Homeschooling: When the Day Doesn’t Go as Planned Homeschooling from the Doctor’s Office Today: Day Five of this school year. I had an 8:00am doctor’s appointment and I’m still waiting at 10:00. Challenge: I’m the homeschool mom. No one learns without me… And I’m stuck in the office. Solution: Choice #1- Pre-plan activities and lessons and prep the kids on what they are to do. Choice -#2- leave the kids sleeping and hope that when I show up at lunch time that they are up, dressed, and have self started and got something done without me. Reality- I forgot to properly prep the kids yesterday, neglected to set out some “to do’s” before I left, and got hung up by having to go to two different offices. Expectation- when I get home all four kids will likely have completed math and will be huddled over a mass of Legos creatively building. Note to me: “Bekki, let go of your expectations and benchmarks for today. Nothing in your planner today was written on pen. The Lord had an entirely different plan for your day today. Roll with it! Do not try to cram a full day of school into a time space 1/4 the size of what you had scheduled. Take the kids for a walk.” Preview of the Heart of Homeschooling God’s Way Master Class. We need to STOP measuring success by grades, achievements, awards, and worksheets.
Today’s Kindergarten: I Am Concerned It’s 1976. I am super excited to go to my Kindergarten class today! Mrs. House is the best teacher ever. My friend Shelley and I sit next to each other in circle time as the class sings songs and talk about what is a good nutritious breakfast. (Mrs. House isn’t too happy that I had a cup of coffee again today! I’m sure she will talk to mom again later!) When mom picks me up from the bus stop, I share all about my day… We learned about phonics and I quickly memorized the phonics circle. We listened to Ferdinand the Bull. I laughed and laughed when he “sat on a bumblebee”. I played house during play station time and practiced “ironing”. At snack time, my friend Shelley and I turned our milk cartons into little boxes so we could collect things during recess. Shelley and I played tag during recess until we couldn’t run anymore, then we plopped down in the clover patch to search for four leaf clovers. After recess, Mrs. House quizzed us on “F, F, for Freddy Fox” and sang “This Land is my Land” with the first grade class next door. We covered a paper with all different colors of crayons and then scribbled all over that paper with black crayon as hard as we could. Once is was black, we used a paper clip to scratch designs into our picture. I was so excited, I made two! We worked on counting and did some fun worksheets. I couldn’t believe it was time to go home again! I loved kindergarten! (Here is an excellent article) The play, the music, the glitter, the stories, the friends, the dancing, the pretending. I turned out great. I loved school, so much in fact that I grew up to ‘play school’ at home full time (by homeschooling our five boys). I fell in love with learning and exploring and music and art and people in kindergarten. I am so concerned for today’s kindergartners. My friend has a kindergartner who has a reading quota and is already placed in a remedial group because he does not read fast enough. Her class has to skip recess often in order to get more work done. She also has homework. At five years old. Can I just say something here? Childhood is fleeting. Learning is cultivated. Creativity its is crushable. Excitement for learning is perishable. If we turn our culture’s creative, daydreaming, dancing five year olds into frustrated, militant, quiet little soldiers who can sit at a desk for 5-6 hours a day, should we be surprised that obesity, depression, and anxiety will dominate their lives as teens and adults? We need to allow children to return to childhood and delight in life again. I mean delight. Let them pick clover, turn milk boxes inside out, spill glitter while making a picture for dad, play hopscotch, swing and swing, play hide and seek, share, sing, dance, and play. Kids learn through play and role playing. This is how children grow up to be creative, self-expressive, caring adults. They need to have the “time” to just be… No electronics, no homework (Please. Who gives homework to a child under the age of 10? What purpose does this work serve?) Kids need to be outside, sometimes guided, sometimes just supervised so they don’t kill themselves. But they need to be outside. Rain or shine. Snow or wind. Kids need to color, cut, sing, dance, role play, rest, be read and read to, count by bouncing balls and keeping score, and laugh. Learning is much easier when the child’s basic needs are met. Parents, we need to do something for the sake of our children and our future society. This is personal. For my family, it is personal enough to pull my kids from the mainstream to school them at home. Where they run. Where they laugh. Where they read when they are developmentally ready. Where they play outside. Where they explore and experiment. Today, in an hour and a half I am kicking my four