Homeschool 2015

Happy fall, everybody! We are one month into our year of preschool-homeschool and I wanted to share what we've been doing so far. I know lots of people ask me, "What exactly do you do with Eva?" so here is our plan for the school year. And I am soooo excited to share because I LOVE what we have done and how I have planned out this year so far! I'm not saying this is what works for everybody, but it has been working GREAT for us!

We do school Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday mornings and I consider our school time from 9AM-2PM. This includes all the regular things that other kids are doing at school - learning time, play time, snack time, potty time, lunch time, and a quiet rest. Also on Thursdays we either to a Mom's program where Eva (and Jensen) have a couple of hours in a class with kids, or I try to plan a play date. I'm not worried about social time because we are around people all throughout the week, plus Eva has the best friend ever - her little brother! This year Eva is learning how to pick out her clothes and get dressed, make her bed, and get her hair and teeth brushed (with some help) before we do school time. I had originally planned to get up early each day to have time by myself before my kids would be up on school days and, no joke, one or both of my kids have been up before that time every single day we've done school. We start each school day off by being dressed and ready for calendar time. I feel like this helps give the day a defined kick-off. We work on days of the week, months of the year, counting, and number recognition as part of our calendar time.

Then we do our Bible time, usually as a family. We have a story each week and will read it from Eva's Bible, act it out, tell it using felt, and color pictures throughout the week. I got a free Betty Lukens Through the Bible in Felt set from a friend and I felt like a kid in a candy store! It may seem old fashioned but Eva and I love using them to tell Bible stories, along with other creative stories {umm, like the one above where the bears followed the rainbow to help the queen...}. I seriously ALWAYS wanted a felt set when I was a kid. The only downside is that you have to find ways to cut out and organize a million felt pieces. No suggestions here, ours are thrown in a big tub, slighly organized in plastic baggies.

After Bible time we have a memory verse/song that we do for the whole week and a missionary family that we pray for throughout the week. Eva loves using the giant map to find where our missionary friends live.

Matching uppercase and lowercase letters.

Last year we mainly used the FREE AbcJesusLovesMe curriculum and I thought it was great. This year I am mixing between the curriculum and ideas my Pinterest Board.The curriculum is good for getting ideas and knowing what she needs to learn and a good order to teach things in. All of our Bible ideas are from the curriculum, along with many other activities. The teacher in me really likes finding ideas that match exactly what I want Eva to be doing and learning. I have some activities already created from last year and my goal is to add one new activity for math and literacy each week that we can choose from. 

Writing letters with chalk on a canvas. 

Writing letters in a sandtray with "rainbow" paper behind it {paper that I colored using different colors}. 

I love teaching using anything sensory. Yes it can get messy. Give a kid sand/rice/playdough and it will inevitably end up making some sort of mess. There are days when the mess gets to me by the end of the school time but I'm trying to let it go.

Writing words using markers. 

 Eva does some tracing books but she prefers to write on blank paper. She is really wanting to learn to write more words, which is so exciting to see as a mama and a teacher.

Building uppercase letters with craft sticks. 

With all the things we do during school time there are a few things I have intentionally decided not to do. I don't do chores. I don't run errands. I don't turn on the TV. I try really hard not to be on my phone. I want my attention to really be focused on my kids during this time. It's hard because my brain just wants to "squeeze in one thing real quick" but then I get distracted. I have to really tell myself that it's like if I was teaching in a classroom, and remember that it's only a couple of mornings a week. 

 Making a letter of the week craft. "F" is for frog.

For math this year Eva is learning to count and recognize numbers up to 29 {the curriculum said 25 but I figured if she can do that she can make it to 29}, graph objects, sort objects, measure with nonstandard objects like legos, build patterns, recognize and build shapes, and compare more/less of objects. Most of it is hands on using things like counting bears, colored craft poms, legos, playdough, etc. but I am also not against flashcards. We mix it all up.

Using wiki-sticks to do a connect the dots page and work on number sequence.

Have you ever heard of wiki-sticks? They are awesome! We got a free sample at Grapefest last weekend and have found so many uses for them. 

Observing what will absorb water.

We rotate through days of doing science, music, and art. Eva's favorite days are science! It takes a bit of prep but it is so awesome to see her interested. 

Matching "mystery" balloons with buckets of rice, beans, salt, water, and syrup to learn about observing using her sense of touch. She also drew a picture so she could teach her dad what she learned!

One thing I am also trying to let go of is the idea of time restraints. I don't want to feel like I have to do an activity for a long time if she isn't interested or feel like I have to stop doing something if she is really engaged. Some days we go through the academic part of school in under an hour. Some days we stretch it out for a couple of hours. If she wants to take a break to play with Barbies, then we do that. She did the above science activity for a whole hour. 

