The First Month

The curriculum arrived 4th week of July. We're all set... or so I thought.

The first week was spent unschooling them. We did games, videos, reading what they wanted from our home library, exploring the park, things at the mall, etc.

My eldest son had difficulty with his cursive writing skills so, we had to do some drills so he can re-learn his cursives since the curriculum would require a lot of writing. I was so frustrated to learn that this skill was not mastered during the last 2 years he was in traditional school. Well, anyway, we just had to do what has to be done. My younger son was OK with his writing.

Second week -- still drilling them with writing through printed out exercise sheets. The boys didn't have much of a problem with the reading activities. They loved to read. We don't have a strict by-the-hour kind of schedule. After breakfast, they do some chores. Then, sometimes, they watch BBC or Discovery videos so they have a dose of science. Math is done everyday, as the first activity. My eldest son now shows waning interest in math. He would take his time answering, and delaying as much as he can by going to the bathroom and kitchen.

Third and fourth week. When my son and I talked about why it takes him forever to finish his math, he said he is having difficulty, so I had no choice but to stop the current level he is at (level 3) and make him complete the level 2 first.

I am about to enroll them at Homelife Academy through the internet, but I put it on hold for a while. I do not know if I should let him repeat second grade, just because of this math dilemma, or let him proceed to third grade. I still want to let him proceed to 3rd grade.

I tried asking help from our local e-group but no one answered, so I guess, we'll just have to work this out by ourselves, with much prayer, patience, and resourcefulness. God is good.
I am thankful He showed me the way on deciding to homeschool my children.