Ramblings on our family's learning adventures and other escapades, as we follow the Lord wherever He leads. http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/ en-us Homeschool Blogger Wed, 8 Jul 2009 09:54:00 -0500 Wed, 8 Jul 2009 09:54:00 -0500 A house is not a home unless it contains food and fire for the mind as well as the body.   ~Benjamin Franklin http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/706136/ Wed, 8 Jul 2009 09:54:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/706136/ It's been some time since I've updated my blog here... Still homeschooling ; but not much time for blogging about it, I guess.   We've had some challenges lately.  The biggest distraction has been my sweet niece who is 2 months old coming to stay with us during the day.  It is hard to stay focused on math when there is a beautiful baby making noise in the background .  I'm sure as time passes, the new will wear off of that, and things will become a bit less chaotic.  At least I certainly hope so!  It has also been a while since I've had to function and care for a baby...I'm as easily distracted as the children are .  I'm thinking we need some changes to the curriculum for next season.  Teaching Textbooks will replace Saxon for 1 dd; and I'm thinking I'll get Math U See for the younger girls.    I also need something for Language Arts, since I don't have as much time to put together copywork and so forth on my own.  I have LLATL for grades 2 & 3, which is OK; but I'm considering Language Lessons from Queen Homeschool instead.  Anyone use these?  Simply Grammar is not a good fit for my oldest dd.  She does not like it, even a little bit; so I'm thinking I'll get Language Lessons for her as well.  We're doing fine with our History, using A Child's History of the World as a text and then adding library books and other activities to that.  Next year we'll move into the Mystery of History books. Science has been hit or miss, and I really need to focus a bit more on that subject.  We do lots of reading about animals, plants,  a fair amount of Nature Study, and are reading Storybook of Science off and on.  We just finished volume I of A Child's Geography which was great fun.  We'll begin volume II soon.  Lots of reading going on, everything from piles of easy readers, poetry, non-fiction, and fairy tales, to Sarah's newest obsession, knitting and crochet books.  I struggle with record keeping, so I think I may try to do more journaling as a record here in the coming days.  I've tried countless different "systems" and don't seem to keep up with any of them.  Perhaps an online account here will be better. OK, I need to get a few "non-school" things accomplished today, too.  Off to start the crockpot and find a cup of tea!   http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/650943/ Tue, 27 Jan 2009 11:42:01 -0600 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/650943/ "God is pleased with no music below so much as with the thanksgiving songs of relieved widows and supported orphans; of rejoicing, comforted, and thankful persons." Jeremy Taylor Sing to the Lord today, for do we not all find ourselves described in the quote above?  http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/620559/ Mon, 17 Nov 2008 15:55:00 -0600 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/620559/     Assignment: How do you keep energized so you can get it all done? bouncy music? treat it like a workout? Do you use a schedule?, a housekeeping binder system? luck of the draw system?.. or is this an area where you need encouragement? Do you need God’s help to keep order and beauty in your dwelling place? Take this week to tell us how You diligently keep going with your housekeeping chores.   Oh, this is a tough area for me!  I never seem to get it all done, and the moment I "think" maybe I have....I realize that another thing to be done has suddenly materialized.  I have found that music helps motivate me.  Some days is is upbeat contemporary Christian songs.  Remedy by David Crowder is a favorite of mine.  Sometimes I prefer the peaceful strains of a classical piece.  I have a Pachalbel cd borrowed from the library that I've put on first thing each morning this week.  I've also found that if I start with the kitchen, then things just seem to flow from there.  Perhaps because it is the heart of our home, or because I like washing dishes maybe.  Our little kitchen/dining area gets much more use than the other rooms, since we also do our Table Time at the kitchen table.  If I can get the dishes done and put away, the table cleared, and maybe a pretty flower, or  a scented candle on the table; I'm usually motivated to move on to the living room, etc.  The laundry is another matter altogether, I'm afraid.  With a household of 3 young ladies who seem to change clothing at least a half-dozen times a day, Mt. Washmore often reaches the most daunting heights!  I have discovered that I don't mind washing and drying (thanks to  my automatic washer and dryer) clothes nearly as much as I resent the folding, hanging, and putting away.  So, since my girls make most of the laundry chore, I've delegated all of the "putting away" to them.  