Well Trained Homeschool

The Homeschool Channel's Live Webcast!

2012-01-18T20:59:00.000-08:00

For those of you who don't know about The Homeschool Channel it is an interactive social network that not only displays visual media about and for homeschoolers but it also has blogs, forums, and groups for support of homeschool families. I have been a member since it 1st got started. Just recently they made some major changes to the format of the programing. They went from a playlist of shows played continously throughout the day to including interactive webcast every Tuesday and Wednesday at 4:30pm(eastern) where you can chat live with the presenter. I liken it to attending a mini Homeschool Convention in the privacy of your own home. If you are constantly trying to stave off burnout or need a little information or direction than I would definitely check them out.

Curriculum Changes- Grammar

2012-01-17T16:20:00.000-08:00

When we first started formal grammar lessons with my oldest we began by using First Language Lessons by Susan Wise Bauer at Peace Hill Press. Back when we purchased it they had the combined level 1&2 book. I learned later they started using 2 separate books for those levels. I am glad I was able to purchase it together when I had a chance cause I saved some money that way. I loved FLL(First Language Lessons) for those 1st two levels. It was a gentle yet thorough start in grammar basics.

The problem came in the program for me when looking into the 3rd level. While I was looking into the scope and sequence and even some sample pages I began to get the impression that it was going to be more of repeat of the last two levels with just a little jump in difficulty. The only big difference was the introduction of diagramming. I just think at this stage in my child's development it was just moving way to slow. So I began my search for another program that would include more rigor and also introduce diagramming and not break my already tight budget. That is when I found Rod and Staff English.

Rod and Staff is published by the Anabaptist Church which are Mennonites. They have conservative Christian views and believe in a solid no nonsense no fluff and glitter approach in there curriculum. I was able to get the 2nd and 3rd grade textbook(non consumable) and teachers guides at our local homeschool conference used book sale for very cheap. I also can find them used at local homeschool bookstore as well. They come with test booklets and worksheets sold separate but I didn't bother with those.

I thought over the summer I would do a few units in the 2nd grade level to get her used to the R&S method before starting the 3rd grade book. It proved to be a good thing cause unlike First Language Lessons R&S requires more sentence writing in the lessons which is something I loved for this particular child. Keep in mind that if your child is not strong in handwriting and gets frustrated very easily I would either choose a different program or if you do decided on R&S English that you might consider letting the child work the problems on a dry erase board rather than keeping a notebook.

Now with FLL there were elements that we had become accustomed to being included every few lessons that R&S does not appear to include in the same way thus far and that is Poem Memorization and Parts of Speech Memory Work. So I added those in myself just to bridge the gap between programs. R&S will eventually have a unit on poetry but its not a part of the lessons throughout like FLL. I also wanted to continue to create those grammar memory pegs so we have our grammar memory on flash cards now and we review them every week and add in more as we are introduced to a new concept. She is also getting some of the extra grammar practice in our latin curriculum that we started this year as well. We are using Prima Latina through Memoria Press. I will do a review on that at a later time. For the poetry I have the children pick a poem book from the library each week and the select one that they want to learn. We have them copy it down in a notebook for copywork and then make an illustration. I also have my oldest learning a famous speech. We try to memorize at least 2 each year. Last year she memorized and recited Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I have been to the Mountain Top" and Emperor Halie Selassie"s(Ethiopian King) Speech to the UN. I selected an excerpt from both cause they were obviously way to long to do in its entirety. We learned a few lines each week. We just keep adding on till it was all learned. And then we would have her recite it in public. She recited in front of a Sunday School group and once at a Homeschool Group Park Day. You can find up to 100 different famous American Speeches at American Rhetoric. This year we haven't decided on one yet but I was thinking of having my son and my daughter do the last part of the Dr. King's "I Have a Dream" speech together. And that still leave one more. I was thinking maybe learning the Preamble to the Constitution.

My son started FLL level 1 this year as well. I am hoping to follow the same pattern with my son so he can use all his sisters books. That is just one more way I can save money in our homeschool. If there is one thing I have learned through our homeschool journey and that is to stay flexible. I can change whatever needs to be changed to help my child grow best. I don't have be stuck with any particular curriculum.

Supercharged Science Course!

2012-01-11T09:23:00.000-08:00

Two months ago we had the privilege of joining in on a web based Free Astronomy Class hosted by Aurora Lipper at Supercharged Science. It was awesome to say the least. Ms. Aurora went through the entire solar system starting with the sun and including nebula's, black holes, major constellations, and even the best times of day to view the sky for certain things without a telescope. What I liked best about her teaching style is that she is very interactive and instead of dumbing things down for a younger audience she just explains thoroughly to bring kids up to her level. So I recommend her eclasses for all ages even adults.

Now she does offer a Trial 1 Month Membership to the site after the free class. Its just $1.00 for the 30 days. It cost more after that though. We went ahead and signed up for the trial. For signing up we received a free DVD with lots of great information on how to use the site and easy to do at home experiments to help get your feet wet into the Supercharged Science way.

The Site set up hits many different learning styles. In each unit she includes an article of text, a instructional video with step by step experiment, and a pdf file of downloable printable textbook and lesson plan materials.

Although my 7yr old and I thoroughly enjoyed our Supercharged Science experience I have to say that I think that a middle school or high school level child would gain the most benefit from the program.

Even if you are not able to sign up for a membership at this time don't forget to sign up for the free weekly newsletters chalked full of great information and sometimes a heads up on a free presentation of webcourse offer.

As far as worldview from what I can gather from the one live class that we took and the experiment videos and articles I cannot see an overtly creationist nor darwinistic worldview. She seems to be just shooting straight science. But do not quote me on that please call and ask yourself if you have a particular worldview that you want to make sure the curriculum would be a good fit for.

Its been a while!

2012-01-11T08:08:00.000-08:00

I know it has been months since I have updated my blog here. But really I have been adjusting to life as a new mother of 4. Now that baby boy is almost 6 months now I feel like I am back in the swing of things. He is a very good baby its just that I have had a harder time getting my routine back then I have with previous births. His temperment has help the adjustment though. I can say he is more of an arm baby than the others were. But you know what I notice is that he seems to be more secure than the others as well. I really wonder if wearing him and holding him and not letting him cry it out has anything to do with it. lol!

Well anywho I wanted to just give a couple updates on how homeschooling has been going this year. We have has some curriculum changes and I am still trying to get my schedule to run smoothly. I have wrote our a schedule based off tips I got our of Managers of Their Homes by the Maxwell's. I am going to try to give a review of that when I get a sec. It was a good tool. I also recently bought Large Family Logistics last week for my birthday so once I get that one read I will give my take on that one as well.

I can say that even though this year has been full changes and adjustments the children still seem to be thriving academically. It goes to show that no matter how we may feel we are not doing enough or doing it right the children will still learn. Learning is happening all the time. Education is not exclusively held in textbooks and workbooks. Having all that being said. I am going to post some pics for schooling moments this school year thus far.

Free Webinar Series: How To Prepare Your Children To Be Influencers Who Can Lead

2011-07-25T06:32:00.000-07:00

I got this link today in one of the many homeschool newsletters that come in my inbox and thought I would share this with everyone. There are two speakers on the roster that I always enjoy and that is Doug Philips from Vision Forum and Andrew Pudewa from IEW(Institute for Excellence in Writing). Here is a brief discription of what this webinar series will cover.

5 Christian Leaders. 5 Exclusive Webinars. One Mission: Leadership
Homeschool families know a little something about high expectations. One of the biggest expectations is that your homeschooled children become leaders and culture influencers. Talk about pressure.

But what does true leadership look like? And is there a difference between being in leadership and being an influencer who can lead? A person cannot lead if nobody is willing to follow.

For the first time ever, Doug Phillips, along with trusted Christian leaders like Chuck Bentley (Crown Financial Ministries), Dr. Jeff Myers (Passing the Baton & Summit Ministries), and others, will converge to present a powerful and focused series on children and leadership, from a homeschool perspective.

This webinar series will give these leaders, who understand homeschooling, a platform to cast a vision for what it means to be one who leads. And to give you deep insights, and practical, real-world action steps you can use to lead your children to become people who lead in thought, character and action.

The first webinar, in this series of five, is with Doug Phillips. Doug’s webinar is on Tuesday, August 2, 2011. When you register now, you will get free access to all five webinars in the series.

Space is extremely limited and will fill up fast.

Your time is valuable, and you want the very best for your children. So, if seeing your children emerge from high school or college with the skills and competencies to lead and dynamically impact the culture is your desire, don't miss this unique opportunity.

Back to(Home) School Blog Carnival!

2011-07-04T09:29:00.000-07:00

I have decided to particpate in Classic Housewife's Monday Blog Carnival for Back to Homeschool.

The particpants will be sharing curriculum advice, organizing ideas, record keeping tips, etc...

As you guys know I have already done some of those things in the past few weeks so I will just continue to add tips and info to help get folks ready for this coming year. If you get a chance take a hop over to the link and add your own blog if you have something to share as well.

The Super Mom Myth!

2011-06-24T20:13:00.000-07:00

After homeschooling for a few years now I notice that I am no longer being hit with the socialization questions anymore. The focus is now on how much of a "Supermom" I am for taking on all that responsibility. So many moms like to say how they could never do what I do cause they are not "Supermom" like me. They tell me how they struggle with what they think are the smallest of task like potty training or cooking meals and they somehow think I have never been where they have been and I have it all together. My response to this is are you kidding me. I am a real life mom I don't play one on T.V. Every mom has her struggles. What I really think folks neglect to realize is that every mom has there strengths as well. We really need to to as women and mothers stop comparing ourselves to others cause the area that I am blessed in might not be the area you are blessed in. But you know what we are all blessed and we can all be a blessing to our husbands and children.

I am a big believer in playing to ones strengths. I am a very analytical thinker and I am good at planning and creating structure. So I have been able to bless our homeschool with this gift to help us reach our goals. But at the same time I struggle with clutter and completing household task in a timely fashion. I may be able to create a homeschool curriculum from scratch for free or make homemade bread but my laundry sits for days before I get around to putting it away. I also struggle with staying consistent with my prayer time as well. But you know that may not be my strong suite but that doesn't mean I can't learn or acquire new skills to help improve on what is already naturally there. I have some sister friends who are good in these areas where I am not and we are able to pick each others brains and lift each other up in encouragement.

I think we all have something to offer and at the same time we need to realize its never too late to learn either. "Supermom" is a myth. Just like Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny we have to let go.

More Used Curriculum Finds!

2011-06-19T10:33:00.000-07:00

So I was able to get another used curriculum sale this past week at a local church. I love when I get around to a sale ran by a church that supports its homeschool ministry cause you can find so much great and popular curriculum and low prices. So I just wanted to share with you what I found. I was getting things on my curriculum list that I talked about in other post this year.I was staying withing the boundaries of what I actually needed which felt good. I did find some things that were not exactly what I planned on using but turned out to be a blessing in the end. So a tip is if budget is your decision maker with curriculum shopping always be prepared to substitute an item for something else to save on price. I also go for things that are non consumable verses consumable so I won't have to buy new pieces to it when I get ready to use it for the next child. I paid a total of $58 for items that would have been over $200 if I would have bought new and I would have had to pay the shipping.

Here is the list of what I was able to get:

Five in a Row Christian Character and Bible Supplement by Jane Claire Lambert
Stories About God's People Rod and Staff Reader Series level 2 Teachers Guide
Rod and Staff English Grade 2 teachers guide and student text( got this off the free table)
Rod and Staff English Grade 3 teachers guide and student text
Pathway Readers Grade 4 w/ teachers text
Pathway Readers Grade 1 w/ 1 workbook
Abeka Aesop's for Young Readers
Rod and Staff Music workbooks grades 1,2, and 3
Green Leaf Press Guide to Old Testament History
Life on the Indus River Valley
Rocks and Minerals easy reader
Rocks and Fossils teachers suppliment worksheets
God's Design for Heaven and Earth Our Planet
God's Design for Heaven and Earth Our Weather and Water
Singapore Math 3A textbook
Singapore Math 3 Challenging Word Problems

In all for next years curriculum I have spent $154. It is my goal to keep things under $300 for all three children. This includes school supplies(which I wait for back to school sales) printer ink, and whatever else misc I have to get. I am also considering frugal clothing options for this coming year as well. I was thinking of going to the thrift stores and other outlets to get different color polo shirts for everyone and khaki pants and skirts. Its seems a little uniformish but I think in the long run if will save money and I can have the kids coordinated pretty well on field trips. You can always finds polo shirts and khakis at the thrift stores all the time and I think they go from casual to dressy pretty well.

Steps to Creating Your Own Curriculum!

2011-06-09T22:51:00.000-07:00

After many a request and conversation with new and even seasoned homeschooler friends and subscribers I decided to put together some easy to follow comprehensive steps to making your own homeschool curriculum. I also took the liberty of including some instructional videos to go along with the worksheet.
Here are the:

Steps to Creating Your Own Curriculum Worksheet

Methods of Homeschooling

Top Curriculum Choices Elementary Level

Top Curriculum Suppliers and Stores ( the stores are localized to GA but other suppliers are on the web)

Frugal Kitchen: Easy Maple Granola!

2011-06-08T17:09:00.000-07:00

Easy Maple Granola

Ingredients:

2 cups rolled oats

2 TSP flax seed

1/3 cup chopped walnuts(optional)

1/3 cup Coconut oil

1/3 cup Maple Syrup

1 TSP Vanilla Extract

Directions: preheat oven to 350 degrees. I mix all dry ingredients together then mix all wet ingredients and add them into the dry mix and stir thouroughly. I spread the wet granola mix onto a cookie sheet and bake for about 18- 20 minutes till mixture is dry and golden brown. Stir it a few times during baking to make sure edges dont burn.

For this recipe I double to feed my family of 5.

Variations: After mix comes out the oven I add cinnamon and raisins. You add your favorite spices and dried fruits after it comes out the oven.

Homemade Dairy Free Milk Alternative!

2011-06-08T16:55:00.000-07:00

Homemade Rice Milk

With me growing up lactose intollerant and my kids being raised on dairyfree milks I was happy to start finding ways to make them myself. I mean 1 quart of the least expensive Rice or Almond Milk cost me about 1.79 each so when I found this recipe on youtube I knew I hit the jack pot. It came out right too.So I think we areo going to keep this recipe in the family book.

