Beginning a journey…

On Wednesday night, I started teaching Seth to read. Now, of course we’ve done all kinds of things to get him ready for reading, but this was the first time I’d pulled out a curriculum and done a lesson with him.

I was nervous. I’d put everything together in a bag, gotten the filing card box filled, etc., but I was kind of afraid to just dive in with him. I waited until David was home so I would be assured of no interruptions for the first go round.

He LOVED it! He squealed and laughed and danced up and down with delight. It was 15 minutes of fun with my almost 5-year-old. He asked yesterday if we were going to do his reading lesson again, and I put him off until today. We did lesson 2 while the other two boys were napping, and it was another hit out of the park. If the rest of the curriculum is as enjoyable and enriching as these two lessons have been, I can’t imagine a better fit for us.

I’ve learned something about curriculum from this experience. I had bought “Ordinary Parent’s Guide to Teaching Reading” 8 months or so ago. While I’m sure it’s a good curriculum, I figured out slowly that it probably wouldn’t be the best fit for Seth. I’d bought too early. One of my reasons for buying it was that he wasn’t interested in worksheets and writing. Well, now he is. Lesson learned: Buy curriculum as soon as possible to when you’re going to use it.

I decided to go with All About Learning Press’ Pre-Reading Program. He still needs some help on recognizing his lower case letters, and it seemed like this would be a gentle introduction to a reading curriculum. My plan is to do it 3 days a week. We should be finished with it in time to start their regular reading program sometime in the fall.

Finding a curriculum that really works for you and your child is such a confidence building experience. I am a new teacher that needs a lot of help learning how to teach, and this is giving me exactly what I need at this stage of homeschooling. It’s so easy for me to just open and go. There are games and songs and a puppet! There is time built in for him to practice writing letters every day. And it’s short. I’m having to do this while my two babies are down napping, and I’m pretty tired by then and ready for a break.

Life is really challenging right now overall. There are days when I wonder how in the world I’m going to homeschool three boys. But then I remember that figuring this out means more to me than words can express. My mom gave me a priceless gift when she decided to teach me at home. I want to continue this legacy and pass down this gift to my own children… even though I know it will cost me a lot.

I need to remember that I only have to take it one student and one subject at a time, adding things in gradually as I get stronger and more confident and as my children become more ready for it. God will lead me in finding help (like good curriculum), and He’ll be gracious to help children nap while I implement it.

So I’m taking a deep breath. Here we go…