Previously posted on November 29, 2015 @ Homescool.ph
As I write this on the 48th day of my Dad being admitted for multiple reasons involving his aging body and ailing health. It has been the most stretching season in our lives yet the most rich in learning, in bonding with family and in love! We rally in prayer to receive God’s blessing,,, Heaven or Healing? They are both miracles in my book.
So, after a long hiatus from blog writing, we are back in business and that it literally in business. One of the challenges for homeschooling families lies in how to attempt to balance the requirements of home and school. However, we somehow consider God as our main principal and life itself as the vice principal. Situations happen, beyond our every aim to control them as “teachers”. So, we embrace LIFE and HOMESCOOL. We embrace the seasons and learn and grow. In 12 years of homeschooling in this manner, I have seen and tasted the most wonderful fruits. Only by God’s Amazing and Boundless Grace.
Being the main sibling/daughter in charge of our parents’ care, I couldn’t really focus on the “Academics” as Dad battled, and continues to do so, for life in the ICU. I had to take duty shifts in ICU, sleep there, meet with doctors, be ready for all calls from the doctors and the ICU nurse, and be the one who constantly updated my other siblings. How on earth can one focus on teaching the regions of the Philippines and converting fractions to percent? How can I get passionately into Shakespeare (which is our unit for Language/History)? So, for the last few weeks, we’ve been mostly into Bible Application/ Christian Living, Art, Science (the ones I love teaching and need the least preparation and energy). We’ve also done a lot of Christmas Season related lessons too so the kids can also help me with preparations for the decoration and gift giving.
So, when I saw this post by Learning Basket’s Rosanne Uson on the coming Kiddopreneur Christmas Bazaar in the Homeschoolers of the Philippines FB page. I knew in my heart, we had to do this. A dear friend asked me how we decide on seemingly “a whim” to ditch planned lessons and get out of “schedule”. How did we just go for it? Well, simply because it has been part of bucket list for our homeschool for many years now. Don’t all homeschooling families have that? So, when there is that “passion to learn” tug in your heart, listen to your heart. Last quarter, for Math/Hele, we began a series on Money and touched on the lessons of Savings and Investments (Bonds, Shares, Mutual Funds) so it was just so apt, even during the Christmas season, to for entrepreneurship.
So, let me share with you our experience in a simple step by step manner.
Sharing the plan/ idea
IN hindsight, if given more time, I should have presented the plan, and let the students think about it and decide. Do they want to join? In reality, when I asked them, I was set to join (he, he).
Given the huge and daily increasing bill of my Dad in the ICU, I also wanted the children to be able to give to our family’s efforts at fundraising.
Let the students do the “bulk” of the work. These are the activities the children got involved in:
- Filling application form
- Setting the business name
- Decision Making
- Enveloping a project in prayer
- Learning about basic entrepreneurship
- Studying a business plan and making one
- Emailing and communicating organizer
- Writing business letters
- Doing research
- Purchasing (visits to grocery, baking supplies store)
- Costing (this was a massive undertaking !!!)
- Product presentation
- Marketing and promotion skills
- Manufacturing (from baking to packing!)
- Division of Labor
- Trouble shooting for the unforeseen!
- Using Social Media
- Photography
- Using Google, creating PowerPoint posters and Excel sheets for inventory
- Lots of Math and Endless Creativity
- Amazing FUN and BONDING while learning
As teachers, we are always tempted to take over. Exercise lots of self-control.
Donna P. Simpao, M.D. 