 |
| Monday morning, Tima was feverish, vomiting and complaining that his feet 'didn't work right'. Not a great beginning. I was so thankful to not have to deal with the big problem of a child missing the first day of 'real' school. Instead, he stayed home, slept, and even got a few subjects done in his better hours. |
 | ||
| By Tuesday, Tima was feeling better, but Danya and Ella both developed fevers and sore throats. However, it didn't stop them from getting their work done. In fact, I think it was easier for me than when they are all healthy and full of energy! |
 |
| By Thursday, Tima was back to 100% and Danya and Ella dragging with high fevers and voluminous tonsils. We even had an impromptu health/biochemistry lesson when we pulled out the rapid-strep kit! I let Tima do everything except actually swab Danya's throat. (He was begging to do that too, but I wasn't sure Danya would appreciated it.) To everyone's disappointment, the tests were negative. (The kit is 10 years old, so who knows if it's still accurate. The control line still works. But, with such a short duration of fever, I would have been a little surprised to see a positive result.) Today, everyone is feeling better. We finished our schoolwork in record time. After lunch and playtime, they are doing their Friday chores. Overall, I've been surprised at how easy homeschooling is. There are a number of factors that help. 1) We did summer school three days a week for the months that we were home, so the kids are already 3-5 weeks into most subjects. I think the staggered start helps a lot in the "What do I do here?" factor. 2) We have always done English and history homeschool after the morning of Russian school. So now, we have 4 extra hours, and all we're adding is math, Bible study, and a little more history/geography and science. 3) Not everything has started yet. Baseball practice is supposed to be four days a week... and the boys are in separate groups! But so far, Tima's together with the older team, and we only went once due to everyone's sickness. That will put time pressure on our days, as we'll have to finish by lunch to make it to practice. Ella will start dance two days a week, and we will have Russian lessons (with homework) to add to our schedule. Of course, I'd love to add piano, swimming, theatre... well, I've realized my desires are a bit unrealistic! 4) It really is easier, when everyone has a fever! Today, I've dealt with a lot more of the kids pestering each other, bouncing tennis balls off the walls, and just driving me crazy. And speaking of which, we have to get outside! |
