Homeschooling and more homeschooling with a side of organization, writing, and editing. Look for homeschooling and organization tips, book reviews, curricula reviews, and product reviews.
By nature, children (and grownups, too!) are selfish and thoughtless. Dedicated training and effort are needed to change these traits into selflessness and thoughtfulness. Actions are caught, not taught, as the saying goes, so as parents what we do is highly important. However, character can also be taught. Who wants to sit through a boring lecture, though? I sure don’t, and I bet your kids don’t, either. Stories and poems can be effective teaching tools. Animals that learn from the folly of their ways and well-known historical figures who model exemplary lifestyles add interest to character training lessons. Homeschooling provides parents with unique opportunities to model and teach virtues.
If you’re looking for additional materials to supplement your character studies, many exist. William J. Bennett’s The Book of Virtues is a good place to start. For lesson plans with creative ideas and further resources, check out these Web sites: Shiver Academy’s Book of Virtues lesson plans (scroll down the page and look for the “Book of Virtues” links in the right-hand column), Character Education and Life Skills Lessons (some free, some require a membership), Homeschooling Boys, Generations of Virtue, ethics lesson plans from Lesson Planet, morality lesson plans from Humanity Quest, and Character Education. (Editor’s note: Please prescreen each resource carefully before presenting it to your children since every family’s definition of acceptable content varies.)
I want to leave you with a few well-known quotes to help emphasize how important building good character is. “It is not titles that reflect honor on men, but men on their titles” (Machiavelli). “All men that are ruined are ruined on the side of their natural propensities” (Edward Burke). “Common sense is not so common” (Voltaire). “Whom God wishes to destroy, he first makes mad” (Euripides). “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and it looks like work” (Thomas Edison). “Who can find a virtuous wife? For her worth is far above rubies” (Proverbs 31:10, NKJV).
Woo-hoo!! Let's join a homeschool party hosted by The Old Schoolhouse (TOS)! The party has two main components: a $5 discount off a 2-year magazine subscription (or renewal) and 19 FREE, physical gifts (not downloads)!
If you've never subscribed to the TOS magazine, you don't know what you're missing! Click here to get an idea of what's in the summer issue. The Old Schoolhouse magazine is a HUGE (200+ pages), full-color, quality homeschool magazine. It is chock full of encouraging articles from well-known homeschool authors and speakers. It's got how-to articles and tips for beginners and veterans alike. From unschoolers to classical schoolers and everyone in between, TOS has you covered. Plus, it has ads and reviews of many new, helpful homeschool products and books so you can make sure your children are using what works best for them.
A regular subscription for two years costs $39, but you can get a $5 discount (so two years will only cost $34--a GREAT deal!!). You MUST use coupon code LBSGL5OFF in order to get this discount, though. Click here to go to the TOS subscription page and get started now! Wait! There's more to this party than a fabulous discount! In addition to getting (or adding to your current subscription) 2 years of a great magazine, you will also get 19 totally FREE, physical gifts from such vendors as these:
$20 gift card for DVDs offered by Franklin Springs Family Media
A Cooking with Children CD from SueGreggCookbooks
An online filmmaking course given by Advent Film Group (approximately $49 value)
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A 10 x 13 portrait photo free from Sears to YOU (with no sitting fee!)
It doesn't get much better than this! Remember, you MUST use coupon codeLBSGL5OFF to get the $5 discount on the subscription price. This offer won't last forever, so hurry over to TOS and order yours NOW!
Doesn't everyone need a real vacation away from the books, jobs, phones, emails, and the neighbor's dog barking at 3:00 a.m.? Well, sure, but the real question is, do your kids need a vacation away from learning? The answer to that question is a resounding no! Do they have to realize that they're learning? Well, no again.
My article "Turn Any Vacation into a Field Trip" is posted on Heart of the Matter today. Go check out slew of sneaky ideas to make a learning opportunity out of any trip. Your kids will be having so much fun that they won't even notice that they're learning. Promise!
In a few weeks, our family will be putting these principles to the test as we visit Washington, D.C. Leave me a note letting me know where you're going (or have gone) on vacation and how you plan to turn your days into learning opportunities for your kids.
