Budgeting for Beginners- 1o Easy Budget Tips Getting a hold of your money is a key step to having peace of mind. Great news! Budgeting for beginners isn’t that hard. There are simple things anyone can do to get their budgeting under control, even if you’ve never learned how to handle money. If, like me, you want to stay home with your children during their educational years, then getting your budget under control is super important. Let’s do this! 1. Learn how to budget from a Preschool Teacher! 10 Simple steps to Becoming Financially Whole This book introduces financial wholeness, the 10 aspects of your financial life that work together for your greatest good, your biggest benefit, and your richest life. Tiffany is a former preschool teacher and brilliant educator. This is the first budgeting overview that makes sense to my teacher brain. She covers the 10 Aspects of financial life and teaches you how to get each one under control. Like a great teacher, each chapter is laid out as a lesson plan and contains: Objective: basic overview of what you’ll learn The DO: actionable step by step lesson The Review: She circles back and makes sure you understand 2. Write it down! Budgets can be fancy computer programs, or simple budget journals. The idea of a budget is to understand, track and plan for every penny that flows into and out of your life. Even that five dollar bill you found in the empty parking lot yesterday. If you really want to save some serious cash, establish a budget and stick to it! My husband always wants our budget in a spreadsheet, since he’s computer saavy. But, if you’re a paper girl like me, you’ll want a pretty journal. It makes it easier to face budgeting when the journal itself is fun. 3. Teach your Kids about Budgeting The best way to learn something is to teach it to someone. Because you get to learn it twice. Even if you don’t understand all the areas involved in budgeting yet, teach your kids what you are learning. This will help set them up for their financial future! Plus, it counts as a math unit! Related: Printable Personal Financial Literacy Project for Kids 4. Food Spending Cook at home. Bummer, I know. But making meals from scratch is cost effective. Cooking in bulk and freezing meals can save you valuable time and money on those days that you barely have time to eat dinner, let alone prepare it!. Here are some freezer meal ideas! 5. Organize your recipes. Take the time to make a list of all the recipes you know how to make. (this is easier if you brainstorm with the whole family). If you are like I used to be, you may be staring at a pretty short list. Make it a goal to add 1-4 new recipes a month. I made this commitment when I was 24, and now have dozens and dozens of amazing family/budget friendly meals! 6. Make a 2 week- one month menu. Cooking according to a plan will save you. period. It saves you time and money. I make a bi-weekly menu every pay-period and stick pretty close to it. I love knowing what I am making for dinner before lunchtime. It is amazing how stressful it can be to look at a clock reading 5:00 and have no idea what’s for dinner! 7. Plan shopping around your menu. Again, it is all in the planning! I organize my shopping list according to my menu. I eat before I shop and I have dinner planned before I leave for the grocery store. (This saves me from ordering pizza after buying $300 worth of groceries!) Buy in Bulk, but compare prices. 8. Look for deals on clothing This is not a huge issue for me since I HATE shopping and have a bunch of boys who have no idea what a name brand is. I cut costs with clothing by purchasing everything I can from a second hand store. I have no issues buying used clothing and dress shoes for my boys while they are still growing! Ebay is an amazing place to get great deals and save hundreds if not thousands a year. 9. Clip Coupons There are coupons for almost everything! Many moms can shave their grocery bills in half by using coupons. Before you buy anything, hunt for coupons and discount codes! 10.Discount Gift Cards Did you know you can buy discounted gift cards online? At Raise.com you can search from a gazillion cards that others are offering for sale. You can save money by buying these cards online and then buying what you need with the gift card. This is a new discovery for me! Super exciting! 11. Electricity Unplug any appliances that are not in use. They drain electricity even when they are powered off. Turn off lights in unoccupied rooms. Better yet, install motion sensor switches! You can spend close to $150 a year simply by leaving your bedroom light on all day. Turn it off and buy a new outfit instead! More ways to lower your bill! 12. Evaluate Extra Spending. I make the personal choice to stay at home rather than require manicures and highlights. I do my own hair and nails. I also cut all my boys hair. If you add all that up, I am saving anywhere between $160-$300 a month because I choose to be the hairdresser/barber. Granted, I have all boys and I wear my hair long, but this is a conscious choice. 