The Week In Homeschooling

Ants- Live and Learn

2008-05-07T19:25:00.003-04:00

Ds: Wow! Look at this cool ant. I've never seen one like this before. (encourages ant to crawl over his hands)

[20 minutes later...]

Ds: Ow! Ow! Owwwww!

Wingless wasps. Live and learn.

04/27/08- 05/03/08- Used books, new comics and ants

2008-05-05T21:42:00.002-04:00

As if we need more books…

We started out the week with our county library’s book sale. We went on the last day when everything was ½ price. The kids scarfed up insect/nature and craft books. I found some plant field guides and a couple of books on science experiments. We made it out of the crowded warehouse for $10.

We ended the week with our annual observance of Free Comic Book Day. There were a

good number of kid friendly comics this year.

While the kids were choosing their comics, ds’s ants arrived! He received an ant farm for his birthday and we’ve been waiting more than six weeks for the inhabitants to get here. (I should have gone with my first instinct, which was to just catch some outside.) After getting them settled into their new gel home, the kids pulled up some chairs and watched for longer than even I thought possible.

In between- Ds completed 5 math lessons and 3 language arts lessons. Dd completed the same number of exercises in her respective books. We spent a couple of hours at the library. We attended our weekly homeschool group park day and stayed just 2 hours. They both attended their art classes. Free reading time was plentiful.

Tacking

2008-05-04T17:29:00.004-04:00

Our homeschooling sails occasionally luff. Sometimes it's obvious by the complaints and/or apathy of my kids. Sometimes I just sense that they're ready for more or different...something. The latter being the case, we're going to experiment, starting this week, with a bit more child-led scheduling.

The kids and I sat down with the family calendar. I pointed out their classes, fields trips to which we've already committed, my volunteer schedule and park days. I mandated a certain amount of math and language arts. Then, I told them they could fill up the weeks with one field trip/activity of their choice per kid per week.

Should be fun. They've chosen a variety of activities for May. Closer to home, they want to put on some plays, ride bikes, letterbox and bug hunt. Not so close to home, they want to cavort at some state parks, explore some caverns and patronize zoos.

What works for us is a moving target. It evolves with their intellects and interests. We'll see how much wind our sails catch in this direction.

04/20/08- 04/26/08- Art, Nature and Comics

2008-04-28T22:03:00.009-04:00

The kids and I attended a friend’s birthday party Sunday. The invitation clearly stated that homemade gifts were welcome and the idea of making a gift was well received by all in my house. Dd made a fishing game with some logistical support from me. The sea life drawings were all hers and, wow, look at that swordfish.

Ds knew the birthday girl likes wolves and made one for her with papier mache over an aluminum foil base. He had virtually no help from me; I just cooked the paste. They received compliments on their work at the party and I think they were both proud of themselves, as they should be.

Dd continued with her art class at the county art museum. Ds started a digital art class at a local university. Dh gave them both some watercoloring lessons. I haven’t scanned the masterpieces yet.

We went to the SC Botanical Gardens for a short class on wildlife habitats. The class was just okay. Maybe the garden naturalist was having an off day. Maybe she prefers to teach adults. I don’t know. What I do know is that her manner, combined with a soft voice, did not captivate the bunch. We learned a little though, and we had a good time outside of the class.

Paris Mountain State Park held its annual “Friends Day” and we were there. We took some kayaks out on the lake, met some rescued wildlife and heard a surprisingly good musician/singer. I ran into one of the rangers in line for bbq and it looks as if summer nature classes are in the works.

The kids and I tried some air pressure experiments from a new source- Ms. Aurora Lipper of Supercharged Science. They worked (not always a given) and the kids enjoyed them. Pictured is a hovercraft. I think we’ll continue “testing” the free stuff. I’ll post more if we like her product enough to buy.

Rounding out the week- Ds completed a couple of math lessons in Teaching Textbooks. We spent 3 ½ hours at park day. We spent an afternoon at the library. I would casually mention lots of free reading once again, but the kids actually spent an entire day reading. They found several anthologies of old comics at the library. Dh had requested an interlibrary loan for some others, which came in this week. So, after dh okayed them all, the kids dug in…and didn’t stop. I had a few other things planned for that day, but I couldn’t bring myself to make them “Stop reading!”

Why I Homeschool- Part 4 of ?