Here is the video I got it from:

Curriculum 2011- 2012

2011-06-07T16:47:00.000-07:00

3rd Grade(7yr)- Girl

Hebrew Studies- Various Resources

Math- Singapore Math 2A and 2B

Reading- Pathway Readers 3rd Grade and Required Reading List

Spelling- Sequential Spelling level 1(finishing up last few lessons) and level 2

Grammar- Rod and Staff English Grade 3

Latin- Song School Latin(we didn't start Latin this last school year like we thought so we are going to start with this program that got such great reviews)

History/ Geography- Asian History Cycle 2, Kingfisher History Encyclopedia(spine text)

Course of Study Asian History Cycle 2

Middle East

Hittites
Babylon
Assyrians
The Hebrews
Babylon Revived
Persian Empire
Judea
Parthians and Sassanids
Islam 622- 750 A.D.
The Seljuk Turks
Israel 1948- 1949

India

Indus Valley
Aryan India
Maryan Empire
The Gupta Dynasty
The Moguls
India in Transition
The British in India
Indian Independence/ Gandhi

China

Shang Dynasty
Zhou Dynasty
The Qin Dynasty
Han Dynasty
Sui and Tang China
Song Dynasty
The Mongol Empire
Ming Dynasty
Qing Dynasty
Trade in China
The Opium Wars
The Boxer Rebellion
China 1911- 1935
China and Japan at War
Communist China

Japan

Japan 300 B.C.- 800 A.D.
Fujwara Japan
Shoguns and Samurai
Japan and China 1467- 1644
Japan in Isolation
Japan and Southeast Asia
Japan 1853- 1913

Russia

The Ottoman Empire
Russia 1462- 1613
The Ottoman Empire 1602- 1783
Russia 1917- 1924
Russian Expansion 1613- 1725

South East Asia

The Khmer Empire
Southeast Asia 1800- 1913

So we are going to do history 3 days a week. 1st day is reading from the history encyclopedia and doing mapwork, 2nd day will be extension readings we get from the library or education videos or trips, then the 3rd day will be notebooking and lapbooking.

Science- Earth Science and Astronomy Cycle, Apologia Exploring Creation with Astronomy, Usborne Science Encyclopedia, DK Rocks and Minerals, Galileo for Kids God's Design for Heaven and Earth

Handwriting- Handwriting Without Tears Grade 4 cursive
(this was a success from last year that we are sticking with)

Writing- Writing Strands Level 3

Art- Discovering Great Artist

Music- Usborne 1st Book of Recorder and Rod and Staff Music Grades 1 and 2

First Grade(4yr)- boy

Hebrew Studies- Various Resources

Math- Singapore Math 1A and 1B

Reading- Pathway Readers Grade 1, Easy Reader Reading List(building fluency since buddy boy finished is phonic already) also some Literature Lapbooks

Grammar- First Language Lessons level 1 and Explode the Code level 2

Handwriting- Handwriting Without Tears 1st Grade

He will be sharing Latin, History Geography, Science, Art and Music with his older sibling so that is the same as above.

Preschooler(2yr)- girl

Her curriculum is going to be more Montessori based and focused mainly on life skills and basic letter and number recognition. I joined some great Montessori make your own Yahoo Groups as well finding some step by step instruction sights that are going to be helpful with this endeavour.
Here they are:
Montessori Makers
Montessori by Hand
Wikisori
Montessori Primary Guide

Practical Life-

Button, zip and buckle
lacing and beading
setting the table
fixing snack
cleaning up

Language Arts-

letter sounds
short vowel words
letter recognition
classical children's read aloud's w/ lapbook activities

Handwriting

Writing in rice, sand or beans
forming letters with play dough
cookie letters
cutting and pasting paper
drawing lines, circles, swiggles and zig zags
tracing letters on paper

Math

number recognition( sand paper letters)
patterns(blocks, cubes, and toys)
sequence
counting with manipulatives
abacus math
shapes
colors

Science

creation
seasons
days of the week
months of the year
animal life cycles(butterfly and frog)
sprouting seeds
animal habitats

Geography

Our World
Continents
Oceans
Countries
States
Cities
Communities
Maps

So this is the "PLAN" hopefully we follow something close to this. I have most of this stuff bought already with the exception of a few that I am waiting on Grandma to pitch in and get the rest for us. Those used curriculum sales really helped a lot.And I have a friend that helped me discovery Ebay and Half as well that might have to be the works. If I cant get the final items though there is always supplementing with my all time favorites Lesson Pathways and the Public Library.

Frugal Kitchen: Barley Soup(vegetarian)

2011-05-15T11:26:00.000-07:00

I made this delicious soup last night on the fly. I kind of just threw some things together that I had that needed to be used in the fridge and threw the barley in to bulk it up and make it more hearty. This was my first time cooking with barley as well. I have had barley bread when I made it into a flour but I haven't gotten around to using it as a grain. It turned out pretty good. Here is what I used:

Barley Soup(vegetarian)

2 cups pearl barley(hulled)
4 medium potatoes(yukon gold)
4 carrots(diced)
1/2 onion(chopped)
2 stalks of celery(chopped)
2 cloves of garlic(minced)
vegetable broth or water enough to fill pot
2 tsp thyme(dried)
2 TSP parsley(dried)
1 TSP garlic salt
2 TSP olive oil
1 can diced tomatoes(8oz)
1 can kidney beans(8oz)
1 can chickpeas/ garbanzo beans(8oz)
salt and pepper to taste

First I take all the veggies and the fresh garlic and saute them at the bottom of the pot with the olive oil till the onions soften and they sweat a little. Then I add in the spices except for salt and pepper(save that for last). Then I add in the tomatoes, and beans and add the stock or water. Let it come to a boil and add the barley. I then covered the pot and simmered on medium low till the barley expand and all the veggies soften. Then I sprinkled in some salt and pepper to taste. I used a large pot so its enough soup for my family of 5 for 2 days.

I also served it with cornbread.

Cornbread

1 1/2 cup cornmeal( fresh mill popcorn makes cornmeal in the wondermill)
1 cup flour( used hard red but any all purpose will work)
1 TSP baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 TSP sweetener
1 cup milk
1 egg
1/4 cup melted butter

I mix all dry ingredients first then mix in all the wet. I take the butter and put in the cornbread pan to melt in the oven. I then take and pour the melted butter in the rest of the batter and then put the mix into my pan. I bake on 400 degrees for about 15- 20 minutes.

Birthday Cupcake Fun with my Big Girl!

2011-05-15T09:37:00.000-07:00

My big baby turned 7 this past week. I can't believe how time flies right. But we just had a little family dinner and cupcake party. It was a very hot 90 degree weather day so we did all indoor things till the sun went down. Which is why you see the kids riding there bikes in the dark. But its funny cause I had a "You know you are a homeschooler when..." moment on her birthday cause she got a visa gift card from grandma and excitedly proclaimed she wanted to go to Barnes and Nobles! LOL! We are such geeks right! But she found a cute little art set and got a few chapter books for fun reading and got her brother and sister a book as well. My little man of course found a Star Wars easy reader and my baby girl got The Very Hungry Caterpillar. So when we got back to the house I was wiped out cause I am about 32 weeks pregnant now and just going from one chair to the next makes me tired. lol! But my birthday girl wanted baked pasta with red sauce and cheese with salad. This was her request. And by some miracle I manage to get up enough strengh to make her the best Chocolate Cupcakes with Cream Cheese frosting ever.

Here is the Cupcake and Frosting recipe:

Cupcakes:

1 1/2 cup flour( soft white wheat)

1 cup sucunant( cane sugar)

1/2 cup cocoa powder

1 tsp baking soda

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 tsp salt

1/3 cup coconut oil

1 TSP vinegar

1 tsp vanilla extract

Mix all dry ingredients first. Then add the rest of the ingredients. Bake on 350 degrees for about 25- 30 min.

Cream Cheese Frosting:

1 8oz pk cream cheese(soften)

1/2 cup butter(soften)

1 1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

optional: food coloring for to add color

whip all ingredients with electric mixer on high till smooth.

Loaf Bread or Bun Recipe!

2011-05-13T17:12:00.000-07:00

So as you know I have been enjoying my wondermill for a few months now. Well I am trying things out and building up my recipe arsenal. I have finally came up with a great loaf or Bun recipe. The bread comes out soft and moist. Now keep in mind I am no kneading expert as of yet so I still use my Sunbeam bread maker to mix and kneed. But this is what I use:

Loaf Bread or Bun Recipe

4 cups Flour( fresh milled hard white or hard red wheat )
1 1/2 cup warm water
1 egg
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup butter
2 TSP Honey\
1 packet Dry Yeast(not sure of exact amount cause I just buy packets)

Now once the bread is done kneading and rising I pour on the floured counter top and form into my loaf shape or hamburger buns. It makes either 2 loaves of bread or about 9- 12 burger buns. I then place in greased loaf pan or cookie sheet and place a damp cloth on and let it proof for about 20- 30 more minutes while I preheat the oven for 350 degrees. I just bake until golden brown which I think is about 25 mins or so. depends on your oven I guess. Delicious!

Think About it Thursday: Who is the Authority of Your Homeschool!

2011-05-12T07:31:00.000-07:00

So it's that time of year when I start to see and hear more and more post about homeschool parents feeling like they are "Falling Behind", "Missing Something", "Failing there Children", and so on and so forth. It seems like right as the year comes to a close is when the demon of Self Doubt rears his ugly head and even some of us seasoned homeschoolers can't manage to escape his possession. You would think a group of parents who stepped out on faith and took the plunge into the pool of home education have to be some of the most confident parents on the face of the earth. Well that is just not true. We are all human and we are all subject to insecurities. Especially in a culture that is against the family its hard to be Set Apart at times. But this is why I pose the question today to my fellow homeschoolers "Who is the Authority of Your Homeschool?".

Based off what your answer is should reveal exactly where these emotions of self doubt come from especially if you are unsure of the answer. If you don't rightly know that is okay its never to late to have a Vision/ Mission for your homeschool but I do think that it is imperative that every family have a goal in mind and stay true to that vision throughout there home education journey.Everyone is measuring themselves up to some standards. The question here is "Who's standards are you measuring your family against?".

I am going to give some examples of where I have found most homeschoolers to fit into when it comes to there measurement standards.

Public School Standards- For some families they homeschool only to have there children at home and so there educational standard is measured by what the local Public School is doing cause they are still the authority of education in there home even though the schooling takes place in the home. In this scenario the parents have not fully taken advantage of the freedom of homeschooling to create there own goals and vision. This could be for many reasons from thinking they are not an expert in education so they couldn't possibly make the standards or it could be that its just not of any importance to them they just want to be at home and not have to focus on anything else. The problem with this method that parents run into is that if the "Homeschool" based curriculum they selected for the year is somehow not adding up or covering everything on that local Public Schools scope and sequence than there begins the panic and race to catch up or fill in the gaps to measure up to that Public School Authority. Well I have lots of friends who have taught as PS teachers are still are PS teachers and they always make sure to tell folks that they never finished a textbook or curriculum by the end of the year. That is whey most Public School Text repeat the same info from the year before for the first 3 months of the new school year. Its basically a review of the year before. Think about all the snow days, teacher institute days, holiday breaks, spring breaks and so on that they take during the year yet us homeschoolers feel guilty for taking a day or two off for a personal day or what ever. We just need to put things in perspective.

Academic Standards- For some of us homeschoolers we are totally engulfed with a educational philosophy or method rather that be Classical, Charlotte Mason, Montessori, Unit Study, Unschooling, etc... I started out homeschooling with a strictly academic vision in mind that eventually evolved into something much more in the end but I think its typical for some parents to start out with purely an academic goal in mind. Having a educational philosophy or method of homeschooling is a positive thing it gives some basic curriculum guidelines to follow usually even a year by year break down. That is great. Usually the problem comes in when you stop looking at the philosophy as just a set of guidelines and start placing it on a pedestal of must do must follow rigid rules. I think for some parents this starts when we fall victim to "Comparing our Children to Others". You might read an article in a homeschooling magazine or have a friend in a COOP who uses the same homeschool method as you yet you look at there child(who might not even be the same age as your child) and you see how they are covering all these subjects, playing the violin and piano, volunteering at the food pantry, acing the SAT's and can write a college level thesis and you start to go into heart palpitations.Then starts the we need to do Latin, French, play the french horn, do nature study everyday, homeschool 6hrs a day and go do all these other things so we can be just like so and so or else we are not doing it right. You look over at your kids who are playing around with Lego's and army men while you are trying to read aloud your history lesson, he only did a half a math worksheet and you wonder how will I ever get him into college. This is when you start to feel like a failure. It is my hope by illustrating these scenarios you will begin to see how silly we look sometimes. I have to laugh at this cause I have been there.

Mom and Dad's Standards- Now I do admit I love when I see parents who have set down together and come up with a list of reasons and goals as to why they are homeschooling there children. I find this to be the clearest way to understand and define your homeschool goals when you sit down as a couple an establish your homeschool Vision/ Mission. But even with starting out with something this strong I have still seen parents feel like they are not making the mark even when they set the mark. This could stem from setting the mark too high or not realizing that since you are in charge of the standards you can reform and make changes to that vision at anytime. What if you started out with goals when your children were little and as time went on you realized that you had a "Special Learner" who required special attention in academic areas or even social areas. This could change that vision. You may need to adjust that vision to fit the changes of your family. Or sometimes I find that parents who set goals together might begin to feel imaginary pressure or real pressure from there spouse to measure up to the vision. Like for instance a wife might feel like every time she is not meeting the goals on the list perfectly she is somehow failing her husband and kids. Don't be so hard on yourself. These goals are just an idea of where you want to go not necessarily where you are at. Its just a maker to help lead and guide you not to make you feel inadequate in anyway. And realize when you have aimed too high and feel pressured and sit down again as a couple and make adjustments where they are needed.

God's Standards- The Homeschool Movement in this Country as we know was Pioneered by those looking to raise there children with a God centered education. And the majority of homeschoolers even till this day home educate for this very reason to have God be central in there child's education. I find that when convicted to homeschool for a higher calling its less likely that on a year to year basis that folks go back and forth with the same self doubt trials. But even with God at the centered and scripture leading the way I have seen parents feel the woes of what am I not doing enough of. Once again I think this could be stemming from Comparing oneself to others. Maybe your family has a heart to be mission minded and travel the world spending the Gospel but you haven't quite made it there cause you have a new baby every year and your husband can't find work to save enough for the trip. Well maybe your mission field is your local community or maybe even your own family. Maybe raising Godly children who love the lord and can read his word is enough. Sometimes I think we don't understand when the holy spirit takes over and directs to where we need to be when we need to be. Also since the movement has become so diverse and folks are homeschooling for more than just Spiritual reasons even the most God driven family can get caught up in measuring themselves against the standards I have listed at the top. You might find yourself now questioning whether or not your children know enough of other things outside of biblical training. But maybe we need to learn how to put things in perspective. We need to see that Scripture memorization is :Language Arts, Reading the King James Bible is studying Literature and History, we need to see that observing God's creation in nature is the root of Science, and so on and so forth. Having a child who is strong in faith and can go to God in and his word in time of need goes a much longer way than a child who can recite the capitol cities of Europe. Not saying that these things aren't important but don't worry if these things didn't fall into your agenda. Your child has tools in his tool belt to help fix anything he hasn't been formally trained to do.

This Years Homeschool Conference and Used Book Sale Finds!

2011-05-10T12:44:00.000-07:00

Well this past weekend was our annual State Homeschool Conference. I truly feel like this year was my best planned year and I came out under budget and with things I am actually going to use. lol! If you have ever gone to a curriculum fair than you know what I mean about getting what you need. I think that a lot of moms have there experience with what I call a case of the "OHHH and AHH's" you see all that shinny new curriculum and gadgets and whatnot and you loose all sense of practical need and budget. lol! But this year with money being the way that is for my family like most other Americans right now I had to go in there with a rock solid game plan. I first made my list of what I needed for this coming year along with a back up choice. I also knew I wanted to spend the bulk of my budget at the Used Book Sale that they have at my Conference on the first day. I actually got my list from Donna Young's website. The form is called Curriculum Fair Battle Plan. Very well titled if I don't say so myself. I totally made out like a bandit in the Used Book Sale Hall. I spent $97 for items that has a retail value over $350.

