Gah! It seems MORE than a month has gone by since I last updated the ol’ blog. What a time it was too. The whirlwind of the end of the school year. Last week we had our last day at the tutorial followed by their year end assembly.
Wahoo!!! All those snow days we kept our nose to the grind stone are paying off now baby!
I was so proud as I watched them get up front and recite all of the things they had memorized. Latin endings, history time lines, science jingles…. “Yes,” I thought… “They got it! The DID learn something this year.” It was a moment of triumph for me as mom and teacher. And one I did my best to savor. Because after enduring all of the whining and tears and frustration and “do I have to” it was wonderful to see the fruits of our labor. Today we completed the very last step of the school year, our year end evaluation with the county school board. So we lugged in our suitcases full of binders and did our best to convey to the reviewer in a short amount of time all the work we had accomplished this year. They deemed us compliant and we left to check out some library books. As I walked away I realized all the things I didn’t show them, but they didn’t require it anyway and I realized that there really is no way to full convey all we learned and how we’ve grown this school year.
But, in my heart I know. And truthfully, I’ve seen it play out in these first few weeks of summer vacation. As we’ve settled into our summer routine and kept up with the reading and math assignments I want them to continue over the summer, I can see growth and maturity. They no longer need summer reading incentives. They eagerly write and mail letters and e-mails to their friends… putting their knowledge to use. The other night one of them asked if they could keep a journal this summer. YES! YES! This is what I love to see! I direct the learning all school year, but for the summer, to see kid directed learning is a joy to my mother/teacher heart. This is one of the things I love most about homeschooling.
We spent our first week of summer break trying to organize the house and establish some summertime routines. Memorial Day weekend felt like an official kick off to summer… full of watermelon, swimming, camp outs, whiffle ball, cousins, grandparents, and friends.
And a much deserved Summer break (with learning in the background) to ALL of you!! It will fly bye too quickly so enjoy every day. BTW you are the BEST teacher :-)
ReplyDeleteWell done, Crystal! You ALL worked hard. You probably worked the hardest of all. :)
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