Using her sense of taste to decide if a bag had sugar or salt, and her sense of smell to match baggies of spices with their containers.

Painting lots of pictures! 

Eva has told me before that she likes painting because it helps her to feel calm - paint away, sister! Don't let me stand in the way of potential calmness. I'm excited because we are getting an old easel from my parent's house this weekend. 

Every couple of weeks we go to the library and check out a giant stack of new books. I pick some, she picks some. Did I mention she dresses herself? 

Included in our school time is lots of play time! Kids need to play, play, play all they can. Nothing beats a kiddie pool filled with soil for digging.

We try to spend time outside every day, whether that is going on walks, doing learning activities outside, reading on the swing, or taking trips to the playground. 

And what about little buddy? He pretty much hangs out right beside us! He isn't crawling yet so that helps, although I know that's just around the corner. He also is usually content as long as he has his toys and is right beside us.

 I try to squeeze in the harder, more adult-directed activities while he is sleeping. Other than that we just go with the flow.

Finally I wanted to share how we keep things organized. In a dream house you have a whole room and closet dedicated to homeschool. In our very real, wonderful home I keep everything in plastic bins and one end table. I have it all organized by content and have labeled file folders along with buckets of materials. I got a set of coordinating tubs at Costco before school started to help organize everything. On Monday morning I pull everything out and on Wednesday afternoon I hide it all back in the out of reach places so that my house is more tidy when people are more likely to come over. 

Before the school year started I took several weeks to plan out and gather everything I needed for the first 6 weeks of school. Then since I'm a nut who needs everything spelled out, I created my own planning sheet and filled it in so that I would know what I wanted to do for each area over the first 6 weeks. Planning and organizing ahead of time has made things flow so much smoother. After the first 6 weeks I plan to take a break week to plan and prep all the things for the next 6 weeks. I might even bargain with the husband to have a day at a coffee shop so that I can focus solely on planning :)

* If you're reading all this and thinking, "Woah that seems complicated. That's too much planning," I assure you that you can absolutely do homeschooling in whatever way works for you. I just function best when I'm overly organized, which in turn leads to Eva learning better since I'm not running around looking for materials like a chicken with no brain. 

Lastly, here is our schedule pocket chart. We start with the activities on the left side, and as we finish something we slide it over to the right. This helps my busy, dizzy mama brain keep on track with what we've done and still need to do.

That's about it. I truly love doing homeschool. Yes there are days when it is HARD to teach your own four year old. You have to combine being a mom with being a teacher and juggling an extra baby isn't always easy. But for me, and for our family, it is so worth it. I enjoy being at home with my kids and I cry a little bit when I think about the day when they will go off and not be at home with me. I'm really committed to doing 100 days of preschool with her this year. That works out to about 33 weeks, which is pretty much what she would do if she went away to school. I am beyond pumped to see how she learns and grows this year. Just writing this has made me so giddy! And of course since it's fall, I am now ready to rock all the pumpkin activities!!!!

Ready to FALL

 Photo Credit

Normally I would be posting photos from our Labor Day weekend fun. We did have fun - swimming, movies, friends, etc. - but I didn't get any awesome pictures, so instead I'm going to write about....FALL! Who else is ready for fall? Since it is September 3rd, and the day after Labor Day, I am officially over summer and ready for fall. (Also since my husband informed me today that he is done with the pool for this year....we shall see.)

You know who doesn't agree with me? The weather. It is still super hot here - pushing 100*. Yuck. But rather than complain I am going to share all the things I am looking forward to about fall! Starting with fall weather. I am ready to be able to walk outside past 10 AM and not sweat. I am ready for the leaves to change. I will gladly pretend that our daily walks will look like this, even if we may not get quite the same color scheme. I'm ready for the crispness of fall mornings and afternoons that make going outdoors comfortable enough for adventure.

 Photo Credit

Like many people, I am ready for my first Pumpkin Spice Latte of the season. I honestly prefer the frappuccino version of this drink, but whatever. I liked the burlap background and whipped topping in this photo. I think I will treat myself to my first one this weekend.

I am ready to shop for Eva's Halloween costume. I was thinking either a duck or a cow. I will most likely visit the new Kid to Kid in Grapevine and choose from their selection. I'm not too picky, I just want her to be some cute animal that she can make the sound to go along with her costume. I'm betting that she will really enjoy trick-or-treating this year :)

I'm looking forward to doing some fall learning activities with Eva. She likes things with felt so I'm planning on making these leaves and she can practice putting them on a string. Here are some other fun fall activities for toddlers. 