youngest sons outside with play swords. They will play outside for an hour during the time of day that most American Kids will be scribbling on their desks and suffer from numb tushes. Yes, even the 16 year old. They are all smart, excellent students. Some are learning at a slower pace than their peers, but all are delighted to learn, read, discover and play. Ask yourself if your young children are delighting in life. I’m not asking if they are busy, can win spelling bees, read at the age of three and solve algebraic algorithms by 6…but do they delight in life? Do they love stories and reading? (or being read to) Do they enjoy their classrooms/learning environments? Are they nurtured by their educators? Do they laugh and run and sing and dance? Do they build, explore, and experiment? Do they play contentedly? I am concerned about today’s kindergartners. We need to stand up and stop accepting new “cultural norms” as normal and ok. They are not. Our kids, as a nation, are suffering. Start looking around you. Find a handful of children who are delighting in life, are full of excitement, and are excited to learn. This might be a challenge, but you will see a few. Then start talking to their parents and glean wisdom. The governing establishments do not have the answers. The parents of content, excited, kind, curious, enthusiastic learners have the answers… ask them! Download your FREE “Kindergarten Fun” {Printable} Preview of the Heart of Homeschooling God’s Way Master Class. We need to STOP measuring success by grades, achievements, awards, and worksheets.
Hindsight: It is Worth Repeating If I could rewind the tape and begin homeschooling my kids today with the benefit of my 16 years of experience, what would I do differently? 1. I would spend the first 6-12 months to a year organizing my home, working on establishing a daily rhythm, and study my children. 2. I’d go to the library at least once a week allowing them to choose books that interest them, and hand picking random books for me to read aloud. I would be watching for what they are interested in, what makes them excited, what they find boring, etc. 3. I would rely on my husband more in creating a vision for our children, rather than trying to figure out what everyone else is doing. I wouldn’t waste a second trying to make what works for your kids work for mine. I’d keep my husband in the loop about our daily escapades and accept his advice more quickly. I mistakenly thought that because he worked outside the home all day he would be unable to see what the kids needed. This piece of humble pie would have been better to consume early in homeschooling. 4. Rather than spending countless hours worrying about this curriculum or that, I would begin with the family goals we have now: Put the highest priority on sharing our love for Jesus with our children. To insure the kids know their math facts inside and out. Period. Forget learning them, they need to over learn them. To inspire a love for literature by exposing the kids to a steady flow of great books. (I would read aloud daily no matter what their ages). I’d be picking the brains of the veteran homeschoolers, librarians, and authors that are in my sphere of influence for suggestions and I would prioritize a daily reading habit. I would focus all learning to develop excellent written and oral communication skills. I would find my children pen pals so they could perfect the friendly letter. I would have them do copy work from the masters and discuss why the sentences, paragraphs, essays, or stories are so great. I would understand that excellence in writing really comes from being well read and practice, tactics, practice. 5. I would find opportunities for my kids to stand and share in front of others, whether it is during a family BBQ or performing with the local theater- giving them the skill and confidence to speak in front of others. 6. I would view curriculum, tests, quizzes, and state tests as resources to help me customize each of the kids education, not the substance of their learning. 7. I would relax more. I’d let the kids get dirtier. I would get dirtier. We would play in the rain, build in the snow, chase rainbows, cloud watch, visit the farm, play at the beach, collect more leaves, examine more bugs, watch more plays, attend the theater, interview our doctors and dentists, locate inspirational guests like missionaries, mechanical engineers, artists, poets, and ace mechanics to share their passions with the kids. I would put a map of the US and the world under glass or plastic across my kitchen table and every single time we read or heard about a place we would locate it on the map and discuss how close/far it it from us. 8. I would hide the duct tape… 9. I would do it all over again. And again. And again. I know my children so much more intimately because of homeschooling. I am forever grateful for the vision my husband was given for our family. How about you? What are the top few things you would change if you could rewind the tape and homeschool those beginning years with the wisdom you have today?
