Reverb Days... Whatever

Since I've skipped about a week, I'm only going to pick a couple here today:

1.  What was your best "nature" moment this year?
This is my blog, so my definitions apply, and I'm going to assume that this 'nature' definition doesn't involve The Great Outdoors.  I've had some major discoveries about the natures of both children this year.  My first big discovery was that M2 isn't anything like M1.  In a way I knew this, but in another way, I didn't.  I've always known that M1 would work in a field of science someday.  There's not a single shred of doubt in my mind that one day he'll work in research (or R&D) somewhere and love, love, love his job.  M2?  I don't know.  She doesn't know.  And because her nature isn't like M1's, she's okay with that.  And I have to accept that she'll work it out on her own someday.  Because she will.

My other favorite 'nature' moment was discovering that M1 has a quiet streak.  You'd think I would have known this, but I didn't.  When he's not medicated, he can't NOT talk.  His mouth is flapping 24/7.  And there are days when it still does, even on meds, but the meds give him the ability to shut up once in a while.  I find this lovely.


2.  Did you discover that someone in your family has a talent that had previously gone unnoticed?
M2 definitely has a talent for making people feel better.  I don't think I should discount this talent at all, just as I don't discount M1's talent for riling up a room full of kids just by walking into it.  People feel better after talking to M2.  She can even take adults under her wing and comfort them.  I have to be careful about when and where she uses this talent, though, because she tends to internalize a lot of the pain and cry about it later.


3.  Did you retire any favorite curricula, books or toys this year?
Ahh... yes.  Yes, we did.  M1 got rid of the last of his plastic bugs and Hot Wheels just this past weekend.  M2 gave her Legos to M1 because she realized that she didn't really care for them.  All of the 'easy' puzzles have disappeared from the house (with the one exception of a Winnie the Pooh puzzle) along with most of the 'easy' books.  They wanted to retire all the Dr. Seuss books, but I put the kibosh on that.  Just because the kids are growing up doesn't mean Dr. Seuss will ever disappear.  Some things have to stay forever!

Reverb Days 4, 5, and 6

So I'm not keeping up with this very well.  Daily blogging ain't happening during December, no matter how much I try.  There's just too much to keep up with!  I'll be posting a bunch of photos later this week, but for now, REVERB 2011:

Question #4:  What was your family's biggest blessing in 2011?


Answer:  No surgery.  It sounds ridiculous, but that's a big one.  In 2003, when M1 was three months old, he had his first surgery.  In 2005, I had M2 (not really surgery, but it still involved a hospital stay) and M1 had another surgery.  In 2006, M2 had surgery; in 2007, it was M1's turn again.  We skipped a couple of years after that, and I thought we were done when the children inflicted the Infamous Earberry Incident upon us last year.  The fact that we've gone more than 12 months without surgery is a wonderful blessing.  It meant we got to take a family vacation, which was long overdue!


Question #5:  What was the best science experiment you did in 2011?


M1, who is the guru of all things science in this house, isn't entirely sure, but I know he really liked making red cabbage juice and playing with it (and discovering that boiling cabbage releases sulfur, too).  His favorite experiments, though, probably have to do with his snap circuits and other electrical sets.  He loves building things out of them to see if or how they work.

Question #6:  What was your or your children's favorite Art project from the 2011 homeschool year?


M1 LOVED learning how to use a grid to draw things to a larger or smaller scale.  That makes perfect sense to me and to him, because he got to use his analytical brain to provide him with a framework for his art.  I'll admit, too, that the finished product was one of his better projects.  And it's always good to know that somewhere deep down, he does like art.

Reverb 2011, Days 2 and 3

OK, so life tends to get in the way of me doing this every day, but let's see if I can answer days 2 and 3 in one post and not make a novel out of it:

Reverb Question #2:  What was the best new resource that you found in 2011? Book, website, local support group, or other? How did it help in your homeschooling journey?


Hmmm... this is a hard one.  I really, really like our new science curriculum, Elemental Science, but I think my best new 'resource' isn't even a resource.  For writing this year, I've more or less been making my own curriculum, and I couldn't be happier.  Now, I'm still using a workbook for some parts of writing - some of the basics - but I've been doing a lot of the instruction on my own, basing it simply on experience, 'what he needs to know,' and his desires.  This week, for instance, we're working on comma usage.  Then we're going to do a poetry unit.  Using this... can I even call it a method?... I think he's absorbing so much, and I'm thrilled at my own ability and confidence to create this subject in a way that he and I can both enjoy it.

All that being said, having some good homeschooling friends is one of the best things ever, and I'm grateful for them, too!


Reverb Question #3:  If you could have one moment  that you could do differently in 2011, what would that moment be?


Y'know, I'm not quite sure how to answer this.  If I look at it from a homeschooling aspect, I would probably have started our current math book earlier and left him work through the end of the old one in between other lessons.  The way Math-U-See is structured, there are some really tough lessons one after another at the end of the book followed by several really easy lessons at the beginning of the next; a good mix would have been a better fit.

I could also answer this from a general perspective.  In that case, I know I've stuck my foot in my mouth several times and wish that I could go back and keep my mouth shut!

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Hope everyone is staying warm and dry.  I'm still grateful for the rain, because it's definitely better than a drought, but gosh it is making for a drab, gray weekend.  Off to avoid Bedlam and read a good book!

Reverb 2011, Day One

I didn't do the 'I'm thankful for X' leading up to Thanksgiving.  I personally believe that being thankful is something that happens year-round and doesn't need extra attention just because of an impending holiday.  I know it means a lot to a lot of people to verbalize all their blessings, and I have enjoyed reading their posts, but I think that living with graciousness and gratitude goes a lot farther than posting a daily announcement somewhere.

My opinion.  I have one.  It may not be yours.  I'm thankful for that.

Anyway, despite my aversion to this November tradition, I do enjoy the idea of wrapping up the year in December.  To that end, when I read Rebel Homeschool's idea for wrapping up 2011, I thought, "Ya know... it's so crazy it just might work!"

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REVERB 2011, DAY ONE:

The question:  Did you have a turning point in 2011? A point where homeschooling became easier, or conversely, more difficult? 

Did your circumstances, your mindset or your child/children's mindset suddenly click into a new groove with a certain subject or with your homeschooling routine? 
Did unexpected life circumstances throw up new obstacles? Maybe you and yours had more than one turning point. . .

The answer:

I think the turning point for us came prior to that, back when we restarted ADHD medications for M1.  Prior to that, I had been constantly having to rethink school - how it was being done, whether this was something I could do, whether it was something even M1 could do.  Once we started the medication, it all just got so much easier!  He was able to articulate the problems, understand things better, and even initiate changes for himself.  He also loves his schedule that he created (by the way, we talked, and the only change he really wants is to add some computer-based math games to the agenda now and then) and it's made our schedule much easier to handle.

It's been a good year of homeschooling in this aspect.  Can't wait to see what the Reverb will be for tomorrow!