Photo Credit

I am looking forward to fall decorating! Bring on the orange, the yellow, the pumpkins, the burlap, the chevron, and the leaves! I'm making myself wait for the first cool day in September before I get the my decoration box out. I know it will happen.

I'm ready for fall fashion. I've been missing my boots all summer long! I love these two looks on my Pintrest board. I pretty much have the pieces for the look on the left and think I should be on the search for some yellow tights like the photo on the right. I'm even excited for some fall toddler fashion. Spoiler alert: I got Eva some brown boots for her birthday!!!! I can't wait for her to wear them when I wear mine.

Naturally the highlight of fall will be my 30th birthday. Only 2 1/2 more months. This is an old birthday photo but I like the joy in it. And the chocolate. 

And finally today we started our fall "school" activities. Eva was so happy to get to "do school." We read and sang about cows, did a cow nursery rhyme, and made a cow out of black and white squares. She loves to do "awwtt" as she calls it (art). We are putting everything for the week on our "school board" which is really just made from fabric pieces that I had leftover from making placemats.

Okay, that's my list. I'm ready. Come on fall!

And they're off...

It doesn't quite feel like the end of the school year when you see the rain falling down outside, but for lots of kids at my old school they are already out, rejoicing for the freedom of summertime! Just like the first day, the last day of the school year brings back so many memories and so much excitement for both teachers and students. Today my last group of 2nd grade students graduated from 5th grade. I had told them on my last day with them 3 years ago that I would try to make it to their graduation but I couldn't make any promises because I didn't know what my life would be like at this point. I was so happy to get to go and cheer for them today!!!! Of course I loved all of my students but this group will always have a special place in my heart. Maybe because they were my last? Maybe because they were so kind and smart and funny? I'm not saying I had a favorite class but if I did..... Anyway it was a lot of fun to see them all big and "grown-up". Some of them are taller than I am now!  And it was neat because 12 of my 18 kids from that year were still there, which is very unusal for the demographic of our school. I went to graduation last year and had less than 5 kids that were still there.

The morning started with their official graduation ceremony. My award for best dressed is a tie between 2 of my former students - one wore a fedora and the other wore a bright red bow-tie. After the ceremony they got to walk the loop of the halls while all the other students and teachers clapped and shouted as the graduation theme song played. Then they got a cookies and juice reception. I hesitated to drop by the reception because I didn't want to be the weird old teacher hanging around but I'm so glad that I stayed around. They were all so happy to see me and give me great big hugs!

My class picture with this group - pretty cute, right? How could I have ever gotten mad at those sweet faces? It's so strange to think that I might never see any student that I taught ever again. It's also crazy to think that I taught for 3 years (plus student teaching at my same school) and I've now been out of the classroom for 3 whole years. It seems like it was just yesterday. Every time we're in Denton I'm always hoping to run into somebody that I've taught. It was also weird to be back at the school I taught at. I kept thinking that everything seemed so much smaller than I remembered and then realized a few hours later that it's because everything we do at the schools now is for the high school. It was so great to see my kids, my teacher friends, and my old classroom, especially since I don't know if I will ever get a chance or reason to be back to visit. Lots of my teacher friends are transferring and all of the kids I've taught will be gone now! Ahh, I'm feeling kind sentimental. 

There was a quote from the last episode of The Office that said, "I wish there was a way to know you're in the good old days before you've actually left them." Teaching was crazy hard and sometimes those littles were nutso, but I really do miss it. Then again, I absolutely LOVE staying at home with Eva and couldn't imagine going back to work right now. Times were good then, times are great now! Just different seasons of life.

After my mom's graduation on Friday I decided to visit the elementary school where I taught at for several years. I had wanted to go back for a while and Friday was the perfect day since I knew they would be having Christmas parties and I wouldn't be disrupting anything. It was soooooo good to see my old teacher friends and my students! Of the classes that I taught 2 of them are now on to bigger and better things (aka middle school) and the ones that would be 5th graders now weren't in their rooms when I stopped by. So that left the students that are now 4th graders. Of course I cared about my students each year, but the group that is in 4th grade now was my last group of 2nd graders. Not only that, but they were truly just a special group to me. It seems wrong to call them my favorite group so I'll just call them "extra loved". They were special because not only were they my last kiddos, but they were so awesome and smart and

At least I never wore a crazy teacher sweater.

