I have to say that I thoroughly enjoy homeschooling. I mean..I have my days, don't get me wrong. But I'd say that 92% of the time- I L.O.V.E. homeschooling my kids. I was a social child. I did really well in school. In fact, based on how LITTLE knowledge I have retained from my schooling, it's a bit frightening how easy it is to CRAM and get by on that alone. One thing I love is that I know when my kids "get it" or when they have no clue what I've just said (or when they just aren't listening and are instead thinking about some imaginary game in their mind..).
This year I've started a program called The Story of the World and I cannot believe how interested I am in learning! Now, I love to learn, but I had no idea Ancient History could be so fascinating. And I had NO CLUE how helpful the study of history is … as you study your Bible. It's one thing to know little random facts about the time period, but it is something completely different to actually immerse yourself in the culture and the people of the time.
We've been studying Ancient Egypt for 2 months now. It's possible to read through the book quickly, but I've decided to take it one chapter at a time- one chapter each week (or 2 weeks if we're really interested in the topic). We check out about 10 additional library books each week- all related to the topic. I think my enthusiasm is contagious because the boys seem to be retaining and enjoying the info- plus we're doing TONS of fun activities. It makes me happy- I love planning the lessons, researching for books and more information, and then teaching it to the boys (Kennedy is still a little too young, but she does some of the activities with us)
Last week we had a special visitor! Papa came in as our "guest teacher" to show the boys photos and tell them stories of his trip to Egypt. They asked educated questions and were truly intrigued by modern day Egypt. Earlier this year, we learned about Egyptian hieroglyphics and early cuneiform writing. We learned that they first carved into stone (in Mesopotamia they used clay tablets to write cuneiform) and later they learned to make Papyrus from the reeds near the Nile.
Guess what Papa brought? REAL PAPYRUS- made in Egypt!! He gave the boys a map of Egypt made on real papyrus- they were so excited & couldn't believe he was giving it to them. Canyon said, "we get to keep it FOREVER?" It was such a great treat to have him for the day and a perfect way to wrap up our study of Egypt. Next up- Hammurabi. Can't wait!
Some day maybe I'll share my beliefs about "history." They are similar to my views of the whole "walking on the moon" fabrication. But that's for a different day 🙂
by emily