2013 Fall Planning

It is that time of the year... planning time.  Though, when are homeschooling moms not planning?  It seems we spend a bit of time planning the next school year throughout the current year.  As you know, we spent most of the 2012-2013 school year with K12's Virtual Academy.  We made the decision primarily based on financial necessity.  This year, we are not much better financially but our resolve to independently educated our children is stronger than ever.

Earlier this year, I discovered the wonderful resourcefulness of YouTube.  Now, I've watched many a YT video but never did I watch (or look for) homeschooling videos.  All it took was one video for me to get hooked.  (Don't ask which one because I couldn't tell ya!)  Most of the videos I was attracted to were the ones explaining how to homeschool on a budget.  And not just the average 'get books from the library' suggestions.  I was learning the who, what, where & why of creating your own homeschool curriculum for free or as close to free as possible.  I've discovered so many websites that provide free curriculum, resources for creating lesson plans, etc.  I've always known of free printable websites but for the first time since we began homeschooling officially in 2006, I've come to realize I can (and will) homeschool for free.

Now by "free" I mean I will not purchase a full curriculum from publishers (with the exception of science that we will begin in the Spring).  The majority of my lesson plans will be created via printables I find online, unit studies,  notebooking and lapbooks centered around living books.

I'm so excited to begin formulating a plan for each of my children.  I love to shop but I'm just as excited to see how little money I can spend this year! I'll keep you posted.  How's your planning coming along?

How Am I Smart? {Freebie Alert!} *Limited Time*

If you haven't heard yet, Great Homeschool Conventions is giving away a free e-book by Dr. Kathy Koch titled, "How Am I Smart? A Parent's Guide to Multiple Intelligences".  It's about behavior struggles, solutions to relationship conflicts and how we as parents can tap into our children's individual intelligence.

This free download expires Wednesday, July 31 at midnight EST.

What We've Been Up To

Since officially withdrawing from K12's Virtual Academy, we've been very relaxed with our school days.  Using the workbooks and other materials I was able to keep from k12, we continued with our work but without the pressure to complete it by a certain date.  No pressure to attend and pass testing.  No meetings with teachers to review what's expected by the end of the year.  A relief!  The kids enjoyed it as much as I did.

Following my district's school calendar, I chose May 17 as our last day of school.  Since then, we've done a bunch of fun stuff around the house.