Well today marks a milestone in our life. We have completed Kindergarten today!
It feels awesome to have walked into my son's education this year. I was SO nervous when I began and thought "how in the world can I do this?" and "I'm not qualified to do this at all". I give a great big THANK YOU to my friend and support Aunt J for helping me to remain calm when I was clueless and scattered brained. It gives me great comfort knowing that someone I can talk to has walked where I am headed.
I've learned to that being a teacher is the same as being a mom. I've taught Bubby since he came home with us (eating, drinking, sleeping,talking,walking, using the potty) and home schooling is just an extention of that role.
Bubby has done great and has learned TONS this year. I am amazed by the things a four year old can comprehend and retain, honest. I can remember skipping towards the end of the curriculum during the school year and think that there was no way he was going to be able to get the skills needed to finish, but he did.
This is what he learned this year:
Reading - Letter names, letter sounds (consonants and short vowels),sound blending and handwriting. He was reading short vowel words towards the end of the year and reading short stories. With each weekly letter a subject was taught from apples to a zebra. We learned with some of God's scripture his promises and his creation of our earth and ourselves in his image.We also got to see our butterfly larvae turn into flying butterflies and sent a few free in the back yard. We kept two of them since one was born without an bulb on the end of his antenna and was not able to fly and of course he needed a friend to keep him company in the butterfly house. ") We also had an ant farm in the classroom with us until Bubby felt bad for them and wanted to set them free in the front yard.
He also completed his primer Math U See program. In it we covered what seemed to be alot for his age but he walked right through it again to my amazement. I suppose I kept comparing it to the things that I knew when he was my age and that's why it freaked me out so much what children his age can really take in! Alot. This is what we covered in Math:
Number Recognition and Counting from 0-9, 9-20
Writing Numerals
Geometric Shapes: Rectangles, Circles, Triangles and Squares
Place Value: Units, Tens and Hundreds
Addition: Introduction and Symbolism
Addition: +1, Addition: 2+2 and 3+3, 4+4, 5+5, by 10's, by 100's, Horizontal and Vertical
Skip Counting by 2,5 and 10's
Solving for the unknown
Tally marks
Skip count to find a area
Telling time by minutes and hour
Subtraction, subtraction by -1
Whew. Anyway he was so excited about finishing school tomorrow that he said he wanted to do all of his work today and be done with it. He was squirming on the edge of his seat as we got closer to the last problem. When he as done he told who ever he could that he was done. His brother, Kuba cat, Noki kitty and Marty! Tim and I wasn't sure what we wanted to do special for him for rapping up Kindergarten but we figured out something. We are surprising him with his first guitar and amp. He's been wanting one for quite a while now and has all the moves practiced out with a blow up one that he got from a birthday party a few years back. And of course he plays one of Daddy's when he's got the chance. It a mini Strat to be more fitting for his age with a matching small amp to play through. What better joy can a Daddy have giving his son his first guitar? I'm so happy for them both.
Congrats son for completing this year, you did awesome! ")
Along the same lines I will be attending a home school convection this Saturday in Arlington to gather up next years curriculum. Fitting huh? Finish and start again :)
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