Homeschooling

 I always hoped that if I felt that school wasn't going well for one of my kids, that I would have the courage to pull them out and try homeschooling.  In 4th grade, Tommy was often coming home frustrated.  He wasn't having trouble academically so much, although he seemed to be underperforming in my opinion.  But he was worn out from the drama and meanness that he faced daily.  I chaperoned a field trip in April and I was disappointed in the behavior of the kids.  Some were so loud and attention seeking, and Tommy just got lost in all the chaos.  

It also seems difficult to develop a strong sense of self in an environment where there's such a strong pressure to conform.  And maybe my kid deserved to spend more of his time with someone who actually really likes him.

We have completed our first year of homeschool and it has been an amazing experience.  We have had so many adventures together.  I feel like my own brain is more awake, learning and reading along with him.  We have been able to research things he is interested in. We've taken fun field trips, had more time to appreciate nature.  More time to develop other talents like art, music, and sport.

After just a couple of months people told me that he seemed happier and more confident.  I'm so grateful that we were in a position to be able to do this.  We're going to continue at home for another year, and re-evaluate after 6th grade.  I will always be grateful for this year.  I have been able to know my boy better and grow closer.  

This is Tommy's mosaic project that won a special prize in the state fair.  

Our yeast experiment to understand the importance of sugar in the process.

His biscuits won 3rd in the fair!

We had an amazing field trip to DC in September.  There were no crowds, lines, or wait times.  We could walk right up to see the Declaration.  When we toured the capital, we were the only people in our group from one of the original 13 colonies!

We had time for fun outdoor adventures.

During weekday mornings with no crowds!

Here he is doing an experiment comparing the circumference to the height of cylinders.  This one surprised us. 

We took our reading out to the reservoir some mornings. 

I still tried to do some traditional school projects and assignments.

Tommy was impressed with the thickness of the walls at Ft. McHenry.

We had a homeschool group activity making pigments from iron on rocks in the creek.

Even I went roller skating.

Tommy and I got season passes to Hershey for Christmas and we have gone a couple times before schools let out to enjoy the shorter lines.  We also learned a lot about coaster physics this year so this was our reward.

We toured Hampton House, which is a local historic site.

We visited our State House in Annapolis, which is the oldest State Capital building still in use!

In this room George Washington resigned his commission as commander of the revolutionary army.  Tommy was really moved by being in the same place as something that happened long ago.  I'm so grateful to experience these moments with him, and to hear his thoughts about them.

Surely one of my kiddos will accuse me of favoritism as this post exclusively features Tommy, so I will have to provide an update as I have not posted in 2 years!