13. Cars We traded in our fun sports car for a gas efficient model. We now have a gas guzzler and a Prius. When the whole family needs to be there, we drive the Guzzler. When I go anywhere else, I drive the Prius. The difference is 14 miles to the gallon vs. 50. It’s a no brainer. The difference is spending $120 on a full tank or $30. We drive a Prius: Add it to your wishlist for later. Standing at the gas pump, a crotchety old man snorted as he glanced at my car while filling his truck. “I can tell you exactly how you vote by looking at your car.” I took the bait. “No, you can’t.” “YES, I CAN.” The poor guy had nothing better to do than to harass a woman pumping gas. As I finished filling my car and paid my $24.37 for a full tank, he kept pumping, and pumping and pumping… Sir, all you can tell from my car is that I like to spend my money in a different place other than at a gas station. My little car will go over 500 miles on that $24.37. His jaw dropped. How far will your truck go on your, I glanced at his rising cost, on that ‘over $73’? He shrunk. “Not far.” I smiled sincerely. “Don’t judge me based on my car. This was purely a wise economic decision for my family. Have a nice day!” And now we’re thinking about getting a new one. Which color should we get? Bonus tips Simple Living Quite honestly, we simply try to live within our means. That means we try to look at any new purchase with the “is is a need or a want” mentality. Technology My husband works from home and we homeschool. Technology is woven into our loves more than most, but we do try to make very wise careful decisions. Our four kids each have chrome books. But they are older and need the ability to work online. I create and sell teaching materials and use a Mac. I saved up to buy it. Bottom Line By making some very intentional choices, over time I have been blessed to stay at home with my children. These choices are not always easy, and often we choose to go without a want to satisfy the need. But it is worth it! Did you take your financial wholeness quiz? How about YOU? What are your favorite budgeting tips and tricks? Were you taught budgeting skills? Have you begun teaching your kids about money? Let’s do this!!
Busy Homeschool Mom Fitness Yes, I am lazy. sad, but true. The reality is that I am not just lazy, but my picture is in the dictionary beside the word “Busy”. I have 5 boys. I home-school 4 of them and design and write my own curriculum. I run a few websites and blogs from home. Did I mention that I adore my husband and love serving him? I’d come up with a few more excuses, but I think those are sufficient. I stumbled on the idea of embracing “the lazy way” a while back and it has transformed my exercise life. No, I may not be able to squeeze a 10 mile run in today, but I can do lunges every time I walk my hallway, or do torso twists while waiting for the ground beef to brown. I love this gals approach and I invite you to take a few minutes and browse through her exercises. There is something here that you can incorporate into your busy day as well! Take a trip to Lazy Girl Fitness and get inspired! Before you leave: Subscribe to this blog so you do not miss anything! Share me on facebook, pinterest, twitter or wherever you hang out socially online! Have a great day! (I’d love to hear which lazy exercise you choose first!)
Teaching with Toddlers and Babies Have a nightmare with me Imagine being pregnant with baby #4 and being on bed rest. Now throw in an 18-month-old who is terrified of umbrellas and balloons. Not enough? How about a kindergartener scheduled for MAJOR surgery. Oh heck, why not toss in a 12-year old hormonal 5th grader. Now decide this is a perfect year to begin homeschooling! Teaching with Toddlers and Babies Yes. That was my first year of homeschool. So how did I survive? medication prayer The key to my homeschooling survival was three-fold. I had the heart and attitude that no one was going to be more invested in my children’s success than I was. I took the time to create a plan with my husband. I found successful homeschool moms and asked a lot of questions and implemented their methods that were successful. You can grab a copy of my Survival Plan Overview at the end of this article. It’s all Attitude When you school around toddlers and infants you have to be dedicated. There is no other way to describe it. It is exhausting to chase little ones and teach algebra simultaneously. The first question to ask yourself is whether or not you are committed to “Stick and Stay”. Our kids desperately need to see us model a never quit attitude. The great news is that, with a few adjustments, it is absolutely possible to do a great job! Your Plan If a plan is going to succeed, there must first be a plan; a goal. It was here in my life’s story that my husband and I focused and formed our foundational goals; our Mission Statement if you will.I would encourage you to do the same. Our goals were simple. Pass on our faith Teach our kids basic math facts Foster a love of reading while exposing our kids to great literature Begin the lifelong journey of becoming an excellent writer and communicator. Over 20 years