50+ Veteran Homeschoolers Share Things we wish we’d known. Oh, it’s easy to look back and see clearly. I’m 25 years down this homeschool road and I finally have settled in to my skin. I’m comfortable allowing my youngest son to read a bit longerdesign a printable packet about what he’s learningtalk about a plan for learning while walking in the raindo math on the windows with dry erase markers and call it a day. If you’d ever wanted to ask a homeschooler how she’d do things over… Brew a cup of something wonderful, pour it into a gorgeous cup, kick up your feet and listen as you read. 50 Veteran Homeschoolers Share Things We Wish We’d Known In “Things We Wish We’d Known,” Bill and Diana Waring, authors of “Beyond Survival: A Guide to Abundant-Life Homeschooling,” make available to you the time-earned secrets of fifty veteran homeschooling families. Coming from pioneers and leaders in the homeschooling community, “Things We Wish We’d Known” will become an indispensable guide and inspiration for your own journey. Homeschooling from the Inside Out In Homeschooling from the Inside Out, Rebekah Sayler describes what she called the holy trinity of homeschooling: heart, attitude, and character. Founder of A Better Way to Homeschool, Rebekah knows first hand how focusing on character can make all the difference in the world when raising and educating our children. Hindsight: 18 Years of Homeschooling PRINT THIS FREE HOMESCHOOL MOM REMINDER. This post comes with a free printable reminder list to help keep your heart focused on the heart of homeschooling. I always have the hardest staying focused. This printable simplifies it! Here is a sneak preview… DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE PRINTABLE Download the checklist. You’ll get the printable, plus join 9,000+ homeschool moms who receive my weekly parenting tips and ideas!Print. Any paper will do the trick, but card stock would be ideal.Place it on your refrigerator as a helpful reminder.
How to Teach Kids about the Mob Mentality I couldn’t believe my eyes. It was like stepping into water filled with piranha. Shaking and shivering with disbeleif I stared at my screen. How on earth did that question unleash the mob? Looking for materials to share with my little corner of the internet, I asked a group of creators on Facebook if they had any amazing resources on a certain topic. And then it happened. Someone took a bite at me for asking about that topic and then the mob moved in and attacked me. I was stunned and it paralyzed me for half the day. First I deleted the question, because I wanted NOTHING to do with the situation. And then I tried to repair the damage, but posting an apology and a few words about how much I appreciated the group. The second wave was worse. By the middle of the day, I went LIVE online to share this. Related: How Mob Mentality Gets Worse Online Teaching Kids about Mob Mentality Identify an incident. Unfortunately, they are all around us.1. Talk about the inciting incident. What exactly happened. Be careful to not bias your kids. Just state the facts.2. TOGETHER: Identify 3-10 ways to handle the situation. How can it have been handled differently? What can you and your kids do to make a difference.3. Explain about mob mentality.4. Explain that you are going to look at how some people reacted to the situation and together you’re going to identify why it was good or bad. The goal is to identify wrong behavior.5. Brainstorm ways to get away/ avoid mob mentality.Repeat often.Ways to find examples:-Text messages gone bad-Social media comment threads (be careful)-News feeds-Real life.We need to teach our kids how to think through these crazy situations and give them the skills to identify when the mob mentality steps in and how to stay out and stay safe. Get your free copy here
