Schooling...In the Beginning

I drank some Coke yesterday afternoon.  Apparently, it affects the baby.  She was up at 12:30, 2:30, and 5:45.  Not awake and crying to eat.  No, she woke us up by lifting her legs straight up and slamming them back down.  Again and again.

Here's how I'd put it if I were a math teacher:  Coca-Cola + Almost-4-month-old = Not much sleep for Mommy (or Daddy, for that matter).  Daddy asked this morning, "Did she actually sleep at all last night?"

I was doing great at 6:00 and 7:00.  But then 8:00 came around, and I felt like I was running through the kiddie pool.  Time to turn up the super-charger and power through.  Kids need changed, dressed, and fed.  No time to rest!

I've decided to try preschool at home with Kyla this year.  It's not because I feel she is lacking in any foundational aspect of her early education.  Mostly, it's for two different reasons.  First, it will be my trial-run at homeschooling, which we are seriously considering.  If I can conquer one year of preschool, perhaps I can conquer kindergarten.  Perhaps.  The second reason is that I think we need something to do this winter.  It's a big change, being at home all the time.  But the summer was so extremely busy that I hardly had time to realize it.  This will lend a little bit of structure to our weeks.  Not too much, though.  I don't do well with too much structure.

When I first decided to do preschool, I had thought I would just kind of make it up as I went.  I wasn't going to do a curriculum of any sort.  But then I came across a curriculum that I found very appealing.  It's called God's Little Explorers.  It's very hands-on and very Bible-intensive.  It's a 28-week program that spends a week on every letter of the alphabet.  Instead of going through the alphabet in order, it goes through the Bible in order, with each week highlighting a story from the Bible. Each story corresponds with one letter of the alphabet.  During the first week, we will learn about how God's Word is a treasure.  We will make a treasure map and go on a treasure hunt.  Since "x" marks the spot, the letter of the week is "x."

I am certainly looking forward to beginning, as is Kyla.  The curriculum comes with an assessment that can be done at the beginning, half-way point, and end.  This was more helpful that I expected, as it brought to my attention some things that Kyla doesn't know yet.  This will help me as we go through the year.

This blog is going to be my schooling (and by that, I mean life) journal.  I'm not sure who even reads it, besides my mom.  And I think that is mostly obligatory.  If, however, you have stumbled across it and are interested in homeschooling, I'll be posting my favorite resources, best helps, good reads, printables, favorite mommy-bloggers, and whatever else comes to mind as we go down this road.

First things first.  Every school needs a mascot.  So this morning I told Kyla to go pick out her favorite stuffed animal in the house.  She came back with a stuffed dolphin.  Then I told her to name it.  She immediately informed me that it's a boy.  Then she named it Adam.  So I guess our official mascot (at least for this year) is Adam the Dolphin.

I was reading on the God's Little Explorers website, and I saw moms who had commented saying how they have prepared all summer for this year of preschool and have all sorts of things put together in advance, in baggies numbered 1-28, with charts to show them what is coming up next.  I think one mom also might have mentioned a field trip to the moon...at 38 weeks pregnant.  Boy, I am not that mom.  I've read through Week 1.  I'm not even totally prepared for that.  This is what makes me question my ability to school.  That, and when I have no idea what the answer is to the question, "Mom, what makes worms' skin sticky so they stick to us?"

Stay tuned...