Thankful for Preschool

This is Mrs. Karyn. She is amazing.

She is the preschool teacher at our co-op this year and has done an unbelievable job. The students have a daily calendar time, stories, various crafts, games, and all sorts of activities. She even did some cooking with them last week and hopes to attempt it again this coming week.

Her fulfillment of this position is WAY above the typical "call of duty" for the co-op preschool, but she tackles it weekly with her amazing energy!

I am particularly grateful because there wasn't anything at our co-op for D (age 3) last year. He was at an "in-between" age and made to stay with me in the nursery.

This year I have watched him flourish and blossom under the love, creative energy, and enthusiasm of Mrs. Karyn. He comes home singing his letters. he has learned most of their sounds, and he always has a creative craft to show us.


Even his father, who had to deliver him to school a bit late one day, couldn't believe how excited he was to go to school. D just hopped out of the car and was ready to take off! He LOVES co-op, which is quite the opposite of his poor little brother.

Here he is being the "Letter A" with his friends at school.

At home, we have a "Thankful Tree". The kids add leaves to it each day with something they are thankful for. Want to know what D's first leaf said?

Mrs. Karyn.

He is thankful for Mrs. Karyn. And I truly couldn't agree more.

A rough age

Dear C (age 14 months),

You will owe Grandmom BIG TIME when you are older. She has watched you ever Friday from 8:30 AM until 1:00 PM. You are her little buddy and she takes you on walks and to the mall. She feeds you lunch and many snacks, plays with you, and just loves on you!

And, WHY do you get all this attention?

Because you are absolutely miserable when mommy leaves you at co-op. You screamed basically the entire three hours one week and it about killed me. That is when I called in your Grandmom for reinforcement.

She came to co-op with us, hoping you would adjust to the nursery more easily if she was there.

This is you on that morning, terrified to let me go. I, on the other hand, enjoyed the snuggles for a few minutes.

Once I left, the screaming began. Horrible screaming. Until your Grandmom put you in the stroller and took you out of the building on a little walk.

You were finally calm for about a half hour...that is until she tried to take you back into the building.

You started screaming again as soon as you got to the front door.

And it pained your Grandmom's heart, so she got the car seat from me and took you home.

And she has been watching you on Friday mornings ever since.

Yes, my boy, you owe your Grandmom for this one day.

Big time.

Graduation

Our co-op ended with a very long lovely graduation night.

The entire K-5 crew learned how to sign the Lord's prayer and the 23rd Psalm, so they performed it for everyone.


Then it was time for each individual grade to have some time in the spotlight. First the class of kindergarteners, including my T, walked in for "graduation".



A local radio DJ (hubby to one of the wives) interviewed each kindergartener, asking what they wanted to be when they grew up.

Completely unprompted, my sweet little T (age 5) immediately responded, "a mommy".

K (age 7) recited a poem she wrote. Each second grader took a turn to recite.

Finally, a group photo of all of the hard working kiddos this year! It felt great to be done.

Our crazy Fridays

This is Friday morning. For now.

Four children: 7, 5, 3 and 10 months

One stroller.

One pack and play for a napping baby.

Three backpacks.

Two lunch boxes.

Two diaper bags with food for the morning, diapers, bottles, and a ton of bibs.

One bag with mommy's lesson plan and teaching supplies.

This is every Friday morning. Arriving at co-op with everyone and everything in tow.

By 9 AM.

I had to capture it because it is now.

And one day I won't have to tote along so much.

Sometimes it is tough to cherish aspects of now. The lugging around all the "stuff" that comes with this stage is one of those aspects.

And I won't miss it.

And it is one of the big reasons I was ready for co-op to end. As much as we love it. I'll be glad to return in the fall when the pack and play doesn't have to return with me!

But I'll miss that precious baby who spent his mornings napping at co-op.

Our Co-op: An update

The co-op we joined this year is working out to be the perfect fit for our family.

Both girls love their PE, art and music classes! I love that they are able to participate in these activities with other children. After all, playing kickball with just the family isn't quite the same!

