Getting My Child to Write

October has been a busy month.  We are still learning, but I haven't had much time to post about it.

We signed the kids up for Meals on Wheels.  We are now delivering meals to people in Albuquerque once a week.  So far we've gone a couple of times.  Anand is still too little to get much out of it, but Sathya is grasping the concept of civic duty and compassion.  Just to see the older people's eyes light up upon seeing the young ones is well worth the commitment.  And this is something we are all getting to do together--me, Alex, Sathya, and Anand.  I love spending time together doing something we feel is important.

Alex and I are also in the middle of deciding what to do with Sathya next year.  Will he go to public school?  Will he go to charter school?  Will he stay home?  I have been reading/devouring books on education, and I have come to the conclusion that homeschool seems right for our situation now.  Alex, being the pragmatist, wants to visit the schools first.  Problem is-- what do you do when you call (Maggie Cordova Elementary, for example) more than once, and leave messages, and no one calls you back?  I talked to someone there who seemed offended that I would dare ask about classroom visits or tours, even though this is the place my sons will be growing up in for the next five years of their life.

Part of what appeals to us about homeschooling is its flexibility (no insane amounts of homework, no rigid school schedule, which means more room for travel and play) as well as its insistence on forging/building relationships first before real learning begins. I want our kids to learn how to be good people, to be respectful of us and others, and to love themselves.  I don't think kids learn this at school surrounded by peers their age.  It's not about learning to beat tests.  It's about learning life skills.  I want our family to be close. 

Alex is leaning toward homeschool.  We have begun seeking out other homeschooling families, as well as seeking out opportunities where the kids will have some interaction with other children (though they do NOT at this age need to be around kids their age for eight hours a day).  I have begun putting together a curriculum (I guess you could call us unschoolers since we will not be working from anything formal at this age), and we will see what happens.

My qualifications, you might ask?  Well the state only requires a parent to have a high school diploma.  I have a master's in writing and my husband has a master's in aerospace engineering.  Between the two of us, I feel very confident we can educate our sons properly.

In the mean time, Sathya has had some trouble identifying numbers larger than 11 so we put together a countdown to Halloween chart, which reviews numbers.  I got this idea from a parenting magazine.  Under each number is a treat for both of the kids-- either a sticker, an activity, or a hug/kiss.

Nothing fancy.  Reusable cardboard, toilet paper rolls cut in half, old tissue paper from old gifts, and rubber bands we'll reuse once we're done.

Also, to get Sathya more interested in writing (he dislikes it), he made his own mailbox, which hangs from his door.  He is free to put letters in there, which the "magic mailman" (me) takes and delivers.  He also receives letters in his mailbox as well.  When the handle is up, that means a letter is inside.  He has found so much incredible joy in mailing and receiving letters that writing hasn't seemed like a chore.  He just finished his Christmas list for Santa (1. Legos 2. books). 

I read somewhere that it's more important that children see the practical application of their lessons, as opposed to just tracing letters all day.  He sees that what he writes is a form of communication, and does have some meaning.

I may take a little longer to update these blog posts, but I'll keep posting.