Summer School

I can't believe I'm saying this but....

Summer School works for me.

Not the kind where the kids go to the school for remedial courses but the kind where I sit down with them at the table every day and we "do school".

I am not a homeschooling mom. I do not have the patience to instruct my children in anything or be with them 24 hours a day.

But, this summer I really wanted to make sure that my oldest didn't forget all of those addition, subtraction and multiplication facts that we've studied all year and I needed to get my 5 year old ready for kindergarten. Plus, they both need to work on their penmanship...big time.

Not to mention the fact that left to their own devices for 8 hours a day they will simply bicker with each other until I can't take it anymore and lock them both outside. We need some structure.

So far it has really worked well. Ryker quizzes Cainan on letter recognition with flashcards and Cainan quizzes Ryker on math facts (as an added bonus Cainan gets to practice number recognition when he reads the answers on the back of the flashcard too.). Cainan practices writing his name while Ryker writes letters to his teacher or friends. We make homemade cards and work in some age appropriate workbooks. Ryker also practices the piano and Cainan sorts items by shape, color and size. I plan on doing some baking with them (which they both love) to practice measuring, fractions, and just plain old cooking skills.

Granted it has only been one week, but so far we are all enjoying it. Kinley even gets in on the fun by sitting in her high chair and coloring or reading books. They don't know it but we are going to take them on a "field trip" to the City Museum later this summer.

As crazy as it sounds, summer school at home is working. Hallelujah!