Heart of the Matter Online is hosting a Creative Homeschooling series this summer. Today's topic is mini-offices. If you've been homeschooling for any length of time and if you've been surfing the 'net for ideas, you've seen these file-folder offices that you personalize with facts you want your child to learn or references you want her to have access to readily.
Well, I took it a step further for moms (and kids) who sit at the kitchen (or dining room or schoolroom) table. Mini offices grow up to be mom-offices! Ever wish you could just hide for a few minutes, but still be there for emergencies (like the classic, "Is it time for snack yet?")? Well, with a mom-office at the kitchen table, you can have your own space to hide and to use as a reference.
Create a mini office for mom! When you’re all working at the kitchen or dining room table, wouldn’t it be nice to have a nook for YOU? You’ve created mini offices for each of your children, so why not create one for yourself? Create your own reference spot for cheat-sheets, favorite Bible verses, calendars, schedules, etc.
I realize that most of the resources available for mini offices utilize manila file folders. I also realize that they’re mostly geared towards the younger crowd. But, as children get older and taller (i.e., able to see over the top of the folders easily) they might enjoy making offices on a slightly larger scale. By using cardboard project boards, you can create dividers for the inevitable “Moooom, she’s looking at me” moments. Kids can personalize them with resources appropriate for their grade level and tastes. So, buy an extra project board for yourself and join in the fun!
Here’s a list of the things I put on my mini office and the sources:
~Measurement equivalents and metric conversion factors
~Character definitions and Bible verses
Some of these resources can be printed right from the source, while some may need to be cut and pasted into a word processing document. Trim away excess white paper and annoying ads then mount onto colored construction paper or directly onto the project board. Before you make anything permanent, lay your board out flat on the floor or table and arrange all of the pieces on it. You may have to try several arrangements before you get it to look the way you want it to look. For durability, use glue sticks to attach the papers to the project board, but if you think you might want to change it up some later, use staples. Go ahead, dip into the stickers and stamps—you know you want to! Make it pretty as well as practical.
That’s all there is to it! Now you’ve got your own little nook at the kitchen table.
I had a request for more information on how I laid out my office, so here it is. On the left panel, I put "Wise Words for Mom" by Ginger Plowman, a calendar-size chart with categorized verses to share with your children (or yourself) at opportune moments. Some of the categories include complaining, giving up, and defiant attitude. Also on the left panel I printed out a labeled map of the United States with the capitals listed.
In the large middle panel, I have the steps for the scientific method ("Did you remember to formulate your hypothesis before you designed the experiment?"), a sheet with the basic rules for working with fractions, two sheets with basic geometry formulas, and a rubric for grading writing projects at the bottom. Yep, I've got a sixth grader and a tenth grader this coming year!On the right panel, I have a daily schedule for the school year (math first, lunch at noon, reading to follow, etc.). This is especially helpful in the beginning of the year to keep kids on track so they do the harder stuff first when their minds are fresher and so they don't forget to do the spelling. I also have a printed calendar of all our activities for a month. I printed it from my Palm Centro (otherwise known as my "brain"), but you can write on a blank calendar, print out a week at a time, several months at a time, or whatever works for you. At the bottom, I have a sheet with the five steps of the writing process.
Obviously, you can customize the things you put on your board to fit your family. I just happened to have left-over bulletin board letters, so I added a little personalization. You can cut letters out of construction paper if you wish. I added a few stickers and a bookmark from my state homeschool group. That's all there is to it!
Leave me a comment about YOUR space! If you post pics of the one you make on your blog, I'd love to see it. Enjoy!
My latest articles to be posted at Heart of the Matter Online are in the July/Summer edition of the magazine! And no, I’m not talking about schooling year-round. Our family has chosen to school according to a more traditional school calendar, although we do make it work for us and not the other way around. However, I don’t want my children to forget everything during their summer break.
Summer school includes math drills, reading lists, library programs, crafts, and learning other life skills that we somehow don’t have time for during the school year. Homeschooling isn’t just about workbooks—it’s about a lifestyle of learning.
See, that’s not so bad! I don’t label what we do summer school, but just call it sharpening our skills. You can call it whatever you want, but the purpose is the same: to keep kids in the learning mindset while still enjoying a rejuvenating break from the routine of the school year.
I also wrote an article about working on next year's schedules now, just a little bit at a time. Go check it out here!
