When big things are happening in our world – holidays, elections, major sporting events – that are out of the ordinary, we like to embrace these, as opposed to assuming our regular-school calendar is more important. There is no use drowning out the buzz and hum of what is exciting for kids and teens, and this is a benefit of homeschool. We don’t have to ignore what is going on outside… instead, we can seize the topsy-turviness and use it as an opportunity to learn.

The truth is, this year my high schoolers are less interested in Halloween and more interested in things like baseball, art and the upcoming election. However, that does not mean we won’t make the holiday week a special one!

Below is a list of ways we are leaning into all that is going on right now:

1. We embraced staying up late on school nights to watch each of the outstanding and entertaining World Series games (yay Dodgers!). Oliver’s Fall Baseball teams are wrapping up, with one team winning the 16u Premier Fall CCBL Tournament in Connecticut last Sunday. So this means he is spending a lot of time in the batting cage to finish the year strong.
2. Sophia’s indoor volleyball is going well so far, but like so many others, we continue to monitor the risks of playing an indoor sport during a pandemic.
3. We are taking time out of our school days to listen to related podcasts and have whole-family discussions on the latest in election and interesting news cycles. We watched the Presidential and Vice Presidential debates in order to discuss the elements of debate we recognized from class. Tony and I voted early, a right and responsibility of our U.S. citizenship.
4. We listened to a podcast on leadership and power by Brené Brown and identified general, non-verbal traits of intelligence we found in an article online by Nicolas Cole.
5. We finished reading “The Lord of the Flies” by William Golding which gave us a generous amount of governing-related topics to consider. Does a successful community require the safety of rules and guidelines, or can it thrive on power and controlled barbarism? How important is it to establish a priority of what’s right vs what’s fun?
6. I printed out electoral college maps so that we can keep track of our own election results next week, learning in real time how the electoral college works.
7. We made colorful, pre-filled Halloween baggies to deliver to little friends or possible Trick-or-Treaters on Saturday. We have big ideas (as a family) to make costumes this year, although we are likely not leaving the house on Halloween…
8. We are taking time this week for art projects, pumpkin painting and strategy-based board games in between lessons.

“Great moments are born from great opportunities.” – Herb Brooks

https://www.herbbrooksfoundation.com/

I hope you find something that gives your family some inspiration or insight in your homeschool this week.  So much to learn, so little time!

Enjoy your kiddos, and have a spooky, awesome weekend ~

Lynne

Stay well and mask on, my friends

and PLEASE make sure you VOTE.

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