The Cyber School Enrollment Process
Photo Credit
One of the questions I had, when I started looking into cyber school, was how long the enrollment process would take. When I asked for my question on the mailing lists, I could not get an answer, nor could I find one on the mailing lists. So, I started the process without any real timeline in mind. It turns out the process took about 4 weeks, mostly because it was over the winter school holiday. Luckily, the admission process only took about a week and we were able to access the curriculum right away because we decided to homeschool rather than make the kids endure public school during the waiting period.
Another question that plagued me was whether we could be denied access to the school I chose. The answer to this one was an emphatic “no.” The school we chose was a public charter school which meant if we decided we wanted to go to that school, we could not be denied access. That being said, the enrollment officer, and everyone else we talked to, made sure to discuss the cons and well as the pros, to choosing this type of school.
One of the topics that continually came up was our commitment to helping the kids with school. Cyber school is not for the uncommitted. Like traditional homeschooling, you become your child’s teacher. Yes, there are teachers at the school, but the bulk of the teaching is up to you, especially for the elementary age kids. The teachers are there to help you, of course, but you know your kid best and that why you bring them home to learn.
Once the admission process is complete, and you’ve handed in all of the paperwork — birth certificates, immunization records, proof of residency and previous school records — all you have to do is wait for your enrollment date. During the wait between your admission date and your enrollment date, you get all of the goodies that come with being a Cyber student. (That’s a whole other post!)
I’m very glad we decided to Homeschool for the few weeks between admission and enrollment. There is whole rhythm that needed to be established so that we could get all, or most, of our work in during the day. It has to become a lifestyle. If not, you are ‘doing school’ all of the time and making everyone miserable.
You also have to come up with a reasonable time schedule. One of our completely selfish reasons for not using public school (not our only reason, nor our biggest one), is that we are not morning people. None of us. So, waking up at 6:30 am every morning, getting dressed and trying to get out of the door was awful every day. Now we wake naturally around 8 am and get started around 10 am. There will be more about our routine in a later post. It’s pretty neat!
So far, the enrollment process has been pretty painless. Other than a trip to our nearest big city to meet the enrollment director, everything has been done by email or phone. It’s a beautiful thing!
New Start for the Whole Family
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| From School |
It hasn’t been that long since I posted how I could never be a Homeschool Mom on this blog. Well, I should no better and learn to never say never. Because, starting last week, we are officially a homeschool family. Actually, the kids are enrolled in cyberschool, but since they are going to be learning at home, I’m not splitting hairs.
Our reasons are many, and although the recent tragedies have solidified our decision, we had already started before then. Many of our reasons had to do with our kids. We just didn’t feel that they “fit in” with the school. Some of our reasons had to do with the actual public school system. We preferred to give our children more options and we also prefer to monitor our children’s progress more than we could in a public school setting. Since we can’t afford a private school, we started looking at alternative public schools.
We settled on Pennsylvania Virtual Charter School after researching all of the different cyber schools in PA. I won’t go into all of the pros and cons, but it came down to the fact that PAVCS requires an 80% mastery for all subjects and has 39 outings to choose from each month.
It is taking some time to get the kids registered and enrolled, and during that time we are an official home school family. Last week, I came up with the lesson plans. This week, their PAVCS classes are online and we are going to start working through them. I’m thrilled because coming up with a lesson plan for both kindergarten and 7th grade off the top of my head wasn’t easy.
Since I can’t find any information out there, I’m going to spend this week writing about the enrollment process, how the classes are set up and how we “do school” with a 2 year old, 5 year old and 7th grader. It should be interesting, wish me luck!
I’m Back…
So, I guess you noticed that I’ve taken a break for the summer and fall. Or, maybe you didn’t and that’s ok. Things were getting out of hand for me. I felt like I was being pulled in a thousand different directions and the last thing I wanted to do is try to come up with more blog posts. It didn’t feel right anymore.
Actually, I took a break from all of my writing and tried something new. I started making and selling soap. You can check out my store, if you want. And, like a typical American nutcase, I went at it full force. I almost burnt myself out before I even got started. Which made me realize something very important…I had to slow down.
