Eliza is 3, turning 4 in December. We decided to homeschool for preschool for a couple of reasons:

1. The main reason is that Eliza and I were apart for most of 6 months during Oliver’s treatment in Seattle. We were together on weekends but I felt like I missed out on daily life – meal times, bedtime routines, etc. Having this extra time with her will not be taken for granted!
2. The doctors also recommended that we keep Eliza out of preschool/daycare/Sunday School situations as long as Oliver is on immune suppression drugs since so many kids get sick in those places. We do not want Eliza to get sick and need to go to the emergency room for a fever and we especially do not want Oliver to get sick and need to be admitted to the hospital for a fever.

We plan to homeschool for this year and next year. Kindergarten is still undecided but Eliza will most likely head into full-time “normal school” for first grade. She may require some extra support at school due to being blind in one eye, but we will figure that out when we get there. As far as we know she has no learning or social delays related to NF1 or her chemo treatment. Her only NF1 related delay that we know of is gross motor skills (like running, jumping, balance). She is in gymnastics and that has helped her strength and coordination quite a bit!

I bought the curriculum Playing Preschool which introduces the alphabet and foundational skills that kids will need for entering kindergarten through play-based activities. I am also supplementing a little bit with a Bible curriculum called Bible ABC.

We do school on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. Mondays are Children’s Hospital days and I work Wednesdays. Our routine typically goes: Calendar time, song & poem, picture book, craft/activity. This routine typically takes between 30 minutes to 2 hours depending on what the craft is and how much attention span we have to work with that day!

After a chaotic year I am really looking forward to spending time with both Eliza and Oliver learning and playing at home!