Confession

I know I have ranted and raved about the annoyances of PACyber...so this may come as a shock.

We are going to stick with them another year.

It took me most of the year to realize I am willing to jump through the hoops in order to gain some benefits the cyber school has to offer. JT and I sat down together and made a pros and cons list for staying with the school.

PROS

• virtual enrichment classes (JT's main reason for staying with the school...these classes are non-credit fun stuff. He really enjoys them, but they are mostly fluff.)
• reimbursement for internet
• $75 a kid, per year, for PE
• free books and supplies
• free computer, printer and ink
• the school does all the reporting to the state; no portfolio to put together

• no need to deal with our local school district (if traditional homeschooling, they would be reviewing our plan and portfolio)

CONS

• Must take PSSAs every year from 3rd - 11th (homeschoolers are only required to test 3 times in their school career and parents can chose from a list of standardized tests)
• can't chose our own material (we can always supplement with our own, but often feel too strapped for time to pull it off)
• some of the curriculum we must use is inferior to what we would like to use...by a large margin
• inept grading of tests by the cyber school staff

Once we put it all down in writing I felt like I had been whining far too much. At least, I felt that way for a couple days. Then I went in my office and saw the bookcase full of the stuff I so desperately would love to teach my kids but never feel I have enough time to fit it in the schedule. I tried to broker a deal with JT. It went like this...

me: "If you would set your mind to it, we could do all the Calvert material for the week in 1 or 2 school days. Then we'd have the other 3 days to work on all the fun stuff we have wanted to do."

JT: "Okay, no problem."

Two days later...

me: "Why don't you just work through these assignments quickly so we have time for the fun stuff this week?"

JT: "I don't feel like it."

Case closed.

Field Trips

For a couple of months, my dad has been picking JT up Wednesday morning and keeping him for the day. This has really given me a chance to recharge. It also gives JT many opportunities that he wouldn't necessarily have with me.

Last week they went on a little adventure... First they went for breakfast. Food is extremely important to my son. He is a very skinny kid, but eats like a horse. I think his constant movement burns off all those extra calories.

After the restaurant, they headed out to a local cheese factory. JT had a tour of the facilities and was able to try some fresh Swiss cheese.

Next they went to a small area airport and had a tour. JT learned about the planes and came home with a small, wooden glider.

When I started this new phase in our lives, I had many plans. We wouldn't sit in a classroom all day. We would go on exciting, educational adventures..... I'm still hoping to get to that point someday. Right now, I feel like I need to stick with something that 'feels' like school. Our schedule for the Calvert curriculum should allow us to finish all of their materials for third grade sometime around the end of April. In order to reach our 180 school days this year, I will continue schooling through the end of May. I'm starting to look into a few one day field trips for those days. I want JT to have fun this last month of school. Maybe that will make him work harder next year, knowing we could have those same opportunities if we put in the time and effort earlier in the year. In the meantime, there's always Wednesday!

The First Package

Today a big box was delivered by Fed Ex. It's our Techkit! I'm very excited to feel like things are finally rolling. Inside this jumbo box we have an HP laptop (complete with case), an HP printer (including ink cartridge), a very nice headset, software (Microsoft Office Pro!) and the coolest thing of all, a Wacom Bamboo Fun! You may be saying, "What is that?!" A quote from their website explains it well:

Now there's a simple, easy, and fun way to harness your creativity. Bamboo Fun makes your computer your canvas, allowing you to freely express yourself by simply touching the pen tip to the tablet. Touch up digital photos, draw by hand, create artwork and paintings, and even write in your own handwriting.


This link will take you to the sample of what it can do: click here

Tomorrow we will pull it all out and set it up to make sure it's all in working order. Our addition to the house is moving along, but is not ready, so we'll make do with a small table in the family room. The contractor says about 3 more weeks. Since PA Cyber's start date is August 18th, I don't know if we'll make it. Thanks to cyber flexibility, I don't need to sweat it!

I hope the box with our curriculum will arrive soon. I'm really looking forward to checking out that material. Our plan is to pretest our way through third grade math and cover any gaps in the first couple months. When our son was tested by a psychologist in March, he was said to be working at a high 3rd grade math level. We figure we can start into fourth grade math shortly. If he was in a brick and mortar school, he'd still be reviewing the second grade material by the time we have reached fourth grade.

I did hear one potential negative rumor about PA Cyber today. Someone I know was told by someone else that the Calvert Curriculum may be phased out. I would really hate to see that happen, so I'm going to pretend I didn't hear it. At this time, PA Cyber offers two choices; Calvert or Lincoln Interactive. Calvert is presented in more of a traditional homeschooling option. The facilitator at home does most of the teaching. I'm told it is very flexible and easy to differentiate. Lincoln Interactive is the Virtual classroom option. It follows the same pattern as a brick and mortar school. Scheduled lessons with a teacher moving all students at approximately the same pace. A good choice for children who left their traditional school as a typical learner. More of the same for anyone who needs a faster or slower pace. I REALLY hope it's only a rumor!