I know that I can be tough. But, the reality is that she may not have the opportunity to be homeschooled forever. I would hate to have to put her back into the Charlotte Mecklenburg School system, but I can't predict the future. (And trust me, I would really, really hate to do that.)
So, I must makesure that I do my best to keep her on target or ahead of the game. In doing so, Christmas Eve we worked on a math lesson. The day before we worked on Division with remainders via an online program called "Time 4 Learning." I've learned to sit with Dove while she is doing her online lessons because she has the tendancy to just "go through it" without taking notes. After the lesson, she took the quiz and I found that she didn't really grasp the lesson. Therefore, I began to break it down to here, but ran out of time.
Christmas Eve we had to finish up the lesson. I went through the quiz questions one by one and showed her how to work through the problems. Then she took the quiz herself and told me she passed with an 80%, but I made her retest because she closed the quiz without letting me review it. "How can I help you with the ones you got wrong if you closed it up...that is unacceptable, repeat it." (Okay, I know I was a meanie, but it's the lesson of respecting me as a teacher that I'm trying to teach as well.)
After repeating the quiz, Dove called me to show me her score of 70%. But, again she had to repeat it because she failed to show the work. "How can I help you understand the problems if you don't do the work, what are you doing, guessing at it?" Again, repeat the lesson and she got a 90%. FINALLY! But not quite, she still didn't number the problems so she couldn't tell me what problem went with the work on the page. Ugh!!! So, I went to the profile to see her scores and that 80% she supposedly had was actually 60%.
Hmmm.... "So, why did you tell me you had 80% when you actually scored 60%? Why should I care so much about your education when you don't?" The tears began to swell up before she could even answer the question. As a parent, we already know what that means. She ended up locking herself in the bathroom crying.
"Meet me in the peace room, please." I called out. That's our space where we can talk openly. "So, why are you crying?"
"I feel unwanted. When you get mad at me because I don't do my work it makes me feel unwanted."
I actually wanted to chuckle at the dramatics. Unwanted? Okay, I had to take her feelings seriously since we were in the special room. "Dove, unwanted...really? Come on, I don't get mad at you because you don't do your lessons correctly, I get frustrated because I have to remind you to do them. You have a chore chart, but I still have to remind you to do the chores. You're ten, so why am I still reminding you to put lotion on your face and deoderant under your arms. I'm a single parent and it's just the two of us...I have to do everything and I want you to be responsible for things pertaining to you. Care more about your education that I do. Homeschooling is a priviledge. Me taking care of you and sacrificing the time to teach you is a priviledge. Me wanting the best for you is a priviledge, not your right. If something was to happen to me tomorrow, who else would make sure your grades are up to par? Who else will ask to see your lessons, read you books and make sure that you are exposed to life?" Of course, I went on and on. But I asked, "Do you understand what I'm saying?"
"Yes, you want me to be the best."
"Yeah, but more importantly, I want you to want to be the best. Be passionate about your life."
Friday, December 25, 2009
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Natural Museum of History
How homeschooling is going? Dove's Thoughts
Homeschooling is great. I like picking out what I want to learn. I love to interact with the lessons online. I also enjoy writing my lessons down in my notebook when I'm not doing lessons on the computer. (Online, Dove gets her core lessons done like math, language arts, social studies...)
The things that I enjoy most are making up games that I play with my mom to help me learn. For instance, we made a matching memory game out of compound words with the vocabulary words coming from the book I read.
Earlier, we were doing a lesson on food. I logged the food that I ate everyday and where it came from. That way, if you know what you're eating you can figure out the right diets for you and what is healthy for your body.
Homeschooling is a way to do school that you like it and in a better way...the way you think school should be. I always check with my mom to see if my subjects are good and how we can learn the most out of it.
The things that I enjoy most are making up games that I play with my mom to help me learn. For instance, we made a matching memory game out of compound words with the vocabulary words coming from the book I read.
Earlier, we were doing a lesson on food. I logged the food that I ate everyday and where it came from. That way, if you know what you're eating you can figure out the right diets for you and what is healthy for your body.
Homeschooling is a way to do school that you like it and in a better way...the way you think school should be. I always check with my mom to see if my subjects are good and how we can learn the most out of it.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
What To Do?
You know what? That is a hard question. As I look at other blogs, it seems that everyone has this homeschool thing figured out. It seems as if everyone is so much more organized than me, more comfortable with the process and more knowledgeable. Ugh, what is a girl to do?
Research. Yep. That's as simple as it can get. I was and still am, being haunted with the realization that I can actually fail my daughter. What if she has to go to school next year and is not at grade level? I refuse to let that happen.
