Back to Homeschool Week - Monday
2007-08-05 22:33:29
Monday
's topic:What led to your decision to homeschool?
****************************************************************************
I was first closely introduced to homeschooling through my sister-in-law. She had decided to homeschool my niece. Just to be honest, I thought that was a pretty crazy idea. Of course, I really had no knowledge of homeschooling, so my opposing views included all of the same ignorant views I now face daily...socialization, legality... blah, blah, blah!
Anyway, as my daughter grew closer to school age, I couldn't see myself dropping her off for someone else to raise. After all, she was only 6 years old! I had already kept her out of pre-school and had dealt with other parents telling me she would "fall behind" even though she was already expressing an interest in learning to read and was learning so much from our little "learning games".
What I didn't realize, was that I was homeschooling already. I had been teac
Read more: Homeschool
Keep the penny, just give me some QUIET!
2007-08-04 19:15:42
Why did I go to Wal-mart on a Saturday? Trust me, I wouldn't have if it hadn't been a tax-free weekend. Sure, I probably only saved a few cents, maybe a dollar, but what is that old saying..."a penny saved, is a penny earned"...Well, with the crowded isles and ornery people, I probably would've been better off forgetting the extra penny! Ugh!
Eventually we made it out alive, with all of our school supplies in tow. So...I'm officially ready for the new school year to begin. Aaaah! Feels good!
Next week is revival at our church, day and night services, so we won't start school until after that. I can't imagine trying to get schoolwork done in the middle of washing, drying and folding all of those church clothes! The thought makes me shudder! So we won't begin until August 13th.
I would like to do something a little special, just to start the year off on the right note, ya know? But, I'm not sure what. I'll have to ponder on that one.
Right now, I'm exhausted and I'm g
Photo Hunters - "Funky"
2007-08-03 14:23:50
This week's theme is: "Funky
"
Check out the inside of this largemouth bass' mouth! Yep, that is the tail fin of another fish! Pretty Funky, huh?
Read more: Photo
, Hunters
Almost Ready
2007-08-03 13:56:23
The schoolroom is clean, as you can see from the post below, and all of the curriculum is ordered. I'm getting something from UPS at least every other day. I just love getting stuff from UPS!! Especially when it's new school books!
I stuck pretty closely to what I had listed and planned to buy. Here's an official run-down of what we are using this year:
Sis (6th grade):
Abeka LanguageAbeka MathAbeka HistoryAbeka ScienceAbeka Creative Writing & PenmanshipTeacher Created Resources Literature Units to accompany these five books: Julie of the Wolves Sarah Plain & Tall My Side of the Mountain
Read more: Almost
Who? What? When? Where? Why?
2007-08-08 15:20:26
My average day is filled with all sorts of questions. I love that my kiddos have a desire to learn, but I must admit, I'm amazed at some of questions they come up with.
Here's an example from a conversation that took place today:
Spud: (lifting his tongue to show me the bottom of it and trying to speak at the same time) What's this little piece of skin holding my tongue on?
Me: (in the middle of doing 50 things at once and not really listening) I don't know.
Spud: But Mom!! You're my teacher. How else am I supposed to find out?
Me: (my full attention now on him) You're right, buddy! Let's go look it up.
So if you have ever wondered what that little piece of skin is called:
Frenulum: a small fold of tissue that secures or restricts the motion of a mobile organ in the body.
Back to Homeschool Week - Wednesday
2007-08-08 13:05:31
Wednesday's Topic: Getting out there...Extra-curricular activities,
community involvement, volunteering, sports teams, music lessons,
making sure your kids have opportunities to be social, co-ops, etc.,
etc., etc...************************************************************************This area can be a problem for our family, but not in the way you might think. We are constantly faced with too many choices for social and extra-curricular opportunities. I learned long ago to live by the rule..."Say no to the good things, and say yes to the great things."...My kids are seriously much more involved than I ever was. They have so many more opportunities to meet new people and make new friends than they ever would if they were in public school.
Read more: Homeschool
, Wednesday
Back to Homeschool Week - Tuesday
2007-08-07 13:09:07
Tuesday's Topic: How do you homeschool? Scheduling, classical
education, unschooling, getting the kids to help with chores, how to be
"mom" and "teacher" at the same time, special needs, teaching an
advanced child, how to teach the tough subjects, teaching high school,
teaching with babies and preschoolers in the house, budgeting for
homeschool supplies, notebooking, etc., etc., etc...