We are starting formal writing this year, we are going into Earth Science and Astronomy, and we are heading into Asia for History and Geography so I tried to focus on getting this for these areas. Here is the list of what I ended up with:

Learning Resources Base Ten Starter Set

The M&M Math Book

The M&M Counting Book

Addition Facts Songs CD and book

Subtraction Facts Songs CD and book

Singapore Math 2B Home Instructors Guide

Singapore Math 3A Home Instructors Guide

Singapore Math 3B Home Instructors Guide

Singapore Math Intensive Practice 2A

Primary Language Lessons

Writing Strands Evaluating Writing

Writing Strands Level 2

Writing Strands Level 3

The Magic School Bus Out of This World( a book about space rocks)

Usborne Space

Young Fu of the Upper Yangtze by Elizabeth Lewis

Island of the Blue Dolphin by Scott O'Dell

The Chi- Lin Purse by Linda Fang

The House of Sixty Fathers by Meindert Dejong

Daughter of the Mountains by Louise Rankin

Dragon's Gate by Laurence Yep

Kingfisher History Encyclopedia

On top of what I found at the Conference I was able to gather some literature titles for my two youngest from a local Used Book Sale. I spent about $26 and got at least close to $100 worth of things. Here is a list of what we got there as well:

Wooden Abacus w/ movable addition set

Connect Cubes

Aesop's Fables Coloring Book

Aesop's Fables Storybook

Make Way For Ducklings

The Three Bears

The Three Billy Goats Gruff

The Story of Ferdinand

The Little Engine that Could

The Big Balloon Race

Wagon Wheels

The Drinking Gourd

Stone Soup

I also wanted to take a moment to count the Blessings that others have given to our homeschool as well this year. With the help of a friend and the Grandparents I was able to get a few more things as well. I got Apologia Astronomy from my friend who also uses a classical model and here kids are on a different cycle than mine so they already finished up with Astronomy for the Grammar Stage they won't be back on for a few at least 2yrs I think. But she said I am welcome to have it for this year.That really saved me at least close to $90 I think.

And for the Grandparents I made a Amazon Wish List for when they got that grandparent urge to send a gift I told them to peel off this list. And so far Granddad has made a great dent in the list and I think my mom is going to add her gifts after she come back from vacation. I am so happy they are finally coming around to being supportive of our homeschool efforts. So he was able to get quite a few things as well:

First Language Lessons Level 3 Workbook
Ancient India
Gandhi
George Washington Carver
Mae Jameson
Galileo for Kids

Frugal Kitchen: Left Over Oatmeal Bake!

2011-05-09T09:40:00.000-07:00

So I was on a hunt for ways to save money in the kitchen and not be wasteful with leftover food. I came across a wonderful blog called New Life On A Homestead. She had a Baked Oatmeal Recipe on her site. I had never heard of baking oatmeal before besides making cookies but I thought it would be a great way to reuse my leftover oatmeal. You know how sometimes you make to much or people don't eat as much as you think they are. So here is how I tweaked the recipe a little.

2 cups left over oatmeal
1 cup rolled oats
1/4 stick melted butter
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/3 cup raisins
2 eggs
1 tsp salt
1 TSP baking powder
1 cup milk( i use Almond milk)
Cinnamon and nutmeg to taste

Bake on 350 degrees till brown on the top.

Vote For Me! For the Top 25 Homeschool Blogs Please!

2011-04-26T15:42:00.000-07:00

Circle of Moms is holding an awsome blog contest for homeschool bloggers. If you get an opportunity please get over there and cast a vote for The Well Trained Homeschool. Thanks to all my subscribers and there support.

Think About it Thursday: Screen Free Week!

2011-04-21T06:17:00.000-07:00

So this week we have been participating in screen week with our local homeschool support group. It basically having your children not watch TV for a week. Now we didn't watch much TV anyway but its been a good experience so far turning off the tube.

During an average week my children would get an hour of TV during the weekdays and on the weekend they could get up to 2hrs on Saturday and Sunday. So compared to our nations average of children watching 4+ hours a day I say we were doing pretty darn good. But you know just 4 days into our screen free week I can see we could have been doing better. In that hour I was letting my children have it was usually while I was trying to fix dinner. So now instead this week the children and I have been more creative with that time. I have invited my kids into the kitchen more and they have come up with some things to do themselves.

If you decided to go Screen Free for a week here is a list of ideas to keep your family entertained:

Go for afternoon walk around the neighborhood or local park
Start and garden
Listen to Audio books of the Classics
Do an arts and craft project
Start silent reading hour
Create a production of your children's favorite story
Draw while listening to Classical music
Play in the yard
Pull out the board games
Train children in doing a new chore

Here are some pics I took of this weeks Screen Free Week.

Starting Seeds

Reading in front of turned off TV!

Well Trained Wednesday: Grammar Stage- Language Arts Pt.3

2011-04-20T20:12:00.000-07:00

We have now made it to our 3rd installment on our series about Grammar Stage language arts. So today we are going to discuss what writing looks like in the Classical Education model.
At the Grammar Stage writing starts at its earliest as developing penmanship skills later on transferring to writing well written sentences and toward the end of the grammar stage introducing the composition. A major way most Classical homeschoolers build good penmanship skills in there young learners is through Copywork I already gave an explanation of copywork in Language Arts pt. 2. So you can refer back to that if need be. I must point out the fact that Classical if not anything is a holistic approach to learning. You will constantly see the overlapping of certain skills and methods through the curriculum helping to bridge the gap between subjects till it one day comes together as a whole. Copywork is a handwriting exercise as well as an exercise in grammar and spelling.

Now there are many arguments that I have heard for whether or not start with print or cursive and both arguments are valid. I personally begin with print(manuscript) and go along with TWTM recommendation to start cursive at the beginning of 2nd grade. My 2nd grader began this year with cursive this fall with some copywork of just basic lettering and then we started halfway through the year with an excellent program called Handwriting Without Tears. We are doing the 3rd grade cursive book cause in traditional education programs they begin cursive in 3rd grade. TWTM recommends the Zaner- Bloser Grade 2C student book to start out in with cursive.

Susan Wise Bauer had this to say in regards to beginning copywork:

"Look at his work, praise what he's done right, and then correct his mistakes with a red pencil so that he can clearly see the correction. Ask him to compare his work with the original. Do this two or three times per week. Put the child's paper in the notebook under copying. Does this stifle creativity? No- it builds the skills the child needs in order to be truly creative. When a first grader copies a sentence from Charlotte's Web he's learning spelling, mechanics(punctuation and so forth), basic grammar( subject- verb agreement, adjective use), and vocabulary from a master of English prose. He'll need all this information in order to write down the sentences he forms in his own head."

The next step in building and developing writing skills in the Classical method will be to introduce dictation. You want to start with short sentences dictating slowly as they write. Check for punctuation, capitalization errors and have them make corrects. But keep in mind that at first it will take some time to do dictation. Try not to frustrate the child give them a little to go in if they need some help figuring out proper spelling till they get used to it. TWTM says:

"The child who's spent the first grade copying will already have a visual memory of common words. But during the transition from copying to dictation, you'll need to help him develop the skills of sounding out and writing down words without looking at a model."

Dictation will help the child develop the rules of good style and expression necessary for writing compositions later on.

Another suggestion is to have the child do letter writing( thank- you notes, letters to grandma, etc..) as soon as possible to being using the writing skills. TWTM does warn against requiring the child to be creative in the grammar stage cause they are still absorbing and taking things in. This is not to say to stop a child who is naturally creative but not make it a mandate. It will come eventually when the child has acquired more skills.

So I guess you are wondering when should we start a formal writing program. Well if you are like myself you would feel as though your 2nd grader was just not quite ready for formal writing so you held off another year and continued to grow with your grammar and spelling program in the meantime. But in a traditional classical model you would start formal writing in 2nd grade. I think this is adjustable though. Look at your child for clues of readiness. There is no need to rush them into something they are not prepared for cause you can cause them to grow to hate it. Once a child hates writing its a hard thing to get to point of loving it. TWTM recommends that you being a formal writing program in supplement of your grammar program. The Wises suggested Writing Strands as a good start for formal writing. I am considering it for next year for my oldest. But its a debate between Writing Strands and IEIW( Institute for Excellence in Writing). I think that IEIW combines a lot of the language arts into one program which is what makes it so appealing. The creator of the program Andrew Pudewa has a nice selection of free audio seminars that explains the IEIW approach very well.

So that is it in a nutshell. I will return next week for my last installment in the Grammar Stage language art series with Reading and the Classical Model.

Think About it Thursday:Summer Service Projects For Kids!

2011-04-14T08:06:00.000-07:00

With so much that has occurred in our World this year in the realm of disaster from the Earthquakes in Haiti to the Tsunami and Earthquakes of Japan I have seriously been considering having my children get actively involved. Both tragedies effect family and friends we know. At first I was not sure how to get such young children involved in service but I then I just had to think about what they can do instead of what they can't do. I feel like we should rotate a new project every two weeks to give them a broad prospective on service so maybe when they get a little older they can choose one summer service project for themselves.

So here are some of the things we were going to try and work on this Summer:

Volunteer at a Church Food Pantry

Volunteer at Soup Kitchen(maybe just my oldest cause my other two wont be able to work with the food)

Make Hygiene Kits for Homeless and Disaster Victims using coupons(been watching that Extreme Couponing show in TLC. Its got me a little excited. LOL!)

Join a Community Garden or CSA that helps turn empty lots into something beautiful

Book Drive for Children's Home

Have any of you guys done service projects with your children. I would love to hear what kind of things you guys have done. Please comment!

Well Trained Wednesday: Grammar Stage- Language Arts Pt.2

2011-04-13T17:57:00.000-07:00

Before beginning formal grammar lessons your child should at least be able to write simple words with ease. For your young elementary student you should expect to cover parts of speech, proper relationships of those parts of speech, and the mechanics of the English language. Basically at this phase you are in the process of creating memory pegs in your child's mind in which they can later hang further exploration of English grammar and writing. Its not so much mastery of grammatical usage that you are looking to achieve at this phase as it is memorization of the processes that will help them to expand upon things later.

One of the many ways Classical Education overlaps other homeschooling methods like for instance Charlotte Mason is through the use of copywork, narration, and dictation as primary tools to teach grammar. But one of the big differences between Classical and Charlotte Mason Education is when to introduce formal grammar lessons. Classical Education begins the use of copywork and narration early on in the grammar stage of learning slowly transitioning to the use of dictation by the 3rd grade or so. Charlotte Mason however uses copywork throughout elementary to teach spelling and grammar not really moving into dictation till the middle grade years.

So lets explore what exactly copywork, narration and dictation are. We will start with copywork. I found this wonderful explanation at a website called

From Wonder...to Wisdom

What is copywork? Quite simply, it is writing out by hand, or copying, words from a written model. In the very early stages, children may trace or copy the letters of the alphabet, but once they have had some practice with this, they progress to words and phrases. Later on, sources for copywork include a great variety of written materials: poetry, Bible passages, other writings of great men, to name just a few. Some people equate copywork with handwriting, and this is certainly part of it – but there is far more to copywork than just handwriting.

Copywork carries with it a number of benefits.

With regard to young children, the most obvious one is that it is a good means of introducing and practising the mechanics of written English: spelling, punctuation, grammar, and handwriting. If children are taught from the outset that only their best work is acceptable, and that they must pay attention to detail, these mechanics will quickly become second nature. But do not be tempted to abandon copywork as soon as the child can write neatly, and has achieved a basic proficiency in spelling, for the benefits go far beyond the simple mechanics of writing.
Copywork is a valuable addition to any memory work programme, as it involves more than one of the senses. Children learn so much more quickly when their hands and eyes are involved in the learning, as well as their ears and tongues.
Excellent copywork models lead to increased familiarity with different forms of written expression and with a variety of styles. Results may show up before long in the children’s speech or writing: in allusions they make, or in modelling their own work on that of others. This is one area in which the benefit is an on-going one, as older children choose to model their writing on some of the great writers of English poetry or prose.
Charlotte Mason, in the Original Homeschooling Series, had a lot to say about ideas being the proper diet for our children’s minds. Copywork, carefully chosen, can be a source of such ideas. It can also be a window into the minds and thinking of others. This is another benefit that can continue throughout life, and it is partly for this reason that even older children should continue to do copywork – though for them it need not be such a frequent activity as for their younger brothers and sisters.

Now according to "The Well Trained Mind" narration is explained as follows:

"Narration is a way to develop the child's understanding and story- telling skills. The process is simple: the child tells you what he's just heard or read. You start this process in preschool, when you ask your child questions about the stories you were reading together. In the first grade, you begin to ask the child to summarize the plots of short simple stories... Read the child the story, close the book and ask, "What was the story about." Write down the child's narration, and then read it back to him. Ask him how it differs from the original story. Narration lets you know how much the child retains and understands. It also develops vocabulary and powers of expression, and lays the foundation for good writing later on."

I look at narration as a way of training your child orally to do essay style questions and writing that they will utilize later on in there academic careers. But this way makes it approachable and fun. Who doesn't love a to tell stories especially small children. When I start narration with my younger ones I let them sometimes draw me a picture of the passage and narrate there drawing. My older child writes down there own narrations when we do notebook pages in other subjects.

Here is a video from Susan Schaffer of Simply Charlotte Mason that explains the way Charlotte Mason homeschoolers approach narration.

And now lets explore dictation.

Dictation is the process where the parent speaks while the child transcribes exactly what the parent is saying.
Dictation is primarily used to reinforce grammar and spelling skills.

Now that we have gone over what grammar looks like in the Classical model lets go through some of the best programs out there to get you a solid foundation in Grammar Stage grammar.
Now in TWTM they recommended in older editions that you start with English for the Thoughtful Child
This was before Susan Wise Bauer established Peace Hill Press and started producing her own language lesson volumes. We use her First Language Lessons. First Language lessons goes all the way to level 4 as of now. I have so far used levels 1 and 2. We are starting on 3 this coming school year. I have found the lessons to be quick and easy but very sequential and challenging. I really feel like it has given my oldest a good grasp on grammar so far. The First Language Lesson series includes the a little copywork, narration, and dictation exercises as well as poetry memorization and recitation. They even throw in some picture study as well. She also named in later editions moving on from "English for the Thoughtful Child" which has two levels to a good program like Abeka's God's Gift of Language A: Writing and Grammar or for a secular alternative just as strong G.U.M levels 3- 5 by Zaner- Bloser.

Once again I threw so much info out there I am going to continue on with Language Arts Pt. 3 next week when we wrap up Reading and Writing in the Grammar Stage.

Think About it Thursday: Home Libraries!