Every week when I walk in the gym there is new equipment being used. I have seen scarves, bowling equipment, scooter boards, balls, cones, bases, basketballs, and a ton more. The PE class looks like the girls are being exposed to so many activities and having a blast while doing it.

As a family we have studied the artwork of Claude Monet and Henri Matisse so far this year. It has been a relief to know that it isn't something I have to get done. They do plenty of wonderful art at their co-op, so anything we do at home is a bonus.

Their music class at co-op is the only music they participate in right now, and that is fine for our family. At some point, they will take piano lessons, but for now it is nice to have that subject lifted off of my daily requirements!

Their science classes have been a blast for both of them. I am so thrilled because our science really lacked any "POW" to it last year. Honestly, I had no idea what we were missing until we began science this year. It is by far their favorite subject! Best of all, I don't have to plan the lessons!

T (age 5) has learned so much about God's Creation. We have had a great time doing nature activities during the week when we follow up using her homework assignments. She has studied light and was able to see a dissected cow's eye in class, something her mommy wouldn't do at home for sure...LOL! She has also studied clouds, weather, senses, plants, trees, and rocks.

K (age 7) has taken a HUGE liking to Science this year and I truly believe it is because of this co-op! She is inspired by what she is learning! During her cave exploration unit, she and T made pretend spelunking hats (see picture) and wore them all of the time. We even built a huge "cave" in the basement to explore together. She has also studied the rain forest and volcanoes. Currently her class is studying the earth and rocks. Everything about her science class has captured her mind. We see it all day long in the way she plays.

I am so thankful that these co-op classes have inspired my girls to learn aboout God's amazing planet and His creation!

Both girls enjoy their Language Arts classes as well, though I have to admit that they take second place to science. K learns a different virtue each week. We look up bible verses and complete activities that relate to reading assignments. It has been wonderful for me to have some Language Arts activities already planned for me each week! T works on phonics skills and interacts with literature in class, but hasn't had homework for Language Arts this year.

Overall, I am quite sure we have found our home for a few years! It has been a perfect blend of fostering the joy of learning AND taking some of the burden of homeschool planning off of my plate!

Our First Day of Co-op

We joined a different homeschool group this year. We moved on from Classical Conversations for two main reasons. One was financial and the other was the need to focus more on elementary school type learning. The Memory Work was great, but I found that I was skipping a lot because my kids were so young. The science projects were over their heads most of the time, even though they often had a "wow factor". I wanted to find a group that would take something off my plate and enhance learning at their level.

After talking to a friend, we joined a co-op that was a little farther away, but fit our needs perfectly! Our new co-op began in September and the first day was a hit!

The girls were ready and eager to go in the morning, even though it was a bit early for us to get out the door. (all four of us must be in the car by 8:30 AM)



The girls attend morning chapel from 9:00-9:15. They do general things like say the Pledge of Alligence and more involved activities, such as learning the Lord's Prayer in sign language.

Then the move on to PE. The kindergarten through second grade has gym class together, so my daughters are there at the same time. They played a get to know you game with movement. Each person introduced themselves and did an action with their name. The game continued to build as each person added on an action.



Then they each head to their own grade level classrooms. I put K (age 7) in the second grade classroom, even though she missed the cutoff according to the state. We felt like it was the right placement for her at this time. T (age 5) heads off to kindergarten.

They both have music class. The second grade is studying the orchestra and classical music. K did a lot of this last year, but not in nearly as much detail. T's kindergarten class joins the pre-K and first grade classes for music. They basically sing songs together and have fun.

Both girls have art class during the day. The art activities usually coordinate with their science lesson or language art story.



Each grade level also has a language arts class. K is studying, "The Children's Book of Virtues" for the first 11 weeks. T's class usually does kindergarten phonics games and other reading activities.

Finally, they both have science class. The science classes are amazingly in depth, including homework assignments. T is spending the first half of the year studying God's creation. K's class began by studying the rainforest.

At the end of the day, the girls come to the nursery to join their brothers and I. They were tired, but had a blast on their first day!

Wordless Wednesday: K's Co-op Homework