Homeschooling on a budget (A few tips and tricks)

First of all I'd like to start out by saying Jesse is in 1st grade and since he has Down syndrome it's kind of hard to just go buy a curriculum for a 1st grader that would be tailored to him. Not to mention the state of Michigan sets the bar pretty low for what they expect. So, I've made my own curriculum for him using some ideas from online and from books I get at Barnes & Noble. I have a membership so I get deals and in addition to that when you buy a work book cut the pages out with a razor blade. Then you can make copies of the pages and get more use out of each book. I do worksheets with Jesse every day and sometimes when he needs a little extra time on a specific area we do the same worksheet a couple times a week until he gets the hang of it. So even though I might spend $10 for a work book, I'm making copies of the pages and definitely getting my money back.

Another great resource is Pinterest. If you don't have an account set up with them I suggest to everyone to get one. From recipes, crafts, DIY, fashion, & education it's all there. I swear you will be addicted once you start. Anyway, just go to Pinterest and search under education or kids. There are a ton of resources and ideas on there. Here's my education board. Check it out to get an idea of the things you can find. it's an amazing website and I promise you that you will be able to find a ton of things to help you homeschool your child.

Anyway there are some tips and resources for ya for now. I'll start posting more specific and in depth things we do here at home.

Just a quick update from the Baker homefront

Jesse and I are doing amazing! Life has thrown us some serious curve balls the past few years, but we came out on top.

I have been homeschooling Jesse since October due to our school system being horrible here in this small town. I was nervous about starting the homeschool process, but I soon realized it's not really any different than what I've always been doing with Jesse. The only difference really is that I now don't have any break from Jesse. He has made so much progress since I've been homeschooling it's crazy. It really proved that he wasn't getting what he needed from the school and his teacher this year. I tried to fight for what Jesse needed, but due to neither side willing to budge and Jesse being terrified of school I chose to pull him out.

I plan to start blogging regularly again to share our journey in homeschooling and just share all things Jesse. I mean come on who can get enough of this kid? I sure can't. He's great!

Anyway, I'm back and hoping to try to do at least 1 new blog every week.