later, three kids are in college, including the umbrella/balloon hater and the babies are now in high school. But our goals are the same. Asking for Help from Experts I would never have survived that first year of homeschooling had I not taken the time to seek advice and ask for help. Some people have a really hard time asking for guidance, not me. I knew I was a good teacher, but I also knew my house was a mess and I had no idea how to teach with little ones around. Here’s what I gleaned from experts. Organization: I actually had a new friend come and help me organize my home. She taught me how to clear and organize clutter. She taught me how to store things in to clear bins. She taught me that taking the time to organize my home, even above the time I took to teach would save me countless hours. Fast forward to today. This was the smartest thing I ever did. It took me about 3 weeks to completely clean. purge, and organize my home yet I have been able to maintain it for over a decade. Toddlers Crave routines. (Actually, we all do, but toddlers thrive when they can anticipate the next thing). One of the moms I “interviewed” encouraged me to schedule my toddlers into manageable time-chunks. It can best be compared to kindergarten “stations”. I established a cycle of activities that followed this order: eat, quiet activity, busy activity. If I could give any advice it would be to glean this “quiet-time”/controlled environment mentality. I used a high chair, a car seat, a booster seat, a playpen, a crib and a gated area for quiet time activity centers. I chose activities that were age appropriate and safe and gave the toddler their own space. Related: Engaging, Pre-planned Activities that Help Create Magical Moments together I honestly did not let them “roam”- that’s when they would get into trouble. Sometimes they were in the same room and even at or near the same table; other times I had them “play” in the next room or in their room. This was something I trained into their day. I began with 5-minute intervals and slowly worked up to 30-45 minutes. It worked beautifully with all my little ones. There are many, many, many kinds of activities to entertain and educate your toddler available online. Keep it simple. I always kept my school activity time toys out of reach so they were fresh and new when needed. Toddlers: crave consistency. thrive under a schedule of rotation of activities. need to have set boundaries for their own development and safety, as well as the sanity of your homeschool environment. Download your FREE “Babies and Toddlers Survival Plan” {printable} Easy Preschool Crafts and Activities Homeschooling with Babies and Toddlers: Quiet TIme
When Mom is Down I had minor surgery yesterday. I left my 9th grader in charge of my 3 musketeers and was chauffeured to the hospital by my best friend (the love of my life for 23 years now). Everything went well with me and I eventually made it home around 6:00pm. This is what I found. The house was clean and most of the laundry was done. All 5 boys helped. Dinner was ready. My oldest makes pizza better than I do now. The house was decorated, cards were made, and there was a gift wrapped. Did I mention it was my 44th birthday? You might say, wow she’s such a blessed and lucky woman. While that is true, it’s taken years of training to get here and I want to encourage you today. Take the time today to teach your children daily living skills. If they can make a mess, they can be taught to clean it up. Give your kids daily team tasks (chores) and mentor them until they can do them independently. Teach your kids to cook. Let your kids decorate, wrap, and prepare for birthdays. (I say “let” because I hogged this price ledge for too long). Allow your older kids to babysit if they are responsible, loving, and kind. If they are not then begin working with them so they become that way. As a homeschool mom, I cannot tell you how great of a blessing it was to come home last night and find my children healthy, happy, and excited that they had worked so hard together because they knew it would bless and help me. Spend the time now to train your children to be the adults they are to become. Great adults do not appear by accident. They are nurtured and trained on purpose. While it is important that my kids read, write, and do math it is more essential that they grow up to be productive, hardworking, loving, and kind men (all my kids are boys). I would love to hear from you… What life skills are you teaching your kids?
3 Fabulous Footprint Crafts 15 days of Thanksgiving Homeschooling ideas! Free of course! Day Two: Pitter-Patter of Little Feet I love little footprints. The smaller the better, don’t you think? I have been searching for footprint art and guess what? This “genre” of art is a bit tricky to find! Here are the best crafts I could find for you to capture those cute feet. Cute Footprint Keepsake Plate by Handprint and Footprint Art Follow in His Foot Steps Stool I love this idea by Simply Kierste! When I make it, I will add the scripture: John 12:26 If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.
