Why We Homeschool | Virtual Homeschool Coop Assignment 5 | #VHC

This response is my part of the Virtual Homeschool Coop Channel Collaboration. You can find out more at www.virtualhomeschoolcoop.com. The goal of the Virtual Homeschool Coop is to build the homeschool community of knowledge with collaborations to give voice to all experiences in homeschooling.

Assignment #5 

What is your reason to homeschool?

What was your original reason? 

I first felt the call to homeschool when my oldest was in preschool. He has now graduated - say what?! We began doing some preschool at home when he was 4. At that time, I also had a 1 year old and found out that I was pregnant with my 3rd on the way. You can just say that I was feeling a little overwhelmed, unsure, and confused. Was I really suppose to be homeschooling? Instead of facing my fear head on, I pushed it away and took the easy route and decided to send my son to public school. 

Long story short, he stayed there until 4th grade and my middle child also went until 1st grade. The feeling that we were suppose to be homeschooling never left the back of my mind and it kept coming up over and over again. I was at the school more than I was at home helping in the class rooms, etc. My oldest began to really struggle academically especially when it came to testing time (hence the reason I can't stand end of the grade tests). He passed each grade but it was tough on him and me. We were both exhausted with homework struggles and fatigue from schedules, when finally I decided to research homeschooling again and this time for good! 
 
Did it have to do with a situation or was homeschooling a lifestyle that you knew you wanted?

Both, we wanted to teach our children first and foremost God's Word. I also wanted their education to be centered around Christ and that ain't happening in a public school! I wanted them to have the opportunity to try sports and extra curricular activities while they were young and that won't happening with homework struggles.

Have your reasons changed on why you homeschool?

No, we continue to love the flexibility that homeschooling allows our family and we also love having the opportunity to center all our school subjects around God. 

So how about you - what is your reason for homeschooling?

If you would like to join the Coop, go here to learn more. Every person has a unique voice!

Virtual Homeschool Coop Assignment #3 | How do you use a Reading List in Your Homeschool? | #VHC

This response is my part of the Virtual Homeschool Coop Channel Collaboration. You can find out more at www.virtualhomeschoolcoop.com. The goal of the Virtual Homeschool Coop is to build the homeschool community of knowledge with collaborations to give voice to all experiences in homeschooling.

We have been all over the map when it comes to book lists in our homeschool. When I first began I wanted to make sure we added in some of the classics but as my children grew that was not their idea. First and foremost I wanted each of them to have a love for books. So, if it was Captain Underpants that caught there attention then so be it. Amelia Bedelia was another all time favorite along with Mrs. Piggle Wiggle in the beginning.

How and where do you get your book list? How big is it and how do you assign reading?

Through elementary years, we pretty much purchased the books on the Sonlight reading list per grade. I used them as a guide and often bought the reading guides to go along with them to have the comprehension questions handy.

During the middle school and high school years I pulled books from the Classical Conversations book list for the challenge years. Our curriculum, My Father's World, also includes/included wonderful books as well. Their read aloud books are some of my all time favorite books.  We especially love the series of books from YWAM publishing. Be warned if you choose these though - I ended up in tears while reading almost every one!

All of the above book lists I would normally follow the guide which told you how much to read of each book in order to finish by the end of the school year.

We also add in interest led books to our curriculum. Some of my children's favorites over the years are the Magic Treehouse Series, the Narnia Series, the Lord of the Rings series, the Little House on the Prairie Series, and the Anne of Greene Gables series. For these books, we go at a much more relaxed pace because they are reading these on top of their other lists. If they wanted to read more, they were certainly allowed to do so but we usually stuck with 1 chapter per day.

Do you reward and give incentives to read?

As far as rewards go, we always participated in the Pizza Hut BOOK IT program until each one aged out of it. I really wish it went past 6th grade because all my children would still do it if it did! Who doesn't love free pizza?!? I guess I should have continued it myself but I didn't. We also always participated in our library's summer rewards programs too.

Book Adventure is a place we used for a little while where you can offer rewards for reading.

Do you quiz for comprehension?

As I mentioned earlier, when we used Sonlight we did quiz for comprehension. As I began to just pull the books from the list and not buy the guides I would google comprehension quizzes per book and usually had pretty good success. I have also purchased an annual membership to abcteach.com and used their comprehension guides. 

So what does reading look like your homeschool?

If you would like to join the Coop, go here to learn more. No voice is too small!

Virtual Homeschool Coop | Assignment #2 | Dealing With Negativity Towards Homeschool | #VHC

This response is my part of the Virtual Homeschool Coop Channel Collaboration. You can find out more at www.virtualhomeschoolcoop.com. The goal of the Virtual Homeschool Coop is to build the homeschool community of knowledge with collaborations to give voice to all experiences in homeschooling.