2008-04-25T22:16:00.006-04:00

No State License Required

I’ve heard and read quite a few arguments against homeschooling. Some are specific- to a family, to a subject, to a geographic region. Most I’ve seen around the blogosphere are generic. I haven’t yet encountered a single argument that gave me serious pause in my personal homeschooling path.

After the California decision, and interpretations of that decision, lots of bloggers, posters and commenters talked about credentials. State legalities aside, it’s obvious, argued many, that instruction from a credentialed teacher is superior to instruction from an uncredentialed parent.

Uh huh.

The assumption that does not hold in my family’s case is
that Mama is doing all of the teaching…around the kitchen table…from workbooks.

(Actually, there are several assumptions buried in that line of argumentation that don’t apply to us. However, we spent most of today outside hiking (part of that time with a botanist) and I’m just too exhausted for a mega post. So, one assumption at a time.)

For brevity’s sake, let’s focus on just one subject. How about science? Good science instruction requires a certain level of technical knowledge and truckloads of expensive equipment. How does my school compare with public and private? Meet my kids’ teachers for this year.

In person- the folks, animals, plants and facilities at
Riverbanks Zoo and Garden in Columbia
SC State Parks
USC Upstate Watershed Ecology Program
SC State Museum (so much that is hands-on)
Roper Mountain Science Center
Split Creek Farm (and they make the BEST fudge ever)
Happy Cow Creamery (they make the best chocolate milk)
Skytop Orchard (be sure to visit the bamboo forest)
Western North Carolina Nature Center
Georgia Aquarium
Barefoot Farms
Bob Campbell Geology Museum at Clemson University
SC Botanical Gardens
Hatcher Garden and Woodland Preserve
- and wonderfully generous, engaging people in our community who are
Master Naturalists
Master Gardeners
Local beekeepers
Amateur astronomers
Medical doctors and dentists

Via video- scientists/naturalists such as
David Attenborough
The Kratt Brothers
The Crocodile Hunter
Jeff Corwin
Schlessinger Science series developers
Scientists featured in videos available through Etv Streamline
PBS Nature contributors
PBS Nova contributors
Bill Nye
Richard Dawkins

On their own- yes, on their own- my kids teach themselves through their own

Gardening
Composting
Catching of bugs
Hiking
Watching of lunar eclipses and meteor showers
Planetarium visits
Creek wading
Mud wallowing
Placing of everything under magnification
Ant farm watching
Experiment conception and execution
Reading…and reading…and reading some more

We do use some printed resources and dh and I do teach our kids. However, we're hardly alone.

I respect public school teachers for the difficult job they perform. What I can’t fathom is mentally fashioning a teacher into something he or she is not. Do credentials and a sincere desire to teach coalesce into an instructional superhero- able to impart the knowledge of an entire community’s experts; to 20 children equally and effectively at the same time; in preset 45- 50 minute chunks; not always, but generally, from inside a building?

I don’t have a teaching license and my kids’ science instruction is pretty freaking good… and fun too.
The Whole Post

04/13/08- 04/19/08- New Toys and Devil's Fork

2008-04-25T18:42:00.003-04:00

We test products through a toy trade magazine’s program. Some of them are bona fide toys. Some are educational materials. They arrive on their own schedule which is consistent only in its sporadic nature. This week was a feast. We spent the better part of two days thoroughly inspecting a building toy, a nutrition workbook/CD combo and a multi-level logic CD-ROM. Of course, the kids enjoy getting new stuff…and in the mail no less. However, I like to think that they’re learning some consumer skills in the bargain.

We spent a day at Devil’s Fork State Park with some other homeschoolers and our favorite naturalist. The tadpoles were out in force, though the Oconee bells had already bloomed. We hiked a mile long trail (that felt more like 2), discovering native irises, native bamboo, violets galore and even more trees. Then we played in Lake Jocasee. It was very low and the kids found all sorts of rocks and different textures of soil and sand with which to sculpt.

Park day, free reading, free drawing, a trip to the library and dd’s art class at the county art museum rounded out the week.

An Attractive Yield

2008-04-19T22:16:00.002-04:00

So much of the information we learn doesn’t come from workbooks, CD’s, videos or field trips. Thought I’d start posting some of the incidental-yet-material, unschooling-esque opportunities to discover something new.

Ds casually inspected a 1099-INT while I was preparing our tax return this year. He liked the dollar figure he saw and asked if he could move his savings account to this other bank. I said I’d check into his options and, satisfied, he went off down the hall to do something else.

