Since finding Enki 4 years ago, I have been enamored with the curriculum. It has supported our family beautifully, helping us to find a rhythm that works for all of us. It has helped Rob and I to value the joy and wonder of childhood and to both notice and create magic. It has connected me to a community of mamas who inspire me with their creativity and encourage me with their commitment to teaching and loving their children. For kindergarten and grades one and two with Alybug and Em, I have followed the Enki way and it worked for us. Pumpkin tagged along on crafts and practice work and mostly played during lesson time. It all fit together seamlessly. My girls loved our school rhythms and were enthusiastic learners. And then this fall came- kindy for Pumpkin and grade 3 for Alybug and Em.
It all fell apart. Pumpkin tired of hearing the same story all week long (that's the Enki way for kindergarten) and she wanted "real" schoolwork. Alybug and Em despised the Torah stories. I tried to see meaning and purpose in them, but I came up empty too. Add on to that, little Owl's needs and it's been an adventurous fall semester. We worked with a grade 2 sage- Baal Shem Tov for a few weeks and then we veered toward unschooling. I'm glad for the little anchors that hold our days together. For our schoolwork I've followed along with the girls' interests. For Alybug and Em, that has been horse books. Marguerite Henry is a new favorite author. They're primarily using reading journals- for summary writing and perspective writing. We’re getting some handwriting practice in there too. I add math work into practice time- they're routinely doing adding and borrowing now and are working on multiplication tables. Measurement is a 3rd grade math skill and that has been happening spontaneously in kitchen and house projects. Science just happens with time outside in the natural world. And as for Pumpkin, she loves the town board word family work (which is 1st grade Enki). She’s reading level 2 readers. She’s doing some basic math practice work with addition and subtraction. I find I'm reading more picture books to her with an occasional Enki kindy level story thrown in. And that’s about it for our school time. Many days we do a movement circle, but not every day, and our cultural work has totally fallen by the wayside. I’m thinking in January or February we’ll try the Enki Haudenosaunee 3rd grade unit. Pumpkin will continue to direct her learning and I’ll follow along with her, guiding as best I can. I'm finding a new confidence as I trust my intuition in the girls' schooling and I'm growing less worried about mistakes and missed opportunities.
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3 comments:
I'll be interested to see if the Haudenosaunee unit is a better fit for your girls. The cultural container has been such a huge deal for us that we've actually had to do more of that sort of thing during our 2nd grade blocks, stretching them out to encompass 3 month chunks, which has been problematic for us because it's been hard (ok, impossible...) to sneak in LA Skill and Math stories since they are not from the same culture, throwing the boys (and myself) off of our cool cultural groove. I'm finding I'm doing a lot of catchup with math and LA skills as we are approaching the end of Grade 2. So for us, having all of the LA, Math and Science held within the same culture is going to be an enormous relief and I think (I hope!) will make things easier for me.
Of course, I'm not working with a Kindy student at the same time! Bringing in multicultural tales for one while trying to hold a cultural container for others must be extremely difficult. Honestly, I don't think I'd even try. In my case, since my kids are really into the cultural immersion, I think I'd just stay within the same culture for the little one (which I assume would create extra work, so who knows if I could actually really keep that up if I had to!). But I can definitely see leaning the other way as well, as you are doing. There is certainly no one way to get this accomplished, and anything you do that honors the needs of your family and is chosen conciously is "right".
Looking forward to reading more as you go along! :) We're starting Haundenosaunee in March.
Aren't we being more true to the underlying principles of Enki when we follow our own intuitive guidance than if we force ourselves and our families through prescribed activities that don't seem like a good fit? Neither would we be true to the philosophy (in my opinion!) by carrying out these activities only by shutting down the liveliness and authenticity of our own experience and that of our children. Doing so would not teach any of us anything about following our own hearts and inner voices, which seems to me the essence of the contemplative view of the Torah that we are bringing to the kids (or not, as the case may be!). What I am trying to say here is kudos to you for being brave enough to find your own way(s). Maybe the Haudenosaunee unit will be a way back into the third grade cultural studies. We're also going to start it in Feb or March of next year. We're finishing Torah before Winter Solstice, taking a break for holidays and then a detour into the life and culture of Malidoma Some, returning to the Haudenosaunee in late winter. Whew! Best to you all, Stacey! April in Seattle
April and Harvest Mom,
Thanks for your thoughtful responses. I appreciate your feedback and encouragement. I didn't realize quite how much I'd been needing that... :)
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