checking in & some reassurance please!

[gracelikerain]

Hello ladies!
It has been awhile for me to post. Been lurking a bit when I can. I am 6 months pregnant & doing pretty well. We are having a boy!

I have my 12 dd doing Bigger (with extentions) with her sister who is 9. My 12 dd is focusing on math right now. Doing a lot of saxon to help her catch up. So that has been my focus for her....along with writing.
They are doing it pretty independantly. They wake at 7 & start their day. I sleep in with the little kids & get up around 8:30-9. We eat & I go over their work with them. I usually am much more invloved with all the reading & such so I feel weird but I cannot get up early everyday at this season in my life. They are doing very well. R & S is very thorough & they actually enjoy it. They do all the written work. I just wonder should I be expecting more from them in the history/science readings? Should I assign written paragraphs of what they read? I don't want to add any more work really. I just feel like, left out! I am busy teaching my 5 year old to read which has been challenging. He just started speech therapy & quite frankly it makes me wary of what he can grasp. He has the blending down pretty well but when it comes to the letters (l,t,b,f,th,st, & many other blends) he struggles with I wonder if I know what I am doing! Then my 2 dd is just having fun with us as we go about our days. I guess I just needed to share what I am doing. I feel good about this curriculum. I feel like they are learning & I am happy to be able to follow a great teachers manual. We are on unit 13 & will be somewhere around week 26 when March rolls around & the baby will be born. So then we will take a month off & not be behind. That is my plan anyway!
Next yr my older dd will do CTC & my then 10dd will repeat PHFHG. We did it last year but she could really learn a lot from doing it again. It was way over her head.
So that is what we are up to! I hope to hear from some of you wonderful ladies. I love the support we get here!

Bless you all!

[Tansy]

Sounds like you got it all working! good job Mom...

I know L is a tough sound to make even at 5 years of age... be sure to surprise the speech therapist and do all the work assigned to you they love it when that happens. HOD is a complete curriculum. YOu don't need to add anything If he is doing the extensions then don't worry about it.
Praise Jesus that it is running smoothly! Enjoy the time with your 5 year old and don't stress. He will get it.. maybe his mouth can't make the sounds yet..

Sleep and grow that baby. Working independent of mama is a good thing.

[gracelikerain]

Thanks so much! I tend to want to read all the books & do school with my kids. Now that our family is growing I can't do it all! Yes, independence is good! I'm just not used to it. A new season for me.

[my3sons]

Hi Georgette! It's so nice to hear from you - I'm so glad your pregnancy is going smoothly, and you DO need more sleep right now. God is providing a way for that to happen, so hooray! No need to mess with that. I know your dc are able to be quite independent with their school right now, but it is important to feel connected to what they are doing, which is what I'm sensing is what you are kind of missing. So, joining in the discussions about poetry and the Bible study box are great ways to feel in sync there (maybe you're already doing that, but if not, that's one great, easy way to achieve this). And, if you are feeling left out in the areas of history and science, I would not add more work for the dc, but I would put my time in the geography discussion each week, interacting with them for the 2 science narrations using the list in the Appendix for things to point out, and last if you feel like you'd enjoy it - occasionally reading the history to them, maybe finishing with reading the Key Idea for it. For your oldest, you can go over the extended reading assignment with them to feel in touch with that. Any/all of this will help you feel in touch in virtually every area of school without having to add much time or stress to your day, and without adding more to their already happy day. These are just ideas - you will know best what to do here - but I'm celebrating with you that your dc are doing so well and that you are able to rest during your pregnancy - sooooooo important.

In Christ,
Julie

[gracelikerain]

Thanks Julie,
Your ideas were what I have been thinking. I was doing a little of what you said already but seeing the way you put it makes it easier for me to pull together! Gee, it must be so weird when kids go to ps. I wouldn't be involved at all! I wouldn't like that very much!
Well, praise God for HSing!

Hope you are doing well. It was nice to hear from you & Tansy!

[Carrie]

Georgette,

It is so good to hear from you! I am glad that all is progressing well for your pregnancy. It is wonderful how God works out a way for you to get the extra sleep and rest you need, while still having your kiddos going forward in their schooling! The ladies gave you some terrific suggestions for ways to interact a bit more with your kiddos without adding much time to your day. If you are anything like me, it will relieve the guilt you are feeling without leaving you drained. Guilt can feel draining!

One other thing you may consider is having your older daughter write a written narration two times weekly in preparation for CTC. She could do this on her extension pack readings or her history readings, whichever she prefers. I suggest you limit her in length to 5 to 8 sentences, so she knows this is not a long assignment. I would just assign her two days a week to do her written narration, say for example Monday and Thursday, and then let her pick which reading she writes her narration about. This will be great preparation for her. To go over the narrations, I would have her read them aloud to you and catch any mistakes she can on her own. Then, write in pencil any corrections you wish her to make and write a compliment on the paper at the top. This would only be an assignment for your older daughter, not your younger one.

Blessings,
Carrie

[gracelikerain]

Thanks Carrie! That sounds like a great idea. Very doable.