Aye Carumba! A new blog for homeschool parents and kids. We will explore Spanish as a language, culture and destination. You'll learn tips on how to study Spanish. There will be activities and games for kids. How about missions trips? How would you like to help others in the USA as well as in a Spanish speaking country? This will be a one stop shop. http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/ en-us Homeschool Blogger Thu, 29 Oct 2009 20:17:00 -0500 Thu, 29 Oct 2009 20:17:00 -0500 Wow!  What a mission trip!  We could see and feel the Lord's hand on us all the way.  For the last two weeks leading up to us going on our Mexico Mission trip we had a battle waged against our group.  One person thought they should be the mouthpiece of God and tell everyone not to go.  They even went so far as calling everyone from the church that wasn't going on the trip to tell us not to go.  Well that trick from the pits of hell didn't work and we were blessed because of it.  And the people of Mexico were blessed because of our obedience to the Lord. We had to get up Saturday morning, October 17th at 2 am to catch our flights out of Fargo.  It was so dense with fog here at home I thought for sure the flights would be delayed a couple hours.  We went at our regularly scheduled time and drove with caution towards Fargo.  After about forty-five minutes the fog miraculously cleared up and stayed that way until we left for our Mexico mission trip on time.  Praise the Lord! Our Father's hand is soooo big.  And His arm is very long when it is outstretched. After we got our luggage in El Paso, the Tapestries of Life van was waiting for us.  They look like this: Of course the first thing we thought of was food since we didn't eat on any of our flights down to El Paso.  Just outside the El Paso airport a few blocks away we ate a burger joint called Whataburger.  I was happy because they had a jalapeno burger.  So our Mexican food begins, well if you can call Whataburger Mexican.  It was probably a really big stretch.  LOL As we are driving down the highway from El Paso to our home away from home for the week, the Outpost at Tapestries of Life in Fabens, TX, we saw sights we had never seen before.  Not because we live in a secluded part of Minnesota and we don't see those types of things.  They were more along the lines of different brands and different names of businesses and restaurants, etc. After settling into the Outpost and unpacking our single suitcases, airlines charge for each bag you take nowadays except for carry-ons, as a team we sat around and got to know each other better.  You know how you go to family reunions once a year or maybe once every five years and you've met a lot of your family members.  You know you like these family members because they haven't been around long enough to get on your nerves yet.  Well that's how I see a lot of my church family.  Since we were going to be living together for the week we thought it would be good to just kick back and relax.  Of course our bodies all said they needed sleep but who can sleep when you're excited to finally be at the destination. A lot of hugging went on in congratulations for making it to Tapestries of Life on our Mexico Mission trip.  Some of us had been fundraising and planning this trip for two years.  We felt like we were on top of the world knowing we had arrived. One last thing I want to share with you all is during the last two weeks while we were battling with the enemy of this world the Lord kept pouring out His blessings.  One of the couples that went with us, Monte & Jolene Goeson, had received a $250 gift to go towards our trip.  I had received $100 in extra money, which I turned over to Tapestries Mercy Ministry Day (more to come on this amazing ministry), and Dillon our only teenage boy on the trip received $70 on the airplane from Fargo to Denver.  If that doesn't tell you the Lord is with you then you just aren't listening and you need to get the wax out of your ears.   Dillon had sat next to a lady on the plane who was asking tons of questions about our trip all the way to Denver.  Her sister was in the seat in front of them.  Between the two of them they gave Dillon $70 cash.  Praise the Lord!  Later on I will share with you Dillon's story of how the Lord lead him to whom and where that money should go.  As far as I know, I don't believe Dillon had ever been used by the Lord this way before and Dillon got his socks blessed off.   Well that's all for now.  Stay tuned to this blog to see and hear more about our amazing Mexico Mission Trip 2009.   Bendiciones, Michelle Rothwell, Founder Dora & Diego Homeschool Spanish http://www.DoraHomeSchoolSpanish.com The most comprehensive missions-minded Biblically-based Spanish curriculum for Pre K through 12th grade.     