Summer Science Journals for Your Home School

Do you want to improve your science program? Are you struggling to motivate your kids to write anything let alone something meaningful, especially in the summer? Are you trying to get the most out of those educational summer vacations? Try using science journals! The benefits of journals abound! Have you tried them yet? They are great even for the littlest scientists! Here are a few tips for a summer science journal. Hopefully you will be inspired to try them out this summer!

• Use something that is portable and durable for your journal. You’ll take it everywhere and use it in messy situations. You want it to hold up. Attach a pencil on a string to the journal. Bring some colored pencils or crayons along. Put the journal, pencil, and colors in a folder or a plastic storage bag.
• Bring your science journals when you go to various vacation spots. Children can journal about the ocean, fishing, the farm, the aquarium, berry picking, hiking, and camping experiences (think star gazing, and the like).
• Why not use your journal with some ongoing science projects at home? We have a garden that we journal about. (That’s a whole other post coming soon!)
• Put a title on the page indicating what the entry is about and where the family was. Write the date. (It’s important to maintain good records.)
• Have the kids include detailed, scientific drawings in their journals. They should label the drawings clearly and use appropriate colors in the picture. For example, color the ocean the colors that you see (green, blue, white, yellow), not just blue because blue represents water.
• Write observations in each entry. Little ones can dictate a sentence or two for you to write for them.
• Make the observations interesting and relevant to the topic, too. Don’t just say, “The ocean is pretty.” Try something like this, “When the waves crash on the shore, there is a lot of white foam. The water sprays up, and there is a loud crashing sound. I saw the water pull back slowly after it foamed up. I wonder what causes the water to pull back.”
• Add a layer of challenge by posing a question for the kids to answer before going out and adding the question on the entry page. Then the child’s entry must include the answer to the question.

Have fun with your summer science journal. You may just find that your children love them and use them all year long!

Home School Handwriting without Worksheets

The beauty of home education is flexibility. You are free to try different teaching strategies to meet your children’s particular learning needs. I prefer to limit worksheets. They do have a place, and we do use them, but I want to engage my children in more active learning that is fun. It is also hard to motivate me and the kids to do repetitive practice that can be very boring. If you have an unmotivated, kinesthetic, or tactile learner, it can be particularly difficult to get him/her to do all of the practice that will help achieve mastery of skills.

This summer we have been practicing  handwriting and have tried to practice without using worksheets. These strategies are quite useful and fun. Most of these ideas are great for unmotivated, kinesthetic, and tactile learners.

• Use several pieces of string to form a letter. Trace over the string as you say the name of the letter. Sometimes I talk about the direction that your finger goes as we are moving along the letter. You could do the same thing with spelling.
• We use tub crayons to write all of the letters that we know. We write both capital and lower case letters. We try writing the letters in different colors and sizes.
• We form letters with play dough. All of the rolling, smoothing, a movement helps my kinesthetic and tacticle kids stay engaged in the work. (Try making numbers, too.)
• Write letters in the sandbox using your finger or a stick. It is less intimidating because you can easily smooth the sand if you make a mistake. This is a great strategy for kids who are perfectionists.
• We have a “magic wand” to write letters in the sky. Ours is filled with colorful sand and sparkly stars that float in some liquid. I think that watching the floating things is good for developing eye tracking skills and adds visual interest. Any kind of pointer that looks magical and fancy will do, though. Girls in particular like the magic wand.
• Finger paint is another way of getting tactile learners involved in handwriting. You can mix colors and make the letters any size you like. It also works for the artist in your family.
• We use sidewalk chalk for handwriting practice. If you are like me and can’t find a place for all of the practice the kids do, the rain washes away the work. I think that the resistance also helps build certain muscles.
• Make the shape of a letter with your body. It highlights all of the parts of the letter so on paper the kids include all of the parts. This is particularly good for kinesthetic learners.
• We have a foam alphabet floor puzzle that has different textures on it. We trace those letters while laying on the puzzle. This position also helps build arm muscles and helps with motor control. The colors and the textures add interest and helps the kids remember the work.

Have fun with handwriting!

Too Busy for God?

