only tell how I will fare. I'm sure I'll learn a lot more in the process of doing than I would from any book or on any social network.

What is left to do? A lot more reading, and then the big wait for box day..... Hmmm, patience, they say, is a virtue :)

Cultivating a love for books

Ryan and Dené at ages 6 and 3

Dené quietly reading on her own

Since before the birth of my son, Ryan, my husband and I started buying books. I was determined to cultivate a love for books in my children. So, gradually our book collection grew to a small library! I never thought I spend so many hours picking out books - not to mention all the money! But it has been worth it!
Why not just go to my local library? Most people would ask. Well, for me the reasons are many. Some of them are: Favorites are always close by for a quick (or not so quick) read. Many of the books we have are not loanable from our local library. It is fun rediscovering books in your own little library. We know what we have - sometimes going to the library and sifting through all the books available (some good and others not) is not only time consuming, but also overwhelming to my kids. Our books stay in excellent condition.

My children started loving books early on. Being read to and just paging through books with lots of pictures is how many hours were spend in the early years. My son now devours books with lots of facts and reads to his sister when she finds it difficult to do so.  My daugter, Dené, started reading (much on her own) shortly after she turned 5. She reads books with short, easy stories and now it seems she is teaching herself to read in English.
It makes me proud to see my kids reading together instead of playing computer games or watching TV.

Soon we will be utilizing their love and passion for reading and knowledge in our new venture: Homeschooling.
More about this soon...