Our First Day of School

What? Didn't school already start weeks ago?
Not for us, it didn't! I have this hang-up about starting school in August. It's too hot. August is still summer. I'm just never ready then.
Last year, since we had a new baby on August 18, we didn't start school until October. No harm done. This year, I circled September 1st on my calendar as the day we would begin. The weather has been cooler, with a little chill in the evenings. Yesterday was a beautiful bright, sunny, warm (not hot!) day...perfect for the first day of school. We decided to kick off our school year with a picnic.


Mojo is in 3rd grade, and Caveman is in kindergarten this year. I would not even bother starting "sit down lessons" with Caveman if he weren't showing such an interest. I think little boys are often not ready to start sitting still with a pencil in their hands at the time we impose it upon them. But Caveman shows interest in what his sister is doing when she reads and writes, spends a lot of time at the table drawing, attempts to write letters, and he really wants to learn to read. I'll provide him with instruction in the areas he shows interest. But I feel no need to push him at this age.
He is excited to be starting kindergarten. This morning when I told the children to get started on their chore cards because we would be starting our lessons soon, Mojo groaned. Caveman said "But Mojo, homeschool is FUN!" I got all the children some new supplies, including cool pencil bags, new lunchboxes, rulers, and fresh new crayons and glue sticks. Everyone also got a new pair of shoes.

We will be using Kolbe Academy this year. At this time, I appreciate the lesson plans and having everything all laid out for me. Between teaching a 3rd grader, teaching a kindergartner to read and write, keeping a 2 1/2-year-old entertained, and keeping a 1-year-old from getting into everything...I need things as streamlined as possible at this point. I will also once again be doing Preschool Letter of the Week with Gem, as she enjoys doing "school" as her attention span allows.

In addition to our core curriculum, each week we will learn about a Saint (following our Catholic calendar of feast days), practice a virtue, memorize a Scripture verse, and learn about a composer and listen to music from that composer for the week.

As all of our books are not in at this time, we've been reviewing what we learned last year with Mojo and practicing how to hold a pencil/crayon and letter strokes (like slanted lines or drawing circles counter-clockwise) with Caveman.
We are also doing a small unit study on the American flag. We are learning the history behind our flag, how it has evolved over the years, the meaning behind the symbols, the pledge of allegiance, the Star Spangled Banner (and what the words mean), flag etiquette and care, and the meaning behind why the flag is folded the way it is. Did you know that each fold means something? I didn't until now. Just one of the many reasons I love teaching my children at home!