It was pouring rain today. All day long. Jacob was home sick - he got a nasty cold virus at the end of spring break & today he woke up with weepy eyes, as if the rain outside had somehow snuck inside of him and started to rain there as well. Bryson Jr. has been having a hard time sleeping at night, for oh what is now weeks, and last night he came into our room somewhere in the middle of the night and said he'd had a nightmare. He camped out on the floor. Again. When I tried to wake him up for school, he was so groggy and cranky and when he said he was tired I believed him. I was too - Emilia had been up and down all night, and I think my total hours of sleep was 5 - but that wasn't consecutive. I decided to just keep the boys home and have an easy day. I'm so glad I did.
I started to think about school. Especially for Bryson Jr. We haven't seemed to struck on the right chord for his schooling as of yet. Although we were excited to find this gifted program at Morningside, the class does not do as many projects as we had thought they would. We love project based learning for all our children, and Bryson particularly needs to be fully engaged in the entire learning project, or he becomes bored. Fast. He tells me almost every day that he doesn't want to go to school because he is bored. He's not making excuses - he truly is bored. He is witty and smart and catches on to things so quickly, so unless there is something that peaks his interest and immerses him in the learning project with as many of his senses as possible...he is bored. I was talking about school options with Brooke last night during our family dinner, and I am still pondering where & when we'll find the right niche for Bryson. I started to search online today at different charter and private schools, and asked the Facebook world if anyone know of some great project based learning schools in the area. In the back of my mind is that thought that perhaps home schooling is in the answer somehow, I'm just now sure how.
I've started to learn that when Bryson wants to experiment and try something out, he has usually got his mind engaged full-throttle and he is going to learn something out of the experience. I haven't taken initiative as I should and might do with these moments to talk about what he is learning and turn it into some lesson...I just want him to experience being a boy, having fun, and connecting some kind of dots somewhere in his head to come to his own 'aha' moment.
Today, I did suggest that we put out a tupperware to catch the rain fall so that we could see how much it rained. He wasn't overly impressed with the rainfall in the tupperware by the afternoon, but something else clicked in his brain, and he quickly donned his rain coat, put on his winter boats (because as he said they are more waterproof than his rain boots - "because snow is more wet than rain, Mom!") and put on his gloves to go out and experiment with the rain falling.
He was so happy to be out there in the rain....I love this smile he flashed once he realized I was taking pictures through the glass door. Not only was he having fun with whatever experiment he was conducting - I was having a good time trying a new setting on my camera and loving the fact that I switched the basic lens for my zoom lens so I could capture his facial expressions better!
I'm not sure what the point was of his "study" this day - it had something to do with trying to transport the extra water that builds up in this little flood zone that accumulates in the backyard and then take the water and dump it in the plants at the back of the yard. He was outside for a good 15-20 minutes just enjoying his little project - so happy to be outside, even though he was sopping wet!
I'm so hopeful that we'll find the right experience for this boy that will take his bright and inquisitive mind and open it up to new and amazing ways of discovery! Having boys I have noticed how much more they need the physical exertion when they are learning - it truly is a whole-istic experience for them, especially for this boy! When he has the opportunity to get his whole body into what he is wanting to do, than he is ready to learn.
How lucky we are that we have this life to experiment, learn and grow.
No comments:
Post a Comment