At first, I started out with great ideas. We were going to start Social Studies with Egypt, but we never finished our lessons. Then I checked out the movie Roots from the library and intended to do a family tree with interview questions for our elders. The notebook is still on the shelf. Then we researched a wonderful artist, Romare Bearden and I created a great lesson plan and tied in our family history in it. Well, uhhh....that lesson is still on the to-do board.
In panic of the haunting voice in my head, I clicked on youtube. "How to create lapbooks?" So many video's came up. That was a wonderful start. Then I found lesson plans. So, I'm happy to say that we're doing an all-inclusive lesson plan based off of the book, Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs. There was a great lesson plan that included all of the core subjects: math, science, language arts, social studies, and art. And, we're doing it and it's not on the shelf! Next, we'll do an a'la carte lesson based on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. (If you need the lesson plans I'll post the links.)
And, you'll never know...I might get so good with following through with my lesson plans that we'll go back and do the other stuff I wanted to do.
Tip: Don't get overwhelmed in trying to do it all. By putting so much pressure on yourself, you'll probably create anxiety and block your creativity in your lessons.
Research. Yep. That's as simple as it can get. I was and still am, being haunted with the realization that I can actually fail my daughter. What if she has to go to school next year and is not at grade level? I refuse to let that happen.
At first, I started out with great ideas. We were going to start Social Studies with Egypt, but we never finished our lessons. Then I checked out the movie Roots from the library and intended to do a family tree with interview questions for our elders. The notebook is still on the shelf. Then we researched a wonderful artist, Romare Bearden and I created a great lesson plan and tied in our family history in it. Well, uhhh....that lesson is still on the to-do board.
In panic of the haunting voice in my head, I clicked on youtube. "How to create lapbooks?" So many video's came up. That was a wonderful start. Then I found lesson plans. So, I'm happy to say that we're doing an all-inclusive lesson plan based off of the book, Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs. There was a great lesson plan that included all of the core subjects: math, science, language arts, social studies, and art. And, we're doing it and it's not on the shelf! Next, we'll do an a'la carte lesson based on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. (If you need the lesson plans I'll post the links.)
And, you'll never know...I might get so good with following through with my lesson plans that we'll go back and do the other stuff I wanted to do.
Tip: Don't get overwhelmed in trying to do it all. By putting so much pressure on yourself, you'll probably create anxiety and block your creativity in your lessons.
Friday, November 6, 2009
The Real Deal -Part 2
I met a wonderful woman today as I waited to get my car serviced. She noticed the way that Dove and I were interacting and working on our lessons. "Are you homeschooling her?" After letting her know that I was indeed homeschooling her, the obvious question came next. "What made you decide to homeschool?"
I wanted to say, "Take a seat, this might take a while." So I gave her the short version, which I'll repeat for you.
First, I went on a mission trip to Guatemala and met a few homeschoolers and loved how mature, responsible and smart they were. I knew that I wanted my child to grow to have those qualities. At that moment, I promised that if I had the opportunity then I'd consider homeschooling. Well, I seized the opportunity when BOA and Mr. Vanderberry pushed me out of the door. Which, I might add, was the best thing that ever happened to me.
Secondly, I visit schools and teach drama to elementary students to help their reading and writing. I was so hurt with realizing that children didn't have a grasp on vocabulary, sentence structure or the elements of a story. It's not that our teachers were failing them, but the whole school system. Teachers have their hands tied behind their backs with the lack of resources, the red tape and lack of freedom with their lessons plans and the pressure of having the students pass the EOG standardized testing. And, not to mention the disruptive behavior and behavior issues that they have to deal with. I was truly disheartened.
Thirdly, my daughter was being bullied for being on the A-Honor Roll. Even though the schools had a "NO BULLY" policy, I still didn't see that they enforced it. It was so bad that the counselor contacted me because they found a note that she wrote that said, "I feel like I want to kill myself." Chile, I cried and thought, "Not my child." But, several of my friends admitted to me the almost same story.
This bully got other people to ostracize my daughter. And, I didn't want her to not excel in school to fit in with them. I was really mad with the principal at the school for an incident that happened with this bully. For Christmas, I gave specialized keys to friends with different words on them such as peace, love, success, prosperity, wisdom, etc. I specifically picked the keys out for people and special reasons. I gave Dove's teacher one for "love," I wished that she would have an abundance of love for teaching. I also gave Dove success and wisdom.
Well, one day (months later) her chain broked and the "bully" picked them up and wouldn't give them back. The teacher ended up taking them and both girls sweared that they were theirs, but the teacher knew that they belonged to Dove and even told the "bully" that I gave her one just like it. Her hands were tied because the girl was relentless with claiming them as hers. So, the teacher gave them to the principal whom I contacted. I even sent the card that I gave to Dove describing why I gave her the keys and the store where I purchased them. She told me that she knew that they belonged to Dove, but the "bully's" mother said that the keys belonged to her child and was given to her by an uncle. Yep, now ya'll know that lady was lying, right?
