I Need to Temper My Temper

Patience is required for parenting and definitely necessary when you homeschool your kids. How is that I don’t have ANY patience these days? I have to find a way to change that. My fuse blows often enough that I think that the kids are getting suspicious about whether I truly am sorry for yelling yet again. I don’t know why I do it because it really is the least effective method of motivating the children to do anything.

I have a plan, though.

1. I will take the advice that I read in a devotion from Proverbs 31 Ministries today. It helped me to think about what is behind my anger, and maybe it will help you, too.
2. I will go to bed earlier so I get enough rest.
3. I will have my quiet time in the morning. I have been spending time with God at night, but I think I need to start the day with God.
4. As I learned at Mom to Mom, I will distinguish between childhood irresponsibility and willful disobedience. They are not the same and should not be treated the same way.
5. I will find a more effective way of transitioning my children from one thing to another. That is when they fall apart most often.
6. I will pray in the moment and take time to listen to what God has to say.

How do you get through the day without losing your temper?

Photo courtesy of hampdenarchy

Homeschool Conference Encouragement

Today we went to the homeschool conference! It was so good to be able to attend a couple of workshops and shop for curriculum with my hubby. Sometimes it feels like the kids are all my responsibility so it helps to have hubby with me to make big decisions like what homeschool curriculum we should use.

God is so faithful and He provides exactly what we need. I have been feeling a bit discouraged latley because of the naysayers out there who give me a difficult time about homeschooling. Everyone has an opinion about how I should educate my kids. I really should be used to that, though. Doesn’t that start when your first baby is born and everyone tells you how you should raise your kids? I got used to that so I know that I can get used to the judgment about my kids’ socialization education.

One of the speakers today gave a great tip that I have to share with you. Perhaps you already do this, but I think it is important enough to repeat. Write down a homeschool mission statement and plan. Why are you homeschooling? Who teaches the children which subjects? What will the children learn? You get the idea. The point of doing that is that you may need that information at some point in time. Your school district may ask for that kind of information. Your family and friends might continually ask you those questions. Or you and your spouse might need to be reminded of the answers to those questions when you feel discouraged or frustrated. It is the single most important tip I came away from the conference with today!

I look forward to sharing a few more gems with you from the confernce in the next few posts!

Photo courtesy of mp_eds

US Geography Ideas for Your Homeschool

I recently posted about a funny song to teach US geography. Here are a few other US geography ideas for your homeschool.

~ Mom is Teaching has a link to an interactive US map that you might be interested in using with your children. I tried it out myself and had a lot of fun with it!

~ We have a US map puzzle that names the state and capital when you place the piece in. This is great for those kids who love doing puzzles. The multisensory nature of this puzzle makes it easier for children to remember the states and capitals.

~ We have flashcards for the United States with information about each state listed on the back of the card. You could make your own flashcards, but make them more like baseball cards. Research each of the states and record important information on the backs of the cards.

~ Make tourist brochures for the states that it would be most appropriate to vacation in. Include a map of the state and information about things important to tourists in it. You can even include photos of great places to visit.

~ Create a topographical map for a state. Use a large piece of cardboard as the base to draw the state on and make the topographical features with air drying clay. Paint the features, too. Create a key for your map.

Have fun learning US geography together!

Heeding Advice

We are in the process of planning school for the fall. C4 is starting Kindergarten and A2 is starting preschool this year. This is an exciting time, but it is also a bit stressful. Of course we want to do what is best for our children. We also want to do what is best for each of us and for our family as a whole.

Right now we are wavering about whether or not homeschooling is the best choice for us this coming fall. The outside world is making me question what is right for our kids. Have you had this problem before? I keep reminding myself that I have to keep focused on what we think is best and to take only the advice that is reasonable. It is so hard to not be swayed by other people’s opinions and it is hard to discern when we should heed someone’s advice.

How do you discern what advice is worth listening to? How do you know that your decisions are the right ones for your family?

From Birth to Resurrection

Easter is fast approaching, and my kids are still re-enacting the Christmas story (and singing Christmas carols for that matter). Apparently I did a good job of teaching them about Christ’s birth! Now it is time to move on and talk about Jesus’s life, his ministry, and his resurrection in our homeschool.

Last year we made Resurrection Story Cookies. I think we will do the same thing this year. Although my children did not understand all of the story (being so young still), I think that it is important to start traditions like these early since each year the experience will mean something different to them. Besides, my children will look back on these moments as the memories that mean the most to them.

Photo courtesy of Dan Phiffer

A Traditional Literature Theme: Tall Tales

Continue your Traditional Literature study in your homeschool with Tall Tales. These stories are short, fun, and engaging. If your children are resistant to reading, Tall Tales can be a great way to capture their interest.

~You can find copies of American Tall Tales here. There are also comprehension quizzes on this site.

~You can find a unit study on Tall Tales at German Town Academy.

~Tall Tales fit into a unit of study on the westward expansion. You can find general information about America in the 1800’s at this website. You will also find a host of educational resources at this website.

~Some Tall Tales are based on actual people. You can have your children research the lives of the Johnny Appleseed and Davey Crockett and compare the facts they find to the exaggerations in Tall Tales.

~You can make a lapbook on Johnny Appleseed. Homeschool Share has a free one.

~Have your children write their own Tall Tales. Remember to include exaggeration in the tales. Illustrations would complete the stories.

Photo courtesy of cliff1066

A Traditional Literature Theme: Fairy Tales

Are you studying traditional literature in your homeschool? You can engage your children in this study by diving into Fairy Tales and adding a twist to the learning experience.

