Space Kitties Charter School Diary

March 17, 2020

Well, like pretty much every other family in America, we are embarking on a homeschool journey. As a mom who works from home and values the peace and quiet that comes with that....let me just say up front I'm a little skeptical. Intimidated. Anxious.

Due to the current size of our home (tiny) I decided we needed some dedicated space for school work. So, the car has now moved outside and the garage has been converted into our home school classroom. Our classy reading nook is constructed from a cardboard box, strung with Christmas lights and padded with a camping mat. The matching bookshelf really sets the tone for the room, I think. We borrowed a card table from Grandma & Grandpa, and viola!! We're in business.

Reading Nook. 

I am pleased to introduce to you the Space Kitties Charter School!! The kids picked the name, hoping the cat would be their class pet. So far, she has no interest in that. I'm not exactly sure where the space theme comes in....maybe it just makes school seem more exciting? Anyway, that's the name that the kids picked and if it makes them feel more excited about hanging out in the garage all day...so be it.

Today we had "home school lite" since we hadn't yet picked up our official work packets from school. There was reading, online math practice, PE (One kid did Yoga, the other opted to ride his bike in the rain), science observations, and a history lesson that entailed interviewing grandparents about their history with diseases and hospital visits.

Our first day of home school also included a field trip!! We drove to WalMart to pick up our grocery order. I wouldn't let the kids get out of the car, because, social isolation. I nearly crawled out of my skin when the clerk put her finger on my ID that I had to produce for the wine I was buying. Overall the grocery pick up was a success, although somehow we ended up with 14 bananas and no bread. That's a lot of bananas, even for a house full of kids that love bananas. The kids seem excited about the challenge of eating them all before they go bad. I think there's a science experiment brewing here about the impact of bananas on your GI system....

After grocery pick up we headed to the library to pick up a book that had been placed on hold. I had to bring the kids inside with me but gave them strict instructions to TOUCH NOTHING. They lasted about 20 seconds before they leaned their entire bodies all over the checkout counter. (Insert eye-roll emoji here)

Next stop was school to pick up independent study packets. The kids stayed in the car while I got doused with hand sanitizer and picked up oodles of fun things to keep them entertained for the next 3+ weeks.  Bonus: They were giving away free snacks! I don't know why milk tastes better when it comes from an individual serving-sized carton, but apparently it does. When we got home and I saw this worksheet for parents in my son's packet, I literally got tears in my eyes. God bless the teachers that take the time to give us home-schooling rookies a fighting chance by bribing our kids with treasure chest prizes. I mean really...she had like 24 hours to pull together home lesson plans for 3 weeks and she takes the time to toss in this nugget?? Saint Crystal, I thank Jesus for you.

There are a lot of reasons why I love Ms. Crystal. This is near the top of the list. 

And our final stop on the very first field trip for the Space Kitties Charter School was Grandma & Grandpa's house to drop off groceries. Again the kids didn't get out of the car, which kind of puts a damper on the fun of going to G&G's house. I'm not sure this field trip will make anyone's "Top 10" list, but it's our first day. We've got lots of time to practice and get this right. That is until they tell us to shelter in place. I guess we have that to look forward to. And when that day comes, the kids most certainly will look back on this field trip as the BEST. DAY. EVER.

Clean hands. Open Hearts. Growing Minds. Space Kitties signing off.
Home School Day: 1
Toilet paper inventory: 10 rolls
Wine on hand: 3 bottles
Crying fits: None