Today my son and I begin a new part of our adventure in this journey of life together! After much consideration and sleepless nights, we have decided to home school our son Jonah who will be starting kindergarten this Fall. Jonah is a soon to be 5 year old (July) who happens to have the most amazing smile I've ever seen... oh and yes he also happens to have Down Syndrome : )! Jonah uses sign language for most communication as he still is not using words; he uses body language, gestures and also pictures for communication and hopefully will learn to utilize his iPad more for communication assistance. There are countless reasons for choosing home school which I can elaborate on at a future point, but after much prayer and heart searching - home school is the answer that came loud and clear! People are telling me, "Your brave" or "Your amazing" or similar comments. Sometimes I feel like they are saying this to be kind or others seem to say with reservation...as if they don't really believe this is the best thing for him? My son needs me to be his teacher at this point in time that is all I know. Maybe I will never be his hero, but as long as I'm breathing I will do whatever I can do to help him live his life to the fullest in an environment where he feels important, communicated with, acknowledged, praised, safe and loved!
Now the answer to home school became clear, however, the task of making this adventure successful is not so clear for me as of yet. I have countless ideas and ideals of the many things I would like to teach him and with what foundation - with the love of God as our core. I know I can not go this journey alone.. without God I will be lost. I know enough to know I need help from other parents who have gone before me and I really hope to connect with more families on a similar journey for inspiration, ideas, and support.
I realize no two journeys are meant to ever be the same. I hope to make Jonah's adventures in home school full of learning and love!
This morning we started out slowly reviewing the calendar, the weather, read the Pledge of Allegiance and waved our American flag, we sang some songs, listened to music, read a book and added a sticker to our Reading is Fun poster, we did some counting using a poster and then using an abacus, we drew mat man (stick figure) on the dry erase board, played color matching game and then cleaned up. It was difficult getting him to stay interested as he likes drumming to his own tune our boy! Mama had her moments where she felt disorganized, flustered and frustrated, but also had fun too! I think I will employ the CDs for some vocal support - I just don't feel that exciting when singing the songs, I'm sure he will enjoy that! Then we had snacks and headed out to the Splash Park for some outdoor summer fun, followed by lunch and a nap! Not a lot, but not bad for a start! We will do some more learning tonight to follow along with our June goals and topics.
Welcome to the world of homeschooling! My daughter with Ds is 18 and has always been homeschooled. We love the lifestyle!
ReplyDeletesounds like a successful day :-D
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