2011-04-06T22:43:00.000-07:00

With the technological explosion that just recently hit the publishing industry with Kindles and IPads us bookworms need to start considering building our own home libraries. I think as a society we can sometimes take for granted Public Library. We assume it will always be there. And we also take for granted that the Great Books will always be on the shelves as well. If you go into some branches of my local library system you will find that close to 30- 40% of the Children's section are media items. And lets not get on the new invasion of Cartoon- like series that are taking over the chapter book section with all the poor grammar and lacking vocabulary. I believe Charlotte Mason called these sorts of books "Twaddle". Just think back to when you were a child and think about the books that stuck out to you even to this day. They were usually the great well written stories like The Lion, the Witch, and Wardrobe, The People Who Could Fly, and The Velveteen Rabbit.

Last month I read an article online that was about the top 11 things our children won't know about. Well along with the VCR and wired telephones the most frightening thing on the list was " Printed Books". I was like What! Yes, Books! This author was convinced that with technology changing the way we view literature in the future their will be no need for printed materials. Now I know what you are thinking. This sounds a little to extreme but you know maybe not. But this is why I think we should as homeschoolers especially begin to build up our own home libraries.

It doesn't have to be a costly endeavor. You can gather little bits at a time. I have found great luck with finding titles at thrift stores, yard sales, library sales, etc... I love the Dover Thrift Edition cause you can get a lot of the Classic books for less than $3.00 most of the time.
Maybe you are not a bookworm type person and have know idea what is considered Great works of literature to invest in. Well I have made a list that I compiled over the years from many annotative book list. I have even borrowed some titles from literature based curricula like Sonlight, Veritas Press, and My Father's World. I am sort of a catalog junkie.
So below I have my List of Great Books for Children and if you go to my resource section I also have a List of Great African- American Children's Books. But I have included those titles in the list below as well. I just know how hard it is to find list of Good books about or for African- American children so I separated it out for people looking for just that.

List of Great Books for Children

Also there are some great resources for homeschoolers on starting and organizing your home libraries.

Books Bloom

Christian Children Book Reviews
Lifetime Books and Gifts
As well there was a great video I recently watched on homeschool home libraries. Take a look.

Well Trained Wednesday: Grammar Stage- Language Arts Pt.1

2011-04-05T21:31:00.000-07:00

Language Arts is a fairly modern term used to describe the study and usage of English grammar and writing. The foundation of a great Classical Education is the mastery of the language arts. A child who can't read can't spell. A child who can't spell can't express themselves in writing. Writing skills are the keys to being able to convey ones argument in a logical manner. One thing that should never be secondary in your homeschool schedule is the language arts.

In "The Well Trained Mind"(WTM) Susan Wise Bauer points out that "Before you can put a word on paper, you have to know what letters to use." This is why a solid foundation in phonics us necessary before proceeding with formal spelling or grammar programs. I personally have found great success with my hand me down Hooked on Phonic program. I do want to state that I use the program without the audio Cd's and the CD ROM. I just use the workbooks, flash cards, and readers. I went through the entire program with my oldest and I am halfway through it with my son(4yrs). There are other less expensive even free phonic programs on the market and online. The WTM recommends "Phonic Pathways" in which I own a copy of that as well. I got it for like $10 at a used curriculum sale. Sometimes you luck out like that. Now if you do go with "Phonic Pathways" you have to purchase a set of phonic readers to go with it cause they don't come with a set. I highly recommend the "Bob Books" set.

A word of caution when selecting a phonic program in general beware of the ones that come with too many bells and whistles. These can be major distractions from your child developing fluency. Words do not jump around on paper. It's just something children have to get use to. The entertainment will come later on when they are delving into a great book full of mystery, suspense, or drama.

Phonic is one of the those non- consumable curriculum's so you can use it for as many children as you need to. Its a rewarding investment but like I said before in previous post homeschooling doesn't have to break the bank. Here are some links to a few free online phonic programs you can use:

McGuffey Eclectic Primer

ABC Fast Phonic

Progressive Phonics

Word of caution: Stay away from phonic programs that include writing at the same time as reading. Writing is a separate skill that uses a different part of the brain. Focusing on both can just delay progress in mastering reading and becoming fluent. Your child may be like my son where he is totally flying through reading but has not yet developed the fine motor skill coordination necessary to write the words that he can read. I wouldn't dare want to hold him back till his hand catches up with the rest of him.

Now the WTM recommend starting spelling once you are halfway through your phonic primer. I have found this to be great advice. Usually by then the child should have moved on from single short vowel words to blends. Starting formal spelling before then wouldn't be that beneficial and might even cause frustration. If the child struggles when you first start spelling hold off until they get further along in their phonic. They just may need more time to hit that particular milestone. So basically spelling should begin around 1st grade year but starting in 2nd is fine as well.

For spelling I have found that the most logical approach is to use a pattern based program. That can help strengthen the phonics skills. The program we love is Sequential Spelling. It was designed by using patterns in the English language. I have found it to be the most well suited for my family. The WTM recommends Spelling Workout in earlier editions. I have read mixed reviews on it though. But you have to pick what fits you and your child's learning style not anyone else.

The other skills that make up the language arts are Grammar, Reading, and Writing. I will continue exploring these subjects and how they are framed in the grammar stage of classical education next week.

Think About It Thursday: Wondermill Grain Mill!!!

2011-03-31T11:06:00.000-07:00

I am so excited to announce that our family has began to mill our own wheat and grains to make all of our own breads. This journey towards wanting to mill my own wheat started about 2 years ago at my local state homeschool conference when I came across a woman's booth who had some nice smelling back goods set out. At the time I didn't think much of what she was selling you know just famished and digging into the free samples while I continued to shop the exhibit hall. lol! But this woman had given me a free audio CD called " Do not Eat the Bread of Idleness" I popped it in while in the car one day and I have to tell you it changed my life. She went into the whole history of white flour and why so many health problems are related to this so called bread most of us are consuming. I was all hyped up and set to by a bread mill and a bread maker and all the other gadgets. But of course my husband pulled me back in off the edge. He had a habit of telling me when he thought I was being fanatical. So I backed down and forgot about it. It wasn't until this pollen season that just started that the idea of milling our own wheat came back up.

Since the first inspiration 2 years ago my husband did let me get a bread maker and he has made our pizza and biscuit dough. So some things did change. Just not fully the way I wanted to. But you know God works in his own time. We were still using store bought flour and although it said whole wheat I now know that to not be true. But this allergy season really got me back to thinking that we need to make that change cause for the first time in my life I felt like I had pollen allergies. And my little one(2yr old) nose just wouldn't stop running. I mean over all we have pretty good nutrition so the only thing I could point out as the culprit was all that store bought bread sitting on the counter top and in the freezer. So I went and looked up the company from the homeschool conference from 2 years prior. By the way they are The Bread Beckers down here in Woodstock, GA. Low and behold they had some free live stream videos of some of the nutrition classes that they teach over at there store and my husband and I spent two days watching these pretty lengthy videos till he became convicted as well. So we planned for Monday(this Monday) to take the hour drive out to Woodstock and purchase our grain mill and 2 7gallon buckets of Hard Red Wheat(breads) and Soft White Wheat(pastry). I highly recommend you get the free audio CD from The Bread Beckers and to watch or read as much of the information as possible about milling your own wheat at home. This is something that I feel not only is a blessing to our health as a family but it is also an economic blessing and it adds to our self sufficiency and Preparedness Storage.

So something I think we should consider on this Thursday is rather or not we should be Milling our own Grains and Making our Own Breads.

Here are some pictures of what we have made so far.

Spelt Banana Nut Muffins

Hard Red Wheat Buns or Rolls

Zucchini Bread

Well Trained Wednesday: Grammar Stage- Grade Levels

2011-03-30T08:44:00.000-07:00

It's always around this time of year that I begin to see more and more homeschool parents posting on the forums and the blogs about there question on curriculum choices and annual testing. The post come off more like a plea for help than an inquiry.Year after year so many of us new and veteran homeschoolers alike begin to question our methods and ways because we wonder if our children are on "Grade Level". They are worried about "Falling Behind" or "Catching Up". Well I must pose the question behind whom?

The early years of schooling should be focused on mastering reading, writing, and arithmatic. These are the foundations of all higher level learning. So if these things are not mastered it makes it very difficult to move to the next level. The problem that I have found with most other curriculums is that they are set up in such a rigid way that it makes it hard to focus your child into the righ levels of learning. That is something I have found to be the complete opposite in the Classical Education Grammar Stage model. Since adapting more of a Classical Homeschool philosophy I find myself focusing less and less on grade levels, falling behind, and catching up. We don't just plow through a grade level curriculum. We go through the skills necessary to master higher level in the future instead. Here is a quote from "The Well Trained Mind" that sums this philosophy up.

" In the early years of school, children vary so widely in their development that assigning a child to a particular"grade" can be extremely difficult... material isn't divided into grades, but rather into levels. You should always spend as much time on one level as you need and progress on to the next level only when your child has mastered the first level, whether that comes before or after the "normal age"... Adjust the time you spend on each subject so that you can concentrate on weaker areas."

I have totally found this to be true in our homeschooling experience. My oldest(6yr old) 2nd grader is on various levels throughout her curriculum. For instance we use recommended reading list geared toward 4th or 5th grade students. She is on the 2nd grade part of First Language Lessons grammar book. We are now at the end of Singapore Math level 1B. Math has been a trying subject for us up until this year when we switched to Singapore. I am grateful to homeschooling that enabled us to take the time to help my child through her challenges and find an approach that works. We follow the Classical science timeline which we didn't start until this year. The Classical outline for science starts with Life Science, Earth and Astronomy, Chemistry, and then Physics. Of Course with the Classical model just like with the history you cycle through the sciences 3 times once in each phase of the Trivium. Now we are still in Life Science and typically a 2nd grader would be on Earth Sciencce and Astronomy by now but I understand from excerpts like the one above that I shouldn't feel the need to adhere to a rigid schedule especially since these topics will reintroduce themselves again. At this age the science is more focused on classifying, learning the scientific method through experiements, and reading materials on a subject. The materials we gather from the libary are on all reading levels. In handwriting we are doing Handwriting Without Tears 3rd grade cursive. Now most curriculum(not all Abeka and SWR start with cursive) even those of the Public Schools don't introduce cursive until 3rd grade. Now in "The Well Trained Mind" they recommend starting cursive in the 2nd grade especially if the child has a tendancy to reverse the common mistake letters p,q,d, and b. Now for spelling we use Sequential Spelling level 1. It happens to be a program based on leveled learning rather than grade level learning rather than grade level learning. we have found it to be a perfect fit for my oldest cause it is a pattern based program and she can use her strengh in phonetic awarness to excell in the program. I am not going to go into our history cause that is where the "Eclectic" side of our curriculum comes into play and I don't follow strictly with the Classical Model.

I am sure that you get the picture by now that education is not so cut in dry. Very rarely will you find a child who fits into to a grade level on all subject matter. This is nothing to worry about. Just meet your childs needs where they are at. This outlook always reminds me of the bible verse:

"For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little"
Isaiah 28:10

Think About It Thursday: Homeschool Gardening

2011-03-24T08:40:00.000-07:00

One benfit we have as homeschool families is that we get the opportunity to influence our children just from the shear amount of time we get to spend with our children. Well most homeschoolers take the opportunity to train there children spiritually, some take it as an opprtunity to work on character and other social related issues. Homeschooling also presents an opportunity to help our children develop a healthy lifestyle. You have the chance to take field trips to local gardens, farms, factories, etc.. And show your children where there food comes from. Why not take it a step further and take the opportunity to grow some of your own food. We already know as parents that kids love to get down in the dirt so this can be a good way to show them how to be constructive with an activity they already love.

This endevore does not have to be overwhelming. Trust me I was totally overwhelmed at the thought of growing a garden. I mean I am from that new generation that doesn't have a green thumb between us. My grandmother keep a garden but that was the extent of my experience with food growing was watching her in the yard as a small child. My mother(love her very much) was a buy from the store don't show me where it comes from type of gal. So I really didn't begin to gain my food knowledge till I was an adult. I want my children to grow up with this lost knowledge of our not so distant past. So we are going to grow a small gardern.

Now a word on space before we get started. We live in a townhouse and have a shared backyard with our neighbors so we can't grow anything in the ground but you know we have a deck and can put a couple containers out there. And like I said before I am coming from zero experience so this is going to be an adventure for the whole family. I these easy pop up containers at Sam's Club for under $40 that I am going to get and we will go from there. Its a little more online cause they include the shipping but they have them in stores. I also found this cool little video on youtube that shows you have to sprout your seeds in toliet paper rolls. Take a look:

So consider growing a garden for the Spring/Summer. Its a great homeschool project the whole family can enjoy. I will defintely post pics and updates as we get started on the project this coming week.

Well Trained Wednesday: What is Classical Education?

2011-03-23T08:52:00.000-07:00

I am going to start posting specifically on Classical Education every Wednesday. I will start with defining what Classical Education is to going through each phase and subject of Classical education. I have decided to start with discussing sections from my first introduction to Classical Education which is "The Well Trained Mind" by Jessie Wise and Susan Wise Bauer. After I go through my highlights of there wonderfully put together text I will then make my way through Leigh Burtins of Classical Conversations books "The Core" and "Echo in Celebration: A Call to Home- Centered Education". There are other books on Classical Education out there and I may not get to them all but these are the ones I am going to start with and we will go from there. So lets get started shall we.

What is Classical Education?

The Classical Education model is based off the Trivium which is a three prong learning cycle. The phases of the Classical Education Trivium are the Grammar phase or sometimes refered to as Poll Parrot phase, then the Logic or Dialectic phase, and lastly the Rhetoric phase. It may be easier to look at it in terms of Elementary, Middle, and High School but the Classical model is more than your typical grade level learning approach. Its more level based learning than grade level based learning. Classical Education is training the mind to be lifelong independent learners by presenting methods and materials that flow with the natural patterns of development. Each phase builds upon the skills mastered in the one before.

In "The Well Traind Mind" Susan Wise Bauer recalls her own Classical Education given to her by her mother Jessie and describes it like this:

" Our Education was language- centered, not image- centered; we read and listened and wrote, but we rarely watched. She spent the early years of schooling giving us facts, systematically laying the foundation for advanced study. She taught us to think through arguments, and then she taught us how to express ourselves. This is the Classical pattern of the trivium, the three- part process of training the mind."

Classical Education at one point in history was the standard now our generation is in a Rebirth or Renassiance trying to reclaim The Lost Tools of Learning as influential scholar Dorthy Sayer would put it.

Next week we will be starting our journey into the first leg of the Classical Education Trivium the Grammar Phase.

Think About It Thursday: Zero Waste!

2011-03-17T08:02:00.000-07:00

So I was on one of my homeschooling social networks and came across this video and blog.

Zero Waste Video

Zero Waste Blog

Zero Waste Website

Here are my thoughts after watching it. Tell me what you think.

I am not trying to be to synincal but these folks arent doing anything that my grandparents haven't already done when I was coming up. I grew up not throwing things away, buying in bulk, having a backyard garden, shopping the local meat market instead of major chain, passing down clothes and shopping thrift. It wasn't called Green or Zero Waste back then it was called Survival in a large middle/ low income family. lol!