Sick Kids Best laid plans of Moms and Homeschoolers jump out the window when the kids spike a fever and feel miserable. (Note I said, “and feel miserable”. In my home, a fever could be coupled with a child that has absolutely no other symptoms. That would = normal homeschool day for me!) Today, I have 3 sick kids and I do not feel so well myself. I know we will curl up and read and watch an educational (or fun movie) at some point, but I wanted to share this recipe with you. It’s fast. It’s easy. It brings cheerfulness into the morning. Gingerbread Men Eggs! Visit my cooking blog by clicking on the link above and check it out:). Not sure what to do with your sick kids? I liked this article! 9 At Home Activities for Sick Kids
I Wasn’t Ready for a Fire… Are You? Please pass this on to everyone! We were so lucky… Life happens. I have heard this saying before, but yesterday it caught up with me in a very forgiving way. We had a neighborhood emergency and it revealed that our family does not have an emergency plan in place. I am writing this as a way to get my mind around t we should do in an emergency, but also to warn you. We were very lucky. I pray we are never tested on our new plan, yet I want to be ready just in case. Early in the morning we smelled smoke. It was a none threatening smell. Actually, it smelled wonderful, like someone was burning some wonderfully aromatic wood in their fireplace. It was relaxing. It was too warm for us to start a fire, but the smell did make us check the temperature just to make sure. Yes, it was too warm for us to burn a fire. We had a lovely morning. We talked about everything from pumpkins to raising chickens. I remember even talking about the fact that I was not willing to get up in the middle of the night to check on baby chickens. Random, I know. My husband commented that they make warmers to keep baby chickens warm. Even more random… Or was it? I went for an hour and a half walk with one of the kids. When I stepped back onto our front lawn I smelled the fire smell again. Mmmm. Smelled like fall. I went inside and commented to my husband that it must be a fireplace, because I could only smell it here. I sent the kids outside to play and they came bursting back inside within 5 minutes… “Mom! There black smoke right out front. I think it’s the neighbor’s house!” I walked outside (Not sure I believed the kids…) and saw the smoke and the flames… our neighbor’s yard was on fire… Throw all reason out the door. I called to have my son bring me the phone and dial 911. My husband was in the shower and I did not even think to go tell him. I was working on less than rational thought. I had no logical trains of thought, just OMGoodness, that fire is close. Fast forward about an hour. The fire was out. No one was hurt. The only loss was a… CHICKEN COOP! Can you believe it? We learned a few lessons that morning. We don’t have an emergency plan We can’t think rationally in an emergency We should trust the Lord’s whisper of a voice (He was trying to tell us the chicken coop was on fire!) So I have to ask you. Are you and your children ready for an emergency? As a homeschooler, this is my responsibility to equip my children. We are currently forming our official plan and we will be practicing weekly for a while, then monthly. Do you have a plan? What would you and your kids do if there was a: Fire Earthquake Tornado Flood Hurricane National Disaster If your family was separated, Where will you meet? Do you use cell phones and cordless handheld phones? They do not work when cell towers go down and power outages happen. Do you have one of those “old fashioned” phones that simply plug into the wall? You’ll want one! Start garage sale shopping. Do you have a list of emergency contacts in your wallet? Do all of your children? Do your kids know how to make collect calls from a pay phone? (Don’t laugh. When I taught my then 18 year old he tried to tell me there were no pay phones in our town. He was so used to cell phone technology that he didn’t even see them!) My day yesterday showed me that even though I love my Scarlet O’Hara mentality of “I’m not going to worry about that today, I’ll worry about that tomorrow”, if I do not have a plan to follow then I will be up a creek without a paddle in an emergency. Need a starting point? Here is a great Disaster Preparedness Coloring Book by FEMA Here is FEMA’s Make an Emergency Plan Site Our family feels like the Lord protected us in our little emergency. It could have been so much worse! All the trees within 5 feet of the fire are crispy dry. We are all surrounded by fires favorite food, dried brush. The wind is notorious in our town, we even have one of the largest wind farms! We could have lost everything. We are thankful for our neighbors who never hesitated! They knocked the fire down from a 30 foot wall of fire, down to about a foot by the time the fire department arrived! If you do not have a plan, set aside school work for a few days this week and develop one with your children and start drilling! The year-round support and guidance you need to succeed in your homeschool journey. Welcome to The Homeschool Sisterhood! Learn more…
