How to Homeschool When that First homeschool Year is a Flop Sifting through my emails over coffee reading through questions form homeschool moms. How do you get kids to read? How do I teach kids respect for others and themselves? How do teach a child to write? And then my heart sunk. This one wasn’t a question, but an exhale of defeat from a mom who just began my free Homeschooling with confidence class. “My homeschool year was a flop”. … Read More »
Homeschool Math: Grab your Roadmap to Success BEFORE you spend a moment worrying about math curriculum, let me share a secret. I didn’t understand where I was supposed to go until I’d been on the road almost 20 years. It’s crazy that it’s taken me almost two decades to truly understand this thing we call MATH. … Read More »
Verb Craft and Activity Printables Verb Craft and Activity BUNDLEHands on Verb Craft and Activities for Kids.…Read More »
Easy Kitchen Chemistry Experiments Science in the kitchen is a sure fire combination to draw your kids right into the depths of science.It’s kind of like cheating!Fizzics Brings so many fun Chemistry Experiments right into your kitchenCreate a growing carbon sugar snake with simple ingredients. A science activity for the adults to try that demonstrates combustion & chemistry for kids.Create fireworks in a glass! This colorful science activity is highly popular with kids and can be used look at buoyancy, density and surface tension.A simple color change in the kitchen! Simply grab a lemon and a mug of tea to explore kitchen chemistry that you can drink afterwards 🙂The gummy bear osmosis experiment is perfect for variable testing! Learn how to design a simple kitchen chemistry activity that explores how water moves.The Chemistry of Pizza, by my sonThis was such a great project! Not only did he learn about all the chemical reactions taking place while making pizza, he taught me how to make my famous pizza dough even better! Get Creative in the Kitchen!Buy nowAmerica’s Test Kitchen Kids brings delicious science to your kitchen! Over 75 kid-tested, kid-approved recipes and experiments teach young chefs about the fun and fascinating science of food. This is the fourth book in the New York Times bestselling cookbook series for Young Chefs.So many amazing picks!!
Preschool At Home MAGIC My oldest son turned 28 yesterday. Sigh.Do your kids still leave their actual handprints on your walls, clothing, and windows?…Read More »
The Carl Angel 5 Pencil Sharpener- My Top Pick Worth every single dollar. Bonus points if you can name the movie he’s quoting! … Read More »
Homeschooling Olympians This is our passion project, our life mission… to help homeschool parents raise kids who still love the LORD and are excellent communications in both written and oral forms. We can also chat about this on the phone…Have questions about homeschooling but not ready to commit to any mentorship programs?Overwhelmed with where to begin?Stuck in a particular stage of your teaching your kids but not sure how to move on?Would you like to seek advice from an experienced homeschool mom who has survived 25+ years homeschooling FIVE sons and still has a smile on her face? Or simply have her as a sounding board for your many ideas?Book your FREE 15 minute call with Bekki!It’s EASY to schedule!
Math Number of the Day Printables For PreK- Kindergarden Complete Number Sense Set (Numbers 0-10) K-4th Number of the Day Worksheets 5th grade and Up
Fun Earth Day Activities for Preschoolers Subscribe to our channelFun Earth Day Activities for Preschoolers!!…Read More »
Gingerbread Man Printable Unit Fun filled Centers and Worksheets for your Preschool Gingerbread Man Printables. Kids will love these hands-on learning games and activities that work on counting, number formation and order, letter recognition, patterns and more.84 Pages of Fun Printables in this Set!!Get Your copy todayThis Gingerbread Man Printables set also includes 15 no-prep worksheets that reinforce scissor practice, tracing, letters, numbers, patterns and more. These are print and go printables that are great for last minute sub plans or extra practice.This unit includes:16 Hands-on, Interactive Math and Literacy Centers15 No-Prep Extra Practice WorksheetsMake lessons more memorable by adding Taste and Smell and all the senses! Here are some DELICIOUS ways to spice up learning.Prepare your printable goodies for your preschoolers!2. Whip up a batch of gingerbread cookies together.The Pioneer Woman to the rescue!3. Learn the history of gingerbread. Answer the question, “What’s a fairing?”4. Peek at the LARGEST gingerbread house.5. Ooh and Ahhh over the delicious creations of the National Gingerbread Competition!6. Make a gingerbread paper village! Your older kids will LOVE this craft.Download your fun craft7. Grab a few cookies and enjoy a traditional story together!Watch this Read Aloud Here
Christmas Activities: Build Your Own Christmas Tree Game Christmas is that wonderful time of year that delights our souls, causes us to wonder and distracts the daylights out of our kids. The best way to grab their attention during Christmas and the whole advent season is to improvise.This Christmas Activity is guaranteed to make them smile!!Buy NowEasy to Play…Read More »