I was still working on my tax return later that afternoon when he walked into the room.

Ds: Know what the best thing about interest is?
Me, intrigued: Tell me.
Ds: You can earn interest on interest.
Me, nodding: Yeah, you sure can. That’s called-
Ds: Compound interest. I know.

So, okay, technically speaking, he didn’t learn about compound interest that afternoon. I ordered some general finance comics from the Federal Reserve more than a year ago. Who knows when he read them.

That afternoon, we talked a bit about percentages and why a bank pays interest at all. I’m not an unschooler per se, but I adamantly agree that kids will learn a heck of a lot of their own accord if you just let their interests lead the way.

Furman University

2008-04-17T20:38:00.003-04:00

Ds has enjoyed the art (drawing, cartooning) classes he has taken through Furman University’s Lifelong Learning program.

Whether or not you take a class, check out Furman Lake. You can’t wade/swim or feed the ducks. The water isn’t the cleanest either. However, there is a very bike friendly path around the entire lake. (I don’t recommend it for roller blades or scooters- too bumpy.) There is a bell tower at one end. You can climb half way up the winding metal staircase. The rose garden on the campus side of the lake is worth visiting in season. There are also plenty of shady places to have lunch or a snack.

We're thinking about trying some of the youth sports programs held there in the summer. Oh, and though I haven’t attended the July 4th celebration there yet, I hear the university does it up right.

04/06/08- 04/12/08- Holiday

2008-04-17T20:12:00.003-04:00

We essentially took the week off...because we needed it and we could.

We did attend park day and dd started an art class at the county art museum. More on the art class once she's decided what she thinks of it.

Why I Homeschool- Part 3 of ?

2008-04-11T00:16:00.007-04:00

Health and What I Won't Trade for Cash

I maintain that if all of my friends were somehow stranded in the same room that…well, someone would get hurt. Like everyone else, I hold a unique basket of views. My friends and I bond over different combinations of those views we have in common and I can respect differing perspectives…unless my children hang in the balance.

I disagree most passionately with Donald Tudor, South Carolina’s DOE School Transportation Director. I can think of quite a few reasons why school districts shouldn’t have the option of selling ad space inside school buses. Will I agree with the decisions of the “district appointed personnel” who will approve the ads before placement? Not likely. Kudos to the SC Senators who authored and sponsored S.1071 to ban the use of school buses to advertise anything to children. Yet, that bill has been stuck in committee since February and, meanwhile, the ads are being installed.

I disagree with the author and sponsors of SC Act 102- “Students Health and Fitness Act of 2005.” While their intent was good and the
Section 1 “Findings” are powerful motivators, their goals were not what I’d call lofty. Two and a half hours of physical activity a week- sixty of which must be in the form of P.E. class. Let’s see, that leaves 90 minutes for other physical activity, which comes out to 18 minutes of recess per day.

That’s just cruel, to ask a young child to be in the classroom all day with so little free time and so little outlet for the incredible energy he has. After homework, dinner, bathing, and whatever else a given family does as nighttime routine, what’s really left? What does this policy say about the SC DOE and legislature’s commitment to children’s fitness?

I disagree with the local school boards who have seen the statistics and have not yet pulled junk food from the school cafeterias. I commend the representatives and senators who sponsored H.4650 and S.1149 which would have banned the worst of the crap. What were the members of the panel who voted the house bill down today thinking?

Course, I know what they were thinking. Same thing the SC DOE employees were thinking of when they signed a contract to sell ad space on buses. Money. My sympathies go to the parents and other interested parties who’ve argued against such measures and had their voices drowned out by the almighty dollar…and by the silence of other parents.

If my kids were enrolled in public school, there wouldn’t be enough time in the day to mitigate the damage, mount effective opposition and still do our normal family stuff. As a homeschooler, I can feed them good food and make sure that they have free time and exercise; all this without permission, opposition, bureaucracy and advertising revenue. Wow! A say in the health and well-being of my own children.

And I haven’t even gotten around to education yet.

The Whole Post

03/30/08- 04/05/08- Biking and Jumping Rope

2008-04-10T10:13:00.001-04:00

Three highlights to this week- We attended an all-day naturalist class at Jones Gap State Park. I can’t say enough good things about that day, but I said some in my April 3 post.

