Homeschool Hints - Part III

It’s hard to believe, but it’s that time of year once again…time to choose teaching materials for next year. In this installment, I thought I would share some of my favorite resources for purchasing curricula, as well as some of the resources we have personally used and enjoyed. Being the Type-A person that I am, I have spent hours each year researching the various options, so if you have questions, please feel free to email me and I will be glad to help you.

Homeschool Resource Companies:

1. Rainbow Resource Center – Started as a family business, they now have over 40,000 products in all subject areas (and great toys and books, too!). They have great customer service, and you can’t beat their prices. This is probably my favorite resource company of all. Visit them online at: http://www.rainbowresource.com/

2. Christian Book Distributors – This is probably my second most-used company. While they are known for great prices on Christian books and music, they also have a great homeschool department. Again, great service and great prices and a huge variety of resources for all budgets. Address: http://www.christianbook.com/

3. Library and Educational Services - This is a great place to purchase books, audiotapes and audiodramas (such as Adventures in Odyssey and Focus on the Family) for amazing prices. Check out “The Truth Chronicles” by Adventures in Odyssey—our family favorite for teaching worldview to children. Address: http://www.libraryanded.com/

4. Apologia Educational Ministries - An excellent resource for Creation-based science programs. More about them below… http://www.apologia.com/


Specific Subject Recommendations:

1. Math – Our favorite Math program has been Math-U-See. This is a great hands-on program that stresses mastery and understanding over just memorizing facts. The videos are helpful and funny, and compared to some other programs it is relatively affordable. Website: http://www.mathusee.com/

2. World History – The Mystery of History (Volumes 1-3) is one of my all-time favorite resources. Linda Hobar takes you through History starting with Creation. This is from a Biblical worldview, and teaches Bible history right alongside world history, teaching our children that the “stories” in the Bible are NOT stories, but historical fact. There are activities for young, middle and older students, making this a great resource for multi-level teaching. http://www.themysteryofhistory.com/

3. American History – Truth Quest History is a “living books” curriculum, involving reading many books, both fiction and non-fiction. They have an elementary and an older-level course. It is really a glorified reading list, which I have supplemented with other resources, but it makes finding the books much easier. http://www.truthquesthistory.com/

4. Science – I have a couple of recommendations here. Overall, we have thoroughly enjoyed anything from Apologia (see above for website). Their middle school and high school courses can’t be beat if you are looking for a college-prep, Christian-worldview science course. They also offer elementary level courses, which are wonderful. My kids love their science courses. We also recently discovered an elementary curriculum by Richard and Debbie Lawrence (a local couple), which are now marketed by Answers in Genesis (http://www.answersingenesis.org/). We tried the chemistry course this year, and my son especially loved this one. It is called God’s Design for Science.

5. Language Arts – I confess this is the area I have most struggled with in finding teaching materials. While there are many available, there haven’t been many that I have liked! We have found good materials for grammar (Easy Grammar – available at most of the resources above) and spelling (Reason For Spelling), and have tried many different writing courses, finally settling on The Institute for Excellence in Writing (http://www.excellenceinwriting.com/). While this course is truly excellent, I have also found it somewhat difficult to use (and expensive), requiring many hours of preparation time that I don’t have! If you have any suggestions for me in this category, please feel free to leave me a comment and share your wisdom…I would welcome your suggestions. I feel as though we have tried just about everything out there in the course of teaching three children, without finding just the right fit for Language Arts.

I hope you find this information helpful. There is such a plethora of materials available, it can be difficult to wade through them all and find the right fit for your family. Just remember, what works for one person may not be right for another. Keep your children’s learning styles, interests, and temperaments in mind when selecting materials, as well as your own. If you dislike certain material, that will definitely be communicated to your children, and none of you will enjoy the learning process. And that is what is important…teaching your children to love learning, no matter what the subject.

Homeschool Hints - Part II

In Part I of this series on Homeschool Hints, we talked about some basic principles to help in your transition to homeschooling. Now I’d like to move into some practical tips to help your day run more smoothly.

