ThadenPierce School

Part of the joy of homeschooling is that you can have your lessons done by 9:30am and then go play with friends

And try on their shoes

And shoot them with water guns

And play in the dog house?? Okay, that’s weird.

We had a great time this morning playing with some homeschool friends. It reminded me how flexible our schedule is (I didn’t get up until 7:45am this morning, woo-hoo!) and how much time we are able to have as a family. Christopher did his lessons in the car on our way there and the rest of the time we’ve had to play and explore and learn in non-traditional ways.

I underestimate my kids a lot. Like teaching Christopher how to spell “thirteen” and then having him figure out the rest of the “teens” and announcing, “I broke the code! They all end in t-e-e-n!”

I’ve been distracted this morning so Moira got out her school binder and asked for dry erase markers and I didn’t pay attention to what she was doing. She called me over to show me – she’s racing through the pages, without any instructions from me, and she’s getting them all right. It’s phonics sounds – circle everything that starts with the “N” sound, go through the maze and follow the items that start with the “T” sound, etc. She got them all, she didn’t need me to explain.

And she’s writing M-O-I-R-A on every page, too.

This is why craft co-ops are so cool – someone else is willing to do a very messy but very fun project with your kids in THEIR kitchen.

Moira & Xili sitting on the chest freezer mixing the dough together:

Christopher & Moira kneading the dough:

Mommy & Emy eating cake:

The dough dries and can be made into beads or sculptures, it has glue so it’s a different consistency that most playdoughs. The kids loved it.

Katie, thank you for the pictures!

Today WOULD be Christopher’s first day of kindergarden if he were in the public or charter schools next to our home – both just started, Kit and I remembered, as we drove past them this morning watching the buses and kids and cars.

We’ve been homeschooling their entire life, more formally since January of this year when we started structured lessons. But it’s just TODAY that we are homeschooling officially instead of enrolling him elsewhere. It was a strange sensation. But a good one. Exciting!

Yesterday during Science Club a friend shared her story of a “No Rules” day they had this week. The kids could do anything, but so could the parents. I’m still laughing the stories the parents shared. This morning we talked with our kids about that idea – what it be like if we had no rules? What would they do? What would mommy and daddy NOT do? Would they like it?

They agreed that “eating treats all day” would be fun – until Daddy pointed out that if they get sick from all those treats, we don’t have to help them. They could watch tv all day – but we wouldn’t help them get movies down from the top shelf. We don’t have to read them any books. No bedtime stories?? The final straw was when I pointed out that yes, they could play in the yard all day but if they stumbled across a fire ant colony what would happen if they didn’t have mommy & daddy to help? That’s when Christopher’s eyes started welling up with tears so I backpedaled frantically and said cheerfully, “It’s great we all have rules because one of our most important rules is ‘Keep our kids safe!’” He calmed down and Kit laughed at me, “Yes, it’s probably good to stop before you make our kids CRY!”

So we’ve decided that it might be fun to have no rules for a little while but we’re grateful to have rules around here. Kids really do thrive with boundaries and structure at this age, as my friend already knew and her kids discovered quickly. It’s handy to have parents around to help.

I met a group of women today and discovered as we talked, sitting around nursing our babies, carrying them in our slings, laughing about co-sleeping and mattresses on the floor of our rooms for our little ones, discussing the best places to buy bulk organic food for our growing families, sharing names of midwives and birth centers and discussing birth center vs. homebirth, that we all homeschool. Can I tell you how that made me smile? All so different in our backgrounds, education, former careers, spouses’ careers, neighborhoods, incomes… but all on the same page with some of these major lifestyle choices. It does my heart good to meet these families that are all quietly (and sometimes not so quietly) doing our part to influence society through these amazing kids. And not just homeschooling families, though that seemed to be a common thread in this group – but any set of parents that realize how they raise their kids will very much influence the world we live in down the road. So they take that responsibility very seriously, in whatever choices they make – and they are thoughtful and prayerful about those decisions. It truly gives me hope for the future to meet such passionate families.

