COVID-19 Homeschool, Day 15

Today we conclude our third - yes, THIRD - week of homeschooling.

The good: We haven't had too many major meltdowns, we've kept up with a lot of what the kids were working on in school and progressed a little more, the teachers are mastering online options and posting more projects aligned with the school curriculum, we've gotten the kids set up with Messenger Kids so they can see and talk to their friends and cousins, and we're all developing a lot practical life skills (especially baking and cooking).

The bad: We're all getting cabin fever and struggling with staying motivated. Frustration is more common, and tempers are occasionally frayed. Technology is sometimes uncooperative, and fixes are often beyond mom's limited IT skills so we have to wait for dad to have a break from work so he can take a look.

The ugly: Our standards of dress and grooming have definitely declined. Tooth brushing frequency is being enforced but hair brushing is somewhat lacking. Bedhead and pantslessness is running rampant. Mom is one of the worst offenders so it's not likely to change any time soon.

HOWEVER.

Life goes on. SCHOOL goes on. Social distancing goes on. So we're running with it, doing the best we can, and deciding we're OK.

But with today being a yucky, dreary, rainy day, we're letting ourselves start slow this morning. We all slept a little late and are taking charge of our own breakfasts, so toast and cold cereal are the order of the day. No one is in the mood to sit up at the table and practice math or handwriting, so we're starting the day with some reading. But not until 9 o'clock and another cup of coffee.

7:30-9am: Slow start. Breakfast, get dressed (sort of), get brushed (sort of), clean up after breakfast, chill until 9am.

9-10am: Reading. I gave the kids the choice of my reading to them or of each of them reading independently. Both chose independent reading, with my son opting to re-read Howard Pyle's "The Adventures of Robin Hood," while my daughter is reading "Dog Man: Lord of the Fleas" by Dav Pilkey, which she insisted on reading out loud, and showing me the pictures on a regular basis. I'm not a big fan of graphic novels, but it gets my reluctant reader to read, so I try to roll with it. And I'll admit, Dog Man is pretty cute.

10-10:30am: Science/music. My son watched the first part of the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy's daily Facebook Live presentation, while my daughter watched Miss Tracey's daily Morning Circle. I had my son take a break a little early so we could get our video setup in place for his 10:30 trombone lesson.

10:30-11am: Music and Math. My son had an online trombone lesson with his teacher from school. I lurked in the background (out of camera view), because I was curious both as to how the technology would work and how the teacher actually teaches. As a brass player myself, I feel like I could give my son some additional support, but I want to keep in line with the methods his teacher is using. So it was helpful to get to watch an actual lesson. It's also interested to see and hear how my son interacts with his various teachers. I'm giving this teacher SO much credit for being very patient with and supportive of my son, who gets easily frustrated, and also for his creative ways of getting across concepts that aren't always easy to articulate. I let my daughter have some free time for a while, but then I left my son alone for his lesson and drilled her with math flash cards.

11-11:30am: Math. We played the board game "Sum Swamp," I played with the kids this time! My son escaped from the "Endless Loop" on his first roll. That NEVER happens! He also got the short cut, which means he beat my daughter and I quite handily. And then they both kicked my butt on the next few rounds. Before we broke for lunch, I asked if they had any requests for what we should do after lunch. My son requested that I assign them a research project, like the one we did on hamsters the other week. I thought that was a great idea, so I spent my lunch break thinking of an interesting topic.

11:30am-1pm: Lunch break and free time. Electronics and messaging with friends allowed.

1-2pm: Research and presentations. I assigned each of them to research the scientist Alexander Fleming. Among other things, he studied bacteria and the immune system, and discovered penicillin. My daughter found him a little confusing, so I moved her over to research Marie Curie (who they had already talked about in school, so I knew she had a little bit of background). They spent about half an hour doing research, then about 15 minutes to organize their thoughts, then they each did a brief oral presentation.

Now, let it be the weekend! I think we may do some family board games tonight, including trying out a new game given to us by some friends. But we're all looking forward to a couple of days off. Have a great weekend, everyone!