Planning Your Homeschool Day Homeschool kids smell a day without a ‘purpose and plan’ like wild animals smell fear. Normally this is not an issue. I take the time to sit and think through what we are doing in our homeschool day about 4-6 weeks at a time. I have a personal calendar that I print off for each of the boys so they know that “mom has a plan for today, so I better get busy.” I am a little-stressed right now because my current calendar/plan is blank and school is supposed to start in 10 days. The fact that I am not ready for the next step is like a ticking time bomb. If I do not have a clear plan of attack for the day and week before school starts, my boys will eat me alive. They KNOW when I do not have a plan. The run, they hide, they break out the Legos right after breakfast and look up at me with dirty faces and bed-heads and are shocked and even aghast that we have learning to do. If I do not have a plan, they will forget how to get up, make their beds, add and subtract, multiply and divide, and write legibly. Sometimes I think it is a conspiracy. “Psst-Maybe if we pretend to forget how to do school mom will let us play all day and live in our pajamas.” Can you relate? If kids do not see that we are well prepared for our day, week, or topic they do not buy in to whatever learning experience we set before them. They see us grab our teacher’s manual and then say, “OK, let’s get going. We have a lot of school to do today.” They see us begin reading the lesson and make that certain face that says, “what am I supposed to do?”and slip out from under our radar. When we, the teachers, finally grasp the core of today’s lessons they have snuck away from the school area and are resentful that we try to lasso them back to school. If I am honest with myself, I would resent attending a class where the teacher wasn’t prepared. I took the time to come to school, surely she could have prepared in advance to teach me. Our kids are no different. They need to see that we have invested in their education by taking the time to become familiar and excited with the learning material before we declare it is time for school. Kids smell a day without a plan and begin wiggling to get out immediately. What can we do: Plan school for 2-6 weeks at a time. Become extremely familiar with the material before we try to present it to our kids. (remember the teacher from Ferris Beuller? Help us not be like him!) Schedule lessons out for 2-6 weeks in advance. Write them in pencil, so that when life happens you simply erase and begin again the next day. Never try to teach the school week without a plan. Even if you take a rabbit trail because your kids show a sudden interest in penguins, you will be much better prepared. As homeschoolers include a dinner plan/menu into your school day. Be excited about what you are learning together. How do I plan? I have 4-5 weeks of student calendars printed and ready to go, labeled with their names and dates. I teach 5 core subjects: Bible, Math, English, History, and Science I schedule math in first. It usually is just the next number lesson. I include activities like flashcards, videos, and games in my calendars. If I do not schedule flashcards, the kids do not do flash cards. Next, I schedule those easy tasks, like handwriting, phonics workbook pages, and spelling. These are similar to math in that they tend to simply be “the next page#’s”. In our home, we learn memory verses, so I fill in the verses the kids are working on that week. History is my core, my golden thread. I try to incorporate English and Science activities that go along with what we are learning in history. I have to skim the readings, pull vocabulary and scour for student activities that will work with my boys. This year I am using Story of the World and they have a great Activity Book from which I pull reading comprehension, map, art, and cooking activities. And then, of course, there is Pinterest. I have Homeschool boards for every subject and I scour for activities for my boys and pin them often. Science is my weakest subject as a teacher. I am not entirely sure why, but even superman had a weakness. Science is mine. This year I am trying to integrate our science with what we are learning about in history. For me, that means that I am looking for and creating learning activities for the boys. I plan English last. This year I am teaching from Shurley English and LOVE it. It is very well planned, so in all honesty, it is another, “just do the next lesson” curriculum. I glance through the lessons as I am planning and try to spot potential issues. For instance, my boys need two days for the writing assignments, sometimes two so I take that into account. Lastly, I double check my pencil calendars against the master calendar looking for conflicts. Are we home all of the days I planned to teach school? Are there any obvious monkey-wrench days (days that are destined to fail before they begin). I make adjustments whenever necessary. Sacrifice While every homeschool family has different goals and ambitions, talents and abilities, we all sacrifice something to homeschool. My husband and I personally sacrifice time. Lots of time. It is not easy homeschooling a troop of boys of various ages, grades, interests and learning styles. After 15 years I have learned that the key to success is being prepared before the day begins. Preview of the Heart of Homeschooling God’s Way Master Class. We need to STOP measuring success by grades, achievements, awards, and worksheets.
