May and June are the golden months in our little homeschool. By early May we have logged our required 180 days of education for the state of Pennsylvania. I can start counting again on July 1. So these weeks in between are the best time of the year.
After 4 years homeschooling here I've come to the conclusion that the portfolios and evaluations don't really bother me. It's day-counting that I find so onerous. I've written about this too many times to go into detail again, but the counting really does intrude on our days. I just don't like having to write down what we did, and deciding if it's a full or half day, or not a day at all. I don't like thinking about what counts and what doesn't.
Not much changes with regard to our daily activities whether I cam counting days or not. We have as many outside distractions in the summer as we do the rest of the year. In the winter we have snow days; in the spring we have mosquito- and cicada-free days. I don't like to stop everything in the summer. It gets boring, for one thing. And in my experience, too much vacation just makes people lazy.
So we have some summer school plans. We'll take some weeks of vacation, of course. But otherwise, we will keep up some academics.
Monday/Wednesday/Friday will be Math, Latin, Omnibus reading and discussions, workouts at the Y. James will do Boy Scout merit badge work, and Eleanor will practice piano and do lots of crafts. Both will read and will continue to log their books.
Tuesday/Thursday: House and yard work and projects. We have a lot to do around here. This is the year we build a shed. I hope! And most likely, more reading because the reading is good. We like to read science books together, and I've gotten a few out from the library that look promising.
There will still be time for hiking, going swimming at the Y, riding bikes, and just hanging out. There will be entire weeks without math, but not 12 weeks all in one big chunk. Maybe a chunk of three, tops.
A little work, a little fun, a little learning, and no time for boredom. That looks like a good summer to me.
4 comments:
I think it's true that too much vacation can bring on laziness. I have no intention of having a TV/Internet fest around here this summer. We're going to quietly continue, curling up with our math books to escape the Texas heat.
I agree so much with keeping up with some stuff during summer. It is just too long of a break for many kids, and then you spend so much time refreshing their memories in the fall. Your plans look great to me! And thanks for the kind comment you left on my (now deleted) post the other day... I appreciated it.
You say you can start counting days again on July 1; I was told that I had to wait until my son's new objectives, etc. were approved. (I'm in PA, too.)
Jen - my homeschool liaison at the school district has always told me not to wait for her approval letter. I submit it well before the August 1 deadline, but she sometimes doesn't respond till the end of the month. I am not sure the law requires waiting.
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