The first day of homeschooling!

Well for about a month now I've been trying to start school.  I finally decided that the day after labor day would be the day that I officially started.

Then I remembered that Labor Day weekend was going to be crazy, we had family coming in from South Dakota and had picnics and gatherings for a couple days.

So when today started I knew that I wasn't really ready or prepared for school but decided to just jump in.  What our day looked like:

Lydia woke up at 9:30!  yes. after many late nights near the fire I knew if we were going to have a successful day she needed her rest. After saying goodbye to our relatives and wishing them well we headed upstairs. 

Health was first - I found her in bed all wrapped up in blankets with her babydoll near her - she had just gotten home from the hospital from getting her baby out of her belly.  It was neat to be able to explain to her the correct way to care for a newborn......and slightly amusing. :)

Home Economics came next - we stripped all the beds, washed clothes, changed sheets, and had a massive laundry folding party - which each child then helped to put their own clothes away.

Physical education came in multiple times while her and her brother were trying to beat the snot out of each other - they are learning to exercise and resolve issues on their own. :)

Math came after lunch when we got some play money out and practiced counting, learning the value of coins and what not.  That was fun and interesting for everyone involved.

Socialization came after dinner when we went to drill team to practice for the big performance at our local fair tomorrow evening.

Literacy didn't happen until right before bed when we were able to sit down and read a book together. But hey - it still happened so that counts.

So my day may not look like a typical homeschooler or maybe it does since I'm just beginning but that's what worked for us today and it counts! It's a learning process for everyone involved. And what's fun is turning almost everything we do into real life learning - this isn't easy and no one said it would be but it sure is worth it at the end of the night even if it's 8:49pm and every member of my house is in bed and asleep except me and I hope to be there by 9pm. :)

How did you first day of school go? How do you decide when to start?