Free gift from TOS!

Here is another free gift from TOS. I can't wait to look through mine! Enjoy!

Homeschool Unit Study-for FREE!

Click this link for a *FREE* Autumn Treasures unit study. A free gift from The Old Schoolhouse Magazine and Amanda Bennett.

Unexpected blessings

At our missions conference last September, my husband met a missionary from Bearing Precious Seed, a printing ministry that prints tracts, Bibles, and John & Romans booklets; in various languages. This missionary told Jason that when we get closer to our start date of our church, to let them know and they would give us some John & Romans booklets to pass out. Since then, we have been in contact and they had 5,000 of these booklets ready for us to pick up at any time. Bearing Precious Seed is in Milford, Ohio, about a 2 hour drive.

Jason got off work early yesterday and decided to call and see if it would be a good day to go and pick them up. He was planning on just him and a friend to go and pick them up but his friend had plans yesterday. So he said we could all just go and enjoy a little drive. One of the beauties of homeschooling...you have so much flexibility. They said it would be fine to pick them up and he told them we would arrive around 1:30 p.m. I packed a few snacks for the kids and we were off!

When we got there, they loaded our van with 17 boxes of John & Romans booklets and asked us if we wanted a tour of the place. SURE we would! It was amazing to see how the Lord took this small printing ministry back in 1973 and grow it and use it to reach the world with the gospel. They print in so many different languages and send Bibles free of charge to missionaries all over the world.

After our tour, the director asked us if we had ever been to the Creation Museum, which is located only 45 minutes from BPS. Well, no, we hadn't. He said they have free passes and we could use them anytime we wanted, we could even go today! Jason looked at me and said, how about today? Like right now? Well, SURE, I would LOVE too! So off we went to the Creation Museum and it was fabulous. If you have not been there, it is a must. We really only had about 2 1/2 hours to spend there since they close at 6, so we flew through there trying to see as much as possible. I am eager to go back when we have more time to look at everything.

On the way back to BPS (we had to take the passes back), we discovered that their midweek Bible study was on Thursday instead of Wednesday. We looked at each other and thought, why not, we'll just stay for church too! After a quick call to my mom to let the dog out, we were ready to spend the evening at First Baptist Church of Milford, Ohio. The pastor was out of town, so an assistant pastor gave the message. At the end of service, the pastor announced who we were and that we were planting a church in Columbus and to make sure to stop by and say hello. What a huge encouragement for all of these people, whom we have never met, come by and let us know that they would be praying for us and our church plant.

When our church is able to start supporting missionaries, Bearing Precious Seed will be one of the first that we support.

What a wonderful, wonderful day. God is just so good.

All
the
time.

Homeschool Fun, A Japanese Meal

Japan

My 10 year old daughter is studying Japan in history. We thought it would be fun to have a Japanese meal to enhance what we have been reading. Last night we made a Japanese meal! Now, I am sure it is not totally authentic, but it got the point across :o).

Here is what we had: Teriyaki chicken & steak, rice, Toffee Sweet Potatoes (yum!), Japanese Onion Soup, sauteed sugar snap peas, carrots, broccoli & mushrooms, and green tea to drink. I bought some chop sticks too to add to the fun. It was really good! We had visited a Japanese Steakhouse about a year ago and got some ideas from that. We served the soup first and then we served the rest on regular plates (I don't have all the little cups and plates as you would see on a Japanese table). We had a lot of fun!

This is one way to really enhance your homeschool! This year, we are sticking pretty much to a textbook curriculum (Rod & Staff for most and some Abeka for my high schooler) but I add DVD's, and extra stuff to bring it all together. For our Japan study, I got some Schlessinger Media DVD's on Asia and Japan and some books from the library. We used a recipe for the toffee sweet potatoes from one of the books. I also plan on learning a little of the writing, maybe for art class?

Good, wholesome fun :o).

Homeschooled kids demented?

I saw this on World Net Daily. I do not watch The View but I know that many people do. I am saddened that people actually believe this way. What is the definition of demented?

demented-–adjective
1. crazy; insane; mad.
2. affected with dementia. Source from dictionary.com.

Are homeschooled kids crazy, insane, or mad? I guess I shouldn't be too surprised that the world does not agree with the choice of homeschooling, I think I am more surprised at the strange accusations about how the kids turn out.

Homeschool: Election Unit Study

Ballot Box with Ballot
Here is what we are doing on our "week off". I have always like the idea of unit studies and I think I may be able to incorporate them on our "off" times of school. Maybe as I get more comfortable with them , I can use them more and more. With the election coming up, there are so many resources to be found on elections, voting, our judicial system, etc... so that is what we are doing. An Election Unit Study!

The following links are some of the resources we will be using. We went to a library program regarding elections. They went through the voting process, including the primaries, the electoral college, etc.... We are using some of the worksheets that were passed out there. I have also made it a point to take the kids with me to the voting place.

This link shows the electoral college map for every presidential election dating back to 1789!

Here is a printable electoral college map that your children can color in as the votes come in.