Back in the day, my Detroit teachers would have called a duck a duck. But, in this day and age, we can't offend anyone. So, the principal went out to the store and purchased the keys for the "bully" and gave my daughter back hers. I thought this was awful! They allowed this child to lie and steal and she was rewarded for it. What message would that send to the other children?
Lastly, I wanted my child to be able to compete in this world for colleges and scholarships. I don't feel confident in the school system to equip her with the knowledge to get her ready to be able to do that.
So, after our brief conversation, the nice woman I met was inspired to research it and consider homeschooling her preschooler.
I wanted to say, "Take a seat, this might take a while." So I gave her the short version, which I'll repeat for you.
First, I went on a mission trip to Guatemala and met a few homeschoolers and loved how mature, responsible and smart they were. I knew that I wanted my child to grow to have those qualities. At that moment, I promised that if I had the opportunity then I'd consider homeschooling. Well, I seized the opportunity when BOA and Mr. Vanderberry pushed me out of the door. Which, I might add, was the best thing that ever happened to me.
Secondly, I visit schools and teach drama to elementary students to help their reading and writing. I was so hurt with realizing that children didn't have a grasp on vocabulary, sentence structure or the elements of a story. It's not that our teachers were failing them, but the whole school system. Teachers have their hands tied behind their backs with the lack of resources, the red tape and lack of freedom with their lessons plans and the pressure of having the students pass the EOG standardized testing. And, not to mention the disruptive behavior and behavior issues that they have to deal with. I was truly disheartened.
Thirdly, my daughter was being bullied for being on the A-Honor Roll. Even though the schools had a "NO BULLY" policy, I still didn't see that they enforced it. It was so bad that the counselor contacted me because they found a note that she wrote that said, "I feel like I want to kill myself." Chile, I cried and thought, "Not my child." But, several of my friends admitted to me the almost same story.
This bully got other people to ostracize my daughter. And, I didn't want her to not excel in school to fit in with them. I was really mad with the principal at the school for an incident that happened with this bully. For Christmas, I gave specialized keys to friends with different words on them such as peace, love, success, prosperity, wisdom, etc. I specifically picked the keys out for people and special reasons. I gave Dove's teacher one for "love," I wished that she would have an abundance of love for teaching. I also gave Dove success and wisdom.
Well, one day (months later) her chain broked and the "bully" picked them up and wouldn't give them back. The teacher ended up taking them and both girls sweared that they were theirs, but the teacher knew that they belonged to Dove and even told the "bully" that I gave her one just like it. Her hands were tied because the girl was relentless with claiming them as hers. So, the teacher gave them to the principal whom I contacted. I even sent the card that I gave to Dove describing why I gave her the keys and the store where I purchased them. She told me that she knew that they belonged to Dove, but the "bully's" mother said that the keys belonged to her child and was given to her by an uncle. Yep, now ya'll know that lady was lying, right?
Back in the day, my Detroit teachers would have called a duck a duck. But, in this day and age, we can't offend anyone. So, the principal went out to the store and purchased the keys for the "bully" and gave my daughter back hers. I thought this was awful! They allowed this child to lie and steal and she was rewarded for it. What message would that send to the other children?
Lastly, I wanted my child to be able to compete in this world for colleges and scholarships. I don't feel confident in the school system to equip her with the knowledge to get her ready to be able to do that.
So, after our brief conversation, the nice woman I met was inspired to research it and consider homeschooling her preschooler.
Monday, October 26, 2009
Why I Want to be Homeschooled - Dove
Well, in school, all day long its just work, work, work in a chair until it's recess. Sometimes we get to work in a group and have play time, but that's hardly never. Most times, I just wish I could have a break in school.
I learn at a difference pace than some of the other kids. Like, instead of working on something for one or two days, we all have to work on it for one or two weeks. I'm one of the faster kids and I feel like I'm just writing the same old thing everyday and nothing new.
Before homeschool I went to Dilworth Elementary. It was more fun than the school before that, Hickory Grove Baptist Christian School. For the first few years, Hickory Grove Baptist was cool for me, but we didn't have recess until almost the end of the day. The whole school day was spent in a chair, looking at the board and copying everything down except for the fifteen minutes we had for lunch.
In homeschool, I can have a break and learn at my own pace. It's like my school and I'm still getting my education. It's mostly online and sometimes it's interactive and pretty fun. Other times, it's just reading.