They actually don't mind it so much, and it makes things go much faster.  6 eager hands are better than my reluctant 2! I have 2 days that I do a "House Blessing" cleaning; and the rest of the time I try to focus on whatever area is annoying myself or my husband the most!  Sorry that I didn't get the previous 2 asssignments completed...life sometimes gets a bit hectic here.  Perhaps when I have some spare moments, I'll do them as "make-up" work! Blessings, Catherine http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/594888/ Wed, 24 Sep 2008 13:45:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/594888/   BFS Assignment #100 - Oh What a Feeling! Assignment: Take time this week to write about YOU and your feelings of trials and triumphs with homeschooling. Touch on when you first heard about the concept of home schooling and whether you tip-toed into the idea or just jumped in and never looked back. Share your schooling as a child and how you compare it to what your goals are for your children. I really do LOVE homeschooling! I enjoy having my girls home with me, and learning right along with them. I went to public school, so I have plenty of "gaps" yet to fill!  Besides, who could resist all those lovely books??? I eased ever so slowly into the whole idea of homeschooling.  Though I had heard of homeschooling, my plan was to get a job working at the local school when my daughter was old enough to start attending.  Of course, the Lord had different plans...much better than mine, of course.  When my oldest dd was 4 years old, and everyone kept saying she needed to go to Preschool; the LORD just kept sending those lovely homeschool families along to encourage me that homeschooling was the way to go.  I enjoyed visiting with them, and the issues that my SIL had with her son in the local school made me very skeptical about sending my child there anyway.  Well, in the small town we lived in, you only qualified for pre-K if you were low income (not a problem for a bi-vocational minister's family); AND if you couldn't speak English. One of the kind ladies at church, who also taught at the school, told me we'd never get past that one as much as my little one talked (she gets it from her Father, I promise). I took that as the final sign that I needed to just get started homeschooling. I went to the local teacher's store and had a wonderful time looking at all their curriculum; but after reading For the Children's Sake and A Charlotte Mason Companion, ended up with lots and lots of living books, and a few Wal-Mart workbooks "for fun". For the first few years, when skeptics would ask all "those questions", I would say, "We are deciding year by year about homeschooling." Now I know that we will homeschool until all 3 are finished with high school. One of the most rewarding things about having them learn at home is seeing them enjoying the learning process. When we hit a "roadblock" and have a difficult time, I can put that book away, or try a different approach. I've found that learning happens naturally when they have the freedom, time, and opportunity to do so. Good books will be read, and good learning tools will be used if they are strewn about for them to "discover". They have their mother's love of books, so it is a common sight to see 3 little girls and one not so little girl all curled up with their noses in a book! Of course, this does sometimes make it difficult to get those other necessary daily things...laundry, vacuuming, sweeping etc. done! I just heard my "middlest Love" singing the song "Make Me A Servant"...perhaps I should take her up on the offer, right away!  Blessings, Catherine.....off to see if the little Love would really like to be a servant ! Oh...try as I may, the graphic  isn't working for me...I'm a disaster at these techy things; would someone please tell me how to post it properly??? http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/584527/ Wed, 3 Sep 2008 12:47:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/584527/ This sounds like such fun! I signed up for Blogger Friend School 2008-2009.  They are having a great Back to School giveaway that I am participating in.  Check it out if you haven't signed up already! Blessings, Catherine http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/581119/ Wed, 27 Aug 2008 15:17:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/581119/ It's almost time for our new learning season to start.   I love the excitement and "newness" of a brand new educational year.  Our adventure will begin on Tues., Sept. 2, 2008.  I had big plans to begin Aug. 1; but life exploded in lots of good ways; but in ways that put my lesson plans and new books right back on the bookshelf!  That's OK, when I was in school (ancient history now), we never started classes until after Labor Day....just seems right in my brain even now. Sooo.....I've signed up for Blogger Friend School, and am looking forward to making new friends and doing some learning of my own as well this year.  