How to Use Boom Learning Cards What’s a Boom Card? See one in action (FREE) In a nutshell, Boom Cards are digital, self-checking, interactive activities. Students are shown one question at a time and get instant feedback on their answers! … Students type in their answer and get instant feedback! Boom cards transform learning into hands-on, interactive, immediate feedback FUN Learning. Boom “decks” are made up of individual, digital task cards for students to complete. Where Can I Purchase Boom Cards and BOOM Decks? You can check out my digital Boom Decks here. How to Use Boom Cards and Decks Purchase decks or bundles from a TeachersPayTeachers store like mine. Check out just like you normally would!Once you have purchased, you’ll receive a PDF download. Open up the PDF.Inside the PDF, you will find links to a Boom deck or decks. Click each link, one at a time, to add the decks to your Boom library. (You will have to create or log into your Boom account.)If you have purchased a large bundle, it may take some time to add all the links to your Boom library. However, once you have clicked each link once, it will ALWAYS remain in your Boom library for you to access Where can I access or download Boom? One of the great things about Boom is that you and the students can use it on computers OR tablets! (the BOOM site is free, although there are benefits to the very affordable paid version) Access the computer version here: https://wow.boomlearning.com/Download the Apple app here: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/boom-cards/id1041141473?mt=8Download the Android app here: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=cards.boom.boomDownload the Kindle fire app here: https://www.amazon.com/Boom-Learning-Cards/dp/B01M8M6OFF/ What Kinds of activities are available with BOOM Cards? Name it. I am quickly converting my creations to BOOM Decks. BIBLEMathWritingScience Yep, they’re coming. Yes, please! Boom Decks for Homeschool, Parents, Classroom Teachers? Yes, yes, and yes. Boom decks are really easy to use, kids love them and they give you back TIME because they are self grading! Kids and teachers of all shapes and sizes ADORE BOOM Decks. Try this one for FREE to see what all the fuss is about!
Promise of God Coloring Page Sometimes it’s easier to believe in God’s power on a grand scale- creating the universe, sustaining it through all time, reigning over centuries- than to believe one simple promise. Ann Spangler- Praying the Names of God Believe. God holds you in His righteous right hand.He will NEVER leave you.He will take great delight in you.He will quiet you with His LOVE. BELIEVE A free reminder. When our son struggled with great pain this past week and all we could do was give him medicine, pray, and wait… my heart was troubled. I needed to focus on God’s promises, but all I could hear and see was my son in pain. So I pressed in to the promise in Zephaniah 3:17 Reading the promisedrawing the promisecoloring the same promise The quiet, still, repetitive motion as I meditated on God’s ability to QUIET our son cause my heart to fill with peace. Do you need that too? I bet you know a gal who does. I’m sharing my drawing/prayer for free in hope that the Lord will use it to calm your heart as well. Free for subscribers Get you Mother’s Day Kit More Bible Studies for Kids: Days of Creation Board GameDays of Creation PrintablesDays of Creation Food Ideas (free)Bible Study BUNDLE #1Sunday School Activities: Fruits of the SpiritDaniel 1: Bible Study and Children’s Ministry ActivitiesBible Object Lessons for Kids: WaterfallsBible Fun for Kids: ABCs of God’s CharacterAdvent Activities for Kids: FreebieAdvent Activities for Kids- CompleteBible Study: What Can I Learn from the CamelBible Study: Pearl of Great Price- Matthew 13:45-46Bible Study: Transfiguration of Jesus- Matthew 17Daniel 4: King Nebuchadnezzar’s Tree DreamSunday School Lessons on Prayer for PreschoolersBible Study for Kids: What Can I Learn From the Ant? My personal statement of faith: I believe the Bible to be the inspired, the only infallible, authoritative Word of God. I believe that there is one God, eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. I believe in the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, in His virgin birth, in His sinless life and atoning death through His shed blood, in His bodily resurrection, in His ascension to the right hand of the Father, and in His personal return in power and glory. I believe “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” and that we are saved by faith in Jesus. Some of my favorite Bible teachers are my husband (Craig Sayler), Pastor Jon Courson, Pastor Chuck Smith, and CH Spurgeon.