Both kids learned how to jump rope. I don’t remember what sparked the interest. After picking up a couple of kid-length ropes, they were jumping and skipping on their own in less than an afternoon. Then, that’s all they wanted to do until…

Dd decided it was time to bid farewell to the training wheels on her bike. Again, it took less than an afternoon for her to become somewhat proficient. Ds cheered her on between his break-your-neck-speed runs down our very steep driveway.

Amidst the highlights, they managed some book work. Ds completed four lessons in Teaching Textbooks, three in Spectrum Language Arts and two in Spectrum Writing. Dd completed six exercises in Singapore Math, three lessons in Spectrum Writing, and two activities in Draw Write Now. They both watched David Attenborough’s Blue Planet series installment on Coral Seas. They read a ton and drew even more. We made it to our support group’s park day this week and stayed four hours. We took Friday off for a most-of-the-day playdate at friends’ house.

Dear Newbie

2008-04-09T23:39:00.005-04:00

My top three pieces of advice for new homeschoolers in Upstate SC, perhaps equally useful for homeschoolers new to Upstate SC-

1) Find a local, in-person support group. This area is (pleasantly) lousy with homeschoolers! Consequently, there is a slew of support groups, all with different flavors. The parents and kids you meet will be your best resources, bar none.

2) If the city of Lyman is within bearable driving distance, visit Children’s Books. It is a bookstore dedicated to homeschooling, i.e. it stocks most of the homeschooling titles you frequently see online. This is where you’ll be able to thoroughly peruse before you buy. It is a big metal warehouse in the middle of nowhere. Most of their business is mail order, though foot traffic is welcome. The products are arranged by publisher…and you can look at every last freakin’ page of whatever you’re thinking about buying. Worth the drive, imo.

3) Pick up a copy of the HSRD (Homeschool Resource Directory) and subscribe to the companion yahoo group HSRD Update. The HSRD is an annually published paper directory of support groups, co-ops, classes, and resources in SC. Had I known about it when I first moved here, it would have saved me some research time and legwork. (Incidentally, Children’s Books sells it and they do mail order.) The yahoo group disseminates all the info that doesn’t make it into the paper directory. Anyone subscribed to the group can post.

Enjoy.

Read the whole post.

The Elusive Beetle ID

2008-04-05T23:56:00.000-04:00

Me, reading from Wikipedia: Forty percent of all described insect species are beetles (about 350,000 species), and new species are frequently discovered. Estimates put the total number of species, described and undescribed, at between 5 and 8 million.

Ds, undaunted, holding up the beetle he just caught: Whoa! What kind is this one?

When you absolutely, positively MUST know what kind of bug at which you’re looking-

http://bugguide.net

and

http://www.whatsthatbug.com/

If I believed in luck, I’d wish some for you. You’ll need it.

Why I Homeschool- Part 2 of ?

2008-04-05T23:13:00.000-04:00

Child-appropriate vs. "age-appropriate" activities

A few days after turning nine, ds cooked dinner. Of course, he was no stranger to the kitchen. He had been making cookies, popcorn, soup, pizza, and a bunch of other edibles with me for years. However, THIS time he made dinner for the family himself- including the stove work.

I occasionally plucked an ingredient from a high shelf and issued safety instructions more times than were necessary. (That’s the kind of mom that I am.) For the most part, I just stood by and used the time to declutter that little corner of counter space that is an extension of the junk drawer.

As he sprinkled, squirted and mixed, three distinct thoughts bubbled up.

1) Ds is a creative chef. I told him he could put whatever he wanted in the burgers. He proceeded to taste and sniff a series of condiments from the fridge and just
about every spice I had in the rack. The combination he settled on- mustard, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, bread crumbs, basil, garlic, onion, salt, pepper and paprika- was new (to me) and ended up tasting quite good.
2) Okay, this isn’t so much a thought as a mental image. I have a really hard time picturing my babies as teenagers or adults. Yet, I envisioned a slightly older version of ds in his own home, making his own dinner.
3) There is a material difference between age-appropriate and child-appropriate activities. Are other nine year-olds experienced with a spatula? I don’t know. What I do know is that my son was interested in cooking dinner and he- at 9- was ready to learn how to cook safely over heat.

Can traditionally schooled children learn to cook dinner at home? Of course. Every family can tailor an activity to the unique interests and abilities of their children. The difference is that homeschoolers can tailor virtually all of their activities- including every academic pursuit- to fit their children’s interests and abilities...without regard to what twenty other kids who just happen to live in the same vicinity are ready for.