Join Me and get three freebies! require([“mojo/signup-forms/Loader”], function(L) { L.start({“baseUrl”:”mc.us1.list-manage.com”,”uuid”:”26fb576ec0381fa76fbd64eaf”,”lid”:”d7c057c8ec”}) }) #mc_embed_signup{background:#fff; clear:left; font:14px Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; } /* Add your own MailChimp form style overrides in your site stylesheet or in this style block. We recommend moving this block and the preceding CSS link to the HEAD of your HTML file. */
Emotional Boys? What is a Mom To Do? Dear mom, You son is blessed to have you. You are hand picked by the Creator of the universe to guide and direct this future man of God. Ask the Lord for wisdom, because I can assure you that the Lord’s plans for your emotional son Is the same as yours. What works for my five boys when they hit emotional spurts (and they all do): Don’t coddle through the over emotion. Hug and love lots, but not through anything that resembles a meltdown. I turn off the TV and electronics. I continue to be amazed at how quickly technology sucks the boys of their ability to cope, be kind, or simple listen. Yes, they watch and play but it is limited and is the first thing to go when they are a teary mess. I get them around their daddy. Quickly. (Or another godly man). Strong men like my hubby simply do not put up with whiners. I have found that I can raise boys, but my husband mentors men. Put them to work. “Many hands make light work”. Boys need to work hard and feel needed. They also can tell when they really contribute to the group or are being pacified. We have given our boys chores from the time they could dump a bun of toys! (If you can dump it, you can be coached how to put it back:) Pray. This is so key. We are not men. We are emotional beings and love to dig in to the why behind emotional outbursts because that is what God wired us to do. The Lord has always spoken clarity to what each son has needed during his emotional state. **identify the heart issue. So far, my older boys have hit their biggest emotional state at around 12. Lord help me, I have another son almost 12. Confusion has been the catalyst for almost all emotional outbursts with my oldest three. They get confused about something, that pricks their pride because they should know they answer right. Then they lash out emotionally. Teaching boys to say something like, “hm, I don’t understand… Can you explain it again, or a different way?” Has been life changing! That’s my 2 cents. Dear Jesus, Help us moms of boys seek You for counsel, wisdom, and direction with each and every one of our boys. They are so unique and wonderful. You know exactly what they need. May we seek wisdom from each other, but only allow what is from You to stick and stay in our minds… Amen! You may also enjoy: My Son Almost Died Today. “Your 12 Year Old Son is becoming a man. See the Captain America within him!”
Bug of the Day Don’t let your boys find out you are scared of bugs, spiders, snakes, or other creepy crawly things. I have masked my fear behind curiosity. When the boys discover something that they think might frighten me, I take a picture and then we go research about that creature. I find this keeps me sane and they never gain the ability to use my kryptonite against me. This delightful little creature was discovered on my most recent walk with my 11-year-old. Isn’t he NOT cute? My research indicates that this guy is a Stink Bug and is a “watch out” species. Because of our milder winter and warmer weather this invading species may be a big problem. Apparently, they love the same berries that we are enjoying! How about you? What do you pretend to careless about to shield yourself from your boys? (Get it? Shield yourself?) [leadpages_leadbox leadbox_id=142a79846639c5] [/leadpages_leadbox] [leadpages_leadbox leadbox_id=143dc6846639c5] [/leadpages_leadbox]
What about the Tooth Fairy Forget the Tooth Fairy… I am the Ninja Fairy Who said kids should have all the fun? I have developed the persona of the Ninja Fairy in my home. I sneak into my boys’ room at night while they are sleeping to switch their lost teeth for cash, or decorate their rooms to celebrate their birthdays. It is so much fun that I am declaring war. I am surrounded by testosterone, so I have to pick my battles carefully. Challenge: “If you catch me in the act of secretly blessing you, I will double the blessing!” For those of you who want some tooth fairy resources, here is a cute site. Here are some free Ninja Fairy Notes to help you bless your kids!
