Gepost door Gena Suarez, The Old Schoolhouse Magazine
At a homeschool convention last year, another vendor and I struck up a conversation. He had a lot of energy but seemed a bit uptight; however, he readily admitted that he felt totally out of place because he didn't homeschool and this was definitely not his "typical convention." Not really interested in finding out what his "typical convention" was like, I smiled and assured him that we all knew he was out of place the minute he walked in the vendor hall, but we're a polite group and so we didn't point or stare as we talked about him to each other. He grinned and relaxed a bit.
"Obviously, you're a pretty direct person," He said. "So I was wondering, how does a guy who knows nothing about homeschooling sell his product to homeschoolers?"
Ignoring the fact that this out of place "greedy capitalist" was there just to make a profit, I chuckled and asked him, "Why do you think homeschoolers would even want to buy your product if you know absolutely nothing about us?"
He didn't seem to want to answer that, so I continued, "Get to know us a bit and you'll figure out it's not that hard to sell to us. We're pretty frugal but can be gullible in the right circumstance with a promising product, especially at a homeschool convention."
"Fair enough." He replied. "Then I'd like to show you my stuff and see what you think. But first there's one thing I've been wondering about homeschoolers for quite a while now."
"Oh, and what is that?"
"Why do you homeschoolers have so many kids?"
"Umm, gee, maybe it's because we have more exciting things to do than watch Jay Leno after the kiddos go to bed?!?" (Okay, I didn't really say that but I did think it.)
Instead, I politely tried to explain that for some of us homeschooling isn't just an educational choice but a life decision based on a belief that children are as a blessing from God. He wasn't getting it and I was getting hungry so the conversation quickly died of natural causes.
If I ever run into him again, however, I'm sending him over to Ethan Demme (of Math-U-See fame) who gives a much more thoughtful and complete answer to the question, How do I reach the homeschool community? His post is directed at politicians but he starts from the same premise that you have to know something about us, past and present, in order to reach us.
As a homeschool grad and marketing guru, Demme provides an excellent round-up of information and resources to understand this growing but changing movement of homeschool radicals who actually believe they can teach their children at home and live to blog about it. Check it out and keep in handy if you ever run into my vendor friend at your state homeschool convention.
(Note to Demme: Please add a paragraph on fecundity and homeschoolers, thanks in advance.)
Nov. 10, 2009 - Holiday Hunt Week1 - Enter to Win a 12 Days of Christmas Devotional!
Gepost door HomeschoolBlogger Company Blog in
Contests
Attention, Super Sleuth Homeschool Moms!
Join our Holiday Hunt!
We're holding several holiday scavenger hunts here on HSB. Once a week for the next three weeks, you'll have a chance to join in the fun each week! (One entry per family per week, please.)
All of the entry details and clues for the first week are below, so please read them carefully.
The Prize!
The prize is this wonderful Christmas devotional--The 12 Days of Christmas: A Guide to an Old Tradition with a New Purpose by Linda Coates and Leslie S. Kelly
The 12 Days of Christmas helps families discover that Christmas Day is the kickoff for the celebration, not the final affair. The twelve-day adventure begins on December 26. In it, you will learn more about the tenets of the Christian faith through wonderful stories and meaningful activities, and create new traditions to last you and your family a lifetime. By uncovering hidden meanings in the old classic Christmas song, Linda and Leslie bring you a new and exciting way to finish one year and begin the next.
You have until midnight EST Friday, November 13, 2009, to send Tan your answers.
At that point, we will conduct a random drawing to determine a winner from this week’s submissions to receive The 12 Days of Christmas by Linda Coates and Leslie Kelly - a Christmas devotional.
Again . . .Each week one winner of our random drawing will win a copy of the beautiful Christmas devotional from Linda Coates and Leslie Kelly, entitled The 12 Days of Christmas: A Guide to an Old Tradition with a New Purpose.
Each day of this devotional has scripture, discussion questions, activities, a prayer, a devotional story, and points to ponder. Your family will delve into the true meaning of Christmas, starting with Day 1-December 26. This is truly a beautiful and meaningful way to celebrate the birth of Christ.
