Reality....really bites!!!

Yikes....well, that confirms my feelings of inadequacy about the amount of learning we are doing this year!  It's meeting day with our auxiliary teacher and we were in for a long haul since we haven't seen her since December.  The girls were due for assessment since first semester already ended.  I was hesitant to see what will become of those tests but I wasn't prepared to see how bad it was.  So much so that their teacher did not want to accept the results and opted to retest them again sometime next week just to make sure.

 

I know the girls were falling behind.  Makes you think twice if this decision was the right one but I'm determined to make it work because we know in the long run, this is better for them. I was told they are both about a year behind but their teacher is not too concern because she said it seems that's just how they learn.  I was not a star student by any means.  I never got awards or honors so I'm not a great learner as well and neither is my husband so genetically, the girls are at a lost.  Hopefully, though their homeschool set up will eventually, lead to their advantage since the customized learning and one on one attention will help fill those gaps that is causing them to fall behind...or at least that's the goal anyway.

 

The buck stops on me!!!  I know that the success of this endeavor is preparation and self-discipline on my part since I control the wheel.  Learning will happen if I just find the right combination for both girls and right now that's the biggest challenge. 

 

To fill the gaps, their auxiliary teacher and I decided that to make a few changes to their curriculum. I already wanted a few of these changes and now I have the added pressure of making sure they get implemented.  First off the curriculum gets simplified for Grammar.  Both girls will be doing Myka's First Language Lessons since they are a year behind and Mer would likely benefit in the catch up instead of trudging though the tougher, higher level curriculum that she would not take anything from.  Next, vocab was added and again the lower grade level was suggested.  I wanted Math to be simplified to a few pages per chapter to give way to drills and memorization but Ms. Wendy feels that if I take those away then their learning will not be complete and would make them even further behind.  Of course, that is not an option!  She said that I just have to admit that we have to work harder and our days will just have to be longer than most.  It's tough to hear but it's true and I just have to accept that!

 

However, to appease my girls needs for socialization, I am planning to get them into music lessons and a formal PE as well so that they will have classmates and friends during the weekdays when their real friends are not around. 

 

As for me, I realized that there's no more time to wallow in my anxieties and concerns and just step to the plate!  My girls need me to help them move up, that's my job and I have to do my best. Now, let's roll up our sleeves and get right to it!!!