It seems that life is just too busy. We are always running around to get everything done. We say that there are not enough hours in the day to get it all done. My daughter follows after me and begs me to do a devotion with her. Sometimes I just can’t sit down and do it because I am too busy. I know that it sounds odd that I can’t take 5-10 minutes to read with my child, but my child wants to read all of the time - not just to do a devotion. She constantly asks me to read, so I can’t wait for her to be able to read on her own! I get so impatient because there are other things that need to be done. When will I finish the things on my “to do” list?

By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. Genesis 2:2-3

No, I am not taking a Sabbath. We go to church, but the day is not set aside for rest. I think that I am often less productive because I don’t take time to relax and care for myself. I have found that there are times when we have taken a Sabbath in the middle of the week rather than on Sunday because we are just too tired to do anything. We can’t muster the energy to get dressed even, so we just hang out together and play. If I were to take a Sabbath rest, I might be able to get everything done becaue my priorities would be set straight. I would end up sitting down with my sweet daughter to read anything, especially a devotion, when she wanted to read.  A day of rest would allow me to rejuvinate. I would not be too busy for my kids - or for my God for that matter.

God is Pleased and Home Educates Us

Home schooling means that you are intimately involved in every part of your child’s education. You see your child’s failures, missteps, and victories while you homeschool. All parents are proud of their children when they learn a new skill or solve a problem, but parents who home educate cannot help but feel an enormous sense of pride in their children’s accomplishments. It’s as if you the parent accomplished something when really it is the child who has. However, in a home school the parent has a lot to be proud of because you have also done a lot of work. You have invested much of your time, energy, and love into your child’s education. Your home school is an investment. Your child is your treasure. You invest in your treasure. Watching the fruit of your labor fills you with joy.

As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” Matthew 3:16-17

God was pleased with His son, Jesus, because he submitted to His authority. Jesus followed God’s plan for him. If you as a mere human can feel so overwhelmingly proud of your child’s accomplishments, can you imagine how God felt about His son, His good and perfect son, Jesus? He had to tell the whole world that He was pleased with His son. That just reminds me of how important it is to see that Jesus is my example to follow. God is well pleased with His son; I should emulate Jesus’ life and be more Christ-like by submitting to God’s authority. I want to please God in a way that will make Him want to announce it to the whole world!

Here God’s teaching style applies to the home school. In this passage, God spoke to the people, which happens so rarely in the Bible, so we know that He has something important to say. God also gained everyone’s attention for His announcement. Here He used two means of getting people’s attention: His voice and visuals (the image of a dove and lighting). God’s example shows me how to do the same in my home school. First, visuals are key, so meaningful images that highlight important concepts make an impact . Also using your voice in unexpected ways calls attention.

God is pleased with His son and announces that to the world, but gets everyone’s attention when He makes His point. I am certainly pleased with my children, but God is well pleased with His son. I want Him to be well pleased with me. Like my God I will make sure I have everyone’s attention when I make an important point.

Home Education: Not My Idol

As a home educator, I think that my priorities are in order. My curriculum is good. My home school is progressive; I try new things. I home educate because I am good at teaching.

They have been quick to turn away from what I commanded them and have made themselves an idol cast in the shape of a calf. They have bowed down to it and sacrificed to it and have said, ‘These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.’ Exodus 32:8

I have noticed that I am walking the fine line of making my role as a mother and home educator into my “golden calf”, an idol. I build my identity, in part at least, around these roles. Being at home and educating my own children puts me in a vulnerable place because all day that is what I am focused on.

You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. Exodus 20:4

I see the idolatry pattern throughout my history and still feel the effects of that sin. I was a classroom teacher. For most of my life I knew that I was going to teach. I identified myself as a teacher and built my life around that role. i spent long hours preparing my classroom, grading papers, preparing lessons, and the list goes on. I poured my heart and soul into work. My home life suffered as a result. I was not exercising or eating right. I was getting home late. I had no time to be with friends. I fell into a depression. I was not a Christian yet. This is the sin that actually brought me to Christ, so I can see how it is my achilles heel. So what do I do about that?

