As the old year will soon be over and a bright, new year quickly approaches I am busy attempting to get the curriculum set for the return to homeschool on January 3. I like to plan ahead and have all of the work set up ahead of time and entered into the planner (Homeschool Tracker is my favorite www.homeschooltracker.com) and then all I need to do is assign the days work, grade and then plug the scores in when they are finished.
   This year we are studying algebra, chemistry, spelling, reading/literature and geography/history. I like to add a few "extra' fun classes each quarter that focus on art and music just to keep them using both sides of their brains and experiencing different forms of both. During December the boys had a great time doing hidden pictures everyday, even though this is a project often used in elementary school art they found it a lot of fun trying to guess what the picture was before coloring it.
   Once a month I schedule a "Fun Friday" where if we have completed the weeks work and chores then we plan for a road trip. This is especially exciting since I am usually the only one that knows where we are going until we get there.  It might be to the local bowling alley to bowl a few frames, or special museum exhibit, or maybe even the local water park (in the summer) or "The Fridge" when the winter weather allows for bobsledding along a long and winding course of frozen tubes. These adventures usually provide us with an inexpensive way to have fun, learn and attending during the weekday offers the benefit of less crowded facilities.