Sports and Homeschooling

Sports has and always will intimidate me! Growing up my parents gave me a taste of a few different things but I didn't delve into anything and didn't experience a team sport. With our kids we didn't have a plan in mind when it came to physical activity. I just wanted them to try a variety and have a good sense of physical health. We want them to find activities that they enjoy that they can take into adulthood. Many of these extracurricular activities are a stand in for the physical education. So far the year is going really well and everything has just slipped into place.

Mason is taking Aikido once or twice a week. He goes to a FANTASTIC dojo in Kitchener and has a Sensei who is highly experienced, traditional, and does what he does because he loves it and loves Japanese culture. It's relatively inexpensive compared to many local martial arts. On Fridays he's participating in tennis at a local tennis club. He's with a group of homeschool boys all between the ages of 6-8. They're a really great group and we're thrilled with the lessons. He loves it! He also does a shared swimming lesson with Mickey and has plans to try snow boarding this winter. We're working on this one!

Mickey is of coarse (as mentioned a few times in the past) is in a pre-competitive gymnastics program. This activity is so different from everything else we are currently experiencing or have experienced in the past. Most activities teach the kids the skill and gives them a taste of the sport. In a pre-competitive/competitive program they are training her to be an athlete. This has been a HUGE hurdle for me. Not only is it scary to watch... seriously it is... but I've really had to take a step back and relinquish control to a coach who spends 6 hours a week with my child. We take this program day by day and although there are sometimes tears and difficult challenges she still seems to love it. Actually she seems to love it more and more each day. Hard to believe. I think this is what makes our decision as parents so difficult. Tears + love of sport = confusion for mom and dad!

Here's some photos of some of the activities:

Tennis





Aikido




Gymnastics in the family room:



Check out Mason's face! Priceless.