Links we learned about this week:

Typing program.

Read a story for you.

We’re not doing much by way of formal lessons this week, though we’re covering lots of subjects. I’m trying to get the lesson/subject plans set for this next year.

Now that life is “calm” we’re signing the kids up for the fun workshops held on Saturdays at Home Depot and Lowes – depending on the project, Kit and I are alternating which parent gets to go. This last week it was Kit & Critter to do an art caddy. Though I think Christopher was a bit disappointed that no power tools were involved. At this age hammers are dangerous enough…. that’s foreshadowing…

The website said 5 years and up but they sent home a kit for Mo to do. They had a blast! Home Depot is first Saturday, Lowes is second & fourth – so we could do handy shop projects all month long! And did I mention this is all free? The kids get aprons at Home Depots and each craft earns them a pin. After they paint their caddies I’ll post pictures but here they are hard at work.

Christopher came home to confess that he was not wearing his safety goggles and when he went to hammer, the back of the hammer hit him just above the eye – not hard, he didn’t have a mark. But he announced, “Now I known what it’s like to be hit by a hammer.”

I’ve joined a group called Smoothing the Way for first year homeschoolers. We meet monthly and get binders with handouts and so much great info – plus you meet lots of other families all on the same journey.

After our meeting last night I had quite the “To Do” list that I had written myself and I’ll be posting my notes and list after each meeting here.

1. Start a timeline – it can be simple, just roll of butcher paper but someplace visible it can be left up. Whenever we discuss someone, make a little figure and write their name, date of birth and death and what they are famous for, then stick them on the time-line. For the kids we’ll trace their handprint and let them see where they fit into this timeline and we’ll do something for our anniversary as well – maybe a temple outline? Then I thought it would be good to add ancestors – their grandparents, great-grandparents, etc. Let them see which ancestors were alive during periods of history we study. This will be an on-going project, of course. At this point I think we’ll mostly be adding family & scripture figures, since we’re not starting history this year.

2. Minus the kids this year but starting next year with them, designate a weekend to meet and prayerfully decide our goals for the next year. Maybe in August before school year starts and in January for new year/new semester, then in May for a review and to determine summer goals. What will we study, what special interest or activities we will have, what talent will we seek to develop, in what ways will we serve others? Set tv rules, then post them. Along with chore charts. Maybe a routine chart? We don’t stick to a routine, nevermind. Write up our Philosophy of Education for our family/school, too. Combine with family mission statement.

3. Set up Bennett’s box (toddler box, mainly Bennett for now) with activities and toys he can have ONLY when the older kids are doing lessons. It’s to buy us time. Maybe some special treats or snacks, rotate toys through, mini-lessons for him, etc. But stuff he can do independently.

4. Set up a “burn out” escape plan. Who will I call to check up on and to have them check up on me (talked with co-op friends about this checking in idea, they had great ideas) and establish escape plan. What will I do to step back and recharge when I’m feeling burnt out? Date with Kit, night with friends, get to temple, etc.

Create a mini-escape box – treats, splurges, short escape ideas & stuff like bubble bath, fun magazine to flip through, run to library for novel, go out for ice cream with friends, etc. In box keep LIST OF GOALS that we are working towards and check off as we are meeting them, as reminder of progress we are making. Anticipate burning out at LEAST once a semester and plan for it, recognize when it is happening and lighten schedule, plan fun escape with kids. Have stuff in box for them? New movie or book to start reading, fun games, coupons or gift cards for family date?

I would like to claim credit and say we’re so good about training the kids early and this is all part of the Thaden-Pierce plan to prepare these kids for adulthood, but really this was all Bennett. He saw us unloading the dishwasher and decided to help.

He was meticulous and got everything in the right place:

And then without prompting, hopped down to return the basket:

I think seeing the big kids doing chores helps motivate the little ones.