May 12, 2023, marks the end of our 2022-23 academic year for our third-grader. The fifth-grader has only a few assignments remaining, too. We made it through another year of homeschooling! We are determined to make it our last, too. And by “we” I mean Susan and I want this to be the last homeschooling year. The girls are more ambivalent.
We didn’t intend to homeschool either girl this academic year. Unfortunately, Anne was back home within a few days. Leigh was in public school through the first semester.
This fall, the girls will be on campus at two charter schools and we will do everything we can to ensure they succeed on campus, in classrooms with their peers.
The resources we used this year were the same as in previous years:
- Shell Education’s “180 Days” series;
- Evan-Moor’s complete curriculum sets, which includes their “Daily” and “Fundamentals” workbooks; and
- IXL.com for online reinforcement and assessment.
We continue to subscribe to Amazon Kids+ and Adventure Academy for additional content. We also subscribe, as a family, to Apple One+ with its outstanding magazine and streaming video content.
Susan works full-time during the day and I don’t have the knowledge or skills to teach some content. We’re confident teaching the core academic subjects: English, math, social studies, and science. But, we’re not artists, musicians, or athletes. Our oldest, however, is a gifted artist, musician, and swimmer.
To meet the needs of our fifth-grader, we’ve enrolled her in art school, music lessons, and swimming. The youngest was in swimming classes and will be in basketball this summer. Both girls participate in Girls Scouting, with Susan leading the scout meetings. We’re doing our best to ensure homeschools is more than the core academic subjects. The arts and physical education are essential, too.
Some weeks, there were extra activities every night of the week. We’re not going to be able to sustain that year after year. I don’t believe non-stop, always scheduled time, is healthy for anyone, especially children. As summer starts, the “free time” needs to increase so they get to engage their imaginations more.
Since March 2020, we have managed to help the girls reach grade-level in most subjects. They made amazing progress at home. Susan and I need a break and the girls need new experiences.
Homeschooling requires a lot of time and energy. For our daughters, it was the only choice that could meet their needs, especially during the pandemic. Now, Anne and Leigh need to develop more social awareness. The girls need to master being around peers and navigating traditional class schedules.
Thankfully, we believe they will be attending schools equipped to meet their needs. Of course, we thought this school year was going to be different.