Homeschooling with Grace

• Oct. 8, 2006 - Calling All Single Moms!

Posted in Single Parent Issues

I have added a new committment to my list of "to do's." I have made a one-year committment to write and edit for TOS Single Parents E-Newsletter. You can sign up for it at HS Blogger's home page. Eventually you might be able to sign up for it here, but I really can't figure out how to add that to my HTML yet! So for now, you have to go somewhere else to sign up.

Meanwhile, I need help. I am working on some articles based on reader response. Here are my questions:

How do you create structure and routine from day to day? What do you include in your day to push you and your kids to complete assignments by a certain time, to finally declare the school day is over, or to make sure dinner is on the table before you realize it’s bedtime?

As a single parent, how do you make the holidays special for your kids? How do you compensate for traditions that are missing or affected by the change in family situation? Are there special things you can do with your kids as a single parent family? What holiday advice would you give?

Please leave me a comment here on my blog. I'll add an e-mail contact when I get one.

• Oct. 11, 2006 - Memory Cards

Posted by TexasMomof3

After many months of being frustrated with the disorderly nature of my six-year-old, I was led to devise a memory card system. The memory card system works like this:

On a 3 x 5 index card I write each step she is to do each morning--1st-Thank the Lord for the day and pray; 2nd-make bed;3rd-wash face and brush teeth, etc. Now I no longer have to keep reminding her what to do, she has "the system" right by her bed, accompanied with pictures for memory aides. If she does not follow procedures, I don't feel guilty when I must discipline her (before I always thought, "maybe she forgot..."--no more excuses for her or me!)

I also write scriptures on 3 x 5 index cards and post them on their bathroom mirror, so that they may meditate on His Word day and night!

Hope this helps!

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• Oct. 23, 2006 - Untitled Comment

Posted by maggieraye

Hi, I tried to answer your questions but the computer did NOT cooperate.

First, I'm just a person who loves predictability and routine, so it doesn't seem hard to establish them and accomplish things. My first suggestion is to have realistic expectations of what you and your children can do in the time you have. Just because the curriculum says you should do it doesn't mean it's going to work for you. Our Saxon book has about 30 problems per lesson, but we generally only do 15 of them. We only do math for an hour. If it's not finished then it's there for the next day and we just work away at it, until we finish it. My LizBeth learned the hard way one time that I don't care if you finish the book in one year or two, we'll work away at it until we finish it. My stomach rules the house, so everyone "quits" around 11:30 to help clean up and get ready for lunch. Any work that isn't done before lunch may be finished up after "recess" -- it's the only thing about our home that really looks like traditional school. By noon we all need a break. With young children, if it can't be accomplished before lunch, it probably doesn't really need to be done.

As for holidays. Keep it simple. We do not travel at Christmas anymore. We use to when we lived in the south and the rest of our family was here in New England. It was wonderful to see them, but soooo stressful. Now we stay home. We put the tree up the weekend of Thanksgiving. We hide baby Jesus and don't put him in the Nativity until Christmas Eve and when we do we read Luke 2 together, before going to bed. That's what we've been waiting for and what we'll be celebrating, after all, the arrival of the Christ child (not Santa Clause). We've never done Santa Clause. Christmas gifts are often simple, inexpensive, home made and necessities. It's a time to restock school supplies like markers crayons and art paper. We also love our stockings (maybe more than the gifts under the tree. Every single item in the stocking is wrapped separately - both practical and fun items fill the stocking -- new toothbrush, sample size toothpaste, gold coin candy, matchbox cars (as much for the anxious teen as for the little ones, but as more of a joke). We open one gift Christmas Eve. We open stockings on Mom's bed Christmas morning. We have breakfast before the tree. Then our dinner. We also have a birthday cake for Baby Jesus. I'm sure we do other things, but keeping it simple and inexpensive is my first advise. Second, keeping the focus on celebrating the birth of our savior rather than on the Wish List GiMe's is the other thing that is so important. If there is a Christmas service we make that a priority, whether we have company or not.

Hope it helps. Best of luck with the newsletter. I'm looking forward to reading it.
Blessings & Hugs to you my friend,
MaggieRaye

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