PNG Recce

 PNG here we come.  Next week Marcus and I fly out to PNG for a look at an amazing missionary organisation called CLTC (Christian Leaders Training College).  CLTC is situated in the Wahgi Valley at 5,500 ft, 60km east of Mt Hagen. The campus covers 400 acres of pastoral ground, and incorporates a Bible College, commercial beef, poultry and gardens programs. We understand it is quite a strategic mission, they not only equip Melanesians to pastor their own peoples, they self fund enough to reduce the costs to the students. They also do humanitarian work with the local village women.

And while we are there, these two cheeky boys are going to be having the holiday of a lifetime with friends and their families.

This photo was taken the last day of school. I could guess what they were laughing about, it most likely wasn't polite.  They find those jokes the funniest!

So why am I documenting the process?  Well at this point in time the boys don't know what 2013 is shaping out to look like.  Neither do we, but they are totally in the dark on this.  We decided that to home school was  a big enough transition to make without the prospect of moving countries and away from their friends.  So to avoid unsettling them any more than necessary at this point in time, we are keeping this information to ourselves.  However we would love to show them how we came to seeking out this opportunity, so what better way than to start a blog for them.  They will take over the blog once school starts or when we leave NZ.We hope it will be our family/homeschool blog.

Exemptions

Exemption!  The word can put the fear into any prospective homeschooling parents heart.  I can only speak for myself when I say putting together a detailed description of what and how I am going to teach my children was daunting.  Thankfully I had a few friends who had been down that path and were able to help me.  Still after submitting a detailed and lengthy document, I was still lacking in the area of maths.  It was time to avoid my lack of maths appreciation and dive into some research.  Bottom line, I wanted to stick with the curriculum that my children were being taught in school.  I think it is a very valuable way to learn numeracy, strategies are taught then after children are taught to think around a problem they are taught how to work it out on paper.  For someone who was taught by rote, and now has forgotten so much of it, thinking strategically about problems was a skill I naturally developed since I had forgotten the process taught. With these new tools under my belt I began to write out my plan for Maths.  I struggle to believe I am saying this, but I'm actually looking forward to it.

Once I have submitted my Maths plan, I hope to achieve the exemptions.  Then by that time it will probably time to leave the country and we won't need them anyway!  Such is life, and the experience of writing an exemption should prove useful, as I am bound to have to do it all again at some point.

Praying for the big tick from the Ministry of Education.