Teaching Kids to Set Goals I highly recommend you begin teaching your kids to set goals from the time they can understand what a goal is all about. By the time kids graduate from high school they should be independent, self-governing, and disciplined. Don’t panic. Mine are not there yet either. Step One Setting Daily Goals. We have all of our boys write out a goal list each day. It is great. The idea is that they learn the art of thinking through their day and living their life purposefully. Here is an example of our 17 year old’s list from this morning. Notice the last item… … Read More »
Daily Funnies: Actual Item’s From Our Sons Daily To Do List I created a tab at the top so you can find these daily funnies easier! For Your Enjoyment. Our boys create to do lists daily. These items were taken directly from their lists without their consent or knowledge! Because: Parents Rule. Subscribe to this blog. Come back often. It will be worth your while. To Do: Physical Conditioning: Slay a Dragon to warm up and then Work out in Ho mine Father and Mother! How fair thee? A deep recollection hath cometh forth from mine own mind to record yet another daily list. To Do: Stuff little brother into the dead body of a tauntaun to protect him from further disease and sickness. (His brother has been sick with a stomach bug for three days.) To Do: Claim dominion over a clan of shoe-making elves. To Do: Hunt down Sasquatch and claim his pelt in the name of the Abominable Snowman ****************************************************************************** Help your kids organize their school day!
Homeschool Resources on Sale: Don’t Wait or You May Miss Out Don’t Miss Huge Savings!! Only a few hours left for Teachers Pay Teachers Sale! Use Promo Code: BTS15 Only a few more days to save big on notebooking resources!!! Click on over and save!!
Summer Mischief and Simple Pleasures: Water Activities for Bored Kids Due to unseasonally warm weather, the swimming area at our local lake closed. To say our boys were bummed when we walked toward the water is an UNDERstatement! My husband said, “I have an idea! My sister and I did this when we were little… Go buy some huge garbage bags.” I baulked. I gave him the look. Yet he insisted… “Trust Me,” he said. So I did. Voila! A memory was born. Recipe For ‘Fun In a Garbage Bag’ Materials: hot kids large garbage bags a hose a flat place Directions: Have hot kids stand or sit on the inside seam of the bag. Have “volunteer” Spray them fill the bags with water from the hose. Observe the fun. Confession: I was absolutely sure the kids would hate this activity. I was absolutely positive they would not participate. I was absolutely, positively, completely wrong! Lessons learned: Trust husband. Don’t take life so seriously that I neglect the overly simple. Divide “I’m too cool to try” kids from the “Sounds awesome!” kids. This varies in each home. Our 22, 17, and 13 year olds said, “No way.” Our 11 and 9 year old reluctantly tried and loved it. Warning: The water was from our well. We stopped when the boys truly began to shiver in the 95 degree yard. This activity would have been better in the shade. ALL water activities should be supervised. Use discretion with younger children. Good luck getting your older kids to try!!
Back to School Giveaway TODAY ONLY!!! We kick off our Back-to-School Membership Sale with a co-sponsored 1-day giveaway TODAY, July 28th (9am-9pm CST) with Notebooking Pages! 1 GRAND PRIZE WINNER (value $850): Notebooking Pages LIFETIME Membership plus 11 Sponsor gifts 24 WINNERS: Notebooking Pages LIFETIME Membership Freebie for everyone: Notebooking Pages Sampler Set Please spread the word!!!
