Homeschooling Is The New Normal!

To Whom It May Concern,

For years, I have done extensive research on homeschooling and what it would mean for my family.  We heavily weighed the pros and cons and many nights I tossed and turned thinking of any and all what ifs possible.  Would my kids still get a good education? Would I be able to give up all of my free days and time to teach my children? Can I keep up with housework and chores - and homeschool to the best of my ability? Is it right for us? Can we afford it? Is homeschool really better than public school? Will my children get enough social activity? Will people think we are weird or question my reasoning?  Trust me, I pondered it all.  Once I finally came to the realization in 2011 that I wanted to begin the homeschool process,  I knew not a single soul who chose this path nor did I know enough about it to even know where to start.  I put it off and put it off knowing that it would be a battle, especially with my family - especially my husband.  It wasn't until I sat in front of a TV listening to the news of the world today that I decided I had to do something.  There were children being murdered, shootings in every city, chaos all over the world.  People were not allowed to pray or bring bibles to school, faith became something nobody had much less proclaimed, and bullying was at an all time high.  I knew what I had to do.  So, I sat for three weeks and did nothing but digging about my options.  I got all of my stuff together and presented it to my husband in a way he just could not say no.  The statistics speak for themselves - homeschooled children seem to be all around more successful than those in public school settings.  Some of the world's most successful people had been homeschooled by a parent.  More parents each day were choosing this lifestyle and for the first time in decades, homeschool was growing in leaps and bounds. 

Two weeks later, my husband finally caved and said okay.  We made the decision that next year would be our year to pull them out and start them at home.  I had every intention of allowing my kids to continue their education via the local school system.  Then, the worst thing possible happened...

On December 14, 2012, Adam Lanza, 20, fatally shot twenty children and six adult staff members in a mass murder at Sandy Hook Elementary School in the village of Sandy Hook in Newtown, Connecticut.  It left every single person in the world feeling empty, but for me, it made me feel like I had to make a decision.  That day as I sat and listened to people over and over crying in sadness and speaking out in fear I thought of what my life would be like if it happened at my children's school.  I thought about how many of those parents may have sat and thought about homeschooling their children and how those parents must have had huge regrets in their heart over making the decision not to.  My children were almost out for Christmas break so I decided to send them back and then make the change over Christmas break if possible.  We were in the middle of a move and I was dealing with some health issues, but I pushed myself to figure out a plan.  As my children got off the bus and ran up the hill, my eyes filled with tears.  I don't think I have ever hugged my kids that tight and they knew about my concerns because the children at school and on the bus had been discussing the shooting every single day after it occurred.  Both children began to ask questions and make comments that little boys should not have to say or worry about.  They began to question their safety and their life.  Death became a huge topic in our home and it only got worse.  Sometimes, the boys would wake up in the middle of the night with horrible nightmares or get up and come into our bed because they didn't want to be alone.  The last straw came one morning when my husband went to drop off the kids at school, just as he always did, and there stood an armed officer at each entrance surrounded by kids and parents that looked curious and sometimes even fearful.  Our children began to scream, especially my youngest son, and he refused to get out of the car.  My husband pulled over into the parking lot and demanded that they both get out - but they simply refused.

I think everyone in their life when faced with a tough decision has that moment where they realize exactly what choice it is they should make.  My husband got the boys out and hugged them then put them back in the van, buckled them in, and brought them back home.  I was used to hearing him come back in and I went to greet him only to find my sons standing in the doorway also.  They didn't have to say anything for me to just know - public school was no longer the place of safety and peace that my children went to and enjoyed each day.  It was now the place in which they felt scared, worried, and unsafe.  They truly wanted to be at home.  I wasn't going to ever send them back and I felt like it was the a judgement call that I have never once looked back and regretted.  I knew that I was still not sure of what school or how to get there or what to do, but I knew I had to learn.  So, I spent all of our stashed away money in our safe on lockers, curriculum, and school supplies and started a homeschool on a strict budget.  Thankfully, I then found D1 and they seemed to fit our need, but either way, they weren't going back. 

Looking back I feel that had Sandy Hook not happened, we may have been able to wait, but we couldn't hide the scary fact that it did happen and it could happen anywhere, even the wonderful small town loving school that my kids once loved to be a part of. 

