A New School Year

Last night was orientation for the new year of our Home School Co-op. Here’s how it works: We meet on Mondays at a local church. After a half hour assembly together, the kids go to classes. There are 4 blocks of classes. Middle school and high school students have choices for each hour. For example during the science block high school students can take Physical Science, Biology, or Chemistry. Students do not have to take classes every block. There is a study hall for students who aren’t in a class during a specific block. The students get homework to do during the week and turn back in on the following Monday.

Parents teach what they are good at, and let someone else teach what they are not so good at. This year I am teaching History to K-2nd graders, and History and Literature to high school students. I enjoy those classes, but I am absolutely abysmal at science, so I am grateful someone else can teach that subject to my children.

This year, Hoodie Girl is taking Physical Science, English I, History/Literature, and French at the co-op. At home, she will be doing Pre-Algebra and Bible. At the co-op, Czarina is taking History/Literature and Pre-Algebra. At home we will be working on English, English, English and Bible.

Last year I taught Middle School Literature. I expected to teach that again this year, but Hoodie Girl and Czarina asked me to teach high school!

And this is one of the blessings of homeschooling. A few weeks ago, when the public schools started back up, I heard and read from parents who were sad because their child was entering middle school or high school. They were mourning the lack of time they had with their children before the kiddoes grew up and moved out. Well, my girls are starting high school, but I’m going to be right there with them. . . and they WANT me to be.

The kids are great. I loved teaching middle school the last two years. Monday was my favorite day of the week! As I got to know each student, it was easy to pick out who, if in public school, would be the class clown, who would be the boy every girl wanted to date, who would be the girl every boy wanted to date, who would be the jock, who would be the nerd, who would be special ed, etc. (The one thing I couldn’t determine was, who would be the mean girl.) In our class of around 17 students, everyone got along with everyone else. The shy students came out of their shells, knowing they were going to be accepted for who they are. The kids were always attentive and respectful during oral reports, and over the year last year I saw the students, especially the shy students, grow in confidence over the year. As a matter of fact, one young lady who started out the year HATING doing oral reports and would speed through them as fast as she could, ended up doing a great job on her last report of the year, taking her time and making eye contact with the audience. When someone was needed at the last minute for a skit at church this summer, this young lady stepped in and again did a great job.

I still have a lot to do to be ready for our first class on Monday, so I’d better get to it!

Tightwad Fun

I have two teen age girls who love to shop for clothes. With our current financial situation, I am not buying any clothes that are not absolutely necessary. In the last month I have taken the girls to a couple of different thrift stores, where they have bought clothes with their own money. Well, I guess it’s more accurate to say they bought clothes with Hoodie Girl’s money. Czarina pays her back by doing some of Hoodie Girl’s chores, illustrating Proverbs 22:7, “The borrower is servant to the lender.”

Kohls and JCPenney were both nice enough to send me $10 gift cards to their stores, so a couple of days ago we went hunting – er, shopping. Both stores had lots of clothes on clearance, plus some pretty good sales.

Hoodie Girl had money, so she could buy something that cost more than $10. Czarina had no money, and in fact was in debt to 3 different people. (NOTE: they both get the same allowance).

So obviously Hoodie Girl had more choices than Czarina.

We went to Kohl’s first, and they had great fun trying on clothes. Hoodie Girl ended up with a BEAUTIFUL new top. The original cost was $36, but it was on sale for 35% off, so with the coupon she spent around $13. That is more than she would normally spend on a top, but it is REALLY nice, and she got it for almost 2/3 off, so she was happy.

Czarina tried on things she couldn’t afford. There was one top that looked really, really good on her, and I was SOOOO tempted to loan her the extra money she would have needed. However, as I mentioned early she already is in debt to 3 people, and I am trying to teach her money management skills, so I just couldn’t.

We next went to JCPenney’s to see what we could find for Czarina. Both girls tried on lots of clothes, including some discounted prom dresses that were so low cut that there is no way Cornbread Muffin, the modesty police, would have let them out of the house wearing them.

Czarina was eventually able to find a nice top for $8.99. However, when we got to the checkout, we found out that she had to spend at least $10 to use the coupon. What can you find at JCPenney that costs a dollar? The sales clerk suggested the canvas shopping bags they had displayed at the counter. So Czarina got a top, and a canvas shopping bag.

So we had a fun afternoon of shopping, they each got something new, and it didn’t cost ME a penny!

Family Matters

One of my favorite cousins lives 90 minutes away. We have lots in common (including we both homeschool), we always enjoy being together, but being the busy creatures we are, we will go years without seeing each other.

This week her mother (my aunt) and sister (my other favorite cousin) are visiting from Wisconsin. I wanted to go see them, and I wanted to take Czarina and Hoodie Girl with me.

They were not too sure, so I mentioned that my cousin has 3 teenage boys.

“Are they cute?” they wanted to know.

Then I threw in the pièce de résistance. “If you stay home, you will have schoolwork to do. If you come with me, you will not have schoolwork today.”

C. has 5 kids; 2 girls ages 19 and 10, and 3 boys ages 13, 13 (twins), and 16.

P. has 4 kids, but two are adults, so she brought her 10 year old twin daughters.

And then there was Aunt K., who is my mom’s sister. So there were 13 of us all together.

I had a great time, being among kindred spirits. My girls hung out with the boys, playing Rock Band and Wii, and having lunch together. At one point the 19 year old was installing Rosetta Stone Spanish on the computer, and then showing her 16 year old brother how it works, and how to set up a schedule to complete it within a school year. Before we left, my girls said several times, “Now you have to come visit us!”

We got in the van to come home, and Czarina said, “They are so nice. NOBODY is that nice!”

They are. C’s boys are wonderful young men. And my girls have three more friends for Facebook.