We Have Bees!

Before I went to Williamsburg with the boys, The King and I had been watching Youtube videos on beekeeping.  We discovered what is called Top Bar Hives.  These hives are easier on the beekeeper's back and are most economical-something we look for.  By the time I got back, The King had a box ready for us.  Then about one month later, I got a call from a close friend that she had a swarm in one of her trees.  I asked her about the location and determined that I should be able to get it.  It was on a little branch low to the ground.  So I found a Youtube video on catching a swarm, got my cooler and kids, climbed in the van and took off!  I don't have photos of the process because we were all too hyped up (some were scared) to concentrate on that.  Here are some photos of the next couple of days after putting the swarm in my box.

Here was my bee outfit when I caught the swarm.  Swarms are very easy to handle and I didn't have any bee equipment anyway.  My husband got his hat and put one of my net laundry bags over it just so we wouldn't have to worry about the face area.  He wanted me to be all buttoned up in a jacket but I was too antsy to put all that stuff on.  I needed to feel free to move, plus I was brave at the time.  LOL  

Here is our top bar hive.  Do you see the blue cooler behind it?  That's how I transported the bees to our house.  I cut the whole branch off and put it in the cooler.  I had to wait a little while with the top open because some of the bees had started flying around.  I learned later that I could have sprayed them with sugar water to keep them more in a ball.  Anyway, The King took the top off the hive, put the branch in there, and then left the box open for the stragglers.  The side of the hive has a viewing window from plexiglass.  It is behind the wood panel on the side.

Just to be safe we fed the bees.  It was still late winter and we had moved them.  We wanted them to stay so we gave them a 50/50 solution of sugar water fed from hummingbird feeder.  Hey, it worked!

This view shows you the feeder in the front of the hive.  There are 5 entrance holes for the hive but we only had one open.  It was still chilly at night and we didn't want the new hive invaded by robber bees.  Having only one hole open, there is less entrance area for our bees to have to defend.  As the season goes on, we opened the other hole one by one until they were all opened.

There was a huddle of bees outside the entrance for a couple of days.  We still don't know why they do that but we were just glad they didn't leave.

Here is a view through the plexiglass.  We assume that the queen is in the middle of the huddle.  This is basically all we saw for about 2 weeks.  After that, we could see through the mass here and there bits of comb being built.

Here is Tigger wearing the hat and veil.  He felt comfortable around them especially in the beginning.  He's more wary again because both The King and I have bee stung since.  But it's ok, a few stings are good for ya!  Keeps the MS away.  LOL

   The next two photos were to capture the difference in the worker bees and the drones.  Drones are the males and they are bigger.

Transporting the bees in the van with 2 kids was interesting.  Even though I duct taped around the top of the cooler, there were still stragglers who could smell their queen and wanted in.  So there were a few stray bees flying around the back of my van--they stayed close to the cooler thankfully.  The boys seemed fine once I covered them with jackets and stuff for their heads.  It was an adventure!

We have not taken a class yet and we were too late to sign up for this year.  We have made and will continue to make mistakes I am sure.  We hope to sign up for the class starting in early 2013 where we will probably learn everything we did wrong.  :)

More of the story to come.....

Seed Organizing

I finally did it.  I finally organized my seeds.  This has taken me years.  I did some googling to see what methods were out there and I liked this one the best.  I made a few personal adjustments but for the most part, this is what some others have done.

My labels on the front of the bins are just index cards set inside the front area.  That way they can be changed out if need be.  I tend to freak out when doing a project if I'm not sure I want something to be permanent and then I don't do it.  This way allows me to have the label and yet feel comfortable in case of 'change' (oooo scary right?  Sometimes, even though you know you are ridiculous, you just can't help it.)

I tried to put paper clips on all of my packets so that when they are opened I already have the clip there to reclose.  Aren't I so smart?

I have some oddball packaging because of seed sharing.  I discovered that to firm up the packet I could staple the baggie to an index card and it stays in place better.

Works even better with the smaller baggies.  This is a jewelry bag by the way.  Those are great for storing small seeds.

Here are my three bins.  I bought more just in case because you know I want them all to match.  (rolling eyes)  Anyway, there are two for fruits and veggies and one for flowers and herbs.