Coffee Break: To Pay or Not To Pay Your Kids I was blessed to sit and visit with a group of about 12 homeschool parents this morning. It was so refreshing. There’s something magical about sitting and visiting over coffee and treats. I was again reminded about perspective, but from a different, well, perspective this morning. Just a few days ago, I was teaching my boys that an acorn could be either a beautiful sign of autumn, or a safety hazard. This morning I was reminded that each and every family in a unique and amazing self-contained unit. I do not, but what works for me may not work for you and vice versa. The incredible truth is that it’s OK. The important thing is that we settle into what works for our own families in the current season of life that we are walking through at this moment in time. Here are some of the differences between the families I sat with this morning: Chores. Some children never lift a finger around their home, some are paid to make their beds, some have a whole list of to do tasks to be completed. Television. Some families have art easels where a television would typically be found. Some kids earn “coupons” to buy TV time. Some families only watch on the weekends, some have no television boundaries. Meals. Some people eat out more than 4 times a week, some never eat anything unless it is prepared in their own kitchen. Some kids learn to cook when they are 5, and some of us have to wait until we are grown up to learn how to boil water. Curriculum. Some homeschoolers try to duplicate a traditional classroom atmosphere, even building mini school rooms to occupy 5 days a week where some kids are left to govern their own days and learn as they go. Some homeschoolers buy textbooks, worksheets, quizzes, and tests, while others use their local library as their curriculum. School work. Some kids complete an endless chain of worksheets and regurgitating questions while others are covered in dirt as they build their own catapults in their backyard. We are all so uniquely and wonderfully made. No two homeschool families are alike. The important thing is that we take the time to discover who “we are” and then blossom with our kids. No one can really tell you how to homeschool your kids. You know what they need to work on (not any particular worksheet, but maybe learning to read or master their math facts). Take what makes you and your children unique and allow yourself to grow into the best you can be. Definitely spend time with other homeschoolers, either in person or on-line, and get to that place where there is open sharing. Glean ideas, tips, projects and encouragement that you want to incorporate into your life and let go of the rest. Every year, things will change. That’s OK. Actually that’s the beauty of homeschool.
Homeschooling: How To Move From Newbie To Veteran A Newbie Homeschooler is one who is still in that honeymoon phase of homeschooling. It lasts for about one to three years and can honestly hold you back from the best homeschooling has to offer. So how does one move from the newbie side of the homeschool line to the coveted veteran side? It’s different for everyone, but it all starts here: Do not quit. Homeschooling is one of the more challenging endeavours that a parent can undertake. Imagine sitting in your home, surrounded by all of your children. You are the chief cook and bottle washer. You decide what they eat, what they wear, what they learn. Honestly, the task can be daunting. Complicate the homeschooling experience by the fact that humans are competitive by nature and we tend to want what others have. That translates into having our children involved in too many activities and ordering their school days with an ivy league quality set of assignments to be completed each day. New Homeschoolers tend to make a huge mistake. They run out and order a curriculum because it looks good, long before they discover who their children are as students and who they themselves are as teachers. A Newbie still believes that “this curriculum” or “that curriculum” will help their child learn. Veteran Homeschoolers are a different breed entirely. While we are all unique, we do share some concrete similarities. Veterans know their child’s strengths and weaknesses. Veterans tailor their child’s education to fit in between the lines of their students passions and abilities. Veterans are confident in their ability to teach, yet humble enough to ask for help when necessary. Veterans are more interested in their child’s character than how many math facts they can fire off in 60 seconds. So how does a Newbie move to the Veteran Side? Spend more time studying what makes your child tick than you do shopping for curriculum. Ask for help determining your child’s learning style and your teaching style. Have fun learning along side your children. Choose to ignore the laundry and play in the mud. Realize that your primary goal is to teach your child to love to learn, not master XYZ of your states standards. Being a newbie can be a wonderful season in your educational career. This is where you can honestly glean wonderful pearls of wisdom from educators around you. Enjoy the process of discovering who you and your children are as homeschoolers. It is never about how well your child knows page 214 of their science book. It is about how well you equip your child to seek knowledge daily. Your goal should be to reach the veteran camp as soon as possible. Sure, there is more laundry here, but the kids are having a blast at learning, living, and growing!
