Hi! I'm Laura. It's hard to guess what you might want to know about me, so I'll do my best. I am 42 years old. I was a bit traumatized about hitting the big 4-0 a few years back, but got over it quickly. I actually enjoy growing older (better than the alternative!) and don't believe in lying about my age. Up until May 2011, I was a professional educator for 20 years. I have a BA in Elementary & Special Education and an MA in Special Education. Additionally, I am a certified (AMS) Montessori preschool teacher. I have "taught" children from ages birth-8th grade during my years as a public and private school teacher. I have great respect for teachers and know many who are fully devoted to their classroom and students. My decision to homeschool my sons starting in the fall of 2011 is mainly because "I just wanted to." I am not trying to be evasive or politically correct by stating it this way. It's simply the truth. If you read this blog, I'm sure you will find many posts that expand a bit more on my thoughts about homeschooling and traditional education. For now, suffice it to say, I'm thrilled to be starting this learning adventure with my boys. I know I will always treasure this time with them.
Meet the family:
HUBS is how I will refer to my husband. He is a great guy, but very private. Therefore, I don't anticipate that he will make any major "appearances" here on the blog. Let me just say that I could not do this without his support and encouragement. Thanks, Hon!! Hubs is a college professor in the sciences. His passion for and knowledge of science will be so helpful. The boys are lucky to have such a caring and SMART daddy to lead them.
I will use pseudonyms for my children's names to protect their privacy. You won't see photos of them on the blog as Hubs and I feel strongly about keeping those private as well. However, since they are the only two students in Walnut Hill Homeschool, please allow me to introduce them. (NOTE: They thought of the nicknames all by themselves, so I can't take any credit there!)
SPONGE CAMPER (SC) is my oldest son. He attended public school kindergarten, then switched to a private Montessori school for first and second grade. He just completed third grade at our local public school and will be a fourth grader this fall. He is nearly 10 years old. He loves SpongeBob and camping (thus the nickname). He also plays the piano and is in Cub Scouts. He loves to learn and has always been this way. He prefers to read non-fiction and loves to read about science and math most of all. He especially loves to learn about outer space and would like to be an astronaut someday.
LEGO GUY (LG) is my youngest son. He just finished his kindergarten year at our local public school. As you can probably guess, he LOVES Legos. He can sit and build with his Legos for many hours at a time. He also loves all sports and you will find us watching him "play ball" during all seasons of the year. LG is six years old and starting first grade this fall. He likes to build creations out of recycled materials and also loves to play with cars.
Why Walnut Hill Homeschool?
It occurred to me that some of you may wonder how I happened to name our school Walnut Hill. Well, it's pretty simple. We live in the country on about 2 acres. Our property has several trees with one particularly huge walnut tree in the backyard. For many years, we've had a hammock set up beneath the walnut tree. One of my favorite things to do in the summer is to lay on the hammock looking up into the branches of this magnificent tree. I've done a lot of thinking on that hammock. And for sure I've spent quite a bit of time thinking how wonderful it would be if I could someday quit my teaching job and stay home with my sons. When we finally decided that I could do just that, I wanted to name our school after "my" special tree. Thus the name, Walnut Hill. Plus I like how it sounds.
