The first day of school in 2015

This is what my kitchen table looks like when I'm writing

curriculum and making school plans. It's more organized

than it looks, I promise!

 

Today starts the first school day of 2015! I'm always so excited for school to start after a long break – I crave the order and the schedule as much as I crave the chaos and freedom of a break at the end of a school term.

We're changing things up just a little around here. Instead of starting school at 10:00, we're going to shoot for 9:00. A 1 hour break at noon for lunch, laundry, and exercise, and then we'll get back to it for an hour or two and finish things up between 2:00 and 3:00. My day starts a 5 am, with an hour of quiet time before I get to work. The girls will be up at 6:30, breakfast will be on the table at 7, and the day will progress from there.

That is, of course, if things go smoothly. It's the first day. I'm prepared to give myself – and them! - a bit of grace.

Our course of study this semester should be fun and interesting – the usual math (Saxon for The Oldest, aBeka for Littlest One) and English (aBeka for The Oldest, Rod & Staff for The Littlest.) For history we're focusing on the exploration of The New World, starting with Leif Erickson and moving through the Pilgrims. I see a lot of “explorer” crafts and games in our future. Geography will coincide. We're sticking with KONOS (which covers all subjects to some degree,) where the main focus is stewardship – taking care of our bodies, health, money, talents, and time wisely. The girls are starting piano lessons tomorrow, and we're going to go back to an art curriculum we loved in the past but were struggling to find the time for. I'm also going to try to get nature studies going once a week, but that can be hard in the winter.

I love teaching my children. I love that they are (mostly) excited about starting up again. I love that they are inquisitive and want to learn. It won't go perfectly smoothly – it never does – but I have high hopes for this school term.