Friday, February 15, 2008

Heart of the Matter: Where do you homeschool?































Do you have a special room set aside? Are you a "couch schooler"? Do you move around the house all day long? Is your kitchen table covered with books, science equipment and crafts?

I have five kids, from an 11th grader down to pre-schooler, and we homeschool in just about every room of the house.

My oldest does most of his schooling on the computer in an alcove off the living room. He usually has his his MP3 player and headphones on listening to music like classical, musicals or Christian rock. So, he usually doesn't hear what's going on around him. He does Geometry usually at the dining room table and he practices for speeches and plays in his bedroom.

My 9th grader likes to do most of his school in our small office at his school desk where he keeps his books, but sometimes on the couch, kitchen island or his bedroom. Often he'll need the internet for research and he'll wait till his brother is finished, then he'll use the computer in the living room.

Isaiah(6th grade) and Christian (2nd grade) do half of their schoolwork at the dining room table, and half on the living room couch. I spend most of my morning working with them. They keep their school work in tubs on the school bookcase that is in the dining room. Sophie, my almost 3 yr. old, is usually at the table with us (or her picnic table that's also in the dining room) playing with playdough, coloring, using math blocks, sticker books, ect.

Science experiments, crafts and baking are usually done at the kitchen island or dining room table. When the warm weather gets here we often bring our books out to the deck, or sometimes even to a park.

When my kids were younger, our school was very different. We did more unit studies, and we did more projects and hands-on learning. I also did much of the teaching with all of them together. We also used Sonlight curriculum for many years and that involved lots of reading aloud on the couch, or outside during warm weather.

4 comments:

  1. BEAUTIFUL kids!!! What a blessing!!

    I enjoyed my visit to your blog.. I would love to get your thoughts on MUS and MOH. I have little little ones (3 and 2) but as they are really wanting to learn (ok mostly the older one, ha!) we are starting on a more structured math path for the fall and DH and I are sitting down this weekend to decie between Saxon and MUS. While I know you can always switch things up, I would prefer to stick with one if I can find one I like. Also, I have heard MOH was great for younger ones, but maybe not for older children but obviously this isn't the case?

    Sorry to pick your brain via comment, ha! I do love where you school and will be checking back soon!

    Have a wonderful weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I love hearing how things change over the years. Right now my kiddos are still young and want to be together for everything! They are two peas in a pod. I imagine as they get older, I'll be looking for more creative ways to give them space. Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I love your pics. My oldest thinks your son looks like Jim Carey. I told him that your son admires him also.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Also have 5 kids ~ well, 2 of them are over age 20, so are they still kids? We school in a very similar way. Great pictures.
    <><
    Beth

    ReplyDelete