Cool! I didn’t realize you homeschool (I’m kinda new to following your blog). My hubby and I started homeschooling our two girls last fall. It’s SOOO rewarding! Also so nice to be able to watch what they’re being fed (both mentally and physically). Thanks for sharing the pics! Where were they taken? It looks like fun!
I really want to homeschool our children as well, but my husband’s not on board with the idea at all. Right now, I stay at home with our 3 year old & are expecting another one in May. We just moved to Germany & there really isn’t anything to involve my daughter with here other than what they call Kindergarten. We were very active with different social groups when we lived in the USA. However, there aren’t any here. As soon as a child turns 3, they put the child in Kindergarten, so there aren’t anything else for the kids to do. We are the only Americans around the area we live, so looking for other Americans to interact with is out of the question. I’m not really wanting to put her in Kindergarten. I want to keep her home with me, but since we don’t have any other children to interact with, I’m thinking a 1/2 day wouldn’t be so bad, so she could play with other kids. We will be moving back to the USA when she is five & my husband wants her to go to school there. How can I convince him to homeschool. He is dead-set on her going to school. Please help!
We are also American Expats in Germany….Karlsrhue. It is so tough! I understand where you are coming from. My almost 4 yr old goes to a German kindergarten. We purposely chose this option rather than an English speaking one and within 8 months she is almost fluent in German! We are very lucky to have a great school with a more open philosophy when it comes to educating young children. But at home, we are homeschooling as well in the afternoons so you CAN find a balance. We are doing lapbooks and phonics and lots of reading and art. Good luck!
I think she asked where were they taken, not when :-)
I was also wondering where they were, and what’s going on there… can you put some captions maybe?
Ooops! My bad! These were mostly taken at our local science museum and a Gecko exhibit in particular. Also a petting zoo, and a traveling event called Jurassic Journey that came to Columbus.
I know homeschooling is the thing to do right now. I am a public school teacher and hope that the reasoning behind homeschooling is not parent centered. I know it is nice to have our children and stay home with them, but at some point they have to live a life outside of your house. When you take them out of the world you miss out on relationships that are day in and day out. Children need to learn about how to make friends, keep friends, and have lasting relationships beyond the weekly playdate. I would also worry that, as I have known some personally, as mom’s we want to control every aspect of our child’s lives. When you send children to school, you are giving then an opportunity to navigate through life, as imperfect as it is, and supporting them at home so they can make decisions for themselves. Again, the goal if for them to become independent people that can make decisions in life, creating positive relationships that will lead to them having their own families, and even encounter the bad of the world so they will know what to do starting at a young age instead of having to learn when they are 18 years old. Lastly, I know the public school system is not perfect and sometimes may be dangerous, depending on where you live. That aside, you can make a difference in a YOUR child’s school by becoming involved and bringing your strengths to the school where everyone can benefit from it. Teachers are trained professionals and the current image of teachers is as onesided as listening to John Boehner talk about entitlement programs. Please be sure that the reasons for taking your child out of the world is not just because you want to have total control over every part of his/her life and think you can do a much better job than a trained professional. I am not against it, but have come into contact with many parents who’s underlying motive, whether they know it or not, is self-centered.
Cool! I didn’t realize you homeschool (I’m kinda new to following your blog). My hubby and I started homeschooling our two girls last fall. It’s SOOO rewarding! Also so nice to be able to watch what they’re being fed (both mentally and physically). Thanks for sharing the pics! Where were they taken? It looks like fun!
Almost all were taken this past week.
I really want to homeschool our children as well, but my husband’s not on board with the idea at all. Right now, I stay at home with our 3 year old & are expecting another one in May. We just moved to Germany & there really isn’t anything to involve my daughter with here other than what they call Kindergarten. We were very active with different social groups when we lived in the USA. However, there aren’t any here. As soon as a child turns 3, they put the child in Kindergarten, so there aren’t anything else for the kids to do. We are the only Americans around the area we live, so looking for other Americans to interact with is out of the question. I’m not really wanting to put her in Kindergarten. I want to keep her home with me, but since we don’t have any other children to interact with, I’m thinking a 1/2 day wouldn’t be so bad, so she could play with other kids. We will be moving back to the USA when she is five & my husband wants her to go to school there. How can I convince him to homeschool. He is dead-set on her going to school. Please help!
We are also American Expats in Germany….Karlsrhue. It is so tough! I understand where you are coming from. My almost 4 yr old goes to a German kindergarten. We purposely chose this option rather than an English speaking one and within 8 months she is almost fluent in German! We are very lucky to have a great school with a more open philosophy when it comes to educating young children. But at home, we are homeschooling as well in the afternoons so you CAN find a balance. We are doing lapbooks and phonics and lots of reading and art. Good luck!
I think she asked where were they taken, not when :-)
I was also wondering where they were, and what’s going on there… can you put some captions maybe?
Ooops! My bad! These were mostly taken at our local science museum and a Gecko exhibit in particular. Also a petting zoo, and a traveling event called Jurassic Journey that came to Columbus.
I know homeschooling is the thing to do right now. I am a public school teacher and hope that the reasoning behind homeschooling is not parent centered. I know it is nice to have our children and stay home with them, but at some point they have to live a life outside of your house. When you take them out of the world you miss out on relationships that are day in and day out. Children need to learn about how to make friends, keep friends, and have lasting relationships beyond the weekly playdate. I would also worry that, as I have known some personally, as mom’s we want to control every aspect of our child’s lives. When you send children to school, you are giving then an opportunity to navigate through life, as imperfect as it is, and supporting them at home so they can make decisions for themselves. Again, the goal if for them to become independent people that can make decisions in life, creating positive relationships that will lead to them having their own families, and even encounter the bad of the world so they will know what to do starting at a young age instead of having to learn when they are 18 years old. Lastly, I know the public school system is not perfect and sometimes may be dangerous, depending on where you live. That aside, you can make a difference in a YOUR child’s school by becoming involved and bringing your strengths to the school where everyone can benefit from it. Teachers are trained professionals and the current image of teachers is as onesided as listening to John Boehner talk about entitlement programs. Please be sure that the reasons for taking your child out of the world is not just because you want to have total control over every part of his/her life and think you can do a much better job than a trained professional. I am not against it, but have come into contact with many parents who’s underlying motive, whether they know it or not, is self-centered.
P.S. As a teacher I should have edited that before sending it….trying to multi-task. I am also a mother of three children under the age of four.