http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/740548/ Thu, 29 Oct 2009 20:17:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/740548/ Hi Everyone! Amber Johnson from Teaching Tips.com sent over her blog page I thought I would share with you.  She has listed 100 Excellent Advice Sites for Homeschoolers.  This is a great list to look over because I believe you will see some you've never heard of which could help you with teaching your children. Any resources are great as we travel through this fun and exciting world of homeschooling. But pay no attention to the ads for foreign languages.  Ha!  Ha! Unless of course you are interested in something other than Spanish.  I know some of you homeschool parents are teachers by trade.  If you are interested in continuing education to keep up on your certification, be sure to check out Amber's site as she has a comprehensive site for teachers of all kinds. When you get done going over the list of 100 Excellent Advice Sites for Homeschoolers, please come back here and give us your opinion of which ones you like and which ones you've never seen before but are going to use. Bendiciones, Michelle Rothwell, Founder Dora & Diego Homeschool Spanish http://www.DoraHomeSchoolSpanish.com The most comprehensive missions-minded Biblically-based Spanish text.     http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/726100/ Fri, 11 Sep 2009 17:49:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/726100/ Hey Everyone!  Don't forget I will be live at 11 am ET/10CST/9MT/8PST on the Communication Comedy Network with JoJo Tabares talking about miscommunications in the Spanish language and culture. Join us for some fun stories and tips for keeping yourselves out of trouble when speaking Spanish. Click on this link and join us Communication Comdey Network you can listen for free with a Talk Shoe account or listen via telephone at 724-444-7444 pin number 19736. Hope to see you there! Michelle Rothwell, Founder Dora & Diego Homeschool Spanish http://www.DoraHomeSchoolSpanish.com The most comprehensive missions-minded Biblically-based text.   http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/725631/ Thu, 10 Sep 2009 09:00:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/725631/ Coming this Thursday I will be a guest on the Communication Comedy Network talking to JoJo Tabares about the communication differences in the Spanish language and culture. Listen to us as we share how fun learning Spanish can be even when there are miscommunications.  There will be funny stories as well as an opportunity to learn the proper way to speak Spanish.  No one is perfect and on Thursday's show you will see even the experts can have trouble with communication differences in the Spanish language and culture. To log on to our broadcast this Thursday, September 10, 2009 at 10 am CST go toTalk Shoe  If you aren't available live then you will find our recorded broadcast later that day in JoJo's archives. I hope you will join us and experience the fun in learning Spanish. Hasta jueves, Michelle Rothwell, Founder Dora & Diego Homeschool Spanish The most comprehensive missions-minded Biblically-based Spanish text.       http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/724870/ Mon, 7 Sep 2009 21:44:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/724870/ Dear Homeschool Families,       This week I would like to share with you a great fundraiser where you don’t have to pay any money up front.  For those of you getting ready to go on a family mission trip, I recommend a Pizza Hut Fundraiser Pizza Card.  Here are the details:  “Sell Pizza Hut® Pizza Cards for $10.00 and Make $7.00 Profit Per Card! • Your cost per card: $3.00 • You sell each card for: $10.00 • You make: $7.00 profit per card! • Minimum order is just 100 cards! • Cards can be ordered in packs of 50 • Plus, you'll get 20% free cards for every 50 you buy up to 450 cards, and 30% free cards for every 50 you buy when you buy 500 or more cards! • Cards are valid for one year after they have been printed or until all 15-20 visits have been used. Why will your customers want to buy a Pizza Hut® Pizza Card from you? Because they will get to order from their local Pizza Hut 15-20 times, and get a great deal! Each Pizza Hut has a different "deal" with us, but the most popular deal is this one: "Buy a large pizza at regular price and receive a medium pizza free!" These cards are awesome for fundraising - everyone wins! All you need to do is tell us the name of the city where your local Pizza Hut is, and we'll call you to confirm the best deal we can get from YOUR Pizza Hut before you make your decision to purchase your Pizza Hut® Pizza Cards from us. Cards are not accepted nationally; please call us to verify if the pizza cards are accepted in your area. Cards are favored along the East Coast. Pizza Cards will deliver in approximately 2-7 business days.” This information comes from the WOW Fundraising website .      