Teaching Older Children About Business I have spent quite a bit of time thinking about how to better prepare my young men for this new and crazy world. My oldest son is a sophomore in college and we are constantly discussing his future, his career choices and the fact that what he does today profoundly impacts his tomorrow. He is well on his way to earning his degree and reaching his lifelong dream of being a history professor, but he has dreams or being a business owner. So why build an online business with him? Because I can. Because I am learning the processes myself and am very excited to see what the Lord will do in our lives and my enthusiasm is contagious. One of the mental challenges of homeschooling, for me, has been the process of breaking out of the molds that society would label “education”. Why wouldn’t I take the time to teach my children something they want to learn, something they see value in, and sneak in a few “educational lessons” along the way. The same way that we might puree carrots and squash to add to a sauce and sneak in nutrition, I sneak my core goals into everything I teach my kids as we research and pursue their passions. Does this make sense? Well, in my home, this idea has caught fire. I have 5 boys and three of them are in the start up phases of their own on-line companies. Cool huh? As soon as they come on-line I will share them with you, but for now I’d like to ask you to consider asking your older kids if this is something they might want to explore. I say explore, because I have been on this road for about 6 years. It has taken me an embarrassing amount of time to get to where I am today. I will assume that many of you may have a child (or maybe you yourself) who would love to start a business. The good news is that I love to share! Ask your kids if they are old enough. “Would you like to learn how to start an online business?” If either you or they say yes, be sure to enter to the right. I am giving away 2 copies of a special report designed to help you get started!
Experience First: Flight Every time the Space Shuttle launched I cried like a baby. “Mission Control, This is Endeavour are we cleared for launch?” “Endeavor you are cleared to launch in 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1…” I get goosebumps just thinking about it. Now, teaching kids about aerodynamics is another subject altogether. I get a headache just thinking about it. For me, this is a dry and dull subject (if you are an aerospace engineer who may visit this article, forgive me). Related: Your preschools don’t need to sit still, they need to move! So how do I teach my kids about things I find dull and boring? I find someone who is passionate about the subject and get my kids in front of their enthusiasm! The funny thing is when I am with my children I catch the enthusiasm. In our “who you know” world, our family was invited to watch the final flight of Space Shuttle Endeavour as it made its California Tour. (My husband worked for NASA at the time). I have to say this was one of the most amazing things I have ever seen in my life. We were able to have a front row seat to view the shuttle fly by on the back of its 747 and then land and park directly in front of our family ( and a few thousand other blessed people). Wow. I still cannot believe we were able to see this. Now let me ask you. Do you think my boys are going to be interested as we learn about flight and aerodynamics? You tell me… While it is true that not everyone can get an invitation like this, everyone has opportunities all around them to explore something amazing. Seize every one of those opportunities as you homeschool. I hear of homeschoolers that farm, raise chickens and cows, build an organic homestead and store, visit local (and not so local) museums, participate in living history days, attend plays, play musical instruments, attend art shows, shadow professionals to preview jobs, design and build computers, and more. What do you have available to you and your kids? Maybe it’s fishing. If you want your kids to learn about the fish of the sea, begin by taking them fishing. Don’t know how to fish? Ask around. My hubby took two of our sons out with a friend today to participate in their first fishing derby. Look at that King Salmon! You can bet that boy will be primed and ready to learn about the life cycle of a fish, and the impact of the Salmon on the health of the Pacific Northwest where we live. He’ll likely even be ready to help protect fish to ensure that his kids can experience this same thrill. It could be anything, but usually kids don’t say, “Hey, I’m passionate about this thing I’ve never done before!” Kids need to experience first, become intrigued and then they’ll be excited to learn. Always lead with EXPERIENCE Ask a neighbor or two for their top ten sites in your town for their top ten list of places to see Visit your local chamber of commerce Order your national parks map and visit 3 parks this year Read your local paper and attend things that you may think are boring (just do not say that aloud to your kids) Then stand back. As your kids taste and see this amazing world, they will be primed and ready to receive the “educational” activities rolling in your imagination. Just be sure to hook their curiosity before you blast off into learning! How to Make Learning Fun: EASY! Hebrew for Homeschoolers High School Electives for Homeschoolers
Welcome to A Better Way to Homeschool Thank you for hopping over to my blog from my Teachers Pay Teachers Store! Before you leave, please subscribe to my blog. (enter your email on the right! Why? I have special giveaways and freebies for my readers often. I would love to bless you with my next “Insider Gift”. I update this blog a few times a month with new homeschooling ideas, tips, and words of encouragement. One more jump. When you are done browsing, please return to my Teachers pay Teachers store and follow me. I always have new products in process. When you follow me, you will be the first to see these new creations! Last thing. If you have any questions about homeschooling, or if you have need for a specific product to meet your needs, email me here. Have a wonderful day! Thanks for stopping by.