Activities for Preschool and Under You just want 20 minutes of quiet… so you can get things done. Kids are energy in motion. bouncingleapingexpoloringlickingsingingsmilingshriekingskippinglovingcrawlinghuggingbuildingdancingtappingtwirlingclimbingsneakingGROWINGrollingtumblingdiscoveringlearningspillingslippingsnappingquestioninghopping Energy. No wonder you’re tired! Mom, there are simple to use easy to put together activities to help your kids learn… and thankfully, someone has already organized it so it’s ready NOW! Want to Easily Preschool your child at home… With little to NO planning and prep… And without spending a fortune? Find out exactly what activities YOUR child should be working on for THEIR age. Open your weekly preschool plan on your phone or ipad for instant access to ✅ Early Math and Literacy Activities ✅ Preschool Art and Block Activities ✅ Book Suggestions and Youtube Song Links ❌ No more hunting for printables all across the internet. ❌ No more hours on Pinterest and hand cramps from cutting out little pieces. Get a no-printer required preschool plan made for moms using things you already have around your house. Find out more at: https://www.mommyandmepreschool.com/mommyandmepreschool?affiliate_id=2632744
Lounge Wear Makes Life more Comfy It’s true. Clothes make the woman. COMFY Clothes make the woman happy. I like being comfy and cozy. I spend most of my time at home and I like to spend that time as comfortable as possible!! Aren’t you nicer when your clothes are comfy? Me too! WARNING: Make sure you do a weekly “Jean Check”. That’s right. Wearing yoga pants is super comfy, but it can also be a bit deceptive. Catch those extra few pounds before they get you by simply slipping into your favorite jeans once a week. If they zip up just fine, slip back into your yoga pants. If they’re “snugglier” than before… Wear them for the next few days!
Welcome! You are here because you clicked on our Facebook page. Yay! I have a few things to show you before you go back to scrolling. Quick links: The growing DIY Subscription Crates for kids are here.Cooking Camp for KidsAdorable and Easy Mother’s Day Craft I am a professional Nerf Bullet Dodger who LOVE creating activities, games, and printables for kids of all ages. When great grandma stayed with us for a month, she looked at our five sons playing and doing “school” at home and she declared, “Gosh! This is just like my one room classroom!” Grandma taught hundreds of kids in a small one room school in the middle of the cornfields in Iowa for years and she just adored having kids of all ages around. Her advice? Teach the older kids.Keep the younger kids close by and you’ll be shocked at how much they absorb.Get a sand/water table to engage the youngest.Keep the kids moving and using their hands. If you’re new to homeschooling, rather than trying to grab everything all at once, I’d recommend you start here. I have a free printable for you! PRINT THIS FREE HOMESCHOOL MOM REMINDER. This post comes with a free printable reminder list to help keep your heart focused on the heart of homeschooling. I always have the hardest staying focused. This printable simplifies it! Here is a sneak preview… DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE PRINTABLE Download the checklist. You’ll get the printable, plus join 9,000+ homeschool moms who receive my weekly parenting tips and ideas!Print. Any paper will do the trick, but card stock would be ideal.Place it on your refrigerator as a helpful reminder.
Jokes Make Math More fun! Really! Make them laugh and they’ll beg for more. Math with a Deck of Cards 97+ Ideas for Making Math FUN Homeschool Math: Grab your Roadmap to Success
What Did you Learn from the Ox and Toothpaste? First, recite the story you just learned. Can you remember that list of words? Fire HydrantBalloonsBatteriesbarrelsurf boarddiamondknightoxtoothpasteneon sign Great job! You just learned how to memorize boring information in an interesting way! I didn’t invent this story up. I gleaned it from Chapter 13 of Jim Kwik’s Book Limitless. Imagine taking a list of uninteresting things memorizing it without much effort. If you can recite that weird little story, you can also recite the first TEN ELEMENTS of the periodic table of elements! Each of those words from the list is a memory trigger to help you remember. Hydrogen- Fire HydrantHelium-BalloonsLithium-BatteriesBeryllium- barrel (exaggerate how you say barrel)Boron- surf board (Board… stretch that to bor…on)Carbon- diamonds come from carbon!Nitrogen-knightOxygen-oxFlorine-toothpaste (not fluoride, florine)Neon- neon sign Mind blown! As my sons and I study meta-learning, or how you learn, they are becoming more and more suspicious. LOL. It’s fantastic! Teaching kids how to learn… It takes some clever effort. But seriously. Are you ever gonna be able to unsee the knight licking off the side of the ox? Me neither. It’s why I’ll never forget that nitrogen and oxygen are next to each other on the chart. Limitless, by Jim Kwik– Worth every penny! What should we teach our kids?