• Your children might enjoy reading several versions of the same fairy tale. It is common to do a study on the Cinderella stories and compare the different versions of the tale. You can find a great lesson plan at EDSITEement. Write or act out the story from a different character’s point of view. You can even have your children write their own version of a fairy tale but from as if it is from a different culture. Research a particular culture thoroughly first and require that the story include information about that culture in the story.
• Add fractured fairy tales to your study. Read the “original” version of a tale and compare it to the fractured version. There are many great fractured fairy tales available now such as The Fourth Little Pig, Just Ella, Sleeping Ugly, and The Paper Bag Princess. Then have your children write their own fractured fairy tales. You can even incorporate persuasive essays in your study. Your children can write from the antagonist’s point of view explaining why s/he was wronged.
• Since many fairy tales were collected by the Brothers Grimm in an effort to preserve German folklore, you can do a research project on Germany.
• Study Hans Christian Anderson’s life and fairy tales. (Beware that his tales do not always have happy endings.) You can also learn about Holland since Andersen was Dutch.

Photo courtesy of g.naharro

A Traditional Literature Theme: Myths and Legends

Here are more ideas for using traditional literature in your homeschool this month. Try reading Myths and Legends.

Myths

Myths are creation tales that include supernatural activity. For a more detailed definition go to About.com.

• Spark Notes is packed with information about mythology. It can be a great resource for you as you start to learn about mythology.
• Have your children read Myths from various cultures such as Native American and Greek myths. Examine the themes that appear in those myth,s and create a grid to of those themes as a graphic organizer. You can also have your children illustrate the myths in order to help them visualize the stories better.
• Discuss the religious nature of the myths that you read. Since most myths have something to do with creation, take this opportunity to discuss creation according to the Bible. You can even make a creation lapbook with your children. I found a free creation lapbook from Lapbook Lessons.

Legends

Legends are stories partially based on fact, but have exaggerated details.

• Children of all ages, particularly boys, love legends! Who can resist the adventures of Robin Hood and King Arthur? These are great, action packed stories to read aloud.
• Write a script for a favorite legend and act it out, or simply have your children choose a favorite scene to turn into a skit.
• Since it is March, you can research the legend of St. Patrick at History.com. You can also find information about St. Patrick at RiverDeep.net
• Write a modern day Legend after examining others. Have your children include illustrations of the legendary hero and his/her adventures.

Photo courtesy of Jorge-11

A Traditional Literature Theme: Nursery Rhymes & Fables

March is a month filled with inspiration for themes for learning in your homeschool. This month many people will be taking advantage of St. Patrick’s Day. Perhaps you don’t want to read all about Irish history and culture, but you can twist that theme and read traditional literature instead – myths, folktales, fairy tales, fables, and legends.

My Favorite Author is using this theme this month, too. Stop by that blog for interviews with authors and reviews of books related to this theme. “What can you do with a traditional literature theme?” you ask. It is one of my favorite literature studies because it is truly a rich topic. Today I am sharing a few ways to engage your children in this study with Nursery Rhymes and Fables:

Photo by aturkus

Nursery Rhymes

Nursery Rhymes are very short, funny, poetic stories. They are often historically and politically significant.

• Your little ones can participate in this study by reading Nursery Rhymes. These funny rhymes build phonemic awareness and are easily
  memorized. Have your little ones choose a few to commit to memory.
• Make and Break words from the rhymes. Use words such as Jill/hill, down/crown. Use the onsets and rimes to build new words (spill, fill, mill, bill).
• You can have your children illustrate several Nursery Rhymes and bind them into a book. Those illustrations are a great way to teach visualization, and they help you see if your child comprehends the text.
• Teens can research the political and historical significance to each of the rhymes. Then they can write their own Nursery Rhymes that have political and historical messages cleverly hidden in them.

Fables

Fables are short stories that have a moral or a lesson at the end.

• Since fables are so short, you can use them to practice oral reading. Have your children read them aloud with the goal of making the reading “sound like talking”.
• You can focus on memorization skills with Fables. Choose shorter ones that your older children can memorize and have the younger children memorize the moral.
• The lesson can spark an interesting discussion about morals. Ask your children what they think is the right choice in each situation.
• Fables can help you gauge your children’s comprehension because they are short and have a moral. Did your child predict the outcome based on the clues in the text? Did your child make connections to other stories or situations?

Look for more posts about using folklore in your homeschool.

Homeschool Discipline

After about a month of terrible behavior from the children, I decided that I had to do something. I was frustrated and angry all of the time. In fact, I was in tears not that long ago because I felt helpless. I simply had no idea what to do about the behavior problems.I prayed about it and thought about it for a while.

I remembered that C4 is a kinesthetic learner. She also needs visual reminders. After talking with a friend about her discipline plan, which was similar to the one I used to use in my classroom, I knew what I had to do. I got to work on my own plan. That was about two weeks ago.

I am happy to report that this week I have been enjoying the fruit of my labor. The kids have been wonderful with each other and so happy since I implemented my new discipline plan. After some initial testing, the kids’ behavior has turned around. I am enjoying my children now rather than feeling stressed and scattered. Since I am not cleaning up messes or disciplining someone as much anymore, we have reclaimed those precious times of snuggling on the couch to read books. I am not reprimanding them as much. Instead I am praising the good choices that kids make, and they are praising each other!

Now we are back to learning and making happy memories. This is why I homeschool!