Don't get me wrong I am glad more folks are returning to this lifestyle of our not so distance past. It really is the the 30- 40 something generation of today that got far removed from this way of living. We are usually the first generations of our family to have huge square foot homes before we even have children. We were the first of our families to live off prepackaged convience foods and eating out more than on a special occiasion. I am not saying having nice things is wrong but what this generation lost touch with is Restraint. You notice the family on the video didn't even realize that they room in there life to save more money just by wasting less. So many folks got caught off gaurd with the Economic Crisis and didnt have savings to back up on because they lived in the now instead of planning for tommorow like our parents and grandparents.

We need to get back to a more generational family living situation as well that way we would be in a position to learn from our elders. I think as an added benefit of homeschooling we have an opportunity to reconnect those family bonds where our children will turn to us for guidance and advice about life. So if we have a healthy mindset ourselves and teach good principals we have now changed the lives of not only our children but our grandchildren as well.

I will get off my soapbox now. lol!

Kingdoms of West Africa Unit Study

2011-03-06T21:43:00.000-08:00

So we have left Egypt and are on our way to the West Sahara to study the Medieval History of West Africa. West Africa had 3 major Empires or Kingdoms which were Mali, Ghana, and Songhay. We are starting in the middle actually with Mali cause we already did some activities and fields trips dealing with Timbuktu. The chronological order though is Ghana, Mali, then Songhay. I will list the online resources we will be using for Mali. As we move into the other 2 kingdoms I will share those resources as well.

Booklist for West African Studies

Ancient and Medieval Africa lesson Plans

West African Kingdoms Powerpoints

Sundiata and Mansa Musa Lesson Plans

Trekking Timbuktu: Mansa Musa

Mali Trade Routes

Mansa Musa's Pilgrimage

The Road to Timbuktu Lesson Plans

West African Trade Map

Africa For Kids

And here is a Youtube Clip from a PBS documentary put together by famous historian and geneologist Henry Louis Gates.
Just double click on the video to take you to youtube and then you can select the other parts to finish the viewing the documentary. Its call Road to Timbuktu.

Our Life Science Course of Study

2011-01-02T08:45:00.000-08:00

Life Science Course of Study

Science COOP Final Project

2011-01-02T08:29:00.000-08:00

So I can't remember if I said anything about before but we have been involved in a homeschool COOP this fall. Its just 3 families and we are just getting started. We decided to come together for field trips, park days, and on Fridays we have Science and Art Class at our library branches( real cost cutter)

I have been teaching the Science Class. It has been very rewarding. Our range is from Preschool thru 3rd grade right now so I don't feel uncomfortable teaching at this level. Since we meet once a week for science I do the labwork when we meet and give them extension work to take home to do the other day they do science at home with mom. I have been following a Classical outline for science. Since its our 1st session we started with Life Science. Next year we will move into Earth Science and Astronomy,then chemistry, and finally Physics. Although for the Grammar Stage(elementary grades) I think I will combine Chemistry and Physics into the same year. So we should have 3 cycles to run through. I can post the outline I have been using for science. We have mostly been using lessons from Lesson Pathway's website for 1st and 2nd grade science and just linning it up with our schedule. Its been great to have access to so many free resources cause it reduces the cost on the families who participate.
Thats the thing about a COOP they can be as expensive or as costly as the participants want it to be and depending on there needs. Our needs right now are low cost quality activities.

Well we had a final project due right before we breaked for the holidays. I have some wonderful pics of my children presenting there Habitat/ Biomes. My daughter had Savannah and my son had Desserts.

Happy New Year!

2011-01-02T08:07:00.000-08:00

So here we are blessed to be present for another beautiful year. I know I haven't been posting a lot in the last few months and that is due to some suprises I want to share with you.

We are Expecting our 4th Child sometime this July.Yeah!!! I am not that far along yet hence why I have been too sick to blog. I have actually been to sick to do much of anything but sleep. But hey hopefully with the pass of the next trimester things will be looking up. I have a video I did talking about what its like for me Homeschooling While Pregnant. Take a look at it below.

Hopefully I will get back into the groove of posting blogs again.

New Homeschool Room!!

2010-10-16T15:01:00.000-07:00

So we just moved from an apartment to a nice townhouse with upstairs downstairs. Yeah, I am so excited!! We have a little more space and we have a garage and deck on the back which we didn't have at our last place so I really have been enjoying homeschooling in our new space. But we still don't have an extra bedroom or family room or basement to dedicate to homeschool but we have made a great use of the dinning room space. I just wanted to share some pics with you of how I set things up. This year each child has there own bookshelf with school related books and a bin for there library pics. They oldest two also have a plastic drawer tote for extra notebooks and art supplies and paper. My toddler has her own shelf as well with her board books and some montessori friendly items on her shelf so she feels included in on the schooling as well. Makes for an easier day when toddlers have something to do as well. So here they are. Tell me what you think?

My 2nd Graders Shelf

My Kindergarteners Shelf

Toddlers Shelf

More Reason to Be Glad We Homeschool

2010-09-08T11:57:00.000-07:00

I found this article this morining on the front page of yahoo and was shocked at the way these teachers think. I mean I can't blame them for some of the opinions. I mean they are underpaid and they do have to deal with parenting issues as well as academics. But the tone of the article just seems as if they are trying to blame the parents for there unhappiness with there career choice. I am just greatful I have been blessed with the opportunity to raise and educate my children myself and not try and co-parents with the public school system. Keep in mind this is just one mothers opinion. Take a look at the article:

13 Things Your Child's Teacher Won't Tell You.
user

by Reader's Digest Magazine, on Tue Aug 17, 2010 11:19am PDT33 CommentsPost a CommentRead More from This Author »Report Abuse..Interviews by Neena Samuel

A look inside a teacher's mind could help you understand lesson plans and maybe even guide your child to perform better.

1. If we teach small children, don’t tell us that our jobs are “so cute” and that you wish you could glue and color all day long.

2. I’m not a marriage counselor. At parent-teacher conferences, let’s stick to Dakota’s progress, not how your husband won’t help you around the house.
3. We’re sick of standardized testing and having to “teach to the test.”

4. Kids used to go out and play after school and resolve problems on their own. Now, with computers and TV, they lack the skills to communicate. They don’t know how to get past hurt feelings without telling the teacher and having her fix it.
5. When I hear a loud belch, I remember that a student’s manners are a reflection of his parents’.

6. Your child may be the center of your universe, but I have to share mine with 25 others.

7. Please help us by turning off the texting feature on your child’s phone during school hours.

8. Guys who dribble a ball for a couple of hours a game can make up to $20 million a year. We educate future leaders and make about $51,000 a year.

9. We take on the role of mother, father, psychologist, friend, and adviser every day. Plus, we’re watching for learning disabilities, issues at home, peer pressure, drug abuse, and bullying.

PLUS: 18 Questions Parents Should Ask About Campus Safety

10. Kids dish on your secrets all the time—money, religion, politics, even Dad’s vasectomy.

11. Please, no more mugs, frames, or stuffed animals. A gift card to Starbucks or Staples would be more than enough. A thank-you note: even better.

12. We love snow days and three-day weekends as much as your kid does.

13. The students we remember are happy, respectful, and good-hearted, not necessarily the ones with the highest grades.

There is more on this article HERE

FREEBIE!!! Smithsonian Magazine Free Museum Day September 25th

2010-09-05T22:22:00.000-07:00

Last year I came across this free pass on the Smithsonian Magazine website. It seems to always fall on a Saturday. I really had a blast visiting one of our local museums that pretty high admission. I normally wouldn't have gotten the opportunity to check it out. The passes can be used at any of the participating museums nationwide so just search your state to see whats available. Here is the Link

FREEBIE!! LEGO Club Jr. School Edition Magazine (First Grade)

2010-08-31T18:03:00.000-07:00

Here is another Freebie I found! Enjoy

LEGO® Education and LEGO Club are proud to offer exclusive LEGO Club Jr. School Edition Magazines and LEGO Education Teacher's Guides to first-grade educators this fall!

These special publications continue the LEGO philosophy of providing children with products that promote imagination, pique curiosity, and enhance learning. Both focus on fire safety and provide important information on what these young learners should know in case of an emergency.

The LEGO Club Jr. School Edition Magazine is designed specifically for first graders. The edition includes exciting puzzles, comics, and games with a fire safety theme. These activities focus on basic reading, math, and critical-reasoning skills.

The LEGO Club Jr. School Edition Magazine combines the thrill of LEGO building with content that will help your students learn important safety tips - and best of all, it's FREE!

In addition, a custom LEGO Education Teacher's Guide will be sent with each magazine order. The guides are filled with hands-on activities, classroom tidbits, and articles about how you can create a LEGO SmartTM classroom for your students!

To recieve complimentary copies of the LEGO Club Jr. School Edition Magazine and Teacher's Guide, simply complete our online request form located at Lego Education.

For additional information or to inquire about other LEGO Education promotions, contact Debra at dsmith@LEGOeducation.us.

1st Day of School(LOL!)!

2010-08-31T06:56:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to share some pics and a little short video on how our 1st day of the new semester went. We are year round schoolers but consider the beginning of our fall quarter usually around late Aug or beginning Sept. So this is our 1st day of the 2010- 2011 school year. Yeahhhh!
Well here are the highlights.

Great 1st day with Singapore Math!!! No more Tears!

2010-08-30T19:12:00.000-07:00

Today was our 1st day "Back to Homeschool" even though we usually go all year I have had the last month off for curriculum and lesson planning. I was trying figure out for months what to do about math cause we just couldn't find a fit that was easy for me to teach and that she loved and grasped the concepts without breaking out into a crying episode. It was not a favorite subject in this house. Math always left us fustrated. I researched all kinds of programs at the Convention from Saxon, MathUSee, Rod and Staff, and one of my favorites to look at was Right Start. I ended up not going with RightStart cause it was out of my price range but that was a blessing in disguise cause thats when i went to the rainbow resource booth and walked into the World of Singapore Math. This is our 2nd grade year but I felt like my DD was more suited for the 1b level so that is what we are doing this year the 1b and 2a. We will probally get to 2b over the summer.

The instruction guide was well layed out and easy to follow. Most of the manipulatives I already had laying around or found at the dollar store. There is also a helpful yahoo group that had some great card games and number bond cards. Here is the link for anyone interested. She loved it and I am finally feeling like she is confident in math. Yeah Singapore. Oh and we are using the US edition for those who want to know. There are two versions US and Standard Edition(goes along with California State Math Standards Schedule)

This Years Curriculum Choices!

2010-08-11T13:08:00.000-07:00

So I went to my local homeschool conference with my list and came out victorious to the budget that I set forth before going. I can tell one of my favorite vendors this year was and usually is Rainbow Resource. They always have the best prices and whatever they don't bring with them if you order at the conference they offer free shipping. I still have some things that I am waiting to order because we have some used curriculum garage sales coming up soon but here is my list of what I plan on using for the 2010- 2011 school year.

You will notice there is no Bible subject this year. That is because my husband will be heading our Scripture study in the evenings before bed. I think it is always a blessing and enriching experience when the dads get envolved.

2nd Grade Curriculum

Reading(Comprehension)

Pathway Readers Busy Times Grade 2-1
Literature Lapbooks
Moving Beyond the Page "Charlotte's Web"
Moving Beyond the Page "One Day in the Tropical Rainforest"
Public Library Leveled Readers

Spelling

Continue with Sequential Spelling level 1 moving into Sequential Spelling level 2
Spelling City for practice and fun review

Grammar(Writing and Grammar)

First Language Lessons level 1&2 by Susan Wise Bauer(we are on the 2nd part for this year)

Scott Foresman Grammar 2nd Grade

Math

Singapore Math 1B and 2A
Mega Fun with Card Games by Scholastic
Soroban Japanese Abacus Class

Science

Real Science Odyssey Life Science( using in COOP class)
Real Science Odyssey Earth and Sky(at home)
Nature Study

If for some reason I can't afford to order the Real Science Odyssey I can defintely go with the materials for year 1 and 2 science on Lesson Pathways.
History/ Geography

We have decided to do history by continent so this year we are starting in Africa. I hope to cover Ancient, Middle Ages, and some Early Modern.

Here is a starter list of the topics we are going to cover.

Ancient Egypt
Ancient Sudan
Ancient Kush(Ethiopia)
Kerma(Ancient Egyptian and Sudanese Kingdom)
Nok Sculpture( Nigeria)
Ife( Ancient Yourba City)
Meroe, Capitol of Kushite Empire
Axum
King Ezana
Kingdom of Ghana
Mali Kingdom
Sundiata Keita
Mansa Musa
Kente Cloth/ Mud Cloth
Kola nuts
Timbuktu
Indian Ocean Trade
Maasai(Kenya)
Dogon Tribe
Great Zimbabwe
Monomotapa Kingdom
Moors
Tariq
Leo Africanus
Queen Nzinga
Shaka Zulu
Hanibal
Songhay Empire

We plan to use library materials for text as well as these other items:

Lesson Pathways yr. 4 history
Evan- Moor Africa(geography)
Timeline Notebook Paper
Laminated Maps
Various Lapbook/ Notebook pages from the resources on the left side of the blog

Physical Education

Daily Walks
African Dance Class
Gymnastics
Possible Akido( martial arts class)
Park Day Playtime

Art
COOP Class(we might be using Discovering Great Artist by khol)

Handwriting

Handwriting Without Tears 3rd grade Cursive

Latin

Canon Press Latin Primer I with CD's and Flash Cards

Foreign Language(Spanish)

We will use all free materials from:

Public Library online web tutorials
Books
CD's
DVD's
Free Internet Printouts
Free online Games

Preschool Curriculum

Now I have to give a disclaimer from the beginning for those of you who are just starting out in homeschooling. Please do not feel pressured to purchase or do an entire formal curriculum for your young learner. Every young child is different and some are not ready for formal instruction till much later like between 5- 7. So these are just some of things I already had left over from my older child with a few new other things added in to give me more so than my child a sense of structure. At this age I kind of follow a Montessori/ Charlotte Mason approach. I keep the lessons short and simple and we do lots of exploration learning and independent learning. Children learn best at this age through exploring their environment not by sitting and running through workbooks. But some children see there older siblings doing "Seat Work" and it makes them want to have some also so I feel like we should give them what they ask for in that respect. This is where we are with my 3 1/2 year old. He is interested in learning how to write letters, reading, and wants to learn and participate in math. Remember to relax if they don't exactly get it they are still young you have lots of time. Make it Fun!

Reading(Phonics)

Hooked of Phonics left over from older sibling
Starfall free phonics online program and printouts
Letter Tiles
Public Library Leveled Readers

Handwriting

Dry Erase Printing Practice board left over from older sibling
Kumon Uppercase and lower case letters
Sand Tray(Montessori item that I will make myself)

Math

Mathematics with Unifix Cubes
Geometric Pattern Blocks

Science

Real Science Odyssey Life Science( COOP Class) he will participate in the hands on lab part not the notebook pages.

