The Accidental Homeschooler

That's what I've decided to call myself. For now! I didn't imagine that I would be homeschooling. I don't have any philosophical objections to it but I don't believe that it suits my personality or that of my son. That being sad, here I am, preparing to homeschool.

Here's the background. My oldest son has been on a waiting list for a private Christian school since March! It isn't looking good since school starts September 3rd. The administrators did say he could get in at the last minute but...... this is getting a bit nuts. We didn't sign up at a "back up" school because I didn't want to go through the exhausting process of application a second time. I felt it was a bit dishonest, as well, to apply at a school we didn't really feel a connection with.

Public school is not an option for us for several reasons, one being that A has been reading since he was 2 and now (he's turning 5 next week) he reads at probably a grade 3 level. He needs to be challenged and public school won't do that for him.

So, I'm doing some research on homeschooling. Five in a Row looks like a good option for us since A loves books. I don't know about math. There are so many choices. Saxon Math, Modern Curriculum Press, Singapore Math, Shiller Math, Math-U-See, etc. If any veteran homeschoolers are reading this, I'm open to suggestions.

What sucks is that I can't sign up for a homeschool co-op or group since our homeschooling may last all of a week, if we get into the school. I can't buy a whole math program since this foray into homeschooling may be very short lived.

The challenge for me will be organizational. That is not my strength area! I'm loading up on books from the library and reading blogs and websites until my eyes cross.Pin It

Links to share

A list of menu plans with recipes and ideas for side dishes. I'm always interested in what other people are having for dinner and getting new ideas.

Spinach in a smoothie? For kids? I'll have to try it.

My son loves to colour animals but it very picky selective about which ones. They have to be realistic and preferably mammals from Africa. Here's a great site with very realistic drawings, no cartoonish stuff here.

The 11 best foods you aren't eating.

Make you own drawer organizers for next to nothing.

More popsicle recipes and 52 more ideas here!

Free phonics and math worksheets with a large age range.

Listen to classic Christian books online.

Jennifer of 5 Minutes for Books reviewed the book Mommy Diaries. It sounds good.

Want to make your own pretzel shapes such as letters with the kids? This recipe looks pretty easy.

Been to Starbucks a lot lately? Well, here is something to do with all those green straws. OK, you'd need a lot. :)

Kid-friendly YouTube videos (for age 6 and under) - pre-screened. TOT LOL. A great way to avoid the junk you find if you just go to the main YouTube site.

A troubling story of selfishness shown by those in the Seattle area a few weeks ago. It reminds me of the first two men in the Bible's Good Samaritan story who didn't stop to help.Pin It

Closing up some tabs/some fun links to share

I love Mozilla Firefox. I can have so many tabs open at one time. My hubby tells me it can slow down my computer, however. Its time to close some tabs and that means sharing some fun links!

150 + ideas for summer fun - an unpink life blog. I am on the look out for new ideas to keep my boys busy now that preschool is finished for the year.

A fun method of presentation for snack or lunch. Muffin Tin Monday. I need to try this.

A fun craft to use up those zillion broken crayons.

As I've mentioned before, our spring weather has been awful. So, I need lots of rainy day activities up my sleeve.

Home schooling *may* be in our future so I'm doing a bit of research. Here is a great blog post from a pro which outlines her method and gives some great book suggestions.

How to cut a cantaloupe.

When it gets above 70 degrees, I'm going to make watermelon popsicles.

Millet muffins sound interesting. Maybe add blueberries?

Remember the wife rating scale? Here's the husband version.

Fun, educational videos for preschoolers. Cullen's ABCs.

A fun wind chime craft.Pin It