Homeschool: The first week

This was our first "official" week of homeschool. The hubs was on leave for the past two weeks leading up to Chinese New Year, so I didn't have a schedule or planned activities for the kids, as they were happy just hanging out with Papa. Then the hubs went back to work this week. Thus far, I must say things have been a lil crazy, since Baby J seems to be one of those clingy babies that need to be carried most of the time. The evenings are the worst, where baby is cranky, and the two older ones are getting tired and start fighting over all sorts of things, and I'm rushing to get dinner ready.

But crazy times aside, it has been quite a week of learning (for me especially!). Learning to pray hard for wisdom. Learning how to plan things so that it flows with everyone's rhythm. Learning how to teach Lil J to fall asleep on his own during naps and at night. Learning what piques their interest, and what the kids do understand or don't understand. Learning to deal with matters of the heart, like their attitude towards learning, above matters of the head (the academic bits).

This week, we started on a little phonics (five minutes from Teach Your Child to Read), and a little writing (we're waiting for our Handwriting Without Tears books to arrive, and meanwhile are just using an exercise book), plus Junior J gets to practice his reading with a couple of Bob Books each day. He more or less can read easy readers on his own, however, he tends to read by sight, so I'm hoping this would help him along his reading journey.

In the evenings, I rely alot on puzzles to keep the boys from fighting.
This one (a birthday gift) has been keeping Junior J busy.

Lil J has been asking to do "mama school" too, so I've been trying to give him puzzles and math manipulatives at the table. This little boy has a really short attention span, but I'm glad that he's trying to focus, and is actually interested in the tasks at hand. He's never been one to sit through a book, however, this week we've been reading and reading and reading (and not once has he asked to watch a video, something he used to do previously). He especially loves "The Big Green Pocketbook" and "Owl Babies", and we've read both a few times this week. I'm thinking of planning activities for him based on the Before Five in a Row curriculum, and we'll see how that goes.

We've also been dabbling in art everyday. I love these sessions, since the house is the quietest then (unless Baby J is fretting!). Thus far, it's been open-ended with just paints and paper. We've experimented with mixing primary colours, and gradually mixing white paint into a single colour. It's interesting to see the boys at work. Lil J just experiments with mixing the paints and blopping them all over, while Junior J has started painting real life objects/scenes on his own accord, something he didn't do previously.

It was supposed to be a heart stamping session for Vday... 

... but he turned his into a circuit. He was painting in the battery and said the blobs were charges.

The older two have also been helping a lot more at home. They help with the laundry, they set the table, they clear their plates and cups after meals and they wipe the table. Clean-up time is still quite a challenge though, as they are always getting distracted, but we've started using a chart with stickers for certain chores, so I'm hoping that might help.

The boys have also been getting an hour or so outdoors to just run about and explore. We've gathered loads of pods and fruit, and I'm hoping to start filling up nature journals. In fact, I'm hoping to do lots of things with both of them, but for now, I'm just going to take it step by step. After all, I keep reminding myself that it's progress, and not perfection we're aiming for.

All in all, I think it has been a pretty good week. Tiring though, but I'm looking forward to next week!