Hundreds of Printables for you! new products added all the time! Bundles games life skills Kindergarten-1st Preschool 2nd grade 3rd grade 4th grade 5th grade 6th grade 7th grade 8th grade middle school high school Bible Studies for kids Creating printables history language arts science math & math jokes holidays arts and crafts spring summer fall winter clip art
Mother’s Day Craft and Keepsake Mother’s Day Crafts Mother’s Day is a few weeks away.While it may seem self-serving to have your kids make you a Mother’s Day Craft, it can be one of those precious keepsakes that finds a forever home in your treasure chest. This booklet craft is easily modified for different age kids.Recommended Time for craft: 3 days- each with an hour block. (some children prefer to complete the project in one sitting. Younger children require smaller chunks of time spread out over a few days) Why do a Mother’s Day Keepsake? Your kids love you. Give them a chance to show it! They enjoy talking about you. You’ll want to capture the essence of “where they are” developmentally. Kids say the darn’dest things and it is precious to capture these funnies on paper. Plus, you may want to hold it over their heads when they are teenagers. Just kidding. Sort of. This craft uses scissor skills, helps fine motor development, and nurtures creativity. Print, color, cut, assemble: Sneak Peek Video Buy now Includes:Mother’s Day Craft templatesdirection with photos10 customizable booklet pagescut and paste activitiesscissor skill practicecreative writinggames and more Yes, I have a Father’s Day Craft Kit too! You can save by purchasing them as a bundle here. Get your FREE tic tac toe game here.
Math with a Deck of Cards Quick round up of all the math games I can find that you can play with a deck of cards. Total of 10 Lay out 20 cards on the table (leave out face cards or change them to equal 0, while aces equal 1). Kids remove sets of cards that add up to 10, ultimately trying to remove all the cards from the table. It’s harder than you think! Learn more at First Grade Round up Nifty 50 This game is great to develop logical thinking and problem solving, review two digit addition and subtraction regrouping, and is fun! The object is to come up with a math equation that has a sum or difference closest to the number 50. First player to five points is the winner! Learn more at Scholastic Great collection from Math Geek Mama! 21 This game is a simplified version played in casinos, with no gambling involved. Object: be the closest to 21 without going over! Learn more at Scholastic Place Value War Turn over 1, 2 or 3 cards. Place them in any position to make the highest number possible. The higher number wins all of the cards for that turn. Learn more at Newark Schools Once through the deck Shuffle the deck and place it face down on the table in front of you. Flip the cards face up, one at a time. For each card, say out loud the sum (or product) of that number plus (or times) the number you want to practice. Don’t say the whole equation, just the answer. Go through the deck as fast as you can. Learn more at Denise Gaskins Related: Games with a deck of card FREE printable by SAU 39 Closest To Starting with two digit numbers, deal out two cards per player. Each player takes the cards in their hand and rearranges the digits to create a number that is closest to 50. The players show each other their hands and the player who is closest to 50 wins the set of all of the players’ cards. Learn more at Math engaged Math Memory Lay all of the cards down on the table face-down in a grid. Players take turns flipping over three cards and seeing if they can make an equation with the face-up cards. Younger players can try using addition and subtraction, and older players can also try using multiplication and division. Players are challenged to remember what cards every player has flipped to help them create equations on their own turn. The player with the most amount of cards at the end of the game wins. Learn more at Math engaged Here’s a game similar to the one described above, but this version allows