Crackle and Sniff

What's that sound I hear? It's new textbooks and workbooks being cracked open for the very first time. It's the pages of a new favorite historical novel being flipped. What's that I'm smelling? My favorite scent: new books and paper, freshly sharpened pencils and math blocks.

What's the occasion? It's the first day of school in The LeBedz Homeschool! I know the name is not very original, but it's what we came up with over ten years ago when we first set out on this adventure. A few years ago, I thought we could get creative and change the name to something more imaginative, but I was voted down.

Anyway, we started ou tenth year of homeschooling four days ago. Sissy is in 10^th grade, Kitty is in 6^th grade, and Mom is learning geometry, chemistry, fractions, and American history. The official start time for our school days is 8:30 a.m., but Kitty had her pencil poised over her math book at 7:30, even though she wasn't excited. Both girls have breezed through their schoolwork each day and have moved from one subject to the next (although I expect this will change as things get harder through the year) without too much mom intervention.

Really? Yes, really? I'm so glad you asked how I have managed to get them to do that! The secret is in the planning and in the training. Each week, I print out a lesson plan schedule for each child to have on her desk. Usually I use scrap paper to cut down on our paper consumption, but either way, it's a worthwhile investment. By having their own schedules, they can easily see what is expected of them for each day. All textbooks, workbooks, and reading books are right there on their desks. As they complete each subject, they check it off, or cross it off, or whatever. That frees up my time by not having to tell them what to do next constantly. Check out some of my previous posts on planning to get the basics of what, exactly, I'm printing out.

The training part of this equation is what I've been working on for the past several years. It has taken time and effort on my part to train my kids to look at their schedules and to do the next subject. And, I am here to tell you that it is worth it! Lest you think I just throw my kids into the deep end and expect them to do science experiments, to write an essay, or to figure out what 4/9 of 36 is without any help, that is not true! I DO help them with the actual academic subjects as needed. I am available for questions anytime, but each child also has an hour a day of dedicated time with me to work through the more time-consuming projects and questions. Of course, school does not always run perfectly smoothly every day, but I'm sure you've already figured that out.

Now, I've got a true confession for you. Normally I have all of my school planning done weeks in advance. Guess what I was doing the night before the first day of school this year? Yep, I was printing out the schedules for the following day. UGH! They did get done, but I really dislike waiting until the last minute to do them.

Drop me a line and let me know how your first day of school went or what you've got planned for the first day.

Reality Check

I had fully intended to write a detailed post about planning for the upcoming school year for my Heart of the Matter post today; however, what flew from the tips of my fingers was more along the lines of the importance of finding the balance between the necessity of planning and the reality of plans and dreams being changed. Don't worry, I did include some links back to previous blog posts with practical tips.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths (Proverbs 3:5-6, NKJV).

The bottom line is this: Planning is good! BUT, be prepared to have God reroute your GPS along the homeschooling journey.

What Makes a Book a Classic?

What makes a book a classic? Why is it important to read classic books? While you may know that certain books are classics and that you should read them, you may not be able to articulate the answers to these two questions.

The Associated Press posted an online article that discussed this same question and came up with five basic elements that each piece of literature must contain in order to be considered a classic. These elements are morality, effective language, truthfulness, universality, and timelessness. In my quest to discover what makes a book classic, many of the other sources that I perused contained some or all of these elements. Basically, a book must say something worthwhile and believable, not beat around the bush saying it, and be interesting and influential over a long period of time.

Books such as Huckleberry Finn and Pride and Prejudice have certainly stood the test of time to stand out as classics. Some of Shakespeare’s plays such as Much Ado About Nothing and A Midsummer Night’s Dream remain so popular that they have been made into modern movies.

Lest you think that only literature written before 1900 can be considered classic, consider such works as George Orwell’s 1984, C. S. Lewis’s The Chronicles of Narnia series, or J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings series. These are undeniably classics written in the 1900s. It remains to be seen which books written in the twenty-first century will earn the designation of true classic literature.

Reading lists of classic books abound, and you will find that they differ somewhat in the exact titles they choose; however, they will have many books that are the same. I’ve compiled a list of online sources with various genres of classic books: The Cincinnati Library, The Art of Manliness, Info Soup (classics for teens), Page by Page Books (classic books FREE online), The Well-Trained Mind, Marianchs, and Wikipedia. There are many other sites from which to choose lists of classic books; these are just a few to get you started. If you’re looking for a real book (as opposed to a Web site) that lists classic books, I would recommend starting with Honey for a Child’s Heart by Gladys Hunt, The Well-Educated Mind by Susan Wise Bauer, and Invitation to the Classics, ed. Louise Cowan and Os Guinness.

How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time! How do you read classic books if you’re more used to reading comic books? One book at a time! I’m sure you would agree that the most important thing is to READ. I’d love to find out which books your family considers classics; leave me a message with your list!

Online Parenting & Homeschooling Conference

Heart of the Matter is sponsoring a Parenting and Homeschooling Conference totally online August 3-7. Come listen and get pumped for the upcoming school year. Be inspired by your favorite homeschool speakers and writers from the comfort of your own home.

We invite you to join us online for the second annual Heart of the Matter Online Parenting and Home Education conference.

What you can expect for only $12.95:

* Live sessions, entirely online, with some of the homeschooling community's most popular speakers and authors.

* Free access to download and save the MP3s from all the sessions, as well as all the handouts, chat logs, and presentations.

* Participation in real-time question and answer sessions with all of your favorite speakers.

* More than $250 worth of freebies in your goodie bag.

* A chance to win some amazing prizes including a $259 Rosetta Stone software package, a complete Workbox System including shelf and boxes (value $85), and products from Lego . . . we have over $1200 worth of giveaways!

* The opportunity to make some new life-long friends and experience some fun and fellowship. Read what attendees are saying about the 2008 Heart of the Matter online conference.

Space is limited: Purchase a ticket today and get all of the above for only $12.95!