In high school, after listening to the teachers for a few months, they didn’t get my complete attention during class. My mind was elsewhere thinking of a book I wanted to read later or an upcoming sports event. I was involved in sports. I already knew the subject I always studied in advance, but for the most part the teachers didn’t deviate from our lessons. I wanted real life examples they didn’t supply that so off I went to dream of other things. I kept part of my mind in class after all I had to be aware if the teacher called on me, right? I wanted a challenge, and I wasn’t getting it in school even though I was taking “advanced classes.” Since I wasn’t getting a challenge in the classroom, I created my own challenges and worked on a variety of projects in my spare time.

At times people are amazed at the amount of things I’m involved with however, it is no different from what I did as a child. I’ve always been active. I have my parents to thank for that. They’ve always been that way. Since they were my first role models, I emulated them. I was active in sports playing throughout the school year and when it came to my education I actively worked on improving my knowledge. It’s something my parents encouraged. I do the same with Aiyana.

Recently, I started freelance writing. I don’t need to do it to pay the bills (my business and online monetization more than covers that) I do it because writing is something I enjoy and heck it’s nice getting paid to do something I truly love. One of my clients I write for is a large technology based website. I write almost exclusively about the Mac. I made the switch to Apple in October 2006. I came from a strong Windows background and traveled the US training support staff on various software applications I resisted purchasing a Mac because I didn’t want to start at ground zero. Naturally, I wasn’t content to have a computer that “just works” and learned the technical aspects about the Mac and look at me now I now write about the Mac on a highly trafficked technology based website. I have decided to write an article about Homeschooling parents and technology more specifically Mac technology I’m hoping to interview a few parents that use Mac in their daily lifestyle.

Apple has some great resources for those who work on a Mac and there are many software programs that have been made specifically for Mac users. What many people don’t know is that Apple offers discounts on their computers and software to students and yes Apple offers discounts to homeschooling families. Kudos to Apple for including us on the discounts.

I print out sheets so she can practice her handwriting. She has been enjoying this immensely and has been asking me for more sheets. She is determined to learn to write just like mommy. Every night I spend time writing in a paper journal. She finds that fascinating and of course she wants to do everything that mommy does. I’m holding onto this time because I know before long it will change.

Technorati Tags: homeschooling, learning cursive, homeschooling resource

Her newest thing is making mommy greeting cards. She writes little messages, which she is extremely proud of, and hands them to me. Of course, mommy has to save every single one. I’ve been keeping them on file and using the remaining as bookmarks. What do the cards say? Usually, something as Mommy loves Aiyana or Aiyana loves Mommy. Her cards surely make me feel special, and I truly cherish the time we spend together.

I’m enjoying our homeschooling experience. I recently started working as a freelance writer so I’m adding more responsibilities to my already busy schedule. However I’m enjoying it immensely. I’ve always loved writing. It’s something I can remember doing since I was my daughter’s age. Writing for pay, well that seems perfectly natural. I have four regular clients that keep me busy, and I enjoy writing about what I truly love alternative healing, fitness, and nutrition.

As a business owner regardless of how busy I might become I always make time for my daughter. Fridays and Saturdays are “our days.” Fridays we usually go to Life Way Christian stores. They have story time. She loves it. The past two Saturdays I’ve been taking her to Chuck E. Cheese. She is especially fond of the big slide and of course loves playing with the kids there. My daughter definitely has no problem socializing.

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Aiyana really likes Amazing Amanda although she isn’t playing with it all the time. I expected that but when she wants something that talks back to her besides her mommy she reaches for Amanda.

We don’t get too much into the Christmas holidays at least not the buying aspect of it. It’s way to commercialized, and I never got into things, you know? That’s the last thing I want my daughter to do with Christmas think it’s all about what she can get. We do spend a lot of time with the family simply because they have more time from work. I enjoy hanging with family & friends.

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Technorati Tags: homeschooling, homeschooling magazine, Home Education Magazine

She had a blast, and we played this game for about two hours. Homeschooling can be a lot of fun. I try to make it that way. We stopped only because mommy had an article to complete with my freelance writing gig, but I promised her we would play it tomorrow.

