School Days

School days are chugging along, doing the next thing, and making adjustments to the schedule.  I've learned a lot in these almost three months of two students, both about my students and my materials.  Roan has completed his quality of numbers block, and I believe he was glad.  He said he wouldn't go past drawing thirteen fairies!  He does have a kind of diligence that is admirable, and he is willing to complete things without shutting down. 

My thoughts on his first grade year so far are that we are taking our time.  He is younger, chronologically and developmentally, than Willow was during first grade.  I am glad to take things at his speed, stretching him where needed and letting him linger over things and revisit them, too.  I need to do some research on how to handle this in my state, but I think we'll just plug along slowly and pick up with more first grade work next September.  That is the bonus of homeschooling, after all. 

Willow has completed her time and money block.  Telling time has been pretty easy for her, so we focused on units of time outside of a clock.  We learned about the phases of the moon and some units of time people used before clocks came on the scene.  Willow has a pretty good grasp on how to buy things in a store on her own, so we did the same with money.  We learned some of its history (more on Yap Island here) and worked on firming up carrying over.  I'll have to get a photo of our "math house" improvisation.

This block required me to make up the materials myself, so I relied on life experience and encyclopedias.  It feels a little archaic to use them, yes, but I think there is real merit to doing so.  They do tell about things in a sort of a story format, which I think fits well with Waldorf.  We take what works and leave the rest, in terms of outdated or biased information.  I really think it is important for children to see me using books to learn, instead of a computer.

From here, we'll move to Old Testament stories for Willow and fairy tale letters for Roan.  Willow hasn't heard many Bible stories, believe it or not, even though she has attended church.  We've kept that to seasonal festivals and bedtime rituals, which is further explained in A Guide to Child Health.  That could sound terrible to say that (especially living in a very religious area), but I suppose it is up to each parent to make choices about what their children are exposed to.

I think she is ready to hear the stories and I am seeing that Roan is ready for the more challenging fairy tales of grade one.  There is always something to learn, and I must admit I can't think of a better use of my mind.