I have been spending the last 3 months trying to curb my natural impulse to go like a mad person, and simply take the time to stop, enjoy my life, enjoy my kids and breathe.
It hasn’t been easy. I’m a natural Type-A personality. I want things done and I want them done now! But, my mental and physical health were taking a toll. The kids and Steve were starting to dread spending any time with me because I spent most of it complaining or yelling. I really didn’t even like myself.
I have started letting things go. I opted out of the Christmas Cantata that my entire family participates in. This year, it seemed like a chore and I dreaded going to practice. I had to fight with my oldest son to go with me. When I finally admitted that it wasn’t going to work, it was a huge weight off my shoulders.
I’ve also started letting “things” go. If it doesn’t work in my house, it goes out the door. Instead of trying a million and one things, I am focusing on what makes me happy. And all of the stuff that I had for future projects is going away. It’s taking time. I’m not nearly where I want to be, but I’m making progress and that’s all I can ask for.
One of the biggest realizations that I’ve had during this slow down/simplify period is that *I’m* the adult. I doesn’t matter what other people think about what I do. As long as I am taking care of my kids and my responsibilities, the only person I have to answer to is Steve. But, since we are in this together, that’s a given. Just that realization alone has made me a very happy person.
I’m finally learning to enjoy my life and my kids. I’m now just one of the kids at play.
Meal Plan — Week of 6/18
I apologize for the radio silence the last week and a half. I have been incredibly busy making soap, packaging and repackaging it. It has kept me more than busy. I’ve finally got everything “just right” and can get back to normal life. That means, I can finally catch up here on the blog.
I’m still going to be busy, so I’m back to making meals in the crockpot. It’s simply faster and easier. I can throw everything in the pot in the morning and it’s done when we’re ready to eat. It also keeps the house cooler in the summer. And a cooler house is always welcome.
Here’s my plan for this week:
Meal Plan
Monday — Italian Beef in Crockpot, Baked Potatoes, Peas
Tuesday — Honey Sesame Crockpot Chicken with Rice
Wednesday – Pork and Apples, Sweet Potatoes, Mixed Vegetables
Thursday — Leftover Buffet
Friday — (Steve Cooks) Hot Dogs, Macaroni and Cheese, Baked Beans
Saturday — Sandwich Buffet
Sunday — Baked Chicken Breasts, Mashed Potatoes, Corn on the Cob
Meal Plan — Week of 6/4
Last week was quite busy, but it was a good one! My twelve year old graduated from 6th grade. It was a lot of fun. I’ve also been working hard on making soap. I will do more indepth posts about both events later in the week.
Weight loss wise, I was up .2 lbs. But, my Weight Watchers meeting moved from Wednesday to Monday, so I didn’t have as much time. Plus, it’s been rainy here so I didn’t walk. Ok, that’s an excuse, I know it! But, I’m remotivated, so I should be good this coming week.
Here’s my meal plan for the week. It’s high in lean meats and veggies. Just perfect for this time of year.
Meal Plan
Monday — Leftover Buffet
Tuesday — Beef Stir Fry, Rice
Wednesday — Chicken Poppers, Oven Fries, Mixed Vegetables
Thursday — Slow Cooker Steak Sandwiches, Salad
Friday — Steve Cooks
Saturday — Hamburgers, Fresh Vegetables, Chips
Sunday — (Steve’s Birthday) Roast Chicken, Mashed Potatoes, Peas, Birthday Brownies
{this moment}
Inspired by SouleMama
{this moment} – A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.
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| From This Moment |
Cooking With Kids :: Easy Peasy Brownies
For the Memorial Day picnic with my family, we were in charge of bringing a “kids” dessert. Since my go-to baked snack is always brownies, that’s what I made.
I finally got my 5 year old to help me with them. He normally passes on cooking because it makes him messy. For a boy, he really hates to be dirty. He won’t garden, paint or cook. This time I promised him that I would provide lots of towels so that he could keep his hands clean and he agreed. I’ve given up on trying to explain that sometimes you just get messy!
Since it was his first time, I did most of the measuring but he did the pouring and the mixing. Of course, I was in charge of the oven. I’m not quite ready for him to be near the oven.