Sometimes I find myself missing teaching. I have all of the class pictures from the years I taught hanging up at home in our office so that I can remember to keep praying for all the kids and teachers that I love. I know that I made the right decision to work part time this year so I could help Ryan with youth ministry more, and I probably won't go back for a while so I can stay home while I have little kids. But maybe one day??? We'll see. Here are the things I miss most about being a teacher:

My Classroom- I have included several pictures from how I set my classroom up my first year. These pictures were taken before any young seven year old ever set foot in the room. Back when everything was just a dream to be taken on. But even in the later years, I loved setting up my classroom. I enjoyed organizing and decorating and creating a welcoming environment.

Hugs - Everyone morning and most afternoons I gave my kids a hug on their way into and out of the classroom. For those non huggers, a high five or more mature handshake was also acceptable. But I miss the hugs the most! Especially from those kids who were SO EXCITED to see me and gave me one of those squeeze the life out of you hugs every day.

The First and Last Days of School - I enjoyed the anticipation leading up to the first day, even though it was hard work. I also liked the sigh of relief that comes when you've finally made it to the last day. I really missed being at school this past August. It was the first time since I was 3 that I hadn't had a First Day. Yes, the middle part between the first and last days is really important, but those 2 days are the best.

Recess - Who doesn't want to spend 30 minutes a day outside, especially when it is beautiful spring weather?

My team - I worked with some awesome teachers. I miss getting to have lunch with them every day, even if lunch only lasted 10 minutes.

Breaks - Thanksgiving Break, Christmas Break, Spring Break, Summer Break. That was awesome. I will confess and affirm that teachers NEED those breaks more than most people will ever realize.

Fridays - Fridays at school are different than Fridays in the real world. You get to wear jeans and your school shirt. You are finishing up the week. I liked giving spelling tests. And the best part.... my class always did the Cha Cha Slide to celebrate on Friday mornings! It was a fun 2 minute way to motivate them to work hard for one more day.
Reading Stories - I love kids books and I love to read to kids. Here is a picture of my classroom library early on. I think by the time I left I had about 500 books. I kept some and sold the rest to the new teacher who took my position. I hope he enjoys my collection!

Teaching Reading - It is AWESOME to hear a kid learn to read and become a better and better reader. Reading is such an important skill and I really worked hard for my kids to be good readers. I was so proud of the progress they made during the year.

Teaching Math - I'm a secret nerd. I like to teach addition and subtraction. Also place value. I don't know why. I also like all the fun math games you can play with cards or dice. I hope my own little kids like math, because we will be playing these games at home.

Teaching Science - I never liked science in school or college, but one I started teaching, I LOVED it. Science is probably much cooler than most people realize. I like all the fun ways to teach and learn about the scientific world. One day at my current job I saw a squirrel run and jump INSIDE of a tree and I thought about its little squirrel habitat. Every year my kids researched animals and made a big final project that was really fun.

Hearing Kid Stories - Kids tell really funny stories. They are less censored than adults and will talk your ear off if you let them. If I could go back and change one thing, I wish I had found a way to somehow let kids spend more time just talking to me about their life. You can learn alot this way.
Those are my rose colored reflections. I also remember some things that I didn't love so much, but I would rather not reflect on those. It's sad to think that even if I wanted to teach this next school year, I probably couldn't because of all the teacher cut backs. I have several good friends who have already been let go for next year due to district budgets. So sad. Sad for the teachers who can't do what they love, sad for the kids who will be put into bigger classes and miss out on some important things. Hopefully I can make up for the things I miss when I'm a mom. And maybe education won't stay like this too long.

A Dream Deferred

I drew the picture above in 1991, when I was in the 2nd grade. On the back it says "What I want to be when I grow up." For most of my life, it was my dream to be a 2nd grade teacher. Tomorrow will be my last day of teaching. Today one of my kids said, "Yay, Mrs. Bradley, you fulfilled your dream." It was bittersweet to hear him say that.

My past 4 years at my school have been good learning experiences. I have learned how to love better. I have learned patience. I have learned how to better work along side people. Don't get me wrong, some of my teaching experiences were really hard and frustrating, but I'm not leaving teaching because I hate it or dislike my kids.

Over the summer Ryan and I will be moving to be closer to our youth group kids. And with this move, comes the beginning of a new dream. The main purpose of us moving is so that we can be completely invested in the Westlake community. We want to know our students and their families. We want to live life with them, in a way that can't happen by us just driving out their for church services and youth groups. But most importantly, we want to be able to share the gospel of Christ with them. Ryan and I have been so blessed by our years in Denton and now we're ready for God to use us in an incredible, and unpredictable way. We want our lives to reflect how knowing Jesus and having a relationship with Him can change a life. I feel like it is completely possible for teachers to live God glorifying lives. For me, however, teaching is so much of a lifestyle and I kept feeling like it was keeping me from doing what I desire to do as Ryan's wife and helper. It is also my dream to one day be a stay at home mom.