Bon appétit.
Real the whole post.

Buckeyes, Mayfly Nymphs and Waterproof Paper at Jones Gap State Park

2008-04-03T23:35:00.000-04:00

What a fabulous day we had today. Days like today boost my confidence in our homeschooling approach. (I’ve needed it lately.) We’re learning and it’s fun.

I’m a transplant. I was utterly amazed by the number, size and beauty of state
parks in the SC mountain region. What’s more, though several of these parks are close to each other, each has a distinct flavor worth sampling many times over.

Today my kids and I joined several other homeschooling clans to enjoy an educational program at Jones Gap State Park. (Actually, despite “State Park” on all the signs, it’s a wilderness area.) Can’t make enough grand comments about Ranger Tim, a botanist and the park’s naturalist. His passion for nature was obvious and the kids were drawn to it. The amount of information that he offered, in a language and manner that was accessible and engaging, was staggering to me. The hands-on nature of the day ensured that my kids will remember a great deal of the info and all of the feelings. I could almost see and hear the experiences clicking into their permanent memory locations.

We spent the morning walking through the forest. We identified plants at each of the different “levels” of the forest- from the floor to the canopy. He showed us bloodroot, a buckeye tree, long-spurred violets, hemlock trees and the egg sacks of the woolly adelgid that threatens them. We took soil samples, discovered a wealth of plant material and animals in them, and put quite a few of the insects in those clear viewing boxes with magnifying lenses on top. We rolled a rotten log over and found even more insects to observe. My guys were rapt and impressed the heck out of me with their questions and knowledge.

We spent the afternoon assessing the mountain stream habitat. We measured the water’s temperature. We tested the ph level and turbidity. We donned big, black rubber boots and got into the water to catch some creatures. (“Empowered curiosity”- that’s how I’d describe my kids’ expressions. They were using real scientific tools, alongside a real naturalist, then catching their own tiny little creatures to observe.) Then, we went back to the “lab” where Ranger Tim put them under a special microscope that enabled highly magnified images on a wide screen monitor. He opened a question and answer period that artfully led the kids through identifying the creatures, the reasons for our water tests and what the results said about the quality of the mountain stream habitat.

It was cold and it rained on us for most of the afternoon, yet it was a wonderful program and a wonderful day. I was so occupied that I forgot to take pictures until the very end. These are my guys with one of the rangers, saying goodbye after returning the creatures we studied to their home.

Oh,…and waterproof paper. Huh? When the kids were handed clipboards with “waterproof paper” on them to record their observations, I was skeptical. I expected to see water-resistant paper. Maybe it would stay dry for a few minutes in the rain. Yet, it stayed dry through the afternoon. Water beaded and rolled off. Even more interesting, my kids decided to put their (common graphite) pencil points in the beaded rain and… they were able to write under the water as if there was no moisture present at all. Highly cool product. A bit pricey, but if- like us- you don’t call it a day due to light rain, it’s worth checking out.
Read the whole post.

Bound and giggled- The day's off to a good start.

2008-04-02T01:59:00.001-04:00

I practically grew up on a sailboat, but I don’t remember the first thing about knots. I wenched. I coiled anchor rode. I swabbed decks and polished teak. I know how to wrap a sheet around a cleat, but I can’t remember the names of different knots, much less how to tie them.

I found the “The Klutz Book of Knots” for a quarter at a bookstore closeout. It’s a cute little gimmicky book that promises step-by-step instructions on how to tie “the world’s 24 most useful hitches.” Comes with a couple of cords and slots in the cover and some of the pages. “The kids will go for this,” I said to myself. Maybe I could rehone my long lost skills at the same time.

Six months later…I walk into the livingroom and my kids present me with two shoelace-length cords.

Ds: Handcuff me! Handcuff me!
Dd: Me too!
After some explanation, I grant their requests with my usual, all-purpose, sometimes bow-tied knot.

They giggle and promptly perform a quick Houdini.

Ds: Now it’s your turn, Mama.
Me: Okay.

THIS is what ds tied. That book sat on its shelf, untouched for six whole months. Apparently, he “discovered” the book the night before and mastered the quintuple, super-nasty-mondo-something hitch while I was out volunteering at the library.

