School may be out, but learning is in!
Posted by Lisa Hendey
in Family
on Monday, June 30, 2008 2:35 PM
The calendar may read “summer”, but in our house the learning continues. I learned early on in Eric’s elementary school career that three months without math, reading and writing equates to educational havoc once my boys return to the regular school schedule. Our summer learning schedule has made me envious of our friends who are brave enough to take on homeschooling – what a blessing to “do school” on a schedule that complements our family life!
Our summer learning is not rigidly organized and sometimes we miss a day or two along the way. We try to keep the learning fun, and kid-directed. This summer, Eric (16) is actually taking two classes at our local community college and learning about economics and physics. He’s enjoying the feel of college a bit early, learning to study (and socialize!) in the campus café and discovering the ups and downs of caffeine! Adam (13) and I are exploring Latin together – his pronunciation is much better than mine. The book we’ve selected is called Getting Started with Latin: Beginning Latin for Homeschoolers and Self-Taught Students of Any Age
. One nice features of this book is the downloadable audio lessons, which include pronunciation guides. My Latin has a touch of the French accent I acquired in college, but Adam is doing a great job with the aid of the audio lessons.
One of my favorite aspects of our summer learning is the writing my children have done during their summer journaling. It is so wonderful to look back over their journals and relive family vacations or even nights spent outside swimming or playing from their viewpoint. Their summer journals are a wonderful complement to our family photos.
Weekly trips to the library keep us busy with new books to explore and CDs and videos to enjoy. We’re discovering new composers every week and viewing many of the classic films of years gone by, all free of charge. You’ve got to love your local library! With the online reservation system, we can even request and reserve items and have them held for us to pick up. It’s the next best thing to Netflix!
I hope you and your families are enjoying your summer learning – I’d love to hear from you about what you’re doing in your home to keep learning fun! In the meantime, I’ll be curled up with a good book!
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Filed under learning, school, summer reading
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Comments
1. Posted by mary
[website] on Tuesday, Jul 8, 2008 11:42 PM (EST):
I love your journaling idea!
Mostly what I’ve been doing is the same thing I do every summer - thinking that one of these summers I should create an actual plan for summer learning before the summer starts and then keep with it. The household is kept pretty busy with tennis lessons, swim team (practices and meets), library trips and volunteering. I had hoped to get Rosetta Stone’s Latin course, but haven’t been able to get myself to spend the money w/o knowing anyone who has tried it. Not sure if we really even have the time available to give it a fair chance anyway.
2. Posted by Lisa Hendey
[website] on Wednesday, Jul 9, 2008 9:42 AM (EST):
Mary, The book Adam and I are using is very simple and has been wonderful. After only a few weeks, he is midway through the book and only works on it for approx. 15 minutes per day. He is so excited every day about what he’s learned. I feel like this has been a great jumping off point for both of us!
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