Victoria Day Activities

We took a little day trip for the May long weekend. We drove 10 minutes south of our little town to the Ridge Resevoir. We expected the lake to be full but found it to be quite bare, which led to some great findings. Little lake snail shells, and some very cool looking eggs. Carter thought they were Killdeer eggs (Killdeer are shorebirds), he was right. Beautiful eggs aren't they.
After visiting the resevoir we went to my favorite spot south-west of Raymond. There are some rolling hills known as Alred's Coulee and at this time of year they are covered with wildflowers. My favorite are the Crocus'. My paternal grandparents use to take me to see them every spring. They only last a few weeks but they are stunning while they last.
It was a great family adventure which ended with a trip to Henderson Lake (Lethbridge 20 minutes north-west) and dinner at East Side Mario's.

My Family

My family. They are my pride and joy. I love being a mother and wife.

A Typical Day

A lot of people ask what a typical day is like in the life of a homeschooler. I don't believe that there is a typical day. Every family is so different. Each member of the family has different needs which differ from day to day. We do try to follow a flexible daily routine. An ideal day would be as follows:

Breakfast and Chores 8:00am

Devotional 9:00am This would include singing, memorization, scripture reading and family prayer. I usually emphasize a particular area of family life that needs improvement such as BEING KIND to each other and then we may read together.

Kidschool

After devotional we move into what I call Kidschool. This is probably the only time in the day that may look somewhat like public school except for the fact that we are usually cuddled together on the couches and are probably still in our PJ's. During this time we usually read together. This year we have read: Gulliver's Travels, The Spiderwick Chronicles, The Sign of the Bear, Call of the Wild, White Fang, The Apple and the Arrow, Carry On Mr. Bowditch and The Jungle Book, as well as the biographies of Louisa May Alcott, Jack London, The Wright Brothers, Rosa Parks, Elenor Roosevelt, Helen Keller, Abigail Adams, and Florence Nightingale.

After some reading we usually play some math games or work on some spelling together. Our family especially likes multiplication bingo. I have an easel that is a white board and also holds paper pads. The kids love to draw or do math problems using the easel. They can also do this while we read.

FreeLearning

I believe that one of the keys to encouraging a love of learning is to structure time not content so after devotional and kidschool the children are allowed to pursue their own interests. I provide guidance, resources and encouragement. I have one rule; no electronics during this time, unless a computer is needed for research or testing, or the children can convince me that what they are going to watch is educational. We have really enjoyed documentaries this year. We have learned about China, Spain, Cuban percussion music, Ancient Greece, Great Moments in History, Pandas, and many other great subjects using DVDs. I have a membership with Zip.ca where I have access to a wide variety of films. A lot of discussion takes place during and following the films. Great teaching tool.

I believe that Physical Education is just as important as Academics and so the children are allowed to play outside during this learning time as well. As the seasons change the emphasis on the different subject areas changes. With it being spring, outdoor activities involving physical education and science related learning are our emphasis. Winter we did more book learning.

Afternoons

Our afternoons are reserved for group learning. Girl guides, book discussions, art classes and playdates happen during the afternoon. If I am not facilitating group learning I will use the time to catch up on laundry, my own learning or spend a little extra one on one time with a child.

So there you have it. A typical day at the Witbeck Freedom Academy.

Girl Guide Trip to Red Rock Canyon

It was a beautiful day (finally) when the Stirling 1st Girl Guides headed to Waterton Lakes National Park for a hike. Though a bit overcast at first, everyone seemed to have a great time. I especially enjoyed being in nature. Lately, for some reason, I am more aware of the beauty that surrounds me. Perhaps it was the long winter, but I am loving being out in nature.
Adam (my 7 year old) was amazed that the mountains were taller than the clouds. The mountains looked so majestic.
My sweet Abby. I think we could have stayed all day exploring and soaking in the beauty. The kids especially liked the creek and spent quite awhile down at the creek bed.
We took a short 1km hike to Blakiston Falls. Most of the trail was snow covered with 2 -3 ft of snow. It was packed hard though which made for semi-easy hiking. Why are there boys on the girl guide hike? The benefits of homeschooling. The whole family came along. I was at the head of the hike and the boys were right there with me. Boys just seem to thrive on adventure. They played Star Wars all the way to the falls. They were the Jedi Knights and the girls were the Rebels.

Our Freedom Academy

I have been inspired by one of my very best friends who has such a beautiful blog. Her blog is a record of her family life which includes her homeschooling adventures. I have never been good at keeping records and this seems like a fun way. One thing I really want to do is record the good and the bad so that others who visit this blog might understand the ups and downs of facilitating a child's education. This is difficult to do as I do not want to give any ammunition to opponents of homeschooling but as with any worthy pursuit there will be times of growth and times of failure. There is no shame in failure, as long as we fail forward.

I have given our homeschool the title of Freedom Academy because my main goal is to have my children understand freedom. Freedom of a country, a town, a home, a marriage, an individual life. I desire that my children fully understand choice and accountibility and have the ability to make their own choices regardless of what others may think. I hope that they will understand that knowledge is freedom and that as we pursue an education we gain more and more freedom.

So, I hope what I record here may help others in their own pursuit of freedom but my greatest desire is that it may be an honest record of our own pursuit.