The school year is winding down and every year our homeschool group does an event at the end of the year to mark the finish called "Showcase". This is where our kids put together a bulletin board each of what kind of sums up their year. Some of our kids are too young to put something together, but I expect all of the older kids to do something.
This year my husband almost let them get off the hook as he wasn't sure if they all had time with a big quiz meet coming up. But I insisted. It helps them so much to look back and reflect. It makes them wonder, what did I do this year? What area of life and school did I grow in? Try a new thing? Gain another skill? It is always so fun to try and figure out what each child will put on their bulletin board.
Again, my older son had an easy reason to not put one together. He's almost "too cool" for this now as most of the kids at the Showcase are quite young, but I asked him to think about his year anyway. He's going to put together a bulletin board on his co-op at the vet clinic. He's taken the camera into the clinic and taken pictures that he'll display with a little write-up under each picture. I thought it would be so great especially if another child walked by and wondered, "I wish I could be a vet. How did you get that job?".
My oldest daughter will perform a piece on piano, no bulletin board, though if she were to, I would have suggested doing one on CollegePlus. I may end up putting one together for her!
My next son, who is 14, is going to do one on our little horse, Marble. It has been a neat year for him as he has spent a lot of time training him for these cute little Pony Parties. How is that school? Well, he's had to do all the reading and research entirely himself on how to do the training. Then, he disciplined himself each day when school was done and went out there to train Marble. He's done a great job! He's written down each step and has a picture for each thing he did as well. More than anything it's about a little business he has started and it gets him excited, so that's what he'll be talking about.
My second daughter, 11, will be doing multiple things. She always has so many interests and it is hard to keep her to just one thing. She's done very well in teaching herself to paint and draw this year and so she'll be displaying some of her art work. She's also followed in her older cousin's footsteps and has taken on this little cake pop business and will be displaying some of her cake pop designs. She's also started doing more sewing of purses, skirts and banners, so she'll be displaying those as well. So her little table/bulletin board will be full!
My next son is hard to inspire and get excited about things in the same way as his siblings, but we did discover a couple of things he got really good at this year - making candle holders and memorizing Scripture. He'll show all the steps to making the candle holders and then bring one in. He's also got an uncanny ability to memorize Scripture, so I may just have him write about what he's learned this year. There is no Bible Quizzing for his age group, so this year, I've asked my friend if she would consider letting the older kids quiz the younger kids so that they would feel they are "in Bible Quizzing", too. It would give him a great outlet for all his memorizing.
The younger ones will display some of their drawings and art, but no major bulletin board. They're kind of there for the snacks!
For me, the Showcase also reveals time has passed and reminds me of the ups and downs that have happened in the last year. I realize it's been a year now since my miscarriage. It was at the Showcase last year that everyone found out I was pregnant. So sad. But life has gone on and I was carried through that experience. There are all sorts of babies in my life through close friends all around me, so I'll always have a baby around me. No need to stay in a dark place.
Showcase also shows me how my children are growing up and changing, developing skills, not just doing little posters on bugs or snakes anymore. Seeing what all my kids are doing for the Showcase tells me I have a bunch of little entrepreneurs! They are quite determined to make their businesses a go, so it's exciting! I have no personal entrepreneurial experience in my life so I am learning alongside them and am trying to be encouraging even though I have no clue what I'm talking about half the time. I'm just trying to let things unfold one step at a time. Sometimes I'll confide in RM later and say, "Do you think that is really going to work?" about one of our kids' ideas. He always is quick to tell me that even if it doesn't work, they are gaining life experience through it all and that is what makes it worthwhile. Even if they fail.
So, that is why we do the Showcase each year. It forces us to reflect. It forces me to reflect! It is as much for me as it is for them, to be honest. It makes us write down our reflections. Reflecting through writing makes the lessons stick in our heads. It gives each one of us a chance to share what we've learned and tell/show others in a tangible way. It reveals areas of our life to all of us that we didn't even realize we had grown in! It's a reminder that a year has passed. All that through a large piece of cardstock! Awesome.
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