I keep thinking about planning for next year.  I just can’t make myself do it!  I need a break, I think. 

We have three more weeks of school.  Maybe I’ll be ready to plan in 4 more weeks.

My oldest will be starting Summer School classes in 2 weeks.  She is taking two classes this summer so she will be able to graduate as a Junior next year.  Because I held her back a grade in middle school, she is a year behind.  This was a mistake that I will never make again.  The following year, she bounced back and nearly made up the difference.   However, by that time, she was in high school and it was all about the credits. 

My daughter is graduating in one year!!  I just can’t believe it…..

I hope you all have a great summer, whether you school through it or not!

Enjoy the time you have with your little ones.  It truly goes by much too quickly… 

I thought I’d blog a few of my random thoughts this morning!

As we’re winding down the school year, I’m having a hard time concentrating.  I keep planning next year in my head!

I have to decide who will use T4L.  You know, it would be great if you could do T4L ala carte….   My older son does great on his own, actually he does better on his own,  in everything but Math.  I have yet to hit the right combination for him for Math.   Since our budget is so very limited, it would be great if I could have two kids in the full program and just have Math for one….

Going dormant…..anyone?  We decided to go dormant for June and July and start back with T4L in August.  It looks like our 2 year old may be headed for open heart surgery this summer… (A personal note and prayer request here!)

I’m planning on some nature study, art classes (putting it together myself) and some light phonics and math drills using flashcards and fun workbooks.  It’ll be fun for a while, then we’ll be back on T4L!

We’ve been doing yard work and gardening.  I hope to plant a couple of tomato plants, some green beans, jalapeno peppers, etc. this week.  My boys love to see things growing.

Oh, and I know it’s late but…. HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!  I hope you all were treated like queens!

I am a homebody.  It is easier to be at home.  We get more done, school and otherwise, if we limit our time out of the house.

It helps that we only have one car.  

We do enjoy outside activities, but stick to ones right here in our small community, with occasional family and friend field trips. 

It works for us, but I still need a little support.  So, I have several forums I hang out on.

I have a couple homeschooling forums, a notebooking forum and T4L forums that I go to regularly.  I don’t always post on them, but I learn a lot from previous posts.

I have one homeschooling forum I have been a member of for 10 years.  This one is like family.  I post there daily.

I also have a couple of CHD heart mom support forums I am active on.  These are very important to me by keeping me informed and giving me a place to talk or vent with other heart moms.

I consider these forums, the ones I am actively posting on and the ones I am actively reading on, a big part of my overall support as a stay-at-homeschooling mom.

Do any of you have children who seem to struggle with the whole concept of Time4Learning?

My 10 year old loves what he’s learning, but he really dislikes to read.  We’ve tried Peedy, but while that was a big plus in the beginning, the novelty has worn off a bit.  The distortion of the voice is just too much for him to work around.

Lately, I’ve been sharing the reading with him.  He reads a paragraph, then I read one.

He is loving the History lessons and seems to get much more from it if I read along with him. 

I just thought I’d ask.  In some ways I feel he should be taking more responsibility, but I want him to love learning. 

I am here with Cade, a local first grader.  He has agreed to answer a few questions about Time4Learning.

Lisa:  Hi, Cade.  Did you have a happy birthday yesterday?

Cade:  Of course!

L: Great! I have some questions to ask you about T4L.  First question…. What do you like most about T4L?

C: That writing corner thing.  You know, where you put the stickers in the story and where you get to write you own stories in the different rooms?  I like making my own stories.

L:  Yes, that’s a great feature.  It actually gives you one more chance to see pieces of the lesson and recreate a story on your own.  Very nice….  Question #2….  What do you like the least on T4L?

C: I don’t like it when I click and click on something again and again and it doesn’t work.  That makes me mad!

L: Yes, that is frustrating.  We’ve had problems with the story-links and all of the extra links in the Science lessons.  Maybe we can get that fixed.  Okay, Question #3…. Who is your favorite character and why?

C:  My favorite character was the cook guy.  I liked it when he made all the food.  I love that guy!!!

L:  Yes, I remember him.  He was in the Kindergarten math section.  Okay, and the last question…. What is your favorite subject on T4L?

C:  SCIENCE!!!  This is awesome!!  I like everything I learned about in Science.  It’s very fun.

L:  Thank you very much for telling me about your T4L experience, Cade.

C:  You’re welcome.