Mom the Paparazzi

 We were watching a Bible movie about Naaman and in the movie, his wife is crying. Sofi (who gets really worried when she sees any adult emotion) says:

 "Why is she crying?"

Me: "Her husband is in pain. Sometimes that makes us sad when we see other people hurting."

"Really? Well, daddy always laughs when you're in pain."

Burn.

So Sofi has a lot of workbooks this year, and it has required of me a bit of an attitude adjustment. Yes, moms get set in their ways too (sometimes). 

I have never been a fan of workbooks. I feel like they are busy work to keep kids out the teacher's hair so the teacher can multi-task. And while I am all about teacher's having a moment to take care of the needs of 20 different kids, I personally would not have chosen workbooks as part of our homeschool. 

In general, I am not a fan of any "premade" curriculum. I am pretty much anti-curriculum. Why?

They don't take into consideration the individual child. And I am all about letting the child lead and learn to love learning on their own terms.

Plus they are really expensive.

I rarely pay for anything I use in my schooling. Thanks to the good old internet, you can find anything on line for FREE. I do buy used books because I like my kids to write in the books when they read. But that is about it. 

But, I have to adapt.

Sofi is glue. She sticks to you from the moment she is up. She is rarely able to be alone, as she has massive separation anxiety. So for her, a workbook helps her learn to work independently. She is leaning to read and follow directions on her own, and gain confidence along the way.

Baby steps for her, and for mom.

The other issue is that Sofi leans by touching. By manipulating. So we do a lot of crafts, a lot of coloring, cutting, gluing. Field trips if possible. And the more senses we use, the more she is able to retain. It's a great excuse to make a mess. 

Something as simple as history or geography can be really difficult for her to understand. We use videos, photos, cooking, arts and crafts and other means to help her make it "real." But she still makes comments occasionally that make you realize that she doesn't fully get it.

Like when you are learning the US States and she says "I can't wait until get to China."

Sofi decided today that I am stalking her with my camera.  "You remind of the paparazzi that follows famous people." I thought it was pretty funny. Plus she's my only child left that allows me to stalk her with a camera.

On another note......

Besides making huge messes, one of the best things about being home is the flexibility to work at our own pace. And having a gas station around the corner is a huge motivation to stop and take a break. Every penny that Sofi earns goes to overpriced gas-station snacks.

But who can turn down ice cream on a hot day?

And since she literally brings every penny she owns, it turns into great practice for counting money at the counter while 6 people wait behind us. 

(BTW, She tries to convince me to drive sometimes. Sorry kid, if you are eating junk food then you are at least walking to get it.)