CrossFit Athletic Group

I had this idea a while back and finally got around to do it. Josh Bennis, aka the Monkey Man, is doing homeschool this year with Mrs. Bennis acting as his teacher. I wanted to get some background info from Mrs. Bennis, and then I asked a series of questions for them to answer separately.

Enjoy!

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Mrs. Bennis-only questions

When did you decide to have Josh homeschool for this year?

I thought about it during last school year when we were locked down and doing virtual school. We did not have the best experience doing virtual school and I found myself teaching Josh much of what he was working on. Then there was so much uncertainty with school resuming in the fall of 2020, that we (Mr. B and I) talked about homeschooling for a couple months. I consulted with Mrs. Nevarez and Mrs. Busch (long-time homeschool families) and I joined a few Facebook homeschool groups to learn more. We finally decided by the first week of August to order the necessary books and materials.

What does a normal school day look like? (ie. first subject starts at 8 am, then snack, then sext subject at 10 am, etc.)

Start school around 8:30-9am

Depends on work meetings, but we do school stuff for 2 hours or so with 2-3 5-minute breaks for him to swing around.

Piano lessons on Tuesdays (virtual for 45 minutes)

Spanish class (one-on-one tutor) on Wednesdays (virtual for 45 minutes)

Art Club on Fridays at 11am (virtual for 45 minutes)

What was the process like for picking which schoolbooks and worksheets to use? Do they cost a lot or do you just get them off the internet?

I read up on various homeschool programs, books, curriculum. I asked and looked at what Mrs. Nevarez and Mrs. Busch use. I ordered everything from an online homeschool store and it cost around $800 for all the books, paper, and supplies. I prefer paper/pen worksheets vs. online or computer programs.

How do you keep track of grade stuff? What about demerits/detentions?

I do not keep a gradebook. We correct everything together immediately and we review anything he gets incorrect to make sure he understands the process so we can move on or we review again. We do not have demerits or detentions…..but Josh has chores. Josh empties the dishwasher, takes out the trash/brings in the trash cans, and does his own laundry (75% of the time). 

Mrs. B and Josh answer separately

Mallory - not included in the Bennis family (yet)

What was the feeling going into the first day of homeschool? Were you nervous?

Mrs. B- I couldn’t sleep the night before….I was nervous. I didn’t want to “fail” him.

Josh- I felt weird and I was only nervous because mom was going to be teaching me and she was not a teacher.

In what ways is homeschool harder than regular school and in what ways is it easier?

Mrs. B- I have to come up with a lesson plan for the week. This is both hard and easy. It was hard at first to gauge how much work to give him for the week. Josh has no homework….so that makes life much easier at night. We have a lot more free time to do other activities and real life experiences.

Josh- it is harder because I am doing 6-7^thgrade math, but it is still easy for me. It is easier because I am done with school in 2-3 hours every day.

How has doing school from home affected your family life after the school hours has finished?

Mrs. B- We have more time to do other things at night. I am able to flex my work schedule throughout the week-I often have meetings/classes to teach in the evening so that allows me more time earlier in the day to do schoolwork with Josh.

Josh- First, I get to have fun and not have homework. Next, I get to go to 3:30 CrossFit. At regular school, I would not even get out of school until 3:15 and we would not go to CrossFit until later on.

What does Josh Bennis the student need to improve on the most?

Mrs. B- to work more independently

Josh- I need to work on reading comprehension and to work more independently.

What does Mrs. Bennis the teacher need to improve on the most?

Mrs. B- I need to focus more on the subjects I dislike the most.

Josh- She can improve on not giving me so much work and making me stressed.

What was the most difficult/challenging thing you did all school year?

Mrs. B- Allowing our schedule to be unfinished at the end of a week. I like to make a plan, complete all things on that plan, and move onto the next week, but there have been many weeks where we just could not finish everything I had set out to get done. It took me a couple months to figure out that it was ok and that we would get to it eventually.

Josh- memorizing different things

What is your favorite part of the homeschool day?

Mrs. B- watching Josh understand a new concept and really “have the light bulb” go on!

Josh- getting breaks and ending school!

How would you compare your nutrition, sleep, and activity now compared to when you were going to normal school?

Mrs. B- better nutrition overall, more sleep, and much more activity because he takes breaks often throughout the day. I have a standing desk at home for work, use my lacrosse ball to stretch out my bare feet, and we take bike rides together now that the weather is better. Josh takes short mental breaks frequently by swinging on the ninja stuff inside the house, in the backyard, and jumping on the trampoline.

Josh- my sleep is longer, my activity is much more because in normal school I am just sitting in the classroom all day. I get to eat more food and mom makes me warm/cooked meals sometimes.

What is something you didn't know about Josh before doing homeschool?

Mrs. B- I did not know how his learning style and why he struggled in certain areas. Homeschooling has allowed me to focus in on where he needs the most help as well as push him along in other areas that he excels.

What is something you didn't know about mom before doing homeschool?

Josh- I learned that mom can actually teach school.

Do you like homeschool better than regular school?

Mrs. B- I LOVE HOMESCHOOL!

Josh- Heck yay!

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Oh, you thought this was done?

Bonus Mr. Bennis question

Who would win in a playground fight: Josh Bennis at 11 years old or Mr. Bennis at 11 years old?

Mr. B- I would kick his ass! I was much more aggressive at his age with other kids when they would make me mad or when they would pick on the girls.