• First of all, the key word is PLANNERS. Buy a teacher’s planbook from a teacher supply store. And look for the planner with the most space…you’re going to need it, especially if you are schooling more than one child. If these are too expensive for your budget, never fear. You can create your own using Excel, or a piece of paper and a ruler, if you are technically challenged. You can also find templates to print for free on the wonderful website of Donna Young (http://www.donnayoung.org/). She has an abundant supply of free planning forms available for homeschool parents to use. If you are a Type-A planner like me, you will find this website addictive! Now that you have a planner, buy or create one for each of your children. At the beginning of the school year, you can purchase these inexpensively at any store with school supplies (or you can create your own). The year I decided to use a planner for each of my children was the year homeschooling became manageable…yes, really. Every weekend, I write in each child’s planner, listing their individual work for the whole week. While this may seem an overly simple idea, it revolutionized our homeschool. Now, each child knew exactly what was expected of them, without my having to tell them. No longer did they ask me every ten minutes, “What do I do now, Mom?” interrupting while I was trying to work with another child. No longer did I have to check my planner every ten minutes to see if everyone was on track for the morning. And, best of all, my early–riser children began getting up (BEFORE me) and completing a good portion of their independent work before breakfast, leaving us lots of time for reading great historical fiction books, science experiments and art projects. I used to spend time every weekend planning out all of our work for the following week. Now that I am more experienced at this, I have it down to spending time about once a month, planning out our work for an entire month, thus freeing me up for other things. Trust me, the best thing you can do is to invest in some planners for everyone!
  
  
• Another tip that seems like a small thing but has big results is this: Don’t answer the telephone. We tend to do school in the morning hours at our house and are usually done shortly after lunch (my kids are early risers). When we began homeschooling, I purposed to not answer the telephone during school hours, knowing it could be a major distraction. Interruptions of any kind when you are trying to teach your children are disruptive to their learning, and a quick “five-minute conversation” can easily turn into a half-hour wasted. My friends know to call me in the afternoons if they want to talk to me, and an answering machine insures that important calls aren’t missed (it also allows us to pick up if it’s Daddy!). Your kids will appreciate having your undivided attention and their learning will benefit from a focused environment. We also added a sign to our front door that discourages solicitors (“No Soliciting—Homeschool in Progress”).
  
  
• And now, the MOST important tip for today: Before you do anything…PRAY. Don’t enter the arena without putting on God’s armor and provision. Homeschooling is not an easy task and we need to be sure we are leaning on God’s strength to be the patient and loving teachers our children need. The days that nothing seems to go right at my house tend to be the days that I stumble out of bed late and don’t take the time to pray before going to greet my children. I try to pray for each of them individually, for our school day, for strength for me as their teacher and for all of my friends who are beginning their school day as well. I don’t want to ever presume to undertake this high calling without leaning on the divine help of the Saviour.
  

In the next installment, I will provide some curriculum reviews and some resource recommendations. Please check back soon for Part III.

Homeschool Hints for Beginners - Part I

One of my passions is helping moms who are new to homeschooling. I well remember how intimidating that first year can be (and sometimes subsequent years, too!) and I was blessed by so many wonderful homeschool moms who were willing to share their wisdom with me. In my five years of homeschooling, I have met with countless women who were beginning their homeschool journey. It has been my joy to answer some of their many questions and give them some tips for a smoother transition. Beginning homeschooling is an awesome task, but one that will bring innumerable blessings to your family. So, if you are feeling overwhelmed, I offer these simple suggestions to make your life easier.

• Don’t take on too much. Keep it simple until you get your bearings. My first year, I tried to have too many different subjects, separate subjects for each child, and made way too much work for myself. I remember weeping in exhaustion after our first day (I think we spent 7 hours doing school, and then I spent another 3 or 4 grading and planning for the next day) and tearfully telling my husband I couldn’t possibly keep this up. While public school spent the first day unpacking their backpacks and sharpening their pencils, I was trying to teach the entire first month in one day! I soon learned how to do certain subjects with all of my children at once (such as history or science) and how to judge how much work was appropriate for one day (the legal requirement is an average of 4 hours a day). One of the best commitments we made that first year was to not JOIN anything. We were encouraged to join the local homeschool group, to form co-ops, and to participate in every homeschool activity available in our town. While none of those were bad things, it was just too much. We decided that we needed to spend that first year AT HOME, and not driving to multiple activities and commitments. We needed to transition into a homeschooling family by protecting our time at home and figuring out exactly what homeschooling looked like. While I am not saying you should reject all of these activities, it was the right choice for us.

• Godly character is the subject of first importance. When I became my children’s teacher, I quickly realized we had some character issues to work on. They had to respect my authority not only as “mom” but as “teacher”. My oldest had been in school for 5 years and had some adjusting to do. She was also unhappy about our decision to homeschool, and had to learn to accept our choice cheerfully and to trust that Mom and Dad knew what was best for her. I have had many moms tell me that their children would never listen to them or obey them as their teacher. I tell them that they have bigger problems than choosing how to educate their children. If we can’t teach our children because they are resistant to learning from us, we have failed to teach our children to respect our authority. Whether or not you homeschool, you ARE your child’s teacher. Sometimes, book learning must take second place to instilling godly character. And as an academically-minded person, that was a VERY hard lesson for me to learn.