We reserved this movie from the library. It goes over the election process.

Updated to add this link: You can watch video clips from C-Span Classroom that can enhance learning about the branches of government, politics, etc... You just have to sign up as a teacher and you will receive emails when new video clips are added. You can watch as many or as little as you want.

More C-SPAN resources on this issue.

The next links are printables for some of the younger children.

http://www.thehomeschoolmom.com/schoolroom/elections.php

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/election/activities.shtml

http://www.readinga-z.com/theme/election08.html

After gathering your resources (for any unit study), you can use this handy form for record keeping. In my state, I keep a portfolio and this little form fits in the portfolio real nice!

We are really looking forward to this! I'll have to let you know how it goes! I may add more links to this post as I find more :o)

Homeschool: Scheduling and other stuff

There are many different approaches to homeschooling, there really is no "one size fits all". We have tried several approaches within our own family over the last 10 years ourselves, and I am sure that we will try other things in the future. During the time that my husband pastored, we did a lot of work in the church. While this is good, our basic school suffered.

Here is what we are doing this year:

• Mostly textbooks, Rod & Staff (with a little Abeka for my high schooler)
• Non-fiction DVD's from the library
• no classes, field trips, gym days, etc...
• no homeschool group

Doing this has really helped our family to get back on track. Not that homeschool groups, gym days, etc are bad, those were just things that we had to cut out to get our family back to where we need to be. Maybe next year, we will add those things back in. We will see. We will be taking a week off at the end of each quarter to do some fun things. The important thing to remember (and it can be sooo hard at times!) is that you need to do what is right for your family!

Something else to consider is that for many families, the family dynamics are constantly changing. One school year you may have babies & toddlers (which puts a lovely twist to any one's school day), the next year, that baby will be a toddler and the toddler will be a pre-schooler. There could be a new pregnancy, your olders are maturing more, etc... Constant changing.

This year, we have no pregnancy, babies, or toddlers. I have to admit, it is a little odd. We have been able to get much more done. Something that I wish I knew then is: Don't beat yourself up for not getting "enough" done! Treasure the little times, make memories with your kids, don't say no to things just for the sake of saying no. A friend and I were recently talking and we both admitted we have done this. I have found myself saying no for absolutely no reason other than my own laziness. How sad.

A wise saying that I heard from MOMYS several years ago is "While the days are so long, the years are very short". How true! What is the goal? What is the bigger picture? What vision do you have for your children? Do you pray daily for each of your children? Do you want them to "do school" well? Of course, we all want our kids to have a good education, but we also want them to love the Lord, to be able to minister to others, to be compassionate to their siblings, to honor mom and dad, etc...things that you can't learn from a textbook.

If only I knew then what I know now...

Been busy and other stuff!

I have been sooo busy the last 2 weeks! We have finally gone through every drawer, closet, shelf, box, and Rubbermaid tote in our house. I am still shocked at how much stuff that we have accumulated. We could open our own Stuff-Mart. NO MORE. We are simplifying and that's that. We still need to sort some toys that we put into the garage and tie up some loose ends but we got the bulk of it done.

And, I'm even caught up on laundry.

Tomorrow is the BIG day. That is one reason that we have been working so hard to get the house organized. The big day...school is back in session. I am excited to get back into a routine. For some reason, I can't seem to get into a routine in the summer. Schedules are out the window! We stay busy being bored :o( But the beginning of a new school year is a fresh start for me. Regular menu planning, school, laundry & cleaning schedule, learning more about healthy eating, etc... I can't wait!

Each new school year brings on a different twist, with different family dynamics. This year, I will be teaching 9th, 6th, 4th, 2nd, and 1st grades and I will do some Pre-K work with my youngest. This will be the first year that I don't have a baby or toddler around. I told my oldest daughter that this will be our best school year yet! She reminded me that I say that every year.

Happy back to school time to you all :o)

School Supplies!

Back to school time has always been one of my favorite times of the year. It signifies the beginnings of fall, which is my favorite season. When I was in school, I enjoyed getting new supplies, backpacks, etc...; and I still do now that I teach my own children.




My husband, the organized man that he is, decided to clean out our "art" closet, the children's bedrooms, the office, and basement. Yesterday was the chosen day, in order to get ready for the new school year.





Here is just a sampling of what we had scattered through the house. I won't be buying school supplies for the next 50 years.

I know we have 6 kids, but do we really need this many pencils, markers, and crayons?

Home Education Laws up for review in Ohio

Pile of Red and Black Books

If you live in or know someone that lives in Ohio and you have an interest in Home Education, (whether as a parent, student, family member, friend, etc...) please check out this link and submit your comments. The Ohio Department of Education is reviewing the homeschool laws and are going to possibly make some changes (not necessarily good ones). BUT, they are asking for people to comment their thoughts and ideas and you only have until August 8th. Here is a chance to keep freedoms for parents to educate their children as they see fit.

Summertime Fun?