History/Geography

Same as my 2nd grader but modified to fit his ability
level

I might just do lots of Read Alouds of African Myths and Fables like Anansi the Spider and do coloring pages and art projects

Foreign Language(Spanish)

We will use all free materials from:

Public Library online web tutorials
Books
CD's
DVD's
Free internet Printouts
Free online Games

Art

COOP Class

Physical Education

Daily Walks
Park Days
Possible Akido(martial arts)

So here it is in a nutshell I think in all I will end up spending around $350.00 total for both children for the year. I have not added in the cost of the extra classes yet but if we take the sports and dance at the recreation center that gets things down a bit in price because we are residence. And that is also something I have asked the grandparents if they could pitch in on this years extracurriculars. Hopefully something comes through on that end. If not we can always get by on walking the trails at our parks and doing exercise OnDemand cable.

New School Year!

2010-08-08T12:22:00.000-07:00

Its been a while since I made any post. Although we do homeschool year round I kind of took a summer break from blogging and posting things for a few months. Sometimes we just need to unplug for a while and enjoy that family that we sacrifice to stay home with you know. lol. Well coming soon I will be having some post about this years Covention and what we have selected for curriculum this year as well as changes in the way we approach learning in our home. So be on the look out for that. Hope everyones summer has been going well. Enjoy those teacheable moments!

I Can't Homeschool Because...

2010-07-07T21:55:00.001-07:00

Rainy Day Projects

2010-04-24T20:28:00.000-07:00

Today was a dark and stormy day. I mean we tried to go on grocery run this morning and when we were in the store it was like a monsoon hit. We stayed in the Walmart for 2hrs today. But that was fine cause we like our one stop shop experiences anyway. There is something for everyone to look at. Well anyway when we got back home there was nothing to do really since we usually go to park on Saturday afternoons and play till dinner. So my daughter and I decided to make ourselves a little piece of outdoors inside and we created some Tissue Paper Flowers. I know every girl remembers doing this sort of craft when you were young. Whether it was at school or maybe even a summer camp. We had a blast. Hours had past before we even realized it. We played Florist shop, Flower Garden Party, and Wedding(All time Favorite around here). Here is a video I found that used the same method we were to make the tissue flowers in anyone is interested. For those who follow a Charlotte Mason method of homeschooling I think this could definitely be considered a Handicraft

The little ones were not very interested in the Tissue Paper Flowers. Really my one year old would just try and make a snack of it. But they pulled out a few of there "Workboxes" full of large beading and Lacing Cards. My 1yr old enjoyed taking the beads out 1 by 1 and putting them back in 1 by 1. Its amazing what they find entertaining. It is always a joy to see what children do when you turn off the TV. We are not perfect when it comes to TV watching and self control but lately we have been turnining it off more and more. I think in the few short weeks we have been trying it we have grown closer as a family. Its my hope after a while the children won't even ask about it.

Educational Video Website Freebie!

2010-04-24T19:58:00.000-07:00

I came across this from one of the parents on a yahoo group. It looks great. It can definitely be a time saver for some parents who spend hours on Youtube looking for suitable viewing materials to go along with there studies.
Its called Watch Know

Here is the video explaining how it works

Math Woes!!!

2010-04-22T08:28:00.000-07:00

So its about that time of year where it seems like all the progress we made and curriculum we plugged through in math is beginning to unravel. I mean its sometimes as if nothing was retained. But I know that is not true its just like with anything else you do systematically every day burnout will eventually set in.

Now I must ask myself what do we do to bring these numbers back to life. At first I was drawing blanks. Then I thought to myself why not just x out the textbook for a while and do some creative stuff. I was thinking maybe we could do some file folder games, card games, computer games, grocery store trips, straight manipulative play, and whatever else I come across. I have been doing some searches for resources and I have even came across a set of living books that are for math. And I found that my local library carries them. I have been on the forums and message boards for homeschoolers lately and it seems that I am not alone in my year end math madness. There have been even dozens of blog post popping up about this same subject. Here are some links to ones I found helpful:

Epi Kardia
Homeschooling in a Bilingual Home
Homeschool Articles
One of the other reasons I feel like we are having difficulty with math is because I don't think our curriculum is a great match for my learner. My daughter is a young first grader and this year we have been using Horizons k from Alpha Omega Publishing. She started mid summer on the 1st book and is now finishing the 2nd book and should be done some time this week. I mean Horizons is a wonderful program and I highly recommend it for early elementary grades but it might not have been as conceptually strong as I needed it to be for my child.

We have been looking into using MathUSee from Steve Demi this next go round. I went on the website and watched the Demistration as they call it and I think its exactly what we need. It uses a See, Say, Do method. Meaning you see the problem with the manipulative's, you verbally express the the problem, then you write the expression. They use lots of word problems as well. I have read tons of reviews this far. Most all who have used it are great fans of the program. I have also read it is a great program for those who follow a Classical style or Charlotte Mason approach which makes it another plus for me. So now lets pray we receive the funds to get the ball rolling.

Curriculum Freebie!

2010-04-15T12:05:00.000-07:00

So I was on one of the many networks I frequent and someone posted a link for this free curriculum resource for early elementary grades. I figured I would pass it along to you.
Its called Head of the Class

With the economy effecting most of us these days I know as homeschoolers especially it is causing us to become very creative with curriculum. I mean this past year I think we initially spent $300.00 for 2 students. I mean that is all we had in the budget. I thought that wasn't much till I found out there are some parents who go on less than that and manage just fine. So I am really started to look at things in a different light now. I look at the situation as a character building opportunity for me and for the children. I mean I am so proud of what I was able to accomplish this year. I essential made my own curriculum and lesson plans. It was time consuming and tedious but you know what I am proud of myself for rising to the challenge. It was truly a confidence builder that I could do anything I set my mind to. And you know what it is making this coming year not look so stressful as far as planning. Its also one of the many reasons I have grown to love the Classical Education Method. All you need to do is teach a child how to learn and they will find the knowledge. Its good to have prepackaged curriculum with nice shinny teachers editions but its just as good if not better than to have a bible, library card, Math text, basic school supplies and the great outdoors.

Spring is in the Air!

2010-04-08T18:45:00.001-07:00

We took a trip to our local organic farm for a class on Spring Gardening recently. It was not only a great learning experience for the children but one for my husband and I also.
You know with everything in full bloom there are lots of opportunities to do Nature Study activities. If you are looking for a listing of farms in your area here is a favorite resource of mine

Pick Your Own

Local Harvest

Also I found some wonderful links to help assit your child in creating there own Nature Journals.

Nature Journal Resources

Donna Young Nature Journal

Our 1st Homeschool Science Fair 2010!

2010-03-26T21:47:00.000-07:00

This Friday my daughter got to participate in her 1st ever science fair. We had a blast. It was organized by one of our local homeschool groups. I must say that I was quite impressed by some of the creativity of the other students. Well if you have a science fair coming up in your area or you are thinking about hosting one for your homeschool group here are some wonderful resources I found along the way.

Science Fair Central

Janice VanCleave's Guide to the Best Science Fair Projects
Basically anything by Janice VanCleave is great for science fair type projects. Her books can be found at any local library.

All Science Fair Projects

SCIENCE FAIR
CREATION SCIENCE TOPICS

Science Fair Adventure

Homeschool Science Tools
This site is a one stop shop for all homeschool science tools, kits, and supplies.

LEGO Smart Creativity Contest!!

2010-03-25T08:19:00.000-07:00

Hey guys here is another FREEBIE I found for next school year. check it out.

Now through July 2010, LEGO Education is searching for 10,000 new contestants for its 2010 LEGO® Smart™ Creativity Contest, challenging classrooms across the United States to become LEGO Smart!

The 2010 contest, including prize information and contest rules, will be emailed to all pre-registered contestants on Monday, August 2, 2010, starting at 8am CST.

Would you like to be part of the fun?
The 2010 LEGO® Smart™ Creativity Contest requires the use of a LEGO® Smart™ kit (pictured above). Kits are available, free of charge, to the first 10,000 new, registered, and qualified contestants.

To register for the 2010 Contest, CLICK HERE.

If you are a teacher, home educator, after-school program director, or otherwise working with students within the education field, you are eligible to compete in this year’s contest. Previous year’s contestants are also eligible and must use their current kit for the contest challenge, due to launch August 2, 2010!

Only pre-registered and pre-qualified contestants are eligible for the 2010 LEGO Smart Creativity Contest. If you have questions or would like additional information, contact Debra at dsmith@LEGOeducatio n.us.

Are You LEGO® Smart™?
Being LEGO® Smart™ is more than building with LEGO bricks. It’s having the ability to work in teams, solve problems, and create solutions. It means understanding key science, technology, engineering, and math concepts – not just on paper, but through demonstration.

LEGO® Smart™ students don’t just know it, they do it!

http://www.legoeduc ation.us/ about/item. aspx?art= 3465&bhcp=1

Fire Station Field Trip!

2010-03-22T16:21:00.000-07:00

With the good weather rolling back around I know us homeschoolers can't wait to get back into our hands on in the field learning opportunities. The thing is in this economy affording for everyone to head out to the aquarium or museum is just not within the budget for some. But one thing that I have started doing lately is looking for opportunities in our own neighborhood that can be an educational experience for Free or little money. One of those things we did today was go to our local Fire Department for a tour around the station.

I just called my local fire department and asked if they did tours of the stations. And they told me sure. They asked how many children were going to be coming with me and I told them just my family and they said it was fine. They could also accommodate your homeschool group as well if you guys wanted to attend as a large group. We got to see were they eat, sleep, and they took us all around the trucks.Just call around and find out what your local servicemen can offer you and your family to find out more about how they serve the community. They gave the kids a plastic fireman hat and one of those sticker badges. That was the highlight for them.

When we got home I had a few extension exercises to go with the field trip. We read some books aloud about Fire Stations. Here is the list:

Curious George at the Fire Station by Margret and H.A. Rey's
The Fire Cat by Esther Averill
Corduroy goes to the Fire Station by Don Freeman

I also had my 1st grader fill out a field trip report sheet I printed from Here.

My 1st grader and my preschooler both colored a printout of a fire truck I got from HERE

I took some heavy card stock and let them paste there report, fire truck, and sticker badge onto it and make a Fire safety booklet. They are going to add a few more pages after learning some other fire safety tips. I am going to have them check a few more books from the library to finish up on it.

And after talking to the firemen about safety in the home and preparing your children in case of an emergency we decided to create an emergency exit plan and a meet up location and do a fire drill. This should be interesting.

Homeschoolers at the Capitol Day!!!

2010-03-18T08:39:00.000-07:00

Yesterday my family and I went to visit the Georgia State Capitol. It was our first time going. Our local state homeschool organization GHEA has a Homeschoolers at the Capitol Day annually. It is a time when we as tax paying voters get to make our voice and presence known to those who propose and make laws for our states. Laws that can possibly effect our Right to Homeschool. Its also an opportunity for our children to see how our local branches of government conduct themselves. You might be lucky enough to attend during a session in which case you can sit in with your child and have them observe the process. You can even make an appointment to speak with your Governor or Congressman and thank then them for continuing to support homeschoolers just so they see your face and know you are a voice. It can make the difference when legislature that is not favorable to homeschoolers comes along.

One of our local Homeschool Bands Joyful Noise from Marrietta, Ga performed on the Capitol steps. It was great. They had a Jazz Ensemble, Symphony Orchestra, Recorder band(younger children), and Chorus. We flooded the capitol it was so many of us but as always with the homeschool crowd everyone was polite and orderly.

Visits to the State Capitol are free and depending on what time of the year it is they have different specialty guided tours to sign up for. It is a good field trip idea for homeschoolers on a tight budget.

There was a Capitol Museum on the upper level of the building which was great. We got to see exhibits on our local wildlife, waterways, and industries. We also were able to see exhibits depicting the history of voting in our state as well as some background on some of our most famous people. This being Georgia and all I guess I should not have been surprised to see a painting of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on the 1st floor of the capitol building in the same hall as all the past Governors. After all he was from Atlanta, Ga. We also saw some things on Jimmy Carter our 39th president who is from Plains, Ga. Ironically he grew up on a peanut farm and that happens to be a our state Crop. lol!

Well just look for opportunities like this in your local area to band together with the homeschool community for Capitol Day. A way to find out what's going on in your local area is to visit the HSLDA website and look for your states homeschool association. They should be able to tell you when your states Capitol Day is.

Language Arts and Reading in Our home

2010-03-09T15:24:00.000-08:00

Language Arts is such a broad spectrum of subjects. When I hear language arts I think of Grammar, Spelling, Phonics, Handwriting, Reading Comprehension, and Vocabulary. Now at this phase of learning I don't think it is necessary to cover all these things but to add in one at a time when they show signs of readiness for that. Also some of these that fall under the umbrella of Language arts might not even be necessary in a home learning environment. Like for instance Reading comprehension can be replaced with narration. And I have known quite a bit of homeschoolers who never use a formal vocabulary curriculum simply because they are constantly being expose to vocab that can be explained by there parent all day through there read alouds and classic childrens literature. But here is the run down on what we use.

1st grade

Grammar
1st Language Lessons by Susan Wise Bauer
supplimented with SF Reading Grammar Online

Spelling
Sequential Spelling level 1

Handwriting
Copywork
A Reason For Handwriting

Phonics
We done with it but we completed the entire
Hooked On Phonics- It was a great sucess for our family. Another great program I heard about but haven't used is Phonics Pathways and you can use Bob Books and Pathway Readers for the books part.

Literature and Reading
We have our own list that I have compiled but we also read from the
Ambleside Online List level 1
and Classical Christian Homeschool booklist also

Preschool

Phonics
Starfall
and we just started the Hooked On Phonics(no pushing just introducing it)- most children start phonics and dont get the blend part until they hit a certain level of development when they stop seeing a word like Cat as C- at instead of Cat. Usually this happens around 4 or 5 for some it could be as late as 6. So if you are starting phonics don't worry if they dont seem to be able to put it all together right away. Just stay consistant with lessons and keep them SHORT.

Handwriting
Tracing letter WS- we bought a few workbooks from Walmart. We might do a couple of week whenever he wants to do school.

Literature and Reading
We do lots of read alouds. For him we use our own list and the list at
Simply Charlotte Mason

Pizza Hut: Book It! Reading Program 2010- 2011 Enrollment

2010-02-27T09:18:00.000-08:00

This school year my oldest got to participate in the Book It! Reading Program sponsored by Pizza Hut. Now the enrollment is open for next school year. The program is open for all public, private, and homeschoolers. You get a packet in the mail in the fall around Sept. that will come with a Progress Chart, Awards, and Pizza coupons that can be redeemed at any Pizza Hut location. Its for grades K- 6th. You set the reading goals so if for you its 6 chapter books in a month than thats what it is. Here is the link Here

Thought I would pass along this freebie

Some Of Life Best Moments

2010-02-25T20:37:00.000-08:00

One of the best ways to get your children to love reading is for them to see you reading. Here I caught a candid moment of my husband having readind time with our two oldest. How cute is this!

Online Homeschool Conferences!

2010-02-18T16:46:00.000-08:00

In my last post about Homeschool Conference I mentioned how to locate your local state conventions but I neglected to mention for those who cannot make those conference there are other options. There are two different annual online homeschooler conferences that are coming up. The best part about attending a conference online is that you can replay parts you missed you can usually download the audio to your computer. Also you don't have to worry about what to do with your little ones, or transportation, or any of the other things I mentioned in my previous post. Now although I do prefer to go in person to my local state convention and curriculum fair to browse the vendors booths I do know it can be very difficult to attend the seminars and hear the speakers with little ones in tow. So if you are unable to make a conference in person this year consider these two options.