The reason I’m recommending this fundraiser is it works great.  One thing I do recommend is making sure your local Pizza Hut will accept the cards before you commit yourselves.  You wouldn’t want to promote something people in your church and neighborhood can’t use.      If you haven’t decided on a mission trip yet, please check out our website for possibilities.  We have a trip to Mexico this fall in which we would love to have you all come with us.  Many hands make light work.  Or if you would like to put a team together from your church to help finish the orphanage, please let me know and I will help you get started.      One last thing, there are other organizations who put together mission trips all over the world and they are listed on the left-hand side of our pages.  If you would like first hand knowledge of each organization, just write and let me know.  I would be more than happy to let you talk others who have worked with these awesome servants.      Next week:  Repeat, Repeat, Repeat Practice, Practice, Practice – tips for learning Spanish so it sticks. God bless you all and have a great week, Michelle Rothwell, Founder Dora & Diego Homeschool Spanish http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/697204/ Mon, 8 Jun 2009 20:06:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/697204/ Dear Homeschool Families, Welcome to Dora & Diego Homeschool Spanish!  Or we would say bienvenidos! In this issue we will be sharing with you some of the miracles of MACHE 2009, tips for immersion Spanish learning, Mission Trip 2009 with fundraising ideas, update on our Preschool/Kindergarten curriculum and our accredited curriculum, recipe for Creamy Spinach Enchiladas (This is a good one for Minnesotans as it is made with mile enchilada sauce) and finally our grammar tip about Adjectives.  If you don’t want to have any clutter you can see our archived newsletters on our blog at http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/.  We welcome any comments, questions or suggestions. MÂCHÉ 2009 was awesome! Kurt and I were so blessed meeting each and every one of you at our booth last month.  We feel like we’ve met more of our family we didn’t even know existed.  Kind of like finding long lost brothers and sisters.  Welcome to our family.  Please stop by to see us if you are in the Detroit Lakes area.  We would love to see you again. Through our conversations with everyone we found you would like to see curriculum for Preschool and Kindergarten plus an accredited program for your older kids.  We hear you and are working diligently to complete these tasks.  There were so many of you who were asking about an accredited program that in the middle of the day Saturday, when we had a brief, maybe five minutes, lull at our booth, Kurt said, “Wouldn’t it be awesome if the Lord sent someone to us today that would know how to get accreditation for our program?”  Well guess what?!  “Ask and it shall be given unto you.”  The very last couple of the day, at 5:30 pm, had the answers.  Is that the Lord or what?  He is never late.  He is always on time.  We are on our way to going through the steps of accreditation. Immersion Learning is One of the Best Ways to Learn For a learner the immersion phase in the language learning process will really catapult their learning ahead, particularly if they communicate exclusively in the target language, and don’t use their mother tongue. As an example, if one is learning Spanish one might go to a Spanish speaking country where Spanish is the native tongue. One might then take classes where all the instruction is given in the native tongue, in this case Spanish. One is then immersed in the language, and surrounded by the culture of the target language-speaking community. At home you can partially immerse your children in Spanish by having them watch a movie they already know in Spanish instead of English.  For example, “Finding Nemo” on DVD you can hear the movie in other languages including Spanish.  This way they are focused on just the language.  It’s amazing how their brains, no matter how young they are, will immediately translate from Spanish to English so their understanding will be there.  At the same time they are learning Spanish in a focused environment while having fun. You can also have your children participate in our online classes which are conducted in approximately 98% Spanish.  The online classes present the exact same information to the child as you would find in our Español de Iglesia Para Niños.  They will learn all of the grammar, Books of the Bible and Spanish prayers with our native speaking teachers.  The advantage to these online classes is your children will be able to ask any questions of the teachers creating a one-on-one communication in Spanish.  