Slamdunk School of How to: Building a Better Learner

As I have mentioned before, Coral is ADHD, and sometimes that translates to not being a very patient learner. Ok, a lot of times she isn't a patient learner. Ok. Honest-to-God, every day is a struggle.

She loves math! When she already knows it. She loves reading--books she's already read. She loves writing--unless it's for school. She loves science--um, well, ok, she just loves science. You get the idea. She loves school, except for the school part.
It's so easy to get caught up with Leif who is the easiest student ever compared to Coral, but he's only 3 and this is her time. So I've been working on ways to help her be a better learner. If I can teach her how to learn, I will consider myself a successful teacher. I'm still learning how to help her become a lifelong learner, but I have learned a few tricks recently that have helped me.

So, we are learning time right now. I am taking this opportunity to teach her how to skip-count too. Sure, we started with fives, but we are learning other skip-counting as well. Relating it to reading a clock didn't really jive with me, but it certainly worked for her! She took reading a clock and is learning to skip-count by fives, tens, and twos. And it works for her. I have had to just go with it because while learning skip-counting via telling time isn't something I would have come up with on my own; but if I let Coral lead us where she wants to go, she is excited about learning. So, yay for math!

We are also still working on her reading skills. Talk about a fight. She gets to new words for her and often she just shuts down. I helped her read through her worksheet and then I told her to finish it up while I did something else. I came back int the classroom five minutes later and she had stuck her own nose on the wall because she "had a bad attitude" about it.

Sigh.

Come on Coral. We will work it together.

Or how about if we start reading in tandem? So, I started reading it to her, letting her read it after me, letting her read it with me, and then letting her read it on her own, and guess what. She is doing so much better, of course. The best part is, she is trying to help Leif learn to read too and as a result is becoming a better reader.

It also helps that I discovered that books without pictures are much easier for her to read and she really does understand them. The pictures were distracting her! Thank God for ebooks! My kindle has been a life saver in the reading department with my little girl. She has gotten into the habit of bringing me my kindle to "spend time" with me reading. She reads to me and it makes this momma so happy.

So long for today <3

Homeschooling Is Fun!

I know, I know. I haven't blogged here for months. What's up with that?

Well, I've been concentrating on building up my author profiles all over the web and I have been blogging like a boss on my other blog. As for homeschooling? We just got back into the swing of things after a winter of concentrating on developing reading skills. 

Coral is doing well considering, the best part of it all is she is excited to resume her other work. Science was the first thing she wanted to do, then art. So I combined the two. We are designing a cardboard building and then we are going to implode it (sans explosives). The science? Physics. Let's learn about Gravity!

Leif is amazing. He will be ready for Kindergarten work in the fall. His understanding of the preschool work is significantly more developed than his fine motor skills will allow him to work. In other words, he may be reading before he can write because he understands the concepts, he just can't control his pencil yet. 

That's what is happening in my world. What's happening in yours?

Guest Blogger: Kelly D. Smith- A Homeschooled Child Who Loved It

Kelly D. Smith

Hello! I’m so pleased to be here today!

You see, I’m 20 years old right now and I've been homeschooled my entire life. Today, I want to talk about my story with you all.

My sister (who is 4 years older than me) went to school for a couple years and I even went to something close to pre-K. We went to a waldorf school (resource link: http://www.waldorf.ca/index.cfm?id=19491) and when it came time for me to enroll, my parents looked at the cost. It was going to be close to their mortgage per month! So my mom decided to take on schooling her kids herself.

Truth be told, I don’t remember much of this, I don’t even remember much of our first years of schooling but I do remember turning our front room into a school room. The walls were green and both my sister and I had our own small desks, and there was a black board. That much I remember.

We had a daily word, and I remember my mom using a moon to help me remember the letter “C”. My mother read to us every day and as my sister and I got older we began reading.

As we grew older some things changed. We started off going to the school room every morning at 10:00 AM and having a curriculum. When I was older my mother decided to go back to school and further her own education, she  also decided it was time to change the schooling more to our style. Instead of leaning about lots of things I didn’t care about she let me delve into mythology, math, and writing. Those were my passions and my parents encouraged me to fallow them.

Truth be told, some of my skills lacked. I always had trouble with spelling and grammar, and I wasn’t able to read well until I was 8-years-old, but by the time I was 10 I could read Lord of the Rings. I also delved into the world of psychology (Do you know many 12-year-olds who know Maslow’s hierarchy of needs?)

By the time I was 14 my mother was accepted to university in Ottawa, my sister was already in Vancouver in acting school, which was her dread. My parents and I, along with our 4 dogs and 3 cats loaded into a truck and made our way from the grater Toronto area to the woods of Quebec. 

We stayed in a 150 year old log cabin as we waited for out other house to sell, during that year I put traditional subjects on hold as I gained more responsibility and we learned what it was like to be on a farm. With goats, geese and turkeys everyday was a learning experience. We cut trees for our fireplace and spent many hours hiking.

It was then that my writing really took off. I decided that I wanted to be a writer, and I was going to become one. I studied writing, I read classic books, and I started improving every part of my spelling that I could find.

After two years in Quebec we moved to Saskatchewan. Yes! Again, we packed up our stuff, and my parents and I climbed into the truck with our cats and our dogs and made the four day trek and settled into Saskatchewan living!

A lot of people ask me if I regret not going to school, and the simple answer is no. I went once with a friend, just for a day, and I realized how glad I was that I had never gone to school. I realized how lucky I had been.

