8th Grade Homeschool Plan

 I see that I never wrote out Bug's homeschool plan for the year.  Poor Bug, my middle child.  

For his 8th grade, we are doing:  

• English:  Bug reads constantly, mostly fantasy books.  It is not unusual for him to spend several hours a day reading.  He prefers audiobooks.  He has taken an Outschool course on Shakespeare, and is currently in an essay writing and a creative writing course on that platform.  
• Math:  Teaching Textbooks Algebra I.  If he has questions, he can ask his very own dad with a PhD in math.  Bug has done pretty well with this program.  Once we figured out how to access the textbook, he stopped watching the videos and is much happier and scoring higher.  I like this program because it is easy to keep track of Bug's progress.  
• Social Studies:  For the fall semester, we took a road trip out west and visited several national parks.  Bug also read Code Talker by Joseph Bruchac.  So I am giving him half a credit for "Geography of the Western United States."  For spring, he is taking a couple of classes in economics on Outschool, one more traditional and another that is kind of an RPG.  
• Science:  Bug took a Life Science course on Outschool his first semester, and is now taking a speculative evolution course this semester.  In addition, he chooses to watch science videos on Youtube for fun.  He has also been teaching himself Javascript.  
• Foreign Language:  Bug takes private Spanish lessons with native Spanish speakers online from Homeschool Spanish Academy.  
• PE:  Taekwondo, scout activities, family hikes.  

Next year, I am going to insist that Bug add some kind of artistic endeavor (other than writing) to his life.  

The Futility and Appeal of Record Keeping

I am starting to think about our next homeschooling year.  We will be moving to a different state, and I will be a residential graduate student/seminarian, instead of a hybrid-distance student.  This means that I will be on a schedule more than I have been in the past.  I will need to be a little more structured with our time, I suppose.  I will be homeschooling my two younger children, both of whom are not too challenging to homeschool.  

My wonderful oldest, Bee, really is kind of like an insect, hopping about from flower to flower.  Keeping records on his learning has been nearly impossible.  He is one of the smartest, most knowledgeable 17-year-olds that I know, with an excellent SAT score to show for it.  He is incredibly articulate, has a strong writing voice, and possesses a storehouse of knowledge on history and computers, among other things.  He also speaks Spanish with a beautiful pronunciation.  He plays guitar and sings.   And he cooks, cleans, and can make home repairs.  But planning and tracking his learning has been like, How do you catch a cloud and pin it down?  

So, I am starting to think about keeping more structured records this coming year, checking off the subjects that were studied each day.  And I question my motivations.  Because I know that whatever structured school I provide is often very good, but often the most quality learning that happens in my children happens internally, is self initiated, and I may not even be aware of it.  Homeschooling creates an ideal environment for spontaneous learning and creativity.  For instance, Dot makes up songs constantly.  Bug has become obsessed with java script as of late and works on that.  

And am I really concerned about someone accusing us, after all these years, of educational neglect?  Some social worker coming around to tell my husband (PhD) and me (MEd and MDiv-in-progress) that our precocious children are, in fact, ignorant?  Concerned enough to check a bunch of boxes and count "school days?"  But, on the other side of it, record keeping, even though I always sort of forget about it after a while, often has the result of making me feel affirmed because I see just how much learning that my children are doing.  

Bug and Dot are a little bit easier to track than their older brother.  And, now that I don't have anyone who is hyperactive or really little running around, it's easier for me to take a little time to keep records on a more daily/weekly basis.  I'm having fun making a planner (that's definitely the fun part), and I plan to share what I created on this blog at some point.