Developing deep, meaningful friendships has helped me. My friends help me to focus on someone else. I am reminded that it is not all about me. It helps to be with just adults and talk about current events and beyond. My friends also help me to stop taking myself so seriously. Life is fun and interesting. Also God created a beautiful place for us all to enjoy. Getting out into the beautiful world helps me to see the possibilities and gets my creativity going. Most importantly I spend time with God. I fail at this a lot, but when I am on track with it, my quiet time centers me on Christ. It puts me in my place as God’s servant. It reminds my that I do not need an idol. I have a living God who loves me and wants to have a personal relationship with me.

 ’Do not turn to idols or make gods of cast metal for yourselves. I am the LORD your God. Leviticus 19:4

I have to remember that my identity comes from God, and I am home educating my children for Him to bring Him glory and serve His kingdom. He may call me to serve in another way in the future, but for now, He wants me right where I am - homeschooling. This is a calling, not a choice for me.

Perseverance

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. 2 Peter 1:5-7

“Mommy, I can’t do it!” “Mommy, help me!” “I don’t want to do it!” “It’s too hard, Mommy!” I hear this all of the time. Do you? It can be frustrating to watch your children flounder a bit, but we know that they sometimes have to work through things on their own in order to learn. It builds character, too. It is so difficult to motivate a child who feels overwhelmed by the task at hand. I often have to step back to figure out if the task is actually too hard or if it is my child’s perception of the task that makes it appear insurmountable. I am flexible and certainly will change my expectations if the task is impossible right now. However, I am learning ways to teach my children perseverance in a gentle way. I am discovering slowly how to motivate my children who sometimes seem to be so unmotivated to try something new.

So here is the Bible’s recipe for motivation. In 2 Peter we read that we need to start with faith and then add goodness. I have been watching my children’s faith grow through our family devotions; they even ask for devotions now. The lessons we are learning in our devotional time are certainly teaching us about goodness such as obedience, faithfulness, and truth. The time we spend together with God is building a strong foundation for their faith - and mine - and is certainly a godly thing to do. (See my post called Devotions.)

Add knowledge to faith and goodness. We spend our days on focused, in-depth study. Our curriculum is Christ-centered, so we are using the theme from our devotions in other curriculum areas. The goal is to connect our learning and deepen our understanding of the concepts we are studying. The repetition helps the children own the information and use higher order thinking skills  such as application and synthesis.

That brings us to self-control. This is difficult even for adults. I sometimes think I need more practice in this area than my children do! However, I am teaching them and myself self-control through delayed gratification. In this fast-paced, get-it-now society it is a challenge to be patient, but we are working towards that. We are saving money in a piggy bank, which we hope to donate to a charity. I also force us to wait for rewards, which is especially difficult for me. We take turns when we play. During tantrums, I expect the kids to find a way to calm down on their own and become aware of what set them off and how to handle the situation better. These seem like simple things to do, but in the long run, the actually do teach us to be patient and self-controlled.

All of this brings us to perseverance. I think of this as something I desperately need to model for my children.  For example, I sometimes am discouraged when I think that they are not ready for the concept that I am presenting. I feel like moving on because it is not worth it to make them do something they can’t do. I have learned to stop and try again the next day and then again the following day. I have seen that this kind of perseverance on my part has produced some amazing fruit with my children’s learning, and then I am encouraged to try again. It is my goal to share with the kids my struggle to persevere. It is important for them to see me as a real person who deals with the same problems they do. I try to give them a glimpse at the ways that I solve those problems in the hope that they will imitate me. I do mean imitate because that is what they do when they pretend play. They want to be just like Mommy, so I am trying to give them a positive model for what a mommy does.

In the end, we hope that all of our efforts will produce people (even us as parents) who love others - the way that God loves us - with agape love.

Boldly Testify

The following night the Lord stood near Paul and said, “Take courage! As you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.” Acts 23:11

Paul is a hero of mine. God required a lot of him as a missionary - I think because Paul had hated the disciples and participated in martyring Stephen before his conversion. Paul was a Roman citizen and a Pharisee. He held a prominent place in Jewish society. God wanted to use that to build His kingdom. He knew that Paul would be able to reach people that others would not. I admire Paul’s fortitude and faith.