I almost just skipped this question because in all honesty we have not faced any negative comments about homeschooling.  Both of our families fully support our decision and we are constantly being approached by others who want to homeschool their children because I ALWAYS tell them, "If I can do this, anybody can!" and I truly believe that especially if you are a Christian.  The list of people who are now homeschooling in our circle includes fellow church members, family, friends, and even previous school teachers!

Yes, it is a scary first step and you will doubt every decision you make but I promise you if God has laid this on your heart, He will pull you through and equip you with what you need.  

We had one mission when we began homeschooling and that was to teach our children God's Word so they could grow in their relationship with Him.  I knew that if I could accomplish that one goal, He would equip them with whatever else He wanted them to learn!  You can read more about our mission statement aka our "why" here.  

So, it's not really easy for me to tell you how to deal with negative comments when I haven't really faced them in our journey but I have to believe I would deal with them the way I do all negative people in general and oh boy I have dealt with my share of negative people.  

1) Take it all with a grain of salt - you do what works best for you.  This is your life, these are your children, this is your family.  They really have no right to say anything.

2) Simply ignore them.  Most negative comments come from pure ignorance and have no merit whatsoever.

3) If need be pull yourself away from them.  If it is a family member or friend who is constantly bombarding you with negativity, simply tell them this is your choice.  If they can't take that, distance yourself from them.  You can still show them love but it doesn't have to be daily or even weekly!

If you would like to join the Coop, go here to learn more. No voice is too small! 

Virtual Homeschool Coop | 2016-2017 Introduction

This response video is my part of the Virtual Homeschool Coop Channel Collaboration. You can find out more at www.virtualhomeschoolcoop.com. The goal of the Virtual Homeschool Coop is to build the homeschool community of knowledge with collaborations to give voice to all experiences in homeschooling.

Here is an introduction to our homeschool for the 2016-2017 school year.  We are entering into our 8th year of homeschool in the state of NC and now have only two students left that are homeschooling - Sarah (8th grade) and Stephen (10th grade).  We have one homeschool graduate - whoop whoop!

We had one mission when we began homeschooling and that was to teach our children God's Word so they could grow in their relationship with Him.  I knew that if I could accomplish that one goal, He would equip them with whatever else He wanted them to learn!  You can read more about our mission statement aka our "why" here.  

We take a very eclectic approach when it comes to curriculum and LOVE trying out new curriculum to see if it fits our family.  We have been a part of the Schoolhouse Review Crew for many years and that helps to feed our curriculum addictions interests.

We are so excited to meet other homeschooling families and to encourage them in their journeys as well as be encouraged ourselves.  Please leave us a comment to let us know where you are from!  Our focus this year is on World Geography so we would love to know where you are and we will add your family to our prayers!

Here is our Introduction Video:

If you would like to join the Coop, go here to learn more. No voice is too small! 

Is Your Homeschool Structured or Relaxed? | #VHC

This response video is my part of the Virtual Homeschool Coop Channel Collaboration. You can find out more at www.virtualhomeschoolcoop.com. The goal of the Virtual Homeschool Coop is to build the homeschool community of knowledge with collaborations to give voice to all experiences in homeschooling.

So this week's question is do we think our homeschool is structured or relaxed and to rate it on a scale from 0 being no structure to 10 being high structure. Here are my thoughts on our homeschool.

Overall, I gave our homeschool a rate of 7 on the structured/relaxed scale. My children and myself thrive on structure so we may be a little more structured then some homeschools out there.

In curriculum, I gave our homeschool a rate of 6 because I am learning to be a lot more flexible in this area than when we first started. I am no longer a slave to my curriculum but use it as a tool to help facilitate the needs that my children need met. If it doesn't work for us, I'm okay with getting rid of it although I do like to give it a good go before sending it on. If it brings tears, sweat, and fights then it really has to go. There are way too many options out there for any of those to be the case!

In our daily routine, I gave our homeschool a rate of 7 because we do have a schedule and try our best to stick to it. Again as the years have passed and my children are involved with extra curricula activities, we have learned to allow for flexibility in our schedule. I am a planner at heart so having a plan makes me feel accomplished even if we only get to half of it for the week. It will still be there for us the next week ready to go!

In our homeschool space, I gave our homeschool a rate of 8 because the majority of our homeschooling takes place in our school room. We do have school on the road, in the dining room, on the living room couch, etc but for the most part all school materials, supplies, and learning resides in our homeschool room.

See this video to hear more thoughts on our homeschool ratings:

If you would like to join the Coop, go here to learn more. No voice is too small!