The Ultimate Homeschool Expo

My 1st Blog Award!!!

2010-02-16T16:20:00.000-08:00

Thanks so much to Hannah at Preparing For Our Childrens Future.

This is such a blessing. Its the 1st but hopefully not the last Blog Award for me.

The rules for accepting this award:

1.Thank the person that gave you the award

2.Pass this award on to 15 bloggers you've recently discovered
and whom you think are fantastic!

3.Contact the Bloggers you pick to let them know they've won

4.State 7 Things about yourself!

So Here goes a little about myself:

1. I am a wife and mother of 3 wonderful children ages 1, 3, and soon to be 6.

2. I am the Prodical Daughter. What I mean is that I was raised in the church and left out the back door as soon as I got to college and had my beliefs challenged for the 1st time only to find myself 1o years later crying out for the Lord to wrap his loving arms around me and show me the way back to him.

3. I am the oldest child. I still have a sibling at home in highschool.

4. I have a serious passion for education and learning new things.

5. I enjoy reading and surfing youtube! Youtube is replacing baseball as an "All American Passtime".

6. My husband and I are a Quiverfull Family. The Lord will decided if and when children come through my womb.

7. I am a Midwest Girl at Heart with a Country Girl Syle.

As Promised Here are the 15 Blogs I pick to recieve this Award also.

Catholic Christian Homeschooling
Four Bad Apples
Home Grown Families
Joyfully at Home
Learning for His Glory Homeschooling
Mama to 3 Blessings
Marmee's Pantry
Outside the Sandbox
Preparing Our Children 4 Life
Strong Quiver
Team Gray
Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers
The Way We Homeschool
The Mahogany Way
The Bridled Tongue

Tot Books: Brown Bear, Brown Bear

2010-02-15T07:53:00.000-08:00

I printed the activity booklets to go with the new childrens Classic book "Brown Bear, Brown Bear by Bill Martin and Eric Carle. We love how this story is a good reinforcement for learning colors and common animals. Here are some pics of what we did with it.

What I Like About Classical Education!

2010-02-12T08:52:00.000-08:00

The things we love best about using a Classical Approach to homeschooling is you are taught from an early age how to recite. When you are a little older you learn Logic. Finally towards High school you should know how to research a topic, write a complete argument, and present it. It’s called the Trivium or 3 stages of learning. They are Grammar, Logic, and Rhetoric stages. Which if you break down into terms we are accustomed is 1- 4th grade, 5-8th grade, and 9th- 12th grade. You expose children to the Great Books and Living books at an early age. Also during the Grammar stage you introduce them to recitation on a weekly basis. This is also when you do the most memorization of facts, tables, and timelines. This will create memory pegs to tap into in latter learning. That is how we are training our children to be lifelong learners. Another thing that is cool about Classical is that we study history and geography from a chronological view from Creation to Modern Day. Which means we start with Ancient World (Egypt, Nubia, Kush, Greece, Rome, China, Japan, and India), then Early Renaissance, next Late Renaissance, and finally Modern day.

In early America before the formation of the NEA (National Education Association) and the beginning of Compulsory attendance laws, most schools were taught this way. They were usually called Latin Schools or Grammar Schools. The reason why some of the Classical Schools of early America where referred to as Latin Schools is, “You Guessed it!”, they taught Latin starting at the Grammar stage of learning. The philosophy of Classical Education is to train children to become thinkers and processors of information by equipping them with the tools necessary to break down any and all subjects at the root. Latin is one of the root languages our Language is based upon. So with a good firm grasp on Language it will help train our children to always go to the original source 1st. And don’t be intimidated by the Latin either. With all the resources and curriculum available to homeschoolers today it’s a matter of how do you want to teach it. You can choose from books, DVD’s, CD’s, CD Rom, and even taking a class with a local COOP group.

I must say out of all the things to love about Classical Education it has to be the rich emphasis on Great Works of Literature. Time has been the biggest test for some authors as to there relevance in modern day education. A great writer never goes out of style. And for those parents on tight budgets like us you can always find Great Books at your local Public Library. There are even websites dedicated to putting out Suggested Reading List for all levels of learning. Check out some of my favorites under my Classic Home Education Resources Links to the left sidebar. My favorites right now for suggested reading for my Preschool and 1st grader are the Ambleside list and also the Classical Christian Homeschooling site under 1000 Good Books List.

I truly feel that with these bare essentials:

Bible
Library Card
Internet Access
Math Text
Latin Curriculum
Basic School Supplies
You can succeed in producing a Well Educated Child from Preschool thru High School.

"Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it."

-Proverbs 22:6-

Homeschool Convention and Curriculum Fair Season !

2010-02-02T10:00:00.000-08:00

I don't know if you guys are thinking about it yet but I am already mapping out my plans for this years state homeschoolers convention and curriculum fair. Last year was my 1st year of attending and I didn’t have any particular game plan. But this year I will have my list of curriculum that I need and a list of the workshops I want to see and there time slots already in place.
I think it is best to navigate these conferences with a through plan of attack or else you can end up doing one of two things: Getting this you really didn’t need or not getting things at all due to being overwhelmed. Here are some of my tips to successfully attending a Homeschool Convention and Curriculum Fair

1. Order Catalogs- It’s best to order all the curriculum catalogs before attending. Have a general idea of what you are looking to purchase so that you can spend your time on the exhibitors hall looking for the best price for your selected items and then check out the new and exciting things.

2. Meal Plan- Plan out your food for the family and making sure to have a change of clothes and shoes for each member of your family in the car. Most convention centers don’t want you to bring in outside food but you can still bring your food and take a designated lunch break at the car. They don’t mind you going in and out.

3. Baby Carriers- If you have small babies bring a carrier or wrap of some sort and a stroller. The stroller can be used as a storage device for all your handouts and curriculum and supplies.

4. Buddy System- Also if you have a large family pair a younger child with an older as a walking buddy. Train your child on what to do if they get separated like looking for information desk or security officer. Try to point those things out on the way in. For a very shy or non speaking child try putting on ID bracelets.

5. Little Ones- If you have all little ones I would try to get a baby sitter and go alone or only go to the exhibit hall and not the workshops cause you might not get much from the seminars if they get fussy.

I find that attending the Conferences can be a great encourage for a child who doesn’t have much contact with other homeschoolers on a regular basis. They get to see that there are many others in there state that get there education at home also. It’s also very reassuring and inspirational for the parents to be around other parents who take on the task of home education. A word about diversity at Curriculum Conferences is that I have found here in my state of Georgia (The South) it didn’t make me feel uncomfortable at all. And I actually found a few African American vendors as well as other ethnic groups in attendance.
Here is a link to how to find a Conference in your Area!

http://www.thehomeschoolmagazine.com/conventions/index.html

Classic Music Study

2010-01-19T18:24:00.001-08:00

One aspect of a Classical Education is to incorporate the study of Classical Music. So far this school year we have studied Mozart, Beethoven, and now we have started on Tchaikovsky.

We use the following format for our Classic Music Studies:

Music Study Format
1. Listening Study
2. Comparison
3. Biographical information( Picture books, children biographies, movies, etc..)
4. Project (making craft instruments, etc...)

A great resource for Children's Classic Music projects, printouts and audio is: http://www.classicsforkids.com/

Today during our Music hour we read the Picture Book "Swan Lake" illustrated by Shigeru Hatsuyama while listening to a few selections from Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake. Sometime we turn the lights off and listen to a piece while laying still. At elementary age don't expect to get more than a "I like the way it sounds." or "This music is pretty." With an other child you can ask more probing questions.

Martin Luther King Jr. Unit Study

2010-01-16T10:06:00.000-08:00

Martin Luther King Jr.
Unit Study
Suggested Grades: K- 2nd

Library Resource List

Happy Birthday, Martin Luther King by Jean Marzolla
Martin’s Big Words: The Life of Martin Luther King Jr. by Doreen Rapppaort
My Dream of Martin Luther King by Faith Ringgold
My Brother Martin by Christine King Farris
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr by David Alder
Martin Luther King Jr. by Mary Winget

Printouts and Lesson Plans

MLK Mini book
http://www.bry-backmanor.org/mlk.html

MLK Worksheets
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/history/us/MLK/

FREE Lesson Plans and Teachers Guide from
Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Site
http://www.nps.gov/malu/forteachers/lessonplansandteacherguides.htm

Other MLK Lesson Plans and links

http://www.educationworld.com/a_lesson/lesson248.shtml

Arts and Crafts

MLK Toliet Paper Puppet
http://www.dltk-kids.com/crafts/mmlk.html
MLK Coloring Sheets
http://www.primarygames.com/holidays/mlk/color.htm
http://www.dltk-kids.com/crafts/mposters-mlk.htm
MLK Crafts
http://www.theholidayzone.com/mlk/mlkart.html

Audio and Video Clips

I have a Dream Speech
http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkihaveadream.htm

I’ve Been to the MountainTop

http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkivebeentothemountaintop.htm

Scripps Homeschool Spelling Bee

2010-01-15T17:15:00.000-08:00

Today my Daughter had the privilege of participating in a Scripps Homeschool Spelling Bee. Even though at the Jr. level they don't go on to state competitions I felt it was a wonderful learning experience. The Jr. competitors all received a certificate of participation. I thought that was nice too.Who knows I could have a future Akeelah and The Bee on my hands.

For homeschoolers to participate in the Scripps National Spelling Bee competition a local homeschool organization must sponsor the local challenge. If you are interested in having your homeschooler participate in the Scripps Spelling Bee next year or your local homeschool organization hosting the event check out http://www.spellingbee.com/

Here is a handy list of study websites to help your child in preparation for the Bee.

http://myspellit.com/

http://www.funbrain.com/spell/index.html

http://www.wordcentral.com/

Praying For Haiti

2010-01-14T10:50:00.000-08:00

Ways to Give

http://www.yele.org/

http://www.care.org/

http://www.redcross.org/

Ancient Egypt Unit Study

2010-01-14T08:54:00.000-08:00

As I posted previously. In History/ Georgrapy we are doing a large 12 week Unit Study on Ancient Egypt. Right now we are just 2 weeks into the unit and I wanted to share with you some of the FREE resources I have found here online.

Here is a link for printout and suggested readings at my favorite resource Homeschool share

http://www.homeschoolshare.com/ancient_egypt.php

Suggested Library List

Who Was King Tut? by Roberta EdwardsUsborne

Who Built the Pyramids? by Jane Chisholm & Struan Reid

Pyramids! by Avery Hart & Paul Mantell

Projects About Ancient Egypt by David C. King

Adventures in Ancient Egypt by Linda Bailey

Pyramid by David Macaulay

Tutankhamen's Gift by Robert Sabuda

Tut's Mummy Lost and Found by Judy Donnelly

The Golden Goblet by Eloise Jarvis McGraw

Cleopatra by Diane Stanley

Egyptian Gods and Goddesses by Henry Barker

Egyptian Treasures (CD) by Jim Weiss

The Magic Tree House Research Book – Mummies and Pyramids by Mary Pope Osborne

Also I for older children I found this resource to be of great assistance at Homeschool Helper Online: http://www.homeschoolhelperonline.com/lapbooks/ancient_egypt.htm

Suggest Library List

The Best Book of Mummies by Philip Steele 1st-3rd

Voices of Ancient Egypt by Kay Winters, Barry Moser 3rd-6th

Egypt: A to Z by Jeff Reynolds (non-fiction) 4th-6th

The Story of the Nile by Anne Millard 4th-6th

Daily Life in Ancient and Modern Cairo by Joan Barghusen (culture) 4th-8th

Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt by Usborne (non-fiction) 4th-9th

Glorious Past: Ancient Egypt, Ethiopia, and Nubia by Earnestine Jenkins (events) 7th-9th

Egyptian Princess by George Ebers (historical fiction) 10th-12th

Here is the breakdown in which we are going to study this Ancient Civilization.

Ancient Egypt

Units

People (Kings, Queens, Other important people) 6 lessons 3 weeks
Places (Capitol city, land forms, bodies of water, landmarks)
6 lessons 3 weeks
Culture (Religion, government, food, clothing, art, music)
6 lessons 3 weeks
Events (Wars, Death, Pivotal turning points) 6 lessons 3 weeks

Total= 24 lessons, 12 weeks

Other Completed Lapbook Photos from the web:

http://www.squidoo.com/egypt-lapbook

Are You Smarter Than a 8th Grader from 1895?

2009-12-04T13:32:00.000-08:00

This is the eighth-grade final exam from 1895 in Salina , Kansas , USA . It was taken from the original document on file at the Smokey Valley Genealogical Society and Library in Salina stole it 8th Grade Final Exam: Salina, KS - 1895

Grammar (Time, one hour)
1. Give nine rules for the use of capital letters.
2. Name the parts of speech and define those that have no modifications.
3. Define verse, stanza and paragraph

4. What are the principal parts of a verb? Give principal parts of "lie,""play," and "run."
5. Define case; illustrate each case.
6 What is punctuation? Give rules for principal marks of punctuation.
7 - 10. Write a composition of about 150 words and show therein that you understand the practical use of the rules of grammar.

Arithmetic (Time,1 hour 15 minutes)
1. Name and define the Fundamental Rules of Arithmetic.
2. A wagon box is 2 ft. Deep, 10 feet long, and 3 ft. Wide. How many bushels of wheat will it hold?3. If a load of wheat weighs 3,942 lbs., what is it worth at 50cts/bushel, deducting 1,050 lbs. For tare?
4. District No 33 has a valuation of $35,000. What is the necessary levy to carry on a school seven months at $50 per month, and have $104 for incidentals?
5. Find the cost of 6,720 lbs. Coal at $6.00 per ton.
6. Find the interest of $512.60 for 8 months and 18 days at 7 percent.
7. What is the cost of 40 boards 12 inches wide and 16 ft. Long at $20 per metre?
8. Find bank discount on $300 for 90 days (no grace) at 10 percent.
9. What is the cost of a square farm at $15 per acre, the distance of which is 640 rods?
10. Write a Bank Check, a Promissory Note, and a Receipt

U.S. History (Time, 45 minutes)
1. Give the epochs into which U.S. History is divided
2. Give an account of the discovery of America by Columbus
3. Relate the causes and results of the Revolutionary War.
4. Show the territorial growth of the United States
5. Tell what you can of the history of Kansas
6. Describe three of the most prominent b attles of the Rebellion.
7. Who were the following: Morse, Whitney, Fulton , Bell , Lincoln , Penn, and Howe?
8. Name event s connected with the following dates: 1607, 1620, 1800, 1849, 1865.

Orthography (Time, one hour)[Do we even know what this is??]
1. What is meant by the following: alphabet, phonetic, orthography, etymology, syllabication
2. What are elementary sounds? How classified?
3. What are the following, and give examples of each: trigraph, subvocals, diphthong, cognate letters, linguals
4. Give four substitutes for caret 'u.' (HUH?)
5. Give two rules for spelling words with final 'e.' Name two exceptions under each rule.
6. Give two uses of silent letters in spelling. Illustrate each.
7. Define the following prefixes and use in connection with a word: bi, dis-mis, pre, semi, post, non, inter, mono, sup.
8. Mark diacritically and divide into syllables the following, and name the sign that indicates the sound: card, ball, mercy, sir, odd, cell, rise, blood, fare, last.
9. Use the following correctly in sentences: cite, site, sight, fane, fain, feign, vane , vain, vein, raze, raise, rays.
10. Write 10 words frequently mispronounced and indicate pronunciation by use of diacritical marks and by syllabication.

