Yea!! For Park Day!!

The cooling weather brings people out of the air conditioning and into the fresh air. Where do they go? Well, if you are homeschooling you go to the PARK!! Monday Park Day started back up about 5 weeks ago. Weekly there are several families relaxing by the Big Ship and the Lighthouse Park on the Corniche (also known as the Pirate Ship Park). From about 4 to 6 pm every Monday the moms and kids meet, talk, play and snack together. Everyone was very excited to see the public water park working in front of the Hilton Bainuna as well. This is a new addition that has always been there but didn't have water. Now, along with snacks and chairs, we bring towels to dry everyone off.
Field trip planning is also in full swing. Our first trip is to the Hydroponic Farm outside of Al Bahia this coming Thursday.
More fun to come soon!!

Fall Festival

If you were driving by Guest Palace park on Thursday morning you might have noticed a crowd of mothers, fathers and children having a great time! Over 60 people joined us for the First Annual(ok, maybe it won't be every year, but it could be!) Fall Festival for Homeschoolers in Abu Dhabi. We had games..donut eating contest, cakewalk, horseshoes, beanbag toss, bobbing for apples, and even facepainting. We started the morning with brunch and a moment to share something we are thankful for. The entertainment during the meal was the donut eating contest. The morning progressed with fun for everyone, and some great opportunities to get to know other families in our homeschooling community.
What's next? On November 7th there will be a parents meeting at the Equestrian Club. Check the website for details.
By the way, in case you are on pins and needles wondering who won our donut contests...John Morton came away the winner for the teenagers, and the LaVallees..Victoria for the 10-12 year olds..and Simon for the 6-8 year olds cleaned up in those age groups! I'm afraid I can't remember who won in the youngest category, but I do remember there were a lot of powdered sugar faces!!!

Happy Birthday In the SHADE!

In October 2008, 8 families were gathering together to meet regularly and do field trips.
These 8 families also had a desire to meet others in the homeschooling community from many countries, cultures and faiths. In early October, the idea to form an Yahoo Email Group was formed and within the month, 30 families were a part of this ever growing community! The homeschooling students had a contest to name our new group and "In the SHADE" won, standing for International Students Homeschooling in the Abu Dhabi Emirate.

Today, a year later, 80 families are part of the In the SHADE community, building friendships through the E-group and now, in real life, through ADHSA events and community events, like our perennial favourite - PARK days. Families not just from Abu Dhabi, but the all the emirates, and beyond.

Happy 1st Birthday In the SHADE!!

Off to an Exciting Start!

Off to an exciting start!! On Saturday, October 3, 2009, 70 homeschoolers got together
to kick off the 2009-2010 year with lots of bowling and laughter!! Moms vs Moms, Dads vs Dads
and the students mixing up and playing together. It was a great day.

The Moms Meeting for October was also held and many new families joined ADHSA this year! It was exciting to see familiar faces and new ones coming together for the school year.