I rarely carry cash with me. I use my check card but I did tell her at the beginning of the year she can start paying for the items I purchase. She’s really excited about that something about handing the cashier the products that we purchase excites her. I imagine it makes her feel just like mommy. She’s thrilled that she will be able to do a big job like handing out cash. Sighs, guess I’ll have to go to the ATM to actually get some cash.

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It’s been silent on A Homeschooling Resource, but we are still homeschooling. We were away for the Thanksgiving holidays and enjoyed ourselves immensely. Things are starting to settle down with my work so I’ll be able to post a few pictures of the things we have seen while we were away.

Aiyana is moving onto regular books with her reading and is tackling “big words” over six letters. She’s very proud of herself. With homeschooling my daughter I’ve never pushed her to read but this is something she has always wanted to do. I imagine, in her mind, this is normal. Homeschooling, I think, starts well before the child even materializes. I was reading to her when I was pregnant. Then I was reading the complete collection of Winnie the Pooh. It’s still one of her favorite books.

Although Aiyana can now read she still insists that I read to her at night or tell her a story. She likes me to make up stories for her. At times, I make up a story, but repeatedly I’ll turn the spotlight on her and tell her to create a story for me. It’s a fun exercise that really encourages her to be creative. I really need to start capturing some of her stories on film.

I’ve always been fascinated with history and Aiyana, seems to be interested in the history books and websites that I’ve been reading. I’m most fascinated with war history and the roles that minorities have placed throughout history. Since my daughter has shown such an interest in what I enjoy I’ve decided to include it in hour homeschooling sessions.

Mike Goad of Exit 78 wrote a post titled Ashamed to be Indian.  My daughter is Indian, Black, Irish, and German.  Not only is it important for her to know about the cultures she is a part of I also feel it is important to educate her about others.  I’ll be reading the letter included in Mike’d post sometime this weekend. her great grandmother was Indian, Black, and Irish.

Although she was two years old when she died my daughter still remembers her and will tell you about various events that happened during some of their meetings.

I’ve always liked this painting by Norman Rockwell. He is portraying Rosy the Riveter. My grandmother, Aiyana’s great grandmother, was a Rosy Riveter, and she also was one of the first women to work in real estate.

My grandmother was very light and could pass for white. She did. In doing so she was able to receive better work than those who couldn’t. In our homeschooling session I’ll be talking about this and the reasons why some of those who could pass did.

Aiyana reminds me a lot of myself at her age. I had an insatiable thirst for knowledge; I still do. I was eager to learn anything that my mother or teachers gave to me. I was hungry for information. It learned to read early, just like Aiyana, simply because I felt in reading I would be able to get more information.

Technorati Tags: homeschooling, Exit 78, Mike Goad, history, Rosy Riveter

The bald eagle we saw while looking out of our condo, the sea shells we picked up on the beach.  There didn’t use to be a beach but the drought has now supplied Lake Marion with a nice size beach.  It was interesting to see the little worlds that the waters of Lake Marion had hidden.

I’ll be posting pictures we’ve captured and the homeschooling lessons that my daughter and I learned while vacationing to South Carolina.  It was a wonderful experience, and I enjoyed my vacation but it surely feels good to be back home.  We arrived home this past Sunday.

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My daughter and I will be heading to Summerton, South Carolina tomorrow. We’ll be returning to Maryland this coming Sunday. We both are excited about the upcoming trip. I won’t be working as hard as I normally do with work. It’s going to be a great time to bond with relatives. There will be plenty of Aiyana’s Aunts and Uncles in attendance (I have sixteen total.) She’ll also have plenty of cousins to play with.

It will be interesting to see the reactions about homeschooling. The majority of them do know that Aiyana is homeschooled. I’m sure a few of them will be “testing” her to see what she knows. Three of my aunts are schoolteachers, and one of the schoolteachers actually teaches her two children at home.

We will be staying in a condo that overlooks Lake Marion. It’s truly beautiful. Sumter, South Carolina is not too far away and I’m planning on taking Aiyana there for a brief history lesson. I love history. Civil War broke out between the North and South on April 12, 1861. Fort Sumter, surrendered 34 hours later. It’s truly fascinating teaching my daughter. She has an insatiable thirst for knowledge. I try to present our lessons in an exciting way. She enjoys hands on learning.

Technorati Tags: Thanksgiving, homeschooling