Planning English class (7th and 11th grade combined)

With Bee home next semester, and Bug no longer taking English at his co-op. I am coming up with a plan to teach them both myself.  The truth is that I really don't like teaching writing.  It's the subject I am most qualified to teach and also the one I actually have professional experience teaching (college writing lab).  It comes very easily to me, however, and I find it frustrating and tedious to try and teach it.  When I write something, I often start at the beginning and end at the end, with minimal planning and revision.  I have a process for writing research papers which involves a bit of writing notes and quotes, but it is mostly internal and difficult to explain to an overwhelmed young writer.  

The most enjoyable curriculum I have used has been WriteShop.  It breaks the process of writing down in ways that I honestly can't.  So, I will continue with Bee where we left off in the program a couple of years ago and start Bug in WriteShop I.  

I will also be working with them both on some basic skills with writing research papers.  I ordered a book of citation exercises to use with Bug, and a book of help for writing a research paper for Bee, but I may just use both for both.  We will see.  I've learned that too much advance planning tends to backfire.  It's best to be loosely prepared and go with the flow.  

But the part of their English classes that I'm truly excited about is POETRY.  This is the perfect thing for us to study because poems are short.  I can choose a poem, we can read it together, discuss it, do some analysis, and be done.  Very little preparation is required.  And poetry is so important and so understudied in high school and college.  I hope to have them take turns choosing poems at some point.  I'm excited about this new adventure!  

And we come full circle

Some time ago, I posted about how Bee's homeschool journey had come to an end.  Well, 3 semesters later, we think we're going to pull him out again.  The school system's pandemic learning plan has been a disaster, especially for someone like him who is twice exceptional.  I will not violate my child's privacy by discussing all of the particulars, but there are other problems as well.  Traditional school is not a good way for him to learn.  I'm not sure it is good for anyone, including the teenage girls in his advanced classes who cry regularly over the workload and the pressure.  

There has been discouragement and disillusionment among all of us, especially my husband and Bee.  The system pretends to be something that it is not.  Mastery of material or profound engagement with subject matter aren't the focus--assignment completion and following instructions are.  Helps for kids with ADHD is abysmal, so we've found.  Advocating is pretty much a waste of time.  It's not the people (administrators and teacher); the system is deeply flawed.  

Bug has been taking outside classes.  They are good, but I'm coming to realize that I do just as good a job if not better with helping my children learn than any teacher.  And signing my kids up for classes often causes me more stress than just doing it myself.  (Except for science, where my interest and ability is very low).  So, Bug will be taking fewer classes too.  

I am in a hybrid-distance seminary program, receiving A+'s.  This has done a massive amount for my confidence level.  Homeschooling is so thankless, with no outside gratification.  It's nice to feel competent and knowledgeable at something.  

So, I will be back to homeschooling my boys.  Bee has three more semesters until graduation! I am truly thankful to have the option to homeschool my children.  It is so hard sometimes, but after much prayer, I believe we are making the right choice for our family.