Another School Year

Yep, summer is winding down...

...thoughts of school are fast approaching...

...curricula and books have been arriving in the mail...

...and we prepare for another year of home schooling.

Yep, summer is winding down...fall is approaching.  There is something special about the changing of the seasons.  I'm looking forward to the cooler temps and crisp nights...

...oops, nevermind, I just remembered that I now live in Texas...where it's common to still be swimming in October :)

Have I mentioned that I love home schooling...

...well, usually...I mean, there are days...every now and then, when I sometimes wonder, just a tiny little bit...

...what boarding school would be like ;-) 

Well anyhoo, school will look a bit different this year...for one, it will be more focused.  We do not expect to have any cross country moves during the middle of our school year this year.  But I am expecting a full year, a very full year, and we may even be doing a little "catching up"...again, that move kinda threw us for a loop :)  

We are still using Tapestry of Grace as our main curriculum, MUS for math, Noeo for science (chemistry this year...I think I'll leave most of the science teaching to the chemistry PhD in the family), but I am changing up Language Arts for Bella.  She is not strong in these areas (we are researching some possible learning issues and changing to curriculum that will hopefully give her more support and be a better fit for her learning style).  Sophia will continue with our Phonics Road program...she has taken to reading like a champ...but her handwriting...yes, I'll be working with her on that :)

Tapestry, our history program, has us back at the beginning...creation and the ancients...we are all so excited to study this part of history again!  It has been a full four years since we studied this segment of history...I wonder how much the girls will remember from last time we journeyed through this time period? 

I love the start of a school year...evaluating the previous year and planning for the new one.  What did we learn...where/when did we not do enough...what did we do well.  And even last year when I sometimes wonder if I can even count it as a full "school year" I have to remember that it's not all about the academic schedule or what "level" my kids are on.  Don't get me wrong, academics are important to us, and we have some areas that need more focused attention.  But sometimes, we measure learning in different ways...the school of life...learning that is hard to measure on a standardized test.

Here are some school pictures to enjoy...

Learning some Geography courtesy of our trip from PA to TX~

Love this...love them!

Mmmm...letters are tasty!

Not the typical book you might find your child snuggled up with...but it works...seriously, this is how I found her~

Biker girl~

Two monkeys in a tree~

Bella reviewing some phonics for Sophia~

Artist in action!

Ukelele ladies~

And just in case you think that everything is always rosy around here...and we just all love school...all the time...and every moment of learning is pure bliss...

...yes, just in case you think that is what it's like...then, I want to share this picture Bella drew for me last year...and set the record straight~

Freedom~

This is a self-portrait Bella drew of her thoughts on Math and Reading...don't you love the chains?  And the keys to unlock the chains are apparently held by Yours Truly :)  And I guess she thinks she's an angel :)  She gave it to me one afternoon near the end of last school year...and I decided to not make too much of it...everyone needs a good laugh sometime, right? 

So, here we go...another school year getting underway...I hope this year's self portrait will have less chains :)

I pray you are enjoying the start of your school year~

Rach