***************************************************************************
I think we are very eclectic in our approach to homeschooling. I like to keep an open mind to explore and try new things. We don't work by a strict schedule, because it seems to be a recipe for failure for us. However, we seem to function best with a tentative plan for the year and even for each day. Flexibility is the key for us.
I've never had difficultly with being "mom" and "teacher", maybe because we have always homeschooled, so my kids have never known the "other way
Read more: Homeschool
, Tuesday
Back to Homeschool Week - Friday
2007-08-10 16:06:43
Friday's Topic: CurriculumWhat curriculum do you use? Where do
you buy it? Have you found a "gem" that you must share with others?
Was something in particular a complete failure for you and your kids?***********************************************************************Ooooo! I looooove curriculum! There is nothing like flipping through a new book or walking through my most favorite store, The School Box!
We use a variety of curriculum. As a matter of fact, I just posted a list of everything we are using this year. I mostly buy my curriculum online. It truly is my weakness. If I see something I would like to try or hear someone talking about something they like, I usually order it. I've found some really great things that way and some really not-so-great things too.
I guess my biggest curriculum failure happened when Spud was starting kindergarten. I thought I would need lots of time to spend alone with him (I guess that was the rookie in me). So I ordered
Read more: Homeschool
, Friday
Back to Homeschool Week - Thursday
2007-08-09 21:46:32
Thursday's Topic: If I had only known... What have you learned on your homeschooling journey? What would you/did you change? ************************************************************************No doubt, I have learned many things on our homeschooling journey. Here are some links to things I've written about homeschooling...
Sheltering Children
Time for Family
Homeschool
ing Advice
Customizing Curriculum
Read more: Thursday
Ice-cream Celebration
2007-08-09 21:32:54
The last box of curriculum arrived today. I've been doing lesson plans in my very spare time this week. We are ready to begin.
All the public school kids went back to school yesterday. I took Sis and Spud out for ice cream to celebrate "not going back to (public)school".
They are excited about all the new books sitting in the schoolroom. I'm looking forward to making this year a great one!!
One Day down, 179 to go!
2007-08-13 15:18:12
Our first day went nice and easy! Yay! Who could ask for more? I had worked out an outline to loosely follow and it helped things go smoothly. Our day went something like this:
Spud worked on his penmanship, while I worked with Sis on Language.Next, Sis worked independently on Language and her penmanship, while I worked with Spud on his Language.Third, we worked together on beginning our first Literature unit on Julie of the Wolves.Then, Spud started his morning break, while I worked with Sis on Spelling.We all took about a 20 minute break.I worked with Spud on his Math.Then he worked independently on Math, while I worked with Sis on her Math. Sis fixed lunch, while I worked with Spud on his Geography and Science; this finished Spud up.We took a lunch break.I worked with Sis on her Geography, History & Science.Then we all took a swim in the pool!
I worked for about 30 minutes on tomorrow's lesson plans, so I have them already to go. I still have to get some supplies for art.
Read more: One Day
Homeschool Open House 2007
2007-08-12 20:51:13
I will give you a quick introduction to my family, just in case this is your first visit to my site (Please make yourself at home!).
I'm Melissa and I have have two beautiful blessings, Sis (6th grade) and Spud (3rd grade). We have been homeschooling "officially" for 7 years. Neither of have ever been to public school.
We are very eclectic in our approach to homeschooling. I'm always looking for new and exciting curriculum, field trips, or learning opportunities. Both of my children are hands-on, visual learners.
We are fortunate to have a really nice space to use as "homeschool central", our schoolroom. This is where all of our "stuff" is kept. We may not always be learning in this room, but it's really nice to have a place for everything.
Have a look...
Here is a list of all the curriculum we are using this year:Sis (6th grade):
Abeka LanguageAbeka MathAbeka HistoryAbeka ScienceAbeka Creative Writing & PenmanshipTeacher Created Resources
Read more: Homeschool
, House
My Surrender
2007-08-11 22:49:03
Tonight's message at church really hit home with me. It was all about turning loose, and grabbing on to something worth holding on to. It was like it was preached directly to me. I have been struggling for a while with holding on to something in particular. And it has been draining my joy. I haven't been able to enjoy everyday life because I've been so concerned with focusing everything on this one thing. I'm so tired of it! I'm just not doing it any more. It's not worth what it's costing me. I want to just focus everything on the Lord and what He wants for me. I'm just not doing it anymore.
