Holy cow! I have a kindergartner! Tomorrow is the first day of school for us and I can’t believe that my son is officially in kindergarten. It doesn’t seem like it has been nearly 6 years since he came into my life, yall. Sometimes I look at him and am a bit shocked at how much he has grown. He is already up to my chest. Considering I am 5’9″, that’s pretty dang tall for a 5 year old!
Anyways, enough about how time flies…let’s talk about how I feel now that we are “officially” homeschooling.
Honestly, I still feel a bit unprepared. And nervous. For some reason, knowing that we are “in the system” makes me feel like I have to be even more vigilant. I imagine random people from the school district stopping by our house, asking if they can come in to see our homeschool setup.
But I know that is just my paranoia setting in. I am a known worrier with an overactive imagination.
Relax, Tiffany. You’ve been doing this for two years…
With that being said, I’m really excited to get started tomorrow.
This year is our first official year in 4-H. We attended meetings last year to get an idea of what it’s all about. However, since he has a late birthday, he wasn’t old enough to join (this is also the reason he is just now entering kindergarten despite the fact that he is almost 6 years old). I finally got a chance to enroll him in the local 4-H club yesterday and excited to be able to do more with the other “Cloverbuds”.
We also recently signed up for one of the many homeschool co-ops that our local homeschool community has to offer. The classes that he chose are Storytime Yoga and Creature Feature. I also signed him up for a character education class. This particular coop begins this week, so I am looking forward to that. While Christian is in his classes, I will be helping out in other classes that are being taught. I opted out of teaching this time around (I taught Greek Mythology at another co-op). I am hoping to take notes and perhaps replicate some of the classes in the future. They have some pretty cool offerings.
In addition to that co-op, I am working with two of my friends to do a monthly (perhaps twice a month) science experiment co-op. We’re playing around with the idea of reading or watching “The Magic School Bus” with the kids and then conducting experiments based on the field trip topics.
We are also going to really dive into learning Spanish this year. I took Spanish for 2 years in high school as well as 2 years in college, but would love to be fluent.
Another thing I am focusing on this year as a major part of our curriculum is financial literacy. I REALLY do not want my son to make the same financial mistakes I have made over the years. I don’t remember my parents teaching me and my siblings how to manage money. I can’t help but to think that if I had learned money management skills from a young age, I would have had an advantage once I was old enough to make decisions on my own.
To help me learn more about finances (and to teach Christian), I have been reading a couple of books by Dave Ramsey. We also have the entire Financial Peace Jr set that we will be using this semester. I’ll be sharing more on that later this year.
Another thing I am excited about this year is getting Christian a few big things for his birthday (which is coming up in a few short weeks. I want to buy him a telescope (since he loves all things space) as well as his own computer. I think that having those two things will be really good for him. Personally, I didn’t own a computer until my freshman year of college. However, I think that kids these days really need to get a jump start on using computers regularly. Besides, if he has his own computer, that means I don’t have to worry about him using mine, lol.
Anyways, I know that homeschool planning is not something that comes easily to me. I think I have mentioned before that I am not a naturally organized person (though I have been making attempts to develop that skill set). I’m sure that some of you who clicked on this post were hoping to see some tips about homeschooling a kindergartner. Perhaps a list of cool resources you could check out.
Never fear! I am all about sharing. Here are a few resources that I have experience with and feel comfortable recommending. (This section contains affiliate links.)
Cool Homeschool Kindergarten Resources
Homeschool Planning for the Unorganized Mom
If you are like me and know that you are not organized, yet you really want to homeschool, this book might be just what you need. Click here to check it out.
ABCMouse.com
Christian really enjoyed using this over the years. It covers a lot of important concepts. And any excuse he has to get on the computer is always appreciated (by him, lol). Click here to check it out.
Kumon Workbooks
We have several of these workbooks. Great quality and Christian loves working in them. Click here to check it out.
Starfall
This is another great educational website for young children. They even have homeschool kits. Click here to check it out.
Green Kid Crafts
This is a great monthly subscription box for STEAM activities. Each box comes with several activities (including materials). Love them! Click here to check it out.
Little Passports
This subscription box is a great way to teach your kids about other parts of the world. Click here to check it out.
1+1+1=1
This website is great for people who want to find cool activities to supplement their curriculum. Click here to check it out.
ThinkFun
This company offers some really awesome funducational games (check out my review of Balance Beans)
Dave Ramsey Financial Peace Jr
Here you will find a lot of great resources to teach your kids how to be smart about money. I also recommend his books for adults. Click here to check it out.
Whistlefritz
Christian loves these language immersion DVDs and CDs. Great way to naturally learn Spanish and/or French. Click here to check it out.