"Whose birthday is it anyway? Have you ever wanted more from the Christmas Season? The Twelve Days of Christmas is more than just another Christmas book. It is a way to recapture what has been lost in the hustle and bustle of Christmas so that this year it can be different. This inspiring book will help you discover that Christmas Day is the jumping point for the real celebration, not the final affair . . . The Twelve Days of Christmas is a beautiful way to finish one year and begin the next and to celebrate Christ's birth by giving our gifts to the One who has given us the greatest gift of all." Tate Publishing, http://www.tatepublishing.com/bookstore/book.php?w=978-1-60696-260-2
1.This company is known for their quality films. Find two that films or one film collection on their site that your family would enjoy. List their url/Web address.
2.This company was voted #1 by Homeschool.com in 1994. Provide their url/Web Address
3.See if you can find who sells the book The Big Book of American Trivia, Over 3,000 Questions and Answers. Please send us their url/Web address.
4.Go here for some amazing photos of birds, bears, and other critters. Send us the url/Web address.
5.Find a wide selection of construction or farm machine on this site. Tell us which one is your favorite and send us the link to one of your favorite machines. (Must include the link.)
6.Find Sketchy Adventures, it’s free! Send us the url/Web address.
7.The author of this website has traveled to 46 states and several Canadian provinces to encourage home educators over the past twenty years and look forward to lots of fruitful ministry in the future. Please send us their url/Web address.
Okay Fans, you can do this! Be sure to email your answers to me at thogate@thehomeschoolmagazine.com to be entered into this contest.
Nov. 10, 2009 - Home Ec ~ Chaos Tamers in Training
Gepost door HomeschoolBlogger Company Blog in
tamingchaos
This week is home economics week on The Front Porch.
Home Economics in the schools is really an institutionalized attempt to replicate the home, so as homeschoolers we have the perfect environment to impart "home ec" in the same, effective way that life skills have been learned through the ages--passed down generation to generation, parent to child, in daily "on the job" training.
As we tame the chaos of meals, clutter, cleaning, budgets and mending, we can apprentice the children alongside us. Relationships are strengthened, they absorb valuable skills. Additionally, household efficiency is increased as the whole family shares in the work!
Homeschoolers have the luxury of being able to learn home-economics in context as a natural part of life. There are great curriculums to help lend a systematic approach or provide additional dimensions to the natural family-style training, but the beauty of home-economics in the homeschool is the seamless practical application aspect.
As you tame the chaos, draw your children along side you--whether they are 18 months or 18 years. Gradeschoolers can help calculate costs as you shop in the grocery store and get an idea of living within a budget. Give a small child a button to sew onto his own scrap of cloth as you tackle the mending basket. Make the same muffin recipe three times in a row with your 8 year old, having her do more of it herself each time. (Then do it a 4th time as only an observer, and on the 5th see if she can do it entirely on her own!) Encourage a child to organize a cupboard or drawer that's gotten out of control.
Older children can try their hand at managing a month of meals, and grow into budgeting confidence as they handle finances for their hobbies or entrepreneurial endeavors.
Domestic Chaos Tamer and Homeschool Mom of Five,Dellwrites about home, heart and hearth.
Gepost door HomeschoolBlogger Company Blog in
Kitchen Moments
The kitchen is obviously a great place to teach Home Ec. My teaching style for all subjects is very relaxed and this one is no exception, as a matter of fact, I seldom think about teaching Home Ec. My girls help out in the kitchen and the home with whatever is needed. They learn basic cooking, cleaning, menu planning, shopping, etc. by participating in the daily routines of the household. As of yet, there has been no "Home Ec. curriculum", and though it might not be a bad idea for some families, I doubt it will be the way we go. I do have plans for all of the girls (Mom included) to create a Home Journal which will contain recipes for cooking as well as cleaning (love those natural cleaning products), and whatever other "home keeping" things that we decide to put into them. I certainly wish that I had started out with one of those when I first attempted to create a home years ago. It would have saved lots of time and tears, not to mention money!