Geography (Time, one hour)
1 What is climate? Upon what does climate depend?
2. How do you account for the extremes of climate in Kansas ?
3. Of what use are rivers? Of what use is the ocean?
4. Describe the mountains of North America
5. Name and describe the following: Monrovia , Odessa , Denver , <>
6. Name and locate the principal trade centers of the U.S.
7. Name all the republics of Europe and give the capital of each.
8. Why is the Atlantic Coast colder than the Pacific in the same latitude?
9. Describe the process by which the water of the ocean returns to the sources of rivers.
10. Describe the movements of the earth. Give the inclination of the earth.

Single Parents Can Homeschool: The Great Balancing Act

2009-11-20T08:50:00.000-08:00

Typically when people think of homeschooling they usually picture a stay at home mother and a working father. Well for the two million plus hoemschoolers in the United States that is not always the scenario. Homeschoolers are as diverse as the World itself. Yes, it is true that the majority of homeschoolers come from two parent households but in the recent years single parents have began to exercise there right to home educate there children as well. How you ask can a single parent homeschool? Well through lots of prayer, sacrifice, creativity, and support they are succeeding at providing their children with a quality education at home.

For those of you who are single parents considering homeschool as an option for your family and are unsure how to accomplish it or for those who have been homeschooling for a while but need some fresh ideas on how to continue on we are going to examine some of the things that veteran single parent homeschoolers have done to make home education work in their families.

The make or break issue single parent homeschoolers face is employment. There are various ways to obtain income and still homeschool. For example:

· Swing Shift Employment- If you work for an employer who offers a 2- 11pm or 3- 12pm shift this could afford you the time to instruct the children in the mornings before leaving for work.
· Work From Home- With modern technology being what it is today plenty of companies have adapted more of a virtual office style where you only go into the office every once in a while. There are even some companies that are exclusively work from home.
· Self- Employment- From Avon, Mary Kay, Usborne Books, and your own small business start up can allow you the flexibility needed to homeschool.
· Inhome Child Care Provider- In my research I found quite a bit of parents chooses to open there home to other parents during the day as a childcare provider. Although this option does come with a certain level of commitment it can be an excellent source of economic stability.
· Academic Tutor- Lets not forget the most obvious choice that you can use to create a source of income for yourself is to tutor other children. Every homeschool parent has there strong point. Maybe yours is math, science, or even art. You don’t just have to stick to individual tutoring sessions either. Maybe you can create different workshops in your home for the students to participate in for a few. Be creative!

Figuring out how to sustain yourself economically while homeschooling your children can be a trying but it can be accomplished. It’s just a matter of figuring out a plan that works well for your family. The Bible says in Deuteronomy 6: 6- 7 “And these words, which I command thee on this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk to them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thy liest down, and when thy risest up.” If God wants us to instill his words and commandments into the hearts of all children in every waking moment of our day than he will surely make a way to make it possible for all parents to give there children a Christ centered education.

Toddlers Need Time Too!

2009-10-14T09:10:00.000-07:00

With the hustle and bustle of being a wife and homeschool mother of three children you can sometimes feel like a circus performer jugging bowling pins on fire. Between going over math problems with my 1st grader and changing my babies soggy diapers my toddler playing with his toy pick up truck can sometimes get lost in the shuffle. It even happens to us Supermoms. On occasion we forget to give someone their mommy time.

Out of all the children my toddler is my early riser so one morning we were the only two up before sunrise and was sitting at the computer desk when he decided to climb into my lap and I held him tight to my chest and kissed his face and forehead. But it was in that moment that I realized just how special theses moments are and how special an age toddler hood really is. It's not something to just get through and hope you get by without losing your patience. It is something to cherish. These are the last days of needing Mommy to do everything for them. You see how everyday they are doing more and more on their own. I am sure all you veteran Moms remember the day when your little guys or girls pushed your hands back and said" No, I can can do it myself."

So while you are trying to figure out different technique to keep your toddlers occupied and out of your hair to teach grammar or build a volcano with your older child; lets not forget to take some time out with your toddler. Try reading a special story with them before nap time everyday. Eventually they will learn to look forward to their special story time. Or maybe they can help you get the food from the refrigerator for lunch or help set the table. As long as it is consistent you will begin to to see the joy of having a toddler around.

Preschool Phonic Game/ Song

2009-10-02T23:00:00.000-07:00

Throughout my homeschool journey my children continue to amaze me. One of the many joys of having your children at home together not segregated by age group is that the older ones will naturally learn to steer the younger ones. They find pleasure in helping there siblings to discover the world of learning. My daughter quite often takes it upon herself to teach her younger brother all the things that she has learned. Today she decided to teach him his letter sounds using the tune of Old McDonald and some wooden Farm Animal Puzzles.

Unit Studies: Lapbooking with Any Curriculum

2009-09-25T09:09:00.000-07:00

When you are still new to the world of homeschooling you sometimes come across terms that are hard for you to clearly understand. And some things have so much information out there about it trying to sift through what is usable and relevant for your homeschool can be overwhelming. What I am going to do is take you through the steps of how to implement one of these terms today and that is a Unit Study. I will give some easy to follow guidelines on how you can also incorporate Unit Studies into any curriculum you are using.

Pick a Topic- For example lets say you are using a standard boxed curriculum and you are in your text in science and you come to a chapter on Insects. Your child has a particular interested in wanting to learn more about Butterflies but the text is more of a generalized chapter on Insects without going in depth with any specific one. This is a perfect opportunity to do a Unit Study on Butterflies. And you can do this with any subject from Science, History, Geography, Reading, even Math. Yes, Math can be made into a Unit also. Lets say you want to spend some time building multiplication skills. You could do games, charts, read books with word problems, and various other hands on activities on things to help master multiplication. This really works well for History. Lets say for instance you are learning about the Civil Rights Movement. You can pick key figures like Martin Luther King Jr. or Rosa Parks to do a Unit Study . This can even work for Bible curriculum. If you have an older child who wants to take a more in depth look at the Protestant Reformation they can. So just remember a Unit Study can be done on any topic you or your student chooses. Word of Caution: Not every Subject needs to be done as a Unit Study. Pick a few for the year, semester, or quarter and stick with that.

Gather Materials- In Classical Curriculum Living books and Original Source materials are the cornerstone of mostly all subjects. The Public Library is usually my 1st stop. I get picture books, non fiction, fiction, sometimes I can find a video or DVD to help accompany a subject. We just finished a Unit Study on Mozart and we were able to check out his music as well as some great children's literature about him. Utilize the FREE resources as much as possible. http://www.homeschoolshare.com/ usually includes a a suggested reading list with there Unit Studies so if you are doing one of the topics they have listed then you don't even have to search for titles. Other things you might want to gather are art supplies for any special projects you are going to do in your Unit Study or for your lapbooking/ notebooking. Later this year we will be doing a Unit Study on Ancient Egypt in which we will be doing a paper mache model of King Tut. So I would get all the supplies needed for that portion of the Unit ahead of time

Lesson Plan- So you picked your topic, gathered your materials now based off everything you have you will now create a lesson plan for your Unit Study. Now a Unit Study can be as long or as short as you want it to be depending on how deep inside a topic you plan to go and how old your child is. An older student might spend the whole school year on a particular topic to fully research it. A younger student can spend anywhere two weeks to two months on the Unit Study. You decide its up to you. An example of I schedule my Unit Studies for History/ Geography is to break down our Topic into Subtopics and go over those during the course of the study. Ancient Egypt is a big Unit for us this year. Here is how I broke it down:

Ancient Egypt

People( Kings, Queens, Other Important People) 6 lessons 3 week

Places( Capitol City, Land Forms, Bodies of Water, Landmarks) 6 lessons 3 weeks

Culture( Religion, Government, Food, Clothing, Art, Music) 6 lessons 3 we

Events( Wars, Death, Pivotal Turning Points) 6 lessons 3 weeks

Total= 24 lessons , 12 weeks

Lapbooking/ Notebooking- Lapbooking is basically a Scrapbooking Method used in Unit Studies to create record of important information obtained while studying a particular topic. Notebooking is basically the same concept. Where they truly differ is that Lapbooking is a collection of Mini Books where as Notebooking is entire pages of collected data and or drawings. In your Lapbooking/ Notebooking is where you take your written assignments and even worksheets a compile them in there. I think that for the younger Grammar Stage child that Lapbooking takes the stress of lengthy writing assignment where as I think that Notebooking is for a more academically mature student probably in the Middle grades to High School grades. In Classical Education we call those two levels the Logic and Rhetoric phase. I will delve further into the Stages of Classical Education in another blog soon. Since I have children in the Grammar Stage(elementary grades) I use the Lapbooking approach quite often. In my resource links to the left on my page I have posted some of favorite FREE lapbooking sites.

Outside Activities- While doing all of your library reading and lapbooking don't neglect one of the most wonderful benefits of Homeschooling and that is flexibility of learning environment. Don't forget to include hands of Field Trips where applicable. As well as looking for apprenticeship opportunities and even actual lab classes. Like if you are studying Beethoven go and see a real Symphony performance instead of just reading about and listening to CD's. If your child is learning about Frogs go take a nature walk by a local pond and do some observations. If you have an older child learning about Human Anatomy and they want to go into deeper study try seeing if they can observe at a local hospital or mortuary.

Preschool Play: Keepin Toddlers Busy!

2009-09-23T18:20:00.001-07:00

I have compiled a list of my top 10 things to do with my toddler during our homeschool day. These are just some of the ideas that I have found to work over time. I have found some of the ideas from various blogs and videos here on the web. I'll include some helpful links at the end. The activities are things that I put into index card boxes or small totes to pull out one at a time during the school day.

1. String Beads

2. Lacing Animal/ Shapes Cards

3. Mini Figures- Things such as farm animals, dinosaurs, lizards, frogs, occupational people, etc.. work well in the boxes. We usually have a theme that we are studying and we use the mini figures to count with as well as tell stories or talk about what they do, eat, or live.
Example: This weeks theme could be Farm Animals. We will read storybooks about farm animals, color pictures of farm animals, do puppets, play matching games with farm animal cards, flannel board stories, and use the mini figures to practice counting to 10, and also talk about what sounds the animals make( MOO, OINK, BAA BAA!) You can also match up each animal with its baby.

4. Legos or Duplo blocks

5. Wooden Puzzles- our favorite are those Melissa and Doug puzzles. They are very sturdy and the paint is non toxic. Plus they are oh so cute. You can start with the chunky puzzles with handles till they can get with the more advanced ones. http://www.melissaanddoug.com/

6. Starfall is a free online complete phonics program with printouts included. No membership necessary. It is very interactive and engaging. The only skills the child will need to have to get started is the ability to point and click a mouse.
http://www.starfall.com/

7. Flash Cards- you can have anything you want on hand. I found some great flash cards from the dollar store. You can even print some form your computer onto some heavy card stock paper and laminate it with clear contact paper from the hardware store. We keep around flash cards with ABC's, 123's, shapes, colors, insects, animals, etc..

8. Books on CD- we are constantly checking out books with the CD from our local library. This is an activity that your toddler can do to while you are working on math or some other subject with your older child. Sit them on the couch with the book and pop in the CD and they will read along with the audio voice. They love that noise it makes when it is time to turn the page.

9. Play Dough- I mean it gets no simpler than good old fashion play dough. I make mines on the stove using a salt dough recipe. It is cheap and non toxic for those toddlers who still like to lick everything.Here is what I use.

Ingredients

2 cups flour
2 cups salt
4 tsp of Cream of Tartar
2 TSP of oil
1 cup of water

I heat all ingredients on the stove until it begins to come off the sides. I then dump it out onto the counter or wax paper and knead it into a ball. Then cut it into 4's. I just use regular food coloring adding it to the center of one of the balls making sure to not touch it directly when kneading it. Then I just store it in plastic sandwich bags when not being used.
*** Be careful it is hot when you pour it out of the pot****

10. Alphabet Lapbooks- I have found quite a few excellent lapbooking sites for preschoolers. I have listed my favorites in the Resource section on the left. We are currently doing the alphabet lapbooks on homeschool share.http://www.homeschoolshare.com/alphabet_notebook.php

One of our favorite tools for finding activites appropriate for my toddler has been http://www.youtube.com/ One of our favorite channels right now is http://www.youtube.com/user/earlylearningathome

Check it out. You might find some useful tips that can work in your homeschool.

First Day Back: What's New This Year!

2009-09-22T08:03:00.000-07:00

This year is our 3rd year of homeschooling. I have a 5 year old daughter who is doing 1st grade level and a 2 1/2 year old who is starting Preschool level work. Although I am not new to homeschooling this will be our 1st year following the Classical Method outlined in "The Well Trained Mind" by Jessie Wise and Susan Wise Bauer. I took the last two months of our summer and basically wrote my enire curriculum plan for the year and gathered my materials. I don't think I spend more than $300.00 this year for both kids. Did you know the average Public School education cost the state about 5,000.00 a student. We are no where near that are we?

This is also our 1st year on an early schedule. The beauty of homeschooling is that you can set your own schedule to works best for your family. I was starting pretty late last year and notice it was blocking up my day so I have made an effort to get up earlier this year and kick things into gear so we can be done with academics by 1:30 at the latest. So far it is working great. We wake up at 8:ooam and the children do there chores(clean there room, make beds, and brush teeth, sometimes put on clothes) and then we eat and sometime around 9am or 9:30am we get started.

The last big change we have had this year that has been a God sent is incorporating Workboxes into our organization process. There is a woman who has a program she started called workboxes to better organize the homeschool student to get them to be more time efficient and work more independently. Here name is Sue Patrick and she started the Sue Patrick Workbox System. Here is her website: http://www.workboxsystem.com
Here is also a link for others who have implimented the system and they have posted pics as well: http://docs.google.com/View?docID=dwstdgn_447mphsmf8&revision=_latest

Although the system is for sale I being the resourceful budget concious person I am decided to create my own based off her concept with materials I had lying around or got from the dollar store and target. The things I do different is I use Magazine holders rather than the racks and I don't have my children clock there time in and out. I don't want to stress time more than completion of assignment and comprehension. I just made some labels on the computer and laminated it with clear contact paper and put a velcro tab on the back. So when she finishes a subject she rips the tab and places it in the bag. This way the child can keep track of there progress during the day. They always know how much they have left as well as being able to start on subjects that don't require your direct instruction while you try to lay a baby down for a nap or get your toddler settled in with some play dough or coloring sheet. My preschooler has some index card totes that I call his workboxes also that hold his beading strings, lacing cards, matching cards, dinosars and frog figures, and other things. When my 1st grader switches to a new workbox he gets a new workbox too. This has been like the "Wheel" so far in this house and we are only 3 weeks into the school year.