Homeschooling: Where do I Begin? So you have made the decision to home school your children, but have no idea where to start. Today, let me give you a jump start. Understanding that you should: Establish your family mission statement Pick the subjects/topics/curriculum to study Determine how you stay organized … you can still get started today. First. Pick a subject that interests you and your kids. I highly suggest going to the local library (or browsing your own bookshelves). When I first began homeschooling I discovered my library did not have a book limit. What that meant was every time I took the kids to the library, we would leave with 20-40 books! (Words of wisdom: teach your children to respect books. Keep your library books in a separate location, like a basket. Mark your calendar to remind you when the books are due. I suggest giving yourself a few days cushion just in case the baby gets sick. Late fees at the library are minimal unless they are multiplied by 40 books…) Second. Learn everything you can about that subject: Together! Read. Research online. Search Netflix. Search YouTube. Get deep into learning!! Third. Choose a project to showcase what you all have learned! Project Ideas: Mini books, notebooking, lapbooks, pocket books, and power points are just a few suggestions. Third. Spend a week (to a month) becoming and expert and making that project! (approximately). Fourth. Ready, Set, Learn! Have a blast learning along side of your kiddos. The more excited you are, the better. Enthusiasm is contagious. Fifth. This step is vital. The kids (and you) have worked hard to create some amazing project. No matter how simple the final product turns out to be, make sure the kids share it with someone. Have them walk daddy through their creation, explain it to grandma, or teach it to a neighbor. This will do two things: Reinforce what the kids have learned Let them bask in the spotlight! Here are a few resources to help you set up your project: Sign up here to receive freebies, deals, and resources!! A wonderful resource for mini-books~ Lapbooking templates My Favorite Pocket Projects How to create a power point
Pinterest for Homeschoolers! Have you found me out on Pinterest yet? I am constantly browsing this wonderful site for the best resources to help you with your homeschooling adventure. There is an endless source of inspiration out here. Hop on over to my page and follow me. See What I Have to Share with you! Click here:) Be sure to click on the follow me button!
Boy Heaven Boy Heaven is a post from Bekki @ A Better Way to Homeschool where we learn to train our children to become lifelong learners. If you have enjoyed this post, be sure to follow Bekki on YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and Google+! Boy Heaven! My husband recently bought me a new printer for my office. He surprised the boys today by handing them the old broken unit and a few screw drivers. They were busy for hours! Yes, they are wearing helmets. They were riding bikes and scooters until the surprise project was presented. They were so excited they left their helmets on for quite a while… Favorite discovery. Circuit boards galore! The boys were astounded at how many parts, pieces, springs, electronics, ribbon cables, gears, and screws were hidden inside this simple machine. What a great lesson!
Our Daily Homeschool Schedule I get quite a few people asking me about our homeschool schedule. They want to know how I homeschool multiple ages and grades without having a nervous breakdown. It all comes down to planning, flexibility, and a healthy dose of reality. Master Chore List: As Promised!! Learning from the Past The card catalog has been replaced by computers. There was a day when you could walk up to a cabinet filled with actual drawers holding small cards in alphabetical order. The cards were created as a trilogy, where the information listed was rearranged according to the categories of Author, Subject, and Title. When looking up a certain book you could physically walk up to a drawer, open it, and flip back through the cards until the exact book was identified. From that point, you would hand write the information necessary to help you locate the book on the library’s shelves. Antiquated, I know, but relevant as we look to homeschooling our children. We cannot allow our minds to be trapped back in the era of the card catalog, for that is certainly completely irrelevant to our children. If our kids actually walk into a library, they will walk up to a computer to complete their search. With a few swift key strokes, they will have the appropriate information right before their eyes. While we can appreciate how far we have come, our kids are miles ahead of us. They are born into this technology driven world. They think its normal to watch a television show and watch a person pop up in the corner and tell them some fact about he character that is performing the show, the actor, or the location. They are not annoyed by the “pop up’s” on the computer screen as they search for information; in fact they absorb 12 times the information in one 15 minute sitting that we ever could. (I made up the 12 times, but you know what I mean) Our card catalog mind wants to physically touch, smell, and see our one piece of information. Their computer savvy mind wants to scan through the 3.2 million search engine results, filter for the top 4 relevant sites, and laugh at the funny pop-up. They are being programmed to soak up information like a sponge. So how is this relevant to homeschooling. Besides the obvious “we shouldn’t