Since that day, I have done my very best to ensure that my kids get the best education possible while at home with their mother.  From the week that I found out I was pregnant with my son at the young age of 19, my decisions have been solely those that my whole family would benefit from.  Other than going to school and obtaining a degree in Nursing, I chose to never work outside of our home.  I instead made it my life duty to educate my children at home and be a good housewife and mother.  I gave up my free time, my social life, my tanning sessions, and my freedom to better the lives of my children.  Those close to me that felt I was making the wrong decision voiced their opinion loud and clear.  They were truly ignorant to what homeschool is like today and felt that I was making a bad decision.  One by one they started coming around.  They heard the boys reading in leaps and bounds.  They saw the kids feeling safe and loved.  They noticed the hard work and effort that I put into giving them a place inside the comfort of our home.  Sure, some of them still to this day do not agree or understand, but I am not here to please anyone.  I am a mother on a mission to give my children the best education possible - all while them being safe.  I will not debate whether it was the right decision for everyone because I am not everyone's mother.  I am Blaze and Ace's mom and I did what was best for them.  This is something I have never once looked back and regretted.  My only regret is that I didn't do this much sooner. 

At the end of the day, this is my job and I take it very seriously.  If I never do anything else with my life, this is what I was asked by God to do and I do it with pride.  I believe in my children, I believe in myself, and I believe in the homeschooling process.  I believe in our umbrella school, I believe in my choices, and I believe in my family.  We are blessed and thankful to have this chance and we will never take it for granted. 

Sincerely,
Ashley Jackson

Scheduling and Curriculum

I wanted to do a seperate post just on my schedule and the curriculum I have chosen.  I am new to the blogging process when it comes to education.  I have had a personal blog for years, but this is completely different.  I want to share my journey and help other people and I also want to be able to look back and see all the great things my children have done and learned.  This first post still will not be as detailed as I will do in the future.  I will try to highlight some of my favorite books and curriculum so that some of you can make the decision as to whether or not you will use it also.  I may choose to do a Friday post every week about a different book or just use a week to highlight different things I'm using and loving.

  I am hoping that this blog shows other moms that homeschool life is not as scary as it appears at first.  I feared every single thing about being a homeschooler and that my children's education rested solely on my shoulders, but now, for the first time, I feel so confident in the teacher that I am becoming and the choices that I am making and I know all of you out there following this blog, will feel the same way, just give it time.

This is all of the stuff that I have purchased within the last week.  I am trying to do homeschooling on a budget but I am finding that to be a struggle.  I never realized how much stuff teachers have to have just to keep everything going.  I have found some great deals at Books A Million but for the most part I am trying to either swap for free or buy used.  Hopefully I can get a group of moms local that I can try to trade off items so that we stay under budget.  I am also doing some babysitting on the side on some days to try to counter the money that is being spent because we have to stick to a budget.

I went to a local book store called Mr.K's Books in downtown Oak Ridge and I got a great deal on some older books.  I have been reading the book below when I have some down time.  It has given me some good ideas, but I am learning that I just have to do what's best for us and not what everyone else does for them. 

For good behavior, I have chosen to do Incentive charts and "Free" Days.  Once they have filled up one chart with stickers, they get a prize from a prize box.  I have gotten toys mainly from the Dollar Tree and most of them are educational such as puzzles or coloring books.  I also added crayons, markers, and pencils because the kids seem to really enjoy getting new supplies also. Once they have both incentive charts filled with stickers (see below), they can turn it in for a "free" day of no work.  The ways that they receive stickers are -  Random Acts of Kindness, being good a full school day, completing homework and turning it in on time, making an A on a paper, or exhibiting good behavior while outside of the home.

 For bad behavior, we chose time out, sentence writing, paper erasing, and losing free time.  Time out normally last 7 minutes per child in a corner during the time that we are doing something fun such as art or recess.  Sentence writing seems to be the thing they dislike the most.  I normally have the sentence either contain spelling words or something from the bible.  Paper erasing is an idea I got from a local FB page.  You find papers that you would like to reuse that have pencil writing and you make the child sit and erase all the writing.  Normally I do five pages per time, but since I just started, I don't have much to be able to use this as often.  In the future, I hope to have something better than all of this because the children are really outgrowing time out. 

