6 tips for engaging your reluctant reader in the world of great literature. This blog uses affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy. Soon after college, I taught English in a public middle school where English was a second language to many of my students. After spending several years immersed in literary adventures as an undergrad, I … [Read more...] about Bringing Literature to Life: Motivating Preteens to Study Literature
Homeschool
What I Wish I’d Known When I Started Homeschooling
Homeschooling Can Be Isolating This blog uses referral links. Please read my disclosure policy. Someone recently asked me this simple question: "What do you wish you would have known when you started homeschooling?" It really got me thinking. You know what? 15 years later, our homeschool looks NOTHING like it did when we first started … [Read more...] about What I Wish I’d Known When I Started Homeschooling
High School Resources: ACT and College Preparation
Preparing for the ACT College Exam This blog uses affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy. My high school junior is preparing this summer for both the SAT and ACT exams. We're using several resources to help him get ready, including the ACT Prep Course from Master Books. ACT & College Preparation Course for the Christian … [Read more...] about High School Resources: ACT and College Preparation
Little Critter Little Blessings Collection
Four Favorite Little Critter Stories in One Collection This blog uses referral links. Please read my disclosure policy. The Little Critter Little Blessings Collection includes four favorite stories from Mercer Meyer. Little Critter learns how to be cooperative, how to be thankful, why being truthful is important, and how to be grateful for … [Read more...] about Little Critter Little Blessings Collection
Interest Led Learning for High School
Interest Led Learning: Teaching to Their Interests This blog uses affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy. My eighth-grader has become passionate about filmmaking, from script writing to directing to camera-operating. He started with a flip camera, then added a camcorder and a stop-motion animation program with a webcam. He's been … [Read more...] about Interest Led Learning for High School
10 Things I Wish I’d Known Before Buying Curriculum
Budgeting for curriculum is on every homeschool mom’s list. But, don’t you just hate it when you buy something you end up not using? What to consider BEFORE buying new curriculum: Hand-me-downs don’t always fit. Chances are each of your kids will have a different learning style. What works with one may not work with the others. Don’t … [Read more...] about 10 Things I Wish I’d Known Before Buying Curriculum
Curriculum Fail!
What if your curriculum does not work? Many homeschool parents experience stress when their curriculum does not work out. In fact, all homeschool parents probably experience a "curriculum fail" at least once during their journey. The thing is, no curriculum is perfect. What works with one child might not work with another. Consider this: … [Read more...] about Curriculum Fail!
Grammar of Poetry
Learn the Building Blocks of Poetry This blog uses affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy. Grammar of Poetry is a 30-lesson course for middle school and early high school level students, with a suggested 1/2 academic high school literature credit. It is designed to be completed in one semester as part of a language arts course, but … [Read more...] about Grammar of Poetry
God Made the World
Preschool Creation Resource: God Made the World This blog uses affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy. God Made the World by Sarah Jean Collins is a whimsical picture book for preschoolers. It is a wonderful resource for introducing Bible study and the creation story to little ones, and the large board book format is vibrant and … [Read more...] about God Made the World
Embracing the Teen Years
First steps, first words, first birthday . . . We celebrate these milestones and look forward to them from the day our children are born. The teen years seem so far away, but they arrive before we know it. Many homeschool parents look upon the teen years with dread. They worry about how they’ll teach more difficult subjects, how hard it will be … [Read more...] about Embracing the Teen Years
STEM Resource: Anna, Kid Engineer
STEM for Kids! This blog uses affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy. Do you want to encourage your kids to be innovative, creative, resourceful, and persistent? Then check out the new STEM book Anna, Kid Engineer, written by Dr. Shenek Alston, homeschooling mother of three and math instructor. In Anna, Kid Engineer, it is … [Read more...] about STEM Resource: Anna, Kid Engineer
Stories to Tell: Learning from Oral History
Incorporating Oral History Into Your Curriculum As we move into the high school years in our homeschool, my son has begun to study modern history. Many curriculum companies save the twentieth century for later years due to the often harsh and more disturbing events that have occurred. While this is true, one advantage to studying this time period … [Read more...] about Stories to Tell: Learning from Oral History
Buckle Up!
In the Driver’s Seat When I got my driver’s license, my dad handed his car over to me since he was stationed overseas with the Navy. He was so proud of his Mercury Capri, always keeping it immaculately clean. My dad was a man of few words, but he really showed that he had faith in me by turning over those keys. He taught me how to pump gas by … [Read more...] about Buckle Up!
NIV Journal the Word Reference Bible
Let Scripture Explain Scripture This blog uses affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy. Studying the Word of God is even more meaningful when you have a Bible that you enjoy reading and that you feel a sense of connection to in some way. For me, that means that my Bible must be small and lightweight enough to comfortable pick up with … [Read more...] about NIV Journal the Word Reference Bible
Start Them Young: Parenting Teens
As a young expecting mother, I devoured books and parenting magazines in a quest to find “instructions” for taking care of my baby. As soon as I found out I was expecting, my husband and I tried to prepare ourselves for the arrival of our son as much as possible. Our pregnancy was a miracle, and we were awed with the responsibility we had been … [Read more...] about Start Them Young: Parenting Teens
Living History: Real Teens Meet A Real Hero
Real Teens Meet a Real Hero Our Real Teens Read literature group had the privilege of meeting a real hero. After reading Anne Frank's Diary of a Young Girl and Number the Stars by Lois Lowry, discussing both books, and learning some background history, we arranged a field trip to meet a Holocaust survivor and hear her inspiring and miraculous … [Read more...] about Living History: Real Teens Meet A Real Hero
Looking Outside Yourself: Community Service for Teens
Encouraging Teens for Community Service More than just clocking volunteer hours for high school requirements, community service opportunities provide valuable learning experiences for teens. When teens participate in service projects, they benefit their communities, increase their own compassion and awareness, and they even get a chance to … [Read more...] about Looking Outside Yourself: Community Service for Teens
Legit Work at Home with VIPKID
Is VIPKID for Real? Have you seen ads for VIPKID and wondered if it's a scam? When I first started seeing these ads in my Facebook feed, I was intrigued, but I am a skeptic. Most work-at-home schemes have some kind of catch to them, and I usually just pass them by. However, when I heard about VIPKID from a fellow homeschool mom who has been … [Read more...] about Legit Work at Home with VIPKID
Revising Expectations
Not Living Vicariously Through Our Children As your teens grow into independence, it can be tough on moms to reframe our thinking. All their lives, our children have looked to us to make decisions for them--from which curriculum to use, to what courses to cover and what activities to sign up for—even what shirt to wear or when to get a haircut. … [Read more...] about Revising Expectations
Creative Writing with A Pirate’s Guide t’ th’ Grammar of Story
Creative Writing for Pirates! This blog uses affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy. Creative writing is an important part of language arts, but I talk to so many homeschool moms who have fallen into the trap of not teaching enough writing and feeling overwhelmed. The common reason is the difficulty of finding a curriculum that is … [Read more...] about Creative Writing with A Pirate’s Guide t’ th’ Grammar of Story