try to teach them about how to find a book through a card catalog” we should embrace this information driven world while teaching our kids to focus. The challenge with a our new world is that our kids can quickly acclimate to this alternate universe. They can believe that its OK to buy a movie ticket while texting their friends simultaneously, or sit at the dinner table and be watching a YouTube video and chatting as they eat and communicate with the people sitting at the same table. As homeschoolers in the new millennium we must learn from the past. We need to teach our kids to categorize their technology-filled world into a few essentially vital categories: people relationships knowledge entertainment If our kids can recognize that everything fits into one of those categories, then they can be taught to prioritize them. People first, knowledge, entertainment, and so on. While we cannot change the world to look like it did when we stood in a library at age 12, we can teach our kids to treat this new world with the proper perspective. We need to teach our kids to focus on people and relationships (not the touchy-feely kind, but the “you are more important than this cell phone” kind) and embrace the benefits that technology provides. Our kids are sponges. We need to teach them to absorb knowledge and to seek hard after those subjects, topics, and fields that they are passionate about. We need to not be intimidated that they can do 12 times more than we could do in the same amount of time, but rather train them to use that ability to become a better student, family member, and human being. Preview of the Heart of Homeschooling God’s Way Master Class. We need to STOP measuring success by grades, achievements, awards, and worksheets. « Go to Previous Page Go to page 1 Interim pages omitted … Go to page 7 Go to page 8 Go to page 9 Go to page 10 Go to Next Page »
Learning from the Past The card catalog has been replaced by computers. There was a day when you could walk up to a cabinet filled with actual drawers holding small cards in alphabetical order. The cards were created as a trilogy, where the information listed was rearranged according to the categories of Author, Subject, and Title. When looking up a certain book you could physically walk up to a drawer, open it, and flip back through the cards until the exact book was identified. From that point, you would hand write the information necessary to help you locate the book on the library’s shelves. Antiquated, I know, but relevant as we look to homeschooling our children. We cannot allow our minds to be trapped back in the era of the card catalog, for that is certainly completely irrelevant to our children. If our kids actually walk into a library, they will walk up to a computer to complete their search. With a few swift key strokes, they will have the appropriate information right before their eyes. While we can appreciate how far we have come, our kids are miles ahead of us. They are born into this technology driven world. They think its normal to watch a television show and watch a person pop up in the corner and tell them some fact about he character that is performing the show, the actor, or the location. They are not annoyed by the “pop up’s” on the computer screen as they search for information; in fact they absorb 12 times the information in one 15 minute sitting that we ever could. (I made up the 12 times, but you know what I mean) Our card catalog mind wants to physically touch, smell, and see our one piece of information. Their computer savvy mind wants to scan through the 3.2 million search engine results, filter for the top 4 relevant sites, and laugh at the funny pop-up. They are being programmed to soak up information like a sponge. So how is this relevant to homeschooling. Besides the obvious “we shouldn’t try to teach them about how to find a book through a card catalog” we should embrace this information driven world while teaching our kids to focus. The challenge with a our new world is that our kids can quickly acclimate to this alternate universe. They can believe that its OK to buy a movie ticket while texting their friends simultaneously, or sit at the dinner table and be watching a YouTube video and chatting as they eat and communicate with the people sitting at the same table. As homeschoolers in the new millennium we must learn from the past. We need to teach our kids to categorize their technology-filled world into a few essentially vital categories: people relationships knowledge entertainment If our kids can recognize that everything fits into one of those categories, then they can be taught to prioritize them. People first, knowledge, entertainment, and so on. While we cannot change the world to look like it did when we stood in a library at age 12, we can teach our kids to treat this new world with the proper perspective. We need to teach our kids to focus on people and relationships (not the touchy-feely kind, but the “you are more important than this cell phone” kind) and embrace the benefits that technology provides. Our kids are sponges. We need to teach them to absorb knowledge and to seek hard after those subjects, topics, and fields that they are passionate about. We need to not be intimidated that they can do 12 times more than we could do in the same amount of time, but rather train them to use that ability to become a better student, family member, and human being. Preview of the Heart of Homeschooling God’s Way Master Class. We need to STOP measuring success by grades, achievements, awards, and worksheets.