That’s what D&DHS is all about, creating communication for ministry in your hometown or across the border. Español de Iglesia Para Niños will prepare your children and your family for mission work across the border and in any of the 26 countries around the world where the Lord’s gospel needs to be spread. Mission Trip 2009 to Guadalupe, Chihuahua, Mexico Many of you who visited our booth at MÂCHÉ 2009 picked up packets of information to join us in October.  I hope you’ve had the opportunity to read the materials and are seeking the Lord’s guidance on whether this is the trip you are to go on or not.  We brought 25 packets of information and you all picked up 21.  We would love to have all 21 families come with us.  Tapestries of Life staff are praying for you and making preparations to accommodate each and every one.  They said if we bring you all they will make room for all of you.  If you didn’t pick up a packet and are interested in joining us, please visit our webpage for more info here:  http://www.dorahomeschoolspanish.com/missions_opportunities.htm but ignore the donation spot at the top.  That’s where we are having our donors go who are helping to sponsor us for this year’s trip. For those of you, who are considering going with us this year, please keep in mind that your money for lodging must be in by August 31, 2009.  If you have questions about this, please write to us at Michelle@dorahomeschoolspanish.com and we will explain things further.  Hopefully in the next couple of weeks I will be able to send out info for just the trip. A couple ideas for fundraising I would like to share with you have to do with your own personal talents. The Lord has given you and your children different talents like gardening abilities, hair cutting, teaching CPR, singing, cooking, etc.  Think of the things you love to do and turn them into fundraisers.  For instance, Kurt, my husband, sings solos at church and has been a bass singer for the Crystal City Quartet.  He had this great idea of putting together a night of music with many talented individuals he knew in the Christian music world and put on a two hour concert.  All of the singers knew this was a fundraiser and weren’t going to get paid.  The Lord spoke to their hearts and we had 12 participants, thirteen including Kurt.  This idea was a great success.  We had over $500 donated that night to help send us to Mexico.  Praise the Lord! If your children have gardening skills, go around your city and have them mow lawns for donations.  Take a few Saturdays and do what my brother the landscaper calls blow-and-go.  Let the people know your kids will only be mowing and trimming for raising money to go on a mission trip.  It’s amazing how people are moved by the Lord to be generous especially with kids.  They could easily raise enough money for one person in two days. Take your talents and use them for the Lord’s glory.  He will bless you abundantly for following His desires for you to take care of the widows and orphans.  On this trip we will be helping the orphans. Has your church ever gone on a mission trip together?  Tapestries of Life are always looking for groups of people to come down and help them.  Instead of going with us why not go as a church?  We would be happy to give you the tools to put it all together.  Even the video I showed at the workshop can be sent to you for you to present to your congregation.  Just send me an e-mail and I can get it to you plus what you would need to know to put a team together.   Update on Curriculum We are in the process of researching accreditation.  We were given such good information at MÂCHÉ 2009 which takes a while to go through.  Our goal is to have accreditation by the end of the 2009/2010 school year. The Preschool/Kindergarten curriculum is half finished.  We have the pronunciation cds to create and a few more worksheets.  Our expected availability date is June 1, 2009.  We will keep you posted on our progress.   Creamy Spinach Enchiladas      For those Americans who desire a milder Mexican recipe, try these yummy smooth Creamy Spinach Enchiladas from Azteca®.  These would also be good for a vegetarian diet but not vegan. Ingredients for Creamy Spinach Enchiladas: 1 pkg Azteca® Flour Tortillas (Burrito size) 1/2 cup sliced green onions 1 Tbsp butter or margarine 10 oz pkg frozen, chopped spinach, thawed and drained 1 cup cottage cheese 1/2 cup sour cream 2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese or Queso Fresco (Mexican white cheese) 10 oz can mild enchilada sauce      Remove tortillas from refrigerator.  Heat oven to 375 degrees F.  In medium saucepan, sauté onions in butter until crisp-tender; add spinach.  Cook until moisture is evaporated, stirring occasionally; remove from heat.  