And now to our schedule:

Monday:  9am to 2pm

Tuesday:  9am to 2pm

Wednesday:  9am to 3pm

Thursday:  Noon to 4pm

Friday:  9am to 5pm (outside of home)

Curriculum:

Monday:  Science, Critical Thinking, and Lapbooks

Tuesday: English, Handwriting, and Reading

Wednesday: Math, Spelling, and Review

Thursday: History, SS, PE, and Health

Friday: Field Trips, Library, and Make Up Work

Our First Week Of Adventures!

Our first week went very, very well.  The kids were quiet and followed the rules pretty well.  Due to the local schools being closed for weather, we still didn't get a chance to tell our friends good-bye or let the school know we wouldn't be coming back.  I have emailed both teachers and made things clear, but we still must do the formal paperwork to make things legal.  This is all going on while we are packing and attempting to move into our new home... let's just say hectic but blessed and move on!

We found some "locker blocks" at Walmart on clearance for $4 and I felt it would be the easiest and most organized way to keep their stuff together and make them be accountable for their own books.  I used name tags I got from the Dollar Tree and attached them to the top of the locker.  I also found some blankets on clearance for $2 and decided to allow the boys to buy one and put in their locker for days they are cold or maybe don't feel as well.  Both of my kids are blanket boys and need something to cuddle some days.  My school, my rules.  I will be bringing my blanket as well :)

I struggled to figure out how to incorporate our lunch time within our required hours because we are on a tight schedule.  I will post more about that in the next post.  I do five hours of homeschooling a day so that we do not have to do actual work on Friday's and can focus on our field trips or Library trips.  This may not work for some people and some days we will have to rearrange, but for now, that is what works for us.  The boys have decided they want to watch movies during lunch time and I think eating in the classroom and staying focused will be better than allowing them to go eat in the kitchen and then try to come back to class.  This way if I have a video for that day, they will still be working on something educational and if not, I have alot of videos that I want them to watch about bullies, religion, sports, etc..

I found a tornado maker at Rite Aid on clearance for $3 and it even came with a Storm Chasers video so we chose to work on that this week.  The maker is so awesome!  It has real sounds and you can turn it to different sizes and it looks so real.  You can even

Our first week turned out to be so much fun!  I loved the light I saw in my children's eyes as they began to realize that the world is their classroom and we don't have to put limits on what we can learn about!  I look forward to doing this for many many more days to come! :)

Welcome!

Welcome To Our Homeschool Blog! My name is Ashley and this is my first time homeschooling.  I cannot believe how easy it was to get started, but I got lost in all the different designs, curriculum, and suggestions.  I had to just take a step back and see what was best for my family.  I know there are so many people out there, especially stay at home moms, who wish they had someone to talk to about the ins and outs about getting started.

This blog is in no way, shape, or form supposed to tell you how to homeschool or what is right for your family.  Only you will know that!  This will just tell you the good, bad, and ugly of my experience with it in the first year.  We are getting started mid-year due to school and health issues and just not wanting to wait any longer.  If possible, I recommend you start at the first of the year.  Some places will give you discounts if you pay and register before summer is over.

We are going through Daniel One Academy in Cookeville, Tennessee.  This was recommended to me by a dear friend.  They have different types of curriculum or you can do all of the homeschool planning on your own (which I what I felt was best for us).  They have a website at www.d1academy.org if you want to check them out. 

I did not purchase a curriculum and instead, I have just put together work of my own.  I am getting free worksheets from different places and putting them together accordingly.  I have purchased a few books used from the East Tennessee Homeschool group on FB and also new but discounted books at Books A Million.  That is enough to get me started for now. 

As I am posting this, we are starting our first day.  I still have many things to do including paying all my fees and formally withdrawing the kids from school, but I wanted to get started on the blog as soon as  I could.  I will try to share all the moments with you all so you have something to go by.  I will be back later to talk about our first day and how the school responded. 

Thanks For Reading! The World Is Our ClassRoom!!