Homeschooling Country Style

Bonnie LarsonUncategorized

Like most of the country, Iowa schools are closed until further notice. Which means we have some extra hands around the place. Now Heather and I are trying very hard to incorporate school into the lives of our sweet children, but they are treating this break more like summer vacation. As in, they see no real need to do any reading, writing, or arithmetic.

So our alternate plan of attack is to teach them “real world” lessons. Like how to work. This works out great for us because we get to use the guise of “homeschooling” while we get a bunch of work done. Win, win!

So the other day, I took a couple little whipper snappers with me to teach them the art of cutting cedars. It’s a very academic and educational procedure you know. We calculated the economic ramifications of leaving cedars unchecked. And then we discussed how cedar trees propagate and spread. It was really a learning experience!

Okay, actually all I told them was that they needed to cut below the very bottom branch, or the trees would come back. But hey! That’s spatial learning, right? Cut below the lowest branch. See, educational. Plus, it was fun!

And these little squirts can work. We made short work of several trees and they’re eager to cut more. And guess what, they’re in luck! We never have a shortage of cedars around here, and if this stay-at-home directive lasts another month, we might just have the cleanest pastures around.

Have a great day!