We started off the school year with a bang. A bang literally in a negative sense. It seems fuzzy now but I remember the resistance Zech put up on day 1 of homeschool. He had completed the God's Creation syllabus and was moving on to learning God's story. Can't quite recall the details but I learned that anything new or unfamiliar will cause Zech to be in stress mode.
There were challenging times but to be fair, it wasn't difficult for Zech to comply. I've seen really tough kids. Zech isn't that tough really. He enjoys reading stories. He loves Science, just like a typical boy. On good days, he likes doing Math. On not so good days, he finds it a chore. He struggled with summarizing stories, which I must admit is a difficult skill for his age. He relied a lot on his memory, especially familiar Bible stories. He can recite the contents of the Old and New Testament like a machine gun. Because of his good memory, he remembers all 29 Bible verses from Proverbs. I can't do it :(. I'm amazed he can even remember most of the chapters and verses from which each verse came from. There are things he dislikes about homeschool. For instance, the phonics drill in the workbook or reviewing memory verses almost daily. However, if you were to ask him, he wouldn't admit it. That's Zechariah.
This was taken during the last week of school. He was completing the last few summaries of the Bible story.
I used to sit beside him and guide him through. One day, he said he wanted to do it independently. I struggled a lot because I'm just not sure what kind of 'rubbish' he would give me. But I guess I need to let go and trust that he's doing his best. We usually did the editing together after that. Many days passed by peacefully, except when Nathanael disturbed him at times.
Something that Zech likes - solving puzzles using pattern blocks.
Our learning journey to the Lighthouse (a school for the visually handicapped) with the homeschool group.
Where the boys had the chance to dramatise the story of Si Ma Guang with other homeschoolers and pupils from Lighthouse.
It was a time to learn about empathy, compassion and acceptance for children from all walks of life.
Our last outing at a nearby park. Watching the trains passed by while reading on the picnic mat and picking up green leaves for leaf printing later were some of the activities the boys enjoyed.
Our last green project for the year. Growing new leaves from a carrot top.
Our young sunflower shoots. The boys planted the seeds and witnessed how it has grown from a seedling to a young plant.
The best part about homeschool was learning God's Word together. Learning the language through the Bible stories was the most enjoyable. The Bible Reader was where Zech learned to read. The context and the teachings that came with it were like a treasure trove. The Bible notebook was where Zech learned to write. Summarising was a difficult skill but he tried. The writing wasn't perfect with spelling and grammar errors but was perfect learning ground for him.
His final project - a show and tell to be presented on graduation day.
Notice the part he wrote about how he likes the Bible notebook? I was pleasantly surprised. All along, I thought he hated it. I guess he's grown proud of his notebook because behind the writing was a lot of hard work and effort.
Our homeschooling journey hasn't been one without tears. We learned to plunge on with perseverance, even on bad days. We picked up the broken pieces and tried to do things better the next time and our journey becomes slightly more pleasant for everyone. Some days were like the calm sea and some days were tensely rocky. It has been a meaningful journey for us. The close bonding between parent and child, the customization of daily learning and spiritual growth together as we discover God's truths revealed in our lives were priceless. With mixed feelings, we have closed this chapter. With much excitement and trepidation, a new beginning lies ahead of us. God has guided us to a school for Zech and we trust that God will lead him to grow in knowledge and stature, in favour with God and men.
