Day Two

I've got to admit, I'm tired. I thought the lack of school run would be easier, but it doesn't really make up for the fact that I'm probably never going to be an early bird. So a 4am bedtime with an 8.30am morning alarm still equates to a tired mother, despite not having to rush helter-skelter out of the house.

Still, up I rose, bleary eyed, ready to face another day... and my goodness it's warm today; definitely a significant rise in temperature from yesterday. I've been sweltering all day.

Signing A into his first InterHigh lesson went smoothly. Today was his fullest day on his schedule, with seven lessons. Three of them had connectivity problems, but four were fine. It seems a bit hit or miss, with LEAD lessons (the ones with the most students, lecture style) being the most difficult to load. I really think InterHigh needs to sort their servers out to handle the vast numbers (several hundred) of kids in these lessons. Anyway, any of the missed beginnings of lessons that he was unable to see, he will watch later this week to catch up on, as thankfully all lessons are recorded.

During his History class later he actually volunteered to speak on microphone, so he seems to have gotten over his initial nervousness, which is great.

Speaking of History he says it's his favourite lesson so far. They're learning about Native Americans, which I must say I always liked as well (probably why I wrote books featuring Algonquian legends... I see the apple doesn't fall far from the tree!)

N and J started off the day in the same way as yesterday, with some reading. N has surprised both myself and his dad with his reading level. He was struggling so much with reading at the beginning of lockdown, but he did a few weeks of English and Maths tutoring with Kip McGrath during lockdown, so I can only conclude that it must have definitely been beneficial, as he has come on leaps and bounds. 

J loves reading (although strangely he doesn't do it often). He takes after his big sister who adores books (those two are like mini versions of each other, which is amusing as their birthdays fall 1 day apart in the calendar year), so he has been very much enjoying his story.

Meanwhile L spent most of the day on her IGCSE courses again online. Her daily routine doesn't change, so there's no variation, but at least it gives her a timetable she can stick to.

After N and J had finished their reading they had a short break, but N took the opportunity to do some art tutorials on Skoolbo. His first attempt was a somewhat terrifying looking rabbit, but this butterfly turned out beautifully.

First lesson after reading for N and J was Maths and numeracy. J worked on fractions with some worksheets from Twinkl, whilst N did Maths on Skoolbo. J has a few Maths problems left from his worksheets to finish off tomorrow. He was a little rusty on fractions but he understood what he was doing once I went through it with him.

After lunch I took N and J outside on the field (there's a field outside our house) for some exercise. It was such a nice warm day, and none of us had any inclination to attempt P.E. with Joe again (heaven forbid), so instead the boys had some games of frisbee, and races in various forms including running, backwards jogging, jumping, skipping, and BIIIIIIIG stepping. It was a shame A and L couldn't have joined us, but they were stuck into their lessons.

Once back inside it was time for Science. J said that he prefers doing experiments when it comes to this subject, so with the help of L's lava lamp (which I had sensibly left to heat up whilst we had been outside), I decided to teach them about liquid density. 

We watched the wax rise as it heated, and sink as it cooled, and discussed what it means for a liquid to have different masses and densities. I had to simplify my explanation for N a little bit, but he understood what I was saying. They drew lava lamps in their exercise books, and labelled their pictures to show their understanding of liquid density.

Then came time for their experiment. We took a glass and filled it approximately two thirds full of water and added blue food colouring. We then poured some cooking oil into the glass, and watched as it settled on top of the water. Then came the fun part - pouring salt into the water. The salt, being heavier than the water, dragged the oil down into the water with it as it fell, causing an effect similar to a lava lamp. The boys found this great fun. The pictures don't do it justice really.

The boys earned themselves some stickers for good work yesterday and today, which they chose proudly to stick on their t-shirts. N is going through an obsession with "baby piggies" at the moment, so of course he picked a pig sticker

After science, N decided on a little more art, whereas J did a computer coding lesson with his dad. He began working through a text book we'd purchased for him. There were some YouTube videos about the book which he started watching, but he said they felt a bit "too young" for him. I think they were too easy and he felt a little patronised. The book is great though, and he got stuck into it.

Whilst J was coding, I went upstairs with L for her Classical Civilisation lesson. We covered the remaining Greek gods necessary for the course, and discussed their traits and how they are depicted in art. She finds it very amusing that Athena's birth was due to Hephaistos smashing Zeus' head in with a hammer to attempt to cure him of a headache! It's not the most conventional cure, that's for sure.

She's quite an aural learner, so she always has to have some background music playing when she's studying... or indeed when she's doing pretty much anything - hence the headphones. Honestly I think I'd find it distracting, but she says it helps her to drown out background noises from her brothers, and it helps her to concentrate. Each to their own I suppose.

I'm really enjoying the mother-daughter time together during these Classics lessons. There are so many boys in this house, which I do love... don't get me wrong, but having an hour alone with my daughter every day is nice too. 

After dinner was family film night, and then L and A cracked on with a bit of VR exercise. A doesn't like many VR games, he says they make him feel sick, but he can tolerate Beat Saber and Pistol Whip. He opted for Beat Saber on the Oculus Quest, whilst L went on her PSVR in the other room. I actually haven't got clue what she was playing on, but she was being very energetic.

Thus concludes our second day of homeschooling. Another resounding success, and confirmation that we're doing the right thing. I've been hearing so many news stories today of schools having outbreaks of Covid-19. Over 62 and counting, although many parents have reported more schools with outbreaks which haven't hit the papers yet. 

The kids are safe and happy at home, and whilst I appreciate homeschooling isn't for everyone, I feel really sure about our decision for our children personally.