students to compare fractions instead. You will need two pencils, one for each player, to serve as the fraction line. Learn more at Super Teacher Worksheets Guess My Number Place a student at the front of the room and give him or her two playing cards. The cards can be ordered any way the student wants. Be sure the cards cannot be seen by the class! Take turns around the room guessing what the number is. The types of questions asked have to use math vocabulary, such as, “Is it even?” “Is it odd?” “Is it greater than 10?” “Is it a factor of 20?” and so on. The student can only answer with a “Yes” or “No”, until the actual number is guessed at. Learn more at K5Chalkbox More math with a deck of cards! More math goodies Math Picture Books Breath Life into Arithmetic! 97+ Ideas for Making Math FUN Homeschool Math: Grab your Roadmap to Success
DIY Doll Game and Activity your kids will Love this game/activity!! This beautiful activity comes from author Gail Masinda, with Maestro Heights. The idea is simple. Learn to care for baby while living your normal life. Perfect for training siblings for life with baby! There are two sets of activities: small manageable taskswhat baby needs. How to play Place each in their own jar/basket.Begin the day with a smt. Complete the taskThen reach in and see what baby needs. Set the timer and kids practice setting baby’s needs above their own. PLUS, you get a little bit of time too! Back slips are included so you can customize chore/tasks and activities for baby. Kids can use dolls or stuffed animals for “Baby”. I purposely used the word BABY and did not include his/her pronouns. HAVE Fun! Download your free copy here Visit Gail’s beautiful Music Room
Parenting in Times of Crisis turned into MAGICAL Memories When I was about 11-years old I had the BEST summer ever. Family wildflower walks every evening after dinner.Family wifle ball games.Family soccer games. (got a basement?) We lived on a 15 acre farm in Connecticut and my dad spent the summer carving out adventures for us with his ride-on tractor. ⚽️First he cut the soccer field. ⚾️Then he lowered the mover and cut a baseball diamond into the same field. 💐He carved a 6-foot wide path around a huge field on our property so he could take us on a walk to see “which wild flowers bloomed” that day. 🌼We played🌱Caught dragon flies🌱Watch clouds float by👀Sat in the yard playing I-spy🎼Turned off all the lights in the house and blared the music while playing “who knows the most lyrics to each song” We fed wild birds, watched the squirrels steal their food and simply enjoyed each other’s company. 🐾What a great summer! It wasn’t until I was a grown woman that I learned the truth. 😳Dad had been laid off that summer. While he applied for over 150 jobs looking for work at night, during the day he created, played, and was present with all four of us kids. Today, we have a choice. I say, let’s make this season of quarantine the “BEST Spring vacation of our kids’ childhood.” 🌸Be present🌷Read🌱Cut soccer fields out with a lawn mower⚽️Play games And at night, when the kids are nestled in bed make our plan for the next day. I found the EXACT 200+ year old house I lived in at the time.Yes, I had a heart attack too. It was not fully restored when I lived in it. It was NOT this beautiful when I lived there. But you get a rare opportunity to see where my DREAM summer was lived out.Page 27. That yellow room is where I heard my sisters snore like tigers.Page 28 was a closet PACKED with boxes and clothing and didn’t have a window.Page 31 was the scary attic in our garage where my parents hid Christmas presentsPage 34 is the window I witnesses the greatest ice storm I’ve ever seen. I sat on the sofa and peeked out.Page 38 shows you why I remember spending a HUGE portion of time doing yard work with my dad. But the magical field?Page 32. Walk to the right of the garage and hang a right after that clump of trees… I spent hours and hours and hours there with my family, led by my father… When I lived here, all the walls were white. There wasn’t any fancy decor. We had 13 cats, no heat in my room (you could see your breath) What’s your favorite memory from your childhood? If you know people who can use an easy to follow plan for school for the next few weeks/months… Share this FREE, no gimmick plan with them. Learning at Home: Everything you need in one place
