Welcome to all who venture here,
This week, we have taken one of the Big and Scary and Life-changing decisions: our older son is going to be homeschooled, probably for a few years.
I wanted to have a blog on parenting issues and raising boys for ages now, and it seems that the advent of homeschooling is a wonderful occasion to actually make it happen. I hope to share any "tricks of trade" here with other parents, or childless but otherwise enlightened souls :)
I will post pictures here for all, and especially friends, to enjoy, but I decided against using our son's real names (why make them forever google-searchable?). So, the younger one will feature as Voro, which is in fact a well accepted family nickname. The older one, who just turned 7 this week, is however outgrowing his nickname of Bambor, and since he announced yesterday (proudly carrying his skateboard, his hood covering half of his thin face): "Mum, I don't want to be a star wars guy any more, I want to be a cool dude!" I think it is most fitting. Henceforth, he shall be known here as CoolDude.
This is it for my first post (yay, I made it!), I shall update the next sleepless night on the begginning of our homeschooling voyage... and thereafter other issues as well.
>> "but I decided against using our son's real names (why make them forever google-searchable?)"
ReplyDeleteSorry, Mama, but you have already done that. Aside, I salute your effort to work them from home. Challenging and rewarding at the same time.
Good luck, and find support where you may.
I appreciate your finding that school does not always fit. With two boys, we have had what might be seen as opposite experiences. With one, a move between countries created a disjunct between expectation and achievement: we moved from a place that demanded reading and writing from Reception to a place that valued creative play over reading in the first year of school. While we agreed with that approach, our son was accustomed to reading and doing mathematics and when we asked what we could do to maintain his interest in these areas (as opposed to pushing him) the response was, 'but what will he do next year?' In other words, do you best to keep him at the current level rather than let him move ahead at his own pace.
ReplyDeleteWith our youngest, we have almost the opposite problem. The elder one taught himself letters and their sounds when he was two (not to read....he did not do that until encouraged to do that in school), but the youngest showed little interest in those things. He did have a passion for learning, but saw little need for the alphabet. And truly, why should he when his world was the natural world, and he knew a whole lot about all he observed.
Jump forward to the first year of school and our reluctance to push our son to know his letters is creating some problems for him. Though I believe he is moving along quite nicely, they are threatening to keep him in this year if he does not meet certain 'sight word' targets. When he stands up in class and explains in very scientific detail those things he cares about (insects and rockets), his teachers great me with surprise, as though this should be a great moment. In other words, they think that he is a bit thick because he is currently failing in first year school literacy.
What to do? I can relate with the kid because I nearly ended up in remedial reading because I filled in bubbles at random at the end of stories I was too bored to read. Of course he'll get there and he has very supportive, if sensitive, parents. Maybe, maybe he has something that needs attention in terms of visual recognition, but shouldn't the teachers have picked up on that?
The basic thing is, we as parents know for the most part when things are right with our kids and when they are not. The schools have targets. For one of our sons, we are encouraged to pull him back to meet the target; with the other we are ordered to stretch him.
With that, all power to you in your endeavours.
Yes, yes....'great' was to be 'greet' in one instance.
ReplyDelete