Homeschool Curriculum

This should have been posted on 2-24-12. Because it marks a big change in our lives I am including it now. There was originally going to be more to this post but, clearly, things got away from me. :)

Our homeschool curriculum is here! I ordered it two (?) weeks ago. It has been sitting around for a few days. Occasionally I will pick up a book and read/flip through it. I have to say I have mixed feelings. I was really excited when I was ordering. I was anxiously waiting for the package to arrive (it came on Ash Wednesday, coincidence, I think not!).

Homeschool Lesson #1

The Blessed Trinity (3 person's in 1 God)

That was the title of our first lesson. It was really fun. We did it Friday because St. Patrick's day really popped up on me this year. The lesson was about the three person's of God. The Father, Son and Holy Spirit. To help illustrate this image we used three leaf clovers. This really was genius (and not my idea. St. Patrick was the first one to preach this topic using the clovers. That's why they are a symbol of the day!). The clovers have three separate leaves that make up one plant. It's great fun.
I also got some pictures of Kaine. One with him alone, one with his Dad, one with his Grandparents, and one with his Uncle. I labeled the one just with Kaine as "Kaine" and put it at the top. Then I  labeled the rest as "Son", "Grandson", and "Nephew". You then get some yarn. From the first, "Kaine", photo you put yarn going from that picture to the other three. It shows that "Kaine" is also three other people but, he is also still just ONE person. God must have sent me this brilliant idea, I am not that good! Plus, the pictures look really cute on the wall (where we put ours)!
We also had two vocabulary words: Trinity and Mystery. Trinity-The Blessed Trinity; the three person's in one God. Mystery- something we can not fully understand. These two words are perfect for this lesson. "Trinity" of course is the point of the lesson. "Mystery" helps the child know that this concept is a mystery and something we cannot fully understand (I know MANY people who struggle with the concept of 3 people in 1 God).
We also focused on the "Glory Be" prayer: "Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen." This helps reiterate the lesson.
All-in-all, it was a great start to our Homeschooling journey. We are going to do a little bit more on this important subject. We are also focusing on letter sounds. So far, we have done a, b, c and d. Kaine really enjoys this activity. (He has expressed interest in wanting to read. This is one of the first steps!)