Here are a few of the great resources I plan to use this year: Bible SCM Scripture Memory System A Child's Book of Character Building A Child's Geography Mystery of History Vol. 1 A Child's History of the World Simply Grammar LLATL Red Phonics Pathways Copywork books English from the Roots Up Exploring Creation with Botany Handbook of Nature Studies Storybook of Science Parables from Nature Miquon Math Math Mammoth Teaching Textbooks 5 Ambleside Online resources for Literature, Poetry, Art, Composers, Shakespeare, etc. Plus lots of great read alouds, craft projects, and whatever else we find that looks interesting along the way! This is the first year I have 3 "grades" to teach- 1,2, & 5.  Should be quite an adventure. Blessings, Catherine  http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/581110/ Wed, 27 Aug 2008 14:58:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/581110/ sometimes there seem to be too many!  I am thrilled that we have so many different things to choose from, but it can be hard for me to "choose just one".  I am planning to order a few things for our "summer school" session and for next year, too. I would love to hear other's opinion of Teaching Textbooks Math.  I am tentatively planning on this for my dd who will be in 5th grade, and is very much an auditory learner.  Math is the subject that has caused me the most grief in curriculum choosing and teaching, and  I've tried several .   My second choice for her  is Math U See, which I will very likely be starting the "little Loves" in this fall.  I'm also debating on either English for the Thoughtful Child and/or Language Lessons from Queen Homeschool.  Any thoughts or opinions on these two would be gladly received, too!  We're enjoying A Child's History of the World right now, and will move into The Mystery of History this Fall.  Science is my favorite subject area, so we have LOTS of Science "stuff" to choose from....Handbook of Nature Study, Apologia Botany, Abeka Science, Giant Science Resource, The Story Book of Science, It Couldn't Just Happen......plus many other Science and Nature books !  Art/Music/Poetry...Ambleside Online suggestions, etc.  Blessings, Catherine http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/531030/ Mon, 12 May 2008 13:45:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/531030/ It seems I don't have much time for blogging these days; though once summer hits and it is too HOT to venture outside, I'm sure I'll find my self rambling away again . Our family has been in a season of transition, and we've been almost completely "unschooling" since August.  Not my plan at all, but I worked part-time from mid-August until Dec. 31st.  And, even though the girls were with me at work, and I had permission to do my teaching while there, we still ended up not doing the "formal lessons" I had planned.  They learned much in spite of our very relaxed approach.  I have found that by having lots of educational toys, manipulatives, workbooks, and other learning "supplies" and putting them out for the children to "discover" or "re-discover" now and then, I can encourage learning in a very simple, and even fun way.  My oldest uses her natural "first-born" tendency to be the boss and order everyone about to play teacher , and the little ones actually play along and have fun doing so!  We also moved recently, which put my plans for getting back to my lesson plans on hold, yet again.  But, when I look back at what we've accomplished this year, I can see that a season of "unschooling" may have been the best thing for us.  A break from the math book did wonders for my oldest's math phobia.  When we started things up again, she was ready to learn what had, at one time, caused much frustration and many tears.  She has also become a voracious reader, like her mom , and because she is a talker , too...she just naturally narrates what she is reading to me.  What could be easier than that?  A free online typing program has been interesting for the older 2 and they are getting quite good with the keyboard.  The little ones enjoy math games and several online math sites and are both improving in their reading and writing skills.  Even though we did what I would call "unschooling" this year, there was still a focus on learning, and my "teacher mom" mentality made certain that we covered Language Arts and Math in some form or fashion every day !   http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/522099/ Fri, 25 Apr 2008 08:02:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/522099/ Our church had its Fall Festival this past weekend.  I must be honest and say that what they call a Fall Festival, in our home is known as Halloween, and should we still be here next year, our family will not be participating...to each his own I suppose, though I really don't think the Lord sees it that way, either.  Anyway, one of the youth of the church showed up dressed as Satan .  Yep.  My little Cana went up to her and asked with all seriousness, "Are you supposed to be a RED COW?" !!!  After that, (at the very wise suggestion of one of the young men of the church) she decided to lose the horns and tail and be "Little Red Riding Hood" for the remainder of the afternoon .  Out of the mouths of babes..... http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/419241/ Thu, 1 Nov 2007 16:22:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/catherinelove/419241/