Snowman Fun Pack: Perfect Snow Day Activity after Building a Snowman When our youngest son was 9-years old, he was “chomping a the bit” to create something for my Teachers Pay Teachers Store. He loves the idea of pulling an idea from his brain and creating something cute, useful, educational and FUN for kids while putting a few pennies in his pocket. Although you must be 18 to open a sellers account, he decided to begin studying the process so he’s ready to go on his 18th birthday. … Read More »
The Beauty of the Perfect Picture Book at the Right Moment Inside: A familiar tool to help you when your kids fail in school, at home, or in life. I hate the word pissed. I mean really hate it. It is too harsh, too negative, and downright gross. Yet, in this case, it’s the only word I can use to describe how my sister felt. I had royally pissed her off. What made it so bad, was that I was clueless. One day, we were laughing and talking, the next day she cut me off completely. I spent months trying to figure out why she never answered her phone and was never home. I thought she was simply busy. Boy, was I wrong! … Read More »
I Challenge You to the Best Game EVER! I’m standing in my kitchen waiting for an equal opponent. Someone to challenge my speed, my agility, my ability to rule the universe. Free printable for you here!!! Alas, everyone is still sleeping at 6:30. So I will wait. … Read More »
Should I Homeschool: Am I a Good Enough Teacher to Homeschool My Kids? 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! … Read More »
Copywork, Dictation and Narration for Homeschool Success It just makes sense. If you want to become an expert at anything, find an expert and do what they do. By following this advice I’ve learned to: braid my hair by copying MissySue improve my blogging my following my blog instructor better my cooking skills by mimicking Ree Drummond teach with success by Homeschooling God’s way … Read More »
Free! Super Charged Science Experiments for Homeschoolers Like all great scientific discoveries, this one was an accident. On a whim, I signed our three very different sons up for an online science class. I was skeptical, but not enough to hide my email address. … Read More »
Don’t Panic if Your Kids Can’t Read Yet Last week I couldn’t find him. I was walking all over our new home looking for our youngest son. No matter how many times I called his name, he didn’t answer. Just about the time I started to be concerned, I saw him out of the corner of my eye; buried in a bean bag, snuggling with the dog and reading. READING! This may not seem like a big deal to you, but the boy was almost ten and hadn’t jumped into the world of stories on his own. I wasn’t concerned. All five of our sons were reluctant readers in the beginning. But our youngest? He was the most reluctant yet. He never really picked up a book on his own… until that day… Got kids who just can’t read, don’t want to read, or are struggling? Don’t panic…Just keep reading aloud to them. What can you do to tickle their desire to pick up books? Grab an exciting book and suddenly “Stop Reading” at an extremely exciting part. Leave them hanging in stories. Talk to them about the books you are reading. Give them access to books, lots and lots of book. Gather books that are below their reading level and have them “hanging around”. You, mom, pick up children’s literature and read silently to yourself. Let your kids see that there are no age-appropriate kid’s books. Help them see that a good book is simply that, a good book. Even though we took a very laid back approach to teaching this guy to read, I was still shocked when the lightbulb finally came on. His progress from zero to a million miles an hour? FIRST, he fell in love with the Magic Tree House Series. As a matter of fact he has read 1-2 books every day until he completed all the book in the house. Next, he just kept going. After the first 20-ish books were devoured, he began reaching for bigger and bigger books. Fast forward to today… He reads no less than 2 hours a day, has the HIGHEST reading comprehension out of all the boys in our family, and is an amazing writer. Do you have a reluctant reader? Keep reading to them. Supply them with lots of books. Visit the library. Often. Leave ’em hanging in a story. Just never give up. They will read. Never make it a negative, reading is fun. The only thing that matters is THAT they learn to read. How to Make Learning Fun: EASY! Many Homeschoolers are Delayed Readers Too 97+ Ideas for Making Math FUN 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.
120 is the Magic Number of Classics You need to Read Get ready to GASP… I never read to Kill a Mockingbird before. Or Fahrenheit 451. Or East of Eden. Or countless other classics. photo by Caleb Woods I know. It’s horrible. … Read More »
Teaching Math Doesn’t Need to be Boring Inside: everything you need to teach your kids their math facts! When our oldest son was in 5th grade my husband tricked me into homeschooling. “Just give it a year“. That was ages ago, and I’m still teaching my younger kids around the kitchen table. I remember our first real day of homeschool. I arrogantly sat across the kitchen counter from my son and ran a quick “teacher like” math fact drill. photo by aaron burden He didn’t know his math facts! … Read More »
Do You Need to be an Artist to Teach Homeschool Art? Inside: Homeschool Art- The surprising way to teach your kids to grow in their confidence and ability in art. {Plus a fun freebie} I remember the day I peeked over my son’s shoulder. He was 12-years old. He was sitting there so quietly- completely absorbed in his work. His intensity intrigued me, so I snuck over to take a peek. I shouldn’t have been stunned, but I was. How the in the world did he learn to draw so well? Here’s the secret… … Read More »
Forget Math Flashcards! This is the Best Way to Learn Math Facts Almost pulled out my hair today. My 11-year-old Stephen, woke up more bouncy than usual. That’s saying something. (I’m guessing Winnie the Pooh’s buddy, Tigger, was inspired by an 11-year-old ADHD boy. Just sayin’.) While I am not a big labeler, if this son of mine were in a “traditional classroom”, I’m confident he would have been stamped as dyslexic, ADHD, and an overall handful. He is, it’s true. But that’s why God gave him to my husband and me. (Big toothy grin) Most days, his bounciness is controlled by sitting on one of those exercise balls at the table, or knitting when we read aloud. But some days, like today, there is no way possible to get him to unbounce. You see, tomorrow we venture 8 hours to visit our beloved In-N-Out Burger joint. The fact that there isn’t an In-N-Out in Washington state was almost a deal breaker when we relocated here. Anyhoo, Stephen is so excited. He barely sleeps. He has been counting down the days, hours, and now minutes to our departure. Every few minutes, he lets us know that the reason he swinging from the ceiling is that he is excited. Now, Try to teach Tigger a traditional math lesson. Yea, I spit out my coffee too. It ain’t gonna happen…. Read More »