Unschooling, Really?

So last Tuesday we decided (after much research and talking with others) to Unschool (insert gasp here) I have been moving toward schooling this way for a long time, but could never connect with someone to bounce ideas off and answer actual questions. Now this really poses a difficult time for me as in I am totally 100% addicted to buying curriculum.
Yes, my name is Cara and I am addicted to curriculum.
I have tons of it, too much some would say. And now of all things I decide to unschool? What am I thinking? To be honest, I am looking forward to finding out what the kids decide to learn. For those wanting to know what Unschooling exactly is, I will explain it in a nutshell. Unschooling is child-led learning. What does that mean, that means that as my children all learned to walk and talk on their own accord, so they will learn what they need to know for life the same way. For more info check out this link or this one.
So here is the tidbit of our first week of unschooling....
So we came home last Tuesday (after ice skating or weekly physics class as we like to call it)  where I got to speak with a good friend that unschools her 14 year old. And we decided this is what we were going to do, to give it a try. The children rejoiced at the thought of not having to do any kind of schoolwork ever. I cringed thinking, "What have I done?". So Wednesday came along and the children all wrote down goals, what do they want to accomplish. They loved it imagining what they would be when they grew up, yes, even my 14 year old. They then proceeded to revel in the fact that they could play video games and computer games. And play on Facebook, little did they know, they were learning all along. Lil' Cuz was asking me how to spell words and various other questions, Big Bro was writing by chatting with his various friends and we learned about cost analysis by playing Cafe' World, looking at the different dishes and seeing which one would give us more points and money and how long it would take to earn the amount we were hoping for. The Princess was dancing and coloring while singing Old McVowel and Brownies songs about friendship and teamwork. Most of the week proceeded much the same way little learning adventures that felt like I was cheating, constant worries about if I had made the right decision. My husband disagreeing watchful eye, taking in the "learning" that was supposedly going on. And all the while the kids were learning, the natural way. We did impose a small guideline on the kids, to keep husband happy, the kids must complete some form of reading, writing, and math everyday. They get to choose what they do, how they do it, and even when they do it. It was so much more fun and relaxed than any day that we forced the kids to sit down and do an hour plus of math (depending on if the child cooperated or not). We have talked about how to draw and all on her own Lil' Cuz learned some cartooning, in the car the other day The Princess, decided to play a game she made up all on her own, a reading game, she would spell the letters to me and I would have to tell her the word. Now The Princess hates "Reading" she has far better things to do than read. AND SHE WAS PLAYING A READING GAME! This was huge! Then Big Bro picked up Lil' Cuz's math book and saw how many lessons he could get done in 20 min. It's amazing to think that they would learn all on their own (okay with a little guidence) but that naturally they are moving in the right direction.  Scary and Fun all at the same time!
So for now, Unschooling, Really? Absolutely! Yes!

A New Day

So I haven't been very diligent about this blogging thing, but... I am going to get better, or at least I keep telling myself that. LOL

"Every day is a new day with no mistakes in it, yet"

~Anne of Green Gables

I watched this movie with my Lil' Cuz the other day and remembered this quote and the inspiration that this movie gives me.

Let's recap from our adventure beginning school this year:
So far we started our Homeschool Adventure with making some fun mini offices.

You can look at ideas for mini offices here

The Princess took her time. Cause it had to be perfect.

Lil’ Cuz was the first one to finish, of course.

And even Big Bro finished did one. Algebra II and all…

The kids loved it.

We are also Ice skating with an incredible group of homeschoolers. Sooo fun! Physics at it's Best!!! ;0D

So on to A New Day...

Today on the Homeschool Front we are going to attempt to do something new, something that I have not tried before. The kids are going to write some articles for us to publish on the blog. I am very excited to see if I can get the kids to produce some fun work and not get the moans and groans when I mention schoolwork.

Also we are implementing a chore list, I’ve seen some great ideas and we are going to try. We’ll see how it works out. Kids are up time to run. More later, wish me luck!

Hug and Kisses,

~Cara~

Free Personal signatures - cool!

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All about Me!

So this is my first official post of the school year. We don't technically start until September 8th, but the kids were begging for some school work. And since we have added Lil Cuz to our little school house. I wanted to find something fun to warm up to. I didn't guess how much fun it would be...


So we spent some time trying out lapbooking. And what I thought would take a couple of days only took Lil Cuz 1 day to complete. It was soooo fun and Lil Princess has been working away at hers for days.


So we definitely like lapbooks. LOL Albeit Lil Cuz wasn't about to stop for a photo shoot. :)

Still trying to figure this blogging thing out!!!

So I haven't figured out just how this is going to work, but gonna give it a try! I absolutely LOVE my cousin's blog http://bumpinalongtheroadlesstraveled.blogspot.com/ You must check it out!! She is such a talented writer and takes AMAZING photos! I just love it! We'll see how this goes! Wish me luck! Love to All!
~Cara~

So u can blog from ur phone... Ooooh this might be dangerous! Lol.
~Cara~

Getting Started

So I am new to this whole "blogging" thing, but have had some fun reading other posts about homeschooling moms. I thought what a better way to force me to document all of our homeschool fun, friends, and activities. So here goes...