I've been so lucky to do so much with my life already. Having family in Ontario, and having the ability to go visit without worrying about school has meant that I could visit my family whenever I wanted, as well as stay with them for months, or fly to Vancouver for a week to see my sister while she wasn't busy. Being homeschooled gave me the opportunity to work on my writing, and have 5 works published in two years. It’s given me the opportunity to really bound with my family and apply myself to the subjects that matter most to me.

But you may wonder, what will I do without a high school degree? While, truth be told there are lots of things you can do but I wouldn't know! A couple mothers after I turned 18 I took my high school equivalency test and passed with above average!

I would like to leave with a small word of advice:

Parents, homeschooling can be hard! I've been able to hear all about it from other parents but it can also give your children such an amazing learning experience. 

Kids, don’t go to school! No really, understand that you do not need to go to school. I’m not saying slack off on your education, but understand that homeschooling doesn't mean the end of your life. Take the chance to be more independent.

Guest Blogger: A Homeschooled Child Who Lived It!

On February 6th I will have a guest blogger coming to give us all some insight into homeschooling that we as parents might not have. I know I struggle with what Coral will think of me when she gets her GED and goes off to live her life away from me. Come join me to welcome author Kelly D. Smith, as she gives us some insight into the life of a homeschooled child.

Kelly D. Smith is a paranormal/fantasy/urban fantasy and contemporary romance author. Born in the GTA [Greater Toronto Area] Kelly moved to the woods of Quebec when she was 14 years old but currently lives in Saskatchewan. A gypsy at heart, she has lived in 7 homes in 7 years and loves traveling, which you can often see in her writing. Being homeschooled her entire life Kelly was able to dedicate her time to reading and writing. When she turned 18 she attained her GED and has never looked back with regret. Currently Kelly lives in a small farm house with her dogs. Kelly always welcomes comments or questions from her readers and can be found on Twitter & Facebook.

Coral's Book: Marshmallow Girl Saves the Day

Marshmallow Girl Saves the Day, by Coral

This is Marshmallow Girl.

She has a stinger.

OUCH!!

She is a superhero.

Oh no! Bank Robbers!

Marshmallow Girl to the rescue!

The bank robbers are defeated.

HEY! Marshmallow girl saves the day.

Yes, I know I misspelled marshmallow in the last two instances.
No, I don't know what overcame my good sense.

Abstraction in The Slamdunk Homeschool

My wonderful 3-year-old is beginning to scare me. No, he's not a sociopath or psychopath. He's freaking smart! He's making connections that I don't expect from 9-year olds, much less 3-year-olds!

Definitions first.

Abstraction:

     The quality of dealing with ideas rather than events.

Abstract thinking:

     Abstract thinking is a level of thinking about things that is removed from the facts of the “here        and now”, and from specific examples of the things or concepts being thought about.

Here is an example of an abstract connection:

My father and I were discussing to possibility of water at the center the moon. I immediately jumped to: "That would explain why it's lopsided."

We were not discussing size or shape, but the abstract thought of size and shape came up under the theoretical discussion.

The reason why middle schoolers are so much fun is because they are just beginning the journey into abstract thought. I love seeing the connections happen for middle-schoolers. They become infinitely more interesting with this development in their ability to cogitate.

What does this have to do with a 3-year-old?

Me, zipping up my son's coat There you are, Leif. Ready to go.

Leif: I am Leif, and I am Bubby.

What I can't show you and what I am going to feebly attempt to explain was the light that went off in his head just after I said his name. It was just a split second and I would have missed it if I didn't have a habit of making eye contact with my children when I talk to them. It wasn't a recognition of name versus nickname, it was a statement of being. I am this and I am that and they are the same but they are different. I've worked through this so many times and I just can't explain it correctly except to say, trust me, this was an abstract thought.

This is just a single small example of an abstract connection my son is making. He's doing it more often now. Nearly everyday, sometimes more than once, he has a thought that he shares that is a bit beyond his developmental stage. It's a little scary, and recently he told me that he wanted me to teach him how to spell. He's doing it too, with his mouth, with his hands (ASL), and writing (with help, he isn't that developed in his fine motor skills).

He's going to be reading soon, I have a feeling he will be a reader before he is a kindergartner.

And honestly, I am scared. How am I going to keep up with him? How will I keep him interested in school when he learns so freaking fast. And how am I going to make sure Coral doesn't develop a complex about the competition that will inevitably form between her and her brother.

I'll be doing a lot of reading to prepare for Leif, and to help Coral be who she is without feel deficient because she isn't like her brother. Suggestions, anyone?

The face of my love and my fear.

Slamdunk: What Happens When You Confront Your Student With the Facts of Life

Yesterday I warned Coral about this semester's workload. I informed her that we would be spending the majority of our time reading and writing. She is behind the curve in the reading department because I haven't pressed her as hard as traditional schools press students in this area.

She has a few very strong innate abilities--art is her life, math is becoming one victory after another for her. She loves learning science--her questions never end.

"Why do we cough?"
"What happens if we get too much blood inside us?"
"What kinds of animals hibernate?"
"Where are the birds going?"
"What do fish eat?"
And on and on.

I love this about her! She makes my life interesting with all the wonderful questions she asks and we learn so much following her trains of thought. But I haven't pressed her to do her own reading. I was so focused on enjoying her ride that I let it slip. I became aware of how behind she is this Christmas when she and her friend wrote a letter to Santa. I should say, Coral dictated to her friend. Coral does write, and she reads, but she isn't much more than a beginner at either.

This semester I am going to lead her through her beginning stages and into the wonderful world of reading for delight and information. This is going to be a challenge for her because she gets her letters mixed up frequently. We are going to work it hard, and my lovely daughter surprised me when I informed her of the plan. She said, "Sounds good!"

Stop. Breath. Reboot.

"Sounds good!"

This is the face of a beautiful mind.