Me: Hmm…I don’t think…no…I don’t think I can get out of this.
(raising of munchkin-size eyebrows and a giggle, maybe two)
Dd: Let’s tickle her.
Ds: Yeah!
Me, to my husband who is way far away downstairs: “Honey!!!! I need some help.!!!
Read the whole post.

Why I Homeschool- Part 1 of ?

2008-03-31T10:23:00.000-04:00

Desks, shmesks. Comfort has a better chance at being conducive to learning than sitting at a desk properly for long periods of time.

03/23/08- 03/29/08- Ah, Field Trips

2008-03-29T15:04:00.000-04:00

I said “yes” to a lot of future activities back when I was experiencing spring fever in a dramatic way. This week’s homeschool schedule reflected those consents.

We spent a day at the WNC Nature Center in Asheville. See my March 27 post for some great pics my ds took. It was a fabulous day of watching animals and touching everything that didn’t move. The temp was a little on the low side, but the kids and I witnessed scenes that I doubt I’ll see again, e.g. red wolves settling into a rock shelter amidst snow flurries. This nature center is well worth the trip.

A morning group excursion to Whole Foods was also well worth the effort. Our tour guide tailored the depth and nature of the info to the majority age group, while still including facts obviously aimed at parents. Then there were the samples.
I’ve long known that snacks make everything more fun. Watching the kids sample healthy, organic, locally grown foods and drinks (and like them) added to the value in my mama opinion.

Frequent field trips have to be a part of our homeschool experience. I’ve read all about the different kinds of learners- visual, spatial, audial, kinetic, etc. Like so many other labels, I think these can lead to overemphasis on one facet of
learning, at the expense of other, still viable and important facets. My kids learn in a variety of ways and so I try to come at each concept from different angles. We enjoy nature videos and books describing the camouflage and eyes (two on one side) of flat fish. It’s quite another experience to have the guy at the Whole Foods fish counter pull a flounder off the ice, show you the color variance between top and bottom, then put the two eyes inches from your face.

The rest of the week- We had a pretty much all day play date with a newer family in our support group. We needed the one-on-one time to get to know them. We spent a good three hours at park day. The kids did a lot of free reading. They spent a good deal of time working on art masterpieces with their Papa. Ds finished character development for a new comic and completed a strip or two. Both kids worked on some art and writing for a contest. Both kids plowed through the first chapters (ds, 2; dd, 4) of our new chemistry curriculum the day it arrived. I’m reserving judgment until we’ve lived with it for a few weeks.

The Bitter Homeschooler's Wish List

2008-03-29T12:41:00.000-04:00

Got my copy of Secular Homeschooling Magazine's second issue recently. This one had a special Charlotte Mason section. As I don't use her method(s), there were fewer articles of interest to me in this issue. However, as with the first issue, I found a couple of new (to me) resources. Imo, it's worth the subscription price.

I so thoroughly enjoyed "The Bitter Homeschooler's Wish List" in the first issue. I remember seeing the list making the rounds on every last loop I'm on. Sometimes the byline was included, sometimes not. I wished, rather than hoped, that the author and the magazine would get the full marketing boost from that piece.

So, I feel compelled to do it up right- "The Bitter Homeschooler's Wish List" BY DEBORAH MARKUS in Secular Homeschooling Magazine, Issue #1, Fall 2007. Check it out, if you haven't seen it already.

WNC Nature Center

2008-03-27T14:10:00.000-04:00

Ds's digital pics from our trip to the WNC Nature Center in Asheville. (Did he take some great shots or what?) In addition to all the live animals, there are many, many items to touch and explore- from snake skins to animal bones. Ds, dd and I give it six thumbs up.

Borrowing a Page...or Card

2008-03-23T19:43:00.000-04:00

Mmmm, I love the smell of new curriculum in the morning…that isn’t full of gratuitous scripture, dumbed-down, revisionist, dry as dirt or written with a 1:30 teacher ratio in mind.- me

When an acquaintance showed me her set of Veritas Press history flashcards, my first reaction was a long, deep, mental sigh of disappointment.

We had been talking for a good half hour about her classical approach to homeschooling. I liked her analogy with regard to the cards. Think of history as a grocery store with each aisle representing a segment in time. The flashcards are the aisle’s signs- the ones that are usually overhead that list representative items. The meat of the history course is what’s on the shelves. So, if her analogy holds, the flashcards provide an infrastructure- a way to keep historical periods straight chronologically.