Stir in cottage cheese, sour cream and 1 cup shredded cheese.      Warm tortillas as directed on package.  Spoon approximately 1/4 cup filling down center of each tortilla; roll up.  Place seam side down in greased 13" x 9" baking dish.  Pour enchilada sauce evenly over tortillas; sprinkle with remaining shredded cheese.  Bake for 15-20 minutes or until bubbly & heated through.  To serve, top with sour cream and green onions, if desired.      As long as your spinach is thawed ahead of time this is actually a very quick dish to make with hardly any clean up.   *Grammar Tip – Adjectives/Adjetivos “The adjective in Spanish is a variable part of speech and must agree in gender and number with the noun it qualifies: libro pequeño, casa pequeña (small book, small house); libros pequeños, casas pequeñas (multiple small books, multiple small houses).”  The word for book, a noun, in Spanish is masculine so the adjective must have a masculine ending which is usually an o.  Likewise the word for house, a noun, in Spanish is feminine so the adjective must be a feminine adjective.  The ending would be an a.  In this example to make them plural you just add an s to both the nouns and the adjectives. A simple way to know if a noun is masculine or feminine is by looking at the ending of the word.  Of course in any language there are exceptions to the rules.  If they kept it all the same way, you would get bored.  We will give those exceptions to you at a later time. “Some adjectives, however, have the same ending for both masculine and feminine genders: hombre fiel, mujer fiel; hombres fieles, mujeres fieles (faithful man, faithful woman).” For the parents and older kids, we share this information but for the younger children we are teaching them sentences in the right order with the right endings.  These kinds of explanations can be confusing.  Confused minds get bored easily and therefore Spanish isn’t any fun anymore.  The learning then becomes a chore and doesn’t progress.  We strive to bring a stress free learning experience for everyone so they can have the optimum learning experience possible. Well that’s all we have for you this time.  Whew!  That was a lot in one shot wasn’t it? In the future, if you don’t mind Moms and Dads, I would like to take each of these items and send them to you individually in a weekly newsletter.  Your time is valuable and I don’t want to bog down your life with long newsletters.  My idea is to present to you once a month a teaching tip, once a month a great recipe, once a month information about our products, once a month info about mission trips in a weekly format.  That way you can pick and choose what you would like to read and what you don’t.  I know it means you will have more e-mails from us but they can be easily deleted. If you decide you don’t want to receive weekly newsletter, please reply back to us and we will remove your name from our list.  But you will always be able to stay up to date by visiting our blog either through our website http://www.DoraHomeSchoolSpanish.com or go straight to the blog itself listed above. Thank you for your time today and may the Lord bless your family abundantly, Michelle Rothwell, Founder Dora & Diego Homeschool Spanish The most comprehensive Biblically-base Spanish text. *The information in quotes comes from “Vox Compact Spanish and English Dictionary” Second Edition by McGraw Hill http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/686900/ Fri, 8 May 2009 10:46:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/686900/      For those Americans who desire a milder Mexican recipe, try these yummy smooth Creamy Spinach Enchiladas from Azteca.  These would also be good for a vegetarian diet but not vegan. Ingredients for Creamy Spinach Enchiladas: 1 pkg Azteca Flour Tortillas (Burrito size) 1/2 cup sliced green onions 1 Tbsp butter or margarine 10 oz pkg frozen, chopped spinach, thawed and drained 1 cup cottage cheese 1/2 cup sour cream 2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese or Queso Fresco 10 oz can mild enchilada sauce      Remove tortillas from refrigerator.  Heat oven to 375 degrees F.  In medium saucepan, saute onions in butter until crisp-tender; add spinach.  Cook until moisture is evaporated, stirring occasionally; remove from heat.  Stir in cottage cheese, sour cream and 1 cup shredded cheese.      Warm tortillas as directed on package.  Spoon approximately 1/4 cup filling down center of each tortilla; roll up.  Place seam side down in greased 13" x 9" baking dish.  Pour enchilada sauce evenly over tortillas; sprinkle with remaining shredded cheese.  Bake for 15-20 minutes or until bubbly & heated through.  To serve, top with sour cream and green onions, if desired.      As long as your spinach is thawed ahead of time this is actually a very quick dish to make with hardly any clean up.      