• Don’t be afraid to ask questions. The homeschool community tends to be a very supportive group. Find a mom whose children you respect and ask her for advice. Take the time to look at curriculum choices from several people. There is so much material available and you have to find what works for you and your kids. I’ve known people who absolutely loved curriculum that I hated, and vice-versa. Read a book on learning styles and identify how your children learn (I have one visual, one auditory and one kinesthetic—lucky me!). Choose your curriculum carefully, and don’t buy too much at once. Other homeschool moms can be your best resources. Ask them where they buy their materials and what they have liked and why. My sister-in-law was my “homeschool angel”, even traveling to Colorado from Indiana to take me to my first homeschool conference and walk me through the overwhelming process of choosing curriculum. I don’t know what I would have done without her. This didn’t mean I had to choose all the same curriculum as she did, but having someone to help me evaluate the choices was priceless.

• Finally, understand that there is no one “right” way to homeschool. If I introduce you to a dozen different homeschool families, I will show you a dozen different ways to homeschool. How you teach your children and how you spend your day doesn’t have to mirror mine for it to be “right”. One of my favorite homeschool books is called “So You’re Thinking About Homeschooling” by Lisa Whelchel. In her delightful, conversational style, she eased my fears about being the perfect homeschool mom (what can I say, I’m an over-achiever!) and showed me that no two homeschooling households look alike. Rest assured that if God has called you to this amazing lifestyle, He will help you find the “right” way for your family.

More to come, including curriculum recommendations and practical tips…please check back soon!

Too Fearful to Enter the Land

Recently, I was reading the story of Joshua and Caleb in the book of Numbers. They were on the brink of entering the Promised Land and sent in ten spies to do some reconnaissance. The spies came back showing off the plentiful fruit and claiming that the land “flowed with milk and honey”. Then they followed this good news with a big “but”… “But the people living there are powerful, and their towns are large and fortified. We even saw giants there!” They fearfully claimed that there was no way they could possibly take this land and that compared to these giants, they were but grasshoppers. These people had just been led by God out of slavery, seen the Red Sea parted by God’s hand and had their every need met by the Lord Himself. Yet, now they were so afraid that they wouldn’t go up to take the land that God had promised would be their possession. So what was the result? Forty years of wandering in the desert, until all of that generation had died and then their children could take the Promised Land. This generation of Israelites completely missed out on God’s amazing blessing for them because they were too fearful to act.

As I was pondering this story, I began thinking about the numerous people who have told me the many reasons why they “can’t” homeschool. I’ve heard everything from “I wasn’t a good student” to “I couldn’t teach my own children” to the oft-repeated “but what about socialization?” When God first put homeschooling on our hearts, we had many fears and questions, too (to read more about our story, click here). We wondered exactly how it would work. We wondered how our children would have any friends. We wondered if we were capable of providing all that our academically gifted children needed. And then we prayed. And God answered those prayers with people sent to encourage us, to teach us, to inspire us. He answered with peace in our hearts about His calling to homeschool. He answered with abundant joy at the prospect of bringing our children home. And now, five years later, we are reaping the bountiful blessings of educating our children at home. If we had let those fears consume us and keep us from answering God’s calling, we would have missed out on so much, just like the Israelites. And those blessings would have skipped this generation of our family and had to wait (not quite forty years, but close!) for the next generation to be called and to courageously step up in faith.

How about you? Could God be calling you to homeschool your children? Maybe you’re feeling frustrated with the secular education they are receiving, or the worldly attitudes that are rubbing off on your children. Maybe you feel that you are losing their hearts and having too little time to teach them the things that you know God wants you to impart to them. If so, I encourage you to at least give God a chance to speak to your heart. Pray and ask Him if homeschooling is what He wants for your family. Although I don’t believe homeschooling is the only way, I know it has profoundly impacted our family for the better. If this is an idea that is tugging at your heart, don’t let fear keep you from stepping out in faith. If God calls you to this wonderful journey, He will bountifully provide all that you need to be successful. All He asks is for you to go forward in obedience and trust. The blessing is waiting for you, just like it was for the Israelites. Don’t let fear keep you from experiencing all that God has in store for you and your children…the land is bountiful, and it’s yours for the taking.