Home Schooling a 7th Grader

We are finally into our 3rd week into of homeschooling. It has been a challenge to homeschool a 7th grader, and trying to also teach a 3 year old. Lets just say a ton of multitasking is involved. 

Not only do I get the challenge of dealing with 2 kids nine years apart, but I get to deal with a hyper 3 year old and a 12 year old with ADHD. But thats a whole other subject. So to get started on why I am homeschooling, it came to this. The school my son is attending is somehow making him fall behind in the learning curve and my son has learned that he can get away with half ass work to get good grades. Which in books shouldn't be allowed! Not to mention the children at the school my son was attending were so bad that the teacher was unable to teach the children, so no one was learning anything. Last was the kids at the school have been picking on my son, and that as just the last straw. Me going so many times to his school and seeing no results I had to take him out and figure I will homeschool him till my husband gets station somewhere else. 

Now the crazy part that no one tells you is how in the heck to start things, and how expensive homeschooling can be. I had no idea that it would take so much out of my pocket! So before I jump into those expensive curriculums, I figure I would go to the teacher store and buy workbooks to start him off at home. 

I went off the subjects he was already learning at school and then looked at his progress reports to see where he was falling behind in or where I thought he should get more one on one time and then got very lucky the lady running the teacher store was a prior teacher and helped me pick out some books.

^^  ^^

These are the books we bought, I went back on some grades to see if he really understood the information. I already knew last year the school was not a good one. 

Whats also great about these books, is that each story is a nonfiction one. So its like two birds one stone kind of think. (I'll post pictures later on of the infor inside the books)

This here is a blank Lesson plan that I also got at the teach store. 

I filled in the info on what subjects we hit each day and what we did. Pretty simple after you get the hang of it. 

We are going to switch to an online curriculum after January so its more structure.

"16th SHIFT" Meet my Brother

For years now, my brother Marcus has been singing and playing his guitar. And not just because he is my brother, but he actually sounds amazing.  Has the voice that I think I have when I'm in the shower, (LOL a little joke) and has the talent to be able to write his own songs.  He now has a new group called 16th Shift. <-- Facebook Link

This here is a sneak peek of their song "About You"



You can also go on Reverbnation, (which is a place to hear great artist) and here other songs they have written.

This video here is one of my favorite songs my brother sings. "You Are"

He's one good songwriter! 

Marcus Ochoa Youtube

"16 Shift" working on "All about you"

Some behind the scene work

Our little ladies

We lost one of chickens today:(

Yesterday was not a good day. Sadly we lost another one of our ladies. Chickens are one of best pets that we have. They are awesome just to follow around and just look at. Not only do they walk funny but for some odd reason you can't take your eyes away when they are busy doing their chicken thing.

       

A couple of months ago we had lost a lady as well. We use to let them sit on top of their chicken coop to sleep in the breeze, well until an owl took one. It just broke our hearts. :( So we went off to find more chickens; so the one chicken we had left wouldn't be lonely. (Apparently their social like things and need a buddy at all times) So thats when we bought 2 more ladies and one lovely special one. She was bright yellow, and so so fluffy! She stuck out like a sore thumb next to the other Rhode Island Reds, which are a reddish brown chicken. But Yesterday we Lost her, and it was so sad. Not only because we loved her but because my oldest Joshua (12yrs) found her. 

      We don't know what got her or when, but it was during the day time. The crazy part was, we were home and I didnt hear anything. Darn sound proof walls.

And I assume it had to be a land animal and not a bird this time, because I can see a trail of feathers

where there could of been a chase. But I am happy what ever it was didnt go after my other

chickens.

So now they are in a space thats smaller then the are use too. Sad to say! But its for their

own safety and only until me and my husband can find a way to make the gated area

safe from them again. 

But on a better not, I have loaded some pictures of my two boys playing with our chickens 

This one is my son Joshua sporting Pink, and my young one chasing

the other ones around. 

This one is my son Isaac who's 3 doing his best to hold a chicken. And yes

I know he is 3 and wearing a diaper, but it was laundry day. lol I didnt have anything 

left for him to wear, beside run around naked lol.