Changing gears

We've been doing the homeschool thing off and on (because of circumstances - trips, visitors, etc.) for the last two months. I have been stressing out about the chaotic, unstructured way it has worked. But then I came to the realization: that's the beauty of homeschooling! You are more free to be flexible because you can always make it up later.

Still, this is not an easy concept for me. I like structure, I like organization and I like routine. And I like it to work the same everyday. Still, with a 3-year old and his 3-year old schedule, this is impossible. So what I've learned thus far is that I don't need to be quite as structured as I had originally thought. I still have the general outline of what I want to accomplish each week, but if we don't get to everything everyday, then that's okay (a concept I am still struggling with). I find that when I try to squeeze everything in on days that are already inherently hectic, we both end up stressed or rushed.

Plus, I tell myself, he's only 3! If we lived in the States, I wouldn't even be thinking about school yet. That's more of a 4-year old thing, as far as I ever thought. A 3-year old does not need a strict school day.

Today we started Phonics. We began the first lesson - the letter 'A' - and he flew through it. Since this is homeschool, and it's all about him, we were free to go on to the next lesson...and the next, and the next! We covered all five vowels just this morning. We were able to do this because he already knows the sounds they make. So, we went through the flashcards I made (which display the uppercase and lowercase versions) and talked about words that begin with the vowels. He loved it. And then I became a homeschool enthusiast again - we were able to move on to further lessons and go at his own pace, because it's just him in this "class".

After breakfast we are going to start some handwriting lessons. I bought a Kumon book in the States for 3, 4 and 5 year olds that teaches very basic handwriting (starts with drawing straight lines, etc.). I was holding off on this, because handwriting seems so, well, advanced. But we received a book in the mail from the Bermuda Child Development something-or-other, and it said that by age 3 1/2 a child should be able to hold a pencil correctly and draw a line. So out came the handwriting book.

So, we're moving along. And Mommy is learning as much as the student!