Oh and here's a shot of my dividers.  Yep, in pencil so they can be 'changed'.  Ya gotta love a quirky mind!

FAQ-Where do I get the materials?

Where you buy your materials will depend upon what you’re looking for and the type of homeschool method you have chosen.  I recommend checking Rainbow Resource once you know what you want to buy.  Many times they’ll have the item cheaper than anywhere else.  Some of the different suppliers of homeschool curriculum are as follows:

Abeka  www.abeka.com

Calvert   http://www.calvertschool.org/home-school/

Saxon Math   http://saxonpublishers.harcourtachieve.com/en-US/saxonpublishers.htm

Math U See  http://www.mathusee.com/

Sonlight  www.sonlight.com

Rainbow Resource   http://www.rainbowresource.com/index.php

Handwriting Without Tears   http://www.hwtears.com/

AVKO   http://www.avko.org/sequentialspelling.html

Discount Homeschool Supplies   http://www.dhss.com/shop/

Rock Solid Inc.    http://www.rocksolidinc.com/

Another idea is to look for places that sell used curriculum.  Websites such as www.amazon.com; www.ebay.com; www.half.com and www.homeschoolgatheringplace.com are a few you can look into. 

Homeschool conferences are a good place to see and review different curricula before purchasing.  You may also wish to ask fellow homeschooling families to allow you to view the materials they use so that you can see before you buy.  A good place to read reviews of materials is http://www.homeschoolreviews.com/ . 

FAQ-What if I work full-time?

Many parents who work full-time consider homeschooling their child/children.  It is not an impossible task.  There are many things to consider when making this type of decision.  What is your work schedule?  Will you be working in the home or outside the home?  How old is the student(s)?  Can he/she work independently?  How much time each day are they spending alone?  Are they prepared to deal with home emergencies on their own?  (fire, burglary, etc)  Is my child a social butterfly/introverted and how will this affect the development of their personality? 

These questions bear serious consideration, especially for those parents who will be working outside the home and are considering leaving their child to work on their own.  It is the rare child who copes well in that type of situation. 

Another option that is available in our state is that of having your child join another homeschool already in operation.  You may know someone who is currently only homeschooling their children and is willing to take on yours as well.  That is a situation that may work for some.  For details on the laws in regards this, please see your state law website. 

FAQ-What if my child has a Learning Disabiblity/ADD/Autism?

Teaching a child with a disability can be a daunting task.  However, know that you are not alone.  Many parents have found the public school system inadequate for their child’s needs.  More and more, parents are turning to homeschooling as an answer to helping their child learn and cope with day to day life.  There are many advantages to homeschooling a special needs child.  For instance, there are less distractions, the child is able to work at their own pace without the demand to meet somebody else’s time schedule and the stress is greatly reduced when the child is at home, allowing the mind to concentrate on learning.   Homeschooling provides the one-on-one attention that many students with disabilities need. 

Depending on your child’s disability, there are many resources to look into online.  Yahoo Groups offers a wide variety of groups to join so as to gather more info on your child’s particular issue and ways to meet the demand of teaching for your child.  As with everything, you must be guided by wisdom and discernment in regards joining the different groups.  However, most that I’ve seen concentrate on the issue at hand.  Here are a few websites geared toward helping teach the learning disabled student.

http://www.teachingld.org/

http://www.ldanatl.org/aboutld/teachers/index.asp

http://www.ldonline.org/

http://www.ldhope.com/autism_pg3.htm

http://www.kinderart.com/teachers/autism.shtml

Personal Note:  I've had lots of ups and downs and doubted myself along the way with what we've done and how we've proceeded.  I think that's pretty normal.  Not only is each child unique but each family is unique too.  Even if two children were exactly the same, if they are in two different families, what works or helps will be different.  I think if homeschooling is something you have decided to do, you should know that you will have days where you think you just can't do it.  That you need to send your child back to school.  That may be true in some cases.  However, in talking to parents whose children are in public school, I stay happy overall with our decisions.  There are no miracles either way, just hard work and slow but steady progress.

FAQ-What about socialization?