I am one of those people who hates summer. I mean, I enjoy watching beautiful sunsets, relaxing fun with the family, gardening & preserving foods, and just taking in the beauty of the multitude of colorful flowers. Our Lord is just so creative, isn't He?

Here is why I don't like summer:

• We eat a lot of casserole, soups, lentils, etc... and it just seems too hot to eat those things in the summer. I have to get creative to get some summer time meal ideas. (any input is much appreciated!)
• Lack of schedule! Generally we have finished school and it seems that I can't get a workable schedule together. It's really kind of funny, I feel like I don't have enough time when we do school but I have way too much time on my hands when we are through with school. This includes the children and myself.
• Hot weather.
• Although I enjoy gardening & preserving, it can be a very hot and tiring process. It seems like when the harvest is here, you just can't pick it fast enough.

However, this year I am going to change my attitude! I do not want to spend the next three months being grumpy because it is not my favorite season (fall).

I am going to stay on my schedule and tweak it to fill in the gaps and have some fun! I think I may even use some of my time to (gasp) find some new summer/budget friendly recipes.

As for the weather, I really should not complain. We had some hot days there for a while but this last week or two have been absolutely beautiful! When it does get hot, I will thank the Lord for a working A/C.

Instead of complaining about the hot process of canning, I am going to praise the Lord that I am able to grow food and preserve it for my family without have to worry about E.Coli and Salmonella poisoning.

It is all about attitude. Philippians 2:14 Do all things without murmurings and disputings. Ouch. I think it means ALL things.

In my next post, I am going to list my ideas of what our family will be doing this summer for fun. I also have some ideas at the bottom of my blog.

Happy Summer bloggy friends!

Planning for next year

Lessons
To all you Home Schoolers out there, are you starting to plan for next year already or are you just ready to be done for a while? May/June seems to be a fun time for me to start hitting book sales and thinking about the next year. I think about what worked well for this year and and what didn't work so well.

I went through my bookshelves & catalogs and made a list of items that I want for next year. Just for fun, I totaled how much it will cost if I bought it all new. I will take my list to the various book sales in order to stick to my plan and not overspend (my husband and I both have this problem when it comes to books!). I think I may even put it on my sidebar to keep a running total. I hope to spend half (or less) than if it was purchased new.

We are blessed to live in an area that has an excellent library system. We use many resources from there to add to our learning. Non-fiction books (living books) and DVD's are fun.

We also have our convention coming up. I have never been to one but I think it would be fun to go at least once.

I'll be off to my first book sale tonight! I can't wait!

She takes 3rd!

My 14dd took 3rd place in our local library's' "Teen Poetry/Short Story" Contest. She wrote a short story called, "A Dog's Daring Rescue". She didn't realize until we got there for the reception that she would have to read it in front of everyone!! She just might not have entered if she knew that. (She's just like her mother). She got up there and read beautifully! I was so proud of her. The pic is from my phone so the quality is not so good, but you get the idea. All the contestants got a free book and as a 3rd place winner, she won a leather bound journal. They took her picture to possibly be on the library's website and the local paper. I'm a proud mom :o)

Home Education Laws Changing?

Art and Literature

A friend alerted me to the issues going on in California regarding Home Education Laws. Three judges have basically said that it is not illegal in CA to homeschool your children unless the parent is a certified teacher. We need to pray for these families in CA, that their freedoms are not taken from them, and also pray that this is over-turned. We certainly do not want this to be the beginning of all states challenging the freedoms that we have.

Home School Legal Defence Association has a petition on their front page and a better explanation than I gave about the situation in California. There was also a broadcast today on Focus on the Family that discussed these issues. Please pray.

Please note that when I post links, I do not necessarily endorse the blog, site and/or ministry. Please use your best judgment and discernment.

Library

I love going to the library! It is one of my favorite places to go. Where I live, we have one of the best library systems in the country (at least, that is what they say...and I believe them!). As a book lover (my dh is one too!), I could easily spend way too much $$ on books. Libraries are a frugal way for me to read books that are edifying or educational. It is a wonderful resource for homeschooling too!

Here is one of the books that I am currently reading.

It is a GREAT resource!! We really have lost something when it comes to homemaking. I believe that it has become a lost art. This book is a manual, full of practical advice on taking care of your home. I am looking forward to putting some of this good advice into practice!

Williamsburg!

The countdown is on! We are in countdown mode for our family vacation. This will be our 2nd year going to Williamsburg, Virginia with the MOMYS retreat. This retreat is wonderful! It is great to get together for a whole week (or two) with other large families. MOMYS is an email group for families that have/have had more than 4 children under the age of 8. A wonderful place for encouragement! We met some wonderful friends, a family that actually lives an hour from us! Too funny, we live this close but met in Virginia.

Colonial Williamsburg is a wealth of history! The ultimate "field trip" for this homeschooling family ;o) Last year, we made historic costumes for our whole family. The girls all want new dresses for this year also. I think we might be able to squeeze in a few new ones. What a great motivator to get chores and school done!

Here are the dresses that I made last year. This picture was taken at the Kingsgate Ball.