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Bookswithtea
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| Posted: Sept 07 2005 at 11:58am | IP Logged
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***The changes in our 11-year-old son have been pretty significant (moodiness, aggressiveness, etc.) in the past 6 mos. and after many prayers on how to deal with the negative effects some of his behaviour was having, it occurred to me that exercising every morning is necessary for the entire family.***
My 12 yo (just turned) is showing a lot of the same changes...sigh...I can't believe how old he looks. I bought some fitness videos for him to do this year (got the idea from an old thread here on these forums) to cover PE, but I still like the idea of walking. I think it would do us a lot of good to just get outside for awhile.
I mused on your time frames a bit yesterday, and then remembered the CM admonition to have *short* lessons. Do you think that still applies at the jr. high level? I'm wondering if thats what is dragging him down (math is time consuming here...not his best subject, to begin with).
Funny you should mention testing...I've decided to have him test this Spring. I think it'll be good for both of us.
BTW, the other thing I did was to give him an opportunity for small coop classes this year (all hsed children). He's less accountable to me now, because I am not teaching all of his subjects, and I've noticed the tension between the two of us decrease considerably. I'm hoping it will help both of us during this time period where moms and sons tend to butt heads. It also gave him a feeling of "growing up" a bit, because his sisters aren't taking classes at the same group. He doesn't have a brother close in age (lost two babies in between my first and second) so I have to turn to outside activities a bit more than I would otherwise.
Thanks for sharing!
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Willa
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My 12yo son, last year, often teased and bickered with his younger siblings, and in general, was bouncing off walls all winter. Ever since spring he has been in sports -- baseball, then football. He comes home exhausted from practices, but has been SO much easier to live with, more calm and constructive. I do think there is a certain type of boy who really needs the physical exercise in order to be his best self  In his case, the competitiveness of the sports seems to channel his "edge" that last year was being displayed in all kinds of "games" with his younger brother that would end up with the younger one angry or in tears.
He's also grown 6 inches in the past year! He is almost as tall as me now! It's fun and a bit scary to see them all suddenly start growing and changing like that -- he's my fourth to go through that process 
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Willa
hsing boys ages 11, 14, almost 18 (+ 4 homeschool grads ages 20 to 27)
Take Up and Read
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Cay Gibson
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WJFR wrote:
| He's also grown 6 inches in the past year! He is almost as tall as me now! It's fun and a bit scary to see them all suddenly start growing and changing like that -- he's my fourth to go through that process |
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Willa,
Last month, our group had breaked during co-op for lunch. We were sitting in the vehicle outside of Burger King and a friend was talking to me through the passenger's window. Garrett was sitting on that side. She asked him a question and, after he answered her, she looked pointedly at me and said, "Cay, is his voice changing?"
I'm sure I had an ignorant look on my face. I hadn't even considered the fact taht he would be turning 13 this coming March. "Well, I don't know," I stammered.
Garrett made another comment and my friend, mother of 5 older boys, laughed and said, "Yep! can't you hear it?"
Tell you the truth, I don't even remember my 18-yr-old-this-month's voice changing. Seems that one day it just did. And Garrett has always had a deep voice, even his baby cries were *deep*. 
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Cay Gibson
"There are 49 states, then there is Louisiana." ~ Chef Emeril
wife to Mark '86
mom to 5
Cajun Cottage Under the Oaks
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BrendaPeter
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| Posted: Sept 07 2005 at 3:11pm | IP Logged
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Bookswithtea wrote:
I mused on your time frames a bit yesterday, and then remembered the CM admonition to have *short* lessons. Do you think that still applies at the jr. high level? I'm wondering if thats what is dragging him down (math is time consuming here...not his best subject, to begin with).! |
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Yup! I think short lessons are key - especially with boys. I would make sure math is not so challenging for him that he gets discouraged. IMHO, it's better to get the basics down "cold". We tried Saxon but Math-U-See works better for us partly because I know for the year or so we'll be focusing on fractions. I know it helps me to focus & it seems to help my kids too.
Bookswithtea wrote:
| BTW, the other thing I did was to give him an opportunity for small coop classes this year (all hsed children). He's less accountable to me now, because I am not teaching all of his subjects, and I've noticed the tension between the two of us decrease considerably. I'm hoping it will help both of us during this time period where moms and sons tend to butt heads. It also gave him a feeling of "growing up" a bit, because his sisters aren't taking classes at the same group. |
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This coop sounds great since both you & he benefit. Lately I find myself saying "Homeschooling is great, but right now for my boys there's "too much mom"!! Our 2 oldest ds have been working in the gardens at a local friary about once/week. I consider this part of their schooling. My dh & I are so thankful for this wonderful opportunity/outlet for them.
The differences between boys & girls really astound me. The differences really seem to rise to the surface with homeschooling!