I'll just be honest, I've been holding a grudge against someone for something they did to me a long time ago. I've let the devil work in it and make it bigger and bigger. I've looked for fault and haven't wanted to try to fix it. I thought by giving it up, I would be losing, but I was blinded. The preacher in this morning's service said "to surrender doesn't mean defeat, when you
Read more: Surrender
Photo Hunters - "Two"
2007-08-17 17:40:31
This week's theme is: "Two"
This week's theme was an easy one for me! I've got two crazy kiddos!
Read more: Photo
, Hunters
Oooo! I want one of these!!
2007-08-16 22:15:28
Multi-Tasking Moms is giving away one of these cool little babies and I want it!! I want it bad!!
It's Hot Out There!
2007-08-16 17:04:39
Tomorrow is Friday, and if all goes well, this will be the end of a great first week back to school. Things have gone so smoothly for us this week and no one has really complained about doing their work. Our schedule for Fridays will be a bit different. Instead of doing Science and History, we will do Spanish and Art.
It's been a bazillion degrees around here! So our outdoor activity is limited to the pool or running from the air-conditioned house to the air-conditioned car! Today, on the way home from running some errands, we spotted a school bus, with all the windows let down and sweaty little faces pressed up against the glass. Reason # 2-gazillion to homeschool...our "bus" is air-conditioned! Poor kids, they need to give them a sports drink before letting them on those rolling ovens!
Our family is planning to take in a baseball game Saturday evening (after it cools off a bit) and maybe visit a new local restaurant. It's shaping up to be a fun weekend. I love weekends!! Especial
My Surrender, The After-Thoughts
2007-08-15 21:38:37
For the past few days, I've been thinking more about the grudge I was holding and what all it really cost me. I guess I probably freaked out my readers (the few I have! *wink*), typing a post like that one in the middle of all my homeschooling posts, but I had really reached the end of my rope in that area. We had revival at our church last week, and I had heard so many messages about "letting go" and "surrendering". I had also talked to one of my friends about the situation and they told me I was "letting it rob me of my blessings". I knew it was true, but I guess it took hearing it so many times.
It literally has been years since I felt this free. I don't know if that makes any sense at all, but I was burdened down with so many bad feelings, and since I turned it over to the Lord, I feel like a huge weight has lifted. I truly believe that's why this first week of school has gone so good for me. I don't have that damper that I was so used to.
I realize that it's going to take
Read more: Surrender
Planning
2007-08-15 16:46:20
This is hilarious! Let's hope our school year isn't like this!
Summer Soap Celebration
2007-08-15 12:05:28
Oooo! This sounds like fun!! Click the pic to check it out!
Read more: Summer
Still Sailing Along Smoothly
2007-08-15 11:54:14
3 school days under my belt and things are still going smoothly. Thank heavens! I'm probably going to need to look back on this first week for encouragement. The "new" feeling will wear off soon and I can only hope, our routine is in place and we are still getting things accomplished by that time. I've been in this race long enough to know that one day can be wonderful and exciting, while the next day makes you feel like a dismal failure. I'm shooting for more of the wonderful exciting days this year!
I have to say, that I'm glad I make the switch back to Abeka for Sis. That's just the curriculum she works best in. The only thing that I'm regretting about Spud's curriculum is the math. I bought him Lifepacs on a whim, thinking that he would like the little workbooks. He does, but I don't like that they don't throughly cover a topic before moving on to the next one. So....I'll be moving him to Abeka math too. I will probably have to drop him back a grade because they are abou
Read more: Sailing
, Smoothly
A Whole Lotta Nothin'!
2007-08-22 01:00:19
It's after 1:00am and I can't sleep. Ugh! I hate insomnia! So I thought to myself..."why not unload any random thoughts floating around in my head." Maybe that will make it easier for me to get to sleep. Warning: This might be extremely boring!
The other day, I went on a search for art supplies. I had a list of specific things I needed to complete this Friday's lesson. Okay, obviously I am not a naturally artistic person, because I had no idea how much that kind of stuff cost! I mean, we are talking OUTRAGEOUS!! I took myself back home without anything. I decided to visit the curriculum's website, because I had remembered they had a button on their sidebar that said "art supplies". It just so happens they have boxes of supplies specifically for each book. So I can order them all together. It's not cheap by any means, but it doesn't come near to what I would've paid had I decided to gather up materials on my own. So, I'm anxiously awaiting my box of art supplies.
