We got the idea for our “A Day at My School” section from Mary Pride’s magazine Practical Home Schooling. Each issue we’ll feature a home-school student’s journal of a “typical” day at their house along with the tools they use to study. We hope you’ll enjoy a visit to Allison’s school...
Before I begin to describe my school day, why don’t I tell you a little bit about my family, myself, and our interesting lifestyle?
My name is Allison Harden, and lam a 14-year-old home schooler from Cedar Crest, New Mexico. I have two brothers (15 and 10), a nine-year-old sister, and a mom and a dad. We have a home business called Desert Gardens Chile and Spice Company. We invent, package, and sell dried salsa, dips, rice and soup mixes and seasoning blends, and green chile corn breads. We package and ship everything from a big shop on the back of our property. My brothers and I generally work two to three afternoons and evenings a week except during our busy season, commonly known as our “Harvest” (NOW!), when we work quite a bit more.
Apart from our business, we also have a few animals: three horses, a goat, two sheep, a ram, nine chickens, a parrot, two parakeets, four dogs, and four cats. As far as extracurricular activities go, I take ballet lessons, play the piano, sing in our church worship ensemble, and ride our horses. Once a week I attend youth fellowship, where we play sports and have a Bible study taught alternately by each of the teens in the group.
Well, now that you know a “little” about me, why don’t I tell you about a typical day in my quite untypical life.
I rolled out of bed (my dad would say he dragged me) this morning around 7:45 a.m. and slowly began my morning routine of personal grooming, studying my Bible, and eating breakfast. I was then assigned my morning chore which luckily had nothing to do with our chickens. lam not particularly fond of live poultry, and they pretty much return the compliment. Today my chore is to vacuum the top floor.
After completing this task, I attempted to practice my piano lesson. This can be pretty tricky when the business phone is constantly ringing and calling all noise to an abrupt halt.
8:40 a.m. It is now well past time to start school. I begin with algebra. Bad choice! This is the lesson that never ends. After working on it for nearly an hour, I have finally finished one lesson! All right, now for history. Today I read six pages about the Earliest American Civilizations: the Olemecs and the Chavin. Next my mom reads our Rome lesson aloud to us. Today we learned about Cato the Censor. Now it is time for Language Arts. We review subjects in a series and sentence construction, and I work on this article.
1:00 p.m. Lunch! This could very well be the most interesting time of the day in our home. Although lunch is our main family meal, we usually have a few other additions to our table because of our employees. During this time we usually learn and practice sign language because Aurora, one of our two employees, is deaf. Consequently, most of the sign language learned at the table has to do with food, such as: salt, pepper, cookie, pie, popcorn (no, we don’t have popcorn for lunch; it just came up!), coke, cupcake, eat, and most importantly, “How do you sign...?”!
We also learn how to sign quite a bit out in the shop when we are working. For example: bean dip, box, tape, fill, fast, seal, staple, fold, hot, on, off, found, and “I don’t understand. “ (This one comes in real handy!)
If this day were a Monday or Wednesday, then I would be going out to work after lunch; but since it is a Tuesday, I will be going to ballet instead.
1:32 p.m. Okay, with lunch out of the way, it is time to finish up any unfinished school work and get ready for dance. Today we have to leave a little early to get fitted for and buy a new pair of ballet shoes and some new dance clothes.
2:26 p.m. Time to leave!
2:45 p.m. Drop by the bank to cash my paycheck so that I can actually pay for the stuff!
3:57 p.m. Race over to the dance studio.
4:05 p.m. Just finished getting dressed and luckily my teacher isn’t starting yet. 5:30 p.m. We are let out of class half an hour early for my teacher’s going-away pizza party because she is moving to Tennessee to get married. 6:15 p.m. My mom is here to pick my sister and me up.
Everyone else eats dinner (I had pizza), and we swing by Sam’s Club for some last minute Christmas shopping while we are In town. 8:58 p.m. We drive through the gate to our barns to feed the livestock and put them to bed for the night.
9:25 p.m. Time for a shower!
10:14 p.m. Well, it has been along day. Good Night!
Try out some of the Harden’s spices for yourself. They sent New Attitude a gift basket that included great spices, rice soup and bread mixes, seasoning blends and salad dressings. You’ll appreciate the quality of these products all made by a home-school family. Write Desert Gardens, Chile & Spice Co., P.O. Box 777, Tijeras, NM 87059 and ask for your own catalog.
What We Use
CURRICULUM
Math – Algebra 1/2 (Saxon)
Bible – God, Are You There? – Kay Arthur
Self Confrontation – Biblical Counseling Foundation
Language Arts – Understanding Writing – Bradrick Family Enterprises
Handbook of Grammar & Composition – A Beka Book Publications
English Handbook – Rod & Staff Publications
Easy Grammar – ISHA
Easy Writing – ISHA
English from the Roots Up
Literature – David Copperfield – Charles Dickens
Perspectives of Truth and Literature – Christian Light Publications
History – Streams of Civilization – Christian Liberty Press
The Romans – Usborne Illustrated World History
Ancient Rome – Facts on File
Current Events – Bob Jones University Press
Science – Basic Science – Bob Jones University Press
Art History – A Child’s History of Art: Sculpture
A Child’s History of Art: Architecture
A Child’s History of Art: Painting
V.M. Hillyer & E.G. Huey
Masterpieces in Art – Christian Liberty Press
Drawing – Drawing Textbook – Audio-Visual Drawing
Program Artext Reproductions
Music Appreciation – The Gift of Music – Crossway Books
The Spiritual Lives of Great Composers – Sparrow Press
Sign Language – The Joy of Signing – Gospel Publication House
Sign Language for Everyone – Thomas Nelson Pub.
OUR SCHOOL YEAR
1st Quarter: Dec. – Feb.
Bible, History/Geography, Math, Language Arts, Personal Reading
2nd Quarter: March – May
Bible, Math, Language Arts, Science, Personal Reading
3rd Quarter:
June – Personal Reading
July, August – Bible, Math, Literature and related writing assignments, Personal Reading
4th Quarter: September – November (HARVEST!!)
Bible, Math, Language Arts, Personal Reading
Every Friday: Music Appreciation, Art History/Drawing, Current Events, Poetry, Word Study, Sign Language
Daily & Throughout: Piano
Note: New Attitude does not necessarily recommend the products listed here.