I am waiting for them to build up to squashing an insect to examine. They have declared it cruel but I can sense the morbid curiosity building.

So, just to give you a feel for what we got up to over the last two days, here’s a list.

Wednesday, I got up and went to Circuit25, then I walked the dogs with Bern (3km). They did some drawing while I got the car sort for our trip and went to KLCC to meet the HSer at Petrosains. Then we went shoe shopping because children’s feet grow like weeds. We came home and the kids had french toast. Then they played on BrainPOP Jr and looked at the SAM website, I read to them and played chess with Bern. Then it was dinner and early bedtime as we had to be up really early the next day to go to Singapore.

Thursday, left house at 5.45. Got into the Jacob Ballas Garden for about 10.30 and played til Jon had to go to his noon meeting. I tried in vain to find the Singapore Art Museum and was saved by Kiki’s sharp eyes spotting Elliott the Children’s Season Mascot. We had lunch at dome then spent about 4 hours exploring the exhibition and really getting into the spirit of things. Then they decided thay had had enough quiet time and wanted to go to a park. We went to Fort Canning and had a mad 45 minutes running and chasing about, picked Jon up and then had dinner.  Started for home at about 8 and arrived close to 1pm.

Today, they’ve been at the shop playing with and socialising our adoptables. Also swam and after this, it’s a playdate.

So, life is kinda full. And finding time to compose a coherent post is somewhat impossible

Homeschooling is a personal choice for parents to take responsibility for their own children’s education. A homeschool centre (like any other one size fits all school), in my opinion would be anathema to this.  While they are different to mainstream schools, they are still schools. If that is what you want for you child, that’s fine. But please understand the difference and realise that you are wasting your time asking me for help or advice.

See how short this post is? It’s because I don’t know much about the topic

Caring for and helping animals to find homes has been rewarding, challenging, educational and eye opening for the entire family.  The kids are involved and they contribute so sincerely and in such unexpected ways that it’s a constant reminder that their viewpoint and innocence are something to be enjoyed.  So glad they are with me all day!

Note that while we mostly work with cats, I have almost none as the kids and cats together usually result in a flurry of manic movement that my limited photographic skills cannot capture withour inducing nausea in both photographer and viewer.  So you’ll have to use your imagination

Here’s the facebook album

The kids were so good, asking questions and interacting with so many unfamiliar adults.  We walked miles and ate all sorts of new things.  Naysayers will be disappointed to hear that no one thought them ‘unsocialised’ and shy.

And if we were to HS in Australia, I think it would be a breeze.  There is so much to see and do, for FREE! Our top picks are the Brisbane Modern Art Museum, Roma Park, Brisbane Museum and the great outdoors.

I’ll try to post a bit on all the different places and things we did so I can keep track for the kids to see one day when they are older. Wish me luck.

For those of you who do’t know it, it’s a gorgeous public park where many people go to fly kites.  The alsmot constant breeze from highway traffic zooming by helps I think.  The whole place is (mostly) well maintained and pleasant.  People sell kites from their vans and there always seems to be an ice cream seller on his bike.

The children adore spending time there and Bern actually celebrated his 5th birthday there.  The reflexology path is pure torture and the kids howl with laughter when Jon and myself attempt it.  Not sure about bathroom facilities but parking is limited.  I’ve read that you can fish at the lake but thats a dubious pleasure as I’m not enamored of the idea of sitting for hours on end in the hopes of maybe catching a fish.

Anyways, pop by if you fancy joining us.  We’ll be there with our kites and lots of water.  Drop me an email at aliciahorsley@gmail.com or DM via Twitter @aliciahorsley if you need to.

Tomorrow, we will begin our work in earnest. This is not to say I’ll be sitting them down for a set number of hours per day with goals and aims to race towards. I’ve realised we’re not that into structure at the moment. And at this point in our lives, with them being still so young, it’s OK. I can honestly say that I can count the number of times they’ve said, “I’m bored!” on one hand.

The fact that I interfere very little in their daily activities has led to them being very capable of making decisions and finding things to do. Frankly, it’s not a bad thing. They only consult me when they want to put the TV on.

This year, I have two objectives. I am going to facilitate and help them realise their full physical potential: bicycling, hula hooping, swimming, skating, climbing and balance. I am also going to help Bern and Kiki learn to read. Both are desperate for various reasons, but I reckon this is an excellent time to exploit their enthusiam, crafty huh?

And an additional bonus would be to get Cian to take instructions. Even half the time would be positively inspirational.

Just typical…

I want to do more with the blog.  The whole direction has changed and I want it to be more than just a heap of information.  This is where I will tell our story and sometimes, share useful information.

When I first began, I had these ideals of being useful and helpful.  I wanted to be someone people could turn to for information and advice.  Nowadays though, doing right by the kids and my family, and work and the pets….it’s about all I can muster.

Am I giving up? Finding it too hard? Faltering?

No.  I’ve just crossed an invisible line where I realise that the whole homeschooling thing is so… infinite.  It’s a (w)holitsic thing and the very dynamic of our family, our friendships, priorities and lifestyle, it’s all beginning to shift.  I’m not sure exactly what these sublte changes are and where we will end up, but we’re OK with that.

I love how our lives have changed for the better.  The kids are sick less often.  Maybe it’s less exposure to germs, or maybe they’re eating better.  It’s a chicken and egg thing.  I love reading to them and hearing their thoughtful questions.  I love being able to admire their kind hearts and quick minds.  I love watching them play and imagine.  I love how they care for each other and stand up for each other when I get mad at one.  I love being able to tell them it’s not OK to tattle tale.  I love it all.

But it’s a lot of work.  And I am just a little tired tonight.

And here’s an example of his humour.  It always makes the kids laugh and Bern has been saying he wishes he could read (YAHOO!) so he can read the poems himself.

A Pug is a Dog

A pug is a dog
with a curlicue tail.
He eats like a hog
and he snores like a whale.
He's flat in the snout
and his belly is big.
The pug came about
just by misspelling pig.

–Kenn Nesbitt

I think ClickN Read is pretty well known as well.  It’s an online reading tutorial.  I’m still not sure how many lessons there are in total but each lesson gets progressively more difficult.  The graphics and animation are decent but the ‘teacher’, a dog named Tad is sometimes rude and annoying (somewhat like a teenager).

The children were initially wow-ed by this talking dog and while Katelin is still enthusiastic AND learning to read, Bern cannot get his head around the American accent (neutral as it is).  Again, I think Bern has issues and the program itself is decent.  I too find the American accent a bit hard to ignore.  I also think Tad reads way to quickly during the section where the children are supposed to read after him.

When I bought this, I was also hoping I could set the kids up and have 15 minutes to myself but sadly, you have to be there or at least close at hand.  I am thinking of purchasing a children”s keyboard and mouse to see if it will  make things easier as the kids have trouble locating the letters on my laptop keyboard.  Perhaps this shiny almost reflective surface is just too confusing.

All in all, I do not regret buying this.  If all my children were Katelins, ClickN Read would be perfect.  So you need to know your child and what will work best for them.