The Spider Lesson

And this is precisely why I enjoy homeschooling so much:

We have been learning all about the sun in our latest lessons. Today's lesson was about how sunshine can make as feel happy and warm. We were up on the playroom floor and looked up at the sky light to locate the sun. In the middle sky light was a large black spider with a marking on it's rear which at first horrified me.

All three of the kids, though, were absolutely mesmerized. We sat on the floor for about 30 minutes talking about the spider and how she was soaking up the sun's rays just like we were. She moved back and forth checking her new web and the kids talked about every move she made. Even Rebecca laid back in my lap so she could gaze up at the tiny creature. Hannah and Zach tickled me as they ran to their rooms to get their binoculars so they could get a better look.

When Hannah was a baby, I asked a mom at our old church when you start homeschooling with your child. She had 7 kids and I respected her opinions, but I was dumbfounded by her response. She said that homeschooling was more a way of life than something you started and stopped at certain times. I puzzled over this for about 2 years, then I began to understand what she meant. It's called teachable moments. You might have a lesson planned, but you get the wonderful opportunity to adapt it in ways you hadn't thought about before.

I got to teach my kids about the sun's rays in a unique way today because a large and somewhat scary spider took up temporary residence in our sky light. If I had waited any longer, the lesson would be gone. Clouds moved in about an hour later and she moved on to look for some place that had bugs to eat.

Thank you God for the spider you made that helped us learn more about the amazing sun you created on day 4!