Dad’s Role in Homeschooling: The Powerful Man Behind the Scenes Inside: Six homeschool lessons to glean from your kid’s dad. Even if he never picks up a red pen to help you grade a math test. When the going gets tough, the tough get going. But when the going gets tough in homeschool, moms across the globe search for answers. We corner teachers to glean classroom management skills. We laugh and cry with our girlfriends about our kids as we sip too much coffee. We pick the brains of other homeschoolers we happen to bump into at the grocery store. We Google in desperation. “Which curriculum is best for a dyslexic science-minded girl who refuses to wear matching socks on Tuesdays?” But ask the man in our lives his opinion about how to teach his children or how to manage our lives, No way Jose…. Read More »
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 upNifty 50This 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 ScholasticGreat collection from Math Geek Mama!21This game is a simplified version played in casinos, with no gambling involved. Object: be the closest to 21 without going over! Learn more at ScholasticPlace Value WarTurn 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 SchoolsOnce through the deckShuffle 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 GaskinsRelated: Games with a deck of card FREE printable by SAU 39Closest ToStarting 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 engagedMath 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 engagedHere’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 WorksheetsGuess My NumberPlace 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 K5ChalkboxMore math with a deck of cards!More math goodies How to Make Math more fun for Your Kids https://abetterwaytohomeschool.com/teach-math.html Homeschool Math: Grab your Roadmap to Success
Rubik’s Cube (TM) Top Secret Mission A reader asked if I could create her son an activity to add to the Rubik’s Cube she bought him.Nothing excites kids like the words “Top Secret”.These activities make the perfect pair with a Rubik’s Cube(TM) and make excellent math centers, bell work, party activities or just plain fun.Included:Top Secret instructions18 Mission CardsMission foldable foldersLaughs and curiosity*Rubik’s Cube sold separatelyGet yours in my TpT Store For Student: Prepare Top Secret Envelope and Mission Instruction cards.For longest life, copy onto cardstock paper and laminate.Student comes to “Mission Commander” for 1-3 Missions to complete at a time. They must show the completed tasks to mission command before getting their next set of orders.For Mission Command(YOU): Prepare Top Secret Envelope and Mission Instruction cards. For longest life, copy onto cardstock paper and laminate.When Student comes to receive their secret mission give them 1-3 mission/tasks to complete. When they return with a successful mission they can receive a new set of “orders”.These missions do not need to be completed in any particular order, but may be carefully selected by mission command to ensure success!
Make every day a Read Aloud Day I’m here to remind us both of something very important.There’s something more beneficial for our kids’ education than that curriculum we’re beginning to understand.…Read More »
Homeschool: When Life Doesn’t Cooperate Inside: 5 Steps to Overcoming the Overwhelm! Plus a cute free printable! My youngest sons will battle over anything. Even freshly picked blackberries. Sitting on the porch quietly enjoying the sun and savoring the warmth and fleeting moments of summer vacation. That’s how this day began. So peaceful. So wonderful. Blessed. And then I heard them. … Read More »
We Deprive Our Sons On Purpose Yes, We deprive Our Sons on Purpose: That’s right. We deprive them. The Result of Deprivation? Boredom. Do not be afraid of a bored child. And DO Not rescue them. On the other side of boredom lives creativity, design, and ingenuity… A Bit of chaos. But out of this chaos, they create kingdoms! … Read More »
Simple Advent Activities that Add Holiday Spirit to Teaching Inside: Christmas and Winter Wrapped into Learning Activities Snow begs to be played in, candy canes plead to be enjoyed, and kids refuse to focus… Crazy Snowman Photo by Matteo Paganelli Sounds like the holidays to me. If you thought is was hard to get your kid’s attention during Thanksgiving, wait until you try during Christmas! I always switch to holiday themed activities during the holidays. Beginning today, let’s snuggle with our kids and slow down. In the flurry of decorations, shopping, and potential holiday madness we need to take the time to share “what really matters” with our kids. … Read More »
What does a Penny have to do with Homeschool Survival? Have you ever tried to put a penny on train tracks? We used to joke about living in a town quoted by Bugs Bunny. Apparently, this little town was where “Goldilocks was serving time for breaking and entering”. Ah, Tehachapi, Ca. A friend made up this little giggler to help his kids say the name of our little town: Q-“Why did the chicken sit on a pea pod?” A-“To Hatch a Pea!” … Read More »
How to Homeschool Your child Without Losing Your Way Every January, I do a crazy purge of homeschooling. When we come back to our studies after Christmas it never fails. Suddenly, I can see how off-track I’ve allowed the kids to get. Even though I have great intentions, I always seem to put too much emphasis on ‘this curriculum and that lesson’ and with our time seeking the Lord together, praying, and serving each other gets pushed more and more off to the side. When I stop and focus on my kids’ hearts, attitudes, and character I realize I need to make some changes.… Read More »