My 11 year old daughter probably has more cooking and homekeeping skill than many young ladies twice her age. She, like her Mom, enjoys cooking and can frequently be found perusing a cookbook for a new treat for snack time or dessert. I believe that is because she has someone at home with her to first of all model this, cooking is fun in our house. And since a maid has yet to appear in our home to clean up our frequent messes (though no one would complain if she popped in this morning), someone (and that means everyone) must learn to do the house keeping. And finally, she has time to practice and develop these skills during the course of her homeschool day.
We had a conversation over the weekend with the mother of 2 young men who were in my husband's youth group a few years ago. She said both of her boys are still unmarried and living at home. They have no desire to get married and move away from Mom because none of the girls they know can cook! She told us that one young lady blew up their microwave attempting to make a grilled cheese sandwich! An extreme example, of course, but so many young people today simply do not have the basic skills for running a household. I understand this dilemma, because though I could cook, I was sorely lacking in the other areas of home keeping when I moved away from home and started a household of my own. It took some real effort on my part to learn exactly what all went into running a household, especially when that household included children.
I find it interesting that Titus chapter 2 equates the aged women teaching the younger women to be keepers at home (sounds like home ec. to me) with sound doctrine.
But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine:
That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience.
The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things;
That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children,
To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed. Titus 2:1-5
My best advice for teaching Home Ec. is to simply include your children in the day to day tasks of the home. Let them help with the grocery lists, menu plans, cooking, cleaning and so forth. Give them lots of opportunities to practice and develop these skills as they grow. Living and learning together is a blessing, and the skills they learn will bless their future families as well.
Catherine Love lives in the heart of Texas with her husband Carl, and their 3 daughters, Sarah, Hannah, and Cana. They enjoy cooking, gardening, and learning new things as they live a lifestyle of learning together. You can read Catherine's Kitchen Adventures and more on her blog- Seeds of Love.
Nov. 9, 2009 - Schoolhouse Smarties ~ Math Monday
Gepost door HomeschoolBlogger Company Blog in
Contests
Ready for some questions in Math? There are three age categories of questions today. Be sure to email the answers to me at thogate@thehomeschoolmagazine.com.
Correct answers will be entered into our drawings at the end of the month. We will be giving away two gift certificates to the Schoolhouse Store.
Elementary (Grades 1-5) What 3 consecutive integers will add up to 27?
Middle Grades (Grades 6-8) The town of Hippity-Hoppity has a population of 17,480. Five percent of the people are one-legged. Half of the remaining population goes bare-footed. Sandals are the only footwear. How many sandals (not pairs) are worn in Hippity-Hoppity?
High school and adults: A boy agreed to work one year for $240 and a horse. At the end of seven months he quit and received $100 and the horse. What was the value of the horse?
Alrighty, email me your answers. Also on the email, I will need your name, age, state you live in, and email address. I'm looking forward to hearing from you!
To enter you must live in the US. Click here for full contest rules.
Op 1 januari 2006 kwam ik na lange omzwervingen door Carriθreland thuis. En sindsdien heb ik het minstens zo druk als toen ik ondernemer was! Ik ben blij dat ik onze God en ons gezin nu mag dienen vanuit ons eigen huis, onder andere door het geven van thuisonderwijs.
Thuis is nu het middelpunt van mijn leven. Ik ben blij dat ik de zorg voor mijn eigen man en mijn eigen zoon centraal kan en mag stellen. Dit is voor mij een nieuwe vorm van evangelisatie (Titus 2:4-5) :-)!
Op mijn blog vind je gedachten over thuis, maatschappij en onderwijs en je kunt een idee krijgen van wat we zoal doen: als er een lange periode tussen twee posten zit, weet je dat we het heel druk hebben ;-)! Af en toe heb ik tijd om wat foto's en een verhaaltje te plaatsen over wat we gedaan hebben. We hopen dat dat inspirerend is.
De onderwerpen staan in verschillende catergoriλn (zie links bovenaan elke bericht). Door op de categorie te klikken, krijg je de berichten over het gekozen onderwerp, bijvoorbeeld thuisonderwijs of thuisvrouw (dat leest wat gemakkelijker).
This blog is written in Dutch, although you may occasionally find English poems or website suggestions in my entries.