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Brenda (mom to 6)
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Bookswithtea
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***He's also grown 6 inches in the past year***
Oh my gosh! I didn't know they could grow that fast! My 12 yo is suddenly eating like a horse, and if you ask him, he will tell you his hobby is food. :P I've had to change my whole plan for breakfasts and lunches to accomodate his huge appetite. His voice is changing, too. I can totally relate to the "games" that end up with unhappy siblings, btw. We have too much of that going on here as well, and I think its because summer is a quiet time for us, with few outside activities to take that "edge" off. I can't wait till Conquest starts again...he really loves the pick up sports they do (he has no interest in team sports but loves to play informally).
***Yup! I think short lessons are key - especially with boys. I would make sure math is not so challenging for him that he gets discouraged. IMHO, it's better to get the basics down "cold". We tried Saxon but Math-U-See works better for us partly because I know for the year or so we'll be focusing on fractions. I know it helps me to focus & it seems to help my kids too. ***
I had a lightbulb moment today. In addition to shorter math lessons, I think he needs a year of mastery math as opposed to spiraling math. I think I'm going to take a look at MUS again. He likes to learn from the Dive CD so I'm thinking he might like the dvd that MUS uses. Plus, MUS doesn't overburden the child with problems as much as Saxon, from what I've heard.
***Lately I find myself saying "Homeschooling is great, but right now for my boys there's "too much mom"!!***
LOL. I've thought this more than once in the last few months. I love the Giselle Institute books (your one year old, two year old, etc) and they made the same observation for 11 ish aged children, too.
***Our 2 oldest ds have been working in the gardens at a local friary about once/week. I consider this part of their schooling. My dh & I are so thankful for this wonderful opportunity/outlet for them.***
Wow! What an incredible experience. I'd definitely count it as school. Our neighbor next door runs an Ebay store and just last week asked ds if he wanted a job once a week helping with packing. I think we are going to let him do that too, but I'm hard pressed to figure out a way to consider it schooling. :-)
Off to the MUS web site...thanks for hashing this out with me. I'm feeling less discouraged than I was a week ago.
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BrendaPeter
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Bookswithtea wrote:
I had a lightbulb moment today. In addition to shorter math lessons, I think he needs a year of mastery math as opposed to spiraling math. |
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You can always go back to the spiral math as a good "test" once mastery is achieved.
Bookswithtea wrote:
| Our neighbor next door runs an Ebay store and just last week asked ds if he wanted a job once a week helping with packing. I think we are going to let him do that too, but I'm hard pressed to figure out a way to consider it schooling. |
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I'd call that a golden opportunity!! Just the exposure alone.... Sounds to me like REAL LEARNING!
Bookswithtea wrote:
Off to the MUS web site...thanks for hashing this out with me. I'm feeling less discouraged than I was a week ago.
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It is so, so easy to be discouraged. Just from mostly lurking, I've gleaned so much from the "seasoned" homeschooling moms here. One of our big problems has been what I like to call "stinking thinking". It starts with mom & spirals downward.... In the past week or so while the kids eat breakfast, we all listen to whatever music will lift our spirits. Lately it's been "Hide'em in Your Heart" Bible Memory Melodies by Steve Green (available at Timberdoodle). I'm amazed how this one little thing gets our day off to a much better start & helps us all be more charitable to each other.
I'm always in awe when I realize that academics really has so little to do with homeschooling! It's much more about helping our children become saints, and becoming saints ourselves in the process... Praying that all continues to go well with you!
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Brenda (mom to 6)
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Willa
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Cay Gibson wrote:
Tell you the truth, I don't even remember my 18-yr-old-this-month's voice changing. Seems that one day it just did. And Garrett has always had a deep voice, even his baby cries were *deep*. |
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Sean's voice was always deep too, but it's definitely changed. My oldest, when his voice changed, it changed so dramatically that for a year or so he didn't dare speak above a whisper
About the mastery math after spiral, that is working great for my 12yo. He went through MCP, then Saxon in 5th and 6th, and started having difficulties. So I switched to Key to Algebra and he is doing excellently. Working great for him.
Some of my other kids had trouble with Saxon after they got to adolescence and I've read on classical lists that it's because adolescents think a bit more and want to know the WHY, and get their teeth into a subject before moving on. As well as consolidate what they already have learned in bits and pieces. Anyway, that has been the feedback from 3 of my boys in a row now.
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AMDG
Willa
hsing boys ages 11, 14, almost 18 (+ 4 homeschool grads ages 20 to 27)
Take Up and Read
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Tina P.
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MacBeth wrote:
| Our read alouds or books on tape are almost always done together, and that means that the younger ones have sat through some heavy duty books. Overall, we do what we can do together, and even if the kids are working on different subjects, we are most likely in the same room attending to studies. |
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I'm with you on the one-room schoolhouse idea. I like to keep tabs on them all. One question, though. Do you balance the heavy-duty reading to the olders with lighter reading for the youngers? My youngsters play with duplos, dolls, or doodle while they listen to the heavier duty stories, which I don't mind at all. Sheesh! Sometimes my eldest plays with Legos during this time as well!  But my youngers clamor for picture books, which I do not begrudge them.
What do you do?
God bless,
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Tina, wife to one and mom to 9 + 3 in heaven
Mary's Muse
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4Real Forums : Living Learning
Topic: Do you school your children together?
