Off to a slow start

Last week I read a post about not jumping into everything at once when we start school and I haven't stopped thinking about it - because that is exactly what i would have done!!! I was planning to start - full force - on Aug. 25(the same day that Alex starts high school) but I have decided to start tomorrow and add a little bit at a time until we are on track!

We will start by getting into the routine of what our morning will look like. Wake up(we do not start at a certain time), chores(using the charts I made earlier this summer), Bible and Circle Time. Bible and Circle Time seem to be an easy transition and since we will start our day with them during school I decided to go ahead and throw them in this week! We need to get out of the habit of playing video games way too much and just being lazy!!! I am so bad with routines and schedules that I need the extra time to make these changes for this year!!

I am most excited about doing Circle Time. I know it is a total 'school' thing to do but I have big plans for our time together in the am. I put felt on a tri fold display board and velcroed the things I am using to the board - hopefully it will hold! I am gonna be adding things to it throughout the year. I plan to use the back for history or science needs. I am going to put up some blackline maps so they can put the name, date and locations of the different battles thoughout american history as we learn about them. I haven't come up with other stuff yet but I am sure I will get loads of ideas from fellow bloggers as we go along!!!

The biggest of these is gonna be Family Prayer. We will be spending time every morning praying for different family members. I plan to pick one family a month(we have no family living near us) and we will pray for the kids individually as well as the parents and other prayers for the family and get to know them a little at the same time. I have put up different verses about prayer and a picture of the family we are praying for will be in the center. I am still trying to decide if I should email the families and let them know we will be praying for them and see if there is anything specific we could be praying for - what do you think???

This week, before we actually start with Family prayer, we will be talking about prayer - what it is, how we do it, why we do it, etc. I Have this great book called 'A Faith to Grow on' by John MacArthur that was written for kids and has some great answers to these questions!

We will do calendar, weather and seasons.

We will be learning the books of the bible so we will start memorizing them thru song. I have them listed on one side of the board.

We will be doing things with the clock and time - I haven't figured out all the details for that one yet! But - I do have this fun little analog clock with movable hands for them to use!

Our Family Rules will be discussed every day until they have them down pat and understand each rule - clearly. Then they will be reviewed once a week!!! I am hoping this reinforcement in a positive way will help them to remember them instead of only hearing them when I am angry because they broke one of them!!!

Bible Time will be spent just reading thru the bible in a year! It might even end up being read at bedtime instead of during school because we are aslo going to be doing bible thru the curriculum I bought!

It will all depend on how the boys are responding and how well it is going how soon and when I will add things to the schedule!!! Ben has already told me he doesnt like being homeschooled and he wants to go back to regular school - whatever! The kid has only been in a preschool classroom - which he hated and I had to leave him crying hysterically every time - and he was only there for 6 months!!