Am I a Good Enough Homeschool Teacher? I wrestle with feelings of insecurity when it comes to homeschooling our boys. Sometimes I wonder if I am the best teacher for my children… Am I alone? Last week I picked up the novel my son was reading to help him with comprehension. He is reading Call it Courage. As I read the first chapter I realized that this book was not about a boy’s struggle with war. (That’s right! I never even noticed the cover) Good Lord, help my children! OK. I am not the most literate adult I know. In fact I did not read one book in high school. I was that student that could scan and skim, gather the right information and quotes to get an “A” in the class while never really having to read anything. I was pleasantly surprised by the plot of this tiny little book my son was reading, yet it made me question my ability to lead him. How could I possibly teach this child when I couldn’t even scan a book in advance to know it was about an island culture and their worship of courage? How could I look myself in the mirror and be confident in my ability to help my son love learning? After about three days of feeling bad, I realized my son’s interest had awakened as he read about and drew the setting of the story: an island surrounded by a beautiful coral reef. I picked up a Coral Reef book filled with fantastic photographs and we began exploring the complexity and delicacy of these living structures. Oh my, we were and continue to be captivated! In our research we discovered a new creature: The mantis shrimp. Holy smokes! This little guy is fantastic. Supposedly this creature has the fastest movement in the animal kingdom as it punches its prey. We had to learn more… A quick internet search, led us to one of my favorite YouTube Channels “Smarter Every Day” and viola, there was the beautiful, powerful, and astounding mantis shrimp. This one is worth watching with your kids! So there you go. A ride on my homeschooling merry go round. First I allow my son to read a book that I know nothing about. second, I form an opinion about the book strictly by its title. Then, I am struck “dumb” as I read to catchup with my son. next I see an opportunity to follow a rabbit trail down an area of interest. Then, we become engrossed and amazed in a little creature we didn’t even know existed. Yep, a successful homeschooling week I’d say. Of course, I failed again when I fell for the “Finding Nemo is all about a coral reef”: hook, line and sinker. How about you? Do you ever struggle with feeling like you fall short as a homeschooler?
TEXT Wars: Teaching the Dangers of Texting and Driving by Playing a Simple Game We have five sons. Five. We are currently teaching son #2 to drive. Phew! If you want to know the condition of your heart, teach a teen to drive. Teens Know Everything. They know how to eat, sleep, hang out with friends, do their work, drive and live like they are invincible. Every teen I have ever known has had at least a mild case of “that can’t happen to me”. When I was a teen I had a terrible case. My favorite thing to do was to walk right out into the street without looking. I used to say, “The driver has to stop for pedestrians.” Yes, I was that stupid. Not sure how I survived. Today, teens have a bigger temptation to dangle in front of certain and sudden death: texting and driving. The statistics for texting and driving, or distracted driving in general, are scary. So how do you teach the dangers of texting and driving to a teen? By being sneaky. I created a Game to Trap Teach Teens About Texting and Driving. Here’s the insider’s scoop. Step One: Challenge them into a “I can text faster than you.” Their own ego traps them in this stage of the game. It’s beautiful. Step Two: Reward their accomplishment of beating you with a small treat. Step Three: Take their text times and “translate them” into driving distances. (don’t worry, The sheet and directions are in the game) Step Four: Take it outside and use dice and hazard cards to give them a proper wake-up call! Step Five: Agree to NEVER use a cell phone while driving. All drivers sign a contract. I am terrified that one or all of our boys will be tempted to text and drive or even to simply glance at their phone. The next time you are driving around town simply glance at all the drivers that pass by. Chances are, at least one will be looking at their phone. So, I created a Game. For Parents, Grandparents, Teachers, Librarians, Sunday School Teachers, Soccer Coaches, Driver’s Ed Instructors, Neighbors and Friends to play with Young Drivers… Please download your copy and play the game today. My prayer is that it will save lives…
Parenting in Today’s World We don’t fit in as parents today. In general parents today let their kids float. Through life.Through school.Through everything.I stink at that.My kids don’t float. They work. Things We Fail at in Parenting.Letting boys be boys.I have five of them. Trust me, they do not need help being boys. They need help being future men.We are training up the future men of this world, and we take that seriously. Our boys are clean, clean cut, and hard working… Whether they like it or not.Letting boys sit around all day.My “Mommy Sense” (similar to Spider-Man’s ‘Spidey Sense’) kicks into overdrive when I see my boys sitting on the sofa during the day.I immediately start asking, did you do this, did you do that?Sorry. Boys should not sit unless they are on the toilet.Letting my boys have their own style of dress and hair.Future men worthy of serving God, loving their wives, running their businesses, etc should be others centered.If they wear their hair and clothes in a way that makes “grandma” to feel uncomfortable and cross the street to avoid contact with them. Not acceptable.While I’m all for freedom of expression, my boys express themselves in a boring way physically and that will give them an edge. Expecting teenage years to be Easy.We expect the teenage years to be hard because we will make them hard. Hard to disrespect us,. Hard to disobey the house rules Hard to live in our house and break our rules, hard to break things like curfews, Hard to be a glutton. Yep. Teenage Years will be hard. Moms and dads, if you have boys join us at stinking to raise them to be wimpy, lazy, self centered men. If you have little girls, stink at raising them to be focused on selfies, self, make-up, and sexuality. We need to stink at parenting “today” and excel at parenting for tomorrow. 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.
