Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion Homeschooler for the day

We have been HSing for almost 2 years now, so maybe we are still in the honeymoon phase Yesterday we took a break to dance to Guns N Roses (we called that P.E.). And then today we had plastic cups lined up all over the kitchen representing various food chains. Each cup was an animal, and the cup in the center was the sun. We transferred marshmallows(the suns energy)from cup to cup. Smaller animals need less energy (less marshmallows)and bigger animals need more. Then we "killed off" one of the animals in the chain, and saw the effect it had on the other animals. Then we ate the marshmallows! HS rocks!

I know, I am just playing around. : ) I may have taken your last quote out of context, LOL

Nah, not too many cookies baking at my house. We're more apt to have banana bread or homemade soup.

Today we had our homeschool group "National Day" celebration, with about 25 families contributing displays and about 50 other "visitors" touring the US. Then we went to the library and checked out 33 books, drove home and everybody read. DS worked on his typing (he's up to 26 words a minute without mistakes- slow but making steady progress) and my DDs watched "Fetch". Then it was time for dinner.

Some days we seem to be very busy but get little accomplished, while other days the kids are on fire with their learning. Like anything else, homeschooling has it's ups and downs. My perspective is to try to ensure that something gets done, though I am not usually very fussy about what it is. DD 3 (almost 4) recently has been making tremendous leaps in her reading ability and has been drawing incredibly detailed people and animals. A few months ago, all she wanted to do was math. It all seems to balance out, and if I feel it isn't, I step in and "require" more of a certain subject.

Ooohhh, we had leftover homemade vegetable soup for lunch and I almost made banana bread but I went out and helped in the barn instead! We also worked some logic problems together when we got back in the house.

Last year we had a stretch of snow days and we made a papier mache volcano, that was fun. We try to do fun, educational things on snow days, while I squeeze in my work.

Cookies and hot chocolate? Banana bread? Homemade soup?
I don't think I'm cut out for homeschooling - I'm a disaster in the kitchen... (kidding!)

We usually have PB&J or canned soup or turkey hot dogs for lunch on homeschool days, Jool. I think you'd be fine!

I did make cinnamon rolls out of a tube yesterday. Does that count? :p

What, other homeschoolers don't make cookies every day? LOL!! Just for that I think I'll make cookies today... I could go for some, and I have a calc test to study for, so you know I'd rather make cookies!

Now we did make like 45 batches of sugar candy... but that was for a science project.

We're not homeschoolers but last summer DS wanted to make cookies from the Martha Stewart cookbook every day. That was his big summer plan- make every single recipe. Now of course he's 5 so that translated into me making cookies nearly every day! It was a fun project but I think I put on 5 pounds in two months!

What I like about homeschooling is that if you WANT to be all Martha Stewart and bake all the time, you can. I have a friend like this. We go to their house a lot! All the calories, none of the work. But I don't have the energy to do it myself. And that's okay, too. When you homeschool, you can be a hot dog mom or a Martha Stewart mom.

<tongue-in-cheek alert>

I'm WAAAAAAAY too busy for baking! Forum posts won't write themselves, after all!

My son likes Rachel Ray and I think he secretly wishes I were a little more like her, but I am more of the hot dog mom most of the time. My son thinks it is because I spend too much time of message boards.

He talked us into getting a juicer and is eating more fruits and vegetables without complaining because he doesn't have those texture issues with juice. We are using some of the pulp that is left over to make muffins. So muffins and hot chocolate for us now. Those cookies kept me from losing the last ten pounds.