He was so proud of himself and told everyone that he made them all by himself! I think that’s good thing to be proud of. He also tried to tell everyone that the brownies were “healthy” food! He’s on this kick about the difference between junk food and healthy food and somehow got the idea that if food is cooked at home, rather than bought at a store, it is automatically healthier. We’ll work on that one later in his cooking education!
Here’s our favorite brownie recipe
MMM MMM Better Brownies from Allrecipes.com
Ingredients
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9×9 inch baking pan.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together the oil, sugar, and vanilla. Beat in eggs.
3. Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt in another bowl.
4. Gradually stir the dry ingredients into the egg mixture until well blended.
5. Stir in walnuts, if desired.
6. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan.
7. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the brownie begins to pull away from edges of pan. Let cool on a wire rack before cutting into squares.
And Summer Begins…
Memorial Day Weekend is the official start of summer for me and this year it started with a bang! We attended two family picnics and it was hot enough for the kids to play in the water!
Between the slip and slide, bubbles and kids we don’t normally play with, the first picnic was a huge success! Jeffy is just now getting to the age where he plays “with” other kids, not just “beside” them. It is so fun to watch.
I love that my kids enjoy playing with other kids. They always try to make new friends and include the shy kids in their games. And, they make up the best games. I love listening to them.
The second picnic was with my family and included a water battle. The older kids decided that throwing buckets full of water on the adults would be a really fun thing to do. We tried to use our phones and cameras as shields, but the kids were sneaky. They waited patiently until we put the electronics down and then decked us! It was a ton of fun.
If this weekend was any indication, it is going to be a great summer!
Refinishing the Kitchen Table
I mentioned that I refinished my kitchen table last week, but I never got around to showing you the pictures. So, here they are. I learned some valuable lessons about refinishing furniture. But, for my first time, I don’t think it turned out too terribly bad.
Our kitchen table is about 12 years old, which is young in furniture years. But, it had this annoying little “trough” right where the kids set their plates. That stupid little trough caught every single crumb, bit of ketchup, drop of spilled milk, etc and was impossible to clean without the use of power tools. No matter how clean the table was, it still looked dirty.
After 12 years, I finally decided to be proactive and do something about it! Procrastinate much? I knew I wanted to paint it, so off to the paint store I went. I purchased counter top paint for the top and spray paint for the legs. Word of advice? Don’t do that, just spray paint the entire thing, it will save you a huge headache. That stupid counter top paint picked up every single fiber that came in contact with it!
I sanded it down and then filled in the trough part with some wood filler. Then, I started painting. After two coats of the counter top paint, I gave up and went back to get some spray paint. That made my life a lot easier. I did brush on some enamel on the skirt part so I didn’t have to worry about spraying over the top.
When, I was happy with the colors, I sprayed about 5 coats of laquer over everything. I wanted to make sure it was good and protected. I don’t want to have to redo the whole thing after 6 months.
It took me two full days to get it exactly the way I wanted it, but it was well worth it. Next, I’m going to attack my dressers!
Meal Plan — Week of 5/28
Hi, there. Sorry I disappeared last week. To be perfectly honest, I’m not sure what happened. Every day I had good intentions of sitting down at my computer and writing and then it was time for bed. I did stuff in between those times, but I’m not really sure what those things were. Ever have those weeks?
When I weighed in on Wednesday, I lost two pounds. I’m pretty sure this week isn’t going to go as well. The two picnics we had this week didn’t do me any favors. It seems I still have problems with passing up all that yummy food. On the plus side, it was too hot to actually eat a lot so I didn’t make a pig out of myself.
Here’s my plan for next week. I’m hoping the weather cools, or we’re going to be sweating it out in the kitchen. I think I’m going to need to buy a new grill sooner rather than later.
Meal Plan
Monday — Memorial Day Picnic
Tuesday — Leftover Buffet
Wednesday –Turkey PotPie
Thursday — Spaghetti with Meat Sauce
Friday — Steak Sandwiches
Saturday — Roast Chicken, Potatoes, Mixed Vegetables
Sunday — Chicken Fajitas
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