Dragonfly Freebie for Your 3rd-5th Graders Free is good, right? Here’s a fun freebie for you! You will find this product in my store. Remember: The site is a FREE member site. It is easy to sign up. There are tons of amazing free and for purchase resources out here! Join our Summer Bucket Series on Facebook. Simply jump over. Like our page. Click “get notifications”
Friday Pool Games: Summer Bucket List for Kids Join us on Facebook for a Summer of Fun! Each day we will post a different activity, adventure, or link to share with your kids! All Summer Long Today’s Fun… Friday Pool Games: Classic- Marco Polo! Two or more players. To play, choose one player to be “it”. That person closes his or her eyes, or is blindfolded, and counts to a certain number. While the “it” person counts, the other players scatter around in the pool. When the count is over, the “it” player tries to tag the other players, using only the sound of their voices to find them. The “it” player calls out “Marco”, and the other players call out “Polo”. When the “it” player tags another, that player becomes the “it” person and the game starts over again. Each day has a theme: Monday Madness, Tickle Me Tuesday, Water Fun Wednesday, Thoughtful Friday, and Pool Game Friday. Please: Like, Follow, and Share! #abetterwaytohomeschool.com
Choosing Our Battles: Our youngest son loves to wear his socks inside out. They are comfier. The seams don’t bug him. And it drives me crazy!! This is not one of those battles that I choose to fight. Whether it is socially correct or not, this guy will be allowed to wear his socks inside out. Really, it is not that important. So why does it bug me so much? Parenting is hard. Parenting multiple generations at a time is incredibly hard! There are so many days that I choose to die on mountains like this. “Turn your socks right side out!” We are raising five future men. They vary in age from the nine year old foot above to the twenty-two year old working quietly across the table from me as I write this. Parenting is hard. There are battles worth fighting: you will be kind, you cannot lie, you need to make your bed, you will love to read, etc. I think I over-complicate parenting by engaging in battles over the trivial, non-eternal, ridiculous expectations that my brain creates at night while I sleep in a rose colored world. I think: my boys will not fart allowed my boys will not have belching contests my boys will wear their clothes properly, especially in public my boys will help the elderly couple load their groceries without being told my boys will choose hairstyles that I adore my boys will accept my motherly wisdom without rolling their eyes my boys will bend toward my will for their lives… oops. Maybe I see a problem. “My will for their lives”. I am not saying that I shouldn’t expect them to have manners and wear clothes, I am saying I should allow them to seek after the Lord and live their lives according to HIS will… Even if that mean they wear their socks inside out. Dear mama, choose your battles with your kids… there will be so many to choose from. Choose to let the “socks” go and concentrate on the issues that are eternal and life impacting. I need to pray for my kids, love them, and lead them. But I also need to let them be themselves. God is able to work them all out. I need to not neglect my duty as care-giver, teacher, mentor, tutor, mommy, guide, and prayer warrior. But… I really need to let somethings go… ****************************************************** Join NotebookingPages.com Free Member Program http://notebookingpages.com/free-resource-center
Chemistry and Pizza: Life Made Interesting Chemistry and Pizza: Life Made Interesting Whoever said, “Pizza is boring?” Not this guy!!