Highlights from homeschooling
I homeschool my kids. I have a ton of reasons for this, but I feel like sharing some of the rewards of homeschooling. Here are some conversations that have been had in my family.
Preface: My daughter, Anna, loves dolphins. She likes them so much I wrote a dolphin unit study on dolphins, and this has bought many lunches for the family. Anna understands that dolphins are mammals and that mammals have four chambers in their hearts. In fact, she’s seen plasticized hearts with four chambers at the Denver Museum of Science and Nature. Anna asked the following when she was five.
Anna: Mommy, how many chambers do sharks have in their hearts?
Me: I don’t know Anna. Let’s look it up.
(As it turns out, most fish have two-chambered hearts.)
Preface: Quinn did this just after he turned three.
Me: Quinn, why do you have ten glasses lined up on the window sill with sticks and grass in them?
Quinn: I’m doing an experiment mommy.
Me: What’s the experiment?
Quinn: I want to see what grows.
Preface: Anna asked this just before she turned six.
Anna: Mommy, how long do lady bugs live?
Me: I don’t know Anna. Let’s look it up when we get home. How do we look things up Anna?
Anna: Google, Mommy!
Me: How long do you think lady bugs live?
Anna: I think for three days, Mommy.
Me: I’m going to guess three months.
(As it turns out, lady bugs can live for a couple of years, so we were off a bit in our guess.)
Preface: Neither my husband nor I are religious; however, we do enjoy church and take the kids to Sunday school once in a while.
Anna: I think God is in outer space.
Quinn: I think God is in everything.
Me: Anna, why do you think God is in outer space?
Anna: Because teacher said he can see everything.
Me: Quinn, why do you think God is in everything?
Quinn: Because Daddy said so.
Me: Anna, can you see God?
Anna: No mommy.
Me: How do you know there’s a God then?
Anna: Because Aunt Amy and Mr. Nick said there is.
…
Anna: What happens when you die mommy?
Me: Your body gets buried and it disintegrates and turns to bones.
Anna: No, mommy, what happens to you?
Me: Well Anna, some people believe that people have souls.
Anna: What’s a soul?
Me: Well, it’s something you can’t see that has all the important parts of a person in it like their love. Anyway Anna, some people think that when you die your soul goes to heaven. Some people think the soul gets reborn in a different person or critter, and still others think that there isn’t a soul and when you die, that’s it. What do you think Anna?
Anna: I think that half the people’s souls go to heaven and half are reborn.
Labels: education, fun things to do with kids, highlights, home school, home schooling, unit studies, unit study