The idea was intriguing and I appreciated her taking the time to tell me about it. Unfortunately, her cards wouldn’t work for us. This guy was on card number 1, with the corresponding chapter and verse below him.

Over the next few months, I searched (unsuccessfully) for a secular set and mentally toyed with various traditional timelines as an alternative. Yet, I couldn’t bring myself to expend the time and effort to put one together. I just knew my kids would digest the flashcards more efficiently. On a practical note, my walls were already loaded with Feenixx “content-intensive” posters.

So, I made my own timeline flashcards. (Maybe someday I'll get around to lettering them nicely and otherwise prettying them up.) Many thanks go to PBS’s NOVA and to my kiddos for prehistoric images and to the PALEOMAP Project for maps of the earth’s landmass configurations. I can’t begin to list all of the books from which I scanned pictures and illustrations.

Here’s hoping the secular homeschool community grows to the point at which secular curriculum exists for the widest range of teaching/learning styles in a dazzling array of formats.
Read the whole post.

03/16/08- 03/22/08- Chemistry & Papa's Turn

2008-03-22T20:56:00.000-04:00

I've been feeling that cyclical homeschool parent's anxiety lately. For me, relief comes via a thorough look at the resources currently on the market. Sometimes I trip over myself to incorporate what I find. Sometimes it seems there is nothing new of value to us.

This week, I spent obscene gobs of time on the internet. I'm fortunate to have a curriculum store within reasonable driving distance. The kids and I made the trip out to it as well. I purchased a writing book(let), a Spectrum Language Arts workbook for dd, Singapore Math for dd, and the chemistry sets of Real Science 4 Kids for both of my guys. I'll write more about them and link to them if we end up liking them.

My husband, who works at home, held "class" in his basement office for part of this week. He worked with dd on printing lower case letters and telling time. Ds focused on learning cursive, which he picked up readily.

The kids made periodic tables, in anticipation of starting a more rigorous investigation of physical science. (Teresa at Bondora Educational Media gave me the last bit of confidence I needed to get started in the form of her booklet "The Fearless and Simple Guide to the Periodic Table." It was cheap and her site has enough material and support to merit a bookmark.) In that wonderfully cohesive manner that I've come to expect of homeschooling, the kids chose to try out their newly acquired handwriting skills on their tables. Ds's may be the first periodic table I've ever seen in cursive.

Rounding out the week- Ds continued enjoyable math lessons in Teaching Textbooks. Dd completed math worksheets generated by Superkids. Both kids watched life science videos from Schlessinger Science Library (borrowed from the public library) and the BBC David Attenborough series "The Life of Mammals" from Netflix. We practiced spelling words. (They like to hold private bees.) We worked through a few lessons in Developing Critical Thinking Through Science- Books 1 & 2. They spent their usual inordinate amount of time reading and drawing. Dd continued her zoology copy work. Then, Friday, we hunted eggs with our (inclusive) homeschool support group.

Mama's going back to work... sort of.

2008-03-18T11:49:00.000-04:00

I interviewed at the library this morning for a volunteer position. I'll be shelving books and "reading" shelves for about 8 hours a week.

I've been looking for volunteer opportunities. As I can't imagine what our homeschooling would look like without our public library, it seems a natural place to offer my time.

The kids were very excited for me. (They don't remember the times when I was the breadwinner.) "Did you get the job?" "Wow! Congratulations!"

Now, if I can just find a family friendly volunteer opportunity that is meaningful to them.

03/09/08- 03/15/08- Birthdays and Kleenex

2008-03-17T19:55:00.000-04:00

March and September are big birthday months in my family. This week featured my husband’s birthday, my son’s birthday party and my own scrambling to get birthday packages out to two nephews.

As well, both kids were showing definite signs of having caught the viral yuck that I entertained the week before.

Our homeschooling- at least those activities I can translate and record in schoolease- consisted of a LOT of free reading and a healthy amount of free drawing. Before they got sick, we squeezed in some math drill and a few life science videos. Dd- who is committed to owning and running a wildlife refuge- decided to further her knowledge of endangered species by reading and taking notes from an animal encyclopedia. (The Kingfisher First Animal Encyclopedia ISBN: 0753451352) She took notes/copied from it all week. Once they were on the mend, just before the birthday party, we attended our support group’s park day and stayed our usual four hours.