This week (and past couple of months) has been filled with a mixture of emotions. I'm excited to see what God has planned. I get nervous that I don't yet know of this plan. I feel sad to leave my kids. Sometimes I cry. I LOVE hanging out in Westlake with our youth kids. I wish I could stay in Denton forever. I can't wait to move to our new apartment in Westlake. Ha.... my husband is a saint for loving me and just nodding along whenever I talk about the many ways I feel.

Oh, children.

Every teacher has unique students. You know, the ones that aren't necessarily bad, just different. The ones that might drive you a bit crazy but you really care about. The ones who sincerely apologize when they know they have misbehaved. The ones who try so hard to stop talking, yet seem to have never ending comments flowing from within them. I have many. Today, one of my little friends was supposed to be doing a Social Studies station with a group. This was our conversation:
Student (who thinks I'm not listening or watching): Let's do this! starts making action noises and flailing his arms around
Me (who of course is watching) : Let's not.....
Student: laughs hysterically Let's not and say we did!

This of course made me laugh because it was just such clever timing. Oh, children.

Say Cheese!

Ah, school picture day. It's a big deal in kids' lives. In elementary school, it's the day your mom makes you dress up in a way that is quite impractical considering that you will probably be playing on the playground a few minutes after you take your picture. In junior high it becomes a day that you have to create your perfect look because you know that all of your friends will want a wallet size copy of your picture to tape on their trapper keeper or post in their locker. By high school, I don't think it was as big of a deal, but in my high school at least, we were given the benefit of getting to take our picture on the day in summer that we picked up our schedule, so at least we could wear what we wanted. The only dreadful part of high school was that if you had a bad picture, it was definitely your yearbook photo. Good luck.
Ironically, every year that my kids take pictures, I have to take a picture too. Understandable, the school needs a professional photo of me too. But, why do I get a free package of these photos? What am I supposed to do with 8 wallets, 2 5X6's and 1 8X10 of myself? Mail it to grandparents? I think that's what wedding photos are for. Set it on my desk, where only I and my kids would see it? Give it to my husband to put in his wallet? Thank goodness for camera phones that allow him to take real life photos of me. So instead, each year these pictures stay in their envelopes in the top drawer of my desk. Maybe I'll be famous one day and can autograph them.

Not Every Teacher Can Be A Rap Star

Yesterday at school my kids were learning more about how to tell time. We've been working on this during our daily calendar time since school started but right now we're focusing in on it and starting to hold the kids accountable for knowing how to read a clock. When I'm teaching I love to use songs. I think they're a good way to help kids remember skills and strategies, plus its just fun to stand up and sing and dance with 18 2nd graders! For telling time I have a "rap" that talks about how the short hand tells the hour and the long hand tells the minute and goes over how you have to count by 5's to tell the minutes.

So, we're getting ready to start math and I said, "Y'all are so lucky to have a teacher who is also a great rapper!" And then one of my cute little boys responds, "Yeah, you're good at wrapping presents!" Hahaha, oh the wit of an 8 year old. I guess he was implying that I'm not quite the rap star I imagined myself to be. I love it when my kids throw me off and make me giggle so much I have to pause for a second. Its moments like this that remind me that part of being a good teacher is relating to my kids with humor. I think positive laughter (laughing with them, not at them) is a way of encouraging them and making school a fun place to be. Maybe next time we sing the time rap I need to carry a boom box and wear a hat sideways....

Baby It's Cold Outside!

Today we have no school because of the ice and cold weather that came through Denton last night. Although I enjoy having days off in the spring, its always a treat to get to sleep in and enjoy a day at home! Besides, I have already gone to school/work for 2 whole days this week! Time for a break :) Whenever I wake up and find out that is really cold outside I always joke with Ryan and say, "That's it, I'm not going." Today I actually meant it! Good thing too, cause the wind chill outside is 11 degrees!

So I got to sleep in (after my 5:30am wake up call to say school was cancelled) and now I plan to relax all day. I had a nice quiet time and finished reading Acts in my Bible. Its awesome to read about how God used Paul and extreme situations to spread the Gospel to parts of the world that otherwise might not have heard it that quickly. I love to be reminded of God's faithfulness and to be thankful that even though we are unsure of the future that God already knows and can use all situations to His glory!

The rest of the day I am planning to have lunch with my best friend Erica, make a stop at the Denton library, cook dinner, and play games tonight with Ryan! I hope all the other teacher's enjoy their day off and that everyone stays warm and safe! Happy Ice Day!