Ahhhh, the dreaded question.  All homeschoolers face this question at some point either from themselves, their spouse, well-meaning relatives or ‘concerned friends’.   To answer this question one must first understand what socialization is.   Webster’s College Dictionary defines socialization as “a continuing process whereby an individual learns and assimilates the values and behavior patterns appropriate to his or her culture and social position”.  As parents we are all very concerned about how our children acquire their “values and behavior patterns”.  It is generally thought in our society that a child is not socialized unless he/she has attended public school.  However, that idea isn’t in line with the definition of socialization.  Let’s think about how we as adults socialize.  Do you always hang out with friends that are the same age as you?  When have you learned the most, when you are with same-age peers or when you’ve socialized with people from a variety of backgrounds and ages?  The same can be said of our children.  They can benefit from a homeschool social scene.  Most homeschool groups are comprised of young people from a variety of ages and backgrounds.  Older students learn to get along with and care for the younger ones.  Compare that with the attitude displayed in public school where the Freshman are made fun of simply because of their age and grade level.  Additionally, homeschool students receive socialization by being in public places such as libraries, parks and stores.  The majority of our lives are spent in these real life social situations, not the artificially created social scenes of public school. 

There are many things you can do to ensure that your student has interaction other than family members.  The best method is to seek out other homeschoolers.  Look for homeschool groups in your area.  Talk to parents at parks.  Many public park recreation departments have classes that your students can participate in.  There are 4-H clubs, music classes, dance classes, horseback riding etc.  Even more can be done when participating in a volunteer work.  Teens, especially, can volunteer at a local museum.  Visit all sorts of places on field trips and you will be exposed to a plethora of situations where your students can “assimilates the values and behavior patterns appropriate to his or her culture and social position”. 

So if someone asks you as a homeschooler, “What about socialization?” you can answer with confidence “Got that taken care of, thank you!”

http://school.familyeducation.com/home-schooling/human-relations/56224.html (article with some quoted research)

http://learninfreedom.org/socialization.html (a little more research)

FAQ-How do I schedule my day? How many hours should we school?

Once again I like to refer people to the internet for the many examples of daily/weekly schedules.  No family will have the exact same schedule.  The wonderful thing about homeschooling is that you can adapt it to your needs.  Generally, the younger students do better schooling in the morning.  With older students, there has been some research suggesting that they may do better getting started later in the day.  It doesn’t hurt to try different approaches until you find what works best for your family.  Some families do school work in the evenings or even weekends! 

 http://simplycharlottemason.com/planning/daily/(how to set up a Charlotte Mason daily schedule)

http://homeschooling.about.com/od/scheduling/a/dailyschedule.htm (click on individual names for more of their scheduling story)

http://www.chartjungle.com/schoolhome.html (free printable pages for you to fill in your schedule)

http://www.donnayoung.org/forms/help/schetips.htm  (scheduling tips and this website has lots of forms as well)

http://heartofwisdom.com/blog/homeschool-organization-morning-routine/  (with military precision)

http://thehomeschoolmagazine.com/TOSEBookSellSheets/Modules/10Planner/10Planner.htm  (an all encompassing planner that many homeschoolers use)

The length of time spent schooling during the day will vary.  Younger students may school for 1-2 hours per day while older students may spend 5 hours per day on their studies.  Another variable is the method of homeschooling you have chosen, in addition to the curriculum.  One piece of advice that I have found helpful (from Charlotte Mason) is to have short periods of instruction.  This serves the dual purpose of keeping the student engaged and focused as well as teaching the student the habit of attention.  If your student knows that they just have to focus on their spelling for say 5 minutes, then they are more inclined to concentrate and put a good amount of effort into those 5 minutes.  If you find your student dragging a math lesson out to half the morning, set a timer.  Currently, my 5 year old son can only focus on math for 10 minutes.  Once he goes over 10 minutes he starts dropping pencils, falling off his seat and mentally heading off into la la land.  In time, I will increase his math allotment to 15 minutes, then 20 minutes, etc.  Sometimes your scheduling must be a building process.   It’s no fun to nag or be nagged at to stay on track.  Short lessons help solve that problem.

As you can see, there is great variety in how people homeschool.  Please remember to use what works for your family.  Time, trial and yes, sometimes error, will get you to your 'sweet spot'.