If you have any questions about this Creamy Spinach Enchilada recipe, please leave a comment or contact me through my website Dora & Diego Homeschool Spanish. Dios te bendiga, Michelle http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/672976/ Thu, 26 Mar 2009 19:01:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/672976/ ¡Hola, Amigos! Today is a new day.  Let us rejoice and be glad in it. Through Dora & Diego Homeschool Spanish we have created a new community forum for homeschool and missions minded people.  In the new forum we share our past mission trips and progress towards our next mission trips. Has the Lord been tugging at your heart to be His hands and His feet? Are you willing to go where He sends you? Come and fellowship with other like minded individuals.  Those who have a heart to go into all the world. Join today at http://HomeSchoolSpanish.ning.com! Hasta luego, Michelle http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/670525/ Thu, 19 Mar 2009 21:56:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/670525/ Adopt a missionary family.  Together with your children learn everything you can about the country and people group with which the missionaries work.  Experiment with recipes of the food they eat.  Put together scrapbooks depicting the geography, agriculture, and industry.  Learn about the religious beliefs of the people and their form of government.  Find out how their culture impacts the ways the people think and act and why it differs from us.  Practice phrases in the language.  Learn how the missionaries explain the gospel to their people group, etc.   Together with your children, write to your missionary.  If they have children, maybe they would like to be pen pals with your children. Most importantly, pray for your missionary family.  Consider what your family can do to help support them.   As Christian homeschoolers, studying missions is one of the most important areas in which to be involved.  Christ instructed us to "go into all the world..."  This certainly is a reason to study geography, history, anthropology, and foreign languages.   Since this blog is geared towards learning Spanish we encourage you to look for missionary families in Spanish speaking countries.  For example Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Spain, etc.  Hispanic people love to share their language with others so ask your missionary family if any of the kids in their church would want to be pen pals with your kids.  This would be a great way for your kids to learn to translate as well as read and write Spanish.  It's a great way to reiterate their Spanish skills.   In order to find missionary families contact your church denominations' missions department.  If your denomination doesn't have any missionaries in Spanish speaking countries, just write to me, Michelle@dorahomeschoolspanish.com, and I can get you hooked up.   Blessings to you until next time, Michelle Rothwell, Founder Dora & Diego Homeschool Spanish www.DoraHomeSchoolSpanish.com The most comprehensive Biblically-based Spanish text. http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/669375/ Mon, 16 Mar 2009 19:36:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/669375/ What is the best age to learn a language? This question is asked a lot along with the question, "How Can My Children Become Bilingual?"  In this posting we will be explaining the best age to learn a language hopefully giving you the answer you are looking for. According to Wikipedia, "Children are able to take on accents at a fast rate; children of traveling families, for example, can change their accents within a short period of time. This generally remains true until a person's early twenties,after which, a person's accent seems to become more entrenched."  Well there's one answer for you.  Children can at least learn accents easily. According to the ESL Program, "The answer, according to current research, is early adolescence, so about 11-13. And the more motivated the child is to learn the new language, the more successful he will be!" Well I personally believe you can teach an old dog new tricks.  You can learn a language at any age.  The more time you have to put into learning the more successful you will be. I tend to think children have less stuff clogging their brains so they can retain what they've learned.  Plus to quote a phrase the "Flight of The Navigator",  human brains leak. Have a great night, Michelle Rothwell, Founder Dora & Diego Homeschool Spanish http://www.DoraHomeSchoolSpanish.com The first ever Spanish curriculum from the Biblical world view. http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/654282/ Tue, 3 Feb 2009 21:14:00 -0600 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dndhomeschoolspanish/654282/