In Acts 23:11, God is asking Paul to boldly speak about Him. Paul is on trial being accused of defiling the temple by bringing “unclean” Gentiles in - an accusation that came about because of a misunderstanding. Paul was actually trying to show his loyalty by taking Jewish vows. God uses everything for His good, though, and this opportunity was no exception. Paul was going to defend himself in front of very prominent people, and God expected him to share his testimony boldly.

I am reminded to boldly share my faith with my children, my family, my friends, and my clients. My testimony will touch a certain group of people in a way that no other person’s testimony will just as Paul’s did. And just as Paul’s testimony had and still has an impact on the kingdom in a very special way (even ways that we don’t understand or know about) my testimony will build God’s kingdom in a unique way. God made me unique just for that reason.

Obedience can come at a price, though. God requires me to share my testimony, like Paul, no matter where I am. He will ask me to testify especially when there is a great opportunity for kingdom building. Sometimes those opportunities are risky for me as a citizen of this world. However, God promises to be with me every step of the way. “No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.” Joshua 1:5 He will guide me in the moments that I boldly share my testimony, especially during those risky moments.

What does this mean to my homeschool? I am the primary teacher in our home, and as such I am called to model Paul’s obedience, faith, and fortitude for my children. The Lord spoke to Paul and encouraged him, and that is also my role. I encourage and stand by my children when they are taking risks - any risks. Afterall, my relationship with my children is a model for their future relationship with God, our father. If they can take steps of faith and take risks - following my model - with my gentle encouragement, I can help them to learn to take leaps of faith for God - following Paul’s model - with the Lord’s gentle encouragement.

Devotions

“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.” Psalm 119:105

This summer I am incorporating devotions into school time. It feels like my children are growing in their faith and understanding of God. They look forward to our devotional time because it is fun, interactive, and interesting. I am using visuals and games that make the concepts more concrete. We sometimes do a craft related to the devotion, or we might simply color a picture with the memory verse.

I have thoroughly enjoyed devotions with my children as well. It has gotten me to think about why the time is so meaningful even when I have not planned an activity to go along with the devotion. I am reminded of the following verse:

“And he said: “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 18:3

I am learning along side my children. I am seeing my God through the eyes of a child and remembering how awesome my God truly is. I have gained the reverance for the creator of the universe that I lose throughout the day. When I answer those sweet, innocent questions, I realize that God is just amazing. Often times I do not have the answers to those questions. At that point, we pray. I know God answers prayers, and I know that He will find an answer that is just right for my little one’s questions. The fact that I do not have all of the answers points me back to my God. I return to my place - God’s servant.

Summer Experiment

“Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!” Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

I don’t know about you, but I am continuing school through the summer. I know that it seems like I should give the kids a break, but I like the continuity for me and the kids. I also like keeping the learning going so that we don’t have to start all over again in the fall. Summer does give me the chance to try out new ideas and not feel pressured. This summer I am trying out school with other families. We have a schedule worked out for the summer. Although it is not always the same day every week, we do see the same few families over the course of the summer. My kids love having the company. They all play nicely together, and the new people add a whole new dimension to the work. I also love working with other moms. We can learn from each other. Working together adds something extra to our relationship and to the quality of the lessons. When the kids work together, they also see different ways of doing things and build a whole new understanding of the concepts.

I have been truly blessed and filled with the spirit this summer as a result of my experiment. I think that God wants us to be in community with one another, and that must include us homeschoolers. Everyone benefits from it. The other moms that I am working with this summer are just starting out with home education. This summer time experiment has helped them to see the possibilities with their curriculum and ways to build a Godly foundation and familial relationships. I am also seeing these moms’ potential being reached as they take steps forward to take control of their children’s education. I am empowered by that. I have been blessed by seeing these moms grow and watching their children and my children benefit from it. I am being stretched, too. I am learning about different ways of approaching education. I am watching my children respond to other adults in very positive ways – sometimes better than they respond to me. I also feel like I have another person to lean on. Someone else can take the lead, which is really difficult for me to accept. I am blessed to be able to work with some else, and in the end we both get a better return for our work!