Still at it..

life is a twisty road. The boys and I are finally settled. They are doing school a little differently now that they are teens. My eldest DJ, on the Autism spectrum, wants medical school. My youngest, who is 13, doesn't know what he wants (he just wants a high paying job! Lol) in 2015, I gave packaged curriculum a try. I purchased Calvert. I was SHOCKED how well it went. When DJ was younger I couldn't even do worksheets. Whenever I pulled out worksheets or textbooks he would wig out. But he's much older now, and we've worked together on finding ways to handle stress. And he has his service dog. So we gave it a shot. It was great! But, it was also expensive. I couldn't continue that program after my separation. So I tried to find a program that wasn't as expensive. It's hard to find an all inclusive curriculum - one that is secular, challenging and doesn't have Common Core. I simply know Time4Learning is MUCH too easy for them. So this year I spent some time trying to find the right curriculum. I finally went with an online curriculum. X-man, my 13 y/o is doing United Digital Learning. They have a bunch of different curriculums and price-points available. I wanted one that allowed for skipping ahead of a child showed proficiency, one without Common Core, and one that let the family set the pace. For DJ it's a little harder. I went with Penn Foster, an online accredited High School (so he will receive a real diploma at graduation.) but it too is much too easy. So I've been trying to keep him stimulated with medical research, science experiments, and he's discovered a love of drawing anime. This is also the first semester we haven't been involved in a co-op. Last semester was a nightmare, with the kids and I trying to find a place to live and the stress of the separation and financial constraints. And I felt that some of the people at co-op took advantage of me rather than assisting me..which is sad. So I quit as the director. And this semester I was supposed to have spinal surgery, so I explained to the kids that we would take a semester off. Well that's our schooling presently!