Caleb– May, 2011

Caleb loves to read and Caleb loves to write. The wheels of his imagination are constantly turning! This afternoon he sat down at the computer and cranked out the beginning of a brand new book. This will be the 3rd book he has authored (I’ll have to post some of his earlier stuff too). When Cam got home tonight, Caleb read us what he wrote this afternoon and frankly, I’m super impressed with what he’s got so far. This is exactly as he typed it today, without any editing:

Chapter One

Jake Moneke awoke on a Tuesday morning to the sound of his alarm. He reached for the snooze button but in his attempt fell out of bed. Now fully awake Jake stood up and turned the alarm off. He looked at the clock. 8.00 a.m. He was going to be late. Jake rushed out of the room and into his Kitchen. He looked around franticly then ran back into his bedroom. He went to his closet and opened it. He threw on the first thing he saw, and ran back into the Kitchen. He grabbed a leftover piece of steak from the night before and shoved it into his mouth and ran out of his apartment and into an elevator. He tapped his foot impatiently as he waited for the elevator to reach its destination. Finally he arrived at the bottom of the apartment complex and ran out the door. He leaped the stairway outside and landed on the sidewalk. He whistled for a cab and waited. A couple minutes later a taxi pulled up next to him. He jumped in and gave the taxi driver the directions. “Thirty Sixth Street, please.” Jake said. For the next few minutes they drove in silence then the cab came to a sudden stop. “Thirty Sixth Street” The cab driver said gruffly. “Thank you” Jake said as he stepped out of the car and onto the sidewalk. “I owe you a million” Jake then turned and ran into a large building with a large sign on it that read: Archeology and Mythology. Jake stepped inside the building. Inside there was a lobby with chairs and tables, and at the end of the room was an elevator. He walked across the room quickly and into the elevator. He waited only a few seconds and then finally the elevator doors opened. Jake stepped out and walked hurriedly to a desk where a secretary sat “You can go right in” She said. Jake kept walking until he came upon a door. He straitened himself out, and then entered. Inside there was a conference going on “sorry I’m late” he said apologetically as he sat down. “Jake, Can I talk to you.” His boss asked. “let’s go into my office.” They both sat down and his then boss begin to speak “Jake, You’ve been coming in late and not being able to work lately.”  “Only the past few weeks” Jake said.  “But how can I know that it won’t happen forever?” His boss said. “Look, Jake, there are a lot of better workers out there, and I don’t think it’s in the company’s best interest to keep you here.” “You’re firing me?” Jake asked.  “Well…” he waited for a moment then nodded. “Well,” Jake stood up “It’s been good working for you… I’ll go get my things” then Jake stepped out of the room.

. . . . .

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Background:

Both Cam and I were homeschooled for some portion of our education (Betsy: 5th-8th grade, Cam: 8th grade). We found this experience to have both positive and negative affects on our lives. We are both oldest children with siblings much younger and a lot of our home education experience was self-directed. I struggled to self-direct in subjects that didn’t come easily for me (math) and focused on the subjects I was already good at (art, reading, language and babysitting). Entering High School brought this imbalance to light, particularly in math. I lacked both ability and confidence. Cam appreciated the flexibility homeschooling offered him. Going at his own pace (more advanced than his peers in many subjects) worked well for him. Early in our relationship, long before Sean was a twinkle in our eyes, we discussed homeschooling as an option- particularly through the Middle School years.

When Sean began reading at age four I started to wonder if I would send him to school for kindergarten. Around this time I borrowed a copy of the book, A Well Trained Mind ?????? ????? ???? Bon Cop, Bad Cop dvd ?????? ????? ????

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The Classical Education approach appealed to me and after reading the book I was inspired and encouraged to give it a try. I gathered all the materials we needed and began teaching kindergarten/1st grade with the boys in the fall of 2004. I took Sean through 1st grade material and Caleb through kindergarten objectives. That first year was equal parts wonderful and difficult. At that time I was still working part-time (mostly from home) and about half way through the year I had back surgery. The boys were mostly cooperative and had the attention span you would expect most four and five year old boys would have. By the end of the year they were both reading, writing all letters and lots of words, working out basic addition/subtraction and actually had learned quite a bit of Ancient history.

Over the summer I started to have doubts about whether or not I had it in me to continue. Sean played baseball that summer with several boys that attended a local public elementary school. I heard a lot of great things about the school and honestly the thought of having time to myself for the first time in years sounded so appealing. In the fall of 2005 I enrolled Caleb in kindergarten and Sean in the 1st grade. They made friends, did well academically (too well- they were often bored), they learned how to sit at a desk for long periods of time and stand in lines. I drove to and from school every single day, I made their lunch everyday and volunteered in their classes. My heart broke a little every day I sent them off. I figured it would just take some time to get used to this new way of life for our family.

Things at school for Sean started to get difficult (inappropriate staff, challenging kids, recess issues) and I began to feel really torn. Sean had his part to play in this but he was only six! Not wanting to do anything rash (like rip them out of school) we did everything we could to address Sean’s behavior (attitude, respect toward those in authority even when they were not being fair, patience and tolerance for other students). When we found out that Sean would be getting a wonderful teacher the next year we decided to give it another try. Second grade was much better for him. Meanwhile, Caleb was bored out of his mind in first grade. His teacher refused to address his need for more challenging material (reading in particular) and I could see his discouragement turning into complacency. His teacher told him they would not promote him to a more challenging reading group because “the other children need to catch up to where you are at”. For me, that was the proverbial “straw that broke the camel’s back”. I left school that day and called Cam crying because I felt convicted that this was not where the boys were supposed to be. I was scared to take on the responsibility again but knew that it was the right thing for our boys and ultimately for our family. The boys had been asking me to bring them home and when I finally agreed they were thrilled. We started 2nd and 3rd grades in the fall of 2007.