DIY Earth Crate for Kids How Does it work? Set a BUDGET (You can create a great crate for $25+)Load up all the goodies into your cart (Items from Teachers Pay Teachers, Evan Moor and Amazon)From your cart, make your final selections.Download your printable lesson and prep lessons while you wait for your goodies to arrive.Watch your kids get excited Earth Activities, Printables, and Games GOODIES TO CHOOSE FROM FOR YOUR KIT **Hands-on Activities and Printables I am Earth Book Earth Day Pocket Book Project Save the Earth Stickers 3D Globe Puzzle Mini Squishy Globes Terra Cotta Mini Pots Gardening Tools for Kids Wooden crate WHY DO LEARNING CRATE WORK SO WELL? Experience Lead learning simply works BEST! With over 20+ years of thematic/Unit based teaching experience, Bekki is an expert at wrapping a learning activity with hands-on activities, engaging stories, and fun projects to bring topics to LIFE. *This type of learning transforms a dry topic in to a DELICIOUS and Contagious excitement. Sounds like a win!! PRO TIP: ALWAYS GIVE STUDENTS TIME TO EXPLORE MANIPULATIVES, GAMES, AND TOYS PRIOR TO WEAVING THEM INTO LEARNING. THE YOUNGER THE STUDENT, THE LONGER TIME THEY WILL NEED TO EXPLORE. Photos! Have your camera ready. You’re gonna want to capture their smiles and excitement! Stories ALWAYS make learning better Earth Day Pocket Book Save the Earth Stickers to share Globe puzzle for hands-on exploration Squishy globes To make the Earth a Prettier Place Gardening tools for kids Wooden Crate to hold all the goodies HOW DO THESE DIY CRATES WORK? Easy! Open the DIY Crate/Bag plan of your choiceGrab and download the Printable Mini-Lessons that go with the Hands-on goodiesClick and add ALL the items into your cart on Amazon or from other vendors.Set your budget and REMOVE all items that don’t fit you, your students, or your budget. As you wait for your goodies, print and prepare your lessons. FAQ- Why add everything to the cart? Because, it makes is really easy to remove and re-add things that work best for you with as little hassle as possible. SEE OUR FULL AND GROWING COLLECTION OF DIY GOODIES HERE
DIY Teaching Kids to Cook Kit How? Set a BUDGET (You can create a great crate for $25+)Load up all the goodies into your cart (Items from Teachers Pay Teachers and Amazon)From your cart, make your final selections.Download your printable lesson and prep lessons while you wait for your goodies to arrive.Watch your kids get excited …Read More »
DIY Heart Foldable This all began on a 4 mile walk in the rain. He wants to be a cardiothoracic surgeon, that 14-year old son of mine.Forget the fact that he’s dyslexic, a ball of energy and only an early teen. He’s diving in. It all began on a walk a few weeks ago, where we brainstormed the steps he could take to pursue this newish dream of his…… and has grown into a full emersion independent study of everything related to the heart. Get on the waitlist here He’s been diving in to learning a few days a week… I showed him a cut, fold, and learn template of the heart on teachers pay teachers and said, “I’ll get it for you, but honestly I think you can create a better one yourself.Boy, was I right! …Read More »
DIY Camel Bible Study Crate for Kids How? Set a BUDGET (You can create a great crate for $25+)Load up all the goodies into your cart (Items from Teachers Pay Teachers and Amazon)From your cart, make your final selections.Download your printable lesson and prep lessons while you wait for your goodies to arrive.Watch your kids get excited Bible Study Printable mini-lessons …Read More »
71 Easy Adorable And Inexpensive Mothers Day Crafts Inside: A treasure for you to tuck away for your kids’ teenage years. She gave you heartburn while you were pregnant. photo by Inna Lesyk He ran you ragged for hours on end when he was three. … Read More »