I spent this
Read more: Whole
High School Musical 2
2007-08-21 19:57:20
So after my kiddos have watched this movie a bazillion-million-and eleventy-one times, I've been singing this song all day...
Read more: School
, Musical
, High School
, High School Musical
A Late Harvest
2007-08-21 13:27:49
Our garden has almost been fully harvested. Everything except okra. I took a walk through it today and I spotted a few blooms.
But after looking really close, I spotted this...So, it won't be long!
Now, it's really hot out there, so I'm about to jump into this...
Read more: Harvest
I'm a Hobbit!!
2007-08-20 22:07:12
You're The Hobbit
!
by J.R.R. Tolkien
All you wanted was a nice cup of tea when some haggard crazy old man
came into your life and told you it was time to do something with yourself. Now you're
all conflicted about whether to stick with your stay-at-home lifestyle or follow this
crazy person into the wild. While you're very short and a little furry, you seem to be
surrounded by an even greater quantity of short folks lately. Try not to lose your ring,
but keep its value in perspective!
Take the Book Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.
Cool Planner, Great School Day, & Still Feeling Fabulous!
2007-08-20 16:50:20
Well I didn't win the MomAgenda planner, but I couldn't resist! I went ahead and ordered one. I found it on sale and then also found a discount code online, so I didn't feel so bad. Anyway, it arrived today and it is so cool!! I've never had a planner this nice before! Especially one that is made especially for a mom! Very cool!! I can't wait to put it to good use!
In other news, our school day went really well again! Still not much complaining from the kids. Just the regular "I don't wanna get up!" kind, but we move past that pretty quick. Spud took a quick quiz in Science today and made a perfect score! He's been studying the five senses. The first one we have talked about is the eye. I showed him yesterday how your pupil will shrink or widen depending on the amount of light. He was so amazed! He kept shining the flashlight in my eye! Sis is moving along quickly in her math. She is getting review of things that we didn't get to review last year. She really needed it, b
Read more: School
, Great
, Feeling
My Favorite Hymn
2007-08-19 19:24:43
I was able to hear my most favorite hymn tonight at church! Aren't the words just beautiful?
Is Not This the Land of Beulah?
I am dwelling on the mountain,
Where the golden sunlight gleams
O’er a land whose wondrous beauty
Far exceeds my fondest dreams,
Where the air is pure, ethereal,
Laden with the breath of flowers,
They are blooming by the fountain,
’Neath the amaranthine bow’rs.
Refrain
Is not this the Land of Beulah?
Blessèd, blessèd land of light;
Where the flowers bloom forever,
And the sun is always bright.
I can see far down the mountain,
Wh
Read more: Favorite
Looking Forward
2007-08-19 12:30:07
This morning's church service went so great! I was able to fully enjoy it! I'm looking forward to this new week and all that it has to offer. I'm going to spend some time this afternoon going over this week's lesson plans. I hope that this school week goes as well as last week.
I hope you all have a blessed week!
Read more: Forward
Ponderings of My Personality
2007-08-18 23:44:11
Thank the Lord for air-conditioning! I'm not kidding! We went to the baseball game tonight. It didn't start until 7:00pm. We thought this would allow things to cool off a bit before we got there. Ha! No such luck! It was 100 degrees when we got there and it never dropped below 95 degrees! It was a lot of fun, but very sticky-hot!! It really made me thankful that we spend most of our days in something air-conditioned!
I spoke to my mom today and something she said really got me thinking (again!). She was telling a story about something that happened to her this week and she said that she really didn't like conflict. Well...all I have to say about that is...Like mother, like daughter. It got me thinking more about this struggle I've been going through and how I ended up in the place I was.
Like my mom, I really don't like conflict! So, I tend to bottle up my feelings. I very rarely will disagree openly with someone. Don't get me wrong, I have some very strong opinions and I
Read more: Personality
Saturday Spelling Test
2007-08-25 10:42:59
This was fun, in a pull-your-hair-out-by-the-roots sort of way! I'm glad to know I can spell though.
I Scored a 100%!
Read more: Saturday
Calendar Contest
2007-08-24 16:03:35
Loni from Finding Joy in the Morning is giving away one of these cool calendars...
Click here for details on how you can enter and win!! But, I hope you don't, because I want it!! Just kidding! (Well...only a little.)
Read more: Calendar
, Contest
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