One of the biggest differences I noticed right off the bat was that it was so much easier to keep them on task! At seven and eight years old, they had so much more capacity to sit calmly and listen quietly. In addition, they were overjoyed at completing written work/sitting at the table in 3 hours or less each day! They were eager to learn and excited to be challenged. We had a great year together! We were a bit unplugged socially that year other than sports but in retrospect I think this was okay. I was trying to figure out what this looked like for our family and had we joined a co-op or became super involved in the Homeschool Association, I think we wouldn’t have found what worked for us as well. I would have been too concerned about how and what everyone else was doing. I did attend a couple HSA meetings and found myself feeling a bit like that old Sesame Street song,”One of These Things is Not Like the Others”. First of all, I was a lot younger than most of the other moms there and/or I wasn’t of the opinion that my children needed to be sheltered from the evil world (don’t even get me started on the denim jumpers and applique vests). All that to say, I am sure that they are all well meaning parents that love their children and want nothing but the best for them but this wasn’t a place where I/we belonged.

This past year (third and fouth grades), a family we had known of and happened to move in a lot of the same circles with became a huge part of our life and school experience. The Wallaces, who have two boys (very close to the ages of our boys) and a sweet little girl, invited us to participate in a book club with a whole group of boys. In addition to amazing book club meetings twice each month (that included language, geography, history, science and cooking) we got together several times throughout the year for history lessons and play dates. I can’t even express how much of a blessing this was for the boys and I! Kim is such a great mom and teacher! She was a huge encouragement to me and the friendship we developed is one of the greatest I have known. You can’t help but love Kim!  The boys quickly bonded and had a great time together. Unfortunately, in June they up and moved to CALIFORNIA!! The move is temporary (we all hope) but to say we miss them would be a huge understatement! Last year was also our first year to join a Parent Partnership Program (through the Meridian School District). Participating in MP3

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has worked well for us. We maintain our homeschool status and with minimal paperwork on my part, receive a nice stipend to work with each year.

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As of right now, we are half way into our third week of school. Fourth and Fifth grade seems so much more daunting to me but I am more convinced than ever that home schooling is the best choice for our family. The boys and I have a very clear understanding that we take this thing one year at a time. I refuse to have a battle of the wills with them over school work. The boys are expected to take ownership, have self-discipline and cooperate. We have a very full schedule and really enjoy all of the curriculum we use. Thanks to the MP3 stipend we are able to have the boys in Art classes, guitar lessons and at Jogo for PE.

Our Curriculum:

• Math– Singapore
• Language– First Language Lessons Level 4
  
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  , Writing With Ease, Spelling Workout

• History– Story of the World, Volume 3
• Foreign Language– Prima Latina (Latin), Rosetta Stone Spanish

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• Science– Real Science for Kids Biology, Level 1 and Biology Connects to Language
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I would highly recommend shopping and ordering from Launching Success. They are a wonderful, local store that I have always found to be helpful in giving recommendations and stocking great resources. I have also appreciated how wiling they are to track items down for me, order them and have them ready for me to pick up when I need them.

Our Schedule:

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• Down to You film

We are sitting in the lofted area that overlooks the bay. Currently, Caleb is reading a National Geographic Kids Magazine while sitting in an oversized, comfy leather chair and Sean is brainstorming and developing more of his comic book story. The free wireless makes blogging while I sit here with them possible. I love the energy all around us and the boys are enjoying their hot cocoa treat and the new atmosphere. We’ll definitely be coming back here!

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I am considering home education for the boys, again. I re-read much of A Well Trained Mind this week and it really resonates with me. The Classical Education approach that this book recommends makes so much sense. It breaks down the different stages of learning (Grammar, Logic, Rhetoric) to teach what their brains are truly capable understanding at each given stage. For the boys to get the kind of education we want for them (well rounded academically with individual thought and artistic expression), we will have to teach them ourselves. We don’t feel like they are challenged enough and they certainly don’t get the kind of one on one attention that we could provide at home. In addition, Sean and Caleb have so many activities they would like to participate but we just can’t have them running around like crazy in the afternoons and evenings after being at school for 5 1/2 hours a day. The good news is, I already have most of the resources I would need for this next school year (2nd and 3rd grades) and I know exactly what else I would use that I don’t currently have. The more research I do, the more I am leaning toward this decision. Now I just have to stop and pray. If I am not crazy now, I could very well be after a few weeks of having the boys with me 24/7.

I can’t believe how fast the summer passed by! Our camping trip to Chelan was our last big event for the summer. Cam and I have decided that camping is NOT a vacation. The boys started school on Wednesday and are LOVING it so far. Sean is in 2nd grade and Caleb is in 1st. They have great teachers who are enthusiastic and encouraging — thank you God!

Our family is excited to begin our fall routine — school, AWANA, soccer (Caleb) and Thursday nights watching our favorite T.V. shows (The Office, Smallville & My Name is Earl). We are going to try to keep our schedule very empty and have more time together as a family at home. There are too many memorable moments that get missed running life at such a fast pace. I am actually looking forward to the leaves changing colors, the briskness of fall and the slower pace it brings to life.