I learn at a difference pace than some of the other kids. Like, instead of working on something for one or two days, we all have to work on it for one or two weeks. I'm one of the faster kids and I feel like I'm just writing the same old thing everyday and nothing new.
Before homeschool I went to Dilworth Elementary. It was more fun than the school before that, Hickory Grove Baptist Christian School. For the first few years, Hickory Grove Baptist was cool for me, but we didn't have recess until almost the end of the day. The whole school day was spent in a chair, looking at the board and copying everything down except for the fifteen minutes we had for lunch.
In homeschool, I can have a break and learn at my own pace. It's like my school and I'm still getting my education. It's mostly online and sometimes it's interactive and pretty fun. Other times, it's just reading.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Got Guilt?
Homeschooling is not a joke. It's not. There are a lot of parents really excelling at homeschooling. I really want to be one of those parents.
In the beginning, I thought I was doing an okay job. Initially, I was to be a part of a co-op but I realized that my schedule wouldn't allow us to commit to it. It would have been fantastic to learn with a group and have that structure, yet creative energy. But, now I'm doing this alone...as a single mother. There are no re-inforced lessons from anyone else outside of me...got it?
The deal is, you've got to stick to the lessons and follow through. How many people do you know that start a project and leave it unfinished and go to the next idea? Well, it could be the same thing with homeschooling -- if you don't commit to following through.
I've started some great lessons, but without following through they're only mere introductions. I realized that I can actually fail my daughter in educating her. I asked Dove, "Do you really trust me with your education?" Innocently and naively, she answered, "yes." Several months later, I look around and see that we've been relaxing. I haven't honestly been utilizing our time wisely or even recording our lessons and effectively evaluating and assessing her.
What would happen if she had to go back to school? How do we know if she's ahead of the game or have to repeat the year? What if I'm not really equipping her with the best (my intention of homeschooling in the first place)?
Well...I'm about to get rid of the guilt and actually organize my lessons so that I can effectively teach my daughter.
I'll keep you posted.
In the beginning, I thought I was doing an okay job. Initially, I was to be a part of a co-op but I realized that my schedule wouldn't allow us to commit to it. It would have been fantastic to learn with a group and have that structure, yet creative energy. But, now I'm doing this alone...as a single mother. There are no re-inforced lessons from anyone else outside of me...got it?
The deal is, you've got to stick to the lessons and follow through. How many people do you know that start a project and leave it unfinished and go to the next idea? Well, it could be the same thing with homeschooling -- if you don't commit to following through.
I've started some great lessons, but without following through they're only mere introductions. I realized that I can actually fail my daughter in educating her. I asked Dove, "Do you really trust me with your education?" Innocently and naively, she answered, "yes." Several months later, I look around and see that we've been relaxing. I haven't honestly been utilizing our time wisely or even recording our lessons and effectively evaluating and assessing her.
What would happen if she had to go back to school? How do we know if she's ahead of the game or have to repeat the year? What if I'm not really equipping her with the best (my intention of homeschooling in the first place)?
Well...I'm about to get rid of the guilt and actually organize my lessons so that I can effectively teach my daughter.
I'll keep you posted.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
The Real Truth - Part I
To be honest, I never imagined that I could be with my child all day long without getting irritable at some point. I know some homeschool moms have their mouths gaped open with my honesty. But, I get that from other mothers as well. Come on, all day long? I used to get frustrated helping with homework.
A few years ago I had the opportunity to go on a mission trip. Several of the attendees were homeschoolers. I became intrigued with the process and how smart and responsible the children (teens) were. I knew then that if I ever had the opportunity to homeschool then I'd jump at the chance.
Well, that chance came when I was let go (pushed out by a big bully manager who made it his job to try to make me feel like an idiot) from the Bank of America. The whole summer, my daughter and I got to know each other. And you know what? It wasn't as bad as I thought! Well, she is a sweetie pie and I'm not just being biased because she's mine. I figured that I'd give it a go...and hence our story begins of homeschooling... the behind the scenes truth - raw and uncut.
Alicia Diane
Alicia Williams
www.askaliciadiane.com
A few years ago I had the opportunity to go on a mission trip. Several of the attendees were homeschoolers. I became intrigued with the process and how smart and responsible the children (teens) were. I knew then that if I ever had the opportunity to homeschool then I'd jump at the chance.
Well, that chance came when I was let go (pushed out by a big bully manager who made it his job to try to make me feel like an idiot) from the Bank of America. The whole summer, my daughter and I got to know each other. And you know what? It wasn't as bad as I thought! Well, she is a sweetie pie and I'm not just being biased because she's mine. I figured that I'd give it a go...and hence our story begins of homeschooling... the